Project Name

Managing Peak Load with Apache Cassandra: Ensuring Reliability and Performance Under High Demand

Industry

Finance

Technology

Apache Cassandra, Kubernetes, Microservices

Overview

Our client manages critical government projects. They rely on an open-source Cassandra cluster to support their high-demand public-facing application, crucial for government services. However, seasonal peak loads led to query timeouts due to unpredictable spikes in data volume and user traffic, necessitating a solution for uninterrupted service.

Challenges

The client was experiencing a slowdown in the application’s performance that led to increased response times for read queries.
The client’s Cassandra database encountered escalated read query latencies, primarily attributed to the growing volume of data management and a higher number of concurrent users.
Even the disk space for Cassandra began to fill up rapidly, preventing the client from conducting essential maintenance activities and posing a potential threat to system stability.

Our Solution

Our developers provided a comprehensive solution to address the challenges faced by the client:

We helped them to identify the root cause for cassada query timeout which was due to increased data volume and the number of concurrent users.
We helped them to add nodes in their Cassandra cluster management without any downtime.
Helped them to clean up old data from existing nodes management that Cassandra does not do by default.
Help them to streamline their Cassandra maintenance activity through the open-source tool Cassandra Reaper because automated maintenance gives you the flexibility to schedule and run in a controlled manner like running it off business hours and pausing in business hours.

Data Flow Diagram

Conclusion

In conclusion, this use case underscores the valuable flexibility of Cassandra’s performance in managing fluctuating workloads. The ability to seamlessly add or remove nodes without downtime empowers organizations to effortlessly adapt to seasonal peak loads. However, it’s essential to note that data cleanup during node addition requires manual intervention. Moreover, for sustained cluster health, scheduled maintenance activities are pivotal. Relying solely on manual maintenance, such as compaction and nodetool repair, may prove insufficient; thus, the adoption of automated database maintenance tools like Cassandra Reaper becomes imperative.