How to Connect Multiple CMS APIs Using a Supergraph?

Imagine you are building a modern architecture across multiple CMSs. 

One of the primary challenges you will face is managing and delivering content without complications. Why? Because in today's digital landscape, this task is more intricate than ever.

The content channel and technology explosion over the last two decades has drastically changed the digital landscape, adding layers of complexity to delivering content not only to a website but also to mobile technology, voice assistants, or AI applications.

But what’s the best way to deal with this situation? This article discusses the Supergraph concept and how it can be used to connect multiple CMSs. Additionally, I will introduce how Composabase, the enterprise-grade yet accessible GraphQL API-powered layer, can make this process much easier, more secure, and more effective.

What Is a Supergraph?

A supergraph is a system and architecture that combines multiple data domains into a single graph of interconnected entities and operations. Supergraphs offer the advantages of a centralized monolithic system with the flexibility of a microservices model.

These architectures have been central to API strategies at companies like Netflix, Walmart, Expedia, Zillow, RetailMeNot, PayPal, Major League Baseball, and many more.

Why Use a Supergraph?

As content and digital demands evolve, one of the solutions to address these challenges from the ground up is composability. 

Composability is an architectural approach where systems are segmented by design, allowing greater flexibility, agility, and quality across a digital ecosystem.

We cover this topic in detail in our article about the 5 Benefits of a Composable CMS. 

However, migrating to a composable architecture is not easy. Numerous organizations encounter difficulties with disjointed and inflexible content systems, causing delays and inefficiencies in delivering cohesive omnichannel experiences.

In the diagram below, we observe an unregulated content scenario, where the absence of a defined architecture and structured organization leads to disjointed presentation across six different channels. Content is drawn from two separate CMSs and a web application, all managed by a decentralized group of authors, further complicating consistency.

A supergraph unifies these disparate sources of information, enabling them to communicate seamlessly.

How Does a Supergraph Work?

To understand how a supergraph works, you need to understand two main concepts: content federation and federated APIs.

Content federation is a system that allows for the aggregation, integration, and presentation of content from multiple sources uniformly. This approach enables users to access and interact with content from different repositories, databases, or services through a single interface or platform, which is particularly useful in environments where content is distributed across various systems and needs to be managed cohesively.

A federated API aggregates and unifies multiple backend services or APIs into a single, cohesive API layer. This approach allows clients to interact with a unified API endpoint while the federated API manages the distribution and routing of requests to the appropriate backend services.

A supergraph integrates multiple CMSs through federated APIs and content federation, creating a unified layer that connects and delivers content seamlessly across various channels and devices. This integration enables specific processes and actions from different endpoints to work together efficiently.

How to Build a Supergraph to Connect Multiple CMSs?

To build a supergraph, the process involves integrating multiple domain-specific subgraphs into a single, cohesive graph. The control plane of the supergraph is essential for enabling domain owners to connect their domains to this unified graph. 

This control plane includes three main components: the domain itself, the subgraph, and the supergraph. Initially, you start with the domain source, which comprises databases, APIs, and code from various domains. From this domain source, subgraph code or configuration is generated, encompassing API models, documentation, relationships, and authorization policies. This subgraph is then integrated into the supergraph, which follows centralized authentication, governance, and API conventions to ensure consistency and security.

Different tools and approaches can be used to create a supergraph, such as GraphQL Federation, Apollo Federation, or custom API gateways. For this case, we will use a specific tool, Composabase, which acts as the Content API Layer, effectively aggregating content from multiple sources, ensuring a seamless integration process.

For instance, consider Composabase as the Content API Layer, which acts as a hub for integrating content from various sources like a Drupal CMS, an e-commerce platform, and an Airtable database. 

Content authors manage data across these systems, and Composabase aggregates this data, normalizing it for consistent presentation. The control plane also defines a Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) to maintain the supergraph in sync with ongoing domain changes. When updates occur in the domain source, the system automatically updates the subgraph to reflect these changes, with an optional manual review step to ensure quality. The updated subgraph undergoes continuous integration (CI) testing and validation both independently and within the context of the entire supergraph. After successful validation, the changes are deployed through a continuous deployment (CD) process for both the subgraph and the supergraph.

This structured approach ensures that the supergraph remains up-to-date and consistent, providing a unified API for client interactions. For example, a website could pull rich content from the Drupal CMS, product details from the e-commerce platform, and structured data from Airtable, all through Composabase. 

This setup not only simplifies content management workflows and ensures consistent data presentation by centralizing security and access control but also integrates innovative features recently developed in the Drupal ecosystem, like Palantir’s advancements in enabling real-time collaboration and Horizontal Digital’s AI-generated atomic content creation.

Composabase further streamlines this process by handling the heavy lifting of development work, allowing developers to focus on delivering a valuable and enjoyable digital experience.

The following diagram shows how to build a Supergraph, connecting multiple CMSs with a GraphQL API-powered data layer, like Composabase, wherein the frontend you have 6 different channels of content delivery:  Website, Mobile App, Microsite, CRM, AI Customer Service, and Voice Commerce. In the backend, there's a Drupal CMS, an e-commerce, and an Airtable database, all connected by Composabase, and managed by two groups of authors.

Why Choose Composabase?

Composabase offers an enterprise-grade GraphQL API-powered layer that simplifies and accelerates data integration with an accessible, beginner-friendly interface. 

Here are some of its benefits:

• Seamless integration: Composabase delivers production-ready GraphQL APIs, with a beginner-friendly, yet powerful GraphQL API solution, making it easy to connect multiple CMSs and content sources.
• Full customization: Composabase allows you to tailor the solution to meet your specific needs, developing custom resolvers with Composabase’s powerful typed SDK for seamless integration.
• Add your favorite tools: Integrate Composabase seamlessly with the tools you already love, ensuring a smooth and efficient workflow without the need to adapt to new software.
• Ease of use: Composabase uses a low-code or no-code approach, with cloud-based monitoring, testing, and debugging.
• Immediately available: You can experience the power of Composabase immediately. Set up and test your GraphQL API within minutes without needing lengthy sales and onboarding processes.

In short, a supergraph provides a robust framework to unify and manage content from multiple CMSs, enabling a seamless and efficient content delivery process. 

By utilizing tools like Composabase, you can streamline this process, ensuring that your digital content strategy is both effective and future-proof.