Edge computing is the model of moving computation and data storage from a central data center to an "edge" server closest to the user. In traditional cloud computing every request travels to a distant data center; at the edge it's handled on a server 50-200 km from the user. This can be much faster and cheaper.
Why edge computing matters
Speed β a request from Tashkent to a US server takes 200-300 ms. From a local edge it's 10-50 ms. Real-time applications (video chat, online gaming, e-commerce checkout) feel that difference sharply.
Bandwidth cost β serving files from the edge cuts bandwidth costs.
Privacy and compliance β some jurisdictions (the EU, China) require their citizens' data to remain in-country. Edge helps with this.
Offline-first applications β in some cases the edge can keep working even if internet connectivity drops.
Edge computing platforms
Cloudflare Workers β the most popular. Runs JavaScript or Rust code across Cloudflare's 320+ edges. Free plan: 100,000 requests/day. Paid: $5/month for 10M requests.
Vercel Edge Functions β integrates with Next.js. JavaScript and TypeScript. Has a free plan.
AWS Lambda@Edge β works with CloudFront. Node.js or Python. Pay-per-request.
Fastly Compute@Edge β Rust and AssemblyScript. Premium.
Deno Deploy β Deno JavaScript runtime, easy setup.
Edge computing use cases
Authentication and authorization β verify JWTs at the edge without going to origin.
A/B testing β choose which variant to show per user at the edge.
Personalization β serve location-based content (geo-routing).
API caching β serve static-style responses to API calls from the edge.
Image optimization β resize and reformat images at the edge.
Bot mitigation β detect and block bots at the edge.
Sayt.uz practice
Sayt.uz hosting tariffs don't include edge computing by default. Clients can hook up Cloudflare Workers separately (if connected to Cloudflare). Sayt.uz infrastructure itself uses Cloudflare Workers for image optimization and bot mitigation. 6% of clients use Cloudflare Workers β mostly startups and modern SaaS projects. Tip: edge computing is fantastic for real-time or globally distributed applications, but unnecessarily complex for ordinary business sites.