Answer
Head-of-line blocking occurs when a lost TCP packet halts subsequent packets. Mitigate using HTTP/2 multiplexing, UDP, or splitting connections.
Quick Answer
TCP head-of-line blocking: HTTP/1.1 processes requests in order on one connection — a slow response blocks all subsequent ones on that connection. Fix: use HTTP/2 (multiplexes multiple streams on one connection with independent flow control), increase connection concurrency in HTTP agents, or use request pipelining carefully. gRPC (HTTP/2) eliminates this for internal services.
S
SugharaIQ Editorial Team
Verified Answer
This answer has been peer-reviewed by industry experts holding senior engineering roles to ensure technical accuracy and relevance for modern interview standards.
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Source: SugharaIQ