The manufacturer of scientific tools used for chemical analysis needed to identify and address performance hurdles. Through website load testing, Prime Force helped them uncover and eliminate potential bottlenecks to guarantee seamless operations even during peak usage periods with multiple researchers accessing data simultaneously. Today, the leading manufacturer of titration devices can provide a smooth user experience for their customers. This translates to uninterrupted workflows and increased efficiency for scientists who depend on these high-precision instruments for their chemical research.

Load Testing, Step by Step

Load testing is a crucial process for evaluating an application's performance under simulated high-user traffic. At Prime Force, we understand the importance of thorough preparation for successful load testing. Therefore, we took a proactive approach, guiding our customers through the process and ensuring they had a clear understanding of the test's parameters and limitations.

Our first step with the Swiss manufacturer involved the definition of a comprehensive list of target addresses for testing. These included web pages, downloadable files, or specific queries within the application. Prime Force prioritizes accessibility and, therefore, we worked closely with the customer to identify any Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) potentially masking the origin of the target addresses. Additionally, we assisted the manufacturer in gathering any necessary login credentials to ensure seamless access to secure areas of the application.

Beyond identifying target addresses, we actively engaged with the scientific instrument manufacturer to define the expected user load for each target and desired test duration. We translated this into the number of virtual users (simulated users) that will be concurrently sending requests to each address. This collaborative process ensures the test replicates real-world usage patterns and helps identify potential bottlenecks under increased pressure. The determined duration of the test provides a sustained period of simulated traffic, allowing for the capture of reliable performance metrics.

Modern applications often rely on services hosted by third-party providers. Prime Force recognizes this and takes proactive steps to ensure our load testing procedures comply with the policies of these external services. We may consult the service provider's documentation or even contact them directly to determine any restrictions regarding load testing. Open communication is crucial, ensuring both the customer and Prime Force understand any potential limitations from third-party involvement.

Prime Force's load testing focuses on specific elements within an application. The tests primarily target the provided web addresses, recording response times and status codes returned by the server for each request. This focus ensures clear and measurable results regarding the application's ability to handle the simulated user traffic under the defined parameters. It's important to clarify that the tests do not delve into executing scripts embedded within those addresses or loading additional resources linked on the pages. This approach provides a focused analysis of the application's core performance.

By taking a collaborative and informative approach, Prime Force empowers our customers to participate actively in the load testing process. The information gathered from this collaboration allows for a targeted and efficient evaluation of the application's performance. Additionally, clearly defined test limitations ensure realistic expectations for the resulting data. This approach ultimately leads to valuable insights that can be used to optimize the application's performance and ensure a positive user experience under real-world load conditions.

Results

Prime Force delivered in-depth results for each test in multiple formats: a well-structured JSON file, a master Excel summary, and insightful graphs. This data became the foundation for making informed decisions regarding optimization strategies and ensuring your application can handle real-world user traffic effectively.

The first file segregates result by individual virtual machines used during the test while also offering a summarized view of all machines combined:

• Fetches: This section provides insights into the request volume handled by the application. It includes metrics like fetches per second, total number of fetches initiated, and the total number of requests successfully completed.
• Response Codes: A dive into the HTTP status codes returned by the server detailed the total number of successful responses (200s), redirects (300s), client errors (400s), and server errors (500s). This helped identify potential issues like invalid requests or server overload.
• Mean Response Times: This metric analyzes the server's response speed across various aspects. It reports the minimum, maximum, and average connection establishment times (connect ms).
• End-to-End Response Times: We provided the minimum, maximum, and average time for the server to completely process a request (end2end ms).
• Transferred Bytes: This segment included metrics like average bytes transferred per connection, average and total bytes transferred per second, and the total number of bytes transferred.

All the test results across all target addresses are compiled and explained in a master Excel report. It offers a valuable high-level view of the application's overall performance under load.

To further enhance clarity and understanding, Prime Force generates various graphs based on the test data. These visual representations provided an intuitive way to analyze trends and identify bottlenecks for the client. The manufacturer could easily see patterns in response times, error rates, and data transfer volumes across different test scenarios.