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Web Development Intermediate

What is Server-Sent Events?

A server push technology that enables a server to send real-time updates to a browser over a single HTTP connection.

SSE provides a simple, unidirectional channel from server to client. The server sends events as text/event-stream content type. The browser uses EventSource API: const source = new EventSource('/events'); source.onmessage = e => console.log(e.data).

SSE is simpler than WebSockets for one-way communication (notifications, live feeds, stock tickers). It supports automatic reconnection, event IDs for resume, and named events. SSE uses standard HTTP, working through firewalls and proxies without special configuration.

Related Terms

HTTP/2
The second major version of HTTP that improves performance through multiplexing, header compression, and server push.
gRPC
A high-performance RPC framework using Protocol Buffers and HTTP/2 for efficient service-to-service communication.
HATEOAS
Hypermedia As The Engine Of Application State — a REST constraint where API responses include links to related actions and resources.
CSS Flexbox
A CSS layout model that provides efficient arrangement of items within a container, handling alignment, distribution, and spacing.
Lazy Loading
A technique that delays loading non-critical resources until they are needed, improving initial page load performance.
CORS Headers
HTTP headers that control cross-origin resource sharing between different domains, specifying allowed origins, methods, and headers.
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