11 benefits of Laravel and multi-tenant architecture for SaaS
From a Product Owner’s perspective, multi-tenant architecture is advantageous because once a product is built, it can be reused for different customers. But there’s much more to it than that. So what are the main benefits, and why use Laravel?
Talk to Jeroen, our Accounts director, to see if our Laravel development services are a fit for you.
by Ashish Shakya
Senior PHP Developer
Software companies have two options for the architecture of Software as a Service (SaaS) applications: single-tenant and multi-tenant. There are pros and cons to each type of architecture, and choosing the right one depends on the business case.
Why choose Laravel for multi-tenant SaaS development?
There are many backend PHP frameworks to choose from – including CakePHP, Symfony, and Drupal – but what sets Laravel apart is its strong developer community.
Reach out for help to Laravel communities on LinkedIn and other platforms, and you’re certain to get the response you need. It’s also well-documented, with clearly explained tutorials and resources that make it easy for developers to pick up and learn. It’s a developer-friendly framework.
When it comes to multi-tenant SaaS development, Laravel offers many advantages that make it an ideal choice for building scalable and maintainable applications. From a development perspective, it’s robust and well-managed, providing a strong and reliable platform on which to build.
Here at Proshore, we have over 15 years of experience in PHP, and, over the last 9 years or so, we’ve developed our very own community of Laravel experts.
What is multi-tenant architecture?
Multi-tenant architecture for SaaS is where a single software serves multiple customers or ‘tenants’. Each tenant has their own isolated and secure environment within the application, with their own data, configurations, and user access rights. This includes:
Separate Databases
Remote storage buckets
API tokens
Subdomains
Product Owners can sell the same SaaS products to different customers, tailoring the product to specific business needs. This model contrasts with single-tenant applications, where each customer has their own dedicated instance of the software.
Laravel is a highly popular, open-source PHP framework for web apps that supports multi-tenant architecture. Its library of packages means developers don’t have to keep reinventing the wheel every time they build a new web app.
What are the benefits of Laravel for SaaS?
Building multi-tenant architecture inside Laravel gives both developers and the software companies they serve many strategic advantages. Here are 11 benefits:
The technical benefits of multi-tenant architecture
Multi-tenant architecture has many technical features that are advantageous to Product Owners, development teams, and every stakeholder of a SaaS product.
Data Transfer Object (DTO)
DTO enables data transfer between different subsystems or layers in a software application. That means reusable functions – such as email or SMS notifications – can be updated and reused across multiple tenants.
Mixins and stores
Mixins and stores serve different purposes in multi-tenant architecture. In different ways, they help reduce code duplication and facilitate optimization to improve code quality:
- Mixins relate to code reuse within different components. They provide a mechanism for combining reusable functionality from different classes.
- Stores provide a centralized solution for managing the application’s state and facilitating communication between components.
Event-Driven Development (EDD)
In a multi-tenant SaaS app environment, EDD can be employed to handle various asynchronous events, such as notifications, updates, or data changes.
Events can be used to signal changes and actions in tenant-specific data, triggering updates or notifications for relevant tenants. This makes it much easier to automate and handle dependent actions for multiple tenants within an app.
Extraction of classes based on criteria
In object-oriented programming, when you extract classes based on certain criteria you are able to improve the organization, modularity, and maintainability of your code.
This process involves identifying components in your code that have a specific responsibility or meet certain criteria, and then creating separate classes to encapsulate those responsibilities.
Frontend routes based on roles and modules
Roles and permissions are used to create separate access routes for different user levels so that users only see what they’re supposed to see.
Frontend routes based on modules ensure everything relating to a single entity – either the tenant or a specific role – is in one place.
Looking for specific Laravel services? Proshore can help
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Implementing Laravel for data privacy and data separation
A Proshore client expressed a preference for data separation with strict data privacy requirements. To fulfill this request, we leveraged Laravel’s tenancy feature, specifically utilizing its multiple database functionality. This approach allowed us to meet the client’s need for distinct data sets while accommodating their preference for data separation over stringent data privacy measures.
As our system expanded, we encountered challenges in managing routes. To address this issue, we adopted a more organized approach by creating separate files for each role’s middleware routes. This strategic separation not only facilitated more efficient code management but also streamlined the handling of routes associated with different roles.
The implementation of the repository and service pattern has significantly improved our code management. This structured approach has streamlined our development process, making it more agile and efficient. Adding new features or making modifications has become a smoother experience, as adjustments are confined to the repository and service patterns.
This not only saves time but also enhances our ability to test both manually and through Test-Driven Development (TDD) practices. The systematic organization of our codebase ensures that changes can be implemented with minimal disruption, contributing to the overall maintainability and scalability of our system.
PHP expertise from Proshore
Here at Proshore, we have thousands of highly-skilled, ready-to-code developers with expertise in multiple front-end and back-end programming languages, including Laravel.
Whatever expertise you’re looking for, we can assemble the right team for your needs – either to augment your existing dev team or provide a dedicated team of IT professionals.
We’re also dedicated to using the best technology – like Laravel – to get the job done. Here are some of the other tools and external packages we use for developing multi-tenant architecture using Laravel:
Tenancy For Laravel
Role and Permission
AWS Cloudwatch
Maatwebsite
Signhost
ConvertAPI
Discover how much you could save by hiring Laravel developers from Proshore without compromising on quality. Book a call with our Accounts Director for a free consultation and a customized quotation.
Over a 15 mins call, discover how you can benefit from our services.