Cloud-Native Development

Twelve-Factor App Methodology

• What you Need to Know

  • Cloud-Native Application Design Principles

    • Codebase: One codebase tracked in revision control, many deploys
    • Dependencies: Explicitly declare and isolate dependencies
    • Config: Store configuration in the environment
    • Backing services: Treat backing services as attached resources
    • Resources:
      • The Twelve-Factor App - Complete methodology for building SaaS applications
      • Beyond the Twelve-Factor App - Modern cloud-native principles
      • Cloud Native Application Architecture - Microsoft cloud-native design guide

  • Build, Release, and Run Stages

    • Build stage: Transform code into executable bundle
    • Release stage: Combine build with configuration
    • Run stage: Execute application in runtime environment
    • Resources:
      • CI/CD for Cloud-Native Apps - Continuous integration best practices
      • GitOps Workflow - Git-based deployment and operations
      • Cloud Native CI/CD - CNCF CI/CD landscape

  • Stateless Processes and Data Persistence

    • Stateless application design and horizontal scaling
    • External data stores and session management
    • Process isolation and crash recovery strategies
    • Resources:
      • Stateless vs Stateful Applications - Design patterns for scalability
      • Session Management Patterns - Distributed session strategies
      • Data Persistence Patterns - Database per service pattern

Advanced Docker and Containerization

• What you Need to Know

  • Multi-Stage Docker Builds and Optimization

    • Multi-stage builds for smaller production images
    • Docker layer caching and build optimization
    • Security scanning and vulnerability management
    • Resources:
      • Docker Multi-Stage Builds - Efficient container image creation
      • Docker Security Best Practices - Container security fundamentals
      • Container Image Optimization - Google Cloud container best practices

  • Container Orchestration Patterns

    • Sidecar, ambassador, and adapter patterns
    • Init containers and lifecycle management
    • Resource limits and quality of service classes
    • Resources:
      • Kubernetes Patterns - Design patterns for Kubernetes applications
      • Container Design Patterns - Distributed system patterns
      • Pod Lifecycle Management - Pod states and management

  • Container Registry and Image Management

    • Private container registries and image distribution
    • Image signing and supply chain security
    • Automated image builds and vulnerability scanning
    • Resources:
      • AWS ECR Best Practices - Container registry management
      • Azure Container Registry - ACR best practices
      • Google Container Registry - GCR optimization and security

Kubernetes Orchestration Mastery

• What you Need to Know

  • Advanced Kubernetes Workload Management

    • Deployments, StatefulSets, and DaemonSets
    • Jobs and CronJobs for batch processing
    • Horizontal Pod Autoscaler and Vertical Pod Autoscaler
    • Resources:
      • Kubernetes Workloads - Workload types and management
      • Kubernetes Autoscaling - Automatic scaling strategies
      • StatefulSet Patterns - Stateful application management

  • Service Discovery and Load Balancing

    • Kubernetes Services and Ingress controllers
    • Service mesh integration (Istio, Linkerd)
    • External DNS and certificate management
    • Resources:
      • Kubernetes Services - Service types and networking
      • Ingress Controllers - HTTP/HTTPS load balancing
      • Service Mesh Comparison - Service mesh options and features

  • Persistent Storage and Data Management

    • Persistent Volumes and Storage Classes
    • Container Storage Interface (CSI) drivers
    • Backup and disaster recovery for stateful workloads
    • Resources:
      • Kubernetes Storage - Storage concepts and management
      • CSI Drivers - Container Storage Interface
      • Velero Backup - Kubernetes backup and migration

Serverless Computing and Functions

• What you Need to Know

  • Function as a Service (FaaS) Platforms

    • AWS Lambda functions and event sources
    • Azure Functions and triggers
    • Google Cloud Functions and Cloud Run
    • Resources:
      • AWS Lambda Developer Guide - Serverless function development
      • Azure Functions Documentation - Function app development and deployment
      • Google Cloud Functions - Event-driven serverless functions

  • Event-Driven Architecture Patterns

    • Event sourcing and CQRS patterns
    • Message queues and event streaming
    • Saga pattern for distributed transactions
    • Resources:
      • Event-Driven Architecture - EDA patterns and implementation
      • AWS EventBridge - Event bus and routing
      • Azure Event Grid - Event routing service
      • Google Cloud Pub/Sub - Messaging and event streaming

  • Serverless Application Frameworks

    • Serverless Framework and SAM templates
    • Infrastructure as Code for serverless applications
    • Local development and testing strategies
    • Resources:
      • Serverless Framework - Multi-cloud serverless deployment
      • AWS SAM - Serverless Application Model
      • Azure ARM Templates - Serverless infrastructure automation

Microservices Architecture and Design

• What you Need to Know

  • Microservices Design Patterns

    • Domain-driven design and bounded contexts
    • API gateway and service composition patterns
    • Circuit breaker and bulkhead patterns for resilience
    • Resources:
      • Microservices Patterns - Comprehensive microservices pattern catalog
      • Building Microservices - Microservices architecture guide
      • Domain-Driven Design - DDD concepts and implementation

  • Inter-Service Communication

    • Synchronous communication with REST and GraphQL
    • Asynchronous messaging with event streaming
    • Service contracts and API versioning strategies
    • Resources:
      • REST API Design - RESTful API design principles
      • GraphQL Best Practices - GraphQL implementation guide
      • API Versioning Strategies - API evolution and compatibility

  • Data Management in Microservices

    • Database per service pattern
    • Event sourcing and CQRS implementation
    • Distributed transaction patterns and eventual consistency
    • Resources:
      • Microservices Data Patterns - Data management strategies
      • Event Sourcing - Event-driven data architecture
      • Saga Pattern - Distributed transaction management

API Design and Management

• What you Need to Know

  • RESTful API Design and Best Practices

    • Resource-oriented design and HTTP methods
    • API documentation with OpenAPI/Swagger
    • Error handling and status code conventions
    • Resources:
      • REST API Tutorial - Complete REST API design guide
      • OpenAPI Specification - API documentation standard
      • API Design Guidelines - Google API design principles

  • GraphQL and Modern API Patterns

    • GraphQL schema design and query optimization
    • Real-time subscriptions and data federation
    • API security and rate limiting strategies
    • Resources:
      • GraphQL Documentation - GraphQL concepts and implementation
      • Apollo GraphQL - GraphQL platform and tools
      • API Security Best Practices - OWASP API security guidelines

  • API Gateway and Service Mesh

    • API gateway patterns and implementation
    • Service mesh for microservices communication
    • Traffic management and canary deployments
    • Resources:
      • AWS API Gateway - API management and security
      • Istio Service Mesh - Service mesh architecture
      • Kong API Gateway - Open-source API gateway

Cloud-Native Databases and Data Services

• What you Need to Know

  • Multi-Model Database Strategies

    • Polyglot persistence and database selection criteria
    • NoSQL databases: Document, key-value, graph, and column-family
    • NewSQL and distributed SQL databases
    • Resources:
      • Database Selection Guide - AWS database services comparison
      • Azure Database Services - Azure database portfolio
      • Google Cloud Databases - GCP database services

  • Database Scaling and Performance

    • Read replicas and database clustering
    • Sharding strategies and data partitioning
    • Caching layers and performance optimization
    • Resources:
      • Database Scaling Patterns - Scaling and caching strategies
      • Distributed Database Concepts - Global database architecture
      • Database Performance Tuning - SQL performance optimization

  • Data Streaming and Real-Time Processing

    • Apache Kafka and cloud-managed streaming services
    • Stream processing with Apache Flink and Spark
    • Real-time analytics and event processing
    • Resources:
      • Apache Kafka Documentation - Distributed streaming platform
      • AWS Kinesis - Real-time data streaming
      • Azure Event Hubs - Big data streaming platform
      • Google Cloud Dataflow - Stream and batch processing

DevOps Integration and CI/CD

• What you Need to Know

  • Cloud-Native CI/CD Pipelines

    • GitOps workflows and deployment automation
    • Container image building and security scanning
    • Progressive delivery and feature flags
    • Resources:
      • GitOps Principles - Git-based deployment workflows
      • Tekton Pipelines - Kubernetes-native CI/CD
      • Argo CD - GitOps continuous delivery

  • Infrastructure and Application Monitoring

    • Observability for cloud-native applications
    • Distributed tracing and performance monitoring
    • Log aggregation and metrics collection
    • Resources:
      • Prometheus Monitoring - Metrics collection and alerting
      • Jaeger Tracing - Distributed tracing system
      • Grafana Dashboards - Metrics visualization and alerting

  • Chaos Engineering and Resilience Testing

    • Fault injection and resilience testing
    • Chaos engineering principles and tools
    • Disaster recovery testing and validation
    • Resources:
      • Chaos Engineering Principles - Chaos engineering methodology
      • Chaos Monkey - Netflix chaos engineering tool
      • Litmus Chaos - Kubernetes chaos engineering

Ready to Architect? Advance to Module 5: Advanced Architecture to master enterprise-scale patterns, performance optimization, and emerging cloud technologies.