What are Microservices?

Microservices are a specific form of software architecture. The individual services of the respective software system only perform a small task and act independently of each other. The end result is that the entire software is modular instead of monolithic. The use of microservices is a proven approach - many of the well-known online services successfully use microservices.

Advantages of modularization

What are the advantages of microservices over monolithic software architecture?

Deployment: Each Microservice can be installed and modified individually. The other units remain unaffected.
Programming: Monolithic software must be written completely in one programming language. But not Microservices. Each component of an application can theoretically be implemented in a different programming language and on a different platform.
Robustness: Depending on the type of programming, the respective application even survives the failure of individual microservices. Even if one unit is running at high CPU utilization, this only affects this one service, not all others.
Manageability: Because microservices only require between 10 and 100 lines of code, they remain manageable and can easily be further developed.
Stability: In monolithic systems, dependencies creep in over time that destroy the originally planned architecture. Dependencies between microservices, on the other hand, must be deliberately set up via API and are therefore dependent on a conscious decision. In this way, microservice architectures are more long-term.
Scaling: Just because one component of an application requires more resources does not automatically mean that the same applies to all others. With monolithic software architecture, the scaling of the individual units cannot be separated from each other - with Microservices, this is the case.
Resource utilization: If key units have been defined beforehand for microservices, the software will not have any problems with overloading. In this case, uncritical units are simply switched off, freeing up resources for important services.

Motivation for the use of microservices

Even though the advantages mentioned make it clear that the use of microservices for the creation of new software makes sense, one question remains: What is the motivation of online platforms to switch from a monolithic architecture to microservices?

A major factor is that Continuous Delivery for Microservices is much easier to implement because the individual units are small. In addition, this form of architecture makes the maintenance of the developed systems easier. This is particularly useful for product instead of project-oriented development and simplifies, for example, the long-term support we offer. Thanks to the use of microservices, it is still possible to further develop the system without any problems.

Another good reason for using Microservices is that teams do not have to choose a programming language during development. Instead, they can choose the language that best suits the service. This also makes it easier to experiment with new technologies and prevent software obsolescence. That is of particular interest for enterprise software that is expected to be used for a long time. Depending on requirements, the microservices of these legacy systems can be renewed or new units added - without triggering complicated changes to the other components.

Are microservices of interest to you?

We would be happy to arrange an appointment with you for one of our workshops on this topic or to conduct an initial consultation free of charge. We will evaluate the status of your existing software and check without obligation how you can benefit most from Microservices.