# Understanding the Purpose of Microservices in Software Development
Written on
Chapter 1: Introduction to Microservices
Microservices were originally designed for a specific purpose, yet many software development teams today seem to overlook this foundational intent.
Think of it this way: microservices can be thought of as the division of larger services into smaller, more manageable components, aimed at fostering a flexible and maintainable software environment. While this is indeed one of the many advantages, it is not the primary goal for which microservices were conceived.
If you're fortunate enough to be familiar with Domain-Driven Design (DDD), you may understand that each microservice corresponds to a distinct domain within a larger system. For instance, a clothing retailer might have separate domains for product design, inventory management, and storefronts, resulting in three distinct microservices. However, this is still not the fundamental objective.
The primary aim of microservices is to enable independent operation among various teams. This independence is also a core principle of DDD, addressing one of the most intricate challenges in large-scale development.
As the size of the development team increases, so does the necessity for coordination between them. This often leads to issues such as inter-team blockages, synchronization needs, knowledge silos, prolonged pull requests, and conflicts.
At this juncture, it becomes evident that instead of having every developer collaborate on a single project, it is more efficient to segment the project into smaller, discrete components. This allows for the formation of smaller teams and minimizes the interactions required among them.
Section 1.1: Independent Deployability
To clarify further, the goal is to empower each team to deploy their microservice without relying on others. When a team completes its development work, they should have the autonomy to deploy independently. While this might appear similar to the earlier point, it provides a clear metric for assessing the effectiveness of microservices.
For example, consider a system composed of multiple services that must all be deployed simultaneously. In such a scenario, we might claim to be using microservices; however, if we cannot deploy them independently, it indicates a high level of coupling. In this case, the services may act in unison and undergo changes together, resembling a monolithic structure. Thus, instead of a single monolith, we have numerous microservices, with logic scattered across various repositories, making maintenance even more challenging than managing one cohesive monolith.
Without the ability for independent deployment, we might achieve benefits like improved scalability, yet we incur additional complexity simply by distributing our code.
Subsection 1.1.1: Achieving Cohesive Services
The cornerstone of achieving independent deployability lies in creating microservices that are highly cohesive. While this can be quite challenging, it represents the first "D" in DDD (Domain), which I intend to explore in greater depth in future articles. In the meantime, I hope this discussion enhances your understanding of microservices, assists you in evaluating your solution's effectiveness, and guides you towards taking actionable steps for improvement within your organization.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I often use storytelling as a tool to reflect on our understanding and application of software engineering principles, encouraging contemplation on potential areas for enhancement. If you found this article valuable, feel free to check out my most popular stories on Medium for further insights. You can also support my writing by utilizing or sharing this Medium referral link.
Chapter 2: The Benefits of Microservices
This video delves into the concept of microservice architecture and discusses its various advantages.
In this video, the reasons for adopting microservices are explored, emphasizing the importance of making informed decisions in their implementation.