Web Application Architecture

1. Monolithic Architecture

• Monolithic architecture is considering your web app as one big, self-contained unit where everything, from its behavior to its working, is packed together.
• Under this, the entire web application is developed and deployed as a single unit.
• All components, including user interface, business logic, and database access, are tightly integrated.

2. Client-Server Architecture

• Consider the process followed on a restaurant. The waiter takes the orders from customers and communicates with the chef in the kitchen, who will actually cook the food.
• Now relate waiter to the client, customers to be users and the chef to be the server. The client takes the requests from the users and processes it to the server where the actual processing is done.
• In the client-server model, the application is split into two main parts: the client which handles the user interface and the server which manages the data processing.
• Communication occurs over a network, often using HTTP.

3. Microservices Architecture

• Consider a normal town where each shop (microservice) has a specialty in some work.
• This way, if one shop changes something, it doesn’t affect the others.
• Microservices break down the application into small, independent services, each focusing on a specific function.
• Services communicate through APIs.

4. Serverless Architecture

• In a serverless setup, you don’t have to worry about maintaining the kitchen (server).
• It’s like ordering your food (function) which is prepared somewhere else, and you only pay for what you consume.
• Serverless architecture involves running code without managing the underlying infrastructure.
• Applications are built using small, stateless functions triggered by events.

5. Progressive Web App (PWA) Architecture

• It can work even when there’s no internet, like a person who doesn’t need a specific headquarters.
• PWAs make sure your experience is seamless by using smart strategies (service workers), even if your internet connection isn’t.
• PWAs aim to provide a native app-like experience within a web browser.

A Web Application is software that executes on the web browser. It links the customers and the service providers as a medium of exchange. For example, Amazon provides a marketplace where sellers and buyers can coexist. It provides a mechanism to exchange services and perform operations seamlessly.