How frequently can I safely cache the baseUrl?

Question

Before each request to the DocuSign REST API, I make a call to https://demo.docusign.net/restapi/v2/login_information. But the only information I need from that response is the first baseUrl attribute, which never seems to change. If it truly never changes, I should just store the value as a constant, cutting my number of requests in half.

How often (or under what circumstances) does the baseUrl change, assuming my integration key is constant? More importantly, how infrequently can I safely cache the baseUrl?

Norvun

Answer 1

Since it is a third-party API outside your control, I would recommend that you follow the requirements of the documentation, and make the call each time. There's no telling when they might change the internals of the API.

Scrimp

Indeed - from current observation it doesn't change but DocuSign "reserves the right" to change it. Case in point: a customer might have their account moved from one environment (na2.docusign.net) to another (say eu.docusign.net). That would also change the baseUrl. – Sixty

Answer 2

Short answer: cache with caution. It will most likely never change, but if it does, just grab it again. I would make the call at the beginning of a set of requests, and then forget about it.

The baseUrl parameter would look like: "https://demo.docusign.net/restapi/v2/accounts/123456"

To break it down:

• demo.docusign.net -> Our uri, demo environment is as you expect, the demo site.
• restapi/v2/ -> Using version 2 of the api
• accounts/123456 -> Your account id particular to the demo site. (This will be a different id for the production site)

You would need to know this url for every api call. I wouldn't store it 'forever' just to be safe, but you could cache it for a short time to reduce the number of API calls. Your accountId should never change on the environment, but we do provide new environments occasionally, and every different account will have a different baseUrl.

For reference, see here: https://docs.docusign.com/esign/guide/usage/quickstart.html

If you really want to store it for a long time, I would set a 30 day time-out or something along those lines.

Homans