When referring to types of software architecture, often people refer to the general blueprint or structure that software developers follow when building applications. Relying on common architectural styles makes it easier for project managers and programmers to make products efficiently. Development teams can choose software architecture patterns they know can offer the functionality they need. Instead of “reinventing the wheel,” they select frameworks and patterns that have proven useful.
Software architects have built a broad range of options with varying features. Before starting a large development project, it’s important for managers to review their options and choose a software and system architecture that meets their overarching needs.
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Popular Types of Software Architecture Patterns
Dozens of different types of software architecture patterns could help development teams build successful products. Understanding a few characteristics of the most popular architectures and design patterns should make it easier for teams to reach their goals.
Model-View-Controller Pattern (MVC)
Model-view-controller architectural patterns use three components:
- A model component acts like a business layer that can manipulate requests and responses to create a coherent experience.
- A view component that controls the user interface logic and helps improve the user’s experience.
- A controller component that processes incoming requests, business logic, and other factors so the model and view components can operate efficiently.
Developers typically use MVC when building web pages that use lightweight applications.
Related reading: gRPC vs. REST: How Does gRPC Compare with Traditional REST APIs?
Java EE (Enterprise Edition)
Java EE is a flexible architectural style that can coordinate tasks between web service specifications, web specifications, enterprise specifications, and other factors. Developers commonly use it when building web pages and managing distributed systems that need to coordinate with each other.
Using Java EE requires some knowledge of Java API for XML binding, JSON binding, and JSON processing. You might also need to learn about using APIs for persistence layers and transaction layers.
Client-Server Architecture
Client-server architecture is a layered architecture pattern that must include at least two factors:
- A client sending requests to a server.
- A server that can respond to the client’s requests.
People use client-server architecture often without realizing it. For example, someone might order a pizza on their smartphone. In this scenario, the person’s smartphone (the client) sends a request to a pizza restaurant’s computer system (the server) to place an order.
In real-world applications, client-server architecture usually becomes much more complex than this. Even in the provided example, the pizza restaurant doesn’t have an on-site server. It probably relies on a cloud server to handle requests.
Since there are diverse, often complex versions of client-server architectural designs, software engineering professionals refer to four types of client-server architecture.
1-Tier Architecture
1-tier client-server patterns can include multiple settings that influence how applications handle requests. When using 1-tier architecture in a professional setting, you would probably add layers for business logic and data logic, among others. It’s a very flexible approach to building software, so you can adapt it to meet unique needs.
While useful in many ways, 1-tier software design patterns tend to create a lot of data, which means applications require significant, frequent management. When left unmanaged, data variances will eventually corrupt the results and interfere with performance.
2-Tier Architecture
2-tier architecture is a very simple, straightforward pattern that only relies on a client and a server. This approach works by installing any necessary database on the server’s side and the user interface on the client’s device. In this scenario, “device” is used loosely because it can refer to a web browser just as easily as hardware, such as a laptop computer.
In a simplified world, the pizza-ordering system uses 2-tier architecture without relying on cloud servers or other networks.
3-Tier Architecture
3-tier adds an intermediary to the structure of 2-tier architecture. When the client submits a request, it goes to middleware. The middleware passes the request to the server. Once received, the server sends a response to the middleware, which passes it to the client.
Why add another layer? Users won’t notice it, but stakeholders can use the intermediary to improve data control and security. Essentially, the middle layer acts like a filter that protects the server from dangerous information, such as malware and potentially even distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.
N-Tier Architecture
N-tier architecture, also called multi-tier architecture, involves at least five tiers:
- Client
- Internet
- Server
- Middle
- Data
With n-tier architecture, a client’s request goes to the internet before it gets sent to a web server (server tier). The web server sends the request to the middle tier, where it encounters business logic that can augment the request to meet system standards. Finally, the request goes to the database, which responds accordingly and sends a reply back through the tiers. Alternatively, a tier between the client and server can deny the request or reply.
Microkernel Pattern
The Microkernel architecture pattern relies on:
- A core system that processes the application’s fundamental operations.
- Customizable plug-in modules that can add functionality to the software.
Mikrokernel patterns work well in environments where users demand novelty. For example, many social media users enjoy frequent updates that make apps fun to use. They also expect their social media apps to work quickly. Too much lag will bore them, and they will choose a different service.
If you need to build a service that gives users big dopamine bursts, microkernel architecture will probably get the job done.
Peer-to-Peer Architecture
Peer-to-peer architecture uses distributed systems to aid communication between devices. At its most basic form, you can use peer-to-peer architecture to let computers share information directly with each other. When you submit a request, another computer in the network responds. Alternatively, several computers can transfer file portions and complete concurrent tasks faster.
In practice, most peer-to-peer models rely on software that coordinates all of the computers in the virtual network. For example, when you download torrent software, you can use it to search for a large file — such as a movie — stored on other connected devices. The software will coordinate with those devices to pull small pieces of the file from each and add them to your computer. It’s like having a group of people working on a project instead of relying on a single person. More hands make less work!
Event-Driven Architecture
Event-driven architecture relies on specific events that trigger communications between decoupled services. Currently, those decoupled services are microservices that can act independently to process tasks quickly. DevOps teams can add various microservice modules to web applications to meet the user’s anticipated needs.
The actual architecture consists of:
- Event producers
- Event routers
- Event consumers
When a user — the event producer — submits a request, it goes to the event router. The event router filters the events so it can pass appropriate events to the event consumer.
E-commerce sites often use event-driven architecture because important events trigger useful actions. For instance, after you place an order, the application can notify you via email. When the item has been prepared for shipping, the app can send you a notification about that event. These types of event-driven tasks help lower any anxiety consumers feel when shopping online and waiting for deliveries to arrive.
As an e-commerce store’s needs change, managers can reuse or remove applicable modules. Reusable solutions mean developers can swap features quickly without constantly building new products.
Microservices Architecture
Netflix is one of the best-known use cases for microservices architecture. Anyone who has streamed a movie or series on Netflix has used microservices architecture. Netflix’s microservices architecture lets the company handle a large number of diverse requests without getting overwhelmed. The user interface (what you see on your screen) can interact with multiple microservices at once to stream content. In turn, each of those microservices can interact with different databases to retrieve the requested content.
It makes sense for Netflix and similar data-intensive companies to use microservices architecture because the technology offers excellent:
- Data security
- Fault isolation
- Scalability
If Netflix took a monolithic or enterprise app approach instead of a microservices approach, a single error could affect countless users. With a microservices pattern, the error would only affect users trying to perform similar tasks. For example, people might get an error message when trying to watch “Stranger Things Season 2, Episode 1” because that specific file has been corrupted. The inconvenience would only affect those viewers. Depending on where Netflix stores its files, those people might discover that they can watch the next episode without any problems.
Successful microservices architecture relies on small applications communicating with each other. That’s where APIs get involved. With so many microservices working together, you need a way to create and manage the APIs that make communication efficient and accurate. Additionally, it doesn’t matter which programming languages were used to create the microservices. APIs can work with most languages, software systems, and operating systems.
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Getting Started with DreamFactory
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