Systems never pass the first test
Out of our entire list of services customers, only a handful have satisfied their performance goals on the first test. Of those, all but one had been through a performance testing campaign with us in the previous year. If this is the first time for your project or your organization to undertake performance testing, you are virtually guaranteed to fail the first test.
There is a large list of things that can go wrong with modern web systems – firewalls, load balancers, databases, web servers and, of course, the code. One setting buried deep in an Apache config file can make or break your scalability. If you plan for multiple load testing iterations starting early in the development process, those kinks can all be worked out with time to spare. But if you plan the first test for the day before go-live, you are headed for disaster!
Chris Merrill, Chief Engineer
When his dad brought home a Commodore PET computer, Chris was drawn into computers. 7 years later, after finishing his degree in Computer and Electrical Engineering at Purdue University, he found himself writing software for industrial control systems. His first foray into testing software resulted in an innovative control system for testing lubricants in automotive engines. The Internet grabbed his attention and he became one of the first Sun Certified Java Developers. His focus then locked on performance testing of websites. As Chief Engineer for Web Performance since 2001, Chris now spends his time turning real-world testing challenges into new features for the Load Tester product.