Application Layer Protocols

Introduction to Layer 7 Protocol HTTP

Hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP)

HTTP is a method for encoding and transporting data between a client and a server. It is a request/response protocol: clients issue requests, and servers issue responses with relevant content and completion status info about the request. HTTP is self-contained, allowing requests and responses to flow through many intermediate routers and servers that perform load balancing, caching, encryption, and compression.

A basic HTTP request consists of a verb (method) and a resource (endpoint). Below are common HTTP verbs:

Verb	Description	Idempotent*	Safe	Cacheable
GET	Reads a resource	Yes	Yes	Yes
POST	Creates a resource or trigger a process that handles data	No	No	Yes if response contains freshness info
PUT	Creates or replace a resource	Yes	No	No
PATCH	Partially updates a resource	No	No	Yes if response contains freshness info
DELETE	Deletes a resource	Yes	No	No

HTTP is an application layer protocol relying on lower-level protocols such as TCP and UDP.