Micro Frontend Governance

Micro Frontend Governance sits at the heart of governance in single-spa. This guide walks through the concept step by step, with examples, a cheatsheet, and common mistakes to avoid.

Micro Frontend Governance Overview

Micro Frontend Governance is a building block you will reach for often in single-spa. It keeps related logic together and makes your intent obvious to reviewers and future maintainers.

When you learn micro frontend governance properly, you avoid the guesswork that leads to bugs and rework. The example below shows the shape you will use in most real single-spa projects.

import { registerApplication, start } from 'single-spa';

registerApplication({
  name: '@org/app',
  app: () => System.import('@org/app'),
  activeWhen: ['/app'],
});

start();

single-spa orchestrates multiple framework apps on one page through a root config.

Micro Frontend Governance Example

registerApplication({
  name: '@org/app',
  app: () => System.import('@org/app'),
  activeWhen: ['/app'],
});
start();

Start from a minimal Micro Frontend Governance example and grow it only as needed.
Keep configuration explicit so Micro Frontend Governance behaves the same in every environment.
Name things clearly so teammates understand your Micro Frontend Governance at a glance.
Add tests around Micro Frontend Governance early to lock in expected behaviour.

Single-SPA Cheatsheet

Core single-spa APIs related to micro frontend governance.

API	Example	Purpose
registerApplication	`registerApplication({ name, app, activeWhen })`	Register a micro frontend
activeWhen	`activeWhen: ['/checkout']`	Route ownership
start	`start()`	Begin routing
bootstrap	`export async function bootstrap()`	One-time setup
mount	`export async function mount(props)`	Render the app
unmount	`export async function unmount(props)`	Clean up the app
import map	`systemjs-importmap`	Locate app bundles

How Micro Frontend Governance Works in Single-SPA

Micro Frontend Governance is part of how single-spa lets multiple applications — even in different frameworks — coexist on one page. A root config registers each app and controls when it is active.

single-spa orchestrates multiple framework apps on one page through a root config.

A root config registers apps and calls start().
Each app exports bootstrap, mount, and unmount lifecycles.
activeWhen decides which routes each app owns.
Import maps resolve each app's bundle at runtime.

Practical Guidance for Micro Frontend Governance

For reliable micro frontends, micro frontend governance should isolate failures and keep shared state minimal. Let each team own its app end to end while agreeing on a few shared contracts.

Concern	Recommendation
Isolation	One app's crash should not break others
Shared state	Prefer shared utility modules over globals
Routing	Keep activeWhen rules explicit and non-overlapping
Deployment	Release via import-map updates per app

Common Mistakes

Skipping error handling and edge cases when wiring up micro frontend governance.
Leaving micro frontend governance untested, so regressions slip into production.
Over-engineering micro frontend governance before you actually need the extra flexibility.
Ignoring documentation, which makes micro frontend governance hard for the next developer to change.

Key Takeaways

Micro Frontend Governance is a core part of working effectively with single-spa.
Start small and keep micro frontend governance focused on a single responsibility.
Apply consistent patterns so micro frontend governance scales across your project.
Test and document micro frontend governance to keep it maintainable over time.

Pro Tip

Pair micro frontend governance with automated tests from day one. It is far cheaper to catch single-spa regressions in CI than in production.