HTTP Request Response Cycle HTTP Methods

Learning objective: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to identify and explain the four primary HTTP methods: GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE.

HTTP methods

HTTP methods indicate the desired action to be performed on a given resource on the server. Since they are action-oriented, they are frequently referred to as HTTP verbs.

HTTP method	Action taken by browser
`GET`	Requests a specific resource from the server. Only used for retrieving data.
`POST`	Sends data to the server. Often this request will create a new resource but can be used for any type of request that submits information to a server.
`PUT`	Sends data to the server requesting to update an existing resource.
`DELETE`	Requests the removal of a specified resource from the server.

Use cases

Here are some real scenarios, how users carry them out, and how the browser responds to that user action:

`GET`

Scenario: A user wants to view the latest news articles on a news website.

User action: The user navigates to the news website and clicks on the Latest News section.

Browser action: The browser sends a GET request to the server to retrieve and display the latest news articles.

`POST`

Scenario: A user is creating a new profile on a social media platform.

User action: The user fills out a sign-up form with their details and clicks Submit.

Browser action: This browser sends a POST request to the server, instructing it to create a new user profile with the provided information.

`PUT`

Scenario: A user has moved and is updating the address for their cell phone bill.

User action: The user inputs their new address into a form and confirms the update.

Browser action: The browser sends a PUT request to the server, instructing it to replace the existing address information with the new address.

`DELETE`

Scenario: A user decides to delete a blog post they have written on a blogging platform.

User action: The user navigates to their blog post and clicks the Delete button.

Browser action: The browser sends a DELETE request to the server, instructing it to remove that specific blog post.

🎓 You Do

Given the scenarios and user actions below, determine the action taken by the browser.

Scenario 1

Scenario: A user wants to check their balance on an online banking website.

User action: The user navigates to view their account balance without making any changes.

What action will the browser take?

Scenario 2

Scenario: A user signs in to an existing account on an e-commerce website.

User action: The user fills out a sign-in form with their username and password and clicks Submit.

What action will the browser take?

Additional HTTP methods

There are many HTTP methods that you will likely encounter in your career beyond GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE. It is helpful to be aware of the most common HTTP methods and understand how they can be used. See this documentation from Mozilla’s developer network that explains the nine most common ones.