Postwoman

A lightweight, feature-rich API development environment that simplifies the process of building, testing, and documenting APIs. Built with React and Ant Design, this project is inspired by Postman and provides a clean, intuitive interface for making HTTP requests and analyzing responses.

Features

Core API Testing Features

• HTTP Request Building
  • Support for all standard HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, PATCH, OPTIONS, HEAD)
  • URL parameter configuration
  • Custom header management
  • Query parameter editor
  • Multiple body formats (raw JSON, form-data, x-www-form-urlencoded)
  • Syntax highlighting for JSON, XML, and other formats

Authentication

• Multiple auth methods supported:
  • Basic Authentication
  • Bearer Token
  • API Key (header or query parameter)

Response Handling

• Rich response visualization
  • Status code and timing metrics
  • Response headers viewer
  • Formatted JSON viewer with syntax highlighting
  • HTML and XML response formatting

Workspace Management

• Collections

  • Organize requests into collections
  • Save and reuse requests
  • Nested folder structure support

• Environments

  • Create multiple environments
  • Define and manage environment variables
  • Switch between environments easily

• History

  • Automatic request history tracking
  • Quick access to previous requests and responses

When to Use This Tool

This Postwoman is ideal for:

• API Developers: Test and debug APIs during development
• Frontend Developers: Verify backend API behavior before integration
• QA Engineers: Validate API functionality and performance
• DevOps Engineers: Verify deployments and integrations
• Learning: Understand HTTP protocols and API structures

Use this tool when:

• You need to test REST APIs without the need for a desktop application
• You want a simple, focused API testing experience
• You're working in environments where installing desktop applications isn't possible
• You prefer a lightweight, open-source alternative to commercial API tools

Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/your-username/postwoman.git

# Navigate to the project directory
cd postwoman

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Start the development server
npm start

Usage Guide

Making a Simple Request

1. Enter a request URL in the URL bar
2. Select the HTTP method (GET, POST, etc.)
3. Click the "Send" button
4. View the response below

Adding Headers, Params, or Body

1. Use the tabs below the URL bar to access:
   • Query Parameters
   • Headers
   • Authentication
   • Request Body
2. Add your desired configuration
3. Send the request

Saving Requests to Collections

1. Configure your request
2. Click the "Save" button
3. Enter a request name
4. Select or create a collection
5. Click "Save"

Managing Environments

1. Select the "Environments" tab in the sidebar
2. Create a new environment
3. Add environment variables
4. Select an environment to use during requests

Development

Tech Stack

• Frontend: React, TypeScript
• UI Library: Ant Design
• HTTP Client: Axios
• State Management: React Context API
• Code Editors: Ace Editor
• Data Persistence: localStorage

Project Structure

src/
├── components/       # UI components
│   ├── common/       # Shared UI components
│   ├── request/      # Request-related components
│   ├── response/     # Response visualization components
│   └── sidebar/      # Sidebar, collections, history components
├── store/            # State management
├── types/            # TypeScript interfaces
└── utils/            # Helper functions

Running Tests

npm test

Building for Production

npm run build

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments

• Inspired by Postman
• UI design based on Ant Design principles
• Many thanks to all contributors

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Default Test Collection

The application comes with a pre-configured "Test Collection" that demonstrates various HTTP capabilities using httpbin.org. This collection includes:

1. GET Request Test

   • Demonstrates basic GET request with query parameters
   • Endpoint: https://httpbin.org/get
   • Shows how query parameters are handled

2. POST Request Test

   • Demonstrates POST request with JSON body
   • Endpoint: https://httpbin.org/post
   • Shows how to send JSON data in request body

3. Basic Auth Test

   • Demonstrates Basic Authentication
   • Endpoint: https://httpbin.org/basic-auth/user/pass
   • Shows how to use authentication headers

4. Headers Test

   • Demonstrates custom header usage
   • Endpoint: https://httpbin.org/headers
   • Shows how custom headers are sent and received

5. Delayed Response

   • Demonstrates handling delayed responses
   • Endpoint: https://httpbin.org/delay/2
   • Shows loading states and response timing

This test collection serves as both a functionality verification tool and a learning resource for new users.

Made with ❤️ by Bhanu Chaddha