Building Faster APIs with Avaje HTTP & JSONB

Developing high-performance APIs is a critical goal for modern software applications. Users expect fast, responsive services, and the efficiency of your backend can directly impact user experience and operational costs.

For Java developers, the landscape of tools and libraries is constantly evolving, offering new ways to optimize performance.

This post explores how to leverage two powerful technologies, Avaje HTTP and JSONB, to build faster and more efficient APIs.

We will cover the benefits of this combination, from streamlined serialization to improved database interactions, and provide a step-by-step guide to implementing these tools in your projects.

By the end, you’ll understand how this modern stack can significantly boost your API performance.

Boost API Performance with Avaje

When building APIs in Java, the choice of libraries can make a significant difference. Avaje offers a suite of tools designed for modern, high-performance development.

Introducing Avaje HTTP Client

The Avaje HTTP client is a lightweight, fluent library built on Java’s standard java.net.http.HttpClient.

It simplifies the process of making HTTP requests and handling responses, providing a clean and intuitive API.

Fluent API: Chain methods together to build requests in a readable and logical way.
Automatic Marshalling: Seamlessly convert Java objects to and from JSON without manual configuration.
Built-in Resilience: Features like retries and request/response logging are included out of the box.

Leveraging Avaje Nima

For building server-side applications, Avaje Nima offers a minimal-footprint web server.

It’s designed to be fast and efficient, making it an excellent choice for microservices and performance-critical applications where every millisecond counts.

The Power of JSONB Serialization

Efficient data handling is a cornerstone of API performance. How your application serializes and deserializes data can become a significant bottleneck, especially under heavy load. This is where JSONB comes in.

Why Choose JSONB?

JSONB is a binary representation of JSON data. Unlike traditional text-based JSON, JSONB is stored in a decomposed binary format that is faster for databases to parse and query.

Improved Query Performance: JSONB allows for direct indexing of fields within the JSON document, leading to much faster query execution times.
Reduced I/O: As a more compact format, it can reduce the amount of data transferred between your application and the database.

Avaje Jackson and JSONB Support

The Avaje Jackson module provides first-class support for jakarta.json.Jsonb.

It acts as a bridge, allowing the Avaje HTTP client and other components to use JSONB for serialization and deserialization effortlessly. This integration is key to achieving optimal performance.

Setting Up Your Development Environment

To get started, you need to configure your project to use the Avaje libraries. This involves adding the necessary dependencies to your build file.

Maven Dependencies

Add the following dependencies to your pom.xml file. This includes the Avaje HTTP client, the Jackson provider for JSONB serialization, and the core JSONB API.

<groupId>io.avaje</groupId>

<artifactId>avaje-http-client</artifactId>

</dependency>

<groupId>io.avaje</groupId>

<artifactId>avaje-jackson</artifactId>

</dependency>

<groupId>jakarta.json.bind</groupId>

<artifactId>jakarta.json.bind-api</artifactId>

</dependency>

Creating the HTTP Client

Once the dependencies are in place, you can create an instance of the HttpClient. This client will be automatically configured to use JSONB for handling JSON data.

HttpClient httpClient = HttpClient.builder()

.baseUrl(“https://api.example.com”)

.build();

Crafting API Requests

With the HttpClient configured, you can start making API requests. Avaje’s fluent API makes this process straightforward and highly readable.

Making a GET Request

To fetch data from an endpoint and automatically deserialize it into a Java object, you can use the bean() method.

MyBean bean = httpClient.request()

.path(“beans/42”)

.GET()

.bean(MyBean.class);

Executing a POST Request

Sending data is just as simple. The body() method automatically handles the JSONB serialization of your Java object into the request body.

var newBean = new MyBean(42, “hello”);

HttpResponse<Void> res = httpClient.request()

.path(“beans”)

.body(newBean)

.POST()

.asVoid();

Handling API Responses Effectively

Properly managing API responses is crucial for building robust applications. Avaje HTTP provides several convenient methods for processing different types of responses.

Deserializing Response Bodies

You can deserialize the response body into various formats, depending on your needs.

To a Single Object: Use bean(MyBean.class) for single objects.
To a List of Objects: Use list(MyBean.class) when the endpoint returns a JSON array.
To a Raw String: Use asString() to get the response body as a simple string.

Managing HTTP Status and Errors

The library offers built-in mechanisms for handling different HTTP status codes and exceptions.

try {

MyBean bean = httpClient.request()

.path(“beans/99”)

.GET()

.bean(MyBean.class);

} catch (HttpException e) {

// 4xx/5xx response codes

int statusCode = e.getStatusCode();

// Get body as a bean

var errorBean = e.bean(ErrorBean.class);

}

This structured error handling helps you create more resilient and predictable API integrations.

Measuring Performance Gains

The ultimate test of any optimization is measuring its impact. Combining Avaje HTTP with JSONB serialization typically yields noticeable improvements.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

When benchmarking, focus on these key metrics:

Latency: The time taken to receive a response after sending a request.
Throughput: The number of requests your API can handle per second.
CPU and Memory Usage: Lower resource consumption translates to lower operational costs.

Benchmarking Scenarios

Consider running benchmarks for common API operations:

High-Volume Read Operations: Test how quickly your API can serve data from a database using JSONB.
Concurrent Write Operations: Measure performance when multiple clients are writing data simultaneously.

By using tools like JMeter or Gatling, you can simulate realistic loads and quantify the performance benefits of your new stack.

Streamline Your API Development

By integrating Avaje HTTP with JSONB serialization, you can build faster, more efficient, and more maintainable APIs.

This combination provides a modern, lightweight foundation that optimizes everything from HTTP communication to database interaction.

The fluent API simplifies development, while the underlying binary format of JSONB boosts performance where it matters most. If you’re looking to elevate your Java API development, consider adopting this powerful duo.

Start by incorporating the Avaje libraries into your next project and measure the difference for yourself. Your users—and your servers—will thank you.