Tag: Performance

1. Layering Server-Side Caching Correctly

   May 9, 2026

   Running OPcache, Redis, Varnish and a CDN without a clear division of responsibility produces inconsistent load times and hard to reproduce bugs caused by stale data. This article explains how each layer solves a distinct problem, how invalidation works reliably across tags and TTLs, and how request locking and probabilistic early renewal prevent cache stampedes from overwhelming the origin.

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2. Tree Shaking and Bundle Analysis in Practice

   May 4, 2026

   Unused code surprisingly often still ends up in the production bundle, because CommonJS imports, barrel files, or a wrongly set sideEffects flag prevent the bundler from removing it. This article shows mechanically how tree shaking works, which patterns block it, and how bundle analyzer tools make the root causes visible with concrete kilobyte numbers.

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3. Animation Performance: transform and opacity Instead of Layout Properties

   Apr 29, 2026

   Every animation passes through the browser's rendering pipeline of layout, paint, and composite, and animating width, top, or margin forces the browser into expensive recalculations on every single frame. This article shows why transform and opacity run almost for free on the compositor thread, how to use will-change correctly, and how to refactor existing animations for real gains.

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4. Synthetic Monitoring with Lighthouse CI

   Apr 22, 2026

   Lighthouse CI measures performance in a controlled, repeatable way directly inside the pipeline, preventing slow deployments from ever going live. This article explains the difference from Real User Monitoring, walks through a complete lighthouserc configuration with budget assertions, covers historical trend tracking, and shows why testing only the homepage creates a dangerous false sense of security for Magento stores.

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5. Connection Pooling and Keep-Alive for Less Overhead

   Apr 21, 2026

   Every new TCP and TLS connection costs several network round trips before the first useful byte reaches the client, and naive implementations pay that setup cost again on every single request. HTTP Keep-Alive, connection pools between PHP-FPM and backend services, and modern HTTP/2 and HTTP/3 multiplexing eliminate exactly this overhead. This article shows how Nginx, Redis, MySQL, and Guzzle clients deliberately reuse connections.

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6. HTTP/2 vs. HTTP/3: What Changes for Performance

   Apr 16, 2026

   HTTP/3 replaces TCP with the new transport protocol QUIC, solving a problem HTTP/2 never fully fixed despite multiplexing. Understanding how head of line blocking, 0-RTT handshakes, and connection migration actually work technically lets you realistically judge what the new protocol really does for Magento stores and their mobile visitors.

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7. Using Redis as a Caching Layer in Magento Correctly

   Apr 4, 2026

   Redis handles three distinct roles in Magento at once: session storage, object cache backend, and optionally Full Page Cache. Storing all three roles in the same database risks tag collisions, unnecessary cache flushes, and in the worst case logged-out customers from lost sessions. This article shows how to configure, monitor, and protect Redis in Magento from running out of memory.

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8. The Critical Rendering Path in Detail: From HTML to Pixels

   Apr 3, 2026

   Every web page moves through a fixed pipeline from the first HTML byte to the first visible pixel: DOM construction, CSSOM construction, render tree, layout, paint and compositing. Understanding these six stages mechanically shows exactly why render blocking scripts and stylesheets delay the first visible content, and where preload, defer and async hints actually change browser behavior in the pipeline.

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9. Full Page Cache Architecture in Magento in Detail

   Mar 27, 2026

   Magento's Full Page Cache decides entire page load times in milliseconds, yet most developers only know the symptoms of cache misses, not the mechanics behind them. This article explains cache_id generation, private content, cache tag invalidation, and systematic debugging with X-Magento-Cache-Debug, regardless of whether Varnish or the built-in cache is in use.

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10. GPU Compositing and Layers: Animations Without Jank

    Mar 23, 2026

    Choppy animations almost always happen because the browser has to recalculate layout and paint on every frame instead of handing the work off to the GPU. This article explains how compositor layers form, why transform and opacity are nearly free to animate, how will-change gets used correctly and incorrectly, and how to spot and fix layer problems with Chrome DevTools.

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