Many modern enterprises require that their systems and applications be efficiently and quickly integrated. That’s because these days, application and data integration form the foundation for new customer services and experiences.
Gone are the days where a single team oversees a single, massive integration technology that connects data, applications, and devices for an entire enterprise; tools such as API managers can now streamline integration and make applications and devices accessible to each other.
Data is now more valuable than ever for business development and it was never harder to extract it and transform it so it could lead to the right business decisions. Various tools exist and heavy research is needed in order to discover what tools and methods would work the best for your use case. For example, ETL vs ELT is a neverending inside “battle” between business owners about the method that would work the best for their business needs and that’s why sometimes it is best to consult with an expert before making the final decision.
An IT environment that is highly connected has provided a competitive advantage for leaders in IT, and continued improvement in enterprise integration is possible with a combination of API management, microservices, and integration solutions.
This is good news for organizations that deploy cloud-native apps and services, of which there are currently more than 500 million worldwide. To that end, let’s quickly dive into why it’s so important for modern organizations to rely on efficient integration and to use the benefits of combining APIs, Microservices, and integration.
The challenge behind creating integrated IT environments
Organizations that want to better connect their IT environments have long faced the challenge of enterprise-wide integration. Integration is a significant challenge of the cloud and the data that resides on it.
The protocols as well as the APIs of endpoints shift often, and a centralized approach to integration, such as those offered by proprietary or open core vendors, is limited in the support it can provide.
These limitations can, however, be overcome with a platform that can connect Microservices, APIs, and integration solutions. A unified platform that can connect APIs, as well as integrations and Microservices, paves the path toward a truly connected IT environment.
How the Microservices architecture model improves integration
Unified platforms that do away with point-to-point connections and instead use integrated application architecture help enterprises build at the rate they desire. These architectures use Agile methodologies to quickly drive customers through agile apps.
For many organizations, the key to a flawless application integration is to use Microservices.
Microservice Architecture is an architectural concept that focuses on developing a single application as a suite of small and independent services that run in their process. Microservices are developed and deployed independently and are not just about splitting a monolith integration technology into independent services.
Instead, the microservices architectural model focuses on the flexibility to develop and deploy new cloud-native applications as quickly as possible. Additionally, Microservices deploy new applications that coexist with the current applications within an enterprise’s IT environment.
What’s more, is that the mainstreaming of Microservices has thrown the issue of integrating their autonomous services with other enterprise applications into public light. This is where API-led implementation methodologies come in: they improve the power of Microservices and mitigate the problems they present.
Make the most of Microservices with API management
API-led implementation methodologies are vital to successfully halting the tensions that arise with Microservices-based application integration. The Microservices model, by itself, can’t contend with the frequent ups and downs that come with the laborious task of integrating applications across an entire enterprise. With API management, though, enterprises can manage their Microservices architectures across their IT environment’s existing legacy systems.
APIs let IT teams sync up their Microservices with whatever system it is that they’ve been using as a legacy solution. An API management solution can significantly improve cost savings by permanently removing arduous point-to-point integrations that are necessary with legacy systems. API managers can make it much easier to scale a Microservices architectural model with changing business requirements.
Teams that are creating Microservices architectures or rediscovering and reusing Microservices with an API require a flexible means to maintain communication. Remote teams using an API manager as part of their application integration tasks require collaboration software that comes with critical features such as centralized storage that’s accessible from multiple devices, as well as project dashboards to track the status of milestones.
Collaboration software makes it much easier for teams to reuse and discover Microservices, create new architectures that are of particular interest to certain audiences of users, and manage Microservices as reusable assets.
Overcoming limitations and maximizing future success
Challenges persist that limit the success of APIs, microservices, and integration systems coming together to the fullest potential. Despite the popular adoption of API management tools, problems such as API security and a limited skill set among personnel pervade the IT environments of many organizations.
In addition to common challenges associated with using API managers, Microservices also cause issues with budgetary restrictions and functional integration with different legacy applications and services. And when it comes to integration systems, enterprise organizations struggle to ward off external threats and overcome the same budgetary restrictions and limited skill sets that restrict success with Microservices and APIs.
A holistic approach is required to combine APIs, Microservices, and integration services as a bundled solution. Otherwise, enterprise organizations will continue to seek increasingly complex solutions that attempt to manage APIs, Microservices, and integration solutions as mutually exclusive components.
To accelerate their transition toward a unified platform to combine APIs, Microservices, and integration solutions, businesses require a reliable method to ensure API security and protect integration applications and systems against external threats.
It’s therefore important that enterprise organizations invest in an API management tool when developing and deploying applications on the cloud. Certain API managers use antivirus protection to disable viruses that try to infect your computers through an online connection.
If you notice something like this occurring on your computer, you would normally go to the Registry Editor or Task Manager to deal with it. However, some viruses will disable these tools and force you to take additional steps to address the situation. If you want to prevent these situations at no expense, check out API management tools that come with antivirus features.
Conclusion
The future for modern businesses and organizations is a combination of API management with Microservices. This bundled solution gives IT leaders the competitive edge they’ve been looking for as they continue to seek better and more wholly connected IT environments.