Request-Reply Pattern: Both follow a synchronous communication model where client makes a request and waits for server response
Distributed Computing: Both enable communication between distributed systems
Service Abstraction: Both abstract the complexity of network communication
Implementation Flexibility: Both can be implemented over various transport protocols
Client-Server Architecture: Both follow the client-server architectural pattern
Message Exchange: Both exchange serialized data between systems
Platform Independence: Both can work across different platforms and programming languages
Key Differences
Aspect | REST API | Remote Procedure Invocation (RPI)
-- | -- | --
Philosophy | Resource-oriented | Procedure-oriented
Abstraction | Resources with state | Methods with parameters
Protocol | Primarily HTTP/HTTPS | Various (HTTP, TCP, custom)
Interface | Uniform interface using standard HTTP methods | Custom methods/procedures
State | Stateless by design | Can be stateful or stateless
Format | Typically JSON or XML representations | Various formats, often binary
Discovery | Often uses hypermedia (HATEOAS) | Typically uses service registry or IDL
Coupling | Loose coupling | Usually tighter coupling
Caching | Built-in HTTP caching mechanisms | Custom caching if implemented
Example Implementations | RESTful Web Services | gRPC, RMI, CORBA, SOAP
Usage Pattern | GET /users/123 → User resource returned | getUserById(123) → User object returned
Error Handling | HTTP status codes | Exceptions or error objects
Origin | 2000s, web-centric | 1970s, distributed computing
Common Use Cases
REST API: Public APIs, web applications, resource-centric systems, broad client compatibility
REST API vs Remote Procedure Invocation (RPI)
Similarities
Key Differences
Aspect | REST API | Remote Procedure Invocation (RPI) -- | -- | -- Philosophy | Resource-oriented | Procedure-oriented Abstraction | Resources with state | Methods with parameters Protocol | Primarily HTTP/HTTPS | Various (HTTP, TCP, custom) Interface | Uniform interface using standard HTTP methods | Custom methods/procedures State | Stateless by design | Can be stateful or stateless Format | Typically JSON or XML representations | Various formats, often binary Discovery | Often uses hypermedia (HATEOAS) | Typically uses service registry or IDL Coupling | Loose coupling | Usually tighter coupling Caching | Built-in HTTP caching mechanisms | Custom caching if implemented Example Implementations | RESTful Web Services | gRPC, RMI, CORBA, SOAP Usage Pattern | GET /users/123 → User resource returned | getUserById(123) → User object returned Error Handling | HTTP status codes | Exceptions or error objects Origin | 2000s, web-centric | 1970s, distributed computingCommon Use Cases