# TEL306: Technology Stacks
https://www.telosready.com/skills/TEL306?v=1
Overview of Telos's two default technology stacks (Microsoft/Azure and Supabase/Vercel), stack selection guidance, environments, third-party services, and integration architecture capabilities.

## Instructions
# Technology Stacks

Telos builds production-grade systems using two mature, well-supported technology stacks. Both are capable of delivering enterprise-quality, long-lived applications with security, scalability, and observability built in from the start. The choice of stack depends on client environment preferences, cost profile, and growth trajectory — not capability.

---

## Microsoft / Azure Stack

**Core components:**
- **Backend:** .NET Core — robust, strongly typed, enterprise-proven
- **Database:** Azure SQL
- **Queue / async processing:** Azure Service Bus (background jobs, async workflows)
- **Frontend:** Node.js + React (web application, sitting behind an API)
- **File storage:** Azure Blob Storage
- **Hosting:** Azure (containerised services)
- **Mobile / public APIs:** supported as additional surface areas

**Typical monthly infrastructure cost:** NZD $1,000–$2,000

This stack suits clients who want to operate within a Microsoft environment, own their Azure tenancy, or consolidate cloud spend under existing Microsoft agreements. Azure resource management and cost optimisation are handled by Telos.

---

## Supabase / Vercel Stack

**Core components:**
- **Backend / database:** Supabase (PostgreSQL, auth, storage, edge functions)
- **Frontend:** Next.js deployed on Vercel
- **File storage:** Amazon S3 (via Supabase)

**Typical monthly infrastructure cost:** from NZD $250

This stack enables rapid application standup and is well-suited to early-stage products or clients where time-to-market and initial cost are priorities. Supabase and Vercel scale on specific usage dimensions — growth projections should be factored into stack selection.

---

## Choosing a Stack

Both stacks deliver equivalent capability in terms of security, performance, and development cost. Key selection considerations:

| Factor | Microsoft / Azure | Supabase / Vercel |
|---|---|---|
| Initial infrastructure cost | Higher (NZD $1–2k/month) | Lower (from NZD $250/month) |
| Cost scaling | Manageable, resource-based | Usage-dimension based — model carefully |
| Client environment fit | Microsoft-aligned organisations | Greenfield or cloud-agnostic |
| Ownership model | Client owns Azure tenancy | Managed via Telos accounts or client accounts |
| Time to first deployment | Standard | Faster |

Development cost is equivalent across both stacks.

---

## Environments

Every application is deployed across two complete, independent environments:

- **Staging** — rapid, automated deployment for testing and validation
- **Production** — automated deployment with appropriate controls

CI/CD pipelines are configured from the start. Code repositories are hosted on GitLab and owned by the client.

---

## Third-Party Services

Telos integrates a curated set of best-in-class services across both stacks:

| Service | Purpose |
|---|---|
| **Clerk** | Authentication — MFA, SSO, out-of-the-box identity management |
| **Postmark** | Transactional email — inbound and outbound |
| **Stripe** | Billing and payments |
| **Cloudflare** | DNS management and security layer |
| **GitLab** | Source control (client-owned repositories) |
| **Claude (Anthropic)** | LLM for AI features — preferred for context engineering, tooling, and cost management. Other LLMs supported. |

---

## Integration Architecture

Integrations with third-party systems are a first-class capability — they may be a component of a broader application or the core purpose of a system.

**How integrations are built:**
- Implemented as standalone backend services (Azure Functions, scheduled jobs, or persistent services depending on pattern)
- Each integration targets well-documented third-party APIs
- A sandbox account with realistic test data is the critical first dependency — securing this early is the most important step in any integration build

**What every integration must deliver:**

**Resilience**
- Processes data in batches; detects and syncs only change data
- Handles API rate limits gracefully — pauses and resumes without data loss
- Able to pick up exactly where it left off after interruption

**Observability**
- Full visibility into what is happening at any point in time
- Structured logging and monitoring built in from the start

**Security**
- Clear security model defining how the integration authenticates and what it is authorised to access
- Credentials and secrets managed appropriately, never hardcoded

**Data integrity**
- Business data embedded in integrations is treated with the same rigour as core application data
- Idempotent operations where possible to prevent duplicate processing

---

## Multitenant Architecture

All applications are built with multitenancy as a default architectural pattern. See **TEL303** for SaaS-grade patterns including multitenant data isolation, role-based access, and subscription management.

# Technology Stacks

Telos builds production-grade systems using two mature, well-supported technology stacks. Both are capable of delivering enterprise-quality, long-lived applications with security, scalability, and observability built in from the start. The choice of stack depends on client environment preferences, cost profile, and growth trajectory — not capability.

---

## Microsoft / Azure Stack

**Core components:**
- **Backend:** .NET Core — robust, strongly typed, enterprise-proven
- **Database:** Azure SQL
- **Queue / async processing:** Azure Service Bus (background jobs, async workflows)
- **Frontend:** Node.js + React (web application, sitting behind an API)
- **File storage:** Azure Blob Storage
- **Hosting:** Azure (containerised services)
- **Mobile / public APIs:** supported as additional surface areas

**Typical monthly infrastructure cost:** NZD $1,000–$2,000

This stack suits clients who want to operate within a Microsoft environment, own their Azure tenancy, or consolidate cloud spend under existing Microsoft agreements. Azure resource management and cost optimisation are handled by Telos.

---

## Supabase / Vercel Stack

**Core components:**
- **Backend / database:** Supabase (PostgreSQL, auth, storage, edge functions)
- **Frontend:** Next.js deployed on Vercel
- **File storage:** Amazon S3 (via Supabase)

**Typical monthly infrastructure cost:** from NZD $250

This stack enables rapid application standup and is well-suited to early-stage products or clients where time-to-market and initial cost are priorities. Supabase and Vercel scale on specific usage dimensions — growth projections should be factored into stack selection.

---

## Choosing a Stack

Both stacks deliver equivalent capability in terms of security, performance, and development cost. Key selection considerations:

| Factor | Microsoft / Azure | Supabase / Vercel |
|---|---|---|
| Initial infrastructure cost | Higher (NZD $1–2k/month) | Lower (from NZD $250/month) |
| Cost scaling | Manageable, resource-based | Usage-dimension based — model carefully |
| Client environment fit | Microsoft-aligned organisations | Greenfield or cloud-agnostic |
| Ownership model | Client owns Azure tenancy | Managed via Telos accounts or client accounts |
| Time to first deployment | Standard | Faster |

Development cost is equivalent across both stacks.

---

## Environments

Every application is deployed across two complete, independent environments:

- **Staging** — rapid, automated deployment for testing and validation
- **Production** — automated deployment with appropriate controls

CI/CD pipelines are configured from the start. Code repositories are hosted on GitLab and owned by the client.

---

## Third-Party Services

Telos integrates a curated set of best-in-class services across both stacks:

| Service | Purpose |
|---|---|
| **Clerk** | Authentication — MFA, SSO, out-of-the-box identity management |
| **Postmark** | Transactional email — inbound and outbound |
| **Stripe** | Billing and payments |
| **Cloudflare** | DNS management and security layer |
| **GitLab** | Source control (client-owned repositories) |
| **Claude (Anthropic)** | LLM for AI features — preferred for context engineering, tooling, and cost management. Other LLMs supported. |

---

## Integration Architecture

Integrations with third-party systems are a first-class capability — they may be a component of a broader application or the core purpose of a system.

**How integrations are built:**
- Implemented as standalone backend services (Azure Functions, scheduled jobs, or persistent services depending on pattern)
- Each integration targets well-documented third-party APIs
- A sandbox account with realistic test data is the critical first dependency — securing this early is the most important step in any integration build

**What every integration must deliver:**

**Resilience**
- Processes data in batches; detects and syncs only change data
- Handles API rate limits gracefully — pauses and resumes without data loss
- Able to pick up exactly where it left off after interruption

**Observability**
- Full visibility into what is happening at any point in time
- Structured logging and monitoring built in from the start

**Security**
- Clear security model defining how the integration authenticates and what it is authorised to access
- Credentials and secrets managed appropriately, never hardcoded

**Data integrity**
- Business data embedded in integrations is treated with the same rigour as core application data
- Idempotent operations where possible to prevent duplicate processing

---

## Multitenant Architecture

All applications are built with multitenancy as a default architectural pattern. See **TEL303** for SaaS-grade patterns including multitenant data isolation, role-based access, and subscription management.