Node.js - I need to know my resource usage before deploying to google cloud

Question

EDIT: STILL NOT ANSWERED. I appreciate the advice I have received so far, but I still have not found a proper way to test the amount of resources my server is using. I decided to use GCE instead of GAE but I still want to measure the resource usage.

I have searched all over google as well as SA and can't seem to figure this one out.

I would like to deploy my (very small) node.js server to either Google App Engine or Google Compute Engine (not sure which to use yet).

I see that they charge based on how many resources you use, but how can I check this before I make my decision? Basically what I would like to do is find a way to analyse my server and see what CPU/DISK/NETWORK/RAM/Etc it uses, and then possibly make some refinements to my code to get the usage down as low as possible.

I am a hobbyist programmer and this server is just for personal stuff so I don't need anything fancy. I just want to get it hosted on google and not my home server. My real fear is that, since I am not a professional, my code might be doing some crazy background stuff repeatedly that would rack my usage up for nothing.

Quick rundown on what my server does: Basic node.js express template that IntelliJ made me, then I added my code to sit and listen to a Firebase. When the firebase gets a message (once or twice a day maybe, text message equivalent size) the server sends a quick GCM/FCM message to a few devices. Extremely simple server, very little code. Nothing crazy.

As a little bonus for me, if you have a suggestion as to which platform I should use, I am all-ears.

Answer 1

Well, after over a month I figure I might as well answer this myself.

What I ended up doing was creating a basic instance on Computer Engine (the micro. Smallest one available) and letting it just sit there for a few weeks. I looked back at the data to see what some good baselines were and took note.

Then I took my server code and ran it on the server. I left if there for a few days, changed it, updated it, etc. Just tried to simulate the things I would be doing. Sent messages on my client app (that's what this server is doing after all is said and done) and I let this go on for a few more weeks.

The rest is history. I looked at the baseline then looked at my new memory, CPU, network and disk usage and there we go. Good to go. My free trial still isn't even over so it was a free experiment.

The good news is that my server is more 'lightweight' than I thought.

Answer 2

1. If you do not need this server to run 24x7, use App Engine. It stops an instance if it is not being used for 15 minutes. The startup time for new instances depends on your code, but for Node.js instances it should not be long.

2. Generally speaking it is easier to run an app on App Engine than Compute Engine, but if you use a single instance and don't change code often the difference is negligible.

3. App Engine has a generous free quota. You may end up paying nothing until the usage gets over a certain threshold.

4. You can run some diagnostic tools on your existing server, but even then you will get an approximation - a server with a different combination of resources sitting on a different network may use resources differently. You may be able to get a rather accurate estimate of memory usage, though.

If this is a small app with not too many users, even a small instance should be able to handle it. There is no harm in trying - start with the smallest instance, test, go to the next instance up if tests fail. Your key concern should be to have enough memory to handle a small number of requests.

As for the number of requests your server can handle, you can configure automatic scaling. It is a default option in App Engine and can be enabled for flexible runtime. Then you can have the smallest instance (i.e. your server does not crash due to the lack of memory) running, and another instance will be added if and when that small instance is not enough.