WebSocketand Server-Sent Events(SSE) are used forImplement technology to push messages to clients, but they have some important differences:
1.Bidirectional vs.one-way: WebSocket is full duplex, which meansserverIt can send and receive messages at the same time as the client. SSE is one-way and only allows the server to send messages to the client.
2. Message Type: WebSocket can send any type of data, including text and binary data. SSE can only send text data.
3. Connection Management:WebSocket ConnectionOnce established, it remains open until the client or server actively closes it. The SSE connection will be closed after each message is sent, and the client needs to reconnect.
4. Browser support: Most modern browsers support WebSocket and SSE, but in some older or less common browsers, it may only support one of them.
WebSocket:
advantage:
Full duplex communication: WebSocket supports server and clientTwo-way communication, which makes it ideal for applications that require real-time interaction.
Supports text and binary data: WebSocket can send any type of data, including text and binary data.
shortcoming:
Complex protocol: The protocol of WebSocket is more complex than SSE and requires more code and more server resources to handle connections and messages.
Automatic reconnection is not supported: If the connection is disconnected, WebSocket will not reconnect automatically, you need to handle this in your code.
Server-Sent Events(SSE):
advantage:
Simple agreement:SSE's protocol is simpler than WebSocket, and is easier to implement and use.
Supports automatic reconnection: If the connection is disconnected, SSE will automatically reconnect.
Based on HTTP:SSE is HTTP-based, which allows it to leverage existing HTTP infrastructure such as caching, compression, etc.
shortcoming:
One-way communication:SSE only supports the server to send messages to the client, and does not support the client to send messages to the server.
Only text data is supported:SSE can only send text data, not binary data.
The choice of WebSocket or SSE is mainly determined by your needs. If you need to implement bidirectional communication, or you need to send binary data, then WebSocket may be a better choice. If you just need the server to push updates to the client, SSE may be simpler and easier to use.