RESTify: from RPCs to RESTful HTTP design

Abstract

Starting with RESTful design is a difficult task -- even more if the designer has a RPC or object-oriented background. To support the adaption from RPC- to REST-oriented thinking, we propose RESTify, a straightforward procedure model to redesign a RPC-oriented interface into a hypermedia-enabled REST interface. RESTfiy uses a WSDL document of an existing SOAP service and consists of three iterations. The result of each iteration is an enhanced version of the preceding one concerning the REST constraints and is meant to be implemented as a HTTP service. Beside the technical result of the process and the design of a RESTful interface, the developer becomes acquainted to the main elements of a RESTful design, the constraints and their application. The results of the evaluation, using a prototypical web application and public SOAP services, are promising.