The console is the tool we have developed to simplify calls to APIs.

You can find it within the technical documentation of the APIs in which it is implemented. When you enter the documentation, the index appears on the left. The API services are highlighted in blue, and clicking on any service will access its description. Within this description there is a button to access the console.

You can use it whether you are registered at BBVA API_Market or not. Being registered you have the advantage that you can use the different environments, whereas if you are not, there is only one environment. The response data is constant regardless of the setting of variables to be sent. That is why we always recommend you to register and to try our Sandbox.

If you have not yet registered, you can do so on the registration page. We also explain the process in the Quickstart guide.

The console allows API calls to be made easier than with Postman. To do so, a number of fields are enabled that allow you to customize each call.

The different sections of the call through the console are:

– Service

– Authentication

– Headers

– URI Parameters

– Query Parameters

– Form Parameters

Service

This section shows us the service to be called through the console. As an example of this guide, we call the Auto Loan API, specifically, the Vehicle Details service ( /vehicles/{vehicle-id}).

We must choose the environment in which we want to make the call. As we explained in the “Console” section, we recommend making the call in the Sandbox environment to be able to configure the call with different values to those that come pre-set.

Next, we choose the app we’ll use to make the call. The tool will show us the different applications we have created so you can select one. The one we choose must have the API we want to call, otherwise we will get a 403 error as a result of the call.

In the Quickstart guide, we explain how to make an API available in your application.

Authentication

Here we must choose between 2 or 3-legged authentication. This information is found in the API technical documentation in the “Authentication” section.

By default, if you haven’t logged in, the console always sets the API to require 3-legged authentication. In the case of this example, the Auto Loan API requires 2-legged authentication, so we need to change this value. If you have logged in, the value is automatically set.

Headers

We set the HTTP headers of the API call. The values of these headers, both mandatory and optional, can be found under “Header Parameters”. An outline of the possible values is also given.

By default, the console displays the mandatory headers.

The “+” and “x” buttons can be used to add and remove headers, respectively.

URI Parameters

The URI parameters are parameters that may be necessary or optional depending on the service you want to call. In this example, the guide indicates that there is a mandatory parameter that we must report with which we must report the vehicle-id.

For the case at hand, we’ll use the:

– vehicle-id value: 34608

The “+” and “x” buttons can be used to add and remove parameters, respectively.

Query Parameters

The parameters of the query are responsible for defining the query we are making, in this case, the vehicle model id, the model name, the initial commercial year (optional field) and the final year of marketing. All this information is available in the documentation for each API.

Continuing with the example we are using, we enter the following values:

– endYear: 2020

– initYear: 2018

– model.name: GENERICO1

– model.id: 34

This query will return all the requested vehicle information.

Form Parameters

In this section you enter the data of the action you want to perform. For this example, you do not need to enter a value. We leave this section blank.

Run the console

After we have set up the API call through all the sections above, we click the “Send Action” button to run the call.

The “Clear” button is used to clear all call data. The “Reset” button resets all fields to the default values.

This section shows us the call we just made. It divides the call into two sections, on the one hand Request URL and on the other Headers.

Request URL

This is the call URL. In this URL you can view all previously configured fields.

Headers

Displays the headers that are used to make the call.

It displays the response to the API call. The answer consists of three parts:

– Status

– Headers

– Body

Status

Shows the encoding of the response obtained. The encoding of the response depends on the API and the service you want to call within the API.

To consult this information, exit the console and go back to the examples in the technical documentation.

Headers

These are the headers that the call returns. The headers of the response depend on the API and the service we called.

Body

The body of the answer comes in Json format.