# API Testing Building Blocks in Service Suite

# API Testing Building Blocks in Service Suite

Service Suite API tests are built from reusable pieces that define the request, authentication, data inputs, validations, and follow-up actions. Keeping these blocks small and explicit makes API scenarios easier to debug and reuse.

## Core building blocks

- **Request definition:** Method, URL, headers, query parameters, and body.
- **Authentication:** API keys, bearer tokens, OAuth flows, or environment-specific credentials stored securely.
- **Assertions:** Status code, response time, headers, JSON/XML fields, and business-level response values.
- **Extraction:** Capture tokens, IDs, and values from one response so later steps can reuse them.
- **Test data:** Use variables or DPLs for repeatable inputs instead of hard-coded one-off values.
- **Error handling:** Validate expected negative paths and make failures easy to diagnose from output logs.

## Recommended practice

Start with a single working request, add authentication, then layer assertions and extraction. After the flow is stable, parameterize the data and add cleanup steps for records created during the test.

*Last updated: October 8, 2026*