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Apache Tomcat vs Unicorn: What are the differences?
Apache Tomcat vs. Unicorn
<Write Introduction here>
1. **Language Support**: Apache Tomcat supports Java-based applications, while Unicorn is specifically designed for Ruby applications, making it a better choice for Ruby on Rails projects.
2. **Web Server vs. Application Server**: Apache Tomcat is primarily an application server that supports Servlets and JSPs, while Unicorn is a web server that focuses on serving HTTP requests efficiently.
3. **Multi-threaded vs. Single-threaded**: Apache Tomcat is multi-threaded by nature, which allows it to handle multiple requests simultaneously, whereas Unicorn is single-threaded but utilizes worker processes to achieve concurrency.
4. **Scalability**: Apache Tomcat can be configured to run in a cluster for improved scalability, while Unicorn is more suited for deploying on a single server or behind a load balancer.
5. **Connection Handling**: Apache Tomcat uses a blocking I/O model for handling connections, which can lead to scalability issues under high load, whereas Unicorn employs a non-blocking I/O model that is more efficient in handling concurrent connections.
6. **Configuration**: Apache Tomcat requires extensive configuration and tuning for optimal performance, while Unicorn is designed to be simpler to set up and manage, making it more developer-friendly.
In Summary, Apache Tomcat and Unicorn differ in their language support, server types, threading models, scalability options, connection handling, and configuration requirements.
I have an integration service that pulls data from third party systems saves it and returns it to the user of the service. We can pull large data sets with the service and response JSON can go up to 5MB with gzip compression. I currently use Rails 6 and Ruby 2.7.2 and Puma web server. Slow clients tend to prevent other users from accessing the system. Am considering a switch to Unicorn.
Consider trying to use puma workers first. puma -w basically. That will launch multiple puma processes to manage the requests, like unicorn, but also run threads within those processes. You can turn the number of workers and number of threads to find the right memory footprint / request per second balance.
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 1. configure LVM with required logical volumes, format and mount for HTTP and Tomcat servers accordingly. 2. Install apache and tomcat. 3. Generate and apply selfsigned certs to http server. 4. Modify default ports on Tomcat to different ports. 5. Create users on RHEL for application support team. 6. 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.
Pros of Apache Tomcat
- Easy79
- Java72
- Popular49
- Spring web1
Pros of Unicorn
- Fast81
- Performance59
- Web server36
- Very light30
- Open Source30
- Rack http server27
- Load balancing18
- Great process management14
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Cons of Apache Tomcat
- Blocking - each http request block a thread3
- Easy to set up2
Cons of Unicorn
- Not multithreaded4
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