RUST Microservices Intermediate

Link Shortener Service in Rust

Develop a minimalistic link-shortening microservice using the Axum framework and its routing system.

Premium · 3h 0m · 4 ch

Practice →

What you'll build

We'll build a complete URL shortening service from scratch using Rust and the axum web framework. Starting with a bare Cargo project, we'll progressively add async runtime support, HTTP routing, CLI configuration, request handlers, shared state management, and a domain-specific code type with base62 encoding.

Along the way we'll see how axum's extractor system works, how to share mutable state safely across async handlers using Arc<RwLock<T>>, and how to implement custom Serde serialization for domain types. By the end, our service accepts URLs via a POST endpoint, generates compact short codes, stores mappings in memory, and redirects visitors back to the original destination.

Learning objectives

✓Set up an async Rust web service with axum and tokio

✓Configure runtime options with clap and environment variables

✓Implement REST endpoints for link creation and redirection

✓Manage shared mutable state with Arc<RwLock>

✓Design a domain type with custom Display and Deserialize implementations

✓Build an in-memory storage model with bidirectional HashMap lookups

Prerequisites

▸Basic Rust syntax (structs, enums, traits, modules)

▸Familiarity with async/await in Rust

▸Basic understanding of HTTP methods and status codes

Course curriculum

1 Configurable HTTP Service

—Bootstrapping a server

—Add options to configure address

—Add the index handler

2 Link Codes And State

—Implement the Code struct

—Converting Code to a string

—Deserialize the code

—Implement the Shortener state

—Add the new method to the state

3 URL Lookup and Registration

—Implement the lookup method

—Implement the register method

—Generate the unique Code value

—Construct a short link

—Avoid link duplications

4 URL Shortening Service

—Add the state to the Router

—Implement the create_link handler

—Code collision

—Implement the follow_link handler

—Testing the shortener

Technologies

Rust axum URL Shortener Microservice REST API tokio Shared State Base62 Serde clap

FAQ

Is this a video course?

No. You work through the project step by step in your browser, and the reference code for each step saves to your disk — yours to run and keep locally.

Do I need to install anything?

No. The playground runs entirely in your browser — no toolchain or local setup required.

Can I try it before subscribing?

Yes. Preview steps are available without a subscription so you can see the format and quality first.

What do I get with full access?

Every step unlocked, the Workbench app, a snapshot for each step, jump-to-any-step navigation, and all new playground releases.

Does it work with an AI agent like Claude or Codex?

Yes. You can work through a playground solo or alongside an AI agent.

Is there reference code?

Yes. Every step has a complete reference solution you can compare against.