Overview
The continual technological advancements in the past decade have made the world more connected than ever. But along with this also comes the increased expectation for individuals to get more information instantaneously. This is why WebSocket became a crucial tool for developers over the years, as it provides bidirectional and asynchronous communication between a server and a client. This eliminates the need for multiple HTTP requests to perform long polling.
With the growing number of people using WebSocket-based applications, it is essential for developers to thoroughly test the performance of their programs, taking into account the WebSocket performance as part of the whole application performance. Load tests should encompass WebSocket and HTTP traffic to ensure that the app can handle sudden spikes in traffic.
By doing so, developers can guarantee that their applications can manage multiple real-time requests, avoiding potential data loss. Furthermore, this comprehensive testing approach enables them to identify and address possible performance bottlenecks, ultimately helping them achieve optimal performance across the entire application.
However, testing WebSocket-based applications presents unique challenges that can make it harder for developers to conduct. First, the asynchronous nature of WebSockets adds another layer of complexity to scripting them. Second, if your load testing tool does not support WebSocket technology, you can’t script them.
