How to Create Backend for Website: A Beginner's Guide

Back-end web development is one of the most important components of website development. Without which you simply can not power your website. Therefore your team of backend software developers should understand the fundamentals/basics of backend web development to deliver a functional and logical system. Before you jump onto the question that how to create the backend for a website, you need to know about its architecture and all the important components involved.

Web development, in general, is getting a lot of traction in recent years. With that, more and more companies/ businesses are realizing its true importance for generating/capturing leads, and for building a robust online presence for brand awareness. Therefore, they need talented designers and developers to develop top-performing websites based on the latest tech stack and market trends.

Front-end developers sure do code for an immersive user experience but backend developers are the hidden architects who make the functionality possible without a hint. 

In this article, you will learn everything you need about backend web development such as how to create a backend for websites, how does it work, backend structure, and how to become a backend developer.

What is Backend in Web Development?

In simpler terms, backend system development is everything that happens ‘behind the scenes. As the name suggests, backend developers are responsible for ensuring the scalability and functionality of the website irrespective of the traffic volume.

Apart from that, they work in complete harmony with front-end developers, programmers, UX/UI experts, and full-stack developers to build innovative solutions to fulfill various business needs and requirements.

Back-end development experts are not only responsible for building and maintaining websites but they are also to assess the speed and efficiency of web applications, writing higher quality code, troubleshooting, debugging, managing the hosting environment, and most of all keeping on top of the latest technologies in the market. 

The backend is just like the admin panel, where you can easily access, edit and see the world behind the curtain and make sure everything functions as it should without issues or interruptions whatsoever. 

Backend Tools’ List and Architecture

Traditionally, the backend includes server-side, APIs (Application Programming Interface), databases, frameworks, and operating systems. 

Backend Frameworks

Right software backend frameworks are the foundation that makes applications/ websites faster. They are considered an essential aspect of web development projects since they provide much-needed interactivity for web applications. As the backend facilitates the website to function therefore frameworks are server-side backend programming languages that ease out the server configuration. 

APIs

You must be very well familiar with the fact that an application’s server-side or backend operations include (and are not limited to) user logins, managing payments, customer support, order management, etc. Therefore, any action performed at the front end is managed, sent, and retrieved by the database in the backend.

For interactions as such, developers need suitable APIs because they connect websites, databases, and services together effortlessly. Firebase, Backendless API, Wix API, StackAPI REST API, etc. are some of the common APIs used in backend development.

Databases

Databases help the admins store, manage, update, and delete any or all data on the server. In simpler terms, a database is a repository that stores all the data input at the frontend such as user names, email addresses, passwords, orders, etc.

Different types of databases are used for specific use cases. For example, relational databases are well suited for applications with well-structured data whereas document-oriented databases aid software with unstructured/semi-structured data, and so on and so forth. 

Servers

They are computer hardware or software that receives incoming requests from clients or service requesters. Servers provide resources, data, services, or programs to clients, over a network. Any device providing or sharing resources to ‘clients’ can become a server. 

Middleware

As the name suggests, middleware connects the front end to its backend. It enables communication between your application and the server side. It is also sometimes termed as plumbing. 

Popular Backend Development Languages

Backend developers should be familiar with the following frameworks or backend languages for backend development to get started. Let's learn what is the best languages for web development: 

Java

It is considered the king of all frameworks and is repeatedly used for developing websites and other web applications. Some of the popular examples are Netflix, google earth, uber, and Tinder. Additionally, it is an object-oriented programming language that has cross-platform development compatibility. 

Recommended Read: How to find and hire expert Java developers?

Ruby on Rails

RoR has become quite popular and a favorite among the developer community because it makes the development process easier and faster. Applications such as Airbnb, Goodreads, Kickstarter, and Groupon are some of the popular examples. Apart from that, it is well known for its metaprogramming features. Ruby On Rails can be an amazing investment for startups because not only does this language offer some incredible benefits but also has other hidden gems that make investing in its learning curve well worth your time.

Recommended Read: How to Develop an app like Airbnb

Python

Is one of the most common programming languages being used for backend development. Among other things, Python is also used for Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning-based application development including networking programming. Applications like Spotify, Google, Reddit, Instagram, and Dropbox. Here's a guide to find and hire expert Python developers.

Node.js

This programming language is seen to be trending in the tech world with popularity in backend development. Initially, it was used to develop mid-level projects but now with the advancements, it has become capable to handle large-scale projects as well. It is exceptionally scalable, one of the many reasons why developers prefer Node.js over others. 

Though the above-mentioned programming languages are becoming quite popular for backend development some other frameworks suitable for backend development are .NET, Haskell, Clojure, Structured Query Language (SQL), c#, C++, PHP, Perl, and Scala.

How to Make Backend for Website?

If you are a beginner and want to know how to make a backend for a website - follow the step-by-step process given below to know what you need to do:

Important Skills for a Backend Developer 

If you are looking to hire backend developers for your team or are interested in staff augmentation for your short-term projects. Make sure the backend developers you have shortlisted have the following skills:

• Backend developers should be knowledgeable about accessibility along with security compliance
• They should understand front-end development and technologies
• A grip on hosting environment, database management, and app scaling
• Since backend developers usually work in teams, therefore communication skill is a must 
• Should be able to build web architectures
• Configure payment systems 
• Operating Systems and DevOps

Looking for expert backend developers to be a part of your team - get in touch with us today. I am sure we have the engagement model you need to get started right away.