[Progress News] [Progress OpenEdge ABL] Buy or Build REST Data Connectors? What’s Right for Your Enterprise

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Joelle Andrews

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Building one or two REST API data connectors is no problem. But when that number increases, can developers rapidly produce connectors that will live up to the expectations of performance and scalability?

You’ve been volun-told to plan the upcoming company party. Pick a date, get the venue, and hire the caterers. Easy enough, right?

Not so fast. First you have to coordinate executive schedules, spend hours searching online and calling venues, and then go back and forth with the caterers over food allergies and pricing. The extra hours spent on the side job start to take their toll on your real work.

That is the mirror image of what building REST data connectors does to developers. It was a huge leap for technology when REST APIs came along. However, accessing data from them via SQL-based tools became a resource-consuming challenge for enterprises.

When faced with this challenge, most IT teams first consider doing the job themselves. They're certainly qualified for it. In fact, building one or two data connectors for the applications they or their customers use is no problem at all. But when that number shoots to double or triple digits, can the developers keep up and produce data connectors that will live up to the expectations of performance and scalability?

Or, in the case of the company party, should the developers instead hire the equivalent of an event planner? When the side job becomes so large it consumes more resources than it should, it’s time to think about buying a solution.

Let's delve into this buy-versus-build showdown and compare how the two choices will affect the business.

Development Expenses​


Building data connectors requires a team to have developers in place, but if they do it makes sense to have them work on data connectors for APIs.

At first, the company doing this will feel like they’re saving money and wisely using resources, but REST data connectors are code-intensive. When more critical projects arise, like rolling out new features, the developers working on connectors won’t have time to contribute their expertise.

The company might then realize they need to hire some extra, outside help. Enterprises that choose to hire freelance developers to code REST connectors will have to dedicate a portion of their budget to cover their pay.

It gets tempting to cut corners and give the gig to cheaper freelancers, but remember, a connector that’s not coded well runs the risk of breaking down, which will consume more money in the end.

When you look at it from the bigger picture, buying a REST connector will save an enterprise the hassle of paying new developers or incurring labor shortages due to a spike in coding assignments.

In fact, if the company in question uses Progress DataDirect Autonomous REST Connector, they won’t even need to code. Autonomous REST Connector codelessly creates enterprise-grade connections to any REST API.

Scalability and Speed​


No two REST APIs are alike, and users will expect REST connectors that provide nothing short of perfect service. It’s going to take a lot of elbow grease to create perfect REST connectors for each API.

When an enterprise starts building their own connectors, rapid expansion will become the new challenge. Users will come to expect scalability, and enterprises may find themselves unable to turnaround what’s being asked of them fast enough for the end user liking. The demand for connectors at the pace they’re needed won’t be cost-effective in the long run.

Buying a REST data connector will allow the company to maintain its performance by providing quick, scalable services. You’ll rest assured that connections you make are quality regardless of whether you’re required to make five or 500.

Most important of all, the company won't be restricted by what their developers can and cannot code. They’ll be operating like industry-leading enterprises since a solution like Autonomous REST Connector will seamlessly create enterprise grade connections, no code required.

Productivity​


When developers are bogged down with assignments that require them to code REST connector after REST connector, they’ll eventually burn out.

REST API applications are getting increasingly complex, and some are unfortunately not coded using the best practices. This is a headache for all developers working to create REST connectors for said applications, no matter how skilled they are.

It eventually leads to a bottleneck at the development stage, and data analysts may have to leave out critical data from the data sources that they don’t have access to yet. Such scenarios slowly reduce productivity at the development and analysis stage. When critical BI reports eventually reach management, they’ll be left wondering why they have an incomplete picture.

Buying a solution like Autonomous REST Connector allows developers to be as productive as possible, creating connections as soon as an application rolls out. Data from these new sources will become available to end users in real-time. This creates an instant improvement in the analytics process for better business decision making.

The Buy-vs.-Build Showdown Winner​


It’s no question that REST APIs will continue growing in popularity. You might be comfortable building for now, but when demand for connectivity to new data sources increases, you’ll need a reliable way to keep up.

No one wants to blow their budget on unanticipated expenses or have developers working around the clock on things that could be automated. In this data-centric world, investing in a solution like Autonomous REST Connector takes coding out of the picture to create seamless, cost-effective connections in minutes. Your users will be happily querying their API data using their SQL-based tools and applications in no time.

If you want to learn more about Autonomous REST Connector and how it can help your business, sign up for our free trial or contact us today.

Try Autonomous REST Connector

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