HTTP POST flood
Write-heavy POST traffic to forms or APIs. Stresses validation, database writes, and authentication paths more than read-only GET floods.
How it works
- Connection setup is identical to GET, but each request carries a request body.
- Backend must parse payload, run business logic, and often persist data.
- Sustained POST volume can exhaust DB connection pools and application workers.
Packet flow (illustrative)
Engarde node Target
→SYN · SYN-ACK · ACKhandshake
→POST /api/order HTTP/1.1
→Content-Length: 512
→{ "items": [...] }
Illustrative flow — not a live capture.
Typical pattern Form/API POST bursts
Engarde metric Latency, 5xx rate
Layer L7 application
What to watch in Engarde
- Backend latency vs. GET baseline on the same target.
- Database or queue saturation signals in target health.
- Auth/session handling under sustained submissions.
Running this simulation
Select POST in Engarde DDoS with target endpoint and optional payload size. Monitor write-path degradation separately from read-only tests.
Mitigation perspective
CAPTCHA, per-IP and per-session throttling, and async processing queues reduce abuse impact; test limits with simulation first.