--- title: A generic REST interface into Elixir | daily.dev description: A proof-of-concept implementation demonstrates how to build a generic REST interface for Elixir's GenServer call and cast functions using Cowboy HTTP server.... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/a-generic-rest-interface-into-elixir-w02ikoqop twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: A generic REST interface into Elixir | daily.dev og:description: A proof-of-concept implementation demonstrates how to build a generic REST interface for Elixir's GenServer call and cast functions using Cowboy HTTP server.... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/a-generic-rest-interface-into-elixir-w02ikoqop og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/w02IKOqoP.png og:image:alt: A generic REST interface into Elixir og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # A generic REST interface into Elixir **[ElixirStatus](https://daily.dev/sources/elixirstatus)** · 8 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary A proof-of-concept implementation demonstrates how to build a generic REST interface for Elixir's GenServer call and cast functions using Cowboy HTTP server. The approach allows any HTTP client with JSON support to interact with globally-registered GenServers through simple POST requests. The implementation extends to support server-sent events for receiving asynchronous messages, enabling full bidirectional communication with GenServers via HTTP. Examples include a key-value store and pub-sub server accessed through both native Elixir calls and REST endpoints. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Build an Elixir App with Cowboy](https://daily.dev/posts/build-an-elixir-app-with-cowboy-cbg2oram6) · AppSignal · 3 upvotes · 0 comments - [Lua with Erlang and Elixir](https://daily.dev/posts/lua-with-erlang-and-elixir-mhg9cmlze) · Erlang Solutions · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#elixir](https://daily.dev/tags/elixir), [#rest-api](https://daily.dev/tags/rest-api), [#server-sent-events](https://daily.dev/tags/server-sent-events) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/a-generic-rest-interface-into-elixir-w02ikoqop) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"A generic REST interface into Elixir","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/a-generic-rest-interface-into-elixir-w02ikoqop","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/a-generic-rest-interface-into-elixir-w02ikoqop"},"datePublished":"2026-01-29T10:15:17.883Z","dateModified":"2026-05-21T02:14:20.237Z","description":"A proof-of-concept implementation demonstrates how to build a generic REST interface for Elixir's GenServer call and cast functions using Cowboy HTTP server....","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--ZrL_HSsR--/f_auto/v1722860399/public/Placeholder%2006","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--ZrL_HSsR--/f_auto/v1722860399/public/Placeholder%2006","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"ElixirStatus","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"ElixirStatus","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/22e4640538124187827caf8cc8e39190","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/elixirstatus"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/a-generic-rest-interface-into-elixir-w02ikoqop","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"elixir,rest-api,server-sent-events","timeRequired":"PT8M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"ElixirStatus","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/elixirstatus"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"A generic REST interface into Elixir"}]} ```