SEARCH (ENTER TO SEE ALL RESULTS)

POPULAR TOPICS

Contributed
News
Analysis
The New Stack Makers
Tutorial
Research
Podcast
Science
Feature
Off-The-Shelf Hacker
Skip to content
  • Podcasts
    • TNS @Scale Series
    • TNS Analysts Round Table
    • TNS Context Weekly News
    • TNS Makers Interviews
    • All Podcasts
  • Events
  • Ebooks
    • Storage
    • DevOps
    • Serverless
    • Microservices
    • Kubernetes Ecosystem
    • Docker Ecosystem
    • All Ebooks
  • Newsletter
  • Sponsorship
  • • • •
    • Podcasts
      • TNS @Scale Series
      • TNS Analysts Round Table
      • TNS Context Weekly News
      • TNS Makers Interviews
      • All Podcasts
    • Events
    • Ebooks
      • Machine Learning
      • DevOps
      • Serverless
      • Microservices
      • Kubernetes Ecosystem
      • Docker Ecosystem
      • All Ebooks
    • Newsletter
    • Sponsorship
Skip to content
  • Architecture
    • Cloud Native
    • Containers
    • Edge/IoT
    • Microservices
    • Networking
    • Serverless
    • Storage
  • Development
    • Development
    • Cloud Services
    • Data
    • Machine Learning
    • Security
  • Operations
    • CI/CD
    • Culture
    • DevOps
    • Kubernetes
    • Monitoring
    • Service Mesh
    • Tools
 

Microservices

▾ 2 MINUTE READ — CLOSE

Microservices are Built, Deployed and Managed Independently

Microservices are an architectural approach to software development based on building an application as a collection of small services. There is no standard definition for what amount of code constitutes a “small service.” But some experts say it’s about the size at which a team can query the service’s health with a single request that returns a “yes” or “no” answer. Similarly, a service is too big if it requires more than one team to manage it.

Each service has its own unique and well-defined role, runs in its own process and communicates via HTTP APIs or messaging. Each microservice can be deployed, upgraded, scaled and restarted independently of all the sibling services in the application. They are typically orchestrated by an automated system, making it possible to have frequent updates of live applications without affecting the end users.

Microservices Advantages

Microservices are an evolution of a service-oriented architecture (SOA) — and some would argue that microservices are just SOA rebranded to make it hip again. But really, cloud native microservices take the SOA concept to a new level. The difference now is that cloud infrastructure has finally caught up to the SOA concept, so that loosely-coupled services (aka microservices) are now feasible to implement and manage at scale.

By enabling small autonomous teams to develop, deploy and scale their respective services independently, microservices essentially parallelize development, thereby speeding up the production cycle exponentially.

Adoption of microservices is closely correlated with the use of DevOps, continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) and containers. Container-based — and open source — systems like Docker and Kubernetes are a very effective way to develop, deploy and manage microservices. Many mature and robust tools, platforms and other services already exist in the container space, rendering containerization a natural fit for microservices-based applications.

Microservices Disadvantages

Microservices have many advantages, but migrating away from a monolith introduces its own set of challenges. With a microservices architecture, service discovery, networking, testing and monitoring all become more complex and difficult, if not impossible, to manage following reliable older systems and practices. And the problem is amplified as the number of services grow. Tools that once seemed essential, such as logging, are now racking up huge bills that can send a microservices migration into negative ROI territory. Thus, there are many business and process decisions involved in transitioning to a microservices-based architecture.

In a true microservices approach, teams run only the exact small services they need, and nothing else. It’s a sleek setup, but these services are not aware of each other until you step in to orchestrate them. Until recently, this implementation and orchestration piece have been beyond the engineering reach of many smaller to mid-size organizations.

A Market Leap Forward for Microservices Offerings

Fortunately, a market leap forward is now happening with microservices. There is a virtual tech sector land rush on, with companies feverishly producing not just microservices themselves, but the platforms, tools and frameworks necessary for joining them seamlessly together.

At this early stage in the developing ecosystem around microservices, it can be difficult to gauge both best fit and ultimate longevity. Despite the abundant potential benefits, microservices are not the right solution for every project. A well-built monolithic architecture can scale just as well, and remains the best option, in many scenarios.

Still, there are many companies for which microservices are the best option, and well worth the immediate challenge.


A newsletter digest of the week’s most important stories & analyses.

Do you also want to be notified of the following?
We don’t sell or share your email. By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Containers / Development / Kubernetes / Microservices / Open Source / Sponsored

SAP Tests Kubernetes for Cloud-Native Enterprise Software Deployments

29 Nov 2016 9:17am, by Kiran Oliver

CI/CD / Cloud Native / Containers / DevOps / Kubernetes / Microservices / Monitoring

Right-click Docker: Microsoft’s Ambitious Enterprise Vision for Containers

28 Nov 2016 9:26am, by Joab Jackson

Cloud Native / Kubernetes / Microservices

Telekube Offers Remotely-Managed ‘Private SaaS’ Kubernetes

23 Nov 2016 7:29am, by Susan Hall

API Management / CI/CD / Cloud Native / Containers / Data / Development / DevOps / Kubernetes / Microservices / Contributed

Cloud Native: Service-driven Operations that Save Money, Increase IT Flexibility

17 Nov 2016 7:53am, by Craig McLuckie

Cloud Native / Containers / Kubernetes / Microservices / Monitoring

Weaveworks Knits Networking, Prometheus Monitoring into a Cloud-Native Service, Weave Cloud

17 Nov 2016 6:50am, by Susan Hall

API Management / Cloud Native / Cloud Services / Containers / DevOps / Kubernetes / Microservices

Create At-Scale Cloud Native Deployments with HPE and OpenStack

14 Nov 2016 9:21am, by Kiran Oliver

Cloud Native / Microservices / Contributed

The Reality of Microservices in the Enterprise

9 Nov 2016 9:37am, by Jonah Kowall

API Management / Cloud Native / Cloud Services / Containers / Data / Kubernetes / Microservices / Security

Kubernetes: An Overview

7 Nov 2016 10:00pm, by Janakiram MSV

Cloud Native / Microservices / Sponsored

NGINX, an Open Source Web Server for Microservice Architectures

7 Nov 2016 10:01am, by Kiran Oliver

Cloud Native / Data / Machine Learning / Microservices

The Enterprise of the Future Will Need Connected Big Data

7 Nov 2016 7:34am, by TC Currie

Cloud Native / Development / Kubernetes / Microservices / Open Source / Sponsored

Tame the Monolith with Cloud Foundry

3 Nov 2016 2:05pm, by Kiran Oliver

CI/CD / Cloud Native / Containers / Kubernetes / Microservices / Monitoring / Contributed

Is Your Infrastructure Ready for a Decoupled Deployment?

2 Nov 2016 9:02am, by Swarna Podila

Cloud Native / Containers / Kubernetes / Microservices / Security / Storage

Apcera’s New Platform Brings Legacy Applications into the Container Fold

1 Nov 2016 1:30am, by Susan Hall

API Management / Kubernetes / Microservices / Security / Contributed

Make the Most from Kubernetes’ New Network Policy API

28 Oct 2016 9:47am, by Andy Randall

API Management / Culture / Edge / IoT / Kubernetes / Microservices / Serverless

Nanoscale.io Connects Legacy Systems to Microservices

27 Oct 2016 7:09am, by Mark Boyd

API Management / Cloud Native / Microservices / Monitoring / Sponsored

Cloud Foundry, Microservices, and the Multi-Cloud Future

26 Oct 2016 9:05am, by Kiran Oliver

API Management / Cloud Native / Development / Kubernetes / Microservices / Serverless

TNS Guide to Serverless Technologies: The Best Frameworks, Platforms and Tools

26 Oct 2016 12:09am, by Lawrence E Hecht

Cloud Native / Containers / Microservices / Contributed

Why CTOs are Warming Up to Microservices

25 Oct 2016 8:44am, by Chris Latimer

DevOps / Microservices

How the 12-Factor App Methodology Streamlines Application Development

25 Oct 2016 7:43am, by Jennifer Riggins

Cloud Native / Kubernetes / Microservices

Cloudsoft AMP: The Universal Control Plane

19 Oct 2016 10:32am, by Scott Hartzel

Seven Deadly Sins

API Management / CI/CD / Data / Development / DevOps / Microservices / Open Source

Seven (More) Deadly Sins of Microservices

19 Oct 2016 1:00am, by Dawn Foster

Containers / Data / Development / Kubernetes / Microservices / Monitoring / Open Source

Fluentd Offers Comprehensive Log Collection for Microservices and Cloud Monitoring

18 Oct 2016 3:00am, by Mary Branscombe

Microservices / Serverless

What Makes IBM OpenWhisk Different? Openness

17 Oct 2016 3:52pm, by Kiran Oliver

Containers / Data / Kubernetes / Machine Learning / Microservices / Monitoring

Instana Brings Microservices Monitoring to the Service Level

11 Oct 2016 7:51am, by Susan Hall

CI/CD / Containers / DevOps / Kubernetes / Microservices / Open Source / Security / Contributed

Container Camp U.K.: Some Best Practices for Continuous Security

5 Oct 2016 11:52am, by Jennifer Riggins

Cloud Native / Development / Microservices / Open Source / Contributed

Meet Zipkin: A Tracer for Debugging Microservices

5 Oct 2016 9:21am, by Joab Jackson

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Architecture

  • Cloud Native
  • Containers
  • Edge/IoT
  • Microservices
  • Networking
  • Serverless
  • Storage

Development

  • Cloud Services
  • Data
  • Development
  • Machine Learning
  • Security

Operations

  • CI/CD
  • Culture
  • DevOps
  • Kubernetes
  • Monitoring
  • Service Mesh
  • Tools

The New Stack

  • Ebooks
  • Podcasts
  • Events
  • Newsletter
  • About / Contact
  • Sponsors
  • Sponsorship
  • Disclosures
  • Contributions
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Soundcloud
  • LinkedIn
  • Slideshare
  • RSS

© 2021 The New Stack. All rights reserved.

Privacy Policy. Terms of Use.