Major Benefits of Microservices

Microservices application architecture involves breaking a monolithic application into component functions or services. After identifying the individual services, developers refactor the monolith so that each service runs autonomously as a separate “microservice.” Then, they loosely connect these microservices via APIs to form a more extensive microservices-based application. The resulting microservices-based application offers a pluggable architectural style. This style enables fast, cost-efficient upgrades, making it easier and less expensive to scale one part of the application. Importantly, you can do this without affecting the rest of the application. Developers usually run each microservice in a container on a cloud-based service such as Amazon AWS. Then they use container orchestration tools like Kubernetes to efficiently allocate processing power and other resources to the containers as required.

Scalability improvements

Since each microservice runs independently, it is easier to add, remove, update or scale each cloud microservice. Developers can perform these tasks without disrupting any other microservice in the system. Companies can scale each microservice as needed. For instance, if a particular microservice experiences increased demand because of seasonal buying periods, more resources can be efficiently devoted to it. If demand drops as the season changes, the microservice can be scaled back, allowing resources or computing power to be used in other areas.

Improved fault isolation

Under a monolithic architecture structure, when developers experience a failure in one element of the architecture, it will collapse all architecture components. With a microservices architecture, if one service fails, it’s much less likely that other parts of the application will fail because each microservice runs independently. However, businesses need to be careful, because large volumes of traffic can still be overwhelming in some cases.

Program language and technology agnostic

A microservice application can be programmed in any language, so dev teams can choose the best language for the job. The fact that microservices architectures are language agnostic also allows the developers to use their existing skill sets to maximum advantage – no need to learn a new programming language just get the work done. Using cloud-based microservices gives developers another advantage, as they can access an application from any internet-connected device, regardless of its platform.

Simpler to deploy

A microservices architecture lets teams deploy independent applications without affecting other services in the architecture. This feature, one of the pros of microservices, will enable developers to add new modules without redesigning the system's complete structure. Businesses can efficiently add new features as needed under a microservices architecture.

Reusability across different areas of business

Some microservice applications may be shareable across a business. If a site has several different areas, each with a login or payment option, the same microservice application can be used in each instance.

Faster time-to-market

Developers can plug this new “microsurgery” into the architecture without fear of conflicts with other code or of creating service outages that ripple across the website. Development teams working on different microservices don't have to wait for each other to finish. Companies can develop and deploy new features quickly and upgrade older components as new technologies allow them to evolve.

Ability to experiment

Deciding to go forward with experimentation is much easier with microservices architecture. It’s simple to roll out new features because each service is independent of the others. If customers don't like it, or the business benefits aren’t clear, it's much easier to roll it back without affecting the rest of the operation. If a new feature is a customer request, a microservices architecture means they’ll get to experience it in weeks, rather than months or years.

Improved data security

If the components of the computer systems architecture break down into smaller pieces, sensitive data is protected from intrusions from another area. While there are connections between all microservices, developers can use secure APIs to connect the services. Secure APIs safeguard data by ensuring it is only available to specifically authorized users, applications and servers. If a business requires handling sensitive data such as health or financial information, it's easier to achieve compliance under data security standards such as healthcare's HIPAA or the European GDPR.

Outsourcing flexibility

It may be necessary for a business to outsource certain functions to third-party partners. Many companies are concerned about protecting intellectual property with a monolithic architecture format. However, a microservices architecture allows businesses to segment areas just for partners that won’t otherwise disclose core services.

Team optimization

Team optimization When considering the size of teams you assign to each microservice, consider the two-pizza rule. First articulated by Amazon, which pioneered microservices, the idea is to keep development teams small enough to feed them with two pizzas. Experts explain that this guideline improves work efficiency, allows businesses to achieve goals faster, makes teams easier to manage, creates greater focus among the group and results in higher quality products.

Attractive for engineers

Engineers find microservices architecture enticing, and companies have a better chance of finding top-flight talent to work on microservices application development. Microservices rely on the latest engineering practices and developer tools. This provides an important advantage for businesses hoping to attract specialists

Better resiliency

 Implementing microservice-based architecture adds ease to the process of  identifying and resolving the root cause of performance issues. The improved fault isolation offered by individual modules means larger applications remain unaffected by a single failure. Consequently, the risk of downtime is reduced since developers can roll back an update or make changes to a module without redeploying the entire application.

Improved productivity

Breaking an application down into smaller autonomous fragments makes it easier to build and maintain. Each service can be developed, deployed, and managed independently, and can utilize different programming languages, different technology, and different software environments based on the needs of each. The reduced codebase of each modular element of an application makes releasing, scaling, deploying, and testing different services more manageable, and associated tasks can be divided among development teams and worked on simultaneously.

Continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD)

Continuous integration and continuous delivery are key concepts of both the DevOps philosophy and the agile approach. Microservices architecture allows cross-functional teams to develop, test, problem-solve, deploy, and update services independently, which leads to faster deployment and troubleshooting turnaround times. The ability to share the workflow burden and automate manual processes shortens the overall lifecycle of the development process.