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Relaxation is a free, open-source REST framework for ColdFusion that helps you build a REST API. And then it gets the heck out of your way.

If you just want to know how to setup Relaxation and get started building your REST API, see the QuickStart Guide.

If you're curious why I wrote another REST framework for ColdFusion, please read on...

Why?

All of the ColdFusion REST framework that I looked at have requirements that range from inconvenient to intolerable. Some of these are: Your Application.cfc has to extend a special CFC (which means it can't extend your BaseApplication.cfc). You have to build special resource CFCs that require metadata and/or calling special functions.

I hope that most people writing REST APIs will already have some sort of "bean factory" (e.g. ColdSpring, DI/1, Wirebox, etc.).

With that in mind, here are the goals I had when writing Relaxation.

• DO - Write a clean lightweight framework that handles the basics.
  • Gather all the various types of request parameters into an argument collection.
  • Map the HTTP path+verb to a bean+method in a bean factory. Call bean.method() with the arguments.
• DO - Give you as much control as possible.
• DO - Allow you to configure your resource handlers in a simple config object (JSON or CF Struct).
• DON'T - Require an Application.cfc that extends a "special" CFC.
• DON'T - Require you to write unnecessary wrapper CFCs riddled with meta-data.
• DON'T - Stress you out in any way.

Try Relaxation and let me know if I succeeded.