Technology
Back end, data and hosting: the parts nobody sees until they fail.
Users judge a product by its screens. You will judge it, over years, by whether it stays up, keeps data safe and costs what you expected. Those depend on the parts behind the screens. Here is how we think about them.
The back end: keep it simple and well-organised
The back end holds the rules of your product: who can do what, how a booking is confirmed, how an invoice is totalled. For most businesses we favour one well-structured application split into clear modules — sometimes called a modular monolith — written in TypeScript. It is the quickest to build, test and run at this scale, and it can be split into separate services later if real load demands it.
Splitting into many small services early sounds modern but adds cost and failure points. It is worth it only when the scale or the team justifies it.
The database: a dependable default
Hosting: where it runs
Security and reliability basics
- Encryption in transit with https, and for sensitive data at rest.
- Access control. Role-based access, strong sign-in and, where the risk justifies it, two-factor authentication.
- Secrets management. Keys and passwords kept out of the code and out of the browser.
- Backups that are tested. A backup is only real if someone has restored from it.
- Updates. Dependencies and platforms need regular security patching.
- Monitoring. Alerts when the service is down or behaving oddly, and a plan for who responds.
- A recovery plan. What happens, in what order, if something goes badly wrong.
We do not claim security certifications. For regulated work, your own requirements decide which controls are needed; see finance and insurance.
What it costs to keep running
Hosting for a small business application is often modest, but it grows with usage. Add third-party services (payments, email, messaging, maps, AI), monitoring, and the time spent on updates and fixes. Ask for these running costs, in writing, alongside the build price. See what apps and websites cost.
Keep reading
Related guides: security basics for small business software.
Worried about reliability or data?
Tell us what the product holds and what an outage would cost you. We will propose a proportionate set-up.
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