gRPC is a high-performance, open-source remote procedure call framework initially developed by Google. It leverages HTTP/2 for transport, Protocol Buffers as the interface description language, and provides features such as authentication, load balancing, and more.
Key Features of gRPC:
-
Speed - gRPC is built on HTTP/2 and Protobufs for high throughput and low latency.
-
Efficiency - The compact Protobuf binary format means smaller payloads than JSON.
-
Type Safety - Protobufs are strongly typed.
-
Polyglot - Write services in many popular languages.
-
Great Ecosystem - Many tools for code gen, load balancing, monitoring, and more.
Drawbacks of gRPC:
-
More Complex - Defining Protobuf schemas and setting up gRPC can have a learning curve.
-
Not Human Readable - Protobufs are binary, so not as easy to troubleshoot as JSON.
-
Limited Browser Support - gRPC works best for backend microservices, not front-end apps.