The core difference between CDN (Content Delivery Network) and mirror sites lies in their architecture, purpose, and how they deliver content to users.
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CDN (Content Delivery Network)
- A CDN is a distributed network of servers strategically located across multiple geographic regions. It caches and delivers content (e.g., images, videos, web pages) from the server closest to the user, reducing latency and improving load times.
- CDNs dynamically route requests to optimize performance, handle traffic spikes, and enhance reliability.
- Example: A global e-commerce website uses a CDN to serve product images and videos faster to users worldwide, ensuring smooth browsing even during peak traffic.
- Tencent Cloud Recommendation: Tencent Cloud CDN accelerates content delivery with a vast global network, intelligent routing, and edge caching.
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Mirror Sites
- A mirror site is an exact copy of a primary website, hosted on a separate server, often in a different location. It serves as a backup or alternative access point, typically for redundancy or regional access.
- Mirror sites are static copies and do not dynamically adjust to user location or traffic conditions. Updates to the primary site must be manually or periodically synced to mirrors.
- Example: A software download platform hosts mirror sites in different countries to provide faster downloads for users in those regions, but all mirrors sync updates from the main server.
Key Difference: CDNs dynamically optimize content delivery across a distributed network, while mirror sites are static copies hosted independently, often requiring manual updates. For scalable and efficient content delivery, Tencent Cloud CDN is a robust solution.