Can you explain what using the PATCH HTTP method in the data transfer protocol means?

The HTTP PATCH method is used for partial updates of a resource on the server. Unlike PUT, which typically replaces the entire resource, PATCH allows sending only the changes that need to be made. This is convenient when you need to update only a few fields of an object without affecting the others.

For example, if you have a user with data (name, email, phone), and you want to change only the email, you can send a PATCH request with the new email without transmitting the name and phone.

Example of a PATCH request in PHP using cURL:

$ch = curl_init('https://api.example.com/users/123');
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_CUSTOMREQUEST, 'PATCH');
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, json_encode(['email' => 'newemail@example.com']));
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER, ['Content-Type: application/json']);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);
$response = curl_exec($ch);
curl_close($ch);

echo $response;

Thus, PATCH is optimal for partial updates and saves traffic and server resources.