What is Software Architecture

Have you heard about architecture? Just like the common architecture we know in building houses, apartments, or other structures, when you need to create software, you must make sure that the software matches the requirements. But how do we do that? How can we build sturdy software? How can we develop software in the most efficienct way?

When starting to create software, many developers (including my self) will immediately start coding and hope that it will be easy if we start directly. But when we encounter problems with our code, it becomes difficult to find out what the problem is.

The most common problem I encounter is when integrating our code with other features, or when one feature causes another to crash, among many other issues.

Architecture patterns help us gain a deeper understanding of what this software will do, how different parts of code will communicate with each other, and help us figure out what needs to be done with this software.

Software Architecture Patterns are broad, but the most fundamental concept we need to understand is Software Architecture Classification. Currently, we can classify Software Architecture into two types:

• Monolithic Architecture
• Distributed Architecure

Monolithic Architecture

  ---
title: Monolithic Application
config:
    look: handDrawn
    theme: dark
---

graph TB
    A[User Interface]
    B[Feature A]
    C[Feature B]
    D[Module]
    E[Database]

    A --> B --> E
    A --> C --> E
    A --> D --> E

Monolithic Architecture is a single deployment unit, meaning that the software is just one unified project. All features are combined into a single codebase and deployed as a whole. Monolithic Architecture is often used for applications in their early stages or for systems where tight integration is beneficial. However, as complexity grows, maintaining a monolithic system can become challenging

Distributed Architecture

  ---
title: Distributed Application
config:
    look: handDrawn
    theme: dark
---

graph TB
    A[User Interface]
    B[Service A]
    C[Service B]
    D[Service C]
    E[Database for Service A]
    F[Database for Service B]
    G[Database for Service C]

    A --> B --> E
    A --> C --> F
    C --> G
    A --> D --> G

In contrast to monolitic software, Distributed Architecture is build using multiple sub-application that are unified within a main application. Usually, the application is divided based on its feature. For example, in a marketplace application, the payment feature might be developed as a separate project, while other features are also build indpendently. T

Distributed Architecture enables better scalability and maintainability by allowing features to be developed and deployed independently. However, inter-service communication must be carefully designed to prevent failures from propagating across the system.

What Should We Choose?

I usually decide what classification to use based on these questions:

Conclusion: Choosing the Right Architecture for Your Project

Deciding between Monolithic and Distributed Architecture is not just about technology—it’s about understanding your team size, application complexity, scalability needs, and future growth.

Monolithic Architecture is a great choice for small teams, simple applications, and projects with minimal future changes. Distributed Architecture (such as microservices) is ideal for larger teams, complex applications, and projects that require scalability and modular development.

By carefully evaluating these factors, you can make informed decisions that improve maintainability, performance, and development efficiency in the long run.

Remember: There is no one-size-fits-all solution. Choose the architecture that best fits your current needs while considering future growth.

What do you think? Have you ever switched from Monolithic to Distributed, or vice versa? Let’s discuss in the comments!