Content Delivery Network
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A CDN (content delivery network), also called a content distribution network, is a group of geographically distributed and interconnected servers that provide cached internet content from a network location closest to a user to accelerate its delivery. The primary goal of a CDN is to improve web performance by reducing the time needed to transmit content and rich media to users’ internet-connected devices.
Content delivery network architecture is also designed to reduce network latency, which is often caused by hauling traffic over long distances and across multiple networks. Eliminating latency has become increasingly important, as more dynamic content, video and software as a service are delivered to a growing number of mobile devices.
CDN providers house cached content in either their own network points of presence (POP) or in third-party data centers. When a user requests content from a website, if that content is cached on a content delivery network, the CDN redirects the request to the server nearest to that user and delivers the cached content from its location at the network edge. This process is generally invisible to the user.
Benefits of CDN
Performance
High performing website equals high conversion and growing sales. Latency and speed issues tend to cripple web businesses and cause damage. A few seconds can mean the difference between a successful conversion or a bounce. A reliable CDN ensures that the load speed is more than optimal and that online transactions are made seamlessly.
Reach
Over one third of the world’s population is online, which means that the global use of the internet has increased exponentially over the last 15 years. CDNs provide solutions through cloud acceleration with local POPs. This global reach will eliminate any latency problems that interrupt long-distance online transactions and cause slow load times.
100% Availability
Due to the distribution of assets across many regions, CDNs have automatic server availability sensing mechanisms with instant user redirection. As a result, CDN websites experience 100 percent availability, even during massive power outages, hardware issues or network problems.
Decrease Server Load
The strategic placement of a CDN can decrease the server load on interconnects, public and private peers and backbones, freeing up the overall capacity and decreasing delivery costs. Essentially, the content is spread out across several servers, as opposed to offloading them onto one large server.
Cost-Savings
A global CDN can eliminate the need to pay for costly foreign hosting and thus, save your business a lot of money. A global CDN offers a single platform to handle all of the separate operations, working across numerous regions for a reasonable price. CDNs are also recommended for companies with a tight budget.