The REST API offers developers a RESTful interface into Esri Business Analyst's rich dataset and powerful analysis capabilities. The REST API is organized into two groups of tasks: Analysis Tasks and Utility Tasks.
Utility Tasks are generally used to perform a lookup or query type of operation with Business Analyst's dataset to support the Analysis Tasks. With its rich and extensive underlying data, there are many applications where Utility Tasks can also be leveraged on a standalone basis.
| Get Report Templates | Get a list of all available Summary Reports templates in the dataset. |
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| Get Standard Geography Levels | Get a list of all available geographic boundary data layers in the dataset. |
| Standard Geographies by Attributes | Query the geographic boundary data layers by string. |
| Standard Geographies from Extent | Query the geographic boundary data layers by spatial extent. |
Utility Tasks generally involve generation of a simple table listing or the results of a query. Refer to the individual documentation for each REST endpoint for more specific information.
Unlike in Analysis Tasks, which return a common set of results through a TaskResultOutput instance, output from Utility Tasks can be generally described as consisting of a list-based response to a listing or query type of request. These lists can be represented in XML, JSON, PJSON, or HTML REST response formats. The individual records that are returned in the listing or query tasks can be used in REST API Analysis Tasks or on a standalone basis in user applications.
Do not confuse the REST API output response formats with the data structures and corresponding information that is returned in the REST responses. Refer to the individual documentation for each REST endpoint for more specific information about the syntax and types of data returned with each Utility Task.