Consuming Kafka Messages with Confluent REST Proxy

Libraries: If you want this lab, consider one of these libraries.
Cloud

Consuming Kafka Messages with Confluent REST Proxy

The Confluent REST Proxy provides a "RESTful interface" on top of Kafka, allowing you to produce and consume messages using simple HTTP requests. In this lab, you will have the opportunity to interact with the REST proxy by consuming some existing messages. This will give you some hands-on experience with the requests necessary for consuming Kafka data using REST.

Get started Contact sales

Lab Info

Level

Intermediate

Last updated

Sep 21, 2025

Duration

30m

Challenge

Provide the Number of Apples Sold in the Last Week

Create a new consumer and consumer_instance:

curl -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/vnd.kafka.v2+json" 
  --data '{"name": "sales_consumer_instance", "format": "json", "auto.offset.reset": "earliest"}' 
  http://localhost:8082/consumers/sales_json_consumer

Subscribe the consumer to the weekly_sales topic:

curl -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/vnd.kafka.v2+json" --data '{"topics":["weekly_sales"]}' 
  http://localhost:8082/consumers/sales_json_consumer/instances/sales_consumer_instance/subscription

Consume the messages:

curl -X GET -H "Accept: application/vnd.kafka.json.v2+json" 
  http://localhost:8082/consumers/sales_json_consumer/instances/sales_consumer_instance/records

Locate the latest record with a key of apples and copy its value.
Edit the output file:

vi /home/cloud_user/output/apple_sales.txt

Paste in the value from the latest apples record and save the file.

Challenge

Provide the Current Quarterly Balance for Product Purchases

Create a new consumer and consumer_instance:

curl -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/vnd.kafka.v2+json" 
  --data '{"name": "balance_consumer_instance", "format": "json", "auto.offset.reset": "earliest"}' 
  http://localhost:8082/consumers/balance_json_consumer

Subscribe the consumer to the quarterly_purchases topic:

curl -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/vnd.kafka.v2+json" --data '{"topics":["quarterly_purchases"]}' 
  http://localhost:8082/consumers/balance_json_consumer/instances/balance_consumer_instance/subscription

Consume the messages:

curl -X GET -H "Accept: application/vnd.kafka.json.v2+json" 
  http://localhost:8082/consumers/balance_json_consumer/instances/balance_consumer_instance/records

Locate the latest record and copy its value.
Edit the output file:

vi /home/cloud_user/output/quarterly_balance.txt

Paste in the value from the latest record and save the file.

About the author

Pluralsight Skills

Pluralsight Skills gives leaders confidence they have the skills needed to execute technology strategy. Technology teams can benchmark expertise across roles, speed up release cycles and build reliable, secure products. By leveraging our expert content, skill assessments and one-of-a-kind analytics, keep up with the pace of change, put the right people on the right projects and boost productivity. It's the most effective path to developing tech skills at scale.

Real skill practice before real-world application

Hands-on Labs are real environments created by industry experts to help you learn. These environments help you gain knowledge and experience, practice without compromising your system, test without risk, destroy without fear, and let you learn from your mistakes. Hands-on Labs: practice your skills before delivering in the real world.

Learn by doing

Engage hands-on with the tools and technologies you’re learning. You pick the skill, we provide the credentials and environment.

Follow your guide

All labs have detailed instructions and objectives, guiding you through the learning process and ensuring you understand every step.

Turn time into mastery

On average, you retain 75% more of your learning if you take time to practice. Hands-on labs set you up for success to make those skills stick.