Explaining the Assets of Microservices Architecture for Ecommerce

At the dawn of the computer age, all software products relied on monolithic architecture, which was considered the only possible principle for back-end development. Now, new technologies are opening up unprecedented horizons of opportunity for entrepreneurs of all sizes. The increased pace of paradigmatic changes in the digital sphere, hybrid cloud technologies, and the Internet of Things are among the drivers of designing a microservices architecture for an ecommerce website instead of a good old but every day more and more outdated monolithic one. Microservices Architecture Global Market Report predicts a 20% compound annual growth rate in 2024, with a projected trend in 2028.

Monolithic Architecture: Inadequacies Made Plain

Before zooming in on the boons of microservices for ecommerce ventures, let’s have a brief look at the monolithic organization of software components. 

The very name of monolith speaks for itself. In it, all modules of a solution form a single network with a common code base. As a rule, monolithic software contains a server-side block, a database, and a client-side UI. Such a structure simplifies development and deployment, facilitates testing and debugging, and minimizes cross-cutting issues. Yet, the upsides of monolithic products are overshadowed by the serious shortcomings they expose.

First and foremost, the monolith is resistant to any change. In the current volatile business landscape and dynamic IT environment, software owners like to modify their solutions when they see a necessity, upscale or downscale them, update them at regular intervals, and upgrade them to keep abreast of new high-tech trends. 

All these alterations are next to impossible for monolith since it is built once to remain unchanged until the end. If such a product allows for tweaking or revamping after all, the changes should be sustained across the entire code base, which is extremely effort- and time-consuming. 

Second of all, the monolith is notorious for its code complexity. Since the code is employed throughout the whole system with its multiple layers and dependencies, sometimes, it is hard to understand and manage even for high-profile solution architecture experts. 

Third of all, the monolith has to stick to one programming language which somewhat limits your options as far as coding is concerned.

These limitations that boil down to the inflexibility of monolithic software make a microservices ecommerce platform or website a preferable choice for entrepreneurs in the realm. 

Ecommerce Microservices Architecture: A Close-Up View

Unlike monolith, microservices architecture contains a set of independent modules where every process is run as a separate service (hence the name). All modules communicate with each other via APIs and can be basically treated as standalone solutions with their own database, scope, and operational logic. For an online store, an ecommerce microservices architecture diagram will generally look like this:

Such an ecommerce microservices architecture example reveals the major underlying principle of this software organization type: its decentralized and containerized nature. Thanks to it, each solution module has a dedicated function and can be independently developed, deployed, modified, and upgraded. 

As a result, the system is quite transparent regarding its handling and functioning, resistant to cascading faults (because the boundaries between containers are hard to cross), and foolproof in bug detection (since troubleshooting and quality assurance procedures are performed piecemeal for each unit).

Besides, what makes the microservices market for ecommerce industry attractive is the utmost flexibility entrepreneurs obtain in terms of product development. They get greater freedom in choosing the best-in-breed vendors that excel at creating certain modules if they want to upgrade or replace an element that underperforms. At the same time, developers aren’t limited in selecting tools, frameworks, or languages for building a service and can opt for the one they have expertise in or one that dovetails into technical or business requirements.

In fact, all the boons mentioned above work for any type of digitally-driven organization. What are the industry-specific perks that ecommerce microservices solutions can usher in for online businesses?

Why Use Microservices in Ecommerce?

Having completed dozens of projects in the field of ecommerce development, we at Elogic Commerce know how microservices benefit entrepreneurs:

• Short time to market. Ecommerce is a highly competitive niche where players with big-time aspirations should react to market fluctuations promptly and offer new products as soon as  demand appears. By opting for microservices architecture, they can receive a fully functional product very quickly since several teams will work on developing different functionalities simultaneously, as there is no tight coupling between the modules. 

• Minimal downtime. Online stores can’t afford to stay out of business even if they need some repairs or upgrades. Thanks to microservices, any mending efforts can be implemented on the hoof by taking care of the malfunctioning module while the rest of the system continues operating.

• Customization opportunities. With microservices, any UI fine-tuning is a cakewalk, so you can tweak your e-store as much as you want to take industry changes in their stride and provide the ultimate shopping experience for your clientele. 

• Cost efficiency. The transition from monolithic to microservices architecture and its upscaling can be performed module-by-module. Thus, you don’t have to pay a huge sum in one go. You can invest in software upgrades in installments and provide a steady evolution of your professional software without overtaxing your expenditures. 

• Embracing the cloud. Entering the major league of ecommerce business is impossible without harnessing the power of the cloud. With the cloud-native nature of microservices, it can be done effortlessly. Moreover, you can host each service on a different cloud facility to optimize infrastructure costs and reduce the risk of a single resource overload. 

However weighty the boons of microservices architecture for ecommerce might be, you can make the best of them only if you commission ecommerce website development from a seasoned expert in this domain. Elogic Commerce can deliver a first-rate microservices solution that will impress you with smooth performance and an affordable price tag. Contact us to open new technological and business vistas for your e-store. 

Summing It up

The contemporary ecommerce realm witnesses a cut-throat competition among entrepreneurs, the success in which can be achieved via leveraging a flexible, scalable, and fault-resistant professional solution, compatible with state-of-the-art technologies. Old-school monolithic ecommerce websites and apps can’t provide these pivotal efficiency-driving characteristics, so e-stores can hit it big by harnessing microservices architecture. 

Thanks to their containerized nature, such products tick all the above-mentioned boxes and usher in numerous mission-critical boons, including shorter time to market, minimal downtime, broad customization capabilities. Ecommerce companies can make the most of these benefits by partnering with competent experts in the field who will deliver a smoothly functioning and user-friendly bespoke microservices solution.