Application Architecture — Understanding MVC (Model-View-Controller)
In this article, we delve into the compelling world of Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture — a time-tested design pattern that revolutionises how we build softwares.
Introduction
Building robust and scalable applications is of utmost importance. To achieve this, developers rely on architectural patterns that help organise code, improve maintainability, and promote reusability. One such widely adopted architectural pattern is the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture. MVC is not only popular but has also stood the test of time, proving to be effective in a variety of application types.
What is MVC Architecture?
MVC is an architectural design pattern that divides an application into three interconnected components: Model, View, and Controller. Each component has its own responsibilities, making the application easier to develop and maintain.
Concept behind MVC
The main idea behind MVC is to separate concerns and ensure that each component performs its designated task without interfering with the others.
- Model: The Model represents the application’s data and business logic. It encapsulates data manipulation, validation, and interaction with the application’s data storage. It acts as a gateway between the data and the rest of the application, making it independent of how the data is presented.
- View: The View is responsible for presenting data to the user in a user-friendly format. It represents the user interface (UI) and does not contain any business logic. The View gets updated whenever the underlying data in the Model changes.
- Controller: The Controller acts as an intermediary between the Model and the View. It receives user input from the View, processes it, and interacts with the Model accordingly. It updates the Model based on the user’s actions and instructs the View to update its display.
How does MVC work?
Let’s consider the example of a Google request and examine it from an MVC architecture perspective, in addition to the technical perspective.
- In the example given, as users, we often rely on Google searches for our daily needs. When a search is initiated, the request is routed to its corresponding destination.
- Our search is then processed by the Controller, the brain behind the operation, which handles most of the information.
- Upon receiving the data, the Controller first communicates with the Model to validate and fetch the data.
- The validated and fetched data is then returned to the Controller, which subsequently passes it on to the View.
- This is how we are able to see the results on the UI.
Project Folder Structure using MVC
Let’s see how we can structure our project based on the MVC architecture for a simple web-based application.
The folder structure may vary from person to person. This example is intended to provide a basic understanding of the structure.
The Benefits of MVC Architecture:
- Separation of Concerns: MVC promotes the separation of concerns, making code easier to understand, maintain, and update.
- Code Reusability: With a clear separation of components, developers can reuse Models and Views in different parts of the application.
- Parallel Development: Different teams can work on different components simultaneously without impacting each other’s work.
- Easy Testing: Because the components are loosely coupled, unit testing becomes easier and more effective.
Conclusion
MVC architecture is a powerful design pattern that helps in developing maintainable and scalable applications. By separating concerns into multiple solid and flexible components, developers can build applications that are easier to understand, test, and extend. It has proven its resilience over the years and remains a favoured option across diverse software development projects.
If you’re looking to build an application, consider adopting the MVC architecture, and witness the benefits it brings to your development process.
Stay tuned for next topic on “Implementing MVC Architecture in Various Tech Stacks” Happy coding!
