API management governs an API across its lifecycle, from creation and publication to deprecation. It becomes increasingly important as APIs grow and enter production, where versioning, documentation, monitoring, and client usage are harder to control. section 4.6 section 4.6.1
An API management platform can centralize several operational concerns:
- Present multiple APIs through one subscription console, giving customers a more consistent experience. section 4.6.1
- Expose analytics such as call volumes and API-version usage. section 4.6.1
- Support related controls and business processes, including rate limiting, load balancing, and monetization. section 4.6.1
- Make lifecycle states visible and enforce transitions such as created, published, and deprecated. section 4.6.1
Adding WSO2 to a growing API
A small API with one POST endpoint and four GET endpoints can be connected to WSO2 as its management layer. The manager centralizes API offerings, documentation, subscriptions, analytics, and lifecycle control. Docker keeps the management component replaceable, so another API manager can be evaluated without changing the underlying API-management goals. section 4.6 section 4.10
