Overview
An API gateway is an API management tool that sits between a client and a collection of backend services.
An API gateway acts as a reverse proxy to accept all application programming interface (API) calls, aggregate the various services required to fulfill them, and return the appropriate result.
An API gateway’s role in API management
An API gateway is one part of an API management system. The API gateway intercepts all incoming requests and sends them through the API management system, which handles a variety of necessary functions.
Exactly what the API gateway does will vary from one implementation to another. Some common functions include authentication, routing, rate limiting, billing, monitoring, analytics, policies, alerts, and security.
How an API gateway supports DevOps and serverless environments
In organizations that follow a DevOps approach, developers use microservices to build and deploy apps in a fast-paced, iterative way. APIs are one of the most common ways that microservices communicate.
Additionally, modern cloud development, including the serverless model, depends on APIs for provisioning infrastructure. You can deploy serverless functions and manage them using an API gateway.
In general, as integration and interconnectivity become more important, so do APIs. And as API complexity increases and usage grows, so does the value of an API gateway.
