Which statement differentiates SOAP from REST according to the material?

• A. SOAP focuses on exposing and accessing named operations, while REST focuses on accessing resources via HTTP methods
• B. REST focuses on exposing a piece of application logic as a service
• C. SOAP is based on XML and W3C standards
• D. SOAP and REST are both unrelated to SSL

Answer: (A)

The key idea being tested is how SOAP and REST model services differently. SOAP is operation-centric: it exposes and invokes named operations, often described in a contract like WSDL. REST is resource-centric: it focuses on accessing resources identified by URLs and manipulating them with standard HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE). That’s why the statement that differentiates them—SOAP focusing on named operations and REST on accessing resources via HTTP methods—best captures their fundamental distinction.

Context to help understanding: SOAP typically defines a set of operations you can call, often with formal envelopes and XML-based messages. REST treats everything as a resource with a uniform interface over HTTP, using verbs to perform actions on those resources, and is generally stateless and lightweight. While other statements may be true in certain contexts (for example, SOAP often uses XML and SOAP can run over SSL), they don’t capture the core difference between the two approaches.