Runtime
Node.js development
Node.js is a way to run JavaScript on a server. We use it for back ends, connections between systems, and features that update live. It suits some jobs very well and others poorly, and we say which.
- 1,200+ clients helped
- Building since 2010
- 15 services, one team
- 50+ technologies
At a glance
What it is
Node.js lets a server run JavaScript, the language of the browser, so one team can build both the screens people see and the back end that sits behind them.
Problems it solves
Teams need a back end that is quick to build, handles many users at once, and connects to other systems, without hiring a separate team for every language.
Who it suits
Product owners and technical leads choosing a server technology for a new application, an integration layer, or a rebuild.
How to choose
Choose Node.js for connected, interactive, many-user applications. Choose something else when the heavy work is number crunching or when your organization already runs on another stack.
What it means
One language from screen to server
A website has two halves. The front is what people see in the browser. The back end stores data, applies rules, and talks to other systems. For years the front spoke JavaScript while the back end used something else.
Node.js took the engine that runs JavaScript in the browser and made it run on a server. That is the whole idea, and it has practical effects: developers move between front and back without changing language, and code for checking a form can be shared by both.
It also handles waiting well. A back end spends much of its time waiting for a database, a payment provider, or another service. Node.js carries on with other requests while it waits, so a modest server copes with many people at once.
What DECHY can do
Working with Node.js
Build
- New back ends and services for web and mobile products.
- Connection layers between your tools and your customers' systems.
Connect
- Links to payment, customer, shipping, and accounting systems.
- Webhooks and background jobs that keep data current.
Modernize
- Moving an older server application to a current, supported setup.
- Splitting a hard-to-change application into parts, stage by stage.
Look after
- Updates, security patches, and dependency reviews.
- Performance checks when traffic grows.
How we build it
From brief to a back end you can maintain
Define what the back end must do
We list the data it holds, the systems it talks to, and how many people use it at peak.
What it produces
- Scope
- Data and systems map
Choose the shape
One simple service, or several small ones, depending on how the product will grow. We prefer the simplest that works.
What it produces
- Architecture sketch
Build in small, tested pieces
Each feature ships with automated tests, so later changes do not break earlier ones.
What it produces
- Working increments
- Test suite
Run it and watch it
Deployment, monitoring, and a plan for updates, so the service stays healthy after launch.
What it produces
- Deployment set-up
- Monitoring
Options
Node.js compared with the other server choices
Suits
Interactive products, integration layers, real-time features, and teams that write JavaScript.
- Trade-off
- Heavy computation blocks other requests unless it is moved elsewhere.
Suits
Data processing, reporting, and AI features sitting behind the application.
- Trade-off
- Fewer ready-made tools for live, many-connection features.
Suits
Large, long-lived systems with strict structure and many developers.
- Trade-off
- More ceremony to start, so slower for small products.
Suits
Organizations built around Microsoft tools, identity, and hosting.
- Trade-off
- Best when the surrounding estate is Microsoft too.
The best choice is the one your team can build, hire for, and support for years, not the one with the best benchmark.
Typical uses
What Node.js is good for
A back end for a web or mobile app
Accounts, orders, and content served to a website and a phone app from one place.
Connecting systems to each other
A service that listens to your shop, customer records, and accounts, and keeps them in step. See our integration work.
Live features
Chat, notifications, shared editing, and dashboards that update without a refresh.
Internal tools and automation scripts
Small services and scheduled jobs that remove repeated work for your staff.
Common questions
Questions about Node.js
Is Node.js fast enough for a serious business application?
Yes, for the work it is designed for. It serves many simultaneous users well. For long calculations we move the work off the main path so the application stays responsive.
Should the back end use the same language as the front end?
It helps when one team builds both, because skills and some code are shared. It is a convenience, not a rule. If another language suits the problem better, we use it.
Can you take over a Node.js application someone else built?
Yes. We start with a review of the code, the dependencies, and the tests, and then tell you what is sound and what needs work.
How does Node.js relate to React or Next.js?
React builds the screens in the browser. Next.js builds on it and can also run on a Node.js server. Node.js is the server side they commonly sit on.
Have a different question?
Tell us what you are weighing up and we will answer it plainly.
Ask a questionAlready a client? Email support@dechytech.com
Technical depth
How we build with Node.js
The detail a technical reviewer will ask about: language and runtime, handling load, security and dependencies, and shipping.
We write in TypeScript so that data shapes are checked before the code runs. We target a long-term support release of Node.js and plan upgrades before a release reaches the end of its support.
- Work that waits, such as database and network calls, runs without blocking other requests.
- Heavy calculation moves to worker processes or a separate service.
- Slow tasks run in queues, so a request returns quickly.
- Packages are pinned, audited on every build, and kept to a minimum.
- Secrets stay in the environment, never in the code.
- Input is validated on arrival, and the service runs with only the access it needs.
Services are packaged in Docker containers and deployed through an automated pipeline. A pipeline of this kind is called CI/CD, short for continuous integration and delivery: every change is built, tested, and released the same way.
Tell us what the back end has to do
Describe the product, the systems it connects to, and how many people will use it. We will say whether Node.js fits and what a first stage would look like.