Battle of the Stacks - WordCamp Atlanta 2015

When you first start as a developer all you care about is the code. As you progress and become more concerned with performance you begin to realize that there’s a whole world of possibilities and no clear indication of what works best.

In this presentation we’ll look at different combinations of web server technologies including Apache, NGINX, HHVM, PHP-FPM, and more, then we'll run load tests on each one of them in a head to head competition to find out which one is the Last Stack Standing.

This is the updated version of the BoS presentation. Same format as before, but updated to include more technologies and better tests.

Transcript

1. Battle of the Stacks by Nic Rosental @nicdev Image by Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas https://www.flickr.com/photos/thecosmopolitan/
2. noun noun: stack; plural noun: stacks 1. a pile of objects, typically one that is neatly arranged. "a stack of boxes" synonyms: heap, pile, mound, mountain, pyramid, tower "a stack of boxes" informal a large quantity of something. "there's stacks of work for me now" a rectangular or cylindrical pile of hay or straw or of grain in sheaf. synonyms: haystack, rick, hayrick, mow, shock, haycock; datedcock "a stack of hay" a vertical arrangement of stereo or guitar amplification equipment. a number of aircraft flying in circles at different altitudes around the same point while waiting for permission to land at an airport. a pyramidal group of rifles. units of shelving in part of a library, used to store books compactly. plural noun: the stacks COMPUTING a set of storage locations that store data in such a way that the most recently stored item is the first to be retrieved. 2. a chimney, especially one on a factory, or a vertical exhaust pipe on a vehicle. synonyms: chimney, smokestack, funnel, exhaust pipe a column of rock standing in the sea, remaining after erosion of cliffs. noun: sea stack; plural noun: sea stacks Stacks
3. The components that make up your application. From the web server software all the way to the code. Image by Juhan Sonin https://www.flickr.com/photos/juhansonin/
4. Performance means speed and reliability Image by cle0patra https://www.flickr.com/photos/cle0patra/
5. More hardware Image by S Jones https://www.flickr.com/photos/pixeljones/
6. Goals for this session • Get a general overview of different stacks • Learn something • Have fun Image by 713 Avenue https://www.flickr.com/photos/seven13avenue/
7. Buyer beware Image by Jafafa Hots https://www.flickr.com/photos/jafafahots/
8. The Setup Image by afromusing https://www.flickr.com/photos/afropicmusing/
9. LAMP Stack Image by Tony Newell https://www.flickr.com/photos/tonynewell/
13. Prefork vs Worker vs Event Image by Allen McGregor https://www.flickr.com/photos/allenmcgregor/
14. LAMP Stack Apache 2.4 Prefork Image by Peter Miller https://www.flickr.com/photos/pmillera4/
15. MaxRequestWorkers = 512MB / 22.5MB ~23 MaxRequestWorkers
17. LAMP Stack Apache 2.2 Prefork
19. MaxClients = 512MB / 13MB ~28 MaxClients
21. LAMP Stack Apache 2.4 Worker + PHP-FPM
23. MaxRequestWorkers = 512MB / 8MB ~64 MaxRequestWorkers
25. LAMP Stack Apache 2.4 Event + PHP-FPM
28. MaxRequestWorkers = 512MB / 4MB ~128 MaxRequestWorkers
30. LEMP Stack Image by Christa Lohman https://www.flickr.com/photos/chloeloe/
32. HHVM + Apache Image by Andrew Siguenza https://www.flickr.com/photos/photo-knight/
35. HHVM + NGINX
36. Lighttpd AKA Lighty Image by JayRaz https://www.flickr.com/photos/shnakepup/
37. Let the games begin! Image by Remi https://www.flickr.com/photos/reemster/
39. Each stack gets paired against another stack randomly in a playoff format. Each stack gets a vanilla installation of WordPress Each stack is tested using Loader.io. The stack with better average response times moves to the next round. Each rounds’ test is progressively harder than the last. The winner of the third round will be crowned Last Stack Standing
42. LAMP Apache 2.4 Worker + FPM HHVM + Apache HHVM + NGINX LAMP Apache 2.4 Event + FPM Lighty LAMP Apache 2.2 Prefork LEMP LAMP Apache 2.4 Prefork 60 clients over 60 seconds
43. LAMP Apache 2.4 Worker + FPM http://ldr.io/1bESSDq Vs. HHVM Apache http://ldr.io/19tcZTl
44. LAMP Apache 2.4 Worker + FPM Average Response Time: 79ms HHVM Apache Average Response Time: 41ms
45. HHVM NGINX http://ldr.io/1bEWkOc Vs. LAMP Apache 2.4 Event + FPM http://ldr.io/1bEX9qx
46. HHVM NGINX Average Response Time: 37ms LAMP Apache 2.4 Event + FPM Average Response Time: 66ms
47. Lighty + FPM http://ldr.io/19thzkm Vs. LAMP Apache 2.2 Prefork http://ldr.io/19tjmG4
48. Lighty + FPM Average Response Time: 62ms LAMP Apache 2.2 Prefork Average Response Time: 191ms
49. LEMP http://ldr.io/1bF0nKG Vs. LAMP Apache 2.4 Prefork http://ldr.io/19tlC06
50. LEMP Average Response Time: 61ms LAMP Apache 2.4 Prefork Average Response Time: 63ms
51. LAMP Apache 2.4 Worker + FPM HHVM + Apache HHVM + NGINX LAMP Apache 2.4 Event + FPM Lighty LAMP Apache 2.2 Prefork LEMP LAMP Apache 2.4 Prefork 120 clients over 60 seconds HHVM + Apache HHVM + NGINX Lighty LEMP
52. HHVM Apache http://ldr.io/1F4oCLN Vs. HHVM NGINX http://ldr.io/1bF6BtZ
53. HHVM Apache Average Response Time: 42ms HHVM NGINX Average Response Time: 46ms
54. Lighty + FPM http://ldr.io/1bF7N0g Vs. LEMP http://ldr.io/19tuCCw
55. Lighty + FPM Average Response Time: 69ms LEMP Average Response Time: 74ms
56. LAMP Apache 2.4 Worker + FPM HHVM + Apache HHVM + NGINX LAMP Apache 2.4 Event + FPM Lighty LAMP Apache 2.2 Prefork LEMP LAMP Apache 2.4 Prefork 480 clients over 60 seconds HHVM + Apache HHVM + NGINX Lighty LEMP HHVM + Apache Lighty
57. HHVM Apache http://ldr.io/19tnztu Vs. Lighty + FPM http://ldr.io/19tupz5
58. HHVM Apache Average Response Time: 124ms Lighty + FPM Average Response Time: 258ms
59. HHVM Apache Champion of the Battle Of The Stacks WCATL 2015 Edition
60. Test the limits
61. HHVM Apache http://ldr.io/1HUQcyT Response time: 505ms Successful responses: 2490 over 60 seconds
62. Key Takeaways Image by János Csongor Kerekes https://www.flickr.com/photos/kjcs/
63. Thanks y’all Image by Trey Ratcliff https://www.flickr.com/photos/stuckincustoms/
64. Get in touch nic@epiclabs.com @nicdev Get the slides https://speakerdeck.com/nicdev