RESTfully design /login or /register resources?

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RESTful can be used as a guideline for constructing URLs, and you can make sessions and users resources:

  • GET /session/new gets the webpage that has the login form
  • POST /session authenticates credentials against database
  • DELETE /session destroys session and redirect to /
  • GET /users/new gets the webpage that has the registration form
  • POST /users records the entered information into database as a new /user/xxx
  • GET /users/xxx // gets and renders current user data in a profile view
  • POST /users/xxx // updates new information about user

These can be plural or singular (I’m not sure which one is correct). I’ve usually used /users for a user index page (as expected), and /sessions to see who is logged in (as expected).

Using the name in the URL instead of a number (/users/43 vs. /users/joe) is usually driven by the desire to be more friendly to the users or search engines, not any technical requirements. Either is fine, but I’d recommend you are consistent.

I think if you go with the register/login/logout or sign(in|up|out), it doesn’t work as well with the restful terminology.

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