It is common that a web and mobile applications needs to access the data or functions provided by some existing systems in HKUST. For popular applications, the resulting accesses to existing systems can be voluminous and may cause unexpected issues to the normal operation of existing systems. To prevent adverse effects on or even disruptions to existing systems, the application owner should first request consent from the respective system owners on such accesses; and follow the agreed approach to access the data or functions.
In order to ensure this process is manageable and effective, the University advocates the use of the Application Programming Interface (API) technology, conforming to common standards for web and mobile apps to access data and functions from other systems in an orderly and secure fashion.
To facilitate and encourage the use of API on campus, the University IT infrastructure includes two essential components for this purpose: HKUST API Gateway & HKUST API Portal
HKUST API Gateway
The existing HKUST systems that expose the APIs are protected by channeling all accesses to APIs through the HKUST API Gateway. The Gateway will control access to APIs according to pre-defined access frequency, intensity, etc. and prevent overloading.
HKUST API Portal
The HKUST API Portal is a centralized repository for departments to publish different application APIs and encourage the collaboration between different departments and developers to generate value from the open API platform.The API Portal is an online platform for HKUST community members to collaborate so as to develop the Sustainable Smart Campus initiatives backed by APIs.
System owners who decide to expose data and functions, protected or public, through APIs can illustrate in a standardized way what the APIs do and how they can be accessed by publishing such information in the HKUST API Portal. The Portal serves as a one-stop shop of available APIs on campus: HKUST API Portal
If you would like to publish API to the API portal, please contact us at cchelp@ust.hk and we'll coordinate with you for the setup and testing.