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SockJS vs Socket.IO: What are the differences?
Socket.IO and SockJS are both JavaScript libraries that provide real-time communication capabilities between a server and a client. Let's explore the key differences between the two.
Connection Protocol: The major difference between SockJS and Socket.IO lies in the underlying connection protocol. SockJS utilizes AJAX and WebSocket protocols for establishing a connection between the server and the client. On the other hand, Socket.IO supports multiple protocols and can automatically choose the best available one, including WebSocket, HTTP long-polling, and HTTP streaming.
Fallback Mechanism: SockJS provides a fallback mechanism to ensure compatibility with older browsers or environments where WebSocket is not supported. It falls back to other protocols like HTTP long-polling or HTTP streaming, allowing the communication to continue. In contrast, Socket.IO does not explicitly provide a fallback mechanism, as it can automatically choose the best available protocol.
API Simplicity: SockJS provides a simpler API compared to Socket.IO. The SockJS API is minimalistic and focuses mainly on establishing and handling the connection, sending and receiving messages using standard JavaScript events. On the other hand, Socket.IO offers a more extensive API, allowing developers to utilize various features and options including namespaces, rooms, and detailed error handling.
Browser Compatibility: SockJS has better compatibility with older browsers compared to Socket.IO. SockJS is designed to work with various browser versions and environments, providing support even for older browsers that do not support WebSocket directly. Socket.IO, while widely used and supported, might face compatibility issues with certain older browsers that lack WebSocket or have limited support for it.
Community Support and Documentation: Socket.IO has been around for a longer time and has a larger community support compared to SockJS. This translates into a wider range of resources, tutorials, plugins, and examples available for Socket.IO. Additionally, Socket.IO has comprehensive documentation that covers various aspects of the library, making it easier for developers to get started and troubleshoot any issues.
Transport Efficiency: Socket.IO is generally considered more efficient in terms of transport due to its ability to use WebSockets directly. WebSocket is a full-duplex communication protocol, allowing both the server and client to send and receive data simultaneously. SockJS, while providing fallback options, is limited to uni-directional communication using various protocols like long-polling.
In summary, SockJS focuses on providing a WebSocket-like API with fallback options for browsers that do not support WebSocket, while Socket.IO is a more feature-rich library offering WebSocket support along with additional features like automatic reconnection and multiplexing.
We are starting to work on a web-based platform aiming to connect artists (clients) and professional freelancers (service providers). In-app, timeline-based, real-time communication between users (& storing it), file transfers, and push notifications are essential core features. We are considering using Node.js, ExpressJS, React, MongoDB stack with Socket.IO & Apollo, or maybe using Real-Time Database and functionalities of Firebase.
I would recommend looking hard into Firebase for this project, especially if you do not have dedicated full-stack or backend members on your team.
The real time database, as you mentioned, is a great option, but I would also look into Firestore. Similar to RTDB, it adds more functions and some cool methods as well. Also, another great thing about Firebase is you have easy access to storage and dead simple auth as well.
Node.js Express MongoDB Socket.IO and Apollo are great technologies as well, and may be the better option if you do not wish to cede as much control to third parties in your application.
Overall, I say if you wish to focus more time developing your React application instead of other parts of your stack, Firebase is a great way to do that.
Hello Noam đź‘‹,
I suggest taking a look at Ably, it has all the realtime features you need and the platform is designed to guarantee critical functionality at scale.
Here is an in depth comparison between Ably and Firebase
Hey Noam,
I would recommend you to take a look into 8base. It has features you've requested, also relation database and GraphQL API which will help you to develop rapidly.
Thanks, Ilya
Pros of Socket.IO
- Real-time219
- Node.js143
- Event-based communication141
- Open source102
- WebSockets102
- Binary streaming26
- No internet dependency21
- Large community10
- Push notification6
- Ease of access and setup5
- Test1
Pros of SockJS
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Cons of Socket.IO
- Bad documentation12
- Githubs that complement it are mostly deprecated4
- Doesn't work on React Native3
- Small community2
- Websocket Errors2
Cons of SockJS
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