Making HTTP Requests with aiohttp in Python

The aiohttp library is a popular asynchronous HTTP client/server framework for Python. It allows you to make HTTP requests without blocking your application, perfect for building highly concurrent or asynchronous services.

To make a basic HTTP GET request with aiohttp:

import aiohttp

async with aiohttp.ClientSession() as session:
    async with session.get('http://example.com') as response:
        print(response.status)
        print(await response.text())

Some key points:

Create a ClientSession which manages the connection pooling for you

Use the session.get() method to make a GET request, similarly session.post() for POST

The await keyword waits for and returns the response

Make sure to close the session when done with async with syntax

You can pass various parameters like headers, data, timeouts etc to customise the requests:

async with session.get(url, params={'key':'value'}, headers={}, data=b'') as response:
   # customised GET request

To post JSON data:

import json

data = {'key': 'value'}
async with session.post(url, json=data) as response:
   # POST with json 
   print(await response.text())

Some tips when making requests with aiohttp:

Use async/await syntax to avoid blocking

Leverage connection pooling of sessions

Close sessions when done

Handle exceptions properly for network errors

Rate limit requests to avoid overwhelming servers

Use timeouts to prevent stalled requests

Serialize JSON properly for posting data

The aiohttp library handles a lot of complexity like HTTP connections, timeouts and pooling for you. With its simple API focused on async/await, it is a pleasure to make HTTP requests without blocking your Python applications. Give it a try!

Making HTTP Requests with aiohttp in Python

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