pushbased

Push-based refers to a data distribution model in which producers or publishers actively send updates to consumers or subscribers. Unlike pull-based systems, where clients request data at intervals, push-based systems aim to deliver information as soon as it becomes available, reducing latency and avoiding unnecessary polling.

Mechanisms include persistent connections and streaming technologies such as WebSockets, server-sent events, or the Web Push protocol for notifications. In enterprise messaging, a publish-subscribe pattern pushes messages to interested subscribers through topics or channels. Some architectures combine push with backpressure and acknowledgments to manage flow control and reliability.

Use cases encompass real-time collaboration, live feeds, chat and messaging, stock or weather alerts, and event-driven architectures. Content delivery networks may push cache invalidation or updates to edge nodes. Monitoring and alerting systems also rely on push to notify operators of critical conditions as soon as they arise.

Advantages and challenges: Push reduces latency and can improve efficiency by avoiding repeated polling. However, it can place higher demands on servers and connection management, complicate horizontal scaling, and require robust backpressure, reconnection handling, and security considerations for exposed endpoints. Reliability hinges on channel health and the persistence of updates.

Variants and related concepts: Push is contrasted with pull or polling, though many systems use hybrid approaches such as long polling when push is unavailable. Technologies associated with push include WebSocket, Server-Sent Events, MQTT, and the Web Push notification framework. In data replication, push-based methods push changes to replicas, while many databases employ pull-based replication with change data capture.