Building software that works is just the start — building software that scales gracefully in the face of growth is the challenge architects and engineers grapple with daily. In this post, we'll explore the meaning of scalable systems, core architectural patterns to achieve scalability, and best practices for sustainable, robust growth. What is Scalability? Scalability is a system's ability to handle increased load — whether that’s more users, data, or transactions — without compromising performance, reliability, or manageability. A scalable system meets new demands by making efficient use of additional resources (hardware, compute, storage), or by optimizing existing ones. Typ ...