Install Siege from Ubuntu’s repositories, verify it with siege --version, then run a controlled test such as siege -c10 -t60S -d1 "https://example.com/". This starts 10 concurrent simulated users for 60 seconds with a one-second pause between page requests. For several pages, put one URL per line in a file and add -f urls.txt. Record the concurrency, pacing, URL set, duration, client environment and cache condition with every result so later runs are genuinely comparable.
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What Siege measures
Siege is a multi-threaded HTTP/FTP load tester and benchmarking utility. It generates requests from an Ubuntu client and reports what that client observes while communicating with the target: elapsed time, transferred data, server response time, transaction rate, throughput, concurrency and successful responses.
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Those figures describe one workload over one network path. They are not a universal capacity guarantee for the website. A result is useful when another person can reproduce the same URL set, concurrency, pacing, run window, client host, network path and server state.
Install and verify Siege on Ubuntu
Install the Ubuntu package
- Refresh the package index:
sudo apt update - Install Siege from Ubuntu’s repositories:
sudo apt install siege - Confirm that the executable is available:
siege --version
Use siege --help when you need a compact option list. On first use, Siege can create its per-user configuration directory and files. Command-line properties take precedence over values in those configuration files, so a command that explicitly supplies -c, -d or another option is the clearest way to document a test.
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Check the target before generating load
Use a URL that you own or are explicitly authorized to test. Prefer the HTTPS form when the site supports it. Quote the URL on the command line whenever it contains query strings, shell metacharacters or other characters that your shell could interpret:
siege -g "https://example.com/"The -g operation inspects a transaction and response headers. It is useful for confirming that the hostname, redirect behavior and response are what you expect before a longer run.
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| Option | Meaning | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
-cN |
Run N concurrent simulated users. | You need to control simultaneous activity, for example -c10. |
-tTIME |
Run for a fixed duration. Examples include -t60S and -t2M. |
You want every comparison to cover the same time window. |
-rN |
Repeat the workload a fixed number of times. | You need a known number of iterations instead of a clock-based run. |
-ronce |
Make one pass through a URL file. | You want each listed URL visited once rather than running until a duration expires. |
-dN |
Insert an N-second delay between page requests. | You want paced activity that does not immediately start the next iteration. |
-b or --benchmark |
Run with no delay between iterations. | You are intentionally measuring a throughput-oriented, continuously issuing workload. |
-f FILE |
Read URLs and optional request definitions from a file. | You need a multi-page or mixed-method workload. |
-i or --internet |
Select entries from the URL file in random order. | You want traffic that does not always follow file order. |
Do not compare a delayed run with a benchmark-mode run as though they represented the same workload. A one-second delay changes how quickly each simulated user produces requests; -b removes that inter-iteration delay and can drive a much more aggressive request stream at the same concurrency.
Run a controlled single-URL benchmark
Start with a modest, repeatable test
Use a fixed concurrency, duration and delay for an initial baseline:
siege -c10 -t60S -d1 "https://example.com/"-c10: ten concurrent simulated users.-t60S: a 60-second run window.-d1: a one-second pause between page requests.- The quoted URL: the HTTPS homepage used as the only target in this workload.
Begin with a modest concurrency and increase it in stages rather than jumping straight to an unbounded stress test. Observe the target and the client after each run. Stop or reduce the load if error responses, saturation or collateral impact appears.
Choose repetitions instead of a duration
A duration answers “what happens during this time window?” A repetition count answers “what happens after this many iterations?” For a fixed number of passes, use the repetition option, for example:
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siege -c10 -r5 -d1 "https://example.com/"The exact comparison must keep the repetition count, concurrency, delay and URL constant. When testing a URL file, -ronce is useful for a single pass through the listed entries.
Run an intentional no-delay benchmark
For a throughput-oriented run, remove the inter-iteration delay explicitly:
siege -b -c10 -t30S "https://example.com/"This runs ten concurrent users for 30 seconds in benchmark mode. Because -b issues the next iteration without a delay, document that choice beside the result. It is not an equivalent replacement for the paced -d1 command.
Benchmark several pages with urls.txt
Create a URL file
Put one target per line in a plain-text file:
https://example.com/
https://example.com/pricing
https://example.com/docsRun the file for a fixed two-minute window with ten concurrent users and a one-second delay:
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Use comments, variables and request data
The URL file supports comments, shell-style variables and method/data forms. A comment line can label a group of pages. A line can also describe a request such as:
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https://example.com/
https://example.com/search POST q=ubuntuThe second line represents a POST request carrying q=ubuntu. Treat state-changing endpoints carefully: use test data, obtain authorization and confirm that the endpoint is safe to exercise repeatedly. A benchmark should not accidentally create orders, alter accounts or submit production records.
Choose sequential or random URL selection
Without the internet-order switch, the file’s normal selection behavior applies. Add -i or --internet when you want Siege to choose URLs from the file in random order:
siege -i -c10 -t2M -d1 -f urls.txtRandom selection can better represent visitors who do not all request the same page at the same moment. It also changes the workload, so keep the selection mode unchanged when comparing two server revisions.
Control what each request actually exercises
Inspect transaction details with -g
Run -g against a representative URL before a long test:
siege -g "https://example.com/"Use the output to check the transaction and response headers. This quick inspection can reveal an unexpected redirect or a response that is not the page you intended to measure.
Add a request header
Use -H to add a request header when the application requires one or when you need to model a particular request context. Record the exact header value with the benchmark because changing headers can change routing, caching or authorization behavior.
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Set the user agent
Use -A to set the user-agent string. Keep it consistent across comparison runs unless the purpose of the test is to compare user-agent-specific behavior.
Decide how redirects and page elements are handled
--no-followdisables redirect following. Use it when you want to measure the first response rather than the destination transaction.--no-parserprevents Siege from fetching page elements discovered in HTML. Use it when you want a document-only request instead of a workload that follows parsed elements.
Two commands that use the same URL can therefore exercise different request sets. A run with redirect following and parsed page elements is not directly comparable with one that disables either behavior.
Read the Siege report
After a run, Siege reports several dimensions of the observed workload:
| Reported value | What it tells you | How to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Elapsed time | How long the run took. | Check that a duration-based comparison covered the intended window. |
| Total data transferred | Bytes returned during the run. | Detect a workload that moved substantially more or less content. |
| Server response time | The observed response-time measure for transactions. | Compare latency under the same request mix and pacing. |
| Transaction rate | Transactions completed per unit of time. | Assess how much work the target completed during the run. |
| Throughput | Data delivered per unit of time. | Interpret alongside transferred bytes and response time, not alone. |
| Concurrency | The concurrent activity observed by Siege. | Confirm that the intended load level was actually exercised. |
| Successful responses | How many responses completed successfully. | Check outcome quality before treating a high transaction rate as useful. |
A high transaction rate with elevated failures is not a healthy capacity result. Examine successful responses together with response time, throughput and transferred bytes. Also note whether redirects, parsed elements, headers or POST data were enabled; those settings determine what a “transaction” represents in your run.
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Keep the workload constant
For an A/B comparison, hold these variables constant:
- Concurrent users supplied with
-c. - Delay supplied with
-d, or benchmark mode supplied with-b. - Duration supplied with
-t, or repetition count supplied with-r. - The exact single URL or the exact contents and ordering policy of
urls.txt. - Client host, network path and relevant request headers or user-agent settings.
- Redirect and parser behavior, including whether
--no-followor--no-parseris present.
Label cache state
Warm-cache and cold-cache tests answer different questions. A warm-cache run examines behavior after content or application data has already been requested; a cold-cache run examines behavior without that prior state. Choose the condition deliberately, record it in the result, and do not mix the two conditions in one trend line.
Increase load in stages
- Establish a low-concurrency baseline with a fixed duration and delay.
- Repeat the same command to check that the baseline is reasonably stable.
- Increase
-cin controlled steps while keeping every other setting unchanged. - Watch for rising response times, falling successful responses, elevated 4xx or 5xx responses, resource saturation or impact on other users.
- Stop at the first level that exceeds your safety or service objective, then document that threshold and the conditions that produced it.
This staged approach separates a normal operating baseline from a saturation point and reduces the chance that one sudden, uncontrolled run harms the service.
Safety and authorization
Benchmark only systems you own or are authorized to test. Even a modest concurrency can create meaningful traffic when the URL causes database work, cache misses or downstream requests. Coordinate with the service owner, choose a maintenance or test window when appropriate, and make sure someone can stop the test.
- Start with low concurrency and increase gradually.
- Prefer non-destructive endpoints and test records for POST requests.
- Monitor elevated 4xx and 5xx responses, saturation and collateral impact.
- Keep the client’s CPU, memory and network capacity in view; a constrained client can distort the result.
- Save the command, URL file, date, duration, concurrency, pacing and cache condition with the report.
Siege’s output is an observation from the client-to-target path. It cannot by itself prove the maximum capacity of every server, region, network or future workload.
Troubleshoot misleading or unexpected results
The result is much faster than expected
- Confirm that the URL is the intended HTTPS endpoint and inspect it with
-g. - Check whether redirects were followed or disabled.
- Check whether parsed page elements were fetched or suppressed with
--no-parser. - Verify that the run did not use
-bwhen you intended a paced test, or omit-dwhen you intended a delay.
The result is not comparable with an earlier run
Compare the complete command lines, not just the URL. A changed -c, -t, -r, -d, -b, -f or -i value changes the workload. Also compare URL-file contents, headers, user agent, redirect/parser switches, client host, network path and cache condition.
Errors rise as concurrency increases
Reduce the concurrency and repeat the test to distinguish a target limit from a transient problem. Record whether failures are 4xx or 5xx responses, whether response times rise sharply and whether the client or network is saturated. Do not keep increasing load after collateral impact begins.
The URL-file run does not represent the intended pages
Open urls.txt and verify one URL per line, comments, variables and any method/data syntax. Confirm whether random selection with -i is wanted. A file containing a POST line is a different workload from a file containing only public GET pages.
Reusable command patterns
| Purpose | Command | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Baseline, one page | siege -c10 -t60S -d1 "https://example.com/" |
Ten users, 60 seconds, one-second pacing. |
| Throughput-oriented run | siege -b -c10 -t30S "https://example.com/" |
No inter-iteration delay; do not compare directly with a delayed run. |
| Several pages | siege -c10 -t2M -d1 -f urls.txt |
Uses the URL file’s request mix for two minutes. |
| Random page selection | siege -i -c10 -t2M -d1 -f urls.txt |
URL entries are selected in random order. |
| Transaction inspection | siege -g "https://example.com/" |
Inspect before a longer load run. |
| One pass through a file | siege -ronce -f urls.txt |
Uses the one-pass repetition form; add other controls when you need a defined concurrency or delay. |
A practical reporting template
When you publish or archive a Siege result, include enough context for another operator to reproduce it:
- Ubuntu host and Siege version.
- Date and time, including the test window.
- Target hostname and whether HTTPS was used.
- Exact command line and a checksum or saved copy of
urls.txt, if applicable. - Concurrency, duration or repetitions, delay or benchmark mode, URL-selection mode and request options.
- Whether redirects and parsed page elements were followed.
- Client location, network path and cache condition.
- Elapsed time, transferred bytes, response time, transaction rate, throughput, concurrency and successful responses.
- Observed 4xx/5xx responses, saturation or other impact.
This record turns a one-off load exercise into a repeatable measurement. It also prevents a later reader from mistaking a no-delay throughput run, a warm-cache page test or a random multi-page workload for a different experiment.
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