Content Delivery Network
A Content Delivery Network (CDN) is a geographically distributed network of servers that work together to deliver web content and applications to users more efficiently. It caches content at edge locations closer to end-users, reducing latency, improving load times, and enhancing reliability by distributing traffic across multiple servers. CDNs are commonly used for static assets like images, videos, CSS, and JavaScript files, as well as dynamic content and APIs.
Developers should use CDNs to optimize website and application performance, especially for global audiences, by minimizing latency and reducing server load. They are essential for handling high traffic volumes, improving security through DDoS protection and SSL/TLS offloading, and ensuring content availability during outages. Use cases include media streaming, e-commerce platforms, software distribution, and any web service requiring fast, reliable content delivery.