Monolithic To Modular Monolithic
This is an emerging approach to shift your app from a pure monolithic to a modular monolith design. Strategic planning and expertise are required to split the tightly coupled codebase into independent modules.
This approach allows for improved maintainability, scalability, and testability while retaining the simplicity of a single deployment unit. The migration process can be further broken down into steps like analyzing the existing architecture, evaluating the feasibility and ROI, defining boundaries, and implementing inter-module communication. While challenging, this transition can benefit businesses significantly. Shopify, a leading e-commerce platform, provides a compelling example of a successful modular monolith architecture.
Based initially on monolithic architecture, as the platform grew and added more features, it faced challenges with scalability. To address these issues, Shopify transitioned to a modular monolith approach.
Why choose the modular monolithic approach over pure monolith?
A Suite of Services We Offer
We offer a set of services for your Monolith to microservice journey. The services are categorized into these key areas.
Assessment Consulting and Strategy Building
Monolith App Analysis: In-depth analysis of the existing application to identify pain points, dependencies, and module boundaries. Breakdown Strategy: Develop a tailored migration roadmap, including technology choices, timelines, and risk mitigation strategies. Architecture Workshops: Training and workshops to educate your teams on modular design principles, best practices, and tools.
Software Development
Code Refactoring: Refactoring the existing codebase to create independent modules with well-defined interfaces. API Development: Designing and implementing APIs for inter-module communication, ensuring loose coupling and independent evolution. New Module Development: Building new functionality as modules, potentially using a strangler fig pattern to replace existing features eventually.
Database Revamps
Data Decomposition: Separating the schema to align with the modular structure, ensuring data isolation and independent scaling. Data Migration: Migrate existing data to the new modular database schema without losing data integrity and consistency. Database Optimization: Tuning the database for performance in the modular architecture, including optimizing queries and data access patterns.
DevOps and Automation
CI/CD Pipelines: Implementing continuous integration and delivery pipelines for building, testing, and deploying modular components. Automatic Deployments: Automating the code deployment process, including providing new infrastructure to manage dependencies. Monitoring and Logging: Setting up advanced surveillance and logging mechanisms to track the performance and health of the system.
Training and Support
Developer Training: Training the client's team on modular development practices, tools, and technologies. Ongoing Support: Offering continuing support and maintenance for the modular monolith, including bug fixes, performance optimization, and security updates.
Which Microservice is for your business?
Choosing the right type of microservice is crucial for the success of your application. Here's a breakdown of factors to consider when making this decision:
Why Choose Us For This Critical Task
Curabitur sed facilisis erat. Vestibulum pharetra eros eget fringilla porttitor. on Duis a orci nunc. Suspendisse ac convallis sapien, quis commodo libero.
Experts in Systems Upgrades
- Years of Transformation Experience
- Cross Industry Success
- Proven Methodologies Developed Over Time
Focus on Business Goals
- Beyond Technical Excellence
- Measurable Results
- Future-Proofing Applications
Assessment and Planning
- Deep Dive into the Monolith
- Identify Pain Points
- Define Module Boundaries
- Technology Evaluation
- Migration Roadmap
Strategize Modularization
- Prioritize Modules
- Refactor Code
- Data Separation (If Applicable)
- API Development
- Testing and Integration
- Iterative Approach
Types of Apps We Have Expertise in Migrating
01E-commerce & Retail
Challenges
New features must be added regularly with rapid growth. However, it is difficult for a monolith to scale up on a demand basis.
How to solve
Decompose the app into modules for product catalog, order processing, and customer accounts to minimize dependency.
02Media & Entertainment
Streaming platforms, online gaming, digital publishing, music services
03Finance & Fintech
Banks, investment firms, insurance companies, payment processors
04Healthcare
Hospitals, clinics, health insurance providers, telemedicine platforms
05Logistics & Transportation
Supply chain management, delivery services, ride-sharing, fleet management
06Travel & Hospitality
Online travel agencies, airlines, hotels, booking platforms
07Education & E-learning
Online courses, educational institutions, training platforms
08Government & Public Sector
Citizen services, public records management, government agencies
09Manufacturing & Industrial
Production management, inventory control, supply chain optimization
10Telecommunications
Mobile network operators, internet service providers, communication platforms
11Real Estate
Property management, real estate marketplaces, online listing platforms
12Non-profit & NGO
Mobile network operators, internet service providers, communication platforms
Migration Cycle Phases
The microservices development lifecycle is an iterative process that guides the development, deployment, and maintenance of individual microservices within a larger application. It emphasizes agility, flexibility, and continuous improvement. Here's a breakdown of the key stages:
Kick-off
- An analysis of your existing Monolith.
- Identify strengths, weaknesses, and dependencies.
- Understand business goals and expectations.
- Assess current infrastructure, tech stacks, and team skillsets.
Strategic Planning
- Define clear objectives and a customized roadmap that aligns with your business needs.
- We determine the most suitable migration strategy (incremental, strangler fig, etc.) on a case-to-case basis.
- Then, establish a realistic timeline and budget for the project.
- Evaluate risks and mitigation strategies to ensure smooth project execution.
Splitting Up The Monolith
- We carefully plan the decomposition of your Monolith into manageable microservices, ensuring clear boundaries.
- Then, we design robust APIs for seamless communication between services.
- We address data management challenges, ensuring data consistency and efficient handling of distributed transactions.
Technology finalization & Proof-of-concepts
- We help you choose the most appropriate technologies and tools for your microservices architecture.
- We consider factors like scalability, performance, and maintainability in our technology selection.
- We develop prototypes and proof-of-concepts to validate the chosen technologies.
- We demonstrate the feasibility of the selected technologies through real-world use cases.
Agile Development & Iteration
- We leverage Agile methodologies to build and test your microservices iteratively, ensuring flexibility and rapid feedback.
- Automated CI/CD pipelines are used to speed up deployments.
- Rigorous testing is conducted at all levels (unit, integration, end-to-end) to ensure quality and reliability.
- We ensure continuous improvement by incorporating feedback and adapting to changes throughout the development process.
Deployment & Monitoring
- Your microservices will be shifted to a scalable and resilient cloud infrastructure, leveraging technologies like Docker and Kubernetes.
- We implement robust monitoring and observability tools to track performance, identify issues, and optimize your microservices ecosystem.
- We ensure high availability by setting up auto-scaling and load balancing across multiple cloud regions.
- We integrate continuous monitoring to proactively address performance bottlenecks and ensure the reliability of your services.
Ongoing Support & Evolution
- We provide ongoing support and maintenance to ensure the smooth operation of your microservices.
- We help you scale your architecture as your business grows and adapts to changing needs.
- We empower your team with the knowledge to maintain your applications independently.
- We continuously monitor and optimize performance to ensure long-term reliability and efficiency of your microservices.
Technology Stacks We expertise in
Reach your customers wherever they are, 24/7. We'll design and build an app that showcases your brand and makes it easy for people to find and connect with your business.
Related Blogs
Monolith to Microservices Migration Knowledge Section
The microservices development lifecycle is an iterative process that guides the development, deployment, and maintenance of individual, The microservices development lifecycle is an iterative process that guides the development, deployment, and maintenance of individual,The microservices development lifecycle is an iterative process that guides the development, deployment, and maintenance of individual,
- Improved Maintainability
- High Scalability
- Greater Flexibility
- Lesser Risk
- Faster Delivery Cycles
- Better quality
- Identifying Module Boundaries: Deciding how to decompose the monolith into logical modules requires careful analysis and planning and can only be done by an expert team.
- Managing Dependencies: Proper communication and data flow between modules can be complex. So you would need highly skilled people to ensure this.
- Refactoring Legacy Code: Adapting existing Code to the new modular structure can be time-consuming and require significant effort.
- Data Migration: If database changes are involved, migrating data to the new schema can be challenging and require careful planning.
- Testing and Integration: Thoroughly testing the integrated system with its new modular structure is crucial to ensure functionality and stability.
- Assessment and Planning
- Software Development
- Database Migration
- DevOps and Automation
- Testing and Quality Assurance
- Conduct a thorough assessment
- Develop a robust migration strategy
- Code refactoring
- Implement efficient APIs
- Ensure data integrity
- Set up DevOps practices
- Java (Spring Boot), .NET Core, Node.js (NestJS), Python (Django, Flask)
- RESTful APIs, GraphQL, Message Queues (RabbitMQ, Kafka)
- PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Cassandra
- Docker, Kubernetes, Jenkins, GitLab CI
- Extensive Planning: Conduct a thorough assessment of existing applications and then develop a custom migration strategy.
- Business priority: Starting with a small, well-defined, high-priority module is necessary to gain experience and build confidence.
- Automate the setup: Automate testing, deployment, and other processes to reduce errors and accelerate the migration.
- Communicate effectively: Keep stakeholders informed throughout the process and promptly address concerns.
- Monitor continuously: Track the performance of the migrated application and make adjustments as needed.
Case Studies
Frequently Asked Questions
Client Say About Us
Don't just take our word for it. See what clients experienced with Brainstack Technologies during their engagements. We're proud to have partnered with businesses of all sizes, helping them achieve their technology goals and drive transformative growth. From startups to SMEs, our clients consistently praise our technical Expertise and commitment to delivering exceptional results. Explore their stories and discover how Brainstack can help you achieve your vision.
Types of Migration Approaches
Migrating from a monolithic to a modular monolithic architecture requires careful planning and strategic execution. We offer multiple migration approaches, each tailored to different application characteristics and business requirements. Our migration strategies are designed to minimize risk, reduce downtime, and ensure a smooth transition that preserves your application's functionality while improving its structure and maintainability.
Breaking a Monolith into Smaller Components as per Business Flows
Separate complex monoliths into simpler modules representing unique business flowsSplit Horizontally
Split the app into horizontal layers: presentation, business logic, and data accessFeature-Based Categorization
Organize modules as a collection of features for better independence and scalabilityPipeline-Based Breakdown
Split the application into a sequence of steps, with data flowing seamlessly across modulesHybrid Approach
Combine different strategies to create a customized approach for specific business needsNeed This Point To Make Symmetry
(Rarely) when the Monolith is beyond repair or a complete overhaul is necessary.