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The fastest way to explore API Logic Server - with no install - is to follow this guide to create, explore and customize a project using Codespaces.

What is API Logic Server

API Logic Server creates customizable database web app projects:

  • Creation is Instant: create executable projects from your database, with a single command. Projects are Highly Functional, providing:

    • API: an endpoint for each table, with filtering, sorting, pagination and related data access

    • Admin UI: multi-page / multi-table apps, with page navigations, automatic joins and declarative hide/show

  • Projects are Customizable, using your IDE: such as VSCode, PyCharm, etc, for familiar edit/debug services

  • Business Logic Automation: using unique spreadsheet-like rules, customizable with Python 🏆

Follow the steps below to be up and running in about a minute - no install, no configuration. You can run the created project to explore its functionality, and how to customize it in VSCode.

 

Why Does It Matter: Faster, Simpler, Modern Architecture
Frameworks are too slow, Low Code is not dev-friendly

We looked at approaches for building database systems:

  • Frameworks: Frameworks like Flask or Django enable you to build a single endpoint or Hello World page, but a multi-endpoint API and multi-page application would take weeks or more.

  • Low Code Tools: these are great for building great UIs, but

    • Want a multi-page app, instantly -- no layout required each screen
    • Want to preserve standard dev tools (VSCode, PyCharm, git, etc) - propietary IDEs are not dev-friendly

And neither provides an answer for backend business logic (it's nearly half the effort).

API Logic Server - dev-friendly low-code automation

API Logic Server is a low-code, developer-friendly approach that leverages automation to dramatically improve web app development:

  • Automation makes it faster: moments, instead of weeks or months. Unblock UI Dev, and engage business users - early - to reduce misunderstandings. Customize with standard IDEs.

  • Automation makes it simpler: this reduces the risk of architectural errors, e.g., APIs without pagination.

  • Automation ensures a modern software architecture: container-ready, API-based, with shared logic over UIs and APIs (no more logic in UI controllers), in maintainable models.

 

1. Open in Codespaces

No install is required - this runs in the cloud, via your Browser, courtesy Codespaces. Use your existing GitHub account (no signup is required), and:

  1. Click here to open the Create Codespace page.

  2. Configure as desired, and click Create codespace.

This process takes about a minute. Wait until you see the port created.

What Is Happening

You will now see 3 projects - open in VSCode, in the Browser. But that's just what you see...

Behind the scenes, Codespaces has requisitioned a cloud machine, and loaded the template - with a complete development environment - Python, your dependencies, git, etc.

You are attached to this machine in your Browser, running VSCode.

These instructions are now visible in VS Code, to minimize window switching.

🏆 Pretty remarkable.

Verify it worked

VSCode will open in your Browser, and the project will perform various initialization tasks. After about 1 minute, verify as follows:

  1. Port is created
  2. Port made public
  3. 3 Sample projects created
  4. readme opened, showing next step

These instructions will continue in Codespaces in the readme.md (double-click it if it does not open automatically).

 

4. Explore the Readme

Open the readme to explore the sample project.

Tutorial Overview

The Tutorial will enable you to explore 2 key aspects:

  • Initial Automation - API and UI creation are automated from the data model. So, later, you'd see this level of automation for your own databases.

  • Customization and Debugging - this sample also includes customizations for extending the API and declaring logic, and how to use VSCode to debug these. The Tutorial will clearly identify such pre-built customizations.

 

Extensive product documentation is available here - checkout the FAQs.

 

API Logic Server Background

Motivation

We looked at approaches for building database systems:


Frameworks

Frameworks like Flask or Django enable you to build a single endpoint or Hello World page, but a multi-endpoint API and multi-page application would take weeks or more.


Low Code Tools

These are great for building great UIs, but

  • Want a multi-page app -- without requiring detail layout for each screen
  • Want to preserve standard dev tools - VSCode, PyCharm, git, etc
  • Need an answer for backend logic (it's nearly half the effort)

 

Our Approach: Instant, Standards-based Customization, Logic Automation

API Logic Server is an open source Python project. It runs as a standard Python (pip) install, or under Docker. It consists of:

  • a set of runtimes (api, user interface, data access) for project execution, plus

  • a CLI (Command Language Interface) to create executable projects with a single command

Then,

  • Customize your projects in standard IDEs such as VSCode or PyCharm

  • Declare multi-table derivations and constraint logic using spreadsheet-like rules

    • 🏆 40X more concise than code
    • Extend with Python

💡 API Logic Server reads your schema, and creates an executable, customizable project.