# iControl REST path explainer

> Paste an iControl REST URL and get it decoded: the TMOS module, the collection, the tilde-encoded partition and folder path with its tmsh equivalent, sub-collections such as pool members, and the query options. Local and offline; it never contacts a device.

- Tool: https://ronutz.com/en/tools/icontrol-rest-path-explainer
- Family: Networking

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## What it does

Paste an iControl REST URL and the tool decodes it: the TMOS module, the collection, the tilde-encoded partition and folder path together with its `tmsh` equivalent, any sub-collection such as pool members, and the query options. It parses the URL text only — nothing is fetched and nothing leaves the browser.

## The tilde

`/mgmt/tm/ltm/pool/~Common~apps~web_pool` addresses `/Common/apps/web_pool`. The tilde is a folder separator, used because **a URL already uses the slash for its own structure**. The tool always shows the `tmsh` form beside the decoded parts, because that is the form most readers already know.

## The partition detail that causes 404s

A name written without a partition is resolved **in the caller's current partition**. The same request can succeed for one administrator and return 404 for another, with nothing wrong in either case. The tool says so whenever the object name is unqualified.

## Query options

`$select`, `$filter`, `$top`, `$skip`, `expandSubcollections`, `options` and `ver` are explained individually. The one worth knowing is **`expandSubcollections`**: without it, a pool comes back with no members, which is the most common surprise in this API.

## What it will not do

The module table is finite. If a path uses a module the tool does not know, it decodes the structure and **says the module is unrecognised rather than describing it from a guess**. It validates nothing against a device and cannot tell you whether the object exists.

## The companion tool

The F5OS RESTCONF path explainer decodes the platform layer underneath a tenant, which uses RESTCONF over YANG rather than this object model. The two APIs look nothing alike because they come from different traditions, not different versions.

## Standards and references

- [F5 iControl REST API reference](https://clouddocs.f5.com/api/icontrol-rest/)
- [iControl REST user guide](https://clouddocs.f5.com/api/icontrol-rest/APIRef_tm_ltm.html)

## Related reading

- [Reading an iControl REST path](https://ronutz.com/en/learn/icontrol-rest-paths.md): Why iControl REST URLs contain tildes, how the module and collection are laid out, what a partition and folder path means, and which query options change the size of the answer.
- [Reading BIG-IP statistics](https://ronutz.com/en/learn/reading-bigip-statistics.md): Why an iControl REST stats response is wrapped in three envelopes, what the high and low halves of a counter mean, and why a single sample can never give you a rate.