computing Computing is any goal-oriented activity requiring, benefiting from, or creating computer, computing machinery. It includes the study and experimentation of algorithmic processes, and the development of both computer hardware, hardware and softw ...

, self-contained system (SCS) is a

software architecture Software architecture is the set of structures needed to reason about a software system and the discipline of creating such structures and systems. Each structure comprises software elements, relations among them, and properties of both elements a ...

approach that focuses on a separation of the functionality into many independent systems, making the complete logical system a collaboration of many smaller software systems.

Self-contained system characteristics

SCSs have certain characteristics: #Each SCS is an autonomous web application. #Each SCS is owned by one team. #Communication with other SCSs or third-party systems is asynchronous wherever possible. #An SCS can have an optional service API. #Each SCS must include data and logic. #An SCS should make its features usable to end-users by its own UI. #To avoid tight coupling an SCS should share no business code with other SCSs. #Shared infrastructure should be reduced to increase availability and decrease coupling. Implementations create larger systems using this approach – in particular web applications. There are many case studies and further links available.

Self-contained systems and microservices

While self-contained systems are similar to

microservices In software engineering, a microservice architecture is an architectural pattern that organizes an application into a collection of loosely coupled, fine-grained services that communicate through lightweight protocols. This pattern is characterize ...

there are differences: A system will usually contain fewer SCS than microservices. Also microservices can communicate with other microservices – even synchronously. SCS prefer no communication or asynchronous communication. Microservices might also have a separate UI unlike the SCS that include a UI.

Self-contained systems and Vertical Slice Architecture

Self-contained systems and vertical slice architecture have similarities but also decisive differences. Both approaches divide a system into smaller, manageable units. Vertical slices are cut on the basis of

features Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature recognition, could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (machine learning), in statistics: individual measurable properties of the phenome ...

, Self-contained systems along the boundaries of functional domains. They also differ in the strictness with which they attempt to encapsulate and isolate specialized logic.

Usage

There are quite a few known usages of SCS – e.g. at Otto,

Galeria Kaufhof Galeria Kaufhof GmbH was a German department store chain, headquartered in Cologne. It was a member of the International Association of Department Stores from 1930 to 2010, with various CEOs acting as presidents of the Association over time. Un ...

, and Kühne+Nagel.

References

Architectural pattern (computer science) {{computing-stub