As a web application grows in popularity, so does the number of requests it has to answer. Depending on the function of the web application, it should still respond quickly, even with thousands of requests per second, and certainly not fail. This increased scalability of a web application or server can be achieved using various scaling methods like adopting the aws well architected framework pillars. This article will help you understand how to increase scalability of a web application – without getting too technical.
What is Scalability of Web Application?
The scalability of a web application refers to the potential that an application has to grow over time, being able to efficiently handle a greater number of requests per minute. This isn’t just a simple tweak you can turn on or off. It’s a lengthy process that touches almost every element of your stack, including the hardware and software system sides.
So you can keep increasing the limits of memory, CPU, etc. By doing so, you will simply be increasing the performance of the devices rather than of the application.
This is not how you should lean when you see the application start having efficiency problems. Scaling a web application is not easy. For this reason, you should know it very well before thinking about how and when to scale it.
How to Increase the Scalability of a Web Application
Web applications are served by a server. A server is a computer running software capable of communicating with your browser. This allows you, for example, to read this article about how to increase scalability of different web applications. Here is how to go about it:
More Server Power
One way to achieve better scalability is through more server power. Your server receives more resources in the form of processor power, memory, and faster storage media. This is comparable to agriculture. This was also scaled with more power. First man, then horse, then machine. With every step, an increase in performance.
This type of scaling is also called ” vertical scaling. ”
At some point, however, you will reach the point where more performance is no longer possible because the resources available have reached their limits. In this case, further measures like adding more servers must be taken.
Store Frequent Requests
You now have several servers with more power and even save most of the administration work, but you can still make improvements to handle even more requests. Have you ever been asked the same question so often that you saved the answer and now always pass it on?
In the world of web servers, this is called ” caching,” i.e., the temporary storage of frequent requests to reduce the effort.
Cloud Computing
It is an ideal option that lets you scale your servers. Cloud Computing improves system performance and offers secure data storage. You will get extra backup options for emergencies and increased CPU and RPM.
What are the Main Challenges with Web Application Scaling?
Some developers comment that specific programming languages have scalability issues when scalability gets too large, but the ability to scale applications has more to do with the entire system architecture than just the language itself.
So properly planning and developing an application is invaluable, regardless of the nature of potential problems.
You may face different issues when it comes to scaling. Some of these issues may be related to the following:
- Wrong server configuration
- Inefficient caching
- Bad application programming
- Handling background processes poorly
- Lack of an effective database engine
- Absence of monitoring tools
- Little physical resources like CPU and memory
- Wrong indexing, complex database schema
- Poorly done database queries
- A lot of external dependencies
- Wrong memory management
- Application server limitations