May 2019 Summaries

Postman 7.1 introduces comprehensive tools for API development directly within the platform, enhancing the process from creation to deployment with features like extended schema support for formats such as RAML and OpenAPI, API versioning, and improved collaboration functionalities. Users can create APIs by importing schemas or building new ones, generate collections for testing endpoints, and utilize mock servers for development. The release emphasizes version management by allowing updates and the creation of new API versions, facilitating better organization and tracking of changes. Additional features include tagging documentation with version tags, sharing APIs across workspaces, and accessing enhanced documentation for deeper exploration of functionalities. With these updates, Postman 7.1 aims to provide a seamless and integrated solution for managing the entire API lifecycle.

Manually clearing environment variables in Postman can be a tedious task, but this approach offers a more efficient method by dynamically unsetting variables using JavaScript. By utilizing the `pm.environment.toObject()` method along with the Lodash module, users can retrieve all environment variables and iterate through them using the `_.keys()` and `_.each()` functions. By applying a condition with the `startsWith()` method, variables with specified prefixes, such as "demo," can be selectively removed. This process can be streamlined by assigning a unique prefix to variables expected to be deleted later. Users can manage and edit environment variables within the Postman app by accessing the Manage Environments or Quick Look icons, allowing for easy creation, sharing, and modification of variables.

Postman 7.1 introduces significant enhancements by allowing users to create APIs directly within the app, positioning the API as a central element in the development workflow. The update includes new features such as schema support and editing, API versioning, and version tagging, enabling users to manage every aspect of API development—from schema design to testing and documentation—within a single platform. The introduction of the API tab creates an organized workflow where all elements associated with an API, such as tests, documentation, mock servers, and monitors, can be viewed in one place. This release also features four new tabs—Define, Develop, Test, and Observe—that guide users through the API development process. With support for formats like OpenAPI and RAML, Postman offers flexibility in building and customizing APIs, while versioning and version tagging enhance collaboration by allowing teams to work on multiple API versions simultaneously. This update encourages a shift to an API-first approach by integrating collaboration-focused features, enhancing the efficiency and precision of API design and development.

Postman has launched version 7.1, introducing the ability to create APIs directly within the app, marking APIs as central to the Postman user experience. This update includes features such as schema support, API versioning, and version tagging, enabling users to manage the entire API development process—from designing schemas to generating documentation—without leaving the app. Recognizing the diverse needs of API workflows, Postman has integrated OpenAPI and RAML editors, with plans to support GraphQL soon, and aims to seamlessly integrate with internal systems and industry-standard tools. The new API tab is labeled as a "Beta" feature, inviting user feedback to refine it further, even as version 7.1 is deemed robust and ready for production. Users are encouraged to experiment and provide feedback to help Postman enhance their offerings in line with the API-first paradigm.

The text outlines a comprehensive online workshop series focused on utilizing Postman for API development and testing, covering topics from basic operations like importing schemas and creating mock servers to advanced practices such as setting up a CI/CD pipeline using Newman. The series starts with an introduction to importing and manipulating collections and progresses to employing version control techniques like forking and merging. The final segment delves into features such as mocking and monitoring APIs, which are useful for collaboration and debugging, as well as establishing continuous integration and deployment pipelines with tools like Travis CI and GitHub. Participants learn to create mock servers for testing APIs without backend setup, use monitors to ensure API health by running automated tests, and configure notifications for monitoring results. The workshop also provides a step-by-step guide to integrating Postman with CI/CD workflows, demonstrating how to automate tests and ensure reliable deployments using Newman, a command-line tool, along with detailed instructions for setting up and managing monitoring, notifications, and pipeline configurations.

The recent online workshop series explored various features of Postman, particularly focusing on version control using the fork and merge capabilities. Participants learned how to create forks of collections to enable parallel development, allowing changes to be tested without affecting the original collection. The workshop detailed steps for creating a fork, making changes, testing them, and merging them back into the parent collection, emphasizing the importance of thoroughly testing before merging. It also highlighted methods to resolve conflicts that may arise when multiple team members work on different forks simultaneously, such as pulling changes from the parent collection or merging and resolving differences. To avoid conflicts, the workshop recommended good communication and starting with an updated fork. Participants were encouraged to practice these features with their teams and stay informed through further documentation and upcoming sessions in the series.

Postman, used by over 200,000 companies and 6 million developers globally, has obtained SOC 2 Type 1 certification, highlighting its commitment to security by adhering to the trust service principles established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. This certification serves as an industry-wide acknowledgment of Postman's adherence to standards of security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy, which are crucial for SaaS companies. The SOC 2 Type 1 audit was completed without exceptions, marking a significant step in Postman's ongoing mission to enhance security and governance. While achieving this milestone, Postman is already preparing for the SOC 2 Type 2 report, which will further verify the robustness of its security controls over time. The SOC 2 Type 1 report is accessible under a non-disclosure agreement for interested parties.

The blog post introduces a three-part series on utilizing Postman for API development, focusing on the first part, which covers importing schemas, saving example responses, creating descriptions, sharing collections, creating workspaces, commenting on collections, and generating documentation. It provides detailed instructions on how to import a Swagger schema, save and log example responses, and add markdown-supported descriptions at various levels within Postman. Additionally, it explains how to share Postman collections via workspaces, a Run in Postman button, or a link, and emphasizes the benefits of creating both private and team workspaces for organizing and collaborating on projects. The post also highlights features such as commenting for internal collaboration and generating API documentation, which automatically updates with changes to collections, ensuring efficient communication and maintenance of a single source of truth. The post concludes by inviting readers to explore further parts of the series, which will delve into version control, mocking, monitoring, CI/CD, and other collaborative tasks in Postman.