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ApacheBench (ab)

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description ApacheBench (ab) Overview

ApacheBench (ab) is a command-line tool for benchmarking the performance of an HTTP server by simulating multiple concurrent users sending requests to a specified URL, measuring response times and throughput.

help ApacheBench (ab) FAQ

What does ApacheBench actually measure?

ApacheBench, usually called ab, sends repeated HTTP requests to one URL and reports response time, completed requests, failures, transfer rate, and requests per second. The Apache HTTP Server 2.4 documentation describes it as a benchmarking tool for estimating how many requests per second a server can serve. [ApacheBench documentation](https://httpd.apache.org/docs/current/en/programs/ab.html)

What do the -n and -c options mean in ApacheBench?

The -n option sets the total number of requests, while -c sets the number of requests made concurrently. For example, ab -n 1000 -c 20 https://example.com/ requests the same URL 1,000 times with up to 20 requests in flight.

Can ApacheBench test a POST endpoint?

Yes, ab supports methods such as POST and PUT when you provide a request body with the relevant options. A typical POST benchmark also needs a content type, such as application/json, and a file containing the request payload.

What is ApacheBench not good at simulating?

It is best suited to simple repeated requests against one target URL, not realistic multi-step browser journeys. It does not reproduce a full user's session with JavaScript, image loading, navigation, or several dependent API calls.

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