Architecture & Design Basics

8 examples to get you started with Architecture & Design for Node.js backends - 6 basic and 2 intermediate.

Prerequisites

These examples assume Node.js 24.18.0, TypeScript 5.6+, and a small Express 5 or Fastify 5 API.

mkdir orders-api && cd orders-api
npm init -y
npm install express@5 zod
npm install -D typescript@5.6 @types/node @types/express tsx
npx tsc --init

Basic Examples

1. Start With a Modular Monolith

One deployable, clear module boundaries inside the repo.

src/
├── modules/
│   ├── orders/
│   │   ├── domain/
│   │   ├── application/
│   │   └── infrastructure/
│   └── billing/
├── shared/
└── main.ts

One process, one database, one CI pipeline - lowest operational cost at small scale
Modules communicate through application services or domain events, not direct DB table access
Boundaries you draw now become service seams later if evidence demands it

Related: Modular Monolith - package-by-feature inside one deployable

2. Layer Domain Logic Away From HTTP

Routes translate HTTP; domain code stays framework-agnostic.

// src/modules/orders/application/create-order.ts
export type CreateOrderInput = { customerId: string; sku: string; qty: number };
 
export function createOrder(input: CreateOrderInput) {
  if (input.qty <= 0) throw new Error("qty must be positive");
  return { id: crypto.randomUUID(), ...input, status: "pending" as const };
}

// src/modules/orders/infrastructure/http/routes.ts
import express from "express";
import { createOrder } from "../../application/create-order";
 
export const ordersRouter = express.Router();
 
ordersRouter.post("/", (req, res) => {
  const order = createOrder(req.body);
  res.status(201).json({ data: order });
});

createOrder has no Request or Response imports - unit tests run without HTTP
Validation belongs at the boundary (Zod) and in domain invariants
Swapping Express for Fastify touches only the infrastructure folder

Related: Hexagonal Architecture in Node - ports and adapters layout

3. Define a Port for External Systems

A port is an interface the domain depends on; adapters implement it.

// src/modules/orders/domain/ports/order-repository.ts
export type Order = { id: string; customerId: string; sku: string; qty: number };
 
export interface OrderRepository {
  save(order: Order): Promise<void>;
  findById(id: string): Promise<Order | null>;
}

// src/modules/orders/infrastructure/postgres-order-repository.ts
import type { Order, OrderRepository } from "../domain/ports/order-repository";
 
export class PostgresOrderRepository implements OrderRepository {
  constructor(private readonly pool: { query: (sql: string, params: unknown[]) => Promise<unknown> }) {}
 
  async save(order: Order): Promise<void> {
    await this.pool.query(
      "INSERT INTO orders (id, customer_id, sku, qty) VALUES ($1,$2,$3,$4)",
      [order.id, order.customerId, order.sku, order.qty]
    );
  }
 
  async findById(id: string): Promise<Order | null> {
    const rows = await this.pool.query("SELECT * FROM orders WHERE id = $1", [id]);
    return (rows as Order[])[0] ?? null;
  }
}

Domain imports the port, never Prisma, pg, or Redis clients
Tests swap in an in-memory adapter without Docker
One adapter per technology keeps migration paths obvious

4. Package by Feature, Not by Layer

Group everything for "orders" together instead of a global controllers/ tree.

src/modules/orders/
├── domain/
│   ├── order.ts
│   └── ports/
├── application/
│   ├── create-order.ts
│   └── list-orders.ts
└── infrastructure/
    ├── http/routes.ts
    └── postgres-order-repository.ts

A change to order creation touches one folder, not five top-level directories
Onboarding engineers find all order code in one place
ESLint import/no-restricted-paths can enforce module boundaries

Related: Modular Monolith - enforcing boundaries in one repo

5. Know When Microservices Are Premature

Distributed systems buy independence at the cost of network, ops, and consistency.

Signal	Stay monolith	Consider services
Team size	1-3 squads on one product	4+ squads stepping on same deploy
Deploy cadence	Weekly or daily shared release	Need hourly deploys per domain
Data coupling	Shared transactions across features	Clear bounded contexts with rare cross-joins
Ops maturity	Single on-call rotation	Platform team for mesh, tracing, SLOs

"We might scale" is not evidence - measure p95 latency and team wait time first
Extract the hottest module first; keep the rest monolithic
Every service boundary is a distributed transaction problem waiting to happen

Related: Microservices When Worth It - team and cost trade-offs

6. Record the Decision in an ADR

Architecture Decision Records survive reorgs and memory loss.

# ADR-003: Stay Modular Monolith for 2026
 
## Status
Accepted
 
## Context
Three squads, 40k RPS peak, shared Postgres. No dedicated platform team.
 
## Decision
Remain a modular monolith. Revisit when billing needs independent deploy cadence.
 
## Consequences
+ Faster feature delivery, simpler debugging
- Billing deploys wait on orders releases

One ADR per significant fork: framework, database, sync vs async
Link ADRs in PR templates so reviewers see context
Supersede old ADRs instead of deleting them

Related: ADR: Monolith vs Services - Node-specific template

Intermediate Examples

7. Wire Composition Root at Boot

The composition root is the only place that knows concrete implementations.

// src/main.ts
import express from "express";
import { PostgresOrderRepository } from "./modules/orders/infrastructure/postgres-order-repository";
import { ordersRouter } from "./modules/orders/infrastructure/http/routes";
 
const pool = { query: async () => [] }; // replace with real pg.Pool
const orderRepo = new PostgresOrderRepository(pool);
 
const app = express();
app.use(express.json());
app.use("/orders", ordersRouter);
app.listen(3000);

Factories live in main.ts or a dedicated composition-root.ts
Application services receive ports via constructor injection
Integration tests build a separate composition root with test doubles

8. Audit Before You Split

Run a structural checklist before extracting a service.

// scripts/architecture-audit.ts - grep for cross-module imports
import fs from "node:fs";
import path from "node:path";
 
const modulesDir = "src/modules";
for (const mod of fs.readdirSync(modulesDir)) {
  const files = fs.readdirSync(path.join(modulesDir, mod), { recursive: true }) as string[];
  const tsFiles = files.filter((f) => f.endsWith(".ts"));
  console.log(`${mod}: ${tsFiles.length} files`);
}

Count cross-module imports and god files before any network boundary
If index.ts re-exports everything, fix modularity inside the monolith first
Extraction without clean seams creates two tangled deployables

Related: Refactoring Checklist - god index.ts and route sprawl audits

Node.js Learn Guides - Official learning path.
Node.js Best Practices (GitHub) - Curated production best practices.
Express.js - Official Express site and guides.
Node.js Design Patterns, 4th Edition - Production-grade application patterns.
Node.js in Action, 2nd Edition - Classic practical Node.js.

Stack versions: This page was written for Node.js 24.18.0 (Active LTS), npm 10+, TypeScript 5.6+, Express 5, Fastify 5, and NestJS 11.

Prerequisites

These examples assume Node.js 24.18.0, TypeScript 5.6+, and a small Express 5 or Fastify 5 API.

mkdir orders-api && cd orders-api
npm init -y
npm install express@5 zod
npm install -D typescript@5.6 @types/node @types/express tsx
npx tsc --init

Basic Examples

1. Start With a Modular Monolith

One deployable, clear module boundaries inside the repo.

src/
├── modules/
│   ├── orders/
│   │   ├── domain/
│   │   ├── application/
│   │   └── infrastructure/
│   └── billing/
├── shared/
└── main.ts

One process, one database, one CI pipeline - lowest operational cost at small scale
Modules communicate through application services or domain events, not direct DB table access
Boundaries you draw now become service seams later if evidence demands it

Related: Modular Monolith - package-by-feature inside one deployable

2. Layer Domain Logic Away From HTTP

Routes translate HTTP; domain code stays framework-agnostic.

// src/modules/orders/application/create-order.ts
export type CreateOrderInput = { customerId: string; sku: string; qty: number };
 
export function createOrder(input: CreateOrderInput) {
  if (input.qty <= 0) throw new Error("qty must be positive");
  return { id: crypto.randomUUID(), ...input, status: "pending" as const };
}

// src/modules/orders/infrastructure/http/routes.ts
import express from "express";
import { createOrder } from "../../application/create-order";
 
export const ordersRouter = express.Router();
 
ordersRouter.post("/", (req, res) => {
  const order = createOrder(req.body);
  res.status(201).json({ data: order });
});

createOrder has no Request or Response imports - unit tests run without HTTP
Validation belongs at the boundary (Zod) and in domain invariants
Swapping Express for Fastify touches only the infrastructure folder

Related: Hexagonal Architecture in Node - ports and adapters layout

3. Define a Port for External Systems

A port is an interface the domain depends on; adapters implement it.

// src/modules/orders/domain/ports/order-repository.ts
export type Order = { id: string; customerId: string; sku: string; qty: number };
 
export interface OrderRepository {
  save(order: Order): Promise<void>;
  findById(id: string): Promise<Order | null>;
}

// src/modules/orders/infrastructure/postgres-order-repository.ts
import type { Order, OrderRepository } from "../domain/ports/order-repository";
 
export class PostgresOrderRepository implements OrderRepository {
  constructor(private readonly pool: { query: (sql: string, params: unknown[]) => Promise<unknown> }) {}
 
  async save(order: Order): Promise<void> {
    await this.pool.query(
      "INSERT INTO orders (id, customer_id, sku, qty) VALUES ($1,$2,$3,$4)",
      [order.id, order.customerId, order.sku, order.qty]
    );
  }
 
  async findById(id: string): Promise<Order | null> {
    const rows = await this.pool.query("SELECT * FROM orders WHERE id = $1", [id]);
    return (rows as Order[])[0] ?? null;
  }
}

Domain imports the port, never Prisma, pg, or Redis clients
Tests swap in an in-memory adapter without Docker
One adapter per technology keeps migration paths obvious

4. Package by Feature, Not by Layer

Group everything for "orders" together instead of a global controllers/ tree.

src/modules/orders/
├── domain/
│   ├── order.ts
│   └── ports/
├── application/
│   ├── create-order.ts
│   └── list-orders.ts
└── infrastructure/
    ├── http/routes.ts
    └── postgres-order-repository.ts

A change to order creation touches one folder, not five top-level directories
Onboarding engineers find all order code in one place
ESLint import/no-restricted-paths can enforce module boundaries

Related: Modular Monolith - enforcing boundaries in one repo

5. Know When Microservices Are Premature

Distributed systems buy independence at the cost of network, ops, and consistency.

Signal	Stay monolith	Consider services
Team size	1-3 squads on one product	4+ squads stepping on same deploy
Deploy cadence	Weekly or daily shared release	Need hourly deploys per domain
Data coupling	Shared transactions across features	Clear bounded contexts with rare cross-joins
Ops maturity	Single on-call rotation	Platform team for mesh, tracing, SLOs

"We might scale" is not evidence - measure p95 latency and team wait time first
Extract the hottest module first; keep the rest monolithic
Every service boundary is a distributed transaction problem waiting to happen

Related: Microservices When Worth It - team and cost trade-offs

6. Record the Decision in an ADR

Architecture Decision Records survive reorgs and memory loss.

# ADR-003: Stay Modular Monolith for 2026
 
## Status
Accepted
 
## Context
Three squads, 40k RPS peak, shared Postgres. No dedicated platform team.
 
## Decision
Remain a modular monolith. Revisit when billing needs independent deploy cadence.
 
## Consequences
+ Faster feature delivery, simpler debugging
- Billing deploys wait on orders releases

One ADR per significant fork: framework, database, sync vs async
Link ADRs in PR templates so reviewers see context
Supersede old ADRs instead of deleting them

Related: ADR: Monolith vs Services - Node-specific template

Intermediate Examples

7. Wire Composition Root at Boot

The composition root is the only place that knows concrete implementations.

// src/main.ts
import express from "express";
import { PostgresOrderRepository } from "./modules/orders/infrastructure/postgres-order-repository";
import { ordersRouter } from "./modules/orders/infrastructure/http/routes";
 
const pool = { query: async () => [] }; // replace with real pg.Pool
const orderRepo = new PostgresOrderRepository(pool);
 
const app = express();
app.use(express.json());
app.use("/orders", ordersRouter);
app.listen(3000);

Factories live in main.ts or a dedicated composition-root.ts
Application services receive ports via constructor injection
Integration tests build a separate composition root with test doubles

8. Audit Before You Split

Run a structural checklist before extracting a service.

// scripts/architecture-audit.ts - grep for cross-module imports
import fs from "node:fs";
import path from "node:path";
 
const modulesDir = "src/modules";
for (const mod of fs.readdirSync(modulesDir)) {
  const files = fs.readdirSync(path.join(modulesDir, mod), { recursive: true }) as string[];
  const tsFiles = files.filter((f) => f.endsWith(".ts"));
  console.log(`${mod}: ${tsFiles.length} files`);
}

Count cross-module imports and god files before any network boundary
If index.ts re-exports everything, fix modularity inside the monolith first
Extraction without clean seams creates two tangled deployables

Related: Refactoring Checklist - god index.ts and route sprawl audits

Node.js Learn Guides - Official learning path.
Node.js Best Practices (GitHub) - Curated production best practices.
Express.js - Official Express site and guides.
Node.js Design Patterns, 4th Edition - Production-grade application patterns.
Node.js in Action, 2nd Edition - Classic practical Node.js.

Stack versions: This page was written for Node.js 24.18.0 (Active LTS), npm 10+, TypeScript 5.6+, Express 5, Fastify 5, and NestJS 11.

Architecture & Design Basics

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Architecture & Design Basics