Architectural Patterns that Impact Your Software Modernization Path
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“Strangling the Monolith”: The Starting Point of the Modernization Journey
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Accelerating Your Software Modernization Journey
6 minute read
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3 Layers of Design Patterns
Doesn’t have to be an end-to end propositio
Can be designed and implemented in levels
Delivers benefits at each stage—there’s no need to modernize everything at once to begin seeing ROI
Can be designed and implemented in levels
Doesn't have to be an end-to-end proposition
Delivers benefits at each stage—there’s no need to modernize everything at once to begin seeing ROI.
Next steps
Re-imagine software products
Leverage our expertise in next-gen MACH software architectures to modernize your software products quickly.
Learn More
Rejuvenate mature products
Focus on improving revenue, efficiency and customer delight with our intelligent sustenance engineering framework.
Learn More
Re-group with our experts
Schedule a discussion with our modernization and sustenance experts who can help you chart a path forward.
Contact Us
Next steps
Re-imagine software products
Leverage our expertise in next-gen MACH software architectures to modernize your software products quickly.
Learn More
Rejuvenate mature products
Focus on improving revenue, efficiency and customer delight with our intelligent sustenance engineering framework.
Learn More
Re-group with our experts
Schedule a discussion with our modernization and sustenance experts who can help you chart a path forward.
Contact Us
The modernization path itself consists of three layers, or three different dimensions from which it must be viewed. These include application patterns, application infrastructure patterns, and infrastructure patterns.
These layers don’t consider essential dimensions like security, deployment, or connections to external APIs, since they’re unaffected by the modernization effort.
Each of these three layers needs an individual or a team that is focused on each layer, and the key is to make the layers work together.
The typical layers of a software monolith are a database system at the bottom, an integration layer and API management layer, a security layer, an analytics layer, and a load balancer. As you’ve probably guessed, the modernization path is quite different for different architectures.
5 Key Architecture Pattern Combinations on an M2Mu Journey
As with any significant IT project, a move from the monolith to microservices is a journey. However, as we discussed previously, modernization:
In our view, the modernization journey is best accomplished through five logical levels of architecture pattern combinations, each of which delivers benefits to the product, the users, and the business.
These combinations stack on top of each other to increasingly leverage the benefits of microservices, as the modernization journey comes closer to delivering maximum ROI.
At the most basic level, microservices start with the business layer of any application where the decisions are made—in other words, the backend represents the business logic. All other aspects remain monolithic.
Until and unless the backend services are microservices based, you cannot derive the full benefit of microservices. You also cannot circumvent the modernization path by putting microservices into the analytics layer, for example, before other pieces of the puzzle are in place.
Step 1
The next layer of sophistication is still largely monolith-based, with the addition of service mesh data plane and control plane. At this level, the message broker is only responsible for taking a message or sending a message—it’s not acting with intelligence. This level is most appropriate for greenfield apps with no CRM/ERP integrations.
Step 2
Step 3
One level up and you benefit from all of previous capabilities but add micro-integration into the mix. Now your message broker isn’t just giving and taking, it can also make decisions. Getting to this stage in the journey is applicable when integrations with CRM, ERP or COTS are involved.
Step 4
The level enables widespread adoption of microservices across the entire organization. The difference here is the incorporation of an edge gateway, which means your API management layer is now no longer monolithic.
Step 5
The pinnacle of the journey, for systems that require extreme distribution and scalability, occurs when microservices are extended into security and analytics. At this point the product is fully modernized, reaping the maximum product and business benefits, and ideally launching a new growth curve in the product lifecycle.
The modernization path itself consists of three layers, or three different dimensions from which it must be viewed. These include application patterns, application infrastructure patterns, and infrastructure patterns.
These layers don’t consider essential dimensions like security, deployment, or connections to external APIs, since they’re unaffected by the modernization effort.
As with any significant IT project, a move from the monolith to microservices is a journey. However, as we discussed previously, modernization:
In our view, the modernization journey is best accomplished through five logical levels of architecture pattern combinations, each of which delivers benefits to the product, the users, and the business.
These combinations stack on top of each other to increasingly leverage the benefits of microservices, as the modernization journey comes closer to delivering maximum ROI.
Client Success
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What started as a multi-cloud workload migration for greater consistency and ease of manageability led to a technology refresh that enabled a natural next step toward automation.
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What started as a multi-cloud workload migration for greater consistency and ease of manageability led to a technology refresh that enabled a natural next step toward automation.
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1\ Backend micro-services — everything else monolithic
2\ Service mesh, ‘dumb’ message broker — everything else monolithic
3\ Service mesh, micro-integrations — everything else monolithic
4\ Service mesh, micro integrations, Edge gateway (not monolithic API management layer)
5\ Through and through microservices, including security and analytics