What is the Difference between Gorilla Mux, Gin and net/http for HTTP Web Framework?

As you might have guessed from the title, this blog is all about studying the various packages and web frameworks, such as gin, net/http, and gorilla mux. Clients that wish to hire Go developers to build backend servers especially want an uninterrupted, fully operational server. We will thus examine their differences and determine which is best for developing HTTP servers. Therefore, let’s begin.

What is the Gin Framework?

  • Gin is the name of the most popular Golang framework. Why? This is due to the web framework’s lightning-fast performance and ability to meet developers’ expectations while creating microservices and online applications.
  • Gin allows programmers to reduce a piece of code’s logic into a manageable number of statements. This is true since the framework has put in the majority of the work (coders have made lives easier for developers as they have worked on the most necessary part of the code). As a result, the code is easier to read.
  • By using reusable, modular components, request handling pipelines can be created quickly. It allows you to create middleware that may connect to a single request handler or a group of them to do this.

Different Attributes of Gin Framework that Makes it Crucial 

  • Open-Source

The gin framework is free to use because it is open-source. Additionally, it is open to future and ongoing improvements from developers all around the world.

  • Extremely Fast 

One of the quickest web frameworks out there is Golang Gin. It is fast and effective since it is based on the massive Gin gopher library. It makes use of radix tree-based routing, a data structure that helps arrange IP addresses into groups in an organized manner.

  • Resources for Rendering
  • A web application may render a response in text, HTML, XML, JSON, or another format.
  • Microservices and API endpoints frequently return data in response, generally in JSON format. Gin offers a simple-to-use API for rendering XML, JSON, and HTML.
  • Gin is one framework that checks the presence of all the required data in the JSON of a request before validating and parsing it.
  • Routing 

One of the fundamental components that all contemporary frameworks have is routing. A URL may be used to visit any website or API endpoint. Gin provides a quick router that is simple to set up and operate. Gin routers handle patterns and groupings of URLs in addition to processing specific URLs. Infinite nesting doesn’t affect the groups’ performance.

What is the Gorilla Mux? 

  • Gorilla Mux is one of the most effective routers for simplifying route definitions. The HTTP multiplexer has the ability to mix routes to several handlers.
  • It is a package that alters Go’s built-in HTTP router. It provides a myriad of capabilities that greatly increase the productivity of web app developers’ work. The package may be combined with other HTTP libraries.

Meanwhile, if you are working on a backend project, and you cannot resolve an issue, then it is wise if you hire Go developers. They will cater to each of your requirements. 

Features of Gorilla Mux that Sets it Apart

  • Creation of routers
  • Like httprouter, the gorilla/mux package primarily supports router construction. If a handler function is present on a certain URL, one of the two methods can be identified from the other.
  • The fundamental ServeMux method is comparable to the Gorilla/Mux methodology of adding a handler. Gorilla/mux, as opposed to httprouter, compiles every piece of information from an HTTP request into a single request object.
  • Routing 
  • To travel every path that has been recorded on a router, use muxRouter’s Walk function.
  • Additionally, you may use Gorilla Mux to restrict the routes to a domain or subdomain.
  • It is possible to employ routes as sub-routers even if nested routes are only examined if the parent route matches. This is helpful for organizing routes that have recurring qualities, such as a host, a path prefix, or other features. Additionally, this improves request matching.
  • Requests 
  • Custom matchers, HTTP methods, or the URL host, header, path prefix, path, schemes, and query values can all be used to match requests.
  • When a request for a route with an OPTIONS method matcher is made, CORSMethodMiddleware sets the Access-Control-Allow-Methods response header to each method matcher on the route.
  • Support for the Middleware

Mux allows middlewares to be added to a Router when a match is made, where they are then run together with their subroutines in the order they were added.

  • Authenticated URLs 
  • Variables that include an extra regular expression may be used as URL hosts, query values, or paths.
  • By utilizing registered URLs that have been “reversed,” resource references can be retained.

Gin vs Gorilla Mux 

  • Gorilla mux, according to developers, makes routing easier and more versatile. With the gin framework, they regularly run across unexpected circumstances that they are unable to manage.
  • Most developers pick gorilla mux for the purpose of developing middlewares and setting route requirements. They choose gin because it offers configurable answer writing, validation, JSON exporting, and other features.
  • Instead of using heavy frameworks like gin, many programmers believe it is wise to stick with lightweight programmes like gorilla mux. They all support using Golang’s built-in libraries.
  • Gin is a difficult subject to master since there is so much to learn. Gorilla Mux, on the other hand, abides by the Golang handler signature, saving you the time of having to comprehend it.
  • The gin framework makes the program simpler, but most developers are unwilling to use it. The framework adds more dependencies to the project, which occasionally leads to compatibility issues. The framework lacks idiom and does not take use of all recent Golang advancements.

What is the net/http Package in Golang?

Introduction

Due to its simplicity and importance, this package is one that every developer should be familiar with. So what is the package’s intended use? This package enables you to use strong compositional ideas to construct robust HTTP servers in Go.

Purpose

Developers may use http.Post and http.get to generate HTTP requests while carrying out CRUD operations. The package is crucial for routing and response objects.

Advantage

The package makes it possible to maintain succinct, straightforward code. Regardless of whether you use frameworks like Beego or gin, the same ideas apply. However, the processes are fairly distinctive.

Typical Behavior

To correctly utilize the package, you must first use the http.Handlefunc function, which instructs the server which function to run to process HTTP requests. The http.ListenAndServe directive, which assists in launching the server and forces it to pay attention to requests, is then used.

net/http vs Gorilla Mux 

  • When it comes to creating web servers, the net/http package is sufficient for the vast majority of developers. However, if you want to create a complex REST API, the gorilla mux speeds the development process.
  • For decent paths that employ variables, you must create a custom multiplexer using Gorilla, which is offered at no cost to you, but ServeMux http from net/http does an excellent job of routing incoming requests for fixed URL pathways.
  • When using the default http.ServeMux, it is difficult to serve RESTful sites using the correct HTTP methods.
  • Requests are generally matched based on the URL host, path prefix, schemes, header and query data, and HTTP methods with the use of gorilla’s mux package.

You’ll see that the gorilla mux library is more often used by developers than the net/http package.

net/http vs Gin Framework 

  • Gin includes route registration wrappers, reducing boilerplate. Gin provides access to a few handy extra deserialization wrappers so that you don’t have to worry about the boilerplate that comes with the JSON.unmarshal method.
  • Gin uses httprouter, which can complete tasks faster than those demanded by the net/http package. Because of the gin, we don’t employ a switch statement to determine the request’s method. The request/response is cleanly abstracted away by the context object.
  • Gin utilizes tokens to make working with route parameters more straightforward. On the other hand, if you need to design intricate paths, net/http is a poor option.
  • When it comes to middleware, the gin framework and the net/http package both offer advantages. Simply said, the gin framework is distinct because there is less code.

The Gin framework is most preferred by developers in comparison to net/http. 

Hopefully, you have a clear idea now as to which library or package you must choose in order to develop HTTP web framework. 

Anil Kondla
Anil Kondla

Anil is an enthusiastic, self-motivated, reliable person who is a Technology evangelist. He's always been fascinated at work especially at innovation that causes benefit to the students, working professionals or the companies. Being unique and thinking Innovative is what he loves the most, supporting his thoughts he will be ahead for any change valuing social responsibility with a reprising innovation. His interest in various fields and the urge to explore, led him to find places to put himself to work and design things than just learning. Follow him on LinkedIn

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