What is a CDN (Content Delivery Network)

What is a CDN? A CDN (content delivery network) can speed up load times by helping to load the resources of your website. A CDN refers to a group of web servers, distributed geographically, that work together to deliver fast internet content. Content delivery networks allow for the quick transfer of website assets such as files that make up your website, images, and videos. A good content delivery network can even help guard your website against malicious attacks.

Is a CDN and Web Host the Same?

No, a CDN does not host any data. A CDN improves website performance by helping to cache content at the network edge, which means that the content is closer to the user and will load faster.

For example, if a user in another country wants to access your website. But your web host’s servers are not close enough. This will decrease the performance of your website. So, we’ll use a CDN (content delivery network) to cache the content closer to the user.

Are There Benefits to Using a CDN?

1. Improved website load times – Website visitors experience faster page load times distributed content from nearby CDN servers. Most website visitors are more inclined to leave a slow-loading website. A CDN can decrease load times, resulting in reduced bounce rates and more time people spend on a website.
2. Reduced bandwidth costs – One of the primary expenses for websites is bandwidth consumption costs. A CDN reduces the amount of data a website origin server (web host) must provide.
3. Increased content availability – Hardware failure and large amounts of traffic can interrupt normal website operation. Because a CDN uses multiple servers, it can withstand hardware failure and handle more traffic, sometimes better than many origin servers.
4. Improved website security – A CDN may improve security through optimizations such as DDoS mitigation, SSL certificate, improvements, and others.

How does a content delivery network (CDN) work?

A CDN is a network of servers linked together. They are placed at the exchange points of different networks to improve a website’s speed and connectivity. A CDN improves content by making it more cost-efficient, faster, reliable, and secure.