Day after day, technological advancements make our lives better. Many technologies and architectural patterns have developed and evolved in recent years, and the scenario is only getting better.
Microservices architecture, first introduced only a few years ago, is now a rapidly growing trend. The microservices method does provide tangible benefits such as increased scalability, flexibility, and agility, among other things. Netflix, Google, Amazon, and other tech giants have successfully transitioned to microservices architecture from monolithic architecture. Meanwhile, many businesses believe that following this trend is the most efficient approach to grow their business.
But let’s see…
What is microservices architecture?
Microservices architecture is a method of creating software systems that allows a single application to be structured as a set of loosely coupled services.
Microservices architecture is made up of multiple components that are kept in their software compartments. This allows them to be upgraded or replaced individually.
Microservices architecture simplifies the process of creating and maintaining certain types of applications by breaking them down into many smaller pieces that work together. While this adds to the complexity, it has more advantages than a monolithic structure.
Why monolithic architecture is not a better option?
The truth is that monolithic architecture has a lot of limitations.
A monolithic architecture consists of only one application.
Monolithic architecture is time-consuming. Modifying a minor portion of the software may necessitate a complete rewrite and deployment. Microservices, on the other hand, are easier to set up and may be changed as needed.
Individual microservices architecture models are easier to adapt to specialized or changing product lines than monolithic design.
Business benefits of microservices architecture
Microservices architecture can assist your company in growing faster, increasing efficiency, and innovating more effectively to bring competitive products to market faster. The following are some of the advantages of the microservices architecture:
Components that work independently
To begin with, all of the services can be installed and upgraded independently, allowing for greater flexibility. Next, a problem in a single microservice affects only that service and does not affect the entire application. In addition, adding new features to a microservice application is significantly easier than adding them to a monolithic program.
Easier to understand and simple to keep up with
A microservice application is easier to understand and manage since it is broken down into smaller and simpler components. You just focus on a single service that is tied to a specific business goal.
A single module is easier to manage and test than a whole system. Organizations can build, test, and deploy all of the modules with less complexity because each module has its storage and database.
Improved scalability
The microservices model also has the advantage of allowing each component to scale independently. As a result, the entire process is less expensive and time-consuming than with monoliths, where the entire program must be scaled even if it is not required. Furthermore, every monolith has scalability limitations, therefore the more people you add, the more troubles you’ll have with your monolith. As a result, many businesses must redesign their monolithic architectures.
The flexibility to pick and choose which technology to use
The technical teams aren’t constrained by the technology that was picked at the beginning. For each microservice, they are free to use a variety of technologies and frameworks.
A higher level of agility
Any flaw in a microservices application only affects one service, not the entire solution. As a result, all of the adjustments and trials are carried out with reduced side effects.
Faster development
Changes in one module have little effect on the performance of the others because they are loosely connected. This allows you to update a single module at a time, allowing you to develop faster.
Improved efficiency
The application’s performance can be improved by using a microservices architecture. It reduces downtime by allowing developers to focus on troubleshooting the problem and bringing the system back to normal.
However, microservices architecture has its challenges:
- Increased complexity. Because a microservices architecture is a distributed system, you must choose and configure all of the modules’ and databases’ connections. Furthermore, if an application has independent services, each one must be deployed separately.
- System distribution. Because a microservices architecture is a complicated system with many modules and databases, all of the connections must be carefully managed.
- Cross-cutting issues. You’ll have to deal with a variety of cross-cutting issues when developing a microservices application. Externalized configuration, logging, metrics, health checks, and other features are among them.
- Testing. Testing a microservices-based solution is substantially more difficult due to a large number of independently deployable components.
Making the shift to microservices
Businesses are taking advantage of the benefits that come with this fit for the cloud paradigm to create agile and adaptable software, which is understandable. And we can say that after years of being burnt by long IT projects that are overpromised and underdelivered, technology is finally assisting businesses in achieving their objectives more quickly.
These are just a few of the reasons why companies all around the world are moving away from monolithic architecture and toward microservices architecture. Apple, Netflix, and the BBC are all reaping the advantages. The tech giant Amazon, whose employees publish new code every 11.7 seconds, is the largest winner of embracing microservices and DevOps. The company was able to drastically minimize the number and duration of outages by adopting a more agile approach. The shift also resulted in an immediate boost in revenue, providing the desired return on investment (ROI) that many software projects fail to offer.
All in all
Many businesses have jumped blindly into a microservices environment that they don’t completely understand and, therefore, find difficult to manage. For complex and dynamic applications, the microservices architecture is a great option. It provides practical methods for managing a complex system of operations and services within a single application. Microservices are suitable for platforms that include a wide range of user experiences and workflows. However, applying this model would be unfeasible without adequate microservices skills.
If your development team lacks microservices experience, you can hire a software development partner who has worked on a microservices architecture before.
WebChain can help you to properly implement microservices architecture to increase your productivity and ROI. It’s not just a technology option to design your architecture. It’s a business decision that will have a direct impact on your company’s growth. We can assist you with the technical aspects of your project while you focus on your business objectives. Just contact us and let’s chat about it!