What is the best way to add an API to a Django application?

Question

I am adding MetaWeblog API support to a Django CMS, and am not quite sure how to layer the application.

I am using django_xmlrpc, which allows me to map to parameterised functions for each request. It is just a case of what level do I hook in calls to the django application from the service functions (AddPage, EditPage etc)

For django-page-cms, and I suppose many django apps, the business logic and validation is contained within the forms. In this case there is PageForm(forms.ModelForm) and PageAdmin(ModelAdmin), which both contain a lot of logic and validation.

If I am to build an API to allow maintenance of pages and content, does this mean I should be programmatically creating and filling a PageAdmin instance? Then catching any exceptions, and converting to their api equivalent? Or would this be a bad idea - misusing what forms are intended for?

The other option is refactoring the code so that business and logic is kept outside of the form classes. Then I would have the form and api, both go through the separate business logic.

Any other alternatives?

What would be the best solution?

Answer 1

Web services API's are just more URL's.

These WS API URL's map to view functions.

The WS view functions handle GET and POST (and possibly PUT and DELETE).

The WS view functions use Forms as well as the Models to make things happen.

It is, in a way, like an admin interface. Except, there's no HTML.

The WS view functions respond with JSON messages or XML messages.