This technical description outlines Howwe’s scalable architecture, key technologies, and robust compliance measures. Designed for technical audiences, the document highlights the platform’s modern engineering practices, optimized for scalability and security.
1. Cloud Hosting Environment
All services are hosted on Google Cloud Platform (GCP), leveraging its enterprise-grade infrastructure, global reach, and compliance with leading security standards.
Key Features
Global Presence: GCP provides low-latency and high-availability services with its global network of data centers.
Dynamic Scalability: GCP’s managed services allow for rapid scaling to accommodate user growth or increased data loads.
Data Security: Comprehensive encryption protects all data at rest and in transit, ensuring compliance with ISO 27001, SOC 2, and GDPR.
Why GCP?
Our choice of GCP stems from its robust infrastructure, unparalleled reliability, and comprehensive compliance framework, which supports Howwe’s requirements for scalability and security.
2. Network Security and Architecture
Security by Design
Default Deny Policy: All traffic is denied by default, with explicit permissions for required services.
Private Networking: Internal server communications occur over Private IPs within a Virtual Private Cloud (VPC), isolating critical systems from public networks.
Kubernetes and Ingress Management
Containerized Deployments: Services are orchestrated using Kubernetes, ensuring fault tolerance, rapid scaling, and optimized resource utilization.
Ingress Traffic: Managed via NGINX Ingress Controllers, which secure public endpoints and distribute traffic efficiently using SSL/TLS encryption.
Event-Driven Architecture
Google Pub/Sub enables real-time, asynchronous communication for processing events like activity updates, deadline notifications, and analytics triggers.
3. Technology and Frameworks
Frontend Applications
Developed with React and React Native, ensuring a seamless experience across web and mobile platforms.
All communication with backend systems is mediated through the centralized GraphQL API, enabling efficient and flexible data queries.
Backend Services
The platform’s microservices architecture is implemented using Spring Boot (Java), allowing modular, independently scalable services.
Core Microservices:
auth-api: Authentication, including SSO.
org-api: Organizational data management.
crud-api: General Create, Read, Update, and Delete operations.
insights-api: Analytics and insights generation.
report-api: Reporting and document generation.
Graph Database
ArangoDB, hosted on GCP, is the foundation of our data model.
Why ArangoDB? The relational nature of Howwe’s data (e.g., goals tied to teams, activities tied to users) is inherently suited to graph database architecture. ArangoDB efficiently scales complex queries while supporting future data modeling requirements with hybrid graph-document storage.
Performance: ArangoDB ensures low-latency query handling, making it optimal for real-time relational data management.
Relational Database
MySQL handles structured transactional data, complementing ArangoDB’s role in managing relationships.
4. Compliance and Security
Compliance Certifications
Howwe’s architecture adheres to globally recognized standards, including. Note that Howwe is not certified, but follow the practices within these standards:
ISO 27001: Information security management.
SOC 2 Type II: Operational and data security practices.
GDPR: Compliance with EU data protection regulations.
Security Practices
Encryption: AES-256 for data at rest; TLS 1.3 for data in transit.
Role-Based Access Control (RBAC): Permissions are restricted based on roles to minimize data access risks.
Multi-Tenant Authentication: User authentication is managed via Auth0, providing secure Single Sign-On (SSO) and centralized login management.
Audit-Ready Framework
Detailed logs and metrics are maintained for all systems, ensuring visibility into security events and operational performance for compliance audits.
5. Integrations and Extensibility
Lundatech Integration
Howwe seamlessly integrates with Lundatech, enabling API-driven interactions with external systems:
Calendar Sync: Export deadlines and milestones to external calendars for streamlined task management.
Business Intelligence (BI): Push Howwe data to platforms like Power BI or Tableau, enabling advanced analytics and reporting.
Single Sign-On (SSO)
Auth0: User authentication is managed by Auth0, providing a secure, centralized login experience.
Multi-Tenant Capabilities: Auth0 supports Single Sign-On (SSO) and integrates with corporate identity providers, simplifying access control and enhancing security.
Future-Proof Design
Our architecture supports rapid development of new integrations via APIs, ensuring compatibility with evolving enterprise requirements.
6. Backups and Disaster Recovery
Data Backups
Frequency: Automated daily backups, replicated across multiple geographic regions.
Pre-Release Snapshots: Database backups are created before each software release to ensure rollback safety.
Testing: Weekly restoration tests validate the integrity of backups.
Disaster Recovery
RTO: Less than 4 hours.
RPO: Less than 24 hours.
7. Technical diagram
8. Engineering Team Tools and Processes
The Howwe engineering team follows DevOps principles, leveraging modern tools and workflows to deliver a reliable, scalable platform while maintaining high efficiency.
1. Development and Deployment Pipeline
Version Control: Code is managed using GitHub, supporting collaborative development and version tracking.
CI/CD with Google Cloud Build: Automated pipelines handle continuous integration and deployment, ensuring consistent and efficient delivery of new features or fixes.
Container Registry: All Docker images are securely stored and managed in Google Private Container Registry, ensuring secure, versioned storage for containerized applications.
Secrets Management: Sensitive configuration details such as API keys and credentials are securely stored in Google Secret Manager, preventing accidental exposure.
2. Agile Workflows and Collaboration
Agile Development: The team adheres to Agile methodologies, focusing on iterative delivery and regular feedback loops.
Collaboration Tools:
GitHub Issues: Tracks tasks and feature progress within the development lifecycle.
Slack: Facilitates team communication, real-time updates, and integrations with build and monitoring tools.
3. Monitoring and Incident Management
Proactive Monitoring:
Google Cloud Monitoring tracks system health and performance, integrating seamlessly with the platform for real-time alerts.
Error Tracking: Sentry is used for error tracking, enabling quick diagnosis and resolution of application-level issues.
Logs Management: Logs are stored and analyzed using GCP’s integrated logging services, providing insights into system behavior and anomalies.
4. Testing and Quality Assurance
Automated Testing: CI/CD pipelines enforce automated testing at various levels (unit and integration) to maintain code quality and stability.
Environment Segmentation: Dedicated environments for development, staging, and production ensure isolated testing and reduce risks of deployment-related issues.
5. Security Integration
Secrets Management: Centralized via Google Secret Manager, ensuring encryption and controlled access to sensitive credentials.
Environment Security: Environments are isolated, with strict access control policies applied across all deployments.
9. Links to External Resources
Google Cloud Security Whitepaper
Overview of GCP's advanced security architecture and practices.
Google Pub/Sub Documentation
In-depth details on event-driven messaging using Google Pub/Sub.
ArangoDB Documentation
Comprehensive guide to ArangoDB’s graph and document database capabilities.
Google Cloud Security and Compliance Overview
Documentation on GCP’s compliance certifications and data protection measures.
Lundatech API Documentation
Details of Lundatech’s integration capabilities and API specs.