Apache Tomcat vs Socket.IO

Overview

Socket.IO

Stacks13.6K

Followers11.0K

Votes776

Apache Tomcat

Stacks16.9K

Followers12.6K

Votes201

GitHub Stars8.0K

Forks5.3K

Apache Tomcat vs Socket.IO: What are the differences?

Introduction: Apache Tomcat and Socket.IO are both popular technologies used for web development, but they have key differences that set them apart.

Architecture: Apache Tomcat is a Java-based web server and servlet container, while Socket.IO is a real-time web application framework for Node.js. This difference in architecture affects how they handle web requests and manage connections.
Functionality: Apache Tomcat primarily serves static and dynamic content through Java servlets, JSP, and Java applications. On the other hand, Socket.IO is focused on enabling real-time bidirectional event-based communication between clients and servers using WebSocket protocol.
Scalability: Apache Tomcat can be scaled horizontally by adding more server instances behind a load balancer, whereas Socket.IO can handle thousands of concurrent connections using a single Node.js server instance, making it highly scalable for real-time applications.
Compatibility: Apache Tomcat is compatible with various Java applications and frameworks, making it a popular choice for Java developers. Socket.IO, on the other hand, is specifically designed for Node.js applications and leverages its event-driven, non-blocking I/O model.
Community Support: Apache Tomcat has a large and active community of developers and contributors who provide continuous updates, maintenance, and support. Socket.IO also has a supportive community, but it is more focused on real-time web applications and may not have as wide a range of use cases as Apache Tomcat.
Performance: In terms of performance, Apache Tomcat is known for its efficiency in serving Java-based web applications, while Socket.IO excels in handling real-time communication with low latency and high throughput, making it ideal for chat applications, online gaming, and live streaming.

In Summary, Apache Tomcat and Socket.IO differ in architecture, functionality, scalability, compatibility, community support, and performance, catering to different needs in web development.

Share your Stack

Help developers discover the tools you use. Get visibility for your team's tech choices and contribute to the community's knowledge.

View Docs

CLI (Node.js)

Manual

Advice on Socket.IO, Apache Tomcat

Noam

Jul 16, 2020

Needs adviceon

Node.js

ExpressJS

React

We are starting to work on a web-based platform aiming to connect artists (clients) and professional freelancers (service providers). In-app, timeline-based, real-time communication between users (& storing it), file transfers, and push notifications are essential core features. We are considering using Node.js, ExpressJS, React, MongoDB stack with Socket.IO & Apollo, or maybe using Real-Time Database and functionalities of Firebase.

1.15M views1.15M

Comments

Hari

Mar 3, 2020

Needs advice

I was in a situation where I have to configure 40 RHEL servers 20 each for Apache HTTP Server and Tomcat server. My task was to

configure LVM with required logical volumes, format and mount for HTTP and Tomcat servers accordingly.
Install apache and tomcat.
Generate and apply selfsigned certs to http server.
Modify default ports on Tomcat to different ports.
Create users on RHEL for application support team.
other administrative tasks like, start, stop and restart HTTP and Tomcat services.

I have utilized the power of ansible for all these tasks, which made it easy and manageable.

419k views419k

Comments

Anil

Mar 7, 2020

Needs advice

I want to add uWebSockets.js in my application for real-time chatting, for that, I have to draw a UML and ufd diagram flow then I have to implement it in my code, my stack is node js, android, express, MongoDB, Redis. how can I do this? I want to add uWebSockets.js in my application for real-time chatting, for that, I have to draw a UML and ufd diagram flow then I have to implement it in my code, my stack is node js, android, express, MongoDB, Redis. how can I do this?I want to add uWebSockets.js in my application for real-time chatting, for that, I have to draw a UML and ufd diagram flow then I have to implement it in my code, my stack is node js, android, express, MongoDB, Redis. how can I do this?i want to add uWebSockets.js in my application for real time chatting, for that i have to draw a uml and ufd diagram flow then i have to implement it in my code , my stack is node js , android , express , mongoDb, redis . how can i do a this?

46.7k views46.7k

Comments

Detailed Comparison

Socket.IO	Apache Tomcat
It enables real-time bidirectional event-based communication. It works on every platform, browser or device, focusing equally on reliability and speed.	Apache Tomcat powers numerous large-scale, mission-critical web applications across a diverse range of industries and organizations.
Real-time analytics - Push data to clients that gets represented as real-time counters, charts or logs.;Binary streaming - Starting in 1.0, it's possible to send any blob back and forth: image, audio, video.;Instant messaging and chat - Socket.IO's "Hello world" is a chat app in just a few lines of code.;Document collaboration - Allow users to concurrently edit a document and see each other's changes.	-
Statistics
GitHub Stars -	GitHub Stars 8.0K
GitHub Forks -	GitHub Forks 5.3K
Stacks 13.6K	Stacks 16.9K
Followers 11.0K	Followers 12.6K
Votes 776	Votes 201
Pros & Cons
Pros 219 Real-time 143 Node.js 141 Event-based communication 102 WebSockets 102 Open source Cons 12 Bad documentation 4 Githubs that complement it are mostly deprecated 3 Doesn't work on React Native 2 Small community 2 Websocket Errors	Pros 79 Easy 72 Java 49 Popular 1 Spring web Cons 3 Blocking - each http request block a thread 2 Easy to set up
Integrations
Auth0 Gatsby Flutter React Backbone.js Cloud Firestore Outbrain	No integrations available

What are some alternatives to Socket.IO, Apache Tomcat?

NGINX

nginx [engine x] is an HTTP and reverse proxy server, as well as a mail proxy server, written by Igor Sysoev. According to Netcraft nginx served or proxied 30.46% of the top million busiest sites in Jan 2018.

Firebase

Firebase is a cloud service designed to power real-time, collaborative applications. Simply add the Firebase library to your application to gain access to a shared data structure; any changes you make to that data are automatically synchronized with the Firebase cloud and with other clients within milliseconds.

Apache HTTP Server

The Apache HTTP Server is a powerful and flexible HTTP/1.1 compliant web server. Originally designed as a replacement for the NCSA HTTP Server, it has grown to be the most popular web server on the Internet.

Unicorn

Unicorn is an HTTP server for Rack applications designed to only serve fast clients on low-latency, high-bandwidth connections and take advantage of features in Unix/Unix-like kernels. Slow clients should only be served by placing a reverse proxy capable of fully buffering both the the request and response in between Unicorn and slow clients.

PubNub

PubNub makes it easy for you to add real-time capabilities to your apps, without worrying about the infrastructure. Build apps that allow your users to engage in real-time across mobile, browser, desktop and server.

Microsoft IIS

Internet Information Services (IIS) for Windows Server is a flexible, secure and manageable Web server for hosting anything on the Web. From media streaming to web applications, IIS's scalable and open architecture is ready to handle the most demanding tasks.

Pusher

Pusher is the category leader in delightful APIs for app developers building communication and collaboration features.

Passenger

Phusion Passenger is a web server and application server, designed to be fast, robust and lightweight. It takes a lot of complexity out of deploying web apps, adds powerful enterprise-grade features that are useful in production, and makes administration much easier and less complex.

SignalR

SignalR allows bi-directional communication between server and client. Servers can now push content to connected clients instantly as it becomes available. SignalR supports Web Sockets, and falls back to other compatible techniques for older browsers. SignalR includes APIs for connection management (for instance, connect and disconnect events), grouping connections, and authorization.

Ably

Ably offers WebSockets, stream resume, history, presence, and managed third-party integrations to make it simple to build, extend, and deliver digital realtime experiences at scale.

Related Comparisons

Bootstrap vs Materialize

Django vs Laravel vs Node.js

Bootstrap vs Foundation vs Material UI

Node.js vs Spring-Boot

Flyway vs Liquibase

Apache Tomcat vs Socket.IO: What are the differences?

Introduction: Apache Tomcat and Socket.IO are both popular technologies used for web development, but they have key differences that set them apart.

Architecture: Apache Tomcat is a Java-based web server and servlet container, while Socket.IO is a real-time web application framework for Node.js. This difference in architecture affects how they handle web requests and manage connections.
Functionality: Apache Tomcat primarily serves static and dynamic content through Java servlets, JSP, and Java applications. On the other hand, Socket.IO is focused on enabling real-time bidirectional event-based communication between clients and servers using WebSocket protocol.
Scalability: Apache Tomcat can be scaled horizontally by adding more server instances behind a load balancer, whereas Socket.IO can handle thousands of concurrent connections using a single Node.js server instance, making it highly scalable for real-time applications.
Compatibility: Apache Tomcat is compatible with various Java applications and frameworks, making it a popular choice for Java developers. Socket.IO, on the other hand, is specifically designed for Node.js applications and leverages its event-driven, non-blocking I/O model.
Community Support: Apache Tomcat has a large and active community of developers and contributors who provide continuous updates, maintenance, and support. Socket.IO also has a supportive community, but it is more focused on real-time web applications and may not have as wide a range of use cases as Apache Tomcat.
Performance: In terms of performance, Apache Tomcat is known for its efficiency in serving Java-based web applications, while Socket.IO excels in handling real-time communication with low latency and high throughput, making it ideal for chat applications, online gaming, and live streaming.

In Summary, Apache Tomcat and Socket.IO differ in architecture, functionality, scalability, compatibility, community support, and performance, catering to different needs in web development.