Table of contents
1.
Introduction🧾
2.
How to use Postman First Time?📪
3.
Sending the First Request using Postman 🌐
4.
How to use Postman to Generate and Integrate the API Key?🔑
5.
How to use Postman to Automate API Testing?🧪
6.
How to use Postman to create Documentation for New Collections?
7.
How to use Postman to Migrate to the Current Version?🆚
8.
How to use Postman Audit Logs?📋
9.
How to use Postman to Troubleshoot Requests?😵‍💫
10.
Frequently Asked Questions
10.1.
What is a workspace in Postman?
10.2.
What is Postman's, Basic Auth?
10.3.
In POST methods, what is a binary form?
11.
Conclusion
Last Updated: Mar 27, 2024
Easy

How to use Postman?

Author Ayush Mishra
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Introduction🧾

A postman is an excellent tool for deconstructing RESTful APIs created by others or testing ones created by yourself. It provides an attractive user interface for making HTML requests, removing the need to write a tonne of code just to test the functionality of an API.

How to use postman?

In this blog, we will discuss how to use Postman in deep detail. Let’s start going!

How to use Postman First Time?📪

Postman is a computer application that is used to test APIs. Postman makes an API request to the web server and receives whatever response it receives. Following given below points helps in understanding using Postman.:-

📬 Firstly, click the New button to create a new request or collection. HTTP Requests such as POST, GET, DELETE, and others are listed on the new screen and can be selected as needed.

📬 Secondly, there is a Request URL following the first step, where you should enter the endpoint URL, and at the end of the line is the Send button, which, when clicked, sends the request to the intended URL and receives the response.

📬 The Save button, which appears after the Send button, allows you to save the current request so that no changes are lost. Parameters, in which parameters are entered in Key Value format.

📬 When dealing with URLs that are not publicly accessible, authorization is required, and bearer, token, or user name and password are used. So to authorize the URL, headers with JSON content are used.

📬 To perform testing, pre-request scripts are executed before the request to ensure that the environment is properly set up for further testing.

📬 Import lets you import an existing collection, while Runner lets you run automation tests.

Sending the First Request using Postman 🌐

Postman enables Users to create and send API requests. Send an endpoint request, retrieve data from a data source, or test the functionality of an API.

Due to Postman, Users don’t need to enter a command in terminals or write any codes to send requests.

A request includes the API endpoint's URL and an HTTP request method. The method specifies the action you want the API to take. Some most important methods defined in API requests are:-

📍 GET Method: It retrieves data from the API.

📍 POST Method: It sends new data to an API.

📍 PATCH and PUT Method: It updates the existing data.

📍 Delete Method: It removes the existing data.

 

Steps to send the first API Request are:

📌To add a new tab to Postman, click the (+) icon.

📌 Then, Type postman-echo.com/get in the URL domain.

📌 Now press the Send Button. The server's JSON data response will be displayed in the pane below.

This image show how to send the request using Postman.

How to use Postman to Generate and Integrate the API Key?🔑

The Postman API endpoints enable users to integrate Postman into their development environment. One can add new collections, renew existing collections, update settings, and instantly combine and run monitors through the API.

 

In this context, we have seen the step to generate and integrate the API key.

Steps to generate and integrate the API Key are:

✔️ Navigate to the web dashboard, select a workspace and click on Integrations.

✔️ Look for the Postman API and select View Details.

✔️ Click the Generate API key button, enter a name for the key, and then click OK. After creating keys, you can control them within the configured workspace.

✔️ The APIs created by users can be added to a Postman marketplace.

How to use Postman to Automate API Testing?🧪

In software development, testing is used to determine the quality of any piece of software.

Setting up automated API tests to test the various endpoints in your API will aid in catching bugs as soon as possible.

Steps to Automate API Testing are:

1️⃣ Test the API manually.

2️⃣ Understand the API response.

3️⃣ Create an automated test.

4️⃣ Repeat for each API endpoint.

5️⃣ Send the request manually. However, once the request response is received, Postman will automatically run the written test.

6️⃣ The test Results tab displays the test results.

How to use Postman to create Documentation for New Collections?

In Postman, a collection is a group of API requests that have already been saved in Postman and can be organized into folders. Within a collection, any number of folders can be created.

This image show how to create documentation using new collections.

 

Steps to create documentation for New Collections:

🔖 Navigate to the Postman launch screen.

🔖 Select the New Button.

🔖 Choose the API documentation.

🔖 Create a new Collection, and it is automatically selected.

🔖 Click Next, and then Save.

How to use Postman to Migrate to the Current Version?🆚

While working with a team, sometimes it is necessary for team users to migrate from an older version to a newer one. Team users can upgrade to Postman v7 to gain more robust and role-based access to Postman's features. Members of the teams can contact the team leader to migrate to the new version.

This image show how to  update the older version.

Steps to migrate to the current version are:

✔️ Navigate to Settings.

✔️ Next, Navigate to the Update.

✔️Checks for Updates.

✔️ Click Migrate my team to v7; Postman will automatically perform the next steps in the migration.

How to use Postman Audit Logs?📋

Postman audit logs document system and user activity. They enable Postman team admins to track and review how members of their organization use the Postman API Platform.

An administrator can see when a user changed or removed a custom authorization scheme, invited someone to the Postman team, updated user roles, and removed users from the team, among other things.

To use audit logs, go to Settings in your workspace and select "Audit logs." The classified data will now be displayed on the Audit Logs page. The audit logs page is depicted in the image below.

This image show various audit logs

How to use Postman to Troubleshoot Requests?😵‍💫

Postman will highlight any whitespace or incorrect characters in portions of the request that may not work as expected, allowing programmers to improve the entered values. 

Programmers will understand the characters mentioned in the request system, URL, parameters, and body as a result.

The image below shows that if Postman fails to post and the requestor does not receive a response, developers will notice details describing the error.

This image show how to remove error using troubleshoot request in Postman.

 

Simply click View in Console to view the request summary and identify the source of the problem.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a workspace in Postman?

As we all know, a workspace is a collaborative environment where users can develop and test APIs. It is usually time-consuming and challenging to share collections via external drives or other means.

What is Postman's, Basic Auth?

Basic Auth is an authorization technique provided by Postman for HTTP user agents such as web browsers to enter username and password. It is associated with the request after the username and password are entered.

In POST methods, what is a binary form?

The binary form is used in POST methods to send data in a format that is impossible to enter manually. This is primarily used in POST requests to send large files such as images, CSV files, and so on. The binary representation is one of the simplest ways to send complex data with the request.

Conclusion

Congratulations on finishing the blog! We have discussed how to use Postman. We further look at the different scenarios where we can use Postman, such as using first-time Postman, sending the first requests and automating API testing using Postman.

If you want to read more blogs on Postman, please visit the following sites, which have been particularly selected for readers like you:

 

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