Tech Articles

Background

Almost every API requires some sort of authentication. Basic authentication is the simplest way to handle authentication. Here we are going to do a simple example to show you how to use HTTPClient or RESTClient to call an API with basic authentication.

Access a simple API with basic authentication in IE

Let’s take a simple basic authentication API from the Internet as an example.

If we input https://jigsaw.w3.org/HTTP/Basic/ in IE and press Enter, then input Username: guest; Password: guest in the pop-up login window.

Click the Sign in button and you will get a response of the current IE accessing the API: “Your browser made it!”

Use the HTTPClient object to call an API with basic authentication

Here is the debug view:

Here is the sample PB code:

String 		ls_Basic, ls_UserName, ls_Password, ls_Body
Integer         li_Return
CoderObject 	lco_Code
HttpClient 	lhc_Client

lco_Code = Create CoderObject
lhc_Client = Create HttpClient

ls_UserName = "guest"
ls_Password = "guest"
ls_Basic = lco_code.base64encode( Blob(ls_UserName + ":" + ls_Password , EncodingUTF8!))

lhc_Client.SetRequestHeader( "Authorization", "Basic " + ls_Basic)
li_Return = lhc_Client.SendRequest("GET", "https://jigsaw.w3.org/HTTP/Basic/")
If li_Return = 1 And lhc_Client.GetResponseStatusCode() = 200 Then
	lhc_Client.GetResponseBody(ls_Body)
	MessageBox ("Tips" ,ls_Body )
End If

Destroy ( lco_Code )
Destroy ( lhc_Client )

Use the RESTClient object to call an API with basic authentication

Here is the debug view:

Here is the sample PB code:

String		 ls_Basic, ls_UserName, ls_Password, ls_Body
Integer          li_Return
CoderObject 	 lco_Code
RestClient 	 lhc_Client

lco_Code = Create CoderObject
lhc_Client = Create RestClient

ls_UserName = "guest"
ls_Password = "guest"
ls_Basic = lco_code.base64encode( Blob(ls_UserName + ":" + ls_Password , EncodingUTF8!))
lhc_Client.SetRequestHeader( "Authorization", "Basic " + ls_Basic)
li_Return = lhc_Client.sendgetrequest( "https://jigsaw.w3.org/HTTP/Basic/",ls_Body)
If li_Return = 1 And lhc_Client.GetResponseStatusCode() = 200  Then
	MessageBox ("Tips" ,ls_Body )
End If

Destroy ( lco_Code )
Destroy ( lhc_Client )