Architecture Overview

Understand the layered architecture that powers the Cortex Framework

HTTP Server

RESTful API endpoints and routing

WebSocket

Real-time bidirectional communication

Middleware

Request/response processing

Actor System

Concurrent message-driven actors

Event Bus

Pub/sub event distribution

Config

Environment configuration

Logger

Structured logging

Metrics

Prometheus format metrics

Tracing

Distributed request tracing

Health Checks

System health monitoring

Circuit Breaker

Fault tolerance pattern

Rate Limiter

Request rate control

Retry Logic

Automatic retry mechanism

Authentication

User identity verification

Authorization

Access control & permissions

Data Protection

Encryption & data security

Type System

TypeScript type safety

Message Queue

Actor message buffering

Scheduler

Task scheduling & execution

Key Layers Explained

API & HTTP Server

The top layer that handles all incoming requests. Built on Node.js, it provides RESTful endpoints, WebSocket support, and middleware for request/response processing.

Core Features

The heart of Cortex. Contains the Actor System for concurrent operations, Event Bus for event-driven architecture, configuration management, and structured logging.

Observability

Tools for monitoring and understanding your system. Includes metrics collection (Prometheus format), distributed tracing, and health checks.

Resilience

Patterns and tools for building fault-tolerant systems. Features circuit breakers, rate limiters, and automatic retry logic for handling failures gracefully.

Security

Built-in security features including authentication, authorization, and data protection mechanisms to keep your applications and data secure.

Core Runtime

The foundation layer providing type safety through TypeScript, message queuing for actor communication, and task scheduling mechanisms.