While designers are reading about how giant and weird fonts are in fashion in 2022, we wanted to look at entirely different trends: what will happen to the web development architecture in the near future and why you should consider serverless architecture.
Serverless architecture
This approach implies two kinds of architecture:
- BaaS (backend-as-a-service) – applications with a large share of the server side stored in the cloud. Standard functionality in this model is usually provided in the form of SDKs or API gateways, and all necessary actions are performed in the cloud. Responsibility for software and infrastructure maintenance lies with the software development partner – the BaaS solution provider.
- FaaS (Functionality as a Service) – a third-party platform for developing, running, and managing functionality that runs parts of its code, guided by event triggers (the desired functionality called on demand). The approach is perfect for implementing microservices.
The Difference
Serverless architecture – uses cloud environments: that is, there is still a server, but it does not belong to the owner of the site or application but is used by someone else on demand. As soon as a trigger event occurs, the serverless functionality launches – operations are performed in the proper sequence (their set depends on user actions). Then the serverless platform runs many ready-made algorithms and rules, does the necessary calculations, and outputs the result. After that, the functionality is minimized, waiting for a new request. Serverless architecture is particularly relevant when you need to optimize the cost of resources and development time.
Microservices architecture – an application is divided into small components (microservices) which have a clear purpose, are easily replaceable, and can interact with each other while being loosely bound. Usually, containers like Docker are used to create microservices, which can be used to get the data you need upon request to a particular API. Microservices are justified, for example, in e-commerce, where it is important to containerize (make independent) huge sets of data. And by the way, microservices themselves are also a trend.
It has its advantages:
- rapid application deployment because you don’t have to worry about architecture and infrastructure – just write your code;
- cost reduction: no more need to spend resources on maintenance of servers and databases, the launch of the product is faster and cheaper, and there is no need to maintain spare capacity – you pay only for what you use;
- scaling: if the usual “physical” server is no longer enough, adding another or moving to a more powerful – one is quite a challenge, but with a serverless architecture, there are no such problems;
- the data is relatively “safe” – they are not as afraid of all sorts of attacks as in the case of the traditional server-based approach to building sites and applications.
On the downside, it isn’t easy, especially when migrating current solutions to a serverless architecture. It can also be potentially expensive, although the advantages include resource savings. And one more spoonful of tint: insufficiently high code execution speed and weak adaptability of current solutions for big data processing tasks.
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