Pure distributed system

Whenever you need to use a distributed system, it doesn't matter whether the reason is scalability, extensibility, or extreme performance. Always pick native platforms designed from the ground up for native distribution, and never pick microservices.

INFO

The microservices are the most overrated technology with extreme complexity vs. output value in software engineering in the last decade.

On the other side of the coin, platforms like Orleans or proto.actor are among the most underrated technologies in software engineering. It is the same as with handicrafts. You can do a lot with generic tools, and it works, but the work is much easier and smoother when you have a specialized tool for each task.

If you're thinking of building a proper distributed ecosystem, pick Orleans without hesitation. It is one of the most polished and flawlessly designed platforms and toolsets I have ever worked with.

Yes, you can still mess it up and create a monster with it. It is the same with any great and flexible tool: "With great power came a great responsibility." Most importantly, you have to change your way of thinking, switch your brain from conventional development to an actor-like distributed architecture. Every decent software engineer can transfer with a bit of help.

I'm currently working on multiple unrelated systems that use Orleans as the main architecture, and it is really a blast to work with it when all the recommendations are followed. I'm amazed every time there is a complex technological challenge to solve, how Orleans is designed and easy to extend.

I even started migrating all my personal projects into a single Orleans cluster, and now I'm totally free from any infrastructure, thinking about the increased cloud costs and the boilerplate code I have to write when starting a new application. As a bonus, I get a seamless, perfect option for scaling without any compromise.