Software Architecture Patterns

Chapter 4. Microservices Architecture Pattern

The microservices architecture pattern is quickly gaining ground in the industry as a viable alternative to monolithic applications and service-oriented architectures. Because this architecture pattern is still evolving, there’s a lot of confusion in the industry about what this pattern is all about and how it is implemented. This section of the report will provide you with the key concepts and foundational knowledge necessary to understand the benefits (and trade-offs) of this important architecture pattern and whether it is the right pattern for your application.     

Pattern Description

Regardless of the topology or implementation style you chose, there are several common core concepts that apply to the general architecture pattern. The first of these concepts is the notion of separately deployed units. As illustrated in Figure 4-1, each component of the microservices architecture is deployed as a separate unit, allowing for easier deployment through an effective and streamlined delivery pipeline, increased scalability, and a high degree of application and component decoupling within your application. 

Perhaps the most important concept to understand with this pattern is the notion of a service component. Rather than think about services within a microservices architecture, it is better to think about service components, which can vary in granularity from a single module to a large portion of the application. Service components ...