Is there a specific scenario where we use a POST instead of GET, to implement the functionality of get operation ?
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2For a get operation, you might use a POST when you need to send data that doesn't fit in the URI and you can't send it in the GET request's body (many clients don't allow to send data in the body of a GET request). Elasticsearch database takes this approach with its RESTful APIfps– fps2020-09-30 03:18:01 +00:00Commented Sep 30, 2020 at 3:18
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2You might also use a POST if the request contains sensitive information-- URIs are often logged when the body is not.John Wu– John Wu2020-09-30 03:34:51 +00:00Commented Sep 30, 2020 at 3:34
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3 Answers
GET is supposed to get :) and POST is used to mainly add something new or sometimes often used for updates as well (although PUT is recommended in such scenarios). There is no specific scenario where we use a POST instead of a GET, if we require this, that means we are probably doing it wrong, although nothing stops you doing this but this is bad design and you should take a step back and plan your API carefully.
There are 2 important cases for a POST i.e. POST is more secure than a GET and POST can send large amount of data but even with this I won't recommend why one will use POST to simulate a GET behaviour.
2 Comments
Euphoria
I have been asked in various interviews if there is a reason to do it.
SSC
@Rookie Updated answer with different aspects of a
POST but still I won't recommend using POST. Why you ever need to send more than 2048 characters to get something? Perhaps a redesign of API is required in such casesLets understand usage of get and post :
What is GET Method?
It appends form-data to the URL in name/ value pairs. The length of the URL is limited by 2048 characters. This method must not be used if you have a password or some sensitive information to be sent to the server. It is used for submitting the form where the user can bookmark the result. It is better for data that is not secure. It cannot be used for sending binary data like images or word documents. It also provides $_GET associative array to access all the sent information using the GET method.
What is POST Method?
It appends form-data to the body of the HTTP request in such a way that data is not shown in the URL. This method does not have any restrictions on data size to be sent. Submissions by form with POST cannot be bookmarked. This method can be used to send ASCII as well as binary data like image and word documents. Data sent by the POST method goes through HTTP header so security depends on the HTTP protocol. You have to know that your information is secure by using secure HTTP. This method is a little safer than GET because the parameters are not stored in browser history or in web server logs. It also provides $_POST associative array to access all the sent information using the POST method.
Source: https://www.edureka.co/blog/get-and-post-method/
So both the methods have their specific usage.
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at54321
The $_GET and $_POST associative arrays are PHP-specific stuff. The question has nothing to do with PHP. In fact, it has a
java tag (even though that seems quite redundant/irrelevant to me).POST method is used to send data to a server to create or update a resource.
GET method is used to request data from a specified resource.
If you want to fetch some data you can use the GET method. But if you want to update an existing resource or create any new resource you should use POST. GET will not help you to create/update resources. So exposing the api should be specific to your needs.
UPDATE
So your main question is in what scenario we can use POST to implement the functionality of GET.
To answer that, as you understand what GET and POST does, so with GET request you will only fetch the resource. But with POST request you are creating or updating the resource and also can send the response body containing the form data in the same request response scenario. So suppose you are creating a new resource and the same resource you want to see, instead of making a POST call first and making a GET call again to fetch the same resource will cost extra overhead. You can skip the GET call and see your desired response from the POST response itself. This is the scenario you can use POST instead of making an extra GET call.
