Where will microservices come in handy?

How to understand that it is better to build your project on microservices: 3 easy steps to solve the problem.

5 minutes of reading

If you ask a software development guru or google thoroughly whether you need to apply microservices to your project, you probably won’t get a direct answer. But since the mid-2010s, successful example of Amazon, Netflix, and The Guardian has inspired many to try such architecture in their projects. To delineate modules, transport app contexts into microservices, and connect everything with an open network. Like HTTP.

Some people managed to do it, while others didn’t. So we decided to write this article to help figure out when it’s reasonable to use microservices.

Step 1. Try monolithic architecture

You probably know it well already. It’s the most obvious way to restructure an app, and all of its logic is concentrated on one process. Monolith is easily divided into classes, modules, and functions, and it’s simple to maintain. But this very advantage in the project scaling, with the need to always be making changes, turns into a disadvantage – each tweak in the modules requires the whole app to stop, and one critical mistake can bring the whole system down.

Step 2. Analyze the prospects of the project

In the monolith’s development process it’s getting harder to keep a good module structure, and you’ll have to change the whole application for scaling separate modules. Microservices architecture became the solution to this problem, and they take their roots in Agile basics.

”Responding to change over following a plan”

Manifesto for Agile Software Development

The creation of a flexible system that is based on independent separated modules, where each operates on its own, makes product extension and development much easier. Add to it independent deployment and freedom to choose convenient technology for each service – bingo – you can make the release process faster and simpler using microservices.

Step 3. Evaluate your potential

In contrast to mobility in a microservice architecture, there’s a risk of breaking the neighboring modules after updates. In monoliths, such problems are solved with versioning. While here – with software design, where every microservice will be as tolerant of its neighbors’ changes as possible.

Software architecture characteristics

Simplicity

All in one process

As many services as there are processes

Accessibility

The whole system can stop working if there’s a critical mistake in one module

Even if one service fails, the rest will continue working

Mobility

You need to stop the whole system to change one separate module

The possibility of deploying and updating modules one by one

Productivity

Better than microservices if there are more than 100 users

Better than monoliths if the system load is big

Coherence

A single code and error processing by the same standards

Different commands operation with different approaches

Flexibility in development

A single set of tools for the whole system

It’s possible to use different technologies for each service

Intermodular refactoring

The interaction between modules is easier when there are no clear boundaries

Each microservice is clearly delimitated, which simplifies maintenance

The enhancement of problem-solving approaches became the obvious advantage of microservices architecture. Its methods aren’t limited to programming languages and development teams’ standards – all the solutions are directed towards productivity.

In the end, by choosing microservices architecture you don’t only define your abilities, but you’re also ready for change and making your product better as you can apply them even to a monolith – ask Guardian :)