Monolithic application
Encyclopedia
In software engineering
, a monolithic application describes a single-tiered software application
in which the user interface
and data access code are combined into a single program from a single platform
.
A monolithic application is self contained, and independent from other computing applications. The design philosophy is that the application is responsible not just for a particular task, but can perform every step needed to complete a particular function. Today, some personal finance applications are monolithic in the sense that they help the user carry out a complete task, end to end, and are "private data silos" rather than parts of a larger system of applications that work together. Word processor
s are an example of a monolithic application. These applications are sometimes associated with mainframe computers.
In software engineering, a monolithic application describes a software application which is designed without modularity. Modularity is desirable, in general, as it supports reuse of parts of the application logic and also facilitates maintenance by allowing repair or replacement of parts of the application without requiring wholesale replacement.
Modularity is achieved to various extents by different modularization approaches. Code based modularity allows developers to reuse and repair parts of the application, but development tools are required to perform these maintenance functions (e.g. the application may need to be recompiled). Object based modularity provides the application as a collection of separate executable files which may be independently maintained and replaced without redeploying the entire application (e.g. Microsoft "dll" files, Sun/UNIX "shared object" files). Some object messaging capabilities allow object based applications to be distributed across multiple computers (e.g. Microsoft COM+). Service Oriented Architectures use specific communication standard/protocols to communicate between modules.
The extent to which an application is described as monolithic is dependent upon perspective. Software that is not Service Oriented may be described as monolithic even though it is Object based and can be distributed.
The original use of the monolithic term described enormous main frame applications with no usable modularity, therefore resulting in un-maintainable systems and the "software crisis." Such monolithic applications are also commonly referred to as "spaghetti code
."
Software engineering
Software Engineering is the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software, and the study of these approaches; that is, the application of engineering to software...
, a monolithic application describes a single-tiered software application
Application software
Application software, also known as an application or an "app", is computer software designed to help the user to perform specific tasks. Examples include enterprise software, accounting software, office suites, graphics software and media players. Many application programs deal principally with...
in which the user interface
User interface
The user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
and data access code are combined into a single program from a single platform
Platform (computing)
A computing platform includes some sort of hardware architecture and a software framework , where the combination allows software, particularly application software, to run...
.
A monolithic application is self contained, and independent from other computing applications. The design philosophy is that the application is responsible not just for a particular task, but can perform every step needed to complete a particular function. Today, some personal finance applications are monolithic in the sense that they help the user carry out a complete task, end to end, and are "private data silos" rather than parts of a larger system of applications that work together. Word processor
Word processor
A word processor is a computer application used for the production of any sort of printable material....
s are an example of a monolithic application. These applications are sometimes associated with mainframe computers.
See also
- Architecture description languageArchitecture description languageDifferent communities use the term architecture description language. Some important communities are the system engineering community, the software engineering community and the enterprise modelling and engineering community...
- Multitier architectureMultitier architectureIn software engineering, multi-tier architecture is a client–server architecture in which the presentation, the application processing, and the data management are logically separate processes. For example, an application that uses middleware to service data requests between a user and a database...
- Software architectureSoftware architectureThe software architecture of a system is the set of structures needed to reason about the system, which comprise software elements, relations among them, and properties of both...
In software engineering, a monolithic application describes a software application which is designed without modularity. Modularity is desirable, in general, as it supports reuse of parts of the application logic and also facilitates maintenance by allowing repair or replacement of parts of the application without requiring wholesale replacement.
Modularity is achieved to various extents by different modularization approaches. Code based modularity allows developers to reuse and repair parts of the application, but development tools are required to perform these maintenance functions (e.g. the application may need to be recompiled). Object based modularity provides the application as a collection of separate executable files which may be independently maintained and replaced without redeploying the entire application (e.g. Microsoft "dll" files, Sun/UNIX "shared object" files). Some object messaging capabilities allow object based applications to be distributed across multiple computers (e.g. Microsoft COM+). Service Oriented Architectures use specific communication standard/protocols to communicate between modules.
The extent to which an application is described as monolithic is dependent upon perspective. Software that is not Service Oriented may be described as monolithic even though it is Object based and can be distributed.
The original use of the monolithic term described enormous main frame applications with no usable modularity, therefore resulting in un-maintainable systems and the "software crisis." Such monolithic applications are also commonly referred to as "spaghetti code
Spaghetti code
Spaghetti code is a pejorative term for source code that has a complex and tangled control structure, especially one using many GOTOs, exceptions, threads, or other "unstructured" branching constructs. It is named such because program flow tends to look like a bowl of spaghetti, i.e. twisted and...
."