Server Side Game Developer Roadmap

Server-Side Development

The term "server-side" refers to operations that are performed by the server in a client-server relationship in a computer network. In games, the server-side is responsible for the logic and rules of the game, data persistence, security, and synchronization of the game state among all connected clients. It…

TCP

TCP, an acronym for Transmission Control Protocol, is a fundamental protocol in the suite of internet protocols. It is a connection-oriented, reliable, byte stream service that sits at the transport layer of the OSI Model. In simpler terms, TCP enables two hosts to establish a connection and exchange data. During…

Checksum

A checksum in TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is a 16-bit field in the TCP header used to perform error checks on the segments. TCP stack computes the checksum value for the data transmitted and sends it along with the data to the receiving system. The receiving system re-computes the checksum and compares it…

Segment Structure

TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) uses a method called "segmentation" to manage data transmission. In this approach, TCP divides a stream of data into smaller parts, known as "segments". Each of these segments is then independently sent over the internet. A basic TCP segment consists of a header and the data…

Vulnerability

TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is an important protocol known for its reliability in delivering data packets, but it also has several vulnerabilities. The most significant weakness is TCP’s susceptibility to a variety of Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks, such as TCP SYN flood attacks, where an attacker sends a…

UDP

UDP, or User Datagram Protocol, is a communications protocol that sends data over the internet. Unlike TCP (Transmission Control Protocol), it's a connectionless protocol that doesn't ensure data packet delivery. It transmits datagrams – an independent, discrete packet of data – without first establishing a proper…

Reliability

Reliability refers to how consistently a data packet can be transferred from one system to another over a network. In terms of the User Datagram Protocol (UDP), it has a lack of reliability built into it. This means UDP does not guarantee that your data will reach its destination, it merely sends the packets…

Datagram

A Datagram is the basic unit of data transfer in network communication using protocols such as User Datagram Protocol (UDP). Each datagram operates independently of each other, meaning they may be received in a different order than they were sent, or they might not be received at all. Therefore, unlike TCP…

Congestion Control

Congestion Control is a critical feature of TCP, but not inherently a part of UDP. The primary purpose of congestion control is to prevent too much data from being sent into the network such that it can't handle the traffic, leading to packet loss. TCP's congestion control mechanism adjusts the data send rate based…

Checksum

The checksum is an important element in UDP that ensures the integrity and validation of the data being transmitted. It computes the total sum of all the bytes in a packet and incorporates it as an additional checksum field in the UDP header. When the packet arrives at its destination, this process is repeated and…

Packet Structure

UDP or User Datagram Protocol is designed to send messages known as datagrams over the network. The packet structure of UDP is relatively simple compared to other protocol types. Each UDP header consists of 4 fields, each of 2 bytes. These 4 fields are namely: Source Port, Destination Port, Length, and Checksum.…

TCP vs UDP

TCP, or Transmission Control Protocol, is a connection-oriented protocol that guarantees delivery of packets to the destination router. It includes error-checking and ensures packets are delivered in the correct order. On the other hand, UDP, or User Datagram Protocol, is a connectionless protocol which doesn't…

Ordered vs Unordered

In the context of TCP vs UDP, "ordered" and "not ordered" refers to the order in which packets are received. In TCP (Transmission Control Protocol), packets are ordered. This means that the packets of data are sent and received in the same order. For example, if packet 1, packet 2, and packet 3 are sent in that…

Heavy vs Lightweight

TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is often described as a "heavyweight" protocol because it provides numerous features such as error-checking, guaranteed delivery, and order-of-arrival of data packets, which makes it more complex to implement in the server. This complexity results in additional server load,…

Packet vs Datagram

Packet and Datagram are terms used in data communication.

Reliable vs Unreliable

In the context of network communication, the terms "reliable" and "unreliable" refer to whether or not data sent across the network is guaranteed to reach its destination. Reliable protocols, such as TCP, ensure that data is delivered from sender to receiver without loss. They do this by establishing a connection,…

Streaming vs Broadcast

In the context of network protocol, streaming and broadcasting are two methods for transmitting data packets. Streaming, often performed over TCP, entails sending data from one source to a single specific destination. This method is comparable to a one-to-one phone call. The streaming process is characterized by…

Denial of Service

Denial of Service (DoS) is a malicious attempt to disrupt the regular functioning of a network, service, or server by overwhelming the network or server with a flood of internet traffic. The most common type of DoS attack involves flooding the target with unnecessary requests in an attempt to overload the system.…

Connection Hijacking

Connection hijacking, also known as session hijacking, is a serious security threat in the realm of server side game development. It refers to the exploitation of a valid computer session, or more precisely, the intrusion of an unauthorized user into a valid connection between two nodes or endpoints. The attacker…

Veto

Veto is often used in multiplayer games to prevent or allow certain actions during the game. For instance, players can issue commands to block specific actions from their opponents. As a server-side game developer, you must ensure security measures are in place to validate the authenticity of these commands to…

Max Segment Size

Max Segment Size (MSS) is a crucial concept in TCP networking, representing the largest amount of data that can be sent in a single TCP segment, excluding the TCP header. MSS is vital for optimizing performance in server-side game development, as it helps to avoid fragmentation and ensures that data is transmitted…

Window Scaling

Window Scaling is a mechanism in the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) that provides support for larger receiver window sizes beyond the maximum limit of 65,535 bytes. This TCP feature is essential when dealing with high latency or high bandwidth networks (common in server-side game development), where frames…

Connection

Connection in server-side game development refers to the establishment of a link between the game server and the game client (usually the player's device). This connection can either be persistent or non-persistent, depending on the game’s requirements. Persistent connections remain active as long as the user is…

Resource Usage

In server-side game development, resource usage broadly refers to how a game uses the server's computational power, memory, storage, and networking capabilities. These resources are crucial in assuring overall game performance and responsiveness. When monitoring resource usage, you typically pay attention to CPU…

Max Segment Scaling

Max Segment Scaling (MSS) is a TCP feature that defines the maximum amount of data that can be received in a single TCP segment. It is specified during the TCP connection establishment phase. The MSS is calculated as the data link layer Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) minus the size of the TCP and IP headers. The…

Timestamp

A timestamp in server side game development is essentially a sequence of characters, encoding the date and time at which a certain event occurred. This data is particularly significant when tracking the sequence of certain events, debugging issues, logging, and when performing any sort of data analysis. The…

Data Transfer

Data transfer in server-side game development refers to the movement of data between the server and client or among various components of the server itself. Game data, such as player scores, game states, and updates, are frequently transferred to ensure a consistent and updated gaming environment. Various methods…

Out-of-Band Data

"Out of band" data, in the context of server-side game development, refers to data that is transmitted separately from the main data stream. This data is used for managing control information rather than actual game data, for instance, data regarding the status of the server, notifications about issues, or urgent…

Selective Ack.

Selective Acknowledgement (SACK) is a mechanism introduced in TCP to improve its efficiency in handling packet loss in the network. When TCP detects packet loss, it normally retransmits all packets sent after the lost packet, regardless of whether they were received successfully or not. SACK, however, allows the…

IP

Internet Protocol (IP) is the primary method used to send and receive messages on the internet. It's a set of rules that dictate how data should be delivered over the internet. An IP address is a unique string of numbers separated by periods that identifies each device using the Internet Protocol to communicate…

Capability

In server-side game development, capability basically refers to the potential of the server in terms of supporting the game mechanics, the players, the network traffic, and other elements that allow the game to function effectively. Hosting servers condition the player's game interface and user experience,…

Reliability

The Reliability in terms of IP (Internet Protocol) generally refers to the dependability and consistency of the network connections. It's essentially about how reliable the data transfer is over the network. IP itself is an unreliable protocol, meaning it doesn't guarantee the delivery of data packets. This is…

Link Capacity

Link capacity, also known as bandwidth, refers to the maximum amount of data that can be transmitted over a network link within a given period of time. It is usually measured in bits per second (bps), kilobits per second (Kbps), megabits per second (Mbps), gigabits per second (Gbps), or terabits per second (Tbps).…

Congestion Control

Congestion control is a fundamental mechanism in TCP that prevents excessive data transmission from overwhelming the network, ensuring stable and efficient communication. In server-side game development, congestion control helps maintain smooth gameplay by dynamically adjusting the data flow based on network…

Reliable Transmission

Reliable transmission ensures that data sent over a network reaches its destination accurately and in the correct order, a critical requirement for server-side game development. TCP achieves this through mechanisms like acknowledgments (ACKs), sequence numbers, and retransmission strategies. When a packet is lost…

Flow Control

Flow control is a crucial mechanism in TCP that regulates data transmission between a sender and a receiver to prevent network congestion and packet loss. In server-side game development, effective flow control ensures smooth data transfer, reducing latency and improving real-time responsiveness for multiplayer…

Error Detection

Error detection ensures data integrity in TCP-based communication, preventing corrupted or altered packets from disrupting server-side game interactions. TCP uses checksums to verify data integrity, detecting bit errors during transmission. If an error is found, the corrupted packet is discarded, and retransmission…

Transactions

In server-side game development, transactions are critical elements that facilitate the exchange or interaction between different processes and data streams. These are usually carried out via a database or a server and are atomically treated as a single unit of work, ensuring data consistency and integrity.…

Programming Languages

Programming languages are an essential part of game development. They create the logic and rules for how your game operates. There are various types of programming languages that a server side game developer can use, such as C++, Python, Ruby, etc. These languages have different syntax and structures, as well as…

Category

The Internet Protocol Addresses (IP Addresses) are categorized into five different classes, namely, Class A, Class B, Class C, Class D, and Class E.

Security

In server-side game development, the aspect of IP (Internet Protocol) security is of paramount importance. This primarily involves ensuring the safety of online gaming interactions, protection of sensitive user data being transmitted, and thwarting possible cyber-attacks or threats. This might include mitigation…

ARP

ARP or Address Resolution Protocol is a protocol used to map an IP address to a physical address on the network, such as a MAC address. A device uses ARP when it needs to forward a packet to another device on the same network but only has the IP address. ARP broadcasts a request packet to all devices on the local…

DNS

Domain Name System (DNS) is an internet service that translates domain names into IP addresses. The internet uses IP addresses to locate and connect different computers, but these numerical addresses can be difficult to remember or use practically. Therefore, DNS allows users to type in a domain name, such as…

DHCP

DHCP, or Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol, is an internet protocol that enables automatic assignment of IP addresses to devices on a network. Its key role in network systems is to eliminate the manual task of assigning IP addresses in a large network. DHCP can be implemented in small, medium, or large networks…

IPv6

IPv6, which stands for Internet Protocol version 6, is the most recent version of the Internet Protocol (IP), formulated to rectify the impending issue of IPv4 address exhaustion. Unlike IPv4, which uses 32-bit address, IPv6 employs a 128-bit address, enabling a massive number of unique IP addresses to exist. This…

IPv4

IPv4, or Internet Protocol Version 4, is the fourth version of IP (Internet Protocol). It's a foundational protocol that routes most of the Internet traffic today, even with the growing reach of IPv6. IPv4 is responsible for identifying devices on a network through an addressing system. The IPv4 uses a 32-bit…

TLS

Socket Programming

Socket programming is a method of communication between two computers using a network protocol, typically TCP/IP. In server-side game development, socket programming is used to facilitate real-time, bi-directional communication between the server and client(s). The server opens a socket that waits for incoming…

Byte Manipulation

Byte manipulation, in the context of socket programming, often refers to the ability to directly interact and manage bytes of data. This could involve creating, modifying, or reading individual bytes or groups of bytes. Common operations include shifting (moving bytes to the left or right), masking (using a binary…

Address Conversion

In socket programming, address conversion functions are important for handling internet addresses. Functions like inetpton() (presentation to network) and inetntop() (network to presentation) are frequently used. inetpton() function converts an IP address in human-friendly format (IPv4 addresses in dotted-decimal…

Descriptor

In the context of socket programming, a descriptor is simply an identifier for a resource. With the use of these descriptors, socket applications can interact with system resources such as network connections, files, or data streams. For instance, in C-based languages such as C++, socket programming frequently…

API

API (Application Programming Interface) is a set of rules and protocols implemented for building and integrating software applications. APIs enable two different software applications to communicate and work together. They work as a bridge connecting two software systems, enabling them to exchange information and…

BSD Socket

The BSD sockets API is an application programming interface (API) for network communication originally developed as part of the Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD). This API provides a set of functions for creating and manipulating network sockets in operating systems. It has been widely adopted in a variety of…

Winsock

Winsock is an acronym for Windows Sockets API, a technical specification that defines how networking software should interact with TCP/IP network protocols, such as TCP, UDP, and ICMP, on a Windows Operating System. Essentially, Winsock provides an interface for developers to use when they need to write network…

Java

Java is an object-oriented programming language that is class-based and designed to have as few implementation dependencies as possible. It was originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language's syntax has much in…

C#

C Sharp, usually written as C, is a powerful, object-oriented programming language developed by Microsoft in the early 2000s. C was designed to be a part of the .NET ecosystem and has its syntax foundations based on C and C++. Over time, C has evolved to include several modern programming features like generics,…

C/C++

"C" and "C++", often written as "C/CPP", are two significantly prominent and similar programming languages widely used in server-side game development. "C" is a procedural language, which means that it follows a step-by-step procedure to solve a problem, while "C++" is both a procedural and object-oriented…

Erlang

Erlang is a functional, general-purpose concurrent programming language that supports distributed computation. It originated in the late 1980s, born from Ericson Inc., with the aim to improve the development of telephony applications. Erlang has built-in support for concurrency, distribution and fault tolerance…

JavaScript

JavaScript (often abbreviated as JS) is a high-level, interpreted programming language that conforms to the ECMAScript specification. It plays a key role in web development as it is one of the three core languages of the World Wide Web, along with HTML and CSS. In server-side game development, JavaScript can be…

Go

Function

In server-side game development, functions are a fundamental building block of programming. These are reusable pieces of code designed to perform a particular task. Developers create functions to streamline code, improve readability, and enhance the efficiency of their program. Functions can take parameters as…

Datagram Construction

Datagram construction is a fundamental process in server-side game development, especially when dealing with UDP (User Datagram Protocol). In this context, a datagram is a basic transfer unit associated with a packet-switched network, which typically encompasses a header and payload data. The process of datagram…

IP Addressing

IP (Internet Protocol) addressing is a fundamental aspect of networking, at the core of interaction between systems in a network. Each device connected to a network must have a unique address, known as an IP address, to communicate with other devices. In version 4 of the IP protocol (IPv4), these addresses are…

Routing

In server-side game development, routing refers to the specification of how an application responds to a client request to a particular endpoint, which is a URI (or path) and a specific HTTP request method (GET, POST, etc.). Each route can have one or more handler functions, which are executed when the route is…

Serialization

Serialization in server-side game development is the process of transforming data objects or structures into a format that can be stored, transmitted, and reconstructed later. It's significant because it enables you to save the state of a game, pass it between servers, or send it to clients. The two main types of…

Multithreading

Multithreading, a specialized form of multitasking, is the ability of a central processing unit (CPU) to manage multiple executions of instructions concurrently. This essentially means that multiple threads or mini-processes are executing independently yet sharing the resources of a single CPU. In programming,…

Thread Local Storage

Thread Local Storage (TLS) is a mechanism by which variables are allocated such that each thread gets its own individually allocated variable, but the name of the variable is the same in each thread. In other words, the same variable can simultaneously hold different values for different threads. TLS is required…

Sharding

Sharding is a type of database partitioning that separates very large databases into smaller, faster, more easily managed parts called data shards. The word shard means a small part of a whole. Each shard is held on a separate database server instance, to spread load and reduce the risk of a single point of…

Fiber

Fiber is a way to manage concurrency at a more granular level than threads. While threads represent a sequence of instructions that can run concurrently with other threads, a fiber is a unit of execution which only runs on its initiating thread. Fibers are scheduled by the application, not the operating system.…

JSON

JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) is a lightweight data-interchange format that is easy to read and write for humans, also easy to parse and generate for machines. JSON is a text format that is completely language independent but uses conventions familiar to programmers of the C family of languages, including C,…

TOML

TOML, which stands for Tom's Obvious, Minimal Language, is a configuration file format that is easy to read due to its straightforward and simple syntax. The language is designed to be unambiguous and lean, intending to make it easy for a machine to parse. It supports basic data types, such as Integer, String,…

XML

XML, or Extensible Markup Language, is a language designed to store and transport data without being dependent on a particular software or hardware. Unlike HTML which displays data and focuses on how data looks, XML works as a tool to transfer data and emphasizes on what the data is. XML data is known as…

YAML

YAML, which stands for "YAML Ain't Markup Language," is a human-readable data serialization standard that can be used in conjunction with all programming languages. It is often used to write configuration files and in applications where data is being stored or transmitted. YAML supports advanced features like…

Protobuf

Protobuf, or Protocol Buffers, is a method developed by Google for serializing structured data. It's both language-neutral and platform-neutral. Google designed it to be smaller and faster than XML. You design your data structures in .proto files, then use the Protobuf compiler protoc to generate data access…

Synchronization

In the context of multithreading, synchronization is a mechanism which ensures that two or more concurrent threads don't simultaneously execute some particular program segment known as a critical section. Concurrent accesses to shared resource can lead to race conditions. Two or more operating systems' threads can…

Windows

In the context of server-side game development, Windows operating system offers an API for Thread Local Storage (TLS). This refers to a mechanism by which variables are allocated that are unique for each thread in a program. When a thread reads from or writes to a TLS index, it is actually referencing a…

pthread

Pthread or POSIX threads is a standard-based thread programming library for multi-threading development. It provides several functions and methods to efficiently manage multiple threads in a program enhancing concurrency and parallelism. The library enables thread creation, thread joining and cancellation,…

Programming Techniques

Programming techniques are methods that are used to write series of instructions (code) that a computer can interpret and execute. There are many ways one can write code, unique to both the individual and the programming language they are using. Techniques such as Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) involve the use…

Design Patterns

Design Patterns represent best practices developed by experienced software engineers. They are reusable solutions to common problems that occur in software design and fulfill the requirement to decouple the system as much as possible. Design patterns categorize into Creational, Structural, and Behavioural types.…

TDD

Test Driven Development (TDD) is a development strategy in which developers write tests before writing the bare minimum of code required for the test to be passed. The process involves three stages: red, green, and refactor. In the red phase, a test is written which initially fails (since the code it's testing…

Dependency Injection

Dependency Injection (DI) is a programming technique that makes a class independent of its dependencies. This is achieved by decoupling the use of an object from its creation. In this technique, instead of a class creating an object itself, an object is supplied or "injected" to the class by an external entity. The…

Dump Analysis

Dump Analysis is a highly useful technique in server-side game development, primarily used for debugging and troubleshooting. It involves studying the 'dump' or all the information within a system when a program crashes or fails. This dump typically includes the system's memory, the active processes, thread stacks,…

Functional Programming

Functional programming is a programming paradigm that treats computation as the evaluation of mathematical functions and avoids changing-state and mutable data. In functional programming, functions are first-class citizens. This means that functions can be passed as arguments to other functions, returned as values…

Databases

Databases are structured sets of data. In terms of server-side game development, databases are extremely vital. They store information like user profiles, game states, rankings, and so much more. You have various types of databases to choose from such as relational databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL), NoSQL databases…

Redis

Redis is an open-source, in-memory data structure store that can be used as a database, a cache, and a message broker. It provides support for various data structures such as strings, hashes, lists, sets, sorted sets with range queries, bitmaps, and more. Redis also allows atomic operations like appending to a…

Memcached

Memcached is a high-performance, distributed memory object caching system that is generic in nature, but intended for use in speeding up dynamic web applications by alleviating database loads. It does this by storing data and objects in dynamic memory to reduce the frequency with which an external data source must…

Condition Variable

A condition variable is an object that has the ability to block the calling thread until notified to resume. It's used in conjunction with a mutex (or lock) in the synchronization of threads. A condition variable is made up of a mutex (or lock) and a waiting queue. Typically, a condition variable is used when a…

Spinlock

Spinlock is a type of synchronization mechanism that exists in a busy-wait-state (essentially, 'spinning') until the lock can be acquired. This contrasts with other locking mechanisms that might put a thread to sleep if the desired lock is not available. It's generally used in scenarios where thread sleeping…

Barrier

Barrier in server-side game development refers to a type of synchronization method that can help manage multiple threads in a game's code. When a barrier point is set, all threads that reach this point are prevented from progressing until all the threads have reached this barrier. This functionality is a crucial…

Future & Promises

Futures and promises or simply Promises in programming is a pattern used for handling asynchronous operations. A Promise is an object that might produce a single value or error in the future either through a non-blocking way or in an asynchronous way. A Promise has three states - pending, resolved (success), and…

Mutex

Mutex, short for mutual exclusion, is a synchronization method used by developers to prevent multiple threads from concurrently accessing some shared resource or part of code. It is a locking mechanism that enforces limits to ensure that only one thread can perform certain operations at a time. If a mutex is locked…

Cipher

Cipher is a vital component in the field of cryptography and is used to encrypt and decrypt information. It is essentially a series of well-defined steps or algorithms followed to convert sensitive information or data into a form that appears to be random and meaningless. This transformed information can only be…

Coroutine

Coroutines are lightweight, cooperative multitasking constructs that enable efficient asynchronous programming in server-side game development. Unlike traditional threads, coroutines allow functions to be paused and resumed without blocking the entire execution thread, making them ideal for handling game logic,…

Channel

A channel is a synchronization primitive used to communicate between concurrent tasks or threads, particularly in asynchronous programming. In server-side game development, channels are frequently used to manage data flow between different components, such as game logic, network communication, and I/O operations.…

Semaphore

Semaphores are crucial synchronization mechanisms in server-side game development, ensuring controlled access to shared resources and preventing race conditions. They are widely used for managing concurrent processes, such as limiting the number of active players in a session, regulating access to database…

MS SQL

Microsoft SQL Server (MSSQL) is a relational database management system (RDBMS) developed by Microsoft. MSSQL provides an environment used to generate databases that can be accessed from workstations, the internet, or other media such as a personal digital assistant (PDA). Basically, MSSQL is a server-based SQL…

DynamoDB

DynamoDB is a NoSQL database service provided by Amazon that delivers reliable performance at any scale. It's a fully managed, multiregion, multimaster database that offers built-in security, backup and restore, and in-memory caching. It's meant to support applications with large scale, low latency requirements.…

MySQL

MySQL is an open-source relational database management system (RDBMS) that uses SQL (Structured Query Language) to interact with data. It is developed, marketed, and supported by MySQL AB, a Swedish company, and is written in C and C++. Since it's open-source, you can use MySQL completely free of charge. MySQL is…

MongoDB

MongoDB is a source-available NoSQL database program that uses a document-oriented database model. This model supports a variety of data types and enables you to store them in one place. MongoDB uses JSON-like documents coupled with optional schemas. What distinctly characterizes MongoDB is its scalability and…

PostgreSQL

PostgreSQL is a powerful, open-source object-relational database system. It extends the SQL language combined with many features that safely store and scale the most complicated data workloads. The origins of PostgreSQL date back to 1986 as part of the POSTGRES project at the University of California at Berkeley.…

Cassandra

Apache Cassandra is an open-source, distributed NoSQL database system that is designed to manage large volumes of data across a wide range of servers. It provides high availability with no single point of failure. Cassandra is often used for applications where data is distributed across multiple locations as it has…

Couchbase

Couchbase is a NoSQL database technology that provides flexible data models suitable for server-side game development. It provides high-performance and easy scalability, offering a comprehensive platform for managing, manipulating and optimizing data in real-time. The technology behind Couchbase combines the…

ORM

ORM stands for Object-Relational Mapping. In server-side game development, ORM is a technique that lets you interact with your database, like you would with SQL. In other words, on the server side, you create classes in your programming language (e.g., Python, JavaScript, etc.) that map to the tables in the…

DAL

The term DAL stands for Data Access Layer. It represents a layer of an application that simplifies the interaction with the persistent storage of data. Typically, the DAL is implemented in a separate module, package, or library in your application that directly communicates with the database, thereby enabling the…

SSL

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is a security protocol which provides encrypted communication between a web browser and a web server. This protocol operates via a process where the SSL certificate, held by the web server, creates two cryptographic keys - a Public Key and a Private Key. The public key is placed into a…

RPC / REST

RPC (Remote Procedure Call) and REST (Representational State Transfer) are two different approaches to client-server communication. RPC is a procedure-oriented service, where the client sends a request to the server invoking a specific procedure along with the parameters it needs to execute. The server-side program…

REST

REST or Representational State Transfer is an architectural style used in web development. REST systems interact through standard operations on web resource's identified through URIs. It utilizes a stateless, client-server, cacheable communication protocol -- virtually always HTTP. In REST architecture, a client…

gRPC

gRPC (Google Remote Procedure Call) is a high-performance, open-source universal RPC framework designed by Google. The gRPC framework supports a wide range of languages, and it is based on the proto3 protocol buffer (protobuf) language. It uses Protocol Buffers as the interface definition language for defining the…

Message Queues

Message queues are a fundamental element of server-side game development, primarily used for communication and data exchange between different processes, threads, or microservices. A message queue operates on the principle of first-in, first-out (FIFO). In the typical process, a sender submits messages to the…

Apache Kafka

Apache Kafka is an open-source stream-processing software platform developed by LinkedIn and donated to the Apache Software Foundation. It is written in Scala and Java and operates based on a message queue, designed to handle real-time data feeds. Kafka functions as a kind of message broker service in between the…

RabbitMQ

RabbitMQ is an open-source message broker software that implements the Advanced Message Queuing Protocol (AMQP). It's designed to offer a common platform for passing messages between different parts of a system or between separate systems. RabbitMQ allows these parts to speak and understand each other even if…

Task-Based

Task-based multithreading refers to a model where tasks are the units of work abstracted from threads. In this model, application logic is divided into smaller tasks, each capable of running independent of the others. The tasks are then executed by a pool of threads, managed by a scheduler. Unlike traditional…

Thread Building Block (C++)

The Thread Building Blocks (TBB) is an open-source C++ library developed by Intel. It is designed to take advantage of multi-core processors by simplifying the process of deploying parallel tasks. Using TBB, you can easily break down your tasks into smaller sub-tasks that can be processed in parallel, improving the…

Concurrency (Java)

Concurrency is a property of systems that allows multiple tasks to run in an overlapped or simultaneous manner. This is widely used in server side game development where it is common to have multiple players interfacing with the system at the same time. It is essential to keep the system responsive and efficient…

Update Process

In the reactive model, the client sends requests to the server, which then processes the request and sends back a response. This model is called 'reactive' because the server only acts or 'reacts' when it receives a request from the client. The "update process" plays a vital role in this model. It's the server's…

Asnc-await (C#)

Async/await are extensions of Promises in JavaScript that allow for handling asynchronous code in a more synchronous manner. Using async keyword before a function, means the function returns a Promise. On the other hand, await keyword is used to pause async function execution until a Promise is resolved or…

Determinism

"Determinism" in the context of server side game development is a principle that highlights predictability and consistency in the system's output given specific and consistent inputs. It implies that a system will always produce the same outcome if the initial conditions and the sequence of events leading up to the…

goroutine (Go)

Goroutine is a lightweight thread managed by the Go runtime. They are functions or methods that run concurrently with other functions or methods in the Go programming language. Goroutines are cheaper than threads as they use less memory, and their creation and destruction are more efficient in terms of performance.…

Synchrony

In a reactive paradigm, "synchrony" is a key concept related to data management and interactions among multiple components in a server-side game development context. It refers to the idea that operations or processes are executed 'in sync', meaning that the next operation starts strictly after the previous…

OORP

Object-Oriented Reactive Programming (OORP) is a programming paradigm that combines object-oriented programming (OOP) and reactive programming. In OORP, developers design the system in terms of objects that communicate with each other through messages. These messages trigger functions or "reactions" in the…

FRP

Functional Reactive Programming (FRP) is an approach to programming that combines functional and reactive concepts, mainly used in front-end and server-side development especially in games. FRP helps to deal with dependent changes, effectively handling 'time-varying values'. It is the elegant solution to describe…

Reactive Model

The Reactive Model is an approach in server-side game development that positions the server as a responder to requests made by the client. In this model, the server is not running its own threads, but simply reacting to incoming requests from clients. It focuses on asynchronous I/O operations, meaning that the…

Reactive Approach

In the realm of server-side game development, the reactive approach is an important element when dealing with multithreading. This approach is based on the concept of reacting to changes or events happening in the system rather than calling methods or running operations continuously. It incorporates observables,…

Reactive Approach

Multithreading

Multithreading 2 in game development usually refers to an advanced level of understanding, managing, and implementing multithreaded programming. At this stage, developers are expected to manage inter-thread communications and synchronization effectively. This includes mastering the use of mutexes, locks,…

Asynchronous

Asynchronous programming is a programming paradigm where the execution of functions or routines does not wait for the activities within them to complete before moving on to subsequent ones. This allows for tasks to be processed independently, making the most of system resources. When a function contains an…

Actor Model

The Actor Model is a conceptual model to deal with concurrent computation. It defines some general rules for how the system's components should behave and interact with each other. In the Actor Model, each object (actor) has its own private state and communication with other actors is done by exchanging messages.…

Proactor

The Proactor pattern is an event-driven application design pattern used in asynchronous programming, and is a variant of the Reactor Pattern, but with an important distinction in terms of control flow handling. Instead of the application explicitly triggering and managing operations, this responsibility is…

Reactor

The Reactor is a design pattern that deals with synchronous I/O multiplexing. It is a part of the server side game development concept where it mainly handles service requests delivered concurrently to an application by one or more clients. The reactor allows multiple requests to be managed efficiently by the…

Containerization

Containerization in game development refers to the usage of software like Docker, Kubernetes, or similar tools to encapsulate the game's server-side functionality into a single, deployable package. These units, known as containers, include everything the software needs to run, such as libraries, system tools, code,…

Docker

"Docker" is an open-source platform that allows developers to automate the deployment, scaling, and management of applications. It uses containerization technologies to wrap up an application with its runtime environment into a container, which can then be run on almost any operating system. Docker containers are…

Akk.net (C#)

"Akka.NET" is a toolkit and a runtime for designing concurrent and distributed applications. This technology is directly inspired by the Actor Model concept, implementing its principles to create robust and highly functional server-side applications. Akka.NET allows developers to create systems that are capable of…

Akka (Java)

Akka is an open-source toolkit and runtime simplifying the construction of concurrent and distributed applications on the JVM. It implements the Actor Model for handling concurrency, allowing developers to create systems that can handle high volumes of transactions in a distributed environment. Yet, Akka is not…

WSA Poll

WSA-Poll is a Windows-specific alternative to poll, used for monitoring multiple sockets for readiness in non-blocking network applications. It is commonly utilized in server-side game development to handle multiple client connections efficiently. Unlike select, WSA-Poll eliminates the limitation of FDSETSIZE,…

select

select is a multiplexing system call in Linux used for monitoring multiple file descriptors to check if they are ready for I/O operations. It is commonly used in server-side game development for handling multiple connections asynchronously. However, select has limitations, as it scans all file descriptors linearly,…

IOCP

I/O Completion Ports (IOCP) is a high-performance asynchronous I/O mechanism in Windows, designed to efficiently handle large numbers of concurrent network connections. It is widely used in server-side game development to optimize networking performance, making it ideal for MMORPGs and real-time multiplayer games.…

io_uring

iouring is a modern asynchronous I/O framework introduced in Linux 5.1, designed to provide high-performance, low-latency I/O operations. It is widely used in server-side game development to efficiently handle network and disk operations, making it ideal for real-time multiplayer games. Unlike epoll or traditional…

kqueue

kqueue is an efficient event notification system available on BSD-based operating systems, including macOS and FreeBSD. It is designed to handle large numbers of concurrent connections with minimal CPU overhead, making it well-suited for server-side game development. Similar to epoll on Linux, kqueue operates in an…

epoll

epoll is a high-performance I/O event notification system in Linux, essential for handling large-scale asynchronous network operations in server-side game development. Unlike select or poll, it uses an event-driven model, reducing CPU overhead and improving scalability. Game servers leverage epoll to efficiently…

Registered IO

Registered I/O is an optimization technique that enhances the performance of asynchronous I/O operations by pre-registering resources such as file descriptors, memory buffers, or network sockets with the operating system. This reduces the overhead of repeated system calls and resource management, making it highly…

Serverless

Serverless is a cloud architecture model where the application developers don't have to provision, scale, and manage servers or runtimes, to build their applications. The name serverless comes from the idea that the tasks traditionally performed by a server are handled elsewhere, abstracting the responsibility of…

Data Clustering

Data Clustering refers to the process of segregating data into various groups or clusters. These organized subsets of data, or clusters, contain similar data points that exhibit common traits, attributes, or characteristics. Clustering is essentially a type of unsupervised machine learning where the data is…

Apache Spark

Apache Spark is an open-source, distributed computing system used for big data processing and analytics. It offers an interface for programming entire clusters with impeccable data parallelism and fault tolerance. With its high-level APIs in Java, Scala, Python and R, it provides a framework for distributed task…

Cloud

The cloud refers to servers that are accessed over the Internet, and the software and databases that run on those servers. By using cloud technology, data can be accessed from anywhere via the Internet, rather than from a local server or a personal computer. Cloud services are typically provided by different…

Azure

Azure is Microsoft's public cloud computing platform. Azure provides a broad spectrum of cloud services, including those for analytics, storage, and networking. As a server-side game developer, you can use these functionalities to build, deploy, and manage applications and services through Microsoft-managed data…

GCP

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) is a suite of public cloud computing services offered by Google. It provides a range of services including compute, storage, networking, Big Data, machine learning, and the internet of things (IoT), plus cloud management, security, and developer tools. The core cloud computing products…

AWS

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a secure cloud services platform offered by Amazon. It provides a broad set of infrastructure services, such as computing power, storage options, networking and databases, delivered on-demand with pay-as-you-go pricing. AWS services assist server side game developers in many tasks such…

Cloud ML

Cloud Machine Learning or Cloud ML is a branch of Artificial Intelligence that utilizes cloud computing services to provide machine learning capabilities. It enables developers and data scientists to build, train, and deploy machine learning models in a cloud-based environment. Cloud ML platforms usually offer a…

Docker Compose

Docker Compose is a tool that allows you to define and manage multiple containers as a single entity. The containers are defined in a docker-compose.yml file using a YAML format. This tool is primarily focused on the runtime aspects of your application such as service definitions, configuration, and connections.…

Kubernetes

Kubernetes, often referred to as K8s, is an open-source platform designed to automate deploying, scaling, and operating application containers. It organizes containers into clusters to provide a flexible, powerful foundation for distributed systems. The platform was originally developed by Google, drawing on their…

AI

Artificial Intelligence (AI) in server side game development refers to the use of algorithms and computational procedures to create systems capable of performing tasks that would require human intelligence. Such tasks include learning and adapting to change, recognizing speech, or even making decisions. In game…

Deep Learning

Deep Learning is a subset of machine learning that imitates the workings of the human brain in processing data and creating patterns for decision-making. This technique utilizes multiple layers of algorithms (or neural networks) to process information. Deep learning involves training a model using large volumes of…

Amazon ML

Amazon Machine Learning (Amazon ML) is a robust, cloud-based service that makes it easy for developers of all skill levels to use machine learning technology. It provides visualization tools and wizards that guide you through the process of creating machine learning (ML) models without needing to learn complex ML…

Azure ML

Azure ML is a cloud-based service provided by Microsoft for building, training, and deploying machine learning models. It provides a suite of tools including automated machine learning and model management services, bolstering the productivity of data scientists and making complex machine learning tasks more…

TensorFlow

TensorFlow is an open-source, end-to-end platform initially developed by Google Brain Team. Focusing on machine learning and equipped to handle deep learning tasks, TensorFlow takes input as a multi-dimensional array also known as a 'tensor'. The framework allows developers to create dataflow graphs. These graphs…

Pytorch

PyTorch is an open-source machine learning library developed by Facebook Artificial Intelligence Research team for Python-based computation. This powerful tool emphasizes flexibility and allows users to manipulate Tensor computations with the convenience of deep neural networks built on a tape-based…