Namaste Developers! 🙏
Are you fed up with polling APIs every few seconds? Desire real-time updates similar to those glitzy chat programs?
WebSocket APIs in AWS API Gateway are here to save the day — desi style. 🌶️
🧠 What is a WebSocket API?
Using a WebSocket API in Amazon API Gateway is similar to communicating with your backend in both directions. In contrast to the typical request-response paradigm (such as REST), in this case *the client and server are free to communicate at any time! *
Imagine:
- A friend keeps messaging you only after you poke them (REST 😅)
- Another friend can ping you anytime with updates — that’s WebSocket!
🧪 Why Use WebSockets?
✅ Real-time communication
✅ No need to poll every few seconds
✅ Reduced latency
✅ Backend can push data to clients
✅ Scalable with AWS Lambda and other services
💡 Use Cases (Made in India Style 😄)
| Use Case | Example |
|---|---|
| 💬 Chat App | Real-time messaging like WhatsApp |
| 📊 Financial App | Live stock price updates |
| 🕹️ Game Server | Multiplayer games like Ludo King |
| 🧑🤝🧑 Collaboration | Real-time whiteboards or Google Docs |
| 📡 IoT Devices | Smart home device updates |
🔁 REST vs WebSocket: Table of Truth
| Feature | REST API | WebSocket API |
|---|---|---|
| Communication | One-way (Client → Server) | Two-way (Client ⇄ Server) |
| Latency | Higher (polling) | Lower (push-based) |
| Real-time | ❌ | ✅ |
| Connection | New connection every time | Persistent connection |
| Protocol | HTTP | ws / wss |
🏗️ WebSocket API Components in API Gateway
Let’s simplify the AWS docs:
-
Routes → Think of them as message types (
$connect,$disconnect, custom ones likesendmessage) - Integrations → Backend Lambda, HTTP, or AWS service that handles route logic
- Connection ID → Unique ID for each client connection, like a WhatsApp contact
🔄 WebSocket API Lifecycle
-
Client connects →
$connectroute triggers a Lambda -
Client sends a message → Route like
sendmessagetriggers another Lambda -
Backend responds → Can use
callback URLto push messages back to client -
Client disconnects →
$disconnectroute triggers clean-up Lambda
🧱 How to Create One? (Teaser)
In the next post, I will show how to create a WebSocket API using:
- API Gateway
- AWS Lambda
- DynamoDB for chat persistence
- Postman for testing
- Bonus: CloudFormation version 🎯
📚 Blog Series Roadmap: Real-Time Chat App using AWS WebSocket API
| Blog | Topic |
|---|---|
| ✅ Part 1 | Intro to WebSocket API in API Gateway (This Post) |
🧩 Summary
WebSocket API in API Gateway brings real-time capabilities to your app — effortlessly. Whether you’re building the next chatting app, stock dashboard, or a Ludo room — this is the tech you need.
🛎️ Stay tuned for Part 2 where we start building our real-time chat app using WebSockets, Lambda & DynamoDB.
👨💻 About Me
Hi! I'm Utkarsh, a Cloud Specialist & AWS Community Builder who loves turning complex AWS topics into fun chai-time stories ☕