--- title: "Converting a Legacy PHP Monolithic App to Microservices with Golang and Temporal" date: 2024-09-11 author: "alex.lukashevich" featured_image: "https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Inturn-cover-1.jpg" --- # Converting a Legacy PHP Monolithic App to Microservices with Golang and Temporal ![inturn company logo](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Inturn-Logo-e1738766661674.png "Inturn Logo")[vue.ai](https://vue.ai/) # upgrade to microservices using Golang and Temporal ![Temporal logo](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/temporal-1.svg) Orchestration ### microservices architecture ### golang expertise ![Converting a Legacy PHP Monolithic Application](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Inturn-Hero.jpg "Inturn Hero Converting a Legacy PHP Monolithic Application") About [About](#about-project) [Challenges & Solutions](#challenges-and-solutions) [Strategy](#highlights) [Results](#services) [Reviews](#review-and-clutch) ## About The Project Inturn has built a unique platform that allows businesses to connect with a global network of buyers, and easily discover new products, get real-time data, and access various tools to help them make informed business decisions. But with their rapid growth and transformation from a startup to an enterprise business, they were facing some roadblocks around building their technical team and software. That’s where we came in! The Inturn team reached out to us with a specific goal in mind after they were referred to us by another happy client: they wanted to rewrite their PHP Monolith application to a microservice architecture, to ensure that it could handle their growing user base and continue to develop new features and functionalities. We were more than happy to help them out. After defining the challenge Inturn had around converting monolithic applications to microservices, we recognized the potential for Temporal’s workflow automation to streamline their transformation and suggested it as a solution for converting legacy to microservices. ## Objectives - **Migrate from a monolithic PHP architecture to microservices** for better scalability. - **Introduce Golang** as the new backend language for enhanced performance. - **Implement Temporal’s workflow automation** to manage complex processes and stateful execution. - **Assemble a high-performing engineering team** to support long-term development. ![monolithic application update](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Inturn-About-project.jpg "Inturn About monolithic application update") ## Challenges ## Solutions Challenges Monolithic Architecture Slowing Down Development During Inturn’s growth phase, the move from a monolithic to a microservice architecture demanded a robust solution for managing their complex workflows. The existing PHP-based monolith was tightly coupled, making it difficult to scale individual components or introduce new features without affecting the entire system. They weren’t taking advantage of Temporal’s capability to handle long-running, reliable processes became a pivotal component of the strategy. Solutions Leveraging Golang for Scalable Microservices We updated Inturn’s legacy PHP monolithic application into multiple microservices using Golang. This transition leveraged Golang’s performance and scalability, making it easier to build and maintain microservices, thus effectively managing complex workflows. It also allowed Inturn to scale individual services independently without disrupting the platform. Challenges Lack of Workflow Orchestration & State Management Transitioning to microservices introduced new complexities—ensuring that processes remained synchronized and stateful interactions didn’t cause failures. Solutions Higher Orchestration and Management Our Temporal experts implemented Temporal’s workflow orchestration, enabling fault-tolerant, scalable microservices that could maintain state across long-running processes and retry failed operations automatically. Challenges Rapid Hiring & Team Scaling for Development The company experienced significant growth within a short period, leading to operational challenges, technical debt, and an overwhelming workload. Rewriting the PHP Monolith application to a microservice architecture and introducing Golang into the tech stack were key objectives to address these issues. Inturn needed an experienced engineering team to execute the transition without slowing down their existing operations. Solutions We Scaled their Team Up Spiral Scout quickly staffed a team of 12 backend engineers with expertise in Golang, Temporal, and microservices architecture, ensuring a smooth and efficient transition. The introduction of this new team allowed Inturn to scale their development architecture efficiently. This also addressed the operational challenges and technical debt by guaranteeing that the team could handle increased workloads and user demands. Challenges Testing & Validation of the New System The client aimed to re-architect the application to ensure scalability, maintainability, and the ability to handle a growing user base but needed this to be fully tested. They needed to select the best tool set and tech stack for the re-architecture and assist with developing and testing new features. Solutions Established an Automation Team for Testing We established a 5-member automation QA team, led by senior engineers, to create a comprehensive testing framework that validated microservices functionality, performance, and reliability. ![monolithic application](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Inturn-Challenge-1.jpg "Inturn Challenge monolithic application") ## Our microservices strategy Overview of the critical steps that shaped the project’s conversion to microservices and addressed its key challenges. ![monolithic application vs microservices](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Inturn-Strategy-01-1.jpg "Inturn Strategy monolithic application vs microservices") ### Leveraging Golang & Temporal for Microservices Communication Simply replacing PHP with Golang wasn’t enough—we integrated Temporal’s workflow engine to ensure reliable inter-service communication. This approach allowed microservices to function independently while seamlessly managing long-running operations. ![monolithic application architecture](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Inturn-Strategy-02.jpg "Inturn Strategy monolithic application architecture") ### Collaborative Evaluation & Architecture Design Our team worked closely with Inturn’s leadership to evaluate available toolsets, select the most efficient microservices framework, and map out a phased migration strategy that minimized risk and downtime. ![monolithic application example](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Inturn-Strategy-03-1.jpg "Inturn Strategy monolithic application example") ### Building a High-Performance Engineering Team The Inturn team aimed to start development quickly, requiring a team of Golang and PHP engineers. We swiftly staffed their team with [engineers knowledgeable in Temporal](https://stage.spiralscout.com/services/it-consulting/temporal-consulting-development) and engaged our HR team to recruit these highly skilled engineers. We built a team of 12 backend engineers and after presenting an automation test plan and selecting the most suitable automation testing framework, we established a 5-member [Automation QA team](https://stage.spiralscout.com/services/software-development/qa-software-testing), led by two exceptional automation engineers. ## Results & Impact The [integration of Temporal](https://stage.spiralscout.com/glossary/temporal-microservices-orchestration-platform) and **successful [migration to microservices](https://stage.spiralscout.com/services/software-development/legacy-modernization)** provided **Inturn with a scalable, high-performance system** that could handle increased traffic and onboard more **Fortune 500 retailers**. Temporal’s workflow orchestration eliminated state management issues, allowing for **seamless execution of distributed processes**. As a [trusted technology partner](https://stage.spiralscout.com/services/it-consulting), Spiral Scout didn’t just execute the migration—we provided strategic guidance, architectural recommendations, and a long-term vision for Inturn’s evolving platform. ## KEY OUTCOMES - Successfully staffed the project with senior engineers who brought experience and enthusiasm, allowing them to make proactive recommendations about architectural solutions and technical approaches. - Scalable microservices architecture capable of handling high user traffic. - Seamless Temporal integration for workflow automation and state management. - 50% faster feature deployment, improving agility and product development cycles. ![monolithic application to microservices](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Inturn-Results-1.jpg "Inturn Results monolithic application to microservices") ![Spiral Scout logo](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SS_logo.png "Spiral Scout logo") ## INTURN hired us because they knew we could recruit and hire senior Golang engineers quickly and within their budget that had experience in building distributed applications and workflow orchestration systems. We successfully integrated a team of 15 engineers in under 6 months. ![JD, CTO, Co-founder](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/umz-m6a7-gjikq-is-anton-jd-titov-1--150x150.png "JD, CTO, Co-founder") ### Anton “JD” Titov CTO **of Spiral Scout** --- [ 4.9 Based on 52 reviews ](https://clutch.co/profile/spiral-scout?utm_source=widget&utm_medium=1&utm_campaign=widget&utm_content=num_reviews&utm_term=spiralscout.com#reviews) ### OVERALL SCORE At Spiral Scout, we believe that when it comes to software development and delivery, it’s time for a change. ### 5.0 #### SCHEDULING On Time / Deadline ### 5.0 #### QUALITY Service & Deliverables ### 5.0 #### COST Value / Within Estimates ### 5.0 #### NPS Willing to Refer ## Related projects - ![preview](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/preview-2.png "preview") ### Temporal Workflow Architecture Consulting for Enterprise Data Services Architecture consulting for a visual workflow editor built on Temporal, enabling cross-department automation at enterprise scale. Workflow Orchestration, Temporal, Visual Workflow Editor [Link](https://stage.spiralscout.com/case/temporal-workflow-architecture-consulting-enterprise) - ![Staq](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Staq.jpg) ![Staq logo](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Staq_idQ95uE_5__0.svg)### Agentic Workflow Orchestration for Autonomous Banking Infrastructure Architected a Temporal-backed agentic runtime for a fintech platform shipping autonomous financial workflows to regulated markets. AI Agents, Temporal Orchestration, Fintech/Banking [Link](https://stage.spiralscout.com/case/agentic-workflow-orchestration-autonomous-banking) - ![Danfos - preview](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Danfos-preview.png) ![Danfoss Logo](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/RGB-Danfoss-boxlogo-2025-Red.png)### Rules-Driven Configuration Architecture for the Danfoss Network Engineered a configuration system replacing tribal knowledge with enforced rules, deployed to distributors without IT drag. Guided Configuration Logic, Platform Engineering, Supply Chain [Link](https://stage.spiralscout.com/case/intellibuild-danfoss-configuration-platform) - ![CPQ engine Temporal](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/fouu5j7y-cpq-preview-1-1.jpg "CPQ engine Temporal") ![ARG logo](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/logo-5.png)### Turning Complex Quoting into Controlled, Repeatable Systems Implemented CPQ that cut quote turnaround time by 50% and increased sales accuracy, driving higher revenue. CUSTOM DEVELOPMENT, QUOTING AUTOMATION, TEMPORAL [Link](https://stage.spiralscout.com/case/cpq-implementation-case-study-alaska-rubber) - ![Temporal PHP SDK](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/ri6qpscj-hgwbqjsg-temporal-io-preview-.png "Temporal Preview") ![Temporal PHP SDK](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/temporal-logo-dark.svg "Temporal logo")### Temporal PHP SDK for Open-Source Microservice Platform Spiral Scout’s PHP SDK for Temporal cut workflow dev time 40%. It enabled reliable microservices for thousands, scaling with $100M+ in funding. TEMPORAL SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT [Link](https://stage.spiralscout.com/case/temporal-php-sdk-for-microservice-platform) - ![Preview for Qualcomm case](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Preview_Qualcomm.jpg "Preview_Qualcomm") ![Qualcomm Logo](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Qualcomm-Logo.svg.png)### Interactive AI Experience for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 2023 Summit Created AI demo engaging 2,000+ attendees and boosting event interaction by 50%. Mobile DEVELOPMENT, AI SOLUTIONS [Link](https://stage.spiralscout.com/case/interactive-ai-experience-for-a-leading-tech-summit) ## Have a similar LEGACY MODERNIZATION PROJECT? Let’s discuss. WHAT’S NEXT 1 Meet the founders 2 Tell us your goals 3 Receive a proposal 4 Project kickoff ![John Griffin](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/John.png "John Griffin")### John Griffin Co-Founder, CEO ![Anton JD Titov](https://stage.spiralscout.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Anton-2.png "Anton JD Titov")### Anton “JD” Titov Co-Founder, CTO *“Anton is an exceptional technologist. I would feel comfortable having him work on any technical challenge.”* – Ryland Goldstein, Head of Product, Temporal