The Basics of Back-end Web Development
A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners
Introduction
The functionalities of an application you don’t see is credited to the back end. From making bank transactions to interacting with a YouTube video to checking the weather forecast, the back end is in full swing.
This article offers a comprehensive guide on back end web development. Its goal is to expound on the subject of back end development and explain its complexities in a simple manner.
This document is aimed at beginners in the following tech niches:
Back-end web developers
Full stack web developers
Software engineers
What is back-end web development?
Photo by Shahadat Rahman on Unsplash
Back end web development refers to the process of building and maintaining server-side components of a website or web application.
The server-side refers to everything that happens behind-the-scenes of a website or web application.
Back end developers write code and build structures to take care and maintain the part of websites and web applications the user doesn't see.
In order to offer the finished result to the end user, back end development connects with the front end development.
Front end versus Back end
The key difference is that while the back end handles the server-side of websites and web applications, the front end handles the client-side.
Contrary to the server-side, the client-side refers to the processes that are carried out on the user's device, typically in the user's web browser.
Back end tools and technology
The server-side of a web application or software system is built and maintained using back end tools and technologies, which are software components, programming languages and frameworks.
In order to facilitate communication between the server and the client-side, they perform the logic and processing in the background.
The list below enlists these tools and technologies:
Servers
Databases
Application Programming Interfaces (APIs)
Programming language
Servers
A server is a computer system that is designed to provide specific services or resources to other computers or devices on a network. Servers listen to incoming requests from the client-side.
The job of a server is to utilize HTTP(HyperText Transfer Protocol) and other protocols to display the contents of a website or web application through processing and delivering webpages to the client-side.
The following are the categories of servers:
Static server
Dynamic sever
Static servers deliver static web content to the user. Static contents refer to webpages or web files that are served as it is to the client without any processing or modification by the server.
Popular static server software includes:
Apache HTTP Server
Nginx
Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS)
Unlike static servers, Dynamic servers generate content on the server-side in real-time. Dynamic servers generate web pages or other content on-the-fly based on various factors, such as user input, database queries, or business logic.
Databases
A database is a structured collection of data stored in a computer, particularly one that can be accessed in several different ways. The database stores all the information and can be queried.
For instance, when you’re looking for a product on Amazon or vacation homes on Airbnb, the database is in charge of accepting your request, retrieving the information, and sending it back to the website.
Examples of database software are enlisted below:
MongoDB
MySQL
Oracle Database
PostgreSQL
SQLite
CouchDB
Programming languages
Backend languages are what the developers make use of to program the internal systems that operate on the server-side.
They are used to code the logic and functionality of the behind the scenes of the web application.
Some examples include:
JavaScript
Python
Java
C#
Ruby
PHP
The following table shows some backend languages and their respective frameworks:
Languages | Frameworks |
JavaScript | Node.JS, Express.JS |
Pyrhon | Django, Flask |
Java | Spring |
C# | |
Ruby | Ruby on rails |
PHP | Laravel, CakePHP |
These frameworks provide developers with the necessary tools and support to build and deploy web applications without wasting an enormous amount of time and resources. Consequently, significantly decreasing the development process’s complexity.
Application Programming Interface (APIs)
An application programming interface is a way for two or more software programs to communicate with each other.
APIs is the interface that is used by a front-end application to talk to the back-end application. Web APIs also connect web applications to other platforms.
Some examples of APIs use-cases include the following:
Social Media APIs: the “log in to your account with Google/Facebook/Twitter” functionality that you may find on several internet platforms. It allows developers to integrate functionalities such as:
retrieving user profiles
interacting with friends and followers in the host application.
Weather APIs: Weather services like OpenWeatherMap and AccuWeather offer APIs that provide access to real-time or forecast weather data. These APIs enable developers to build weather applications, display weather information on websites, or incorporate weather data into the host application.
Payment Gateway APIs: Payment service providers like PayPal, Stripe, and Braintree provide APIs that allow businesses to integrate payment processing into their applications or websites. These APIs handle transactions, manage customer information, and provide payment-related features.
Types of Web-based APIs
SOAP-based APIs (Simple Object Access Protocol)
GraphQL-based APIs
REST-based APIs**(Representational State Transfer)**
Other tools and technologies used in back end development include the following:
Web Hosting Platforms: this is where your website is hosted via the internet. Examples include:
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Microsoft Azure
Heroku
Google cloud
Version control: these are systems that aid the management of project files and the tracking of the user's whole history. The following are examples:
Git
GitHub
Subversion
Backend developer skills
To become a backend developer, you typically require a range of technical skills to build and maintain the server-side of applications. As well as strong problem-solving, analytical, and communication skills.
These technical skills include the following:
Knowledge of web servers
Proficiency in at least one back end programming language and framework such as
Understanding of a Database Management Systems(DBMS) like:
MySQL
MongoDB
PostgreSQL
Familiarity with version control systems.
Knowledge of API design and development.
Experience in testing and debugging code to ensure proper functionality.
Familiarity with front-end technologies such as:
HTML
CSS
JavaScript
Back end developer roles and responsibilities
Some in-demand roles in the backend development field include:
Back End Web Developer
Java Developer
Software Engineer
iOS Developer
Full-Stack Web Developer
DevOps Engineer
The following are the responsibilities of a back end developer:
Troubleshooting and debugging apps.
Integration of APIs into web apps and websites.
Working with databases to store and retrieve data.
Writing clean, efficient, and secure code to implement the logic and functionality of web applications.
Conclusion
In conclusion, back end development plays a vital role in powering web applications and ensuring their smooth operation.
Back end developers are responsible for:
building the server-side components.
integrating databases.
designing APIs that enable seamless communication between different software systems.
With a strong foundation in the following, back end developers create robust and secure applications:
programming languages
server environments
frameworks
If working ‘behind the scenes’ of an application is interesting to you, backend development is certainly worth venturing into.
Recommendations
Check out these courses to learn back end web development: