Compare Scenarios

Migration Step 1

Both scenarios define a migration step at this stage. Gaming Backend Platform: triggered by 'Single game server instance running at connection ceiling; h'. Social Feed Platform: triggered by 'PostgreSQL timeline read query p99 > 500ms; query plan for "'.

Migration Step 2

Both scenarios define a migration step at this stage. Gaming Backend Platform: triggered by 'Game server instances blocking on PostgreSQL writes at end-o'. Social Feed Platform: triggered by 'Fan-out worker queue lag during celebrity post events > 5 mi'.

Migration Step 3

Both scenarios define a migration step at this stage. Gaming Backend Platform: triggered by 'PostgreSQL event log table approaching 100B rows; reconnect '. Social Feed Platform: triggered by 'Redis memory utilization approaching 80% of a single node; R'.

Game server instance file descriptor count approaching OS limit (typically 65k open connections); WebSocket accept latency increasing; new connection establishment p99 > 200ms; CPU on game server instances > 70% during peak concurrent player count

Tier 1: WebSocket Connection Ceiling per Instance: Single game server instance WebSocket connection count limit; OS-level fd_max or application-level connection accept queue saturation. Recommended evolution: Increase OS fd_max to 512k and application connection accept queue depth; tune SO_REUSEPORT to allow multiple accept threads per socket; add game server instances and update consistent hashing ring; the affinity layer automatically routes new game rooms to the new instances as the ring expands: existing rooms are unaffected .

Redis command throughput > 500k/second; Redis CPU > 60%; per-tick Redis write latency p99 > 5ms (above the acceptable state sync threshold); game tick rate visibly dropping below target (30 ticks/second falling to 20) under load

Tier 2: Redis Game State Write Amplification: Game state serialization to Redis per tick producing more writes than expected; unoptimized state struct serialization writing entire state blob on any field change. Recommended evolution: Implement delta state serialization: only changed fields are written to Redis per tick using HSET with only the modified keys, not full state replacement; profile Redis command distribution per game tick to identify specific state fields with high churn; consider moving ephemeral per-tick state (player positions, projectile states) to local server memory with only durable state (scores, inventory changes) written to Redis .

Kafka consumer group lag for fan-out worker group growing steadily; feed propagation latency (time from post write to follower feed update) exceeding 30s p95; Redis write rate on feed keys elevated but not saturated; post activity rate normal

Tier 1: Fan-Out Worker Queue Backlog: Fan-out worker pool undersized for burst post activity or a celebrity post creating a sustained high-fan-out event. Recommended evolution: Add fan-out worker replicas; implement fan-out cost routing: route high-follower-count fan-out events to a dedicated high-cost worker pool with separate Kafka consumer group and Redis write quota; use follower count threshold (e.g., >50k followers) as the routing decision. Monitor fan-out cost per post as a first-class metric. .

Redis memory utilization > 75%; eviction rate rising; cache miss rate on feed reads increasing; cold feed read fallback queries appearing in PostgreSQL slow query log; feed read p99 > 100ms despite Redis being online

Tier 2: Redis Feed Memory Ceiling: Redis feed list storage approaching memory limit; feed items being evicted before TTL; or feed list cap set too high for available memory. Recommended evolution: Reduce feed list cap from current value toward 100–150 items; increase Redis cluster capacity or shard feed keys by user_id range across multiple Redis primaries; implement tiered feed storage: hot recent items in Redis, older items fetched from PostgreSQL on demand with explicit product UX affordance .