Monolith Versus Microservices: Weigh the Pros and Cons of Both Approaches
Software engineering has been the latest buzz in town since the 1960s. At present, there are more than 27 million software developers throughout the world. As our lives are surrounded by applications, the need for supreme-quality software is growing. As the code gets better, the application gets better.
Serverless and microservices are regarded as better choices as they play an integral role in making the applications faster and more scalable, apart from making easier deployments. In this article, we are going to talk about the differences between single serverless vs monolith apps:
About the basics
A wide assortment of software design principles are meant to allow developers to write improved code. SOLID happens to be the primary principle for this. Design principles are not restricted to a certain technology or domain. If you are trying to write low-level code that will be etched on the serverless function and chip running on the CPU, the decision to apply the principles depends on the use cases and the developers.
However, it plays an integral role in making the code optimized and better. Though all of them are important, the principle of single responsibility has become the primary point of interest. Every function comes with a specific operation, which performs and creates the basis of serverless and microservices. Though serverless functions have become the latest hot topic today, a wide assortment of developers wonder whether they should choose between monolith and single serverless functions.
What are the single vs monolith serverless functions?
The single serverless app holds responsibility for a single function in the app. For instance, let’s say you are trying to create a calculator. In the specific case, you will be equipped with four various functions, such as add, subtract, multiply, and divide, which will be four various serverless functions along with the individual files. Hence, you will have a primary function, which will interact with the users, and other functions, depending on the input.
Speaking of the monolith serverless function approach, a single serverless function is equipped with sub-function capabilities. A logic is present within the function to call different sub-functions, depending on the request. If you have a single serverless function along with add, subtract, divide, and multiple functions, the client encountering the app will call the specific function as it returns the output after the processing.
Sample app
Let’s take the instance of single and monolith serverless functions. Here, you need to create the simpler Inventory Status Check app, which is created using Python functions. This app offers a web UI to the user, where the user can seek information about a product’s inventory status. The app will be returning the stock amount.
Once the stock has less than a specific amount, it will reveal the reorder form, which provides a suitable choice for placing a single order for the stock rather than the product. As it is placed successfully, the application will reveal the tentative delivery date for the latest stock.
Single-Purpose Function
The single-purpose function is equipped with various functions for every request. It includes functions such as getstock.py, app.py, and reorder.py. The user will release the app and enter the specific product code. It will call the getstock fission function internally, which will return the current stock state.
Once the returned stock is less than that, the user will witness another reorder and form. The potential user will enter the reorder quantity, which will be passed to the specific reorder fission function, which will return the specific estimated delivery date.
Monolith function
As evident from the name, the monolith function comprises a singular fission function, which comprises different functions within. The app.py present in the case includes the reorder and getstock functions. With regards to the function, it will function similarly to a single-purpose function. Hence, the potential user will not witness any significant difference.
Pros and cons of choosing a single monolith serverless function
The single-purpose monolithic function happens to be the forest form among the serverless design principles. Every function includes a separate function within its own file. It includes a sense of different pros and cons.
Advantages
Every function is responsible for a single function only.
Monitoring and debugging become easy.
Modification of the app becomes easier with the touch of a single function.
Disadvantages
It will be useful only in the case of a true event-driven app.
Security can prove to be a major concern with different functions, as the developer should assure that every function has different measures.
With the growth of the app, maintenance can be challenging as the total number of different functions is too large.
Pros and cons of monolith serverless functions
Speaking of monolith serverless functions, you will have the singular fission function within the framework, which will take different requests and pass them to different functions in the same file.
Advantages
It involves simpler deployment and development.
The architecture is familiar, as true serverless is relatively newer for different developers.
It includes a decrease in system complexity.
Disadvantages
It is not scale-friendly.
It involves a massive codebase, which is challenging to handle in the long run.
Includes complicated upgrades as the whole app should be redeployed.
Now that you understand the pros and cons of using monolith and single-purpose serverless functions, you might be wondering which one is better to use. You will be amazed to know that both functions are suitable for various setups.
However, if you want to develop an easy-to-maintain and agile serverless app, you should opt for the single-purpose function without giving it a second thought. It is extremely easy to debug and monitor them. Besides this, it offers better cold-start performance.
Conclusion
If you want to truly experience the power of using serverless, it is recommended to choose a single-purpose serverless function.
