The performance and user experience of an online exam system depend on four essential stages. A bottleneck in any one stage can degrade quality, cause delays, or result in user frustration. To ensure a seamless online examination experience, each stage must be assessed and optimized.
Cloud-Based Servers are scalable, dynamically allocating CPU, memory & storage to handle spikes in load.
On-Premise Servers offer more predictable performance and lower latency for fixed workloads but are limited by available hardware resources.
Key considerations: number of concurrent users, server CPU cores, RAM, database performance, I/O throughput.
Cloud Servers are typically built to deliver high bandwidth across many customers; understanding the bandwidth SLA (Service Level Agreement) is crucial.
On‑Premise Infrastructure needs to have its internal network, routers and switches properly rated; external bandwidth (if needed) must be sufficient.
Lab or institutional setups should conduct network audits or lab tests to verify that bandwidth does not bottleneck performance.
Even if your server and network are optimized, users with poor internet or congested local networks (e.g. labs sharing a connection) may experience lag.
Consider the minimum bandwidth requirements for individual users; assess whether shared networks degrade performance during peak times.
Strategies: provide guidelines for users, minimize content size (e.g. media, images), use efficient data delivery (compression, caching).
The user's device (computer, laptop, tablet) must be capable of running the exam software smoothly. Poor device speed or memory can cause delays, freezing, or broken experience.
Cloud solutions shift load off the server by using client's browser/device to render interface; but still, minimum device specs must be met.
For on-premise or heavier client processing (e.g. rich media, complex question types), ensure that devices meet recommended CPU, RAM, OS, browser versions.
Perform Regular Load Testing under realistic scenarios: simulate simultaneous users, network congestion, device variability.
Monitor System Metrics: track server CPU, memory, network throughput, database response times during exams.
Upgrade / optimize infrastructure: routers, switches, server hardware, content delivery networks if using cloud.
Enforce Minimum Device and Network Requirements for test takers; provide guidance or check tools.
Use lightweight frontend design; optimize assets (images, scripts, CSS) to reduce client‑side load.
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