gitlab-org / gitlab-ce

API Endpoints for gitlab-org/gitlab-ce

Overview

The GitLab Community Edition (CE) codebase includes numerous routes that facilitate interaction with various features and endpoints of the application. This document is aimed at expert developers looking to explore the routing configuration and understand how to retrieve specific route definitions within the codebase.

Route Definitions in GitLab CE

Location of Route Definitions

Routes in the GitLab CE codebase are primarily defined within the config/routes.rb file. This file serves as the central repository for URL mappings and is crucial for directing incoming requests to the appropriate controllers and actions.

Viewing Route Definitions

To view all defined routes, one can use the Rails command:

rails routes

This command generates a comprehensive list of all routes in the project, displaying the HTTP method, path, and corresponding controller action.

Example of Route Definition

In the config/routes.rb, routes are defined using a DSL (Domain-Specific Language). Below is an example:

Rails.application.routes.draw do
root 'home#index'


resources :projects do
member do
get 'remove'
put 'fork'
end


collection do
get 'search'
end
end


resources :issues
end

In this snippet:

  • The root route directs the root URL to the index action of the HomeController.
  • The resources :projects block generates standard RESTful routes for the projects, with additional member and collection routes defined.
  • The member block adds routes for actions that apply to a specific project, while the collection block adds routes for actions that apply to the collection of projects.

Inspecting Route Details

Developers can dive deeper into specific route configurations by examining the corresponding controllers and actions. For example, to view the details of the projects routes:

rake routes | grep projects

This command filters the routes related to projects and displays:

get    /projects/:id/remove  projects#remove
put    /projects/:id/fork    projects#fork
get    /projects/search       projects#search

Custom Routes

In addition to standard resource routes, the codebase may include custom routes that cater to specific functionalities. For example, consider the custom route defined within the config/routes.rb file:

get 'dashboard', to: 'dashboard#index'

This line indicates that a GET request to /dashboard will be handled by the index action of the DashboardController.

Nested Routes

GitLab CE also utilizes nested routes for hierarchical resources. For example:

resources :groups do
resources :projects
end

This definition allows for routes such as /groups/:group_id/projects/:id, providing a way to access projects scoped within groups.

Summary

The routing configuration in GitLab CE is a sophisticated part of the application’s architecture, allowing for organized access to its many features. By utilizing the config/routes.rb file, developers can define both standard and custom routes that facilitate functionality requirements of the application’s diverse components. Any developer interested in the routing schema can use Rails routing helpers, commands, and filters to explore and document the routes efficiently.

For in-depth exploration, reviewing the corresponding controllers and actions linked with each route may be required to fully understand its implementation and usage.

Source: GitLab CE codebase (specifically config/routes.rb).