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How are cloud-native applications different from traditional enterprise applications?

Created on 2025-06-19 12:05:34
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Cloud-native applications differ from traditional enterprise applications in architecture, deployment, and operational principles.

  1. Architecture:

    • Cloud-native apps are built as microservices, with small, independently deployable components. Each service has its own database and communicates via APIs (e.g., REST or gRPC).
    • Traditional apps are monolithic, with tightly coupled components sharing a single database.

    Example: A cloud-native e-commerce app might split user management, inventory, and payments into separate microservices, while a traditional app would combine all logic into one codebase.

  2. Deployment:

    • Cloud-native apps use containers (e.g., Docker) and orchestration tools (e.g., Kubernetes) for scalability and portability. They are designed to run on any infrastructure.
    • Traditional apps rely on virtual machines or bare-metal servers, often requiring manual configuration.

    Example: A cloud-native app deployed on Tencent Cloud’s TKE (Tencent Kubernetes Engine) can auto-scale during traffic spikes, whereas a traditional app might need manual server provisioning.

  3. Operational Model:

    • Cloud-native apps embrace DevOps and CI/CD pipelines for continuous updates. They leverage serverless functions (e.g., Tencent Cloud SCF) for event-driven tasks.
    • Traditional apps follow waterfall development, with infrequent releases and heavy reliance on IT ops.

    Example: A cloud-native app integrates Tencent Cloud’s CODING DevOps for automated testing and deployment, while a traditional app requires scheduled downtime for updates.

  4. Resilience and Scaling:

    • Cloud-native apps use load balancers and self-healing mechanisms (e.g., Kubernetes restart policies).
    • Traditional apps depend on hardware redundancy and manual failover.

    Example: A cloud-native app on Tencent Cloud can distribute traffic via CLB (Cloud Load Balancer) and recover from failures automatically.

Tencent Cloud provides services like TKE, SCF, and CLB to support cloud-native development, enabling faster innovation and cost efficiency.