Is Python Requests Session?
Python Requests is a library that allows you to send HTTP/1.1 requests extremely easily. The library is designed to be simple and intuitive, while still allowing you to customize every aspect of the request. One of the key features of Python Requests is the ability to use sessions.
What is a Session?
A session is essentially a way to persist data across multiple requests to a website. When you create a session, Python Requests will send a unique identifier along with each request in order to tie all the requests together. This allows you to use certain features that require multiple requests, such as authentication or maintaining state.
How to Use Sessions in Python Requests
Using sessions in Python Requests is very easy. First, you need to create a session object:
import requests
session = requests.Session()
Once you have a session object, you can use it to send requests:
response = session.get('https://www.example.com')
Note that we used session.get instead of requests.get. This is important because it ensures that the session identifier is sent with the request.
Why Use Sessions?
There are several reasons to use sessions in Python Requests:
- Authentication: If a website requires authentication, you can use a session to persist your login credentials across multiple requests.
- Maintaining State: Some websites require you to perform multiple requests in a specific order in order to achieve a certain goal. Using a session ensures that the necessary data is persisted across all the requests.
- Improved Performance: Sessions can improve performance by reducing the overhead associated with establishing a new connection for each request.