What is a Content Delivery Network (CDN)?

A content delivery network (CDN) is a network of geographically scattered cluster of servers that works simultaneously to provide fast distribution of internet content. A content delivery network (CDN) is a large distributed system of servers deployed in multiple data centers across the globe. So, if an end-user puts in a request for live content from the US, a CDN will deliver it to the closest server to minimize bandwidth requirements and it will also provide the possible smoothest video stream.

Advantages of using the content delivery network

Generally, the advantages of using the content delivery network (or CDN) differ depending on the needs and size of the internet property. Here are some advantages of using a Content Delivery Network (CDN):

• To accelerate website load times:  By allocating content nearer to the website visitors through the closer CDN server, visitors can accelerate their website load times.
• To alleviate bandwidth costs: The cost of bandwidth consumption is the main issue in hosting a website. As it is very expensive, so can require a significant part of your budget. CDNs are capable of minimizing the cost through caching & some other optimizations.
• To increase website security:  CDN can improve website security by giving DDoS mitigation,  upgrading security certificates, and other optimizations. 

How does CDN work?

CDN is a group of several servers that exist in different geographical regions around the world. The POPs are located nearer to populated areas in different countries across the world. For colossal countries, several POPs are present. The goal is to make it easy to access for the user to the nearer point. If the user sends the content request from such a website that uses the content delivery network (CDN), the content request will be directed towards nearer POP where website servers send back the requested data.  Several ways are used to route data toward specific POP. IP anycast is one of the ways to route data toward specific POP.

5centsCDN CDN Performance Benchmarking

5centsCD offers the smartest and fastest content delivery network. 5centsCDN offers the following features control panel, API, SSL, traffic director, web application Firewall,  DVR, origin shield, simulcasting, scheduled playlist, HTTP/2, VOD transcoding, Live transcoding, HTTP web acceleration, Zone bandwidth overage protection.

Moreover, 5centsCDN offers different networks such as standard, volume, premium, and enterprise!

• Standard – 10+ PoPs
• Volume – 30+ PoPs
• Premium – 60+ PoPs
• Enterprise – 1150+ PoPs

FAQs

1. Is CDN a single-server network? 
   • No, a cluster of servers across the globe
2. Does PoP mean a single server per location? 
   • No, the data center location
3. Is the performance or latency guaranteed? 
   • No, there are many factors that influence performance
4. Does the CDN offer 100% uptime or SLA? 
   • Yes, but performance and uptime vary from case to case a server being up and running 24×7 and not providing the best user experience does not make sense, hence if you wish to elaborate on specific requirements, we are happy to discuss them with you today!
5. Does enabling CDN increases my website performance?
   •  Yes, it’s of the factor but there are many application tuning that has to be done as well! For example, here are a few tips while optimizing WordPress you may consider these factors
     1. Images
        1. – Not being served in the latest format (WebP) for compatible browsers.
        2. – Images not correctly sized (Can be identified through a plugin and fixed in the media library).
     2. Fonts
        1. – Google Fonts and Font-Awesome’s Fonts take 10+ seconds to load on 3G mobile and slow Wi-Fi connections. During this period of time, the user doesn’t see any text, which increases your bounce rate.
        2. – The solution is to set up a fallback font that displays immediately so the user can interact with the site right away. You may set up a font display swap so that when the custom font has finished loading, the fallback font will be replaced.
     3. Third-party code
        1. – Loading third-party JS, which is slowing down the website. You may defer this script so it loads in the backend and the front-end renders immediately.
        2. Internal Code Optimization- ReCaptcha loads a lot of unnecessary Javascript. Replace this with HoneyPot or Akismet (A similar anti-spam protection service) to avoid loading unnecessary Javascript.
     4. – Plugins will often-times load their CSS and JS on every page, even if the plugin is only being used on one page. Limit these scripts and stylesheets to the necessary pages.  
6. Is the pricing across all networks the same? 
   • No, we have flat global pricing. Check out our pricing here!