Your First Microservice

So, let’s start developing microservices using the Pip.Services toolkit. As a simple example, we will make a Hello World microservice, which will greet you in response to your request. The communication protocol will be HTTP REST.

The microservice is structurally made up of these components:

  • The controller, which generates responses to requests
  • A REST service for the transmission of responses and requests
  • The component factory for the dynamic creation of components
  • A container process, which will be filled with the necessary components, based on a yaml file configuration.

Step 1. Environment setup

Before we can start writing-up some microservices, we’ll need to install:

Compiler and IDE

First and foremost - we’ll need a compiler for your programming language of choice, as well as some sort of code editor. In our examples, we usually use Visual Studio Code, but any fitting IDE will do.

For working with the Node.js programming language, you’ll need to perform its installation and setup the environment. To do this, download and install Node.js from their official site https://nodejs.org/en/download/ . Select the download that corresponds to the operating system you’re using, and follow the installation instructions listed on their site.

Once installed, check that the installation was completed successfully by running the following command from your console:

node -version

If everything was installed successfully, the screen will display the latest version of the Node.js programming language. We’ll be needing a few additional instruments - use the following commands to install them as well:

# Install typescript compiler
npm install typescript -g
# Install typescript definitions utility
npm install tsd -g 
# Install typescript api document generator
npm install typedoc -g
# Install mocha test runner
npm install mocha -g

First and foremost - we’ll need a compiler for your programming language of choice, as well as some sort of code editor. In our examples, we usually use Visual Studio Code, but any fitting IDE will do.

For working with the .NET programming language, you’ll need to perform its installation and setup the environment. To do this, download and install .NET from the official site, as well as the following packages:

Visual Studio 2015 Professional or Community Edition: https://www.visualstudio.com

Core .NET SDK with Visual Studio extensions: https://www.microsoft.com/net/core

For working with the Go programming language, you’ll need to perform its installation and setup the environment. To do this, download and install Go from their official site https://golang.org/dl/ . Select the download that corresponds to the operating system you’re using, and follow the installation instructions listed on their site.

Once installed, check that the installation was completed successfully by running the following command from your console:

go version

If everything was installed successfully, the screen will display the latest version of the Go programming language.

For working with the Dart programming language, you’ll need to perform its installation and setup the environment. To do this, download and install Dart from their official site https://dart.dev/get-dart#install. Select the download that corresponds to the operating system you’re using, and follow the installation instructions listed on their site.

Once installed, check that the installation was completed successfully by running the following command from your console:

dart --version

For working with the Python programming language, you’ll need to perform its installation and setup the environment. To do this, download and install Python from their official site . Select the download that corresponds to the operating system you’re using, and follow the installation instructions listed on their site.

Once installed, check that the installation was completed successfully by running the following command from your console:

python --version
TODO: add language

Step 2. Project setup

Create a folder for the project and within it, add a requirements.txt file with the name of your microservice and a list of dependencies for your necessary components. For editing, you can use any text editor or IDE of your choice.

/package.json

{
  "name": "hello-world",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "dependencies": {
    "pip-services3-commons-nodex": "^1.0.*",
    "pip-services3-components-nodex": "^1.0.*",
    "pip-services3-container-nodex": "^1.0.*",
    "pip-services3-data-nodex": "^1.0.*",
    "pip-services3-rpc-nodex": "^1.0.*"
  }
}

In the command line, type out the command below to install the dependencies:

npm install

Create a folder for the project, open it and run the command:

dotnet new console

This command will automatically create two files: HelloWorld.csproj and Program.cs. Open the HelloWorld.csproj file and add the necessary dependencies to it.

/HelloWorld.csproj

<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk">  
  <PropertyGroup>    
    <OutputType>Exe</OutputType>    
    <TargetFramework>netcoreapp3.1</TargetFramework>  
  </PropertyGroup>  
  <ItemGroup>    
    <PackageReference Include="PipServices3.Commons" Version="3.1.0" />    
    <PackageReference Include="PipServices3.Components" Version="3.1.0" />    
    <PackageReference Include="PipServices3.Container" Version="3.1.0" />    
    <PackageReference Include="PipServices3.Data" Version="3.1.0" />    
    <PackageReference Include="PipServices3.Rpc" Version="3.3.0" />  
  </ItemGroup>
</Project>

In the command line, type out the command below to install the dependencies:

dotnet restore
go mod init quickstart

Update the generated /go.mod file to add there dependencies to Pip.Services toolkit.

/go.mod

module quickstart

go 1.18

require (
	github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-commons-gox v1.0.6
	github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-components-gox v1.0.6
	github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-container-gox v1.0.6
	github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-rpc-gox v1.0.2
)

require (
	github.com/felixge/httpsnoop v1.0.1 // indirect
	github.com/google/uuid v1.3.0 // indirect
	github.com/gorilla/handlers v1.5.1 // indirect
	github.com/gorilla/mux v1.8.0 // indirect
	github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-expressions-gox v1.0.1 // indirect
	gopkg.in/yaml.v2 v2.4.0 // indirect
)

In the command line execute the following command to install the dependencies:

go get -u

/pubspec.yaml

name: pip_quickstart
version: "1.0.0"
author: Anonymous <anonymouse@somewhere.com>
description: Quick start for Pip.Services toolkit on Dart
homepage: http://pipservices.org

environment:
  sdk: ">=2.0.0 <3.0.0"

dependencies:
  pip_services3_commons: ">=1.0.5 <2.0.0"
  pip_services3_components: ">=1.0.2 <2.0.0"
  pip_services3_rpc: ">=1.0.2 <2.0.0"
  pip_services3_container: ">=1.0.3 <2.0.0"
  angel_framework: ^2.1.1

dev_dependencies:
  test: '>=1.14.2 <2.0.0'

In the command line, type out the command below to install the dependencies:

pub get

Create the file:

/lib/src/pip_quickstart.dart

library pip_quickstart;
export './src/helloworld.dart';

Create a file:

/lib/helloworld.dart

export './HelloWorldController.dart';
export './HelloWorldProcess.dart';
export './HelloWorldRestService.dart';
export './HelloWorldServiceFactory.dart';

These files are necessary export classes outside the library.

The external dependencies are defined in the file below:

/requirements.txt

pip_services3_commons
pip_services3_components
pip_services3_container
pip_services3_data
pip_services3_rpc

To install these dependencies use the following command:

pip install -r requirements.txt
TODO: add language

Step 3. Controller

The controller will be a simple class that implements a single business method, which receives a name and generates a greeting. In general, business methods can call other built-in services or work with a database.

public async greeting(name) {
    return "Hello, " + (name || this._defaultName) + "!";
  }

To demonstrate the dynamic configuration of a component, the recipient name will be specified by the parameter “default_name”. To get the configuration, the component must implement the interface “IConfigurable” with the method “configure”.

configure(config) {
   this._defaultName = config.getAsStringWithDefault("default_name", this._defaultName);
}

Parameters will be read by the microservice from the configuration file and passed to the “configure” method of the corresponding component. Here’s an example of the configuration:

# Controller
- descriptor: "hello-world:controller:default:default:1.0"
  default_name: "World"

More details on this mechanism can be found in Component Configuration.

This is all the code of the controller in the file:

/HelloWorldController.js

"use strict";

class HelloWorldController {
  constructor() {
    this._defaultName = "Pip User";
  }

  public configure(config) {
    this._defaultName = config.getAsStringWithDefault("default_name", this._defaultName);
  }

  public async greeting(name) {
    return "Hello, " + (name || this._defaultName) + "!";
  }
}

exports.HelloWorldController = HelloWorldController

Since their execution time might take too long, business methods are implemented in .NET as asynchronous functions:

public async Task<string> GreetingAsync(string name){    
  return await Task.FromResult($"Hello {name ?? _defaultName}!");
}

To demonstrate the dynamic configuration of a component, the recipient name will be specified by the parameter “_default_name”. To get the configuration, the component must implement the interface “IConfigurable” with the method “configure”.

public void Configure(ConfigParams config){
    _defaultName = config.GetAsStringWithDefault("default_name", null);
}

Now, the parameters that are read by the microservice from the configuration file will be passed to the “Configure” method of the corresponding component. Here’s an example of a configuration:

# Controller
- descriptor: "hello-world:controller:default:default:1.0"
  default_name: "World"

More details on this mechanism can be found in Component Configuration.

This is all the code of the controller in the file:

/HelloWorldController.cs

using System.Threading.Tasks;using PipServices3.Commons.Config; 
namespace HelloWorld {    
    public class HelloWorldController : IConfigurable {        
        private string _defaultName = null; 

        public void Configure(ConfigParams config) {            
            _defaultName = config.GetAsStringWithDefault("default_name", null);        
        }   

        public async Task<string> GreetingAsync(string name) {            
            return await Task.FromResult($"Hello {name ?? _defaultName}!");        
        }    
    }
}

func (c *HelloWorldController) Greeting(ctx context.Context, name string) (result string, err error) {
	if name == "" {
		name = c.defaultName
	}
	return "Hello, " + name + "!", nil
}

To demonstrate the dynamic configuration of a component, the recipient name will be specified by the parameter “default_name”. To get the configuration, the component must implement the interface “IConfigurable” with the method “configure”.

func (c *HelloWorldController) Configure(ctx context.Context, config *cconf.ConfigParams) {
	c.defaultName = config.GetAsStringWithDefault("default_name", c.defaultName)
}

Parameters will be read by the microservice from the configuration file and passed to the “configure” method of the corresponding component. Here’s an example of the configuration:

# Controller
- descriptor: "hello-world:controller:default:default:1.0"
  default_name: "World"

More details on this mechanism can be found in Component Configuration.

This is all the code of the controller in the file:

/HelloWorldController.go

package quickstart

import (
	"context"

	cconf "github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-commons-gox/config"
)

type HelloWorldController struct {
	defaultName string
}

func NewHelloWorldController() *HelloWorldController {
	c := HelloWorldController{}
	c.defaultName = "Pip User"
	return &c
}

func (c *HelloWorldController) Configure(ctx context.Context, config *cconf.ConfigParams) {
	c.defaultName = config.GetAsStringWithDefault("default_name", c.defaultName)
}

func (c *HelloWorldController) Greeting(ctx context.Context, name string) (result string, err error) {
	if name == "" {
		name = c.defaultName
	}
	return "Hello, " + name + "!", nil
}

Future<String> greeting(name) async{
    return 'Hello, ' + (name ?? defaultName) + '!';
}

To demonstrate the dynamic configuration of a component, the recipient name will be specified by the parameter “default_name”. To get the configuration, the component must implement the interface “IConfigurable” with the method “configure”.

void configure(config) {
    defaultName = config.getAsStringWithDefault('default_name', defaultName);  
}

Parameters will be read by the microservice from the configuration file and passed to the “configure” method of the corresponding component. Here’s an example of the configuration:

# Controller
- descriptor: "hello-world:controller:default:default:1.0"
  default_name: "World"

More details on this mechanism can be found in Component Configuration.

This is all the code of the controller in the file:

/lib/src/HelloWorldController.dart

import 'dart:async';

class HelloWorldController implements IConfigurable {
  var defaultName;
  HelloWorldController() {
    defaultName = 'Pip User';
  }

  @override  
  void configure(ConfigParams config) {
    defaultName = config.getAsStringWithDefault('default_name', defaultName);
  }

  Future<String> greeting(name) async{
    return 'Hello, ' + (name ?? defaultName) + '!';
  }
}

def greeting(name):        
    return f"Hello, {name if name is not None else self.__defaultName} !"

To demonstrate the dynamic configuration of a component, the recipient name will be specified by the parameter “__default_name”. To get the configuration, the component must implement the interface “IConfigurable” with the method “configure”.

def configure(config):        
    self.__default_name = config.get_as_string_with_default("default_name", self.__default_name)

Parameters will be read by the microservice from the configuration file and passed to the “configure” method of the corresponding component. Here’s an example of the configuration:

# Controller
- descriptor: "hello-world:controller:default:default:1.0"
  default_name: "World"

More details on this mechanism can be found in Component Configuration.

This is all the code of the controller in the file:

/HelloWorldController.py

# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- 
class HelloWorldController:
    __default_name = None

    def __init__(self):
        self.__default_name = "Pip User"

    def configure(config):
        self.__default_name = config.get_as_string_with_default("default_name", self.__default_name)

    def greeting(name):
        return f"Hello, {name if name is not None else self.__default_name} !"

TODO: add language

Step 4. REST service

One of the most popular ways of transferring data between microservices is using the synchronous HTTP REST protocol. The HelloWorldRestService will be used to implement an external REST interface. This component extends the abstract RestService of the Pip.Services toolkit, which implements all the necessary functionality for processing REST HTTP requests.

class HelloWorldRestService extends rpc.RestService

Next, we’ll need to register the REST operations that we’ll be using in the class’s register method. In this microservice, we’ll only be needing to implement a single GET command: “/greeting”. This command receives a “name” parameter, calls the controller’s “greeting” method, and returns the generated result to the client.

public register() {
    this.registerRoute("get", "/greeting", null, async (req, res) => {
        let name = req.query.name;
        try {
            let result = await this._controller.greeting(name);
            this.sendResult(req, res, result);
        } catch (ex) {
            this.sendError(req, res, ex);
        }
    });
}

To get a reference to the controller, we’ll add its descriptor to the dependency resolver with a name of “controller”.

constructor() {
    super();
    this._baseRoute = "/hello_world";
    this._dependencyResolver.put("controller", new commons.Descriptor("hello-world", "controller", "*", "*", "1.0"));
}

public class HelloWorldRestService : RestService

Next, we’ll need to register the REST operations that we’ll be using in the class’s register method. In this microservice, we’ll only be needing to implement a single GET command: “/greeting”. This command receives a “name” parameter, calls the controller’s “greeting” method, and returns the generated result to the client.

public override void Register(){    
    base.Register();    
    RegisterRoute("GET", "/greeting", async (request, response, routeData) => {        
        string name = null;        
        if (request.Query.TryGetValue("name", out StringValues values)) {            
            name = values.FirstOrDefault();        
        }        
        await SendResultAsync(response, await _controller.GreetingAsync(name));    
  });
}

To get a reference to the controller, we’ll add its descriptor to the “_dependencyResolver” with a name of “controller”.

public HelloWorldRestService(){    
    _baseRoute = "hello_world";    
    _dependencyResolver.Put("controller", new Descriptor("hello-world", "controller", "default", "*", "1.0"));
}

type HelloWorldRestService struct {
	*rpc.RestService
	controller *HelloWorldController
}

Next, we’ll need to register the REST operations that we’ll be using in the class’s Register method. In this microservice, we’ll only be needing to implement a single GET command: “/greeting”. This command receives a “name” parameter, calls the controller’s “greeting” method, and returns the generated result to the client.

func (c *HelloWorldRestService) greeting(res http.ResponseWriter, req *http.Request) {
	name := req.URL.Query().Get("name")
	result, err := c.controller.Greeting(req.Context(), name)
	c.SendResult(res, req, result, err)
}

func (c *HelloWorldRestService) Register() {
	c.RegisterRoute("get", "/greeting", nil, c.greeting)
}

To get a reference to the controller, add its handle to the DependencyResolver under the name “controller”. And for the registration mechanism to work correctly, you must pass a pointer to RestService on the component that implements the IRegistrable interface. Let’s do it in the component constructing method:

func NewHelloWorldRestService() *HelloWorldRestService {
	c := &HelloWorldRestService{}
	c.RestService = rpc.InheritRestService(c)
	c.BaseRoute = "/hello_world"
	c.DependencyResolver.Put(context.Background(), "controller", crefer.NewDescriptor("hello-world", "controller", "*", "*", "1.0"))
	return c
}

class HelloWorldRestService extends rpc.RestService

Next, we’ll need to register the REST operations that we’ll be using in the class’s register method. In this microservice, we’ll only be needing to implement a single GET command: “/greeting”. This command receives a “name” parameter, calls the controller’s “greeting” method, and returns the generated result to the client.

  @override
  void register() {
    registerRoute('get', '/greeting', null, (Request req) async {
      var name = req.url.queryParameters['name'];
      return sendResult(req, await controller!.greeting(name));
    });
  }

To get a reference to the controller, we’ll add its descriptor to the _dependency_resolver with a name of “controller”.

  HelloWorldRestService() : super() {
    baseRoute = '/hello_world';
    dependencyResolver.put(
        'controller', Descriptor('hello-world', 'controller', '*', '*', '1.0'));
  }

class HelloWorldRestService(RestService):

Next, we’ll need to register the REST operations that we’ll be using in the class’s register method. In this microservice, we’ll only be needing to implement a single GET command: “/greeting”. This command receives a “name” parameter, calls the controller’s “greeting” method, and returns the generated result to the client.

def register(self):
    self.register_route(method="GET", route=self._route, handler=self.greeting)


def greeting(self, name):
    result = Parameters.from_tuples("name", self._controller.greeting(name))

    self.send_result(result)

To get a reference to the controller, we’ll add its descriptor to the _dependency_resolver with a name of “controller”.

def __init__(self):
    super(HelloWorldRestService, self).__init__()
    self._base_route = "/hello_world"
    ControllerDescriptor = Descriptor('hello-world', 'controller', '*', '*', '1.0')
    self._dependency_resolver.put('controller', ControllerDescriptor)

TODO: add language

Using this descriptor, the base class will be able to find a reference to the controller during component linking. Check out The Locator Pattern for more on how this mechanism works.

We also need to set a base route in the service’s constructor using the _base_route property. As a result, the microservice’s full REST request will look something like:

GET /hello_world/greeting?name=John

Full listing for the REST service found in the file:

/HelloWorldRestService.js

"use strict";

const rpc = require("pip-services3-rpc-nodex");
const commons = require("pip-services3-commons-nodex");

class HelloWorldRestService extends rpc.RestService {
    constructor() {
        super();
        this._baseRoute = "/hello_world";
        this._dependencyResolver.put("controller", new commons.Descriptor("hello-world", "controller", "*", "*", "1.0"));
    }

    public setReferences(references) {
        super.setReferences(references);
        this._controller = this._dependencyResolver.getOneRequired('controller');
    }

    public register() {
        this.registerRoute("get", "/greeting", null, async (req, res) => {
            let name = req.query.name;
            try {
                let result = await this._controller.greeting(name);
                this.sendResult(req, res, result);
            } catch (ex) {
                this.sendError(req, res, ex);
            }
        });
    }
}

exports.HelloWorldRestService = HelloWorldRestService

/HelloWorldRestService.cs

using Microsoft.Extensions.Primitives;
using PipServices3.Commons.Refer;
using PipServices3.Rpc.Services;
using System.Linq; 
namespace HelloWorld {    
    public class HelloWorldRestService : RestService {        
        private HelloWorldController _controller;   

        public HelloWorldRestService() {            
            _baseRoute = "hello_world";            
            _dependencyResolver.Put("controller", new Descriptor("hello-world", "controller", "default", "*", "1.0"));        
        }    

        public override void SetReferences(IReferences references) {            
            base.SetReferences(references);            
            _controller = _dependencyResolver.GetOneRequired<HelloWorldController>("controller");        
        }  

        public override void Register() {            
            base.Register();            
            RegisterRoute("GET", "/greeting", async (request, response, routeData) => {                
                string name = null;                
                if (request.Query.TryGetValue("name", out StringValues values)) {                    
                  name = values.FirstOrDefault();                
                }                
              await SendResultAsync(response, await _controller.GreetingAsync(name));
            });        
        }    
    }
}

/HelloWorldRestService.go

package quickstart

import (
	"context"
	"net/http"

	crefer "github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-commons-gox/refer"
	rpc "github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-rpc-gox/services"
)

type HelloWorldRestService struct {
	*rpc.RestService
	controller *HelloWorldController
}

func NewHelloWorldRestService() *HelloWorldRestService {
	c := &HelloWorldRestService{}
	c.RestService = rpc.InheritRestService(c)
	c.BaseRoute = "/hello_world"
	c.DependencyResolver.Put(context.Background(), "controller", crefer.NewDescriptor("hello-world", "controller", "*", "*", "1.0"))
	return c
}

func (c *HelloWorldRestService) SetReferences(ctx context.Context, references crefer.IReferences) {
	c.RestService.SetReferences(ctx, references)
	depRes, depErr := c.DependencyResolver.GetOneRequired("controller")
	if depErr == nil && depRes != nil {
		c.controller = depRes.(*HelloWorldController)
	}
}

func (c *HelloWorldRestService) greeting(res http.ResponseWriter, req *http.Request) {
	name := req.URL.Query().Get("name")
	result, err := c.controller.Greeting(req.Context(), name)
	c.SendResult(res, req, result, err)
}

func (c *HelloWorldRestService) Register() {
	c.RegisterRoute("get", "/greeting", nil, c.greeting)
}

/HelloWorldRestService.py

class HelloWorldRestService(RestService):

    def __init__(self):
        super(HelloWorldRestService, self).__init__()
        self._base_route = "/hello_word"
        ControllerDescriptor = Descriptor('hello-world', 'controller', '*', '*', '1.0')
        self._dependency_resolver.put('controller', ControllerDescriptor)

    def set_references(self, references):
        super(HelloWorldRestService, self).set_references(references)
        self._controller = self._dependency_resolver.get_one_required('controller')

    def register(self):
        self.register_route(method="GET", route=self._route, handler=self.greeting, schema=None)

    def greeting(self, name):
        result = self._controller.greeting(name)
        self.send_result(result)
TODO: add language

Step 5. Component factory

When a microservice is being populated by components based on the configuration being used, it requires a special factory to create components in accordance with their descriptors. The HelloWorldServiceFactory class is used for just that, as it extends the Factory class of the Pip.Services toolkit.

class HelloWorldServiceFactory extends components.Factory

Next, in the factory’s constructor, we’ll be registering descriptors and their corresponding component types.

constructor() {
    super();
    this.registerAsType(
        new commons.Descriptor('hello-world', 'controller', 'default', '*', '1.0'),
        controller.HelloWorldController
    );
    this.registerAsType(
        new commons.Descriptor('hello-world', 'service', 'http', '*', '1.0'),
        restService.HelloWorldRestService
    );
}

For more info on how this works, be sure to check out Process Container.

Full listing of the factory’s code found in the file:

‍/HelloWorldServiceFactory.js

"use strict";

const components = require("pip-services3-components-nodex");
const commons = require("pip-services3-commons-nodex");
const controller = require("./HelloWorldController");
const restService = require("./HelloWorldRestService");

class HelloWorldServiceFactory extends components.Factory {
    constructor() {
        super();
        this.registerAsType(
            new commons.Descriptor('hello-world', 'controller', 'default', '*', '1.0'),
            controller.HelloWorldController
        );
        this.registerAsType(
            new commons.Descriptor('hello-world', 'service', 'http', '*', '1.0'),
            restService.HelloWorldRestService
        );
    }
}

exports.HelloWorldServiceFactory = HelloWorldServiceFactory
public class HelloWorldServiceFactory : Factory

The factory’s constructor is used to register descriptors and their corresponding component types.

public HelloWorldServiceFactory(){    
    RegisterAsType(ControllerDescriptor, typeof(HelloWorldController));    
    RegisterAsType(HttpServiceDescriptor, typeof(HelloWorldRestService));
}

For more info on how this works, be sure to check out Process Container.

Full listing of the factory’s code found in the file:

‍/HelloWorldServiceFactory.cs

using PipServices3.Commons.Refer;
using PipServices3.Components.Build; 

namespace HelloWorld {    

    public class HelloWorldServiceFactory : Factory {  

        public static Descriptor Descriptor = new Descriptor("hello-world", "factory", "service", "default", "1.0");        
        public static Descriptor ControllerDescriptor = new Descriptor("hello-world", "controller", "default", "*", "1.0");        
        public static Descriptor RestServiceDescriptor = new Descriptor("hello-world", "service", "http", "*", "1.0");         
        
        public HelloWorldServiceFactory(){            
            RegisterAsType(ControllerDescriptor, typeof(HelloWorldController));            
            RegisterAsType(RestServiceDescriptor, typeof(HelloWorldRestService));        
        }    
    }
}
type HelloWorldServiceFactory struct {
	*cbuild.Factory
}

Next, in the factory’s constructor, we’ll be registering descriptors and their corresponding component types.

func NewHelloWorldServiceFactory() *HelloWorldServiceFactory {
	c := HelloWorldServiceFactory{}
	c.Factory = cbuild.NewFactory()
	c.RegisterType(
		cref.NewDescriptor("hello-world", "controller", "default", "*", "1.0"),
		NewHelloWorldController,
	)
	c.RegisterType(
		cref.NewDescriptor("hello-world", "service", "http", "*", "1.0"),
		NewHelloWorldRestService,
	)
	return &c
}

For more info on how this works, be sure to check out Process Container.

Full listing of the factory’s code found in the file:

‍/HelloWorldServiceFactory.go

package quickstart

import (
	cref "github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-commons-gox/refer"
	cbuild "github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-components-gox/build"
)

type HelloWorldServiceFactory struct {
	*cbuild.Factory
}

func NewHelloWorldServiceFactory() *HelloWorldServiceFactory {
	c := HelloWorldServiceFactory{}
	c.Factory = cbuild.NewFactory()
	c.RegisterType(
		cref.NewDescriptor("hello-world", "controller", "default", "*", "1.0"),
		NewHelloWorldController,
	)
	c.RegisterType(
		cref.NewDescriptor("hello-world", "service", "http", "*", "1.0"),
		NewHelloWorldRestService,
	)
	return &c
}

class HelloWorldServiceFactory extends Factory

Next, in the factory’s constructor, we’ll be registering descriptors and their corresponding component types.

HelloWorldServiceFactory() : super() {
    registerAsType(
        Descriptor('hello-world', 'controller', 'default', '*', '1.0'),
        HelloWorldController);
    registerAsType(Descriptor('hello-world', 'service', 'http', '*', '1.0'),
        HelloWorldRestService);
}

For more info on how this works, be sure to check out Process Container.

The full listing of the factory’s code can found in the file:

‍/lib/src/HelloWorldServiceFactory.dart

import 'package:pip_services3_components/pip_services3_components.dart';
import 'package:pip_services3_commons/pip_services3_commons.dart';
import './HelloWorldController.dart';import './HelloWorldRestService.dart';

class HelloWorldServiceFactory extends Factory {
  HelloWorldServiceFactory() : super() {
    registerAsType(
        Descriptor('hello-world', 'controller', 'default', '*', '1.0'),
        HelloWorldController);
    registerAsType(Descriptor('hello-world', 'service', 'http', '*', '1.0'),
        HelloWorldRestService);
  }
}
class HelloWorldServiceFactory(Factory):

Next, in the factory’s constructor, we’ll be registering descriptors and their corresponding component types.

def __init__(self):
    super(HelloWorldServiceFactory, self).__init__()
    ControllerDescriptor = Descriptor('hello-world', 'controller', 'default', '*', '1.0')
    HttpServiceDescriptor = Descriptor('hello-world', 'service', 'http', '*', '1.0')
    self.register_as_type(ControllerDescriptor, HelloWorldController)
    self.register_as_type(HttpServiceDescriptor, HelloWorldRestService)

For more info on how this works, be sure to check out Process Container.

A full listing of the factory’s code can be found in the file:

‍/HelloWorldServiceFactory.py

# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- 
from HelloWorldController import HelloWorldController
from HelloWorldRestService import HelloWorldRestService
from pip_services3_commons.refer import Descriptor
from pip_services3_components.build import Factory


class HelloWorldServiceFactory(Factory):
    def __init__(self):

        super(HelloWorldServiceFactory, self).__init__()
        ControllerDescriptor = Descriptor('hello-world', 'controller', 'default', '*', '1.0')
        HttpServiceDescriptor = Descriptor('hello-world', 'service', 'http', '*', '1.0')
        self.register_as_type(ControllerDescriptor, HelloWorldController)
        self.register_as_type(HttpServiceDescriptor, HelloWorldRestService)

TODO: add language

Step 6. Container

Last but not least, our microservice needs a container component. This component creates all of the other components, links them with one another, and controls their life cycle. Although there exist many different ways of running a microservice in a container (regular classes, serverless functions, serlets, etc), we’ll be running our example microservice as a system process. To do this, we’ll make the HelloWorldProcess extend the ProcessContainer class of the Pip.Services toolkit.

Although containers can be populated by components manually, we’ll be using dynamic configuration to do this. By default, ProcessContainer reads the configuration from an external config.yaml file. All we have left to do is register the factory for creating components from their descriptors.

The full listing of the container’s code can be found in the file:

‍/HelloWorldProcess.js

"use strict";

const rpc = require("pip-services3-rpc-nodex");
const container = require('pip-services3-container-nodex');
const factory = require("./HelloWorldServiceFactory");

class HelloWorldProcess extends container.ProcessContainer {
    constructor() {
        super('hello-world', 'HelloWorld microservice');
        this._configPath = './config.yaml';
        this._factories.add(new factory.HelloWorldServiceFactory());
        this._factories.add(new rpc.DefaultRpcFactory());
    }
}

exports.HelloWorldProcess = HelloWorldProcess;

‍/HelloWorldProcess.cs

using PipServices3.Container;
using PipServices3.Rpc.Build; 

namespace HelloWorld {

    public class HelloWorldProcess : ProcessContainer {    

        public HelloWorldProcess(): base("hello_world", "Hello world microservice") {            
            _configPath = "config.yaml";             
            _factories.Add(new DefaultRpcFactory());            
            _factories.Add(new HelloWorldServiceFactory());        
        }   

    }
}

‍/HelloWorldProcess.go

package quickstart

import (
	cproc "github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-container-gox/container"
	rpcbuild "github.com/pip-services3-gox/pip-services3-rpc-gox/build"
)

type HelloWorldProcess struct {
	*cproc.ProcessContainer
}

func NewHelloWorldProcess() *HelloWorldProcess {
	c := HelloWorldProcess{}
	c.ProcessContainer = cproc.NewProcessContainer("hello-world", "HelloWorld microservice")
	c.SetConfigPath("./config.yaml")
	c.AddFactory(NewHelloWorldServiceFactory())
	c.AddFactory(rpcbuild.NewDefaultRpcFactory())
	return &c
}

‍‍/lib/src/HelloWorldProcess.dart

import 'package:pip_services3_rpc/pip_services3_rpc.dart';
import 'package:pip_services3_container/pip_services3_container.dart';
import './HelloWorldServiceFactory.dart';

class HelloWorldProcess extends ProcessContainer {
  HelloWorldProcess() : super('hello-world', 'HelloWorld microservice') {
    configPath = './config.yaml';
    factories.add(HelloWorldServiceFactory());
    factories.add(DefaultRpcFactory());
  }
}

/HelloWorldProcess.py

# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- 
from HelloWorldServiceFactory import HelloWorldServiceFactory
from pip_services3_container.ProcessContainer import ProcessContainer
from pip_services3_rpc.build import DefaultRpcFactory


class HelloWorldProcess(ProcessContainer):
    def __init__(self):

        super(HelloWorldProcess, self).__init__('hello-world', 'HelloWorld microservice')
        self._config_path = './config.yaml'
        self._factories.add(HelloWorldServiceFactory())
        self._factories.add(DefaultRpcFactory())

TODO: add language

The dynamic configuration is defined in the file:

‍/config.yaml

---
# Container context
- descriptor: "pip-services:context-info:default:default:1.0"
  name: "hello-world"
  description: "HelloWorld microservice"
     
# Console logger
- descriptor: "pip-services:logger:console:default:1.0"
  level: "trace"
     
# Performance counter that post values to log
- descriptor: "pip-services:counters:log:default:1.0"
     
# Controller
- descriptor: "hello-world:controller:default:default:1.0"
  default_name: "World"
     
# Shared HTTP Endpoint
- descriptor: "pip-services:endpoint:http:default:1.0"
  connection:
    protocol: http
    host: 0.0.0.0
    port: 8080
     
    # HTTP Service V1
- descriptor: "hello-world:service:http:default:1.0"
     
# Heartbeat service
- descriptor: "pip-services:heartbeat-service:http:default:1.0"
     
# Status service
- descriptor: "pip-services:status-service:http:default:1.0"

Looking at the configuration file, we can conclude that the following components will be created in the microservice:

  • ContextInfo - standard Pip.Services component for determining the name and description of a microservice.
  • ConsoleLogger - standard Pip.Services component for writing logs to stdout,
  • LogCounters - standard Pip.Services component for logging performance counters.
  • HelloWorldController - the controller of our microservice, implemented in step 2. Make note of the controller’s descriptor, as it will be used to link the controller class to the REST service.
  • HttpEndpoint - standard Pip.Services component that allows multiple services to use a single HTTP port simultaneously.
  • HelloWorldRestServices - the REST service we implemented on step 3.
  • HeartbeatRestService - standard Pip.Services component that is used to check whether or not a microservice is still up and running by calling GET /heartbeat.
  • StatusRestService - standard Pip.Services component for getting the status of a microservice by calling GET /status.

Looking at the configuration file, we can conclude that the following components will be created in the microservice:

  • ContextInfo - standard Pip.Services component for determining the name and description of a microservice.
  • ConsoleLogger - standard Pip.Services component for writing logs to stdout,
  • LogCounters - standard Pip.Services component for logging performance counters.
  • HelloWorldController - the controller of our microservice, implemented in step 2. Make note of the controller’s descriptor, as it will be used to link the controller class to the REST service.
  • HttpEndpoint - standard Pip.Services component that allows multiple services to use a single HTTP port simultaneously.
  • HelloWorldRestServices - the REST service we implemented on step 3.
  • HeartbeatRestService - standard Pip.Services component that is used to check whether or not a microservice is still up and running by calling GET /heartbeat.
  • StatusRestService - standard Pip.Services component for getting the status of a microservice by calling GET /status.

Looking at the configuration file, we can conclude that the following components will be created in the microservice:

  • ContextInfo - standard Pip.Services component for determining the name and description of a microservice.
  • ConsoleLogger - standard Pip.Services component for writing logs to stdout,
  • LogCounters - standard Pip.Services component for logging performance counters.
  • HelloWorldController - the controller of our microservice, implemented in step 2. Make note of the controller’s descriptor, as it will be used to link the controller class to the REST service.
  • HttpEndpoint - standard Pip.Services component that allows multiple services to use a single HTTP port simultaneously.
  • HelloWorldRestServices - the REST service we implemented on step 3.
  • HeartbeatRestService - standard Pip.Services component that is used to check whether or not a microservice is still up and running by calling GET /heartbeat.
  • StatusRestService - standard Pip.Services component for getting the status of a microservice by calling GET /status.

Looking at the configuration file, we can conclude that the following components will be created in the microservice:

  • ContextInfo - standard Pip.Services component for determining the name and description of a microservice.
  • ConsoleLogger - standard Pip.Services component for writing logs to stdout,
  • LogCounters - standard Pip.Services component for logging performance counters.
  • HelloWorldController - the controller of our microservice, implemented in step 2. Make note of the controller’s descriptor, as it will be used to link the controller class to the REST service.
  • HttpEndpoint - standard Pip.Services component that allows multiple services to use a single HTTP port simultaneously.
  • HelloWorldRestServices - the REST service we implemented on step 3.
  • HeartbeatRestService - standard Pip.Services component that is used to check whether or not a microservice is still up and running by calling GET /heartbeat.
  • StatusRestService - standard Pip.Services component for getting the status of a microservice by calling GET /status.

Looking at the configuration file, we can conclude that the following components will be created in the microservice:

  • ContextInfo - standard Pip.Services component for determining the name and description of a microservice.
  • ConsoleLogger - standard Pip.Services component for writing logs to stdout,
  • LogCounters - standard Pip.Services component for logging performance counters.
  • HelloWorldController - the controller of our microservice, implemented in step 2. Make note of the controller’s descriptor, as it will be used to link the controller class to the REST service.
  • HttpEndpoint - standard Pip.Services component that allows multiple services to use a single HTTP port simultaneously.
  • HelloWorldRestServices - the REST service we implemented on step 3.
  • HeartbeatRestService - standard Pip.Services component that is used to check whether or not a microservice is still up and running by calling GET /heartbeat.
  • StatusRestService - standard Pip.Services component for getting the status of a microservice by calling GET /status.
Not available

As you may have noticed, more than half of the components are being taken from Pip.Services and used “right out of the box”. This significantly expands our microservice’s capabilities, with minimal effort on our part.

Step 7. Run and test the microservice

We’ll need a special file to run the microservice. All this file does is creates a container instance and runs it with the parameters provided from the command line.

/run.js

"use strict";

const proc = require("./HelloWorldProcess");

try {
   new proc.HelloWorldProcess().run(process.argv);
} catch (ex) {
   console.error(ex);
}

/Program.cs

namespace HelloWorld { 

    class Program { 

        static void Main(string[] args) {   

            var process = new HelloWorldProcess();            
            process.RunAsync(args).Wait();        
        }

    }
}

/bin/main.go

package main

import (
	"context"
	"os"
	"quickstart"
)

func main() {
	proc := quickstart.NewHelloWorldProcess()
	proc.Run(context.Background(), os.Args)
}

/bin/main.dart.

import 'package:pip_quickstart/pip_quickstart.dart';

void main(List<String> argv) {
  try {
    var proc = HelloWorldProcess();
    proc.run(argv);
  } catch (ex) {
    print(ex);
  }
}

/main.py


# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- 
from HelloWorldProcess import HelloWorldProcess

if __name__ == '__main__':
    runner = HelloWorldProcess()
    print("run")
    try:
        runner.run()
    except Exception as ex:
        print(ex)

TODO: add language

When a microservice starts up, the following sequence of events takes place:

  1. A container is created and started;

  2. The container reads the configuration found in config.yaml;

  3. Using the factory, the container creates the necessary components in accordance with their descriptors (see Process Container);

  4. The components are configured. During this step, all components that implement the IConfigurable interface have their configure methods called with the configuration defined in config.yaml passed as a parameter (see Component Configuration);

  5. Components are linked. All components that implement the IReferenceable interface get their setReferences methods called with a list of components available in the container. With the help of descriptors, objects can find all necessary dependencies (see The Component References);

  6. Components with active processes are run. A component is considered to contain active processes if it implements the IOpenable interface and has an open method defined (see The Component Lifecycle).

When the microservice receives a signal to stop the process, the reverse sequence takes place:

  1. Components with active processes are closed - classes implementing the IClosable interface get their close methods called; Components are unlinked. All components that implement the IUnreferenceable interface have their unsetReferences methods called;
  2. The components previously created in the container are destroyed;
  3. The container is stopped.

To start the microservice, run the following command from a terminal:

node ./run.js
dotnet run
go run ./bin/run.go
dart./bin/run.dart
python ./run.py
TODO: add language

If the microservice started up successfully, you should see the following result in the terminal:

[echo:INFO:2018-09-25T15:15:30.284Z] Press Control-C to stop the microservice...
[echo:DEBUG:2018-09-25T15:15:30.542Z] Opened REST service at http://0.0.0.0:8080
[echo:INFO:2018-09-25T15:15:30.542Z] Container hello-world started.

Test the microservice by requesting the following URL in a browser:

http://localhost:8080/hello_world/greeting?name=John

If all’s well, you should get the following string as a result:

Hello, John!

All source codes are available on GitHub.

To learn even more about Pip.Services, consider creating a Data Microservice as your next step!