Documenting the WebSocket API with Swagger
Swagger is primarily used for documenting RESTful APIs, but we can still leverage its features to provide comprehensive documentation for our WebSocket endpoints.
Creating an OpenAPI Specification
To document our WebSocket API, we can include details in the OpenAPI specification provided by FastAPI. Although OpenAPI does not natively support WebSocket, we can add descriptions and examples in the documentation.
from fastapi.openapi.utils import get_openapi
def custom_openapi():
if app.openapi_schema:
return app.openapi_schema
openapi_schema = get_openapi(
title="WebSocket API",
version="1.0.0",
description="This is a simple WebSocket API",
routes=app.routes,
)
openapi_schema["paths"]["/ws"] = {
"get": {
"summary": "WebSocket connection",
"description": "Connect to the WebSocket server. Send a message and receive a response.",
"responses": {
"101": {
"description": "Switching Protocols - The client is switching protocols as requested by the server.",
}
}
}
}
app.openapi_schema = openapi_schema
return app.openapi_schema
app.openapi = custom_openapi
In this example, we override FastAPI’s default OpenAPI generation to include a description of our WebSocket endpoint. This approach provides developers with a clear understanding of how to interact with the WebSocket server.
Documenting Websocket APIs with Swagger
WebSocket APIs offer a powerful way to create real-time, interactive applications by enabling bidirectional communication between clients and servers. Documenting these APIs is crucial for developers to understand and utilize them effectively. Swagger (now known as OpenAPI) is a widely used framework for API documentation, but it primarily focuses on HTTP-based APIs. This article will explore how to document WebSocket APIs using Swagger in a Python environment.