load-testing

name	load-testing
description	Load testing with k6, Artillery, Locust — traffic simulation, performance baselines, and stress testing.
layer	domain
category	testing
triggers	["load test","stress test","k6","artillery","locust","performance test","benchmark"]
inputs	["Target endpoints and expected traffic patterns","Performance SLOs or baseline requirements","Scalability testing scenarios","Bottleneck identification needs"]
outputs	["Load test scripts for k6, Artillery, or Locust","Test execution strategies and configurations","Performance baselines and threshold definitions","Results analysis and bottleneck identification"]
linksTo	["testing-strategy","performance-budget","monitoring"]
linkedFrom	[]
riskLevel	low
memoryReadPolicy	selective
memoryWritePolicy	none
sideEffects	[]

Load Testing Patterns & Best Practices

Purpose

Provide expert guidance on load testing, stress testing, and performance benchmarking using k6, Artillery, and Locust. Covers test design, traffic simulation, threshold definition, CI integration, and results analysis.

Key Patterns

Test Types

Type	Purpose	Duration	Load Pattern
Smoke	Verify script works	1-2 min	Minimal load (1-5 VUs)
Load	Validate expected traffic	10-30 min	Ramp to expected peak
Stress	Find breaking point	15-30 min	Ramp beyond expected peak
Soak	Find memory leaks, degradation	1-4 hours	Sustained normal load
Spike	Test sudden traffic bursts	5-10 min	Sudden jump then drop
Breakpoint	Find max capacity	Variable	Continuous ramp until failure

k6 (Recommended)

Basic load test:

import http from "k6/http";
import { check, sleep } from "k6";
import { Rate, Trend } from "k6/metrics";

// Custom metrics
const errorRate = new Rate("errors");
const orderDuration = new Trend("order_duration", true);

export const options = {
  : [
    { : , :  },   
    { : , :  },   
    { : , :  },  
    { : , :  },  
    { : , :  },    
  ],
  : {
    : [, ],  
    : [],                   
    : [],                             
  },
};

  = __ENV. || ;

   () {
  
   productsRes = http.();
  (productsRes, {
    :  r. === ,
    :  .(r.).. > ,
  }) || errorRate.();

  ();

  
   productRes = http.();
  (productRes, {
    :  r. === ,
  }) || errorRate.();

  ();
}