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Introduction

Microservices architecture is an approach in which a single application is composed of many loosely coupled and independently deployable smaller services.

Microservices are designed to work independently, they sometimes still have dependencies on other microservices and need to communicate with each other. This communication occurs through the use of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces); synchronous or asynchronous protocols like HTTP/REST.

Benefits of using MicroServices

  1. Access: Since microservices are deployed separately and communicate through API.
  2. Error management: If a microservices architecture is implemented correctly, finding and isolating bugs becomes much easier. Whenever an error occurs, developers know exactly where to look, which saves valuable time and effort. And fixing only one independently run service means that other code won’t be affected and there is no need to deploy the whole application.
  3. Maintenance: Each service can be managed by a different team since it stands for a unique process with its own database. Individual updates can be performed without bringing the whole software system to a halt.
  4. Adaptability: Microservices are only loosely coupled and have a standardized way of communicating with each other. But since they’re built separately, they don’t have to share the same programming language or technology. That means each service can develop on its own tech stack.
  5. Reusability: An independent components can be reused for future projects.
  6. Fault Isolation : If a specific microservice fails, you can isolate that failure to that single service and prevent cascading failures that would cause the app to crash. This fault isolation means that your critical application can stay up and running even when one of its modules fails.
  7. Small Codebase: Microservice typically have small codebases, making them easier to maintain and deploy. It’s also much easier to keep the code clean and for teams to be wholly responsible for specific services.
  8. Microservices are independently scalable and deployable.

Drawbacks of MicroServices

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Microservices create different types of complexity than monolithic applications for development teams: First, communication between services can be complex. An application can include dozens or even hundreds of different services, and they all need to communicate securely.

Second, debugging becomes more challenging with microservices. With an application consisting of multiple microservices and with each microservice having its own set of logs, tracing the source of the problem can be difficult.

And third, while unit testing may be easier with microservices, integration testing is not. The components are distributed, and developers can’t test an entire system from their individual machines.

A microservices architecture model results in a large number of APIs, all crucial to the operation of the enterprise — so interface control becomes mission-critical.

For microservices architecture to work for your organization, you need sufficient hosting infrastructure with security and maintenance support, and you need skilled development teams who understand and manage all the services.

If you already have these things in place, the costs involved in moving to microservices may be lower — but most enterprises that are currently running monolithic architecture will need to invest in the new infrastructure and developer resources in order to make the move.

Microservices architecture advantages and disadvantages differ greatly from traditional monolithic architecture, and this model isn’t ideal for every organization.

However, the big shift to this modular architectural style is happening for a reason — more enterprises are realizing the need for faster, easier, more agile application development, and microservices enable this in ways monolithic architecture simply cannot.