/codebase-documenter

API Documentation

Overview

This document provides comprehensive documentation for all API endpoints in [Project Name].

Base URL: https://api.example.com/v1

API Version: v1

Last Updated: [Date]

Table of Contents

• Authentication
• Error Handling
• Rate Limiting
• Endpoints
  • Resource 1
  • Resource 2

Authentication

Authentication Method

This API uses [JWT/API Keys/OAuth/etc.] for authentication.

How to authenticate:

1. [Step 1 to get credentials]
2. [Step 2 to use credentials]

Example authentication header:

Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN_HERE

Getting your API token:

# Example command or process to obtain token
curl -X POST https://api.example.com/v1/auth/login \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email": "user@example.com", "password": "password123"}'

Response:

{
  "token": "eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9...",
  "expiresAt": "2024-12-31T23:59:59Z"
}

Error Handling

Error Response Format

All errors follow this format:

{
  "error": {
    "code": "ERROR_CODE",
    "message": "Human-readable error message",
    "details": {
      "field": "Additional context about the error"
    }
  }
}

Common Error Codes

Error Examples

401 Unauthorized:

{
  "error": {
    "code": "UNAUTHORIZED",
    "message": "Invalid or expired authentication token"
  }
}

400 Invalid Request:

{
  "error": {
    "code": "INVALID_REQUEST",
    "message": "Validation failed",
    "details": {
      "email": "Invalid email format",
      "age": "Must be a positive number"
    }
  }
}

Rate Limiting

Rate limits:

• Authenticated requests: 1000 requests per hour
• Unauthenticated requests: 100 requests per hour

Rate limit headers:

X-RateLimit-Limit: 1000
X-RateLimit-Remaining: 999
X-RateLimit-Reset: 1640995200

When rate limited:

• Status code: 429 Too Many Requests
• Response includes Retry-After header (seconds until reset)

Endpoints

[Resource 1 - e.g., Users]

List [Resources]

Retrieve a paginated list of [resources].

Endpoint:

GET /api/v1/[resources]

Authentication: Required

Query Parameters:

Example Request:

curl -X GET "https://api.example.com/v1/users?page=1&limit=10&sort=created_at&order=desc" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"

Example Response:

{
  "data": [
    {
      "id": "usr_123abc",
      "name": "John Doe",
      "email": "john@example.com",
      "role": "admin",
      "created_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z",
      "updated_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z"
    },
    {
      "id": "usr_456def",
      "name": "Jane Smith",
      "email": "jane@example.com",
      "role": "user",
      "created_at": "2024-01-14T15:20:00Z",
      "updated_at": "2024-01-14T15:20:00Z"
    }
  ],
  "pagination": {
    "page": 1,
    "limit": 10,
    "total": 42,
    "pages": 5
  }
}

Response Fields:

Get [Resource]

Retrieve a single [resource] by ID.

Endpoint:

GET /api/v1/[resources]/{id}

Authentication: Required

Path Parameters:

Example Request:

curl -X GET "https://api.example.com/v1/users/usr_123abc" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"

Example Response:

{
  "id": "usr_123abc",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "email": "john@example.com",
  "role": "admin",
  "profile": {
    "bio": "Software developer",
    "location": "San Francisco, CA"
  },
  "created_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z",
  "updated_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z"
}

Possible Errors:

• 404 NOT_FOUND - [Resource] with specified ID doesn't exist
• 401 UNAUTHORIZED - Invalid or missing authentication token
• 403 FORBIDDEN - Insufficient permissions to view this [resource]

Create [Resource]

Create a new [resource].

Endpoint:

POST /api/v1/[resources]

Authentication: Required

Request Body:

Example Request:

curl -X POST "https://api.example.com/v1/users" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "Alice Johnson",
    "email": "alice@example.com",
    "role": "user",
    "profile": {
      "bio": "Product designer",
      "location": "New York, NY"
    }
  }'

Example Response:

{
  "id": "usr_789ghi",
  "name": "Alice Johnson",
  "email": "alice@example.com",
  "role": "user",
  "profile": {
    "bio": "Product designer",
    "location": "New York, NY"
  },
  "created_at": "2024-01-16T14:20:00Z",
  "updated_at": "2024-01-16T14:20:00Z"
}

Possible Errors:

• 400 INVALID_REQUEST - Validation failed (see error details)
• 401 UNAUTHORIZED - Invalid or missing authentication token
• 403 FORBIDDEN - Insufficient permissions to create [resource]
• 409 CONFLICT - [Resource] with this email already exists

Update [Resource]

Update an existing [resource].

Endpoint:

PATCH /api/v1/[resources]/{id}

Authentication: Required

Path Parameters:

Request Body:

Note: Only include fields you want to update. Omitted fields remain unchanged.

Example Request:

curl -X PATCH "https://api.example.com/v1/users/usr_123abc" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "role": "admin",
    "profile": {
      "bio": "Senior Software Developer"
    }
  }'

Example Response:

{
  "id": "usr_123abc",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "email": "john@example.com",
  "role": "admin",
  "profile": {
    "bio": "Senior Software Developer",
    "location": "San Francisco, CA"
  },
  "created_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z",
  "updated_at": "2024-01-16T15:00:00Z"
}

Possible Errors:

• 400 INVALID_REQUEST - Validation failed
• 401 UNAUTHORIZED - Invalid or missing authentication token
• 403 FORBIDDEN - Insufficient permissions to update this [resource]
• 404 NOT_FOUND - [Resource] with specified ID doesn't exist

Delete [Resource]

Delete a [resource].

Endpoint:

DELETE /api/v1/[resources]/{id}

Authentication: Required

Path Parameters:

Example Request:

curl -X DELETE "https://api.example.com/v1/users/usr_123abc" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"

Example Response:

{
  "success": true,
  "message": "[Resource] deleted successfully"
}

Possible Errors:

• 401 UNAUTHORIZED - Invalid or missing authentication token
• 403 FORBIDDEN - Insufficient permissions to delete this [resource]
• 404 NOT_FOUND - [Resource] with specified ID doesn't exist

[Resource 2 - e.g., Projects]

[Repeat the same pattern for another resource: List, Get, Create, Update, Delete]

Webhooks

Overview

[If your API supports webhooks, document them here]

Webhook endpoint requirements:

• Must accept POST requests
• Must respond with 200 status within 5 seconds
• Must use HTTPS

Available Events

Webhook Payload

{
  "event": "[resource].created",
  "timestamp": "2024-01-16T15:30:00Z",
  "data": {
    "id": "usr_123abc",
    "name": "John Doe",
    "email": "john@example.com"
  }
}

Verifying Webhooks

[Explain how to verify webhook authenticity, e.g., signature verification]

SDK Examples

JavaScript/TypeScript

// Install: npm install @example/api-client

import { APIClient } from '@example/api-client';

const client = new APIClient({
  apiKey: 'YOUR_API_TOKEN'
});

// List resources
const users = await client.users.list({
  page: 1,
  limit: 10
});

// Get single resource
const user = await client.users.get('usr_123abc');

// Create resource
const newUser = await client.users.create({
  name: 'Alice Johnson',
  email: 'alice@example.com'
});

// Update resource
const updatedUser = await client.users.update('usr_123abc', {
  role: 'admin'
});

// Delete resource
await client.users.delete('usr_123abc');

Python

# Install: pip install example-api-client

from example_api import APIClient

client = APIClient(api_key='YOUR_API_TOKEN')

# List resources
users = client.users.list(page=1, limit=10)

# Get single resource
user = client.users.get('usr_123abc')

# Create resource
new_user = client.users.create(
    name='Alice Johnson',
    email='alice@example.com'
)

# Update resource
updated_user = client.users.update(
    'usr_123abc',
    role='admin'
)

# Delete resource
client.users.delete('usr_123abc')

Best Practices

Pagination

Always paginate list endpoints to avoid performance issues:

• Use limit parameter to control page size
• Don't request more than 100 items per page
• Use page parameter for subsequent pages

Error Handling

Implement proper error handling:

try {
  const user = await client.users.get('usr_123abc');
} catch (error) {
  if (error.code === 'NOT_FOUND') {
    console.log('User not found');
  } else if (error.code === 'UNAUTHORIZED') {
    console.log('Authentication failed');
  } else {
    console.log('Unexpected error:', error.message);
  }
}

Rate Limiting

Monitor rate limit headers and implement backoff:

const response = await fetch(url, options);
const remaining = response.headers.get('X-RateLimit-Remaining');

if (remaining < 10) {
  console.warn('Approaching rate limit');
}

Support

Questions or issues?

• Documentation: [link]
• Support email: [email]
• Community forum: [link]
• Issue tracker: [link]

API Status:

• Status page: [link]
• Uptime: [link]