You’ve probably seen it: Controller → Service → Facade → Manager → Helper → Adapter → Provider → “SomethingImpl”… for a feature that basically does one thing. 😅
The quote says it well: “Too many layers make the code harder to maintain and extend.”
🔸 TL;DR
More layers ≠ better architecture. Beyond a point, layering adds indirection, coordination cost, and debug friction, making changes slower and riskier.
🔸 WHY TOO MANY LAYERS HURT
▪️ More moving parts: a simple change touches 4–8 files instead of 1–2
▪️ Harder debugging: you jump through call chains just to find the real logic 🕵️♂️
▪️ Diluted responsibilities: every layer does “a little bit,” so no one owns the behavior
▪️ Slower onboarding: newcomers need a map before they can ship anything 🗺️
▪️ Fake test coverage: lots of mocked layers, little confidence in real behavior ✅❌
🔸 WHAT “GOOD LAYERING” LOOKS LIKE
Layers are useful when they create meaningful boundaries, not when they just rename the same call.
▪️ Clear purpose per layer (API, domain, persistence)
▪️ Few hops to the business rule (ideally 1–2)
▪️ End-to-end tests at the seams, not mocks everywhere
▪️ Complexity lives where it belongs: in the domain, not in wrappers 🎯
🔸 A QUICK SMELL TEST
Ask yourself:
▪️ “If I remove this layer, do I lose a real capability (validation, transactions, anti-corruption), or just a file?”
▪️ “Does this layer reduce complexity… or only redistribute it?” 🤔
🔸 TAKEAWAYS
▪️ Layers should simplify change, not slow it down
▪️ Prefer fewer, stronger abstractions over many thin ones
▪️ If a layer doesn’t add value, it’s probably ceremony
▪️ Optimize for readability + evolvability, not architecture diagrams 📈
#softwareengineering #cleanarchitecture #coding #refactoring #architecture #backend #java #springboot #microservices #maintainability #techdebt