Beautyhaul Platform Modernization: CodeIgniter 2 to Go (Fiber)

Background & Architecture Overview

At Somethinc - Beautyhaul, the original platform relied on a legacy CodeIgniter 2 monolithic backend. Over time, tightly coupled database logic and legacy code patterns made adding new business features fragile for software engineers and limited platform scalability.

The mission was to modernize the core backend using Go (Fiber), establishing a clean, decoupled architecture beneficial for both end users (modern UI/UX & fast APIs) and engineering teams (maintainable code structure).

Clean Layered Architecture Pattern

[ HTTP Client / Frontend ]
           │
           ▼
[ Fiber Handler / Router Layer ]
           │
           ▼
[ Service Layer (Business Logic) ] ◄────► [ Adapter Layer (Third-Party Services) ]
           │
           ▼
[ Repository Layer (Data Access) ]
           │
           ▼
[ Database / Model Layer (MySQL / Redis) ]

1. Separation of Concerns

• Handler / Router: Manages request parsing, DTO validation, and HTTP response formatting.
• Service Layer: Encapsulates pure domain logic and business rules.
• Repository Layer: Handles database queries, GORM interactions, and Redis caching calls.
• Adapter Layer: Isolates external integrations (payment gateways, marketplace webhooks, cloud services).

2. High-Performance Fiber Router

• Utilized Go Fiber for lightweight, low-memory HTTP handling.
• Implemented structured middleware for authentication, request logging, and error handling.

Developer & User Impact

• Developer Experience (DX): Codebase became highly testable, predictable, and easy to maintain due to clear layer boundaries.
• User Experience (UX): Faster API response times and modern UI component integration provided a smooth, modern shopping experience.
• Scalability: New business modules (OTP verification, refund management, vouchers) can be added independently without legacy side-effects.