We have talked a lot about the advantages of microservices and written a lot about the employment of microservices. But the issue is how?
How can we pull it off?
You don’t need to worry, when we are here.
We have found extremely beneficial or your ease and that is 0scale. 0scale is the use of a 12-factor approach for microservices. This is a very beneficial and easy approach that helps in the creation of cloud-based apps or cloud-native apps. This 12-factor approach for microservices was developed by Heroku developers. These developers concluded that there are some common principles shared by most successful apps. Most of their original principles had their basis on the apps that were developed by Heroku. Heroku is a platform that has expertise in developing cloud-native apps by using microservices. It is known for converting monolithic apps into microservices.
This guide will provide the 12-factor approach for microservices for the accomplishment of your business tasks. The principles of the 12-factor approach are also included in this guide.It is a very hard task to make apps that run over the internet. It is quite a risky task and there are so many issues and concerns that the developers have to go through like server issues, network overload, and better code along with speediness. These problems can be solved by the 12-factor approach for microservices provided in this article. These 12-factor approaches for microservices are the solution to your possible problems regarding web-scale operation.
The 12-factor approach for microwaves was first published by Adam Wiggins in 2011. 12 Factor of microservices is a set of principles that guides how to make the software then after that how to make code that is reliable and quick in a predictable and well-maintained way.This is a very beneficial and easy approach that helps in the creation of cloud-based apps or cloud-native apps.
The 12 Factor App History
In 2012, at Heroku, the developers created this 12-factor approach for microservices. This factor approach for microservices was developed for helping in making SaaS apps that are good and reliable. The developers who invented this 12-factor approach for microservices are the experts who have developed thousands of apps. These programmers have invented this 12-factor approach for microservices by keeping the following goals into consideration.
- Avoiding the extra expense of software erosion
- Enhancing the growth of apps over time
- Improving the collaboration of the programmers working on the codebase of the same app.
- Raising awareness regarding the problems in the development of the modern app.
So let’s just quickly go through the 12-factor approach for the microservices. The points mentioned below are the overview of the 12-factor approach for the microservices.
1. Codebase
So for many people who might not know there is only one possible codebase per app or service. But an app or service may have multiple deploys. Deploy is the running environment of the app.
It is important to note that all the deployments have the same codebase. But there can be different versions of the codebase that are active in every deployment. So for this purpose, it is necessary to keep track of the app in a supervised control system.
2. Dependencies
The 12-factor approach for microservices also includes the phenomenon of dependencies. It is important to declare all the possible dependencies accurately through a dependency declaration manifest. By using a dependency declaration or isolation manifest, we can ensure that implicit dependencies do not enter our system from outside. This is applicable for both production and development.
It is advisable to not depend on any site tool or system-wide site-packages. Though these tools exist in most of the systems there is no assurance that they will be there on the systems with the apps running in the future.
3. Configuration
The 12-factor approach for microservices also talks about the storing of all the configuration data. It is important to note that the configured data is kept separate from the code. By keeping a separate configuration file, the updating of configuration values becomes easy and this update can be done without even touching the real codebase of the app.
Some practices can be considered, these are as follows:
- It is better to use non-version operated .env files for development at the local scale
- You should keep all your .env files in a secure system, this will make them available for the development teams.
- After the deployment of the app to a specific platform, you must use the mechanism of that particular delivery platform for the management of environmental variables.
4. Backing services
The 12-factor approach for microservices also talks about the backing services. So what are backing services? These are the processes contacted by the app during its running and operation. Backing services are mostly managed by administrators responsible for the deployment of apps. A third party can also manage these backing services. In the context of microservices, anything external is treated as an attached resource. This will help in ensuring that each service is portable and coupled with the other resources found in the system.
5. Build, release, run
Developers and programmers should keep separate stages for developing and running an app. For this developers use a continuous integration or a continuous delivery (CI/CD) tool for separating the stages of build, release, and run. This topic is also included in the 12-factor approach for microservices.
It starts with the building process in which the app is stored and then the building out of the app’s dependencies is done. Then the separation of the configuration data is done. Now it is ready to enter the run stage. And in the last stage, it is released with a unique or specific ID.
6. Processes
The app should be stateless because then it is easy for the developers to add more instances and scale that service horizontally. The storing of stateful data must be done in the backing service like a database. So the programmers try to execute the app mostly as stateless processes. This is included in the 12-factor approach for microservices.
7. Port binding
The programmers try their best to create an app that is self-dependent and self-contained. It must be free from the dependence of runtime injection of any server. The services are exported by binding them to a port. Almost every type of software is run and executed through port binding.
Microservices make the port binding more beneficial by enabling access to the data owned by the service. By this service, contracts are prevented between the microservices ensuring that everything is tightly held and coupled.
8. Concurrency
The developers must create an app and scale all its parts in a way that they meeting up the needs for which it was created in the first place. This is known as supporting concurrency. This is a very important concern for the developers and it is included in the 12-factor approach for microservices as well. In other words, concurrency means that all the parts and features of the app can handle the task for which they were made. They must handle a diversified workload. So for this, the processes should be organized as per their purpose along with their separation that can enable them to be scaled as per the need.
9. Disposability
An important thing for an app is that it must have a fast startup and graceful shutdown with zero data loss for its success. This is a really important concern because if the app does not start, stop and redeploy quickly, then it is not considered a good or successful app.
Instant startup and shutdown are a must feature for a good app. This enables quick scaling, and fast deploying of configuration changes and code and increases the scalability of production deploys. Developers create disposibility in their apps to ensure that their apps startup instantly and shut down smoothly and with no trouble of data loss.
10. Dev/prod parity
The development and production parity means that the development and production must be as similar or equal as possible. An app should have dev/prod parity in it. For such a scenario containers are a good option as they allow the developers to run in the same execution environment from local development through production. It is advisable to not use backing services between the development and production. In short, dev/prod parity is very important for an app and that is why it is included in the 12-factor approach for microservices.
11. Logs
Treat logs as event streams. Developers can direct logs anywhere. Like they can be placed in a database, in another service, in a repository file, or even in a warehouse system for data.
To direct and place logs, log-management solutions should be used. They enable the adequate placement and storing of the log. But one must be able to separate the two processes that are routing and processing of logs.
12. Admin processes
The administrative tasks should be separated from the other tasks of the app for its smooth running. This task is made quite easy with the help of containers. This is included in the 12-factor approach for microservices and according to it the administrative processes should be kept separate from the others but they must run in the same environment. They should be shipped alongside the app to prevent drifts.
Who Uses 12 Factors?
The 12-factor approach for microservices is considered a rule-book or a guidebook for the creation of cloud-native apps. Some well-known companies like Heroku, Microsoft, and Amazon have also credited the 12-factor approach as a part of their design.
The principles of the 12-factor approach for microservices help design a self-dependent, modern, and robust cloud-native app. It not only fixes but introduces new features for the apps. It enables the developers to build an app that is capable of fulfilling all requirements of a cloud.
Despite all the benefits of the 12-factor approach for microservices, it is a drawback that it is not suitable for every type of software-making company. Because different companies have different aims and problems. So the company must analyze its goals and problems first before applying this approach. And if your objectives are matching the principles of the 12-factor approach for microservices then you are most welcome to use and take help from them.
Putting it all together
To conclude, the 12-factor approach for microservices helps the programmers and developers in creating apps that run over the internet. This is not at all an easy task to do. There are many risks and concerns that developers have to go through while making apps
It is not an extremely difficult task to implement the 12-factor approach principles. But you must have complete knowledge and understanding of these principles to implement them. You have adequate knowledge of how this technique works and then take a step forward towards it.
Now many organizations are finding this 12-factor approach for microservices valuable and helpful. Many organizations are adopting this 12-factor approach for microservices. As mentioned earlier many times that it is a very beneficial and helping technique.
But for this, what you need is to take the first step.
How can we help you?
0scale helps you in organizing over a wide range that is from the migration of the cloud to the development of full-fledged apps. We use the best methodologies and the 12-factor approach for developing cloud-based apps. We design apps based on our customer’s needs and goals.
Hope this guide is helpful for you in giving you a detailed understanding of the 12-factor approach for microservices. We would be very delighted to help you and respond to your queries. If you have any queries about how 0scale will help you, then feel free to contact us. We will help you in finding out how 0scale can bring laurels to your business.
