📈 Load Patterns · Days 7–12
Day 8: Steady State
Objective
Hold a fixed concurrency for 15 minutes and check for stability drift.
Scenario
Run 20 users for a full 15 minutes at constant load. Watch response time at minute 1, 5, 10, and 15.
Metrics to Watch
When It Clicks
A flat load can still drift - watch for slow creep.
Solution
Set Thread Group to 20 users, ramp-up = 30s, loop = forever, scheduler duration = 900s (15 min). Add a Response Time Graph with a granularity of 60000ms (1 min) to see per-minute averages. Upward creep is the signature of a slow memory leak, connection pool not returning connections, or a cache filling up. Flat with occasional spikes points to GC pauses. Flat throughout = healthy baseline.
Reflection
Did the response time stay flat, or did it creep upward? What could cause creep?
Deliverable
A steady-state script with a 15-minute duration.
⚠️ Never run load tests against infrastructure you do not own or have explicit written permission to test. Always use a dedicated test environment. Unauthorized load injection can cause outages, trigger legal liability, and violate terms of service.