This repository contains a Flask application implementing a simple RESTful API to retrieve the current time in UTC format and optionally adjust it to a provided timezone.
To run the application, you'll need Python 3 and pip (the Python package manager) installed on your system. You can follow the official instructions for installation here: https://www.python.org/downloads/
Once you have Python and pip set up, clone this repository and navigate to the project directory. Then, install the required dependencies using the following command:
pip install -r requirements.txt
After installing the dependencies, you can run the Flask application in development mode using the following command:
python main.py
This will start the Flask development server, typically accessible at http://127.0.0.1:5000/ (localhost port 5000) by default. You can then test the API using tools like Postman or by sending requests directly through your browser.
Note: In production environments, you'll want to set the DEBUG_MODE environment variable to FALSE.
The /time endpoint only allows GET requests, and takes a single optional parameter named timezone.
The timezone parameter should be of format +/-HH:MM representing the required amount of hours and minutes offset. The hours should be no larger than 14, and the minutes should be no larger than 59.
A success response will have status code 200 and return JSON like this, when given no timezone parameter:
{
"currentTime": "2024-05-12T04:47:34Z",
"error": null
}A success response will have status code 200 and return JSON like this, when given a timezone parameter:
{
"adjustedTime": "2024-05-12T13:02:09-04:00",
"currentTime": "2024-05-12T17:02:09Z",
"error": null
}An error response from the time endpoint will have an error field in the JSON response body that is not null, and have a status code other than 200.
Here is an example error response when given an invalid timezone offset:
{
"error": "Invalid timezone format. Use format '+/-HH:MM'"
}The project includes unit tests written using the pytest framework. To run the tests, ensure you have pytest installed (pip install pytest). Then, from the project directory, run the following command:
pytest test/tests.py
This will execute the tests, and report the results of the tests.
Flask, a popular microframework for building web applications in Python, was chosen for this project due to its lightweight nature and ease of use. For a simple API like this, Flask provides a clear and concise way to define API endpoints and handle requests. Additionally, Flask is well documented and has a large community, making it easier to debug issues and research best practices.
For more complex APIs requiring more demanding features and functionalities, it would be worth considering other frameworks such as Django or FastAPI.