Event stream processing explained

Complex event processing (CEP) is the use of techniques that process real-time events and extract information from event streams as they arrive, or before storing it within a database. In some cases, this can be done without it being stored within a database.

Simple event processing (SEP) occurs when a meaningful change of state or condition occurs. This makes this type of processing ideal for the real-time flow of work coordination as it reduces latency and the cost of processes.

Simple event processing is directly triggered by specific, individual events. On the other hand, complex event processing is responsible for responding to patterns of events.

Event-driven architectures use events to trigger and communicate between decoupled services and are common in modern applications built with microservices. Event-driven architectures include three components: event producers, event routers, and event consumers.