The most popular microservices platforms (such as Docker and Kubernetes) make deploying and managing APIs much easier than ever before. Platforms like these allow for quick innovation and the ability to develop and scale applications quickly.
But what happens when you need to run a traditional application that makes use of APIs?
In this article, we will discuss how you can run a traditional application on top of a Kubernetes cluster using apis hosting.
Why use Kubernetes for application hosting?
The most popular microservices platforms (such as Docker and Kubernetes) make deploying and managing APIs much easier than ever before. Platforms like these allow for quick innovation and the ability to develop and scale applications quickly.
Docker in particular made it easy for developers to package and distribute their applications, creating a perfect infrastructure for rapid development and iteration.
However, not all applications are suited for this type of deployment. For instance, a traditional application that makes use of complex databases is likely to encounter problems when deployed in a container environment.
Enter Kubernetes, a highly available, scalable and reliable container orchestration platform designed for running containers at all levels of scale from microservices to the largest of traditional applications.
Kubernetes provides a variety of options for application deployment, from simple service instances to highly available and scalable clusters. It also supports a wide variety of workloads, from traditional databases to media file serving and even the most complex applications.
Why use apis hosting on top of Kubernetes?
While it’s true that you can simply deploy a Kubernetes cluster and have it run your applications, sometimes it’s preferable to have a staging environment you can use for testing prior to production. If your application makes use of APIs, then apis hosting provides the perfect balance between speed and control.
Unlike a typical hosting scenario, where your application is left up to the developer to administer (e.g., through configuration files or command-line arguments), apis hosting provides you with the ability to define everything about a particular service or set of services, including the code that will serve those requests. This makes it much easier to maintain a close to-production-like environment without needing to worry about too many configuration variables or being locked into a particular version of software.
The Role of the API Management Platform
While Kubernetes is a popular option for hosting applications, it’s not the only one. Other platforms, such as Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) and Apache Mesos, allow for quick deployments of highly available and scalable clusters running containerized applications.
If your organization already uses an API Management platform such as Api Manager or Swagger, then you can leverage your existing investment in tools for rapid development and testing.
Apis hosting also reduces the number of servers your application needs in order to function. This can significantly reduce your infrastructure costs, especially if you’re paying for dedicated servers.
What’s more, since the underlying container technology is the same, you can take advantage of the many CLI tools that are already available for your favorite Linux distribution. This includes everything from debugging to security auditing.
Choosing Your Backend Technology
If you’re using Apache Kafka as your underlying back end, then you can choose between an Apache Kafka cluster running on a local server or a distributed cluster hosted by a third-party provider.
Similarly, if you’re using Redis as your data store, then you can choose between running a locally installed instance or using a hosted service (e.g., Redis Labs). Choosing a local hosted instance could also be a good option since it would allow you to take advantage of the existing infrastructure that supports your application.
How Does it Work?
By combining Kubernetes and apis hosting, you can deploy a highly available and scalable cluster of containers that will act as an API layer between your existing applications and the outside world. This service could be accessed from anywhere using standard HTTP methods such as GET, POST and PUT.
The most basic deployment would look like this:
1. Create a Kubernetes cluster and install the required packages
2. Navigate to the apis directory alongside your WAR file and upload all of the files in this directory to your cluster. Make sure to set the appropriate permissions for these files and directories.
3. Restart the Kubernetes service for the changes to take effect.
4. Verify that all of the services are up and running by navigating to http://Your_IP_Address_or_FQDN:8000 in a web browser.
5. Deploy individual services as needed and test each one individually until you’re confident that they’re all functioning properly.
As a best practice, it’s always a good idea to run all of your services through a load testing tool (e.g., Apache Bench or Siege) so that you can ensure that they’re able to handle the load that will be placed on them when production is rolled out.
Summary
With all of the benefits that apis hosting can bring to your application and infrastructure, it’s easy to understand why this is the preferred method of deployment for many developers and organizations. This is definitely an option to explore if you’re looking for an easy way to run your existing applications or are interested in quickly and easily implementing a microservices architecture.