Microservices is an architectural style where a large application is broken down into smaller, loosely coupled services that are independently deployable and scalable. Each microservice focuses on a specific business function and communicates with other services via APIs. This contrasts with monolithic architectures, where everything is bundled into one large application.
Characteristics of Microservices
- Independent Services: Each microservice is a standalone application with its own codebase, database, and deployment cycle.
- Single Responsibility: A microservice typically focuses on a single, well-defined function (e.g., user management, payment processing).
- Decentralized Data Management: Microservices have their own data storage and do not directly share databases with others.
- Scalability: Each microservice can be scaled independently based on demand, providing more efficient resource usage.
- Resilience: Microservices can fail independently, ensuring that the failure of one service doesn’t impact the entire application.
Importance of Microservices
- Agility: Smaller teams can work on individual services, allowing faster development and deployment.
- Flexibility: You can choose the best tools or technologies for each microservice.
- Fault Isolation: Issues in one service don’t directly affect others, making the system more resilient.
- Scaling: Microservices can be scaled independently, making it easier to handle varying loads.
Challenges of Microservices
- Complexity: Managing multiple services, monitoring, and logging across them can be challenging.
- Data Consistency: Ensuring data consistency across distributed services is harder than in a monolithic system.
- Communication: Microservices communicate over a network, which can introduce latency and errors.
