My CDN Journey and What I Learned
In the past year, I’ve overseen a website that went from using 500 GB of data per month to a whopping 100 TB. Let me take you through the CDNs I tried out and what I thought of each one. Now, keep in mind that this isn’t a complete guide to every CDN network out there, but it’s a reflection on what I learned during my time with them.
Cloudfront: A Deal to Avoid
Let me start by saying that using Cloudfront as my CDN was a costly mistake. It’s part of Amazon Web Services, which I was already familiar with. At the beginning, we only needed 500 GB per month, so the cost wasn’t too bad. But things changed as our site grew.
We started moving all our smaller files to Cloudfront, including our CSS, JavaScript, and even our HTML files. From 500 GB, our data consumption soared to 5 TB, then 10, and finally 50. The charges piled up quickly, especially since Cloudfront also had additional fees for requests.
But the problems didn’t stop there. I found it frustrating that I couldn’t easily invalidate items through the online AWS interface. Instead, I had to use command line tools or write a script to clear specific files from the cache. The reporting features were also lacking. As much as I love AWS for most projects, using Cloudfront to distribute files was not one of my favorites.
MaxCDN / NetDNA: A Pleasant Surprise
I have to say, I really enjoyed using MaxCDN. Their interface was a delight to work with, and they provided informative graphs for every metric you could want. Invalidating the cache was as easy as pie. Eventually, we got moved to NetDNA, which seemed to offer the same services under a different name. I believe we negotiated a rate of around 5-6 cents per GB, which was a good deal.
Here’s the important lesson I learned about CDN pricing: you should negotiate. The CDN market is competitive, and you can play different providers against each other to get a better deal. It’s like getting a mortgage quote, with account reps asking to see the other company’s contract. When I got price quotes from MaxCDN/NetDNA, I was able to negotiate a better rate without any competition. Plus, MaxCDN often has great promotional deals for both new and existing customers.
Overall, I was satisfied with MaxCDN/NetDNA, but there were some limitations in caching content that led us to part ways. However, they receive my approval for their service, user interface, and pricing. They would have met 99% of my needs, except for that one specific instance.
Edgecast: A Developer’s Dream
Edgecast is a large company with a strong network and competitive pricing. Their system solved the caching issue we had with NetDNA, so we struck a deal with them. While their pricing wasn’t as good as NetDNA, their backend offered incredible flexibility. It was definitely designed by developers for developers. However, the user interface left much to be desired.
Adding to the slight downside, Edgecast charged extra for certain features that other providers included in their pricing. Real-time reporting was one such feature. Despite these small annoyances, we’re currently using Edgecast due to their excellent pricing and development flexibility. If I could create the perfect CDN, it would have the price and user interface of NetDNA combined with Edgecast’s administration options.
Conclusion
I won’t go into speed comparisons because all three CDNs I tested performed excellently. The difference in speed was practically negligible. Here are the main takeaways from my experience:
- Avoid using Cloudfront.
- Don’t be afraid to negotiate the price with CDN providers.
- I have a preference for MaxCDN/NetDNA, but the choice ultimately depends on your specific needs.
Yes, there are many other CDN networks out there, but this isn’t about them. This is my personal journey and the lessons I learned along the way.
Yes, there are many other CDN networks out there, but this isn’t about them. This is my personal journey and the lessons I learned along the way.
