Benefits and Results
With SmartBear’s help, Blue Ridge Networks verified that its current system could handle 25 million new users per hour as well as 80 million user and configuration updates per hour. “We also learned that we can easily scale to 100 million new users per hour and 400 million users and configuration updates per hour,” adds Comlekoglu. “Without SmartBear, we could not have determined the boundaries of our infrastructure developed for AOL Tech Fortress powered by AppGuard.”
In addition to validating the Blue Ridge Networks infrastructure, engaging with SmartBear also reduced the risk of unknowns when going live and helped Blue Ridge Networks predict with confidence exactly how to scale as more AppGuard customers come online. “The cost-effective, adaptable load-testing solution offered by SmartBear makes it possible to create a simulated load environment within a matter of a few hours,” Comlekoglu adds. “The other solutions we evaluated required extra development time and resources that would result in delays making such alternative solutions impractical for our go-to-market timeline.”
The SmartBear reports also allowed Blue Ridge Networks to compare test results to raw server data and identify any changes that the server infrastructure required to support the AOL Tech Fortress for AppGuard solution. Comlekoglu and his team found the graphical reports generated by LoadUI Pro were very easy to interpret.
The test results helped Blue Ridge Networks determine that virtual CPUs added on the fly would eliminate any performance issues. The AppGuard support team then created a procedure to add virtual CPUs in case the need arises and prepared additional warm standby servers to bring online when specified load thresholds are reached.
“We experienced a first-class customer engagement with SmartBear,” Comlekoglu says. “From our account rep to the project manager and the top-notch engineering team, we always received prompt and professional service. With the help of SmartBear, our collaboration with AOL turned into a successful product-launch experience.”
Business Challenges
- Test whether a major client’s application can scale to support millions of users.
- Complete testing within a short time frame to support the go-to-market timeline.
- Partner with a testing provider that requires minimal input from internal resources.
- Identify a solution that generates easy-to-interpret reports for identifying necessary changes for supporting additional users.
SmartBear Professional Services
- Executes and completes application load testing within short time frames.
- Simulates application usage by millions of concurrent users.
- Generates reports that correlate testing results to raw server activity.
- Removes testing burden so testing teams can focus on application development.
Measurable Results
- Reduces application performance risks before going to market.
- Verifies number of new users and configuration changes per hour that applications can handle.
- Projects number of new users and user/configuration updates that applications can scale to.
- Determines whether virtual CPUs added on the fly will eliminate performance issues.
- Identifies threshold points for when to add warm stand-by servers for additional users.
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