Skip to page content Skip to main navigation
English | Site Directory

e.g. "templates" or "datastore"

# The fetch Function

The `google.appengine.api.urlfetch` package provides the following function:

fetch(url, payload=None, method=GET, headers={}, allow_truncated=False, follow_redirects=True)

  Fetches a document at the URL given in url, and returns an object containing the details of the response. See Response Objects for details about the return value.

  The fetch action is synchronous. fetch() will not return until the server responds. A slow remote server may cause your application's own request to time out.

  Arguments:

  url
    An `http` or `https` URL. If the URL is invalid, a InvalidURLError is raised.
  payload
    Body content for a `POST` or `PUT` request.
  method
    The HTTP method to use for the request. Acceptable values include `GET`, `POST`, `HEAD`, `PUT`, and `DELETE`. These values are constants provided by the package.
  headers
    The set of HTTP headers to include with the request, as a mapping of names and values. For security reasons, some HTTP headers cannot be modified by the application. See the URL Fetch Service overview.
  allow_truncated
    If `False` and the response data exceeds the maximum allowed response size, a ResponseTooLargeError exception is raised. If `True`, no exception is raised, and the response's `content` is truncated to the maximum size, and the response object's `content_was_truncated` attribute is set to `True`. For more information on limits, see the URL Fetch Service overview.
  follow_redirects

    If `True`, responses that are HTTP redirects are followed, up to 5 consecutive redirects. The response data is from the final location, as if the data were for the requested location. If `False`, redirects are not followed, and a redirect response is returned directly to the application, including the header information that describes the redirect.

    Warning: Cookies are not handled upon redirection. If cookie handling is needed, set follow_redirects to `False` and handle both cookies and redirects manually.