Apache JMeter

Apache JMeter is an open-source project developed by Apache with the purpose of testing and measuring the performance of various resources (both static and dynamic) under several load types.

Originally, it targeted web applications exclusively, but has been extended to support other protocols, such as FTP, mail, TCP, LDAP, SOAP and MongoDB, to name the most important ones.

It comes wrapped up inside a portable package and depends on Java in order to work properly. Simply decompress the archive it comes in and run the JAR file (alternatively the BAT file) inside the bin folder to initiate it.

Apache JMeter relies on a multithreading framework that allows you to sample multiple threads simultaneously while remaining user-friendly on system resources. The GUI is comprehensive and intuitive and several example projects are made available as references for future implementations.

There are built-in functions that can implement dynamic input into a certain test, while allowing for the data to be manipulated seamlessly. Moreover, with the aid of the pluggable samplers, you will be able to extend the capabilities of the testing process and personalize the behavior of the application.

Each of the test plans can be saved locally and used at a later time, while merging two projects together is also possible. Moreover, as the scenarios are being tested, the evolution is logged inside a dedicated section that allows you to view potential errors.

One particular advantage of Apache JMeter is that it can help in regression tests by creating scripts (written using regular expressions) which can be evaluated in order to verify if your application is outputting the expected results.

Overall, Apache JMeter is a well-built and robust application that can help developers to test their projects against heavy loads, being able to hint you on their overall performance.