0800-DEVOPS #4 Serverless, Circuit Breakers and running database in a container

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In focus: Serverless

If we’re all going Serverless, should we ditch Intel, IBM and Dell stocks?
Of course not! 🙂

Serverless doesn’t mean there are no more servers. They sure are out there somewhere and we still use them, but we have chosen not to care about them anymore. We have commoditized them! Why did we do that?

Our most important job as software engineers is not implementing cool technical solutions per se but solving customer problems and addressing their needs. Infrastructure (a.k.a. servers) is certainly necessary for that, but it’s not something that will additionally delight customers. In terms of Kano model, infrastructure falls under “Basic attributes”, i.e. it will immediately produce dissatisfaction when failing, but won’t add extra delight if done above expectations. Solid reason for commoditizing it 🙂

Software engineers need to move fast. Time spent on infrastructure is time not spent understanding customers’ needs and solving their real problems. Serverless is, as Sam Newman says, “just another abstraction” meant to relieve software engineers from fiddling with runtime environments and instead focus them on stuff that really matter: addressing real customer needs, designing engaging and ergonomic interfaces, optimizing algorithms, automating processes, and innovating through integrating various systems.

Sam Newman gave an excellent talk on this year’s QED conference. If you’re also confused with everything going on in the land of the Serverless, his QED talk is for you!

Worth of your time

+ We’re kicking off a series of articles dedicated to making your systems more resilient! First article in this series introduces Circuit Breakers. Expect practical code examples to follow.

+ Feeling like running database in a container? That’s not always the best idea, but if you have solid case here is a proper way to do so.

+ Still confused with similarities and differences between ESB, Message Broker and API Management? And now somebody threw in something called Service Mesh?! Christian Posta explains evolution of these tools, why each of them was invented and where we took a wrong turn using them.

Read with us

Building Microservices: Designing Fine-Grained Systems

Must read for all software engineers involved in building systems using microservice architecture! Covering all aspects, from service modeling to testing and deployment, this book will explain both Why and How. Don’t expect to find code snippets here, this is not a book about specific technology but rather overarching concepts that will guide you no matter what technology you use.

Funny

Quote of the Day

“I am a strong believer that great software comes from great people.”

– Sam Newman, author, speaker, and independent consultant interested in cloud, continuous delivery and microservices.