A Technology Stack for a web app can be defined as a set of tools used to develop and power an application. It greatly impacts the speed and timeline of the development and influences its scalability going further. It is a combination of software applications or tools, frameworks, and programming languages that are used by developers to create the program.
In terms of structure, the tech stack consists of two components, client-side and server-side, also known as frontend and backend. A stack is created when developers use different layers of components/servers to build web applications and solutions.
Backend tech stack (Server-side)
The main idea behind the backend tech stack that one needs to grasp is that it is about the inner functioning of an application. It is not visible to users and still plays an important role in providing useful resources for the frontend. Therefore it is crucial to choose a suitable backend, especially if your web application has any features other than HTML-based static pages. The backend consists of the following elements:
Server provider(Apache, Nginx)
programming language(Javascript, Python, PHP)
Database(MySQL, MongoDB)
Framework(Ruby on Rails, Flask, Django, AngularJS)
Operating system(Linux).
All of these components work together to carry out the app development operation. An example of a popular back-end stack is LAMP, which is an abbreviation for Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP. Where Linux is used as a server's operating system, Apache as the web server, MySQL as the database, and PHP is used as the scripting language.
Frontend tech stack(Client-side)
Frontend, as the name suggests, is where the interaction between user and web application occurs. Thus, the frontend stack is responsible for making the user experience and user interface accessible. Usually, there are three main components in the frontend tech stack.
HTML- It acts as a backbone of the project, responsible for structuring the content and positioning it on the page.
CSS- It determines the overall appearance of the content like colors, fonts, background, layout, etc.
JavaScript- It helps in adding interactivity to the web page, operated via libraries such as jQuery or React.js.
An example of popular frontend stacks used by developers is AngularJS by Google and ReactJS by Facebook.
Choosing the right Tech Stack
Choosing the right tech stack for your application will be beneficial in improving the base performance of your software. While going with the wrong stacks can lead to additional maintenance costs and technical debts.
Founders, CEO, or consultants, especially with a non-coding background, have a hard time choosing the right tech stack for their web application. There are tons of questions that arise at the beginning, such as which programming language should one choose? Which is the right choice for the web framework, Node.js, Flask, or Django? Which database is better- MySQL, Postgres, or MongoDB? The list goes on, and here are some steps you can take to determine the right tech stack for your product.
1. Start with basics
It doesn’t matter what technology you use in developing your product if the product fails itself and there is no market for it. When you build a web app from scratch, the best option is to launch the MVP in the early stage. If the project is small and you need to deliver a working prototype within a strict timeline, CMS or Wordpress can be a good place to start. It will be an ideal choice for creating a single-page website or building a landing page. This way, you minimize the risk because you may not have implemented all the features, but your system is running.
2. Identify project size and requirement
Every project can be classified by its size and requirements. With the size, the complexity of the project usually increases, which affects the choice of the technology stack. So, classify your project according to these three categories: small projects, medium-sized projects, and large projects.
Small projects comprise of blogs, single-page sites, presentations, portfolios, other small websites, and digital magazines that can be created using website building tools like Readymag, Wix, and Webflow.
The online store, financial, and enterprise apps come under medium-sized projects that require a stack of multiple layers and a combination of several programming languages. In that case, you should consider cross-platform integrations as they might involve a connection between the web app and the company’s backend system.
Social networks and eCommerce marketplaces are considered large projects as they are complex and require more scalability, speed, and maintenance. Choosing a tech stack for a large project needs consideration of both functional and non-functional requirements. For such projects, identify the features to implement first as developers have to create web apps with several functions. They have to work with multiple programming languages and different web technologies.
3. Opt for open-source technologies
Always go for an open-source solution when it comes to building a new web app. Avoid building everything from scratch as open-source technologies are more secure and save a lot of time and effort. Make sure you check the features a prospective technology is offering to your app. If language or framework has all the features that you need? What kind of license does it have? If the documentation is thorough or If the source code is easy to comprehend or not. Most importantly, how does the team associated with the technology handle security issues?
4. Resource’s expertise and availability
The availability of resources that will develop your product is one of the most vital factors in determining your tech stack. Make sure your team is up for working with the finalized tech stack. Pick a tech stack that has commonly used programming language, so it will be easier to find programmers who know how to use it. This way, you can add new developers to the team in the future. The developer team is responsible for maintaining the web app even after launch, the reason why your resource’s expertise and knowledge base is crucial.
5. Cost of development and maintenance
The choice of the technology stack is directly responsible for influencing the development cost. Therefore, you need to consider these two factors before investing in the tech stack:
Cost of hiring a resource: Skilled professionals and developers that you hire for the project can have varying fees based on their expertise and technology they are working with. Taking hiring costs into account will help you manage the overall expenditure.
Cost of maintenance: The cost of maintaining and upgrading the web app after the development phase is over should also be taken into consideration. If you want to cut costs, then stick with the open-source technologies.
6. Time to market
Finishing the development of a product in time is a challenge, let alone planning its launch in the market. However, TTM(Time to market) is an important factor while picking a tech stack. The faster you develop and launch your web app, the more exposure it gets, and the cheaper it will be for your company. If your app takes a lot of time in the development and testing phase, then the chances are you will not be able to launch it on time. So make sure you choose a tech stack that is less time-consuming. For that, you can go for the one that allows third-party integrations. Also, including more experts in your developer team will result in fewer bugs in the program.
7. Scalability
Scalability means the capability of the app or website to handle the growth in the number of users. Make sure you choose a tech stack that will accommodate the rapid growth of users and lets you add and update features in the future. Also known as horizontal and vertical scalability, both of which are important to avoid any future failure of the product. Tech stack elements such as React, Node.js, Golang, and Ruby on Rails are known to have the best scalability. An app also scales well on AWS because of its advanced Ethernet technology use.
8. Security
Always keep in mind that you develop an application that follows the best practices of security and threat elimination. Carefully choose the technologies for your tech stack as only a few of them are secure enough. For instance, Ruby on Rails is a highly secured framework because it offers DSL (Digital Subscriber Line), to put together a content security policy for your app. It’s also essential to run security tests on both client and server-side to prevent security threats.
Getting started
If you are just starting out, then this is crucial for you to know. It will put you in the right direction and help you choose the tech stack for your web application. You need to clearly understand your project requirements and choose the technologies by going through the above factors. Having a talented team of professional web developers on your side is a huge step up in the process.
Evon technologies has a highly skilled team of developers who specialize in custom PHP web development. Our web developers can work and customize with technologies like .Net, J2EE, Ruby on Rails, PHP, and Node JS. We have developed over 30+ scalable web applications on PHP stack that includes business portals, social network, e-commerce portal, etc. With 10+ years of Ruby on Rails development experience, our experts are well-versed with the latest tools and technologies to deliver exceptional applications. We know the best web stack for building your new product and will help you choose the technologies to go with based on your company goals, requirements, and resources you have.
Get in touch with our consultants to know which technologies fit your requirements best.
