API Testing Guide

Complete guide for testing API endpoints.

Testing Tools

cURL

Installation: Pre-installed on macOS/Linux, download for Windows

Basic Usage:

curl -X GET https://your-domain.com/api/endpoint

Postman

Download: Postman

Features:

GUI for API testing
Collection management
Environment variables
Automated testing

HTTPie

Installation: pip install httpie

Usage:

http GET https://your-domain.com/api/endpoint

Endpoint Testing

Analytics Endpoint

POST /api/analytics

curl -X POST https://your-domain.com/api/analytics \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "event": "page_view",
    "properties": {
      "page": "/home",
      "userId": "user-123"
    }
  }'

Expected Response:

{
  "success": true,
  "eventId": "event-123"
}

Errors Endpoint

POST /api/errors

curl -X POST https://your-domain.com/api/errors \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "error": {
      "message": "Test error",
      "stack": "Error stack trace"
    },
    "severity": "high",
    "context": {
      "userId": "user-123"
    }
  }'

Events Endpoint

POST /api/events

curl -X POST https://your-domain.com/api/events \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "button_click",
    "category": "interaction",
    "properties": {
      "buttonId": "submit-button"
    }
  }'

Metrics Endpoint

POST /api/metrics

curl -X POST https://your-domain.com/api/metrics \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "page_load_time",
    "value": 1500,
    "unit": "ms"
  }'

Testing Scenarios

Success Cases

# Valid request
curl -X POST /api/analytics \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"event": "page_view"}'

Error Cases

# Missing required field
curl -X POST /api/analytics \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{}'

# Invalid JSON
curl -X POST /api/analytics \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{invalid json}'

Rate Limiting

# Test rate limiting (make 100+ requests quickly)
for i in {1..110}; do
  curl -X POST /api/analytics \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -d '{"event": "test"}'
done

Postman Collection

Import Collection

{
  "info": {
    "name": "AI Store API",
    "schema": "https://schema.getpostman.com/json/collection/v2.1.0/collection.json"
  },
  "item": [
    {
      "name": "Analytics",
      "request": {
        "method": "POST",
        "header": [
          {
            "key": "Content-Type",
            "value": "application/json"
          }
        ],
        "body": {
          "mode": "raw",
          "raw": "{\n  \"event\": \"page_view\",\n  \"properties\": {}\n}"
        },
        "url": {
          "raw": "{{baseUrl}}/api/analytics",
          "host": ["{{baseUrl}}"],
          "path": ["api", "analytics"]
        }
      }
    }
  ]
}

Environment Variables

{
  "name": "Development",
  "values": [
    {
      "key": "baseUrl",
      "value": "http://localhost:3000"
    }
  ]
}

Automated Testing

Jest Tests

import { POST } from '@/app/api/analytics/route';

describe('POST /api/analytics', () => {
  it('should accept valid request', async () => {
    const request = new Request('http://localhost/api/analytics', {
      method: 'POST',
      body: JSON.stringify({
        event: 'page_view',
        properties: {},
      }),
    });

    const response = await POST(request);
    const data = await response.json();

    expect(response.status).toBe(200);
    expect(data.success).toBe(true);
  });
});

Testing Checklist

Functional Testing

[ ] Valid requests return 200
[ ] Invalid requests return 400
[ ] Missing fields return 400
[ ] Rate limiting works
[ ] Authentication works (if applicable)