Rate Limiting
In plain terms
Capping how many requests a client can make in a time window.
Going deeper
Rate limiting protects services from overload and abuse by rejecting or delaying requests past a threshold. It ensures fair access and stability under heavy or malicious traffic.
Under the hood
Common algorithms include token bucket, leaky bucket, fixed and sliding window; distributed enforcement needs a shared store like Redis and clear 429 responses.
Examples
API quotas (1000 req/hour), login throttling, Stripe/GitHub API limits, Nginx limit_req.
Think of it like...
Like a nightclub letting in only so many people per hour: keeps the venue safe and pleasant instead of dangerously packed.