Choose how to segment your workload

Workload segmentation is crucial for determining the resilience and scalability of your application. Whenever possible, avoid monolithic architecture and segment your workload into smaller, manageable components. Carefully evaluate which application components can be broken out into microservices, and consider a service-oriented architecture (SOA) approach for components that benefit from more integration. Stateless workloads are especially well-suited for segmentation into microservices, enabling better scaling and resilience.

Establish segmentation champions in each team: Assign segmentation champions within each workload team to oversee the segmentation process. These champions are responsible for evaluating existing workloads, identifying areas for segmentation, and ensuring that components are modular, scalable, and resilient. They also guide the adoption of microservices and service-oriented architecture (SOA) principles where appropriate.

Provide training on workload segmentation: Train builder teams on best practices for segmenting workloads, including the use of microservices and service-oriented architecture (SOA). Training should cover principles like statelessness, decoupling, and modular design to ensure teams can design scalable and resilient applications. Proper training helps builder teams make informed decisions about which components to break out and how to manage dependencies effectively.

Develop workload segmentation guidelines and standards: Create clear guidelines for segmenting workloads, focusing on breaking down monolithic architectures into smaller, independent services. These guidelines should include principles for designing stateless services, determining which components should become microservices, and how to implement SOA where beneficial. Documented standards help ensure consistency and alignment with organizational best practices.

Integrate segmentation validation into CI/CD pipelines: Integrate workload segmentation validation checks into CI/CD pipelines to ensure that new features or components are properly segmented and decoupled. Automated validation can help identify tightly coupled components or monolithic code that should be re-architected, ensuring a continuous focus on modularity and scalability.

Define automated guardrails for workload segmentation: Use automated tools to enforce segmentation best practices, ensuring workloads are designed in a way that promotes scalability and resilience. Tools like AWS Lambda, AWS Step Functions, and Amazon ECS can help enforce a microservices architecture and guide the segmentation process. Automated guardrails prevent unnecessary coupling and encourage the adoption of best practices for workload segmentation.

Foster a culture of modular architecture: Encourage builder teams to prioritize modular design when developing new components or re-architecting existing ones. Recognize and reward teams that effectively segment their workloads into smaller, independent services. Foster open discussions about the challenges and benefits of segmentation to create a culture that values scalable and resilient architectures.

Conduct regular segmentation reviews: Schedule regular reviews to evaluate workload segmentation and identify opportunities to break down monolithic components. These reviews should assess whether existing workloads are appropriately segmented and ensure that new features are developed with modularity in mind. Regular reviews help maintain a focus on scalable and resilient architecture.

Leverage automation for consistent segmentation: Use Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools like AWS CloudFormation or AWS CDK to automate the deployment of microservices and segmented components. Automating these processes ensures consistency across environments and helps prevent the unintentional reintroduction of monolithic patterns.

Provide dashboards for segmentation visibility: Use dashboards to provide visibility into the segmentation of workloads and the health of individual components. Tools like Amazon CloudWatch, AWS X-Ray, and AWS Step Functions can help monitor the performance and dependencies of segmented services. Dashboards help builder teams proactively manage the segmentation of their workloads and identify areas for improvement.

Supporting Questions

• How do you ensure that builder teams segment workloads appropriately to support scalability and resilience?
• What mechanisms are in place to validate that workloads are properly segmented into microservices or SOA components?
• How do you align workload segmentation practices with organizational standards for modularity and high availability?

Roles and Responsibilities

Segmentation Champion (within Builder Team)

Responsibilities:

• Identify opportunities to segment workloads into independent components.
• Guide the team in adopting microservices and service-oriented architecture (SOA) principles for scalability and resilience.

Application Developer

Responsibilities:

• Implement application features in a modular way, ensuring they align with workload segmentation best practices.
• Use automated tools to validate that new components are properly decoupled and suitable for a microservices architecture.

Operations Team Member

Responsibilities:

• Assist builder teams with managing dependencies and ensuring workloads are segmented for scalability.
• Provide guidance and training to ensure alignment with best practices for workload segmentation and resilience.

Artifacts

Workload Segmentation Guidelines and Standards: A document outlining best practices for breaking down monolithic applications into microservices or SOA components.

Training Resources for Workload Segmentation: Hands-on labs, workshops, and documentation to help teams understand how to segment workloads effectively.

Automated Segmentation Configurations: Scripts and configurations that help automate the deployment of segmented components and microservices across environments.

Relevant AWS Services

Training and Awareness Tools:

• AWS Skill Builder and AWS Well-Architected Labs: Resources for learning about workload segmentation, microservices, and SOA best practices.
• AWS Trusted Advisor: Provides insights into application architecture and recommendations for improving segmentation.

Workload Segmentation and Guardrails:

• AWS Lambda: Helps develop stateless and event-driven microservices, enabling scalable and modular architectures.
• AWS Step Functions: Provides workflow orchestration for segmented components, helping ensure services are well-integrated.
• Amazon ECS: Allows you to manage containerized microservices, promoting modularity and resilience.

Monitoring and Visibility Tools:

• Amazon CloudWatch: Tracks the health and performance of segmented components, providing alerts for scalability and resilience issues.
• AWS X-Ray: Helps trace requests across segmented components, identifying dependencies and performance bottlenecks.
• AWS CloudFormation: Codifies workload segmentation configurations, automating the deployment of microservices and ensuring consistency across environments.