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Information about the Mattermost REST API

The REST API is a JSON web service that facilitates communication between Mattermost clients, as well as integrations, and the server. The server is currently on API version 4.

Reference 

Looking for the API reference? You can find it here: https://api.mattermost.com.

Add an endpoint 

To add an endpoint to API version 4, all of the following must be completed:

• Reference
• Add an endpoint
  • Document the endpoint
  • Implement the API handler
  • Update the Golang driver
  • Write a unit test
  • Submit your pull request (PR)
• Legacy Notes

Document the endpoint 

At Mattermost, the OpenAPI specification is used for API documentation. The API documentation lives in the main Mattermost repository alongside the server: api.

To document an endpoint, follow these steps:

1. Find the .yaml file in the api/v4/source directory that fits your endpoint.

   • For example, if you were adding the GET /users/{user_id} endpoint you would be looking for the users.yaml file.
   • If the file doesn’t exist yet, you may need to create it and then update the Makefile to include the file.

2. Copy an existing endpoint from the same or a different file.

3. Update the documentation you copied with the correct information for your endpoint, including:

   • Tag - the resource type
   • Summary - a summary of few words
   • Description - a brief 1-2 sentence description
   • Permissions - the permission(s) required
   • Parameters - the URL and body parameters
   • Responses - the success and error responses

4. Confirm you don’t have any syntax errors by running make build within the api directory.

5. Continue with the implementation of your API handler, updating this documentation as needed.

Implement the API handler 

To implement the API handler, you’ll first need to setup your developer environment, and then follow these steps:

1. Add the declaration for your endpoint. For an example, check out the /api4/user.go file.

2. Implement the handler for your endpoint. Follow this general pattern for handlers:

   func handlerName(c *Context, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
       // 1. Parse the request URL and body.
       // 2. Do a permissions check if required.
       // 3. Invoke handler logic through the app package.
       // 4. (Optional) Check the Etag.
       // 5. Format the response and write the response.
   }
   

   For examples, see the createUser() and the getUser() handlers.

3. Run the server by runing make run-server within the server directory.

4. Use curl or Postman to test the basics of your endpoint.

Update the Golang driver 

The Go driver for APIv4 is in /model/client4.go. To add a function to support your new endpoint:

1. Copy over an existing driver function, such as CreateUser.

2. Paste the function into the section for your endpoint. For example, POST /teams would go in the Teams section.

3. Modify the function to correctly hit your endpoint. Make sure to update the request method to match your endpoint’s HTTP method.

Write a unit test 

The most important part of this process is to make sure the new endpoint works correctly. Follow these steps to write a unit test:

1. Open the test Go file related to your endpoint, or create one if necessary. For example, if you put your handler in /api4/user.go, your test will go in /api4/user_test.go.

2. Write your test based on the other tests in your file (or folder). There are several helper functions in /api4/apitestlib.go that you may use.

3. Ensure that your test covers the following:

   • All combinations of correct inputs to your endpoint.
   • Etags for your endpoint, if applicable.
   • Incorrect URL or body parameters return a 400 Bad Request status code.
   • Requests without a token return a 401 Unauthorized status code (for endpoints requiring a session).
   • Requests with insufficient permissions return a 403 Forbidden status code (for endpoints requiring permission).
   • Requests to non-existent resources or URLs return a 404 Not Found status code.

Returning the correct error code might require investigation in the app or store to find the source of errors. Status codes on errors should be set at the creation of the error.

Submit your pull request (PR) 

Submit your pull request against the mattermost/mattermost repository by following these instructions.

Legacy Notes 

The Mattermost API used to be defined in https://github.com/mattermost/mattermost-api-reference, but the source has since been moved to the mattermost/mattermost to streamline making code and documentation changes at the same time.