Common Performance Culprits

Memory leaks represent the most frequent cause of server crashes. Objects that aren't properly garbage collected accumulate over time until the server runs out of available RAM. Check for event listeners that never get removed and static collections that grow indefinitely.

CPU-intensive operations block the main game loop and create lag spikes. Physics calculations, pathfinding algorithms, and complex AI routines should run on separate threads or use time-slicing techniques to spread work across multiple frames.

Network Bottlenecks

Excessive network traffic overwhelms server bandwidth and causes rubber-banding effects. Sending player positions 60 times per second works fine with 10 players but fails with 100. Implement delta compression and send only changed data.

Poor tick rate configuration creates inconsistent gameplay experiences. Servers running at 20Hz feel sluggish compared to 64Hz, but higher rates consume more CPU resources. Balance tick rate against server capacity and player count.

Resource Monitoring

Track memory usage, CPU utilization, and network throughput continuously during gameplay sessions. Sudden spikes indicate optimization opportunities while gradual increases suggest memory leaks. Profiling tools reveal which functions consume the most resources.

Database queries often become performance bottlenecks as player counts increase. Cache frequently accessed data in memory and use connection pooling to reduce database overhead. Consider read replicas for data-heavy operations.

Infrastructure Optimization

Server hardware directly impacts performance capabilities. Inadequate RAM forces the operating system to swap memory to disk, creating severe lag spikes. Insufficient CPU cores limit concurrent player capacity.

Edgegap's orchestration platform automatically provisions optimized server instances and monitors performance metrics in real-time. Their system detects degraded performance and can migrate players to healthier servers before crashes occur. This removes the complexity of manual performance tuning and infrastructure management.

Debugging Strategies

Enable detailed logging for crash analysis without impacting performance. Write logs asynchronously and rotate files to prevent disk space issues. Include timestamps, player counts, and resource usage in log entries.

Reproduce issues in controlled environments using load testing tools that simulate realistic player behavior. Synthetic tests reveal problems before they affect real players and provide consistent conditions for debugging.