Cmparative page load speeds between Elgg 2x and 3x

Fresh and latest, default, out-of-the-box installs of Elgg 2.3.14 and Elgg 3.3.6. Nothing extra, no hanky panky done Same amount of blog posts ( one or two) and thus same activity and one user each in both the sites - nothing else. Php 7x is being used. So far I have tried testing the speed of Activity page and a Blog post page - I find in Elgg 2x the Activity page loads superfast. Elgg 3x takes a little more time, and comparatively keeps me waiting. Also the burger menu ( I tested in admin page) does not or takes time (till all the page and its elements are loaded) to open in Elgg 3x but not in 2x. Elgg 2x behaves extremely nicely so far (but I have not tested all the functions of a social site yet) with php7x latest versions, and thus it appears Elgg 2x will have no problem with any version of php7x and the upcoming php 8x. Please correct me if I am wrong.

If you have extremely superfast connection maybe you will not notice any difference in speed or opening of burger menu. But I have 4G which is superfast in early mornings, while slow or average around noon - I did the testing around that time.

I have no idea, how the two sites will behave once there are many nodes and many users. Thus, I will be glad if you share actual comparable sites in both versions and discuss on the speed issue. Does Elgg org use Elgg 3x as it is, without any expensive/non-expensive speeding technologies like Memcache etc? As far as tests with php 7x latest versions will Elgg 2x behave nicely with php8x and future versions or will Elgg 3x have an advantage here? Many thanks for sharing your knowledge.

  • Discussed already.

    Caching, more optimized code and other performance things can make you happy.

    We rewrote all our plugins (not just replaced the manifest.xml, elgg-plugin.php etc) according to the new Elgg API and code standards and didn't notice any slowdown in the work of the site.

  • Thanks RvR. I think I mis-constructed my question. :(

    By default and as out-of-the-box which is faster - Elgg 2x or 3x? I think its Elgg 2x and when I tested Elgg  1.12.18 it is even more fast. So I am a little bit confused. Elgg 1.12.18 does not work in php7x but Elgg 2x does as far as I tested. On a very high speed net, there may not be any difference appreciable but on moderate speeds or slower, I see the above finding. So I will be glad to know what others have experienced.

  • Less code == Faster site ;)

    Just compare the size of the Elgg releases.

  • I think you have  hit the nail on the head  :)

    What I or some of us need is the right size so long as things work with php7x and 8x (9x is not heard of yet).

  • I'm just trying to explain to you that Elgg code grows with each new release and it affects the speed of the site. 

    But the latest Elgg version has many built-in tools that can speed up its work. 

    If you don't know how to use them then it's your personal problem and comparison with the different outdated Elgg versions is incorrect.

  • Thanks. I understand. But Elgg 2x is not outdated. And sometimes (in many of cms es) we have seen that while 3x was larger than 2x, 4x or 5x have again brought down the size and make things leaner and faster. So comparison, as long as done in healthy vibe, may be actually good for the future versions, imho. In fact by the time, many of the used Elgg 2x mods release their 3x versions, Elgg will be Elgg 4x as already in github we are having 4x discussions. As long as your/our php supports and there are no security issues, for non-coders things are fine if that suits there need, imho.

    I am having no specific problem here, just discussing to share my test results and also know others experiences in community spirit. Cheers !

  • Late to the party, but here's my experience:

    I developed two content-heavy elgg sites. Site speed depends of your server configuration, and bandwidth. So far if you can have a dedicated server, with enough RAM available (8 GB+), you will barely experience a slow site unless you are under a very bad connection. Both sites survived so far (in terms of still using elgg and not something else), performance is not even an issue at all and both sites are very popular, in terms of visitors (don't need X amount of users since it is more about publishing stories).

    In the end, any framework can be optimized, but if you have bad code practices, or so much bloat in your site, you will see performance issues. Get your code in shape, cut the fat, and scale your server as your site grows.

  • Its never too late to join the party :)
    I was discussing about fresh installs of both Elgg 2x and 3x, without any extra plugins or custom codes.

    Thanks at rjcalifornia. What I understand is that you have comparable equal performance by one Elgg 2x site and one Elgg 3x site. Thats really great. Thanks for sharing the info.

  •  What I understand is that you have comparable equal performance by one Elgg 2x site and one Elgg 3x site.

    Pretty much comes down to your server. Elgg 3.x has some performance optimizations, but if you are using a shared hosting and have high traffic (not users), your site will have issues. By the way, both sites have more than 16 GB of RAM at disposal, may be that's why performance is great!