What are Microservices? Benefits of Using Microservices vs. Monolithic Applications

API Testing

Microservices are a type of service that is broken down into smaller pieces so that they can be created and managed faster.

  • Microservices are an approach to software development that structures applications as a collection of services. These services typically communicate with each other through RESTful APIs or some other type of application programming interface (API) and can be scaled independently.
  • A microservice architecture is a style of developing software applications as suites of small, independent processes communicating with each other using language-agnostic APIs, typically over HTTP/RESTful protocols. It allows developers to break down their complex applications into smaller pieces, which can be run as independent services.

The benefits to using microservices are speed, scalability, flexibility in the way we develop them and the ability to use their API interchangeably for different purposes or devices.

Microservices can help in the following ways:

  • Microservices are more resilient because of the availability of less synchronous communication.
  • The use of lightweight protocols helps in building effective communications between two microservices.
  • Microservices are easier to maintain and scale because each module can be updated and redeployed separately from the whole application.
  • Companies that adopt this technology have a lower cost for operations such as provisioning, deployment, monitoring, etc.
  • It’s easier to deploy updates without affecting other modules or services in the application.

The Benefits of Using Microservices vs. Monolithic Applications

  1. Better scalability – Microservices are scalable and independent from one another
  2. Availability – They are also more reliable because each microservice is less likely to fail
  3. Productivity – The architecture enables faster development of services, tests, and features
  4. Flexibility – You can swap out a service without needing to consider other dependencies or disruptions in the system as all microservices have an isolated set of dependencies that can be easily swapped out (similar to containers)

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