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GraphQL allows for optimizing data consumption, fetching only the needed data. Its strong typing and flexibility enable developers to work more efficiently and request precise data.
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Technical building block: can be automated, integrated, or operated.
Concrete cog in the system that works inside larger relationships.
GraphQL is a query language and runtime for APIs. Clients use a typed schema to describe exactly which fields and connected objects they need for a request.
Facebook developed GraphQL from 2012 for its mobile applications, whose varied interfaces needed efficient access to connected data. The specification was open-sourced in 2015 and is now developed under the GraphQL Foundation.
Imagine the API as a typed object graph. The schema is the map, naming types, fields, arguments, and relationships. A request marks one connected section of that map. The server invokes resolvers for the selected fields and returns a response whose shape mirrors the request.
The typed schema defines available objects, fields, arguments, and relationships.
A query selects exactly the fields and nested relationships required for a read operation.
A resolver retrieves or computes the server-side value of a requested field.
Mutations express write operations within the same typed API model.
GraphQL helps data-rich interfaces and multiple clients with different information needs. Its flexibility shifts responsibility to schema design, authorization, cost controls, caching, and observability. A simple stable resource API may not justify that additional operational work.
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