Monolithic vs. Composable: Architecture Decisions for Drupal
A monolithic system is an application in which all functions and data reside in a shared codebase and database. Changes to one part can affect the entire system. This makes maintenance and scaling more costly than with modular architectures.
Monolith, Microservices, or Modular Monolith?
Microservices split an application into small, independent services. Each service can be individually scaled, tested, and deployed. The price: higher complexity in operations, monitoring, and communication between services.
Drupal is a modular monolith. All functions run in one application but are cleanly separated through modules. Modules can be enabled, disabled, and replaced without rebuilding the entire system. For most web projects, this is the most pragmatic approach: simple operations with sufficient flexibility.
When Which Architecture Fits
A monolithic approach with Drupal fits when an organization needs a central platform for content, permissions, and workflows. Microservices are worthwhile when different teams work independently on different components and need to scale them individually.
arocom recommends: start monolithic with Drupal. If individual features later need to scale independently, they can be extracted via APIs. That is more cost-effective than building a microservice architecture from the start.
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Is Drupal a monolithic system?
Drupal is a modular monolith. All functions run in one application but are cleanly separated through the module system. This offers the simplicity of a monolith with the flexibility of modular architecture.
When are microservices better than a monolith?
Microservices are worthwhile when different teams work independently on different components and need to scale them individually. For most web projects, a modular monolith like Drupal is the more pragmatic choice.
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