FastAPI: Complete End-to-End Course
Course Curriculum
20 modules designed to master the subject.
Module 1: Introduction to FastAPI
Understand the purpose, positioning, and high-performance architecture of FastAPI.
What is FastAPI?
The modern framework for Python APIs. Learn about the philosophy, positioning, and key advantages of FastAPI compared to legacy frameworks.
Why FastAPI is Fast
Deconstructing the engine. Learn about ASGI vs WSGI, the async-first architecture, and the Starlette/Pydantic foundations that make FastAPI high-performance.
Real-World Use Cases: Where FastAPI Shines
From microservices to AI agents. Explore how industry leaders use FastAPI to build scalable, high-performance backends for modern applications.
Module 1 Exercises: Applying the Theory
Practical exercises to solidify your understanding of FastAPI's core concepts and use cases.
Module 2: Python and Web API Foundations
Master async/await, type hints, and the core principles of RESTful API design.
Python Requirements: Types, Async, and Await
Master the Python 3.8+ features required for FastAPI. Learn about type hints, asynchronous programming, and the event loop.
REST API Basics: HTTP, Methods, and Lifecycle
Understand the language of the web. Learn about HTTP methods, status codes, headers, and the request-response cycle.
JSON and API Design: Structuring Data for Scale
Master JSON structures, payload validation, and the principles of clean API design. Learn how to build APIs that developers love to use.
Module 2 Exercises: Mastering the Foundations
Practical exercises to consolidate your knowledge of Python type hints, async/await, and RESTful API design.
Module 3: FastAPI Project Structure
Learn scalable application layouts, environment management, and configuration strategies.
The Perfect Project Structure: Scalable Application Layout
Move beyond single-file apps. Learn how to organize FastAPI projects using feature-based modularity for long-term maintainability.
Environment Management and Dependency Isolation
Ensure your FastAPI app runs perfectly everywhere. Learn about virtual environments, dependency isolation, and pip vs poetry vs uv.
Configuration Strategy: Settings and Secrets
Stop hard-coding your API keys. Learn how to use Pydantic Settings and environment variables to manage your application's configuration safely.
Module 3 Exercises: Building the Skeleton
Practical exercises to master project structure, environment management, and secure configuration.
Module 4: Routing and Request Handling
Master path operations, query parameters, and complex request body handling.
Path Operations and Route Parameters
Master the basics of routing in FastAPI. Learn about path operation decorators, naming conventions, and extracting variables from URLs.
Query Parameters: Filtering and Pagination
Master optional parameters in FastAPI. Learn how to handle defaults, required query params, and data validation.
Request Bodies: Handling JSON Payloads
Master POST requests in FastAPI. Learn how to use Pydantic models to receive, validate, and process complex JSON data.
Module 4 Exercises: Mastering Routing and Payloads
Practical exercises to harden your skills in identifying path vs query parameters and designing robust request bodies.
Module 5: Data Validation and Serialization
Deep dive into Pydantic models for robust input validation and output shaping.
Pydantic Models: The Engine of FastAPI
Master the core of data validation. Learn how Pydantic models enforce types, provide defaults, and handle complex data structures with ease.
Input Validation: Custom Logic and Validators
Master complex validation. Learn how to write custom validator functions for cross-field checks and business logic in Pydantic.
Output Models and Response Shaping
Control what you show the world. Learn how to use response_model to filter sensitive data, version responses, and improve API performance.
Module 5 Exercises: Pydantic Proficiency
Hone your skills in data validation, custom logic, and secure response shaping with Pydantic and FastAPI.
Module 6: Dependency Injection
Master FastAPI's powerful dependency injection system for database sessions and auth.
Dependency Injection: Core Concepts
The 'Secret Weapon' of FastAPI. Learn what dependency injection is, why it matters, and how it simplifies your code.
Common Dependency Use Cases: Databases and Auth
See Dependency Injection in action. Learn how to manage database sessions and protect routes with authentication checks using Depends.
Dependency Chains and Overrides
Master the advanced side of DI. Learn how to nest dependencies and how to override them for seamless automated testing.
Module 6 Exercises: Mastering Dependency Injection
Practical exercises to harden your skills in creating shared services, authentication guards, and dependency chains.
Module 7: Error Handling and Responses
Implement consistent error handling, custom exceptions, and structured responses.
Error Handling: HTTP Exceptions and Responses
Communicate failure clearly. Learn how to use HTTPException to return standard error messages and status codes to your clients.
Custom Exception Handlers: Global Error Management
Beyond status codes. Learn how to catch domain-specific exceptions and return standardized error formats across your entire API.
Response Models and Consistent Formats
Master the art of the response. Learn how to design standardized response wrappers and use Pydantic to ensure every endpoint speaks the same language.
Module 7 Exercises: Communicating with Confidence
Practical exercises to master HTTP exceptions, custom handlers, and standardized response envelopes.
Module 8: Middleware and Request Lifecycle
Learn to intercept requests with middleware for logging, CORS, and rate limiting.
Middleware and the Request Lifecycle
Understand the 'Gatekeepers' of your API. Learn what middleware is, how it executes, and the order of operations in a FastAPI request.
Common Middleware: CORS, GZip, and Trusted Hosts
Master the standard middleware for production APIs. Learn how to configure CORS for frontend security and GZip for performance.
Custom Middleware Design: Performance and Side Effects
Build your own interceptors. Learn how to write custom middleware for logging, rate limiting, and request tracking without killing performance.
Module 8 Exercises: Mastering the Lifecycle
Practical exercises to challenge your understanding of middleware, CORS, and global request interceptors.
Module 9: Authentication and Authorization
Implement OAuth2, JWT, and Role-Based Access Control to secure your API.
Authentication Concepts: Sessions vs. Tokens
The foundations of security. Learn the difference between stateful sessions and stateless token-based authentication (JWT) in modern API design.
Implementing OAuth2 and JWT in FastAPI
Build a secure login system. Learn how to use FastAPI's built-in OAuth2 support to issue and verify JWT tokens.
Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)
Master authorization. Learn how to design a permissions system that restricts specific endpoints to Admins, Managers, or regular Users.
Module 9 Exercises: Securing the Perimeter
Practical exercises to challenge your understanding of JWT, OAuth2, and role-based permissions.
Module 10: Database Integration
Connect to SQL and NoSQL databases using sync and async drivers and repository patterns.
Database Choices: SQL vs. NoSQL in FastAPI
Choosing the right storage engine. Explore the pros and cons of relational vs. non-relational databases and how they integrate with FastAPI's async core.
ORM and Query Layers: Mastering SQLModel
Map your Python objects to database tables. Learn how to use SQLModel to combine the power of Pydantic and SQLAlchemy for seamless data access.
Database Lifecycle: Connection Pooling and Migrations
Operate your database at scale. Learn how to manage connection pools, handle transactions, and use Alembic for version-controlled database migrations.
Module 10 Exercises: Mastering the Data Layer
Practical exercises to consolidate your knowledge of SQLModel, relationships, and database transactions.
Module 11: Background Tasks and Async Work
Offload heavy processing to background tasks and understand async execution patterns.
Built-in Background Tasks: Simple and Effective
Send emails and process data without waiting. Learn how to use FastAPI's native BackgroundTasks system to improve user response times.
Heavy Lifting: Celery, Redis, and Task Queues
Scale your background work. Learn when and how to move from built-in tasks to distributed task queues like Celery for industrial-grade processing.
Module 11 Exercises: Orchestrating the Background
Practical exercises to challenge your understanding of BackgroundTasks and distributed task architecture.
Module 12: WebSockets and Real-Time APIs
Build persistent, real-time communication channels for chats and notifications.
WebSockets: Real-Time Bidirectional Communication
Move beyond Request/Response. Learn the foundations of WebSockets and how they enable instant, real-time data flow in FastAPI.
Building a Connection Manager for Chat and Notifications
Scale your real-time apps. Learn how to track active users, handle multiple connection rooms, and broadcast messages efficiently.
Module 12 Exercises: Building Real-Time Systems
Practical exercises to challenge your understanding of WebSocket lifecycles, connection management, and broadcasting.
Module 13: OpenAPI and Documentation
Master automatic OpenAPI generation and customize your API documentation.
OpenAPI: Customizing Swagger and Redoc
Your API is your product. Learn how to customize metadata, tags, and security schemas to create world-class documentation automatically.
JSON Schema and Data Examples
Make your API self-explanatory. Learn how to provide example payloads and rich descriptions for your Pydantic models in the documentation.
Module 13 Exercises: Crafting the Perfect Docs
Practical exercises to challenge your ability to organize, document, and polish your API for public consumption.
Module 14: Testing FastAPI Applications
Design comprehensive unit, integration, and E2E tests with dependency overrides.
Testing FastAPI: Unit and Integration Tests
Verify your code before you ship. Learn how to use TestClient and Pytest to write reliable, automated tests for your FastAPI endpoints.
Mocking and Dependency Overrides
Isolate your tests. Learn how to replace real services (like databases and external APIs) with 'Fake' versions to make your tests fast and deterministic.
Module 14 Exercises: Building a Safety Net
Practical exercises to challenge your ability to write TestClient functions, override dependencies, and assert correctness.
Module 15: Performance and Scalability
Optimize for latency and throughput using caching strategies and horizontal scaling.
Concurrency: Mastering Async and Await
Unlock the full power of your server. Learn how to optimize FastAPI's event loop to handle thousands of concurrent connections with minimal hardware.
Caching Strategies: Redis and Memory
The fastest response is the one you don't have to calculate. Learn how to implement caching to drastically reduce database load and latency.
Load Testing and Stress Testing
Know your limits. Learn how to use Locust to simulate thousands of users and find the breaking point of your FastAPI application.
Module 15 Exercises: Engineering for Scale
Practical exercises to challenge your understanding of async concurrency, caching, and load testing.
Module 16: Security Best Practices
Protect against common vulnerabilities with security headers and secret management.
Security Best Practices: Hashing, Salts, and Secrets
Protect your data. Learn the essential security patterns for handling passwords, managing secrets, and securing your FastAPI code against common vulnerabilities.
Input Sanitization and Resource Protection
Trust no one. Learn how to sanitize user input and implement cross-user resource protection to prevent IDOR attacks and data leaks.
Module 16 Exercises: Securing the Vault
Practical exercises to challenge your understanding of password security, resource ownership, and input sanitization.
Module 17: Deployment and Production
Containerize your app with Docker and deploy to AWS, GCP, or Azure using ASGI servers.
Uvicorn and Gunicorn: The ASGI Connection
Prepare for traffic. Learn the difference between ASGI and WSGI and how to configure Uvicorn and Gunicorn for high-availability production environments.
Dockerizing FastAPI: Portable Production Environments
Package your app for any cloud. Learn how to write optimized Dockerfiles for FastAPI to ensure 'It works on my machine' means 'It works in the cloud.'
CI/CD: Automating Testing and Deployment
Ship with confidence. Learn how to use GitHub Actions to automatically run your tests and deploy your code every time you push to Git.
Module 17 Exercises: Shipping to the World
Practical exercises to challenge your understanding of ASGI servers, Dockerfiles, and CI/CD pipelines.
Module 18: Observability and Monitoring
Implement structured logging, metrics tracking, and distributed tracing.
Logging and Structured Logs: The API's Memory
See what happens in the dark. Learn how to implement structured logging to track errors, user actions, and system health in production.
Metrics and Dashboards: Prometheus and Grafana
Turn numbers into insights. Learn how to expose API metrics, track throughput and error rates, and build beautiful monitoring dashboards.
Distributed Tracing: OpenTelemetry and Jaeger
Follow the path. Learn how to track a single request as it jumps across microservices, databases, and external APIs using distributed tracing.
Module 18 Exercises: Watching the Watchers
Practical exercises to challenge your understanding of structured logging, Prometheus metrics, and distributed tracing.
Module 19: FastAPI for AI and ML APIs
Design inference endpoints and integration patterns for ML models and AI agents.
FastAPI for AI: Async Clients and Model Serving
The AI-First API. Learn how to wrap LLMs and Machine Learning models using FastAPI's async core to build high-performance AI services.
Real-Time AI: Streaming Responses and SSE
Eliminate the 'Loading' spinner. Learn how to use StreamingResponse and Server-Sent Events (SSE) to stream AI results word-by-word to your users.
Module 19 Exercises: The AI-First API
Practical exercises to challenge your understanding of async AI clients, structured output, and streaming data.
Module 20: Capstone Design Project
Design a full-featured, production-ready FastAPI system as your final project.
Capstone Project: Designing an AI-Powered Task Platform
Put it all together. Design a production-grade, distributed system that combines everything you've learned—from WebSockets to AI streaming.
The Path Ahead: Mastering the FastAPI Ecosystem
You've crossed the finish line. Explore the advanced libraries and communities that will help you stay at the cutting edge of Python development.
Module 20 Exercises: The Master's Challenge
Practical exercises to challenge your ability to architect complete systems and defend your design decisions.
Course Overview
Format
Self-paced reading
Duration
Approx 6-8 hours
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