diff --git a/docs/index.txt b/docs/index.txt index 3508b17669..b8a1ae90f8 100644 --- a/docs/index.txt +++ b/docs/index.txt @@ -233,6 +233,14 @@ regions: * :doc:`"Local flavor" ` * :doc:`Time zones ` +Performance and optimization +============================ + +There are a variety of techniques and tools that can help get your code running +more efficiently - faster, and using fewer system resources. + +* :doc:`Performance and optimization overview ` + Python compatibility ==================== diff --git a/docs/ref/utils.txt b/docs/ref/utils.txt index 59a501cf82..1e1ea4467c 100644 --- a/docs/ref/utils.txt +++ b/docs/ref/utils.txt @@ -495,8 +495,8 @@ Atom1Feed For cases like this, use the ``django.utils.functional.allow_lazy()`` decorator. It modifies the function so that *if* it's called with a lazy - translation as the first argument, the function evaluation is delayed until it - needs to be converted to a string. + translation as one of its arguments, the function evaluation is delayed + until it needs to be converted to a string. For example:: diff --git a/docs/topics/cache.txt b/docs/topics/cache.txt index 5892b6f026..513584dbbf 100644 --- a/docs/topics/cache.txt +++ b/docs/topics/cache.txt @@ -1162,22 +1162,6 @@ Example:: .. _`Cache-Control spec`: http://www.w3.org/Protocols/rfc2616/rfc2616-sec14.html#sec14.9 -Other optimizations -=================== - -Django comes with a few other pieces of middleware that can help optimize your -site's performance: - -* ``django.middleware.http.ConditionalGetMiddleware`` adds support for - modern browsers to conditionally GET responses based on the ``ETag`` - and ``Last-Modified`` headers. - -* :class:`django.middleware.gzip.GZipMiddleware` compresses responses for all - modern browsers, saving bandwidth and transfer time. Be warned, however, - that compression techniques like ``GZipMiddleware`` are subject to attacks. - See the warning in :class:`~django.middleware.gzip.GZipMiddleware` for - details. - Order of MIDDLEWARE_CLASSES =========================== diff --git a/docs/topics/db/optimization.txt b/docs/topics/db/optimization.txt index ea919d76f8..1913d6ffcb 100644 --- a/docs/topics/db/optimization.txt +++ b/docs/topics/db/optimization.txt @@ -88,7 +88,8 @@ of parentheses, but will call callables automatically, hiding the above distinction. Be careful with your own custom properties - it is up to you to implement -caching. +caching when required, for example using the +:class:`~django.utils.functional.cached_property` decorator. Use the ``with`` template tag ----------------------------- @@ -111,10 +112,11 @@ For instance: * At the most basic level, use :ref:`filter and exclude ` to do filtering in the database. -* Use :class:`F expressions ` to do filtering - against other fields within the same model. +* Use :class:`F expressions ` to filter + based on other fields within the same model. -* Use :doc:`annotate to do aggregation in the database `. +* Use :doc:`annotate to do aggregation in the database + `. If these aren't enough to generate the SQL you need: @@ -233,6 +235,8 @@ queryset``. But: +.. _overuse_of_count_and_exists: + Don't overuse ``count()`` and ``exists()`` ------------------------------------------ diff --git a/docs/topics/index.txt b/docs/topics/index.txt index b248e10268..711bc09c13 100644 --- a/docs/topics/index.txt +++ b/docs/topics/index.txt @@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ Introductions to all the key parts of Django you'll need to know: pagination python3 security + performance serialization settings signals diff --git a/docs/topics/performance.txt b/docs/topics/performance.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..2265e52462 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/topics/performance.txt @@ -0,0 +1,384 @@ +============================ +Performance and optimization +============================ + +This document provides an overview of techniques and tools that can help get +your Django code running more efficiently - faster, and using fewer system +resources. + +Introduction +============ + +Generally one's first concern is to write code that *works*, whose logic +functions as required to produce the expected output. Sometimes, however, this +will not be enough to make the code work as *efficiently* as one would like. + +In this case, what's needed is something - and in practice, often a collection +of things - to improve the code's performance without, or only minimally, +affecting its behavior. + +General approaches +================== + +What are you optimizing *for*? +------------------------------ + +It's important to have a clear idea what you mean by 'performance'. There is +not just one metric of it. + +Improved speed might be the most obvious aim for a program, but sometimes other +performance improvements might be sought, such as lower memory consumption or +fewer demands on the database or network. + +Improvements in one area will often bring about improved performance in +another, but not always; sometimes one can even be at the expense of another. +For example, an improvement in a program's speed might cause it to use more +memory. Even worse, it can be self-defeating - if the speed improvement is so +memory-hungry that the system starts to run out of memory, you'll have done +more harm than good. + +There are other trade-offs to bear in mind. Your own time is a valuable +resource, more precious than CPU time. Some improvements might be too difficult +to be worth implementing, or might affect the portability or maintainability of +the code. Not all performance improvements are worth the effort. + +So, you need to know what performance improvements you are aiming for, and you +also need to know that you have a good reason for aiming in that direction - +and for that you need: + +Performance benchmarking +------------------------ + +It's no good just guessing or assuming where the inefficiencies lie in your +code. + +Django tools +^^^^^^^^^^^^ + +`django-debug-toolbar +`_ is a very +handy tool that provides insights into what your code is doing and how much +time it spends doing it. In particular it can show you all the SQL queries your +page is generating, and how long each one has taken. + +Third-party panels are also available for the toolbar, that can (for example) +report on cache performance and template rendering times. + +Third-party services +^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ + +There are a number of free services that will analyse and report on the +performance of your site's pages from the perspective of a remote HTTP client, +in effect simulating the experience of an actual user. + +These can't report on the internals of your code, but can provide a useful +insight into your site's overall performance, including aspects that can't be +adequately measured from within Django environment. Examples include: + +* `Yahoo's Yslow `_ +* `Google PageSpeed `_ + +There are also several paid-for services that perform a similar analysis, +including some that are Django-aware and can integrate with your codebase to +profile its performance far more comprehensively. + +Get things right from the start +------------------------------- + +Some work in optimization involves tackling performance shortcomings, but some +of the work can simply be built in to what you'd do anyway, as part of the good +practices you should adopt even before you start thinking about improving +performance. + +In this respect Python is an excellent language to work with, because solutions +that look elegant and feel right usually are the best performing ones. As with +most skills, learning what "looks right" takes practice, but one of the most +useful guidelines is: + +Work at the appropriate level +^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ + +Django offers many different ways of approaching things, but just because it's +possible to do something in a certain way doesn't mean that it's the most +appropriate way to do it. For example, you might find that you could calculate +the same thing - the number of items in a collection, perhaps - in a +``QuerySet``, in Python, or in a template. + +However, it will almost always be faster to do this work at lower rather than +higher levels. At higher levels the system has to deal with objects through +multiple levels of abstraction and layers of machinery. + +That is, the database can typically do things faster than Python can, which can +do them faster than the template language can:: + + # QuerySet operation on the database + # fast, because that's what databases are good at + my_bicycles.count() + + # counting Python objects + # slower, because it requires a database query anyway, and processing + # of the Python objects + len(my_bicycles) + + # Django template filter + # slower still, because it will have to count them in Python anyway, + # and because of template language overheads + {{ my_bicycles|length }} + +Generally speaking, the most appropriate level for the job is the lowest-level +one that it is comfortable to code for. + +.. note:: + + The example above is merely illustrative. + + Firstly, in a real-life case you need to consider what is happening before + and after your count to work out what's an optimal way of doing it *in that + particular context*. The database optimization documents describes :ref:`a + case where counting in the template would be better + `. + + Secondly, there are other options to consider: in a real-life case, ``{{ + my_bicycles.count }}``, which invokes the ``QuerySet`` ``count()`` method + directly from the template, might be the most appropriate choice. + +Caching +======= + +Often it is expensive (that is, resource-hungry and slow) to compute a value, +so there can be huge benefit in saving the value to a quickly accessible cache, +ready for the next time it's required. + +It's a sufficiently significant and powerful technique that Django includes a +comprehensive caching framework, as well as numerous other opportunities to +make use of caching. + +:doc:`The caching framework ` +-------------------------------------------- + +Django's :doc:`caching framework ` offers very significant +opportunities for performance gains, by saving dynamic content so that it +doesn't need to be calculated for each request. + +For convenience, Django offers different levels of cache granularity: you can +cache the output of specific views, or only the pieces that are difficult to +produce, or even an entire site. + +Implementing caching should not be regarded as an alternative to improving code +that's performing poorly because it has been written badly. It's one of the +final steps towards producing well-performing code, not a shortcut. + +Other opportunities for caching +------------------------------- + +Beyond the caching framework, Django offers other smaller pieces of caching +functionality. + +:class:`~django.utils.functional.cached_property` +^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ + +It's common to have to call a class instances's method more than once. If +that function is expensive, then doing so can be wasteful. + +Using the ``@cached_property`` decorator saves the value returned by a +property; the next time the function is called on that instance, it will return +the saved value rather than re-computing it. Note that this only works on +methods that take ``self`` as their only argument and that it changes the +method to a property. + +:class:`~django.contrib.staticfiles.storage.CachedStaticFilesStorage` +^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ + +:class:`~django.contrib.staticfiles.storage.CachedStaticFilesStorage` appends a +content-dependent tag to the filenames of :doc:`static files +` to make it safe for browsers to cache them +long-term without missing future changes - when a file changes, so will the +tag, so browsers will reload the asset automatically. + +Understanding laziness +====================== + +*Laziness* is a strategy complementary to caching. Caching avoids +recomputation by saving results; laziness delays computation until it's +actually required. + +Laziness allows us to refer to things before they are instantiated, or even +before it's possible to instantiate them. This has numerous uses. + +For example, :ref:`lazy translation ` can be used before the +target language is even known, because it doesn't take place until the +translated string is actually required, such as in a rendered template. + +Laziness is also a way to save effort by trying to avoid work in the first +place. That is, one aspect of laziness is not doing anything until it has to be +done, because it may not turn out to be necessary after all. Laziness can +therefore have performance implications, and the more expensive the work +concerned, the more there is to gain through laziness. + +Python provides a number of tools for lazy evaluation, particularly through the +:py:term:`generator` and :py:term:`generator expression` constructs. It's worth +reading up on laziness in Python to discover opportunities for making use of +lazy patterns in your code. + +Laziness in Django +------------------ + +Django is itself quite lazy. A good example of this can be found in the +evaluation of ``QuerySets``. :ref:`QuerySets are lazy `. +Thus a ``QuerySet`` can be created, passed around and combined with other +``QuerySets``, without actually incurring any trips to the database to fetch +the items it describes. What gets passed around is the ``QuerySet`` object, not +the collection of items that - eventually - will be required from the database. + +On the other hand, :ref:`certain operations will force the evaluation of a +QuerySet `. Avoiding the premature evaluation of +a ``QuerySet`` can save making an expensive and unnecessary trip to the +database. + +Django also offers an :meth:`~django.utils.functional.allow_lazy` decorator. +This allows a function that has been called with a lazy argument to behave +lazily itself, only being evaluated when it needs to be. Thus the lazy argument +- which could be an expensive one - will not be called upon for evaluation +until it's strictly required. + +Databases +========= + +:doc:`Database optimization ` +------------------------------------------------------ + +Django’s database layer provides various ways to help developers get the best +performance from their databases. The :doc:`database optimization documentation +` gathers together links to the relevant +documentation and adds various tips that outline the steps to take when +attempting to optimize your database usage. + +Other database-related tips +--------------------------- + +Enabling :ref:`persistent-database-connections` can speed up connections to the +database accounts for a significant part of the request processing time. + +This helps a lot on virtualized hosts with limited network performance, for example. + +HTTP performance +================ + +Middleware +---------- + +Django comes with a few helpful pieces of :doc:`middleware ` +that can help optimize your site's performance. They include: + +:class:`~django.middleware.http.ConditionalGetMiddleware` +^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ + +Adds support for modern browsers to conditionally GET responses based on the +``ETag`` and ``Last-Modified`` headers. + +:class:`~django.middleware.gzip.GZipMiddleware` +^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ + +Compresses responses for all modern browsers, saving bandwidth and transfer +time. Note that GZipMiddleware is currently considered a security risk, and is +vulnerable to attacks that nullify the protection provided by TLS/SSL. See the +warning in :class:`~django.middleware.gzip.GZipMiddleware` for more information. + +Third-party HTTP tools +---------------------- + +There are numerous third-party Django tools and packages available, notably +ones that are able to "minify" and compress HTML, CSS and JavaScript. + +Template performance +==================== + +Note that: + +* using ``{% block %}`` is faster than using ``{% include %}`` +* heavily-fragmented templates, assembled from many small pieces, can affect + performance + +The cached template loader +-------------------------- + +Enabling the :class:`cached template loader +` often improves performance +drastically, as it avoids compiling each template every time it needs to be +rendered. + +Using different versions of available software +============================================== + +It can sometimes be worth checking whether different and better-performing +versions of the software that you're using are available. + +This may be helpful, but is unlikely to solve a serious performance problem. +You won't usually gain performance advantages that are better than marginal. + +.. note:: + + It's worth repeating: **reaching for alternatives to software you're + already using is very rarely the answer to performance problems**. + +Newer is often - but not always - better +---------------------------------------- + +It's fairly rare for a new release of well-maintained software to be less +efficient, but the maintainers can't anticipate every possible use-case - so +while being aware that newer versions are likely to perform better, don't +simply assume that they always will. + +This is true of Django itself. Successive releases have offered a number of +improvements across the system, but you should still check the real-world +performance of your application, because in some cases you may find that +changes mean it performs worse rather than better. + +Newer versions of Python, and also of Python packages, will often perform +better too - but measure, rather than assume. + +.. note:: + + Unless you've encountered an unusual performance problem in a particular + version, you'll generally find better features, reliability, and security + in a new release and that these benefits are far more significant than any + performance you might win or lose. + +Alternatives to Django's template language +------------------------------------------ + +For nearly all cases, Django's built-in template language is perfectly +adequate. However, if the bottlenecks in your Django project seem to lie in the +template system and you have exhausted other opportunities to remedy this, a +third-party alternative may be the answer. + +`Jinja2 `_ can offer performance improvements, +particularly when it comes to speed. + +Alternative template systems vary in the extent to which they share Django's +templating language. + +.. note:: + + *If* you experience performance issues in templates, the first thing to do + is to understand exactly why. Using an alternative template system may + prove faster, but the same gains may also be available without going to + that trouble - for example, expensive processing and logic in your + templates could be done more efficiently in your views. + +Alternative software implementations +------------------------------------ + +It *may* be worth checking whether Python software you're using has been +provided in a different implementation that can execute the same code faster. + +However, most Django performance problems in well-written code are typically +not to be found at the Python execution level, but rather in inefficient +database querying, caching, and templates (and if you're relying on +poorly-written Python code, your performance problems are very unlikely to be +solved by having it execute faster). + +Avoid using C implementations of Python libraries or non-standard Python +implementations like `PyPy `_ in search of performance gains, +unless you are sure they are appropriate for your application. Any gains are +likely to be small, and compatibility issues are common.