Process of Building a Cloud Native Application

A cloud-native application is a software that is built specifically for a cloud computing architecture. These apps are designed to leverage on the inherent properties of a cloud computing software delivery paradigm and are operated and hosted in the cloud. 

A microservice architecture is used in cloud-native applications. This design effectively distributes resources to each service used by the application, making it versatile and adaptable to a cloud architecture.

Cloud-native apps are used by DevOps proponents to increase corporate agility. They are not conceived, produced, or distributed in the same way as typical cloud-based monolithic apps. Cloud-native apps have shorter app lifecycles and are extremely robust, controllable, and scalable.

The Fundamentals of Cloud-Native Application Architecture

Cloud-native programs use cloud computing frameworks and loosely connected cloud services. Because developers host partial services on the same server, cloud-native application builders must employ software-based architectures to construct a network across computers. The services are hosted on separate servers and run in various regions. This design facilitates horizontal scaling of applications.

Also, because the infrastructure that enables a cloud-native software does not run locally, these apps must be designed with redundancy. This enables the program to resist equipment failure and automatically remap Internet Protocol (IP) addresses.

Cloud-Native Application Features

The microservices of a cloud native application are bundled in containers that interact and communicate via APIs. All of these components are managed using orchestration tools.

These apps' major capabilities are as follows:

Microservices-based. Microservices divide an application into a set of self-contained services, or modules. Each service refers to its own data and serves a distinct business purpose. Application program interfaces allow these modules to interact with one another (APIs).

Container-based. Containers are software that logically separates a program, allowing it to execute independently of physical resources. Containers ensure that microservices do not interfere with one another. They prevent programs from using up all the host's shared systems. They also permit the use of many instances of the same service.

API-based. APIs link microservices, and containers while simplifying maintenance and security. They allow microservices to communicate with one another by acting as a glue between loosely linked services.

Cloud-Native Versus Cloud-Based Applications

Cloud-native and cloud-based apps are oftenly interchangeably used words. While they both run on public, private, or hybrid cloud infrastructures, they are designed differently:

Cloud-based software

These are intended to take advantage of the cloud and cloud platforms. Cloud-based apps may employ dynamic cloud infrastructure, but they may not fully use the cloud's intrinsic features.

Cloud-native applications

Cloud-native application development takes advantage of the cloud's inherent qualities and is adaptive to the cloud's dynamic environment.

Tools Used in a Cloud Native Application Platform

Each cloud-native application development process makes use of a number of software tools. When they work together, they form what's called a development stack.

A cloud-native development stack includes the following software:

Docker. The Docker platform is a free source. It develops, delivers, and takes care of virtualized app containers using a shared OS. It separates resources, enabling several containers to share the same operating system without conflict.

Kubernetes. The Kubernetes platform is used to orchestrate and manage Linux containers, defining where and how the containers will execute.

Terraform. Terraform is an IAC implementation tool that describes resources as code and uses version control, so users can see when and where resources were changed.

CI/CD using GitLab. Users may automate software testing and deployment using this continuous integration/continuous development (CI/CD) program. GitLab may be used to do security audits, static analysis, and unit testing.

Node.js. This JavaScript runtime can build real-time app such as news feeds, chat, and other services. Node.js, for example, can also build virtual servers and construct the programs that join microservices to external APIs.