If you’ve ever wondered how big platforms like Netflix or Amazon keep things running smoothly while handling massive amounts of traffic, the answer is often microservices. It’s a popular way to build software that’s flexible, scalable, and easier to manage over time.
But for anyone unfamiliar with the concept, microservices can sound more complicated than they really are. This guide will break down what microservices are, how they work, and when you might use them instead of a traditional monolithic setup. Read on to find out more.
What is microservices architecture?
Microservices architecture is a method of structuring an application as a collection of small, independent services. Each service runs its own process and communicates with other services through APIs. These services are loosely coupled, which means that one can be changed, scaled, or fixed without touching the rest of the application.
Think of it like building blocks. Each block (or service) does one job like handling user logins, processing payments, managing inventory, and all the blocks work together to form a complete system. This results in a structure that’s easier to maintain and scale than a traditional application where a change to one thing can make something else stop working.
Microservices vs. monolithic architecture
A monolithic architecture is the opposite of microservices. In a monolithic setup, all components of an application are built into one big codebase.
Why microservices?
Microservices let you move faster. Since services can be deployed independently, teams can work on different parts of a system without stepping on each other’s toes. That means quicker updates, faster testing, and fewer risks when something needs fixing.
They’re also easier to scale. If one part of your app is under heavy load, like a payment service on Black Friday, you can scale just that part instead of the whole system. Microservices are flexible, efficient, and built for high-performance environments.
Why monolithic?
Despite their limitations, monolithic applications still make sense in certain situations. For smaller projects or startups with limited resources, a monolith can be faster to build and deploy. There’s less complexity around managing multiple services, and it’s easier to test and debug since everything is in one place.
If your application doesn’t need to scale rapidly or handle millions of users, a monolithic setup might be the better choice. It keeps things simple, reduces infrastructure overhead, and allows you to focus on building features without setting up an entire microservices environment.
When to use microservices
Microservices work best in complex, evolving environments where flexibility, speed, and scalability are essential. By breaking a system into individual, specialised services, teams can solve problems faster, scale more efficiently, and build systems that adapt to change without starting from scratch. Below are examples from a range of industries that show where microservices make the most impact.
Ecommerce
An online retailer experiences huge surges in traffic during seasonal sales. On a monolithic system, these spikes cause slowdowns and failures, especially at checkout.
Microservices fix this by isolating each function (product search, inventory management, checkout, and user accounts) into separate services. The checkout service can be scaled independently to handle increased load without affecting the rest of the site. So, if the search function then needs an update or fix, it won’t interrupt sales. This gives ecommerce businesses the flexibility to adapt quickly to customer demand.
Finance
A digital banking platform needs to process transactions, manage user accounts, handle fraud detection, and send notifications. In a monolithic setup, one bug or change can affect the whole system, putting sensitive services at risk.
With microservices, the transaction engine is isolated from the fraud system and customer messaging. Again, each service can be deployed, updated, and secured independently. This setup minimises downtime, reduces risk, and allows faster deployment of new features like biometric login or real-time alerts, all without interrupting core banking functions.
Healthcare
A healthcare provider runs patient portals, booking systems, prescription tools, and internal analytics from the same application. By switching to microservices, the provider can isolate sensitive patient data from public-facing services like appointment scheduling. This improves data security, ensures better uptime for critical functions, and simplifies compliance with healthcare regulations. Analytics can also be scaled separately to process large datasets without slowing down patient services.
Streaming
A streaming platform must handle user profiles, recommendations, video playback, and payment systems. On release days for new content, playback services are overwhelmed, causing buffering and outages. Microservices allow playback to scale independently of the recommendation engine or user account service. New content modules can be released or tested without impacting live streaming.
This also makes it easier to support different devices, as each microservice can be tailored for mobile, smart TV, or web users without overhauling the entire application.
Logistics
A logistics company needs to coordinate vehicle tracking, parcel updates, warehouse inventory, and customer notifications. When built as a monolith, delays in inventory updates affect customer tracking and warehouse operations. But with microservices, real-time tracking runs independently from inventory updates and customer alerts. This allows teams to build, scale, and update each function on its own schedule. Customers receive timely updates without waiting for the warehouse system to sync, and operations can scale during peak delivery times without bringing the platform down.
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These, of course, are just a few examples. No matter what industry you’re in, there’s no doubt that microservice-based architecture could help.
At Fasthosts, we have the infrastructure to support high-performance applications, with scalable VPS hosting, powerful dedicated servers, and rock-solid reliability. So when your services need to grow, launch fast, or run at peak traffic, your hosting can keep up. Talk to our experts today to find the best setup for your business and give your architecture the support it needs to thrive.