HttpHelper (VB.NET)

A comprehensive utility class for making HTTP requests and handling responses, with support for various HTTP methods, authentication, and data formats.

Features

• HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, etc.)
• Request/response handling
• Authentication support
• Cookie management
• Proxy configuration
• Retry policies
• Request timeouts
• Response caching

Installation

Add the HttpHelper.vb file to your project.

            
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Imports JVR.Helpers
        

Usage Examples

Basic HTTP Requests

            
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Dim http As New HttpHelper()

' GET request
Dim response As String = Await http.GetAsync("https://api.example.com/data")

' POST request with JSON
Dim data = New With {.name = "John", .age = 30}
Dim response As String = Await http.PostJsonAsync("https://api.example.com/users", data)

' PUT request with form data
Dim formData As New Dictionary(Of String, String) From {{"key", "value"}}
Dim response As String = Await http.PutFormAsync("https://api.example.com/update", formData)
        

Authentication

            
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Dim http As New HttpHelper()

' Basic authentication
http.SetBasicAuth("username", "password")

' Bearer token
http.SetBearerToken("your-token-here")

' Custom headers
http.AddHeader("API-Key", "your-api-key")
        

Advanced Features

            
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Dim http As New HttpHelper()

' Configure retry policy
http.ConfigureRetry(maxAttempts:=3, retryDelay:=TimeSpan.FromSeconds(1))

' Set timeout
http.SetTimeout(TimeSpan.FromSeconds(30))

' Download file
Await http.DownloadFileAsync("https://example.com/file.pdf", "local-file.pdf")
        

API Reference

HTTP Methods

• GetAsync(url As String) As Task(Of String): Performs GET request
• PostAsync(url As String, content As String) As Task(Of String): Performs POST request
• PutAsync(url As String, content As String) As Task(Of String): Performs PUT request
• DeleteAsync(url As String) As Task(Of String): Performs DELETE request
• PatchAsync(url As String, content As String) As Task(Of String): Performs PATCH request

JSON Operations

• GetJsonAsync(Of T)(url As String) As Task(Of T): GET request with JSON response
• PostJsonAsync(Of T)(url As String, data As Object) As Task(Of T): POST request with JSON data
• PutJsonAsync(Of T)(url As String, data As Object) As Task(Of T): PUT request with JSON data

Form Data

• PostFormAsync(url As String, data As Dictionary(Of String, String)) As Task(Of String): POST form data
• PutFormAsync(url As String, data As Dictionary(Of String, String)) As Task(Of String): PUT form data
• UploadFileAsync(url As String, filePath As String) As Task(Of String): Upload file

Configuration

• SetTimeout(timeout As TimeSpan): Sets request timeout
• SetBasicAuth(username As String, password As String): Sets basic authentication
• SetBearerToken(token As String): Sets bearer token
• AddHeader(name As String, value As String): Adds custom header
• ConfigureProxy(proxyUrl As String): Configures proxy

Response Handling

• IsSuccessStatusCode(response As HttpResponseMessage) As Boolean: Checks response status
• GetResponseHeaders(response As HttpResponseMessage) As HttpResponseHeaders: Gets response headers
• GetResponseContent(response As HttpResponseMessage) As Task(Of String): Gets response content

Dependencies

• .NET 6.0 or higher
• System.Net.Http
• System.Text.Json
• System.Net.Http.Json

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Contact

• Website: jvrsoftware.co.za
• Email: jvrsoftware@gmail.com or jan@jvrsoftware.co.za

Version History

• 2.0.1: Added retry policies
• 2.0.0: Added response caching
• 1.0.0: Initial release with basic HTTP operations