What is Tengine

About the Author

I'm Carrie, a cybersecurity engineer and writer, working for SafeLine Team. SafeLine is a free and open source web application firewall, self-hosted, very easy to use.

Introduction

Tengine is a powerful and efficient web server and reverse proxy server developed by the Chinese technology company Taobao, a subsidiary of Alibaba Group. It is based on the popular Nginx web server but extends its capabilities to meet the needs of large-scale web applications and high-traffic websites. Tengine offers enhanced performance, scalability, and additional features that make it a preferred choice for many enterprises.

SafeLine , a web application firewall (WAF) developed by Chaitin Tech, leverages Tengine to provide robust security and high performance for web applications. SafeLine uses Tengine's advanced features to enhance its own capabilities in protecting against various web threats.

Integration of Tengine in SafeLine WAF

Key Features of Tengine

1. High Performance

Tengine is designed to handle a large number of concurrent connections efficiently. It includes several optimizations that improve its performance over the standard Nginx:

• Asynchronous I/O: Utilizes asynchronous, non-blocking I/O operations to handle multiple connections simultaneously.
• Connection Pooling: Reuses connections to reduce the overhead of establishing new connections.
• Optimized Memory Management: Enhances memory usage to handle high loads more effectively.

2. Enhanced Security

Tengine provides robust security features to protect web applications:

• Anti-DDoS Mechanisms: Includes built-in protection against distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.
• Access Control: Supports fine-grained access control policies to restrict access based on IP addresses, user agents, and other criteria.
• SSL/TLS Support: Offers strong SSL/TLS encryption to secure data transmission.

3. Load Balancing

Tengine extends Nginx's load balancing capabilities with additional algorithms and features:

• Dynamic Load Balancing: Automatically adjusts load balancing based on server health and load.
• Session Persistence: Ensures that user sessions are consistently routed to the same backend server.
• Advanced Health Checks: Continuously monitors backend servers and removes unhealthy ones from the load balancing pool.

4. Extended Module Support

Tengine supports a wide range of additional modules that enhance its functionality:

• Lua Scripting: Integrates with Lua for dynamic scripting and customization of request handling.
• PageSpeed Optimization: Includes Google PageSpeed modules to optimize web content delivery.
• Dynamic Module Loading: Allows loading and unloading of modules at runtime without restarting the server.

5. Comprehensive Monitoring and Logging

Tengine offers advanced monitoring and logging capabilities to help administrators track server performance and diagnose issues:

• Extended Logging: Provides detailed logs with customizable formats.
• Real-time Monitoring: Supports real-time monitoring of server metrics and traffic patterns.

Use Cases for Tengine

Large-Scale Web Applications

Tengine is ideal for large-scale web applications that require high performance and reliability. Its ability to handle a high number of concurrent connections makes it suitable for websites with heavy traffic.

E-commerce Platforms

E-commerce platforms, such as those operated by Alibaba Group, benefit from Tengine's robust security features and efficient load balancing. These capabilities ensure a smooth and secure shopping experience for users.

Content Delivery Networks (CDNs)

CDNs can leverage Tengine's performance optimizations and dynamic load balancing to deliver content quickly and reliably to users around the globe.

Getting Started with Tengine

To start using Tengine, you can download it from the official Tengine GitHub repository. The repository includes comprehensive documentation and installation instructions.

Installation

You can install Tengine on a Linux server using the following steps:

1. Download Tengine:

wget https://tengine.taobao.org/download/tengine-2.3.2.tar.gz

2. Extract the Package:

tar -xzvf tengine-2.3.2.tar.gz

3. Compile and Install:

cd tengine-2.3.2
./configure
make
sudo make install

4.Start Tengine:

sudo /usr/local/nginx/sbin/nginx

Configuration

Tengine configuration files are similar to those of Nginx. You can customize the nginx.conf file to set up your server, define load balancing rules, and configure security settings.

Conclusion

Tengine is a powerful extension of the Nginx web server, offering enhanced performance, security, and scalability. It is well-suited for large-scale web applications, e-commerce platforms, and content delivery networks. With its advanced features and robust architecture, Tengine provides a reliable and efficient solution for handling high-traffic websites.

For more information and detailed documentation, visit the official Tengine website.