The HTTP FETCH-ONCE Method

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction

Applications often require one-time access to sensitive data such as tokens or temporary links. Existing HTTP methods require multiple requests. FETCH-ONCE provides a single atomic operation that retrieves and invalidates a resource in one step.¶

2. Method Definition

The FETCH-ONCE method retrieves the target resource and then deletes or invalidates it immediately after access. The server MUST ensure that the operation is atomic so that only one client can successfully retrieve any given resource.¶

3. Security Considerations

Servers MUST ensure atomic behavior to prevent multiple retrievals. Implementations should consider race conditions and ensure that concurrent FETCH-ONCE requests for the same resource result in only one successful retrieval.¶

4. IANA Considerations

This document requests that IANA register the FETCH-ONCE method in the "HTTP Method Registry" maintained at <https://www.iana.org/assignments/http-methods>.¶

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