How does the chat work?

The world of online communication has drastically changed in recent years, with chat now becoming one of the most preferred means of communicating online. A chat service can be an effective tool for communication, especially when it comes to customer support. However, the service needs to have the proper resources and architecture to handle a high volume of users.

Let's consider a hypothetical scenario where a chat service has 1000 rooms, with 50 users in each room. In this case, it is important to have a chat architecture that can handle such a massive load. The chat service should have the ability to handle a heavy load while maintaining its stability and speed.

The chat service is based on the exchange of data between the browser and the server. It utilizes WebSocket technology (WebSocket Protocol), which enables constant data exchange between the server and the user's browser. This technology is ideal for services that require real-time communication, such as online games, real-time marketplaces, and of course, chat services.

To handle the high volume of users, all users connect to the comet server CppComet. This server is powered by comet technology and is written in C++. It is a multithreaded server, which means it can handle a heavy load. CppComet provides an API that describes the process of sending messages from the chat backend to the frontend via websockets.

The chat backend is written in PHP and designed as a plugin for the October CMS. October CMS is a flexible and fast system based on Laravel. It provides a convenient admin panel, functions for working with site files, and many other additional plugins that you may find useful. October CMS also provides a caching mechanism, such as Redis, Memcached, or file cache.

The chat frontend is written in JavaScript using JQuery. The database is managed using either MySQL or MariaDB. Load testing of the chat has been conducted. The behavior of users will significantly affect how often they send messages and switch between dialogs. An active user that sends messages will have their requests processed by the server, and the messages will be stored in the database.

To improve the chat service's performance, the chat caching mechanism in the Indexed Database API is employed. This database can store a large amount of data inside any browser. When a user switches dialogs, the browser retrieves the result from the local cache, and the server sends a request in the background to check for messages that were not cached. This mechanism ensures that the chat can work even when there is no internet connection. As a result, the user receives a response instantly, and the chat itself works well.

If the chat is used on a Cordova application, files in messages such as images and audio are also cached. This makes the application work like a standard messenger.

In conclusion, a well-architected chat service is essential to handle a high volume of users. The use of WebSocket technology, a powerful comet server like CppComet, a flexible and fast CMS like October CMS, and Indexed Database API caching are crucial components for a chat service that can handle high traffic.

Another articles:

• Basic ImbaChat functions.
• Chat embedding in any block on the site
• Self-hosted version FAQ