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Building Scalable APIs with Node.js and PostgreSQL
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A deep dive into designing RESTful APIs that can handle millions of requests while maintaining sub-100ms response times.
# Building Scalable APIs with Node.js and PostgreSQL
When building APIs that need to scale, the choices you make early on have a massive impact on your ability to grow.
## Connection Pooling
One of the first things to get right is database connection pooling. PostgreSQL has a limited number of connections, and each one consumes memory.
```typescript
import { Pool } from 'pg';
const pool = new Pool({
connectionString: process.env.DATABASE_URL,
max: 20,
idleTimeoutMillis: 30000,
connectionTimeoutMillis: 2000,
});
```
## Indexing Strategy
Proper indexes are the difference between a 10ms query and a 10-second query at scale. Always index columns you filter or sort by frequently.
## Caching with Redis
For read-heavy endpoints, a Redis cache layer can reduce database load by 90%+. The key is cache invalidation.