Building an enterprise-level low-code platform from 0 to 1: an analysis of front-end technology selection

As a low-code platform product manager, you must have an in-depth understanding of the key links of platform front-end construction, and be able to communicate with technical personnel without barriers around the three core pillars of mainstream framework selection, componentized engineering practice, and performance optimization strategy, and put forward actual technical and performance requirements.

In the blueprint for building an enterprise-level low-code platform, the front-end is not just an interface display layer. It serves as the core hub for user interaction with the platform’s capabilities, carrying key missions such as visual design, real-time preview, logic processing of complex interactions, and data-driven view updates. The choice of its technology stack, architecture design and performance optimization directly determine the user experience, development efficiency, long-term maintainability, and ultimately the success or failure of the platform.

1. Comparison and selection of front-end frameworks

The selection of the front-end framework of an enterprise-level low-code platform is not a simple question of “which framework is better”, but a strategic decision that needs to be closely integrated with the core requirements of the platform (high interactivity, dynamics, complexity, scalability, and team capabilities). Penetrating characterization of the candidate frame is required.

1.1 Analysis of the characteristics of mainstream front-end frameworks

Vue.js: Elegant practice of progressive framing

• Core mechanism:The essence of Vue lies in its responsive system. Property accessors of data objects are hijacked through Object.defineProperty(Vue 2) or Proxy(Vue 3), combined with fine-grained dependency tracking (one watcher for each component instance), to automate data changes to view updates. Its Virtual DOM implementation calculates minimal DOM operation differences (Diffs) after data changes, and then applies them to the real DOM in batches, balancing development convenience and rendering performance.
• API Design Philosophy:Single-file components (.vue files) organize templates, logic, and styles together in a highly cohesive manner, greatly improving the readability and maintainability of components. Instruction systems (v-model, v-for, v-if, v-bind, v-on, etc.) provide declarative DOM manipulation capabilities that significantly reduce boilerplate code. Computed properties (computed) and listeners (watches) provide elegant management of derived state and asynchronous operations.
• Progressive vs. ecological:Progressive means you can start with a lightweight core library and gradually introduce official or community ecosystems such as Vue Router (route management), Vuex/Pinia (state management), Vite (build tools), etc. according to the complexity of the project. The scaffolding and development server (HMR) provided by Vue CLI/Vite greatly optimizes the development experience. The large community ensures the richness of component libraries (e.g., Element Plus, Ant Design Vue, Vuetify), toolchains, plugin resources.

React.js: A model of functional and componentization

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• Core Paradigm:At its core, React is “UI as Functions.” A component is essentially a function (function component) or class (Class component) that receives props and returns a JSX element that describes the structure of the UI. Its one-way data flow (props down, events up) enforces clarity in the direction of data flow and reduces the coupling between components. Virtual DOM is also employed for efficient differential updates.
• Hooks Revolution:The Hooks introduced in React 16.8 (useState, useEffect, useContext, useReducer, useMemo, useCallback, etc.) are epoch-making innovations. It allows the use of features such as state and lifecycle in function components, completely solving problems such as render props (HOC nesting hell) and this binding trouble in Class components, greatly improving the expressiveness and logical reusability of function components. Hooks allow state logic to be combined and drawn like Lego bricks.
• Ecology and Flexibility:React itself is a library, and its strong vitality lies in its flexibility and thriving ecosystem. Routing requires React Router, and there are various mature solutions such as Redux (and its ecosystems such as Redux Toolkit, Redux-Saga/Thunk), MobX, Zustand, Jotai, etc. There are also a variety of style schemes (CSS Modules, CSS-in-JS like styled-components/emotion, Tailwind CSS integration, etc.). This flexibility allows for a high level of customization, but it also means more technical decisions and integration efforts.

Angular: A full-stack enterprise-grade solution

• Strong Type and Architectural Constraints:Based on TypeScript, it provides advanced features such as static type checking, interfaces, generics, and decorators, significantly improving the robustness, readability, and maintainability of large applications. The framework itself is highly structured, enforcing design patterns such as modularity (NgModule), componentization (Component), service (Service), and dependency injection (DI), providing strong constraints and specifications for large team collaboration.
• FamilyMart bucket and out-of-the-box:Angular is a true “framework” that provides a complete solution almost out of the box: powerful template syntax (including pipes, structure directives *ngIf/*ngFor), form processing (template-driven forms and responsive forms ReactiveFormsModule), HTTP client (HttpClientModule), routing (RouterModule), internationalization (i18n), testing tools, etc. Its CLI tool (ng) is powerful and covers the entire process of project generation, construction, testing, and deployment.
• Change detection mechanism:Angular employs Zone.js-based change detection. Zone.js intercepts all common asynchronous operations (setTimeout, Promise, DOM events, etc.) and automatically triggers a change detection loop when these operations are complete. Developers can optimize detection coverage and improve performance through the ChangeDetectionStrategy.OnPush policy and Immutable.js or pure pipe. Its Ivy rendering engine has made huge improvements in compile and runtime performance.

1.2 Analysis of the core demands and framework adaptability of low-code platforms

Low-code platforms place extremely demanding requirements on the front-end:

Ultimate interactivity and dynamics:Users build apps by dragging, configuring, and previewing in real-time. The requirements framework can:

• Efficiently handle high-frequency user events (drag, drag, zoom, attribute modification).
• Realize real-time, accurate synchronization of views with the underlying data model/DSL.
• Supports dynamically loading, parsing, rendering user-defined components, or configuring generated components at runtime.

Ultra-high complexity and scale:The platform itself has complex functions (designer, renderer, material management, permissions, etc.) and needs to support various applications built by users. Request:

• Strong componentization capabilities and clear module boundaries.
• Efficient, predictable state management mechanisms handle data flow across components and modules.
• Excellent TypeScript support (strong typing is essential for complex business logic and large codebases).

Development efficiency and maintainability:The platform needs to iterate quickly. Request:

• The framework API is intuitive and has a relatively gentle learning curve (especially considering the potential for team expansion).
• Robust development toolchain support (hot-update HMR, debugging, performance analysis).
• Clear code structure and best practice guidance for multi-person collaboration and long-term maintenance.

Performance and scalability:The designer needs to respond smoothly, and the renderer needs to efficiently handle various user-generated page structures. Request:

• Efficient view update mechanism (Virtual DOM / Incremental DOM).
• Support optimization techniques such as code segmentation and lazy loading.
• The architecture design supports the horizontal and vertical scaling of platform capabilities.

Frame fit conclusion:

• Vue.js：Its responsive system and v-model are a natural fit for the bidirectional synchronization of models and views in low-code designers. Single-file components .vue have a clear structure and intuitive template instructions, making it easy for developers to understand and build complex visual editing interfaces. The progressive nature allows the core of the platform, such as the designer engine, to adopt more advanced Composition APIs (Vue 3) and state management (Pinia), while the renderer part can remain relatively lightweight. A rich ecosystem of UI libraries (such as Element Plus’ forms, layout components) serves as a solid foundation for the platform’s material pool. The relatively gentle learning curve is conducive to team building and knowledge transfer. In terms of balancing development efficiency, operational performance, learning cost, and ecological resources, Vue.js shows strong comprehensive competitiveness and is the preferred front-end framework for enterprise-level low-code platforms.
• React.js：Its combination of functional components + hooks provides unparalleled logical abstraction and reusability, making it ideal for building highly reusable low-code designer components (e.g., toolbars, property panels, nodes). Powerful state management libraries (e.g., Zustand, Jotai) are flexible and efficient when dealing with complex designer states (currently selected node, canvas zoom, history). JSX’s expressive power is advantageous in dynamically generating complex UI structures. However, its one-way data flow requires more boilerplate code (onChange+setState) in scenarios that require bidirectional binding, such as binding node properties in the properties panel. The flexibility of the React ecosystem also means that more effort needs to be invested in technology selection and integration. React is a strong contender for scenarios where you are looking for extreme flexibility and logic reuse, and your team has a deep React technology stack, especially for complex designer implementations.
• Angular：Its strong typing and structured design have significant advantages in the long-term maintenance of very large platform codebases. Dependency injection (DI) and modularity (NgModule) provide a clear foundation for architectural layering and testability for the platform. The out-of-the-box family bucket reduces the burden of technical selection. However, its relatively steep learning curve, complex configuration (especially in early versions), and heavy runtime can be a burden in low-code scenarios that require rapid iterations and high-frequency interactions. Its change detection mechanism may require more granular optimization (OnPush) in extremely complex dynamic views. Angular is a viable option for large enterprise teams with deep Angular stacks and high requirements for long-term maintenance and type safety, but the potential impact on development efficiency and runtime performance needs to be fully evaluated.

2. Component development practice

Componentization is not only a way of code organization, but also the core support for the visual construction ability of low-code platforms. Building a robust, flexible, and scalable library of front-end components is key to the success of the platform.

2.1 Build a highly available and reusable front-end component library

Component classification and responsibilities definition:

1) Primitives:Button, Input, Select, Radio, Checkbox, Switch, Tag, Icon, etc. These are atomic units for building more complex components that require a high degree of customizability (style, size, state), good accessibility (a11y), and strict API design.

2) Layouts:Container, Row/Col/Grid, SplitPane, Card, Collapse, and more. Responsible for the macro structure organization of pages and regions, it is necessary to provide flexible configuration items to control spacing, alignment, and responsive behavior.

3) Data entry components (Form Controls):Form, FormItem, DynamicForm, RichTextEditor, DatePicker, Upload, and more. This is the core of low-code platforms that require deep integration:

• Data binding:Supports v-model/onChange to achieve two-way/one-way synchronization with the data model.
• Form Validation:Built-in basic validation rules (required, type, length, regular), support custom validation functions (validator), async validator (asyncValidator), and error message display policies. Consider linkage with the overall form submission (Form component).
• Linkage logic:Support dynamic invisibility, disabling, and option changes between form items (based on the values of other form items or external status).

4) Data Display:Table – Requires support for pagination, sorting, filtering, pinning columns, row expansion, virtual scrolling), List, Tree, Tabs, Carousel, Descriptions, and so on. Requires efficient handling of large data volumes (virtualization is key) and flexible scoped slots/render props.

5) Designer Specific:

• Canvas:The core area of the bearer node dragging, scaling, and positioning. It is necessary to achieve accurate coordinate calculation, collision detection, box selection, alignment line adsorption, grid adsorption and other functions. High-performance rendering of a large number of nodes is a challenge.
• Node:Represents an activity in a flow, an element block in a page. You need to define a unified data structure (ID, type, position, size, attribute), and support dragging, selecting, resizing, and connecting points (Ports) definition.
• Edge/Link:Connecting the lines between nodes. It needs to handle path calculations (straight lines, Bezier curves), obstacle avoidance, dynamic connection/disconnection from nodes, vertex editing, etc.
• Component Palette:Displays a list of draggable components, organized by category. Search, grouping, and custom icons are required.
• Property Inspector:Dynamically display its configurable attribute form based on the currently selected node/component type. It needs to be deeply bound to the designer state and update the node properties in real time.

6) Chart component (Data Visualization):Integrate ECharts, Chart.js, or D3.js packaged into easy-to-use Vue/React components (BarChart, LineChart, PieChart, Dashboard). Clear datasets, options, and event callbacks (onClicks) are required to support theme switching and responsive updates.

Component design principles:

• Single Responsibility Principle (SRP):Do only one thing per component, and do it well. Avoid the “God component”. For example, a Table component is only responsible for tabular display and basic interaction (sorting, pagination) of data, and complex in-line editing should be split into independent EditableCell components.
• Controlled vs. Unmanaged Components:Clarify the status management rights of components. In low-code platforms, designer state is usually the only source of data, and most components should be controlled components (state is passed in by the parent component through props, and changes are notified by the parent component through event emit).
• Combination over inheritance:Utilize slots (slotsin Vue) or children/render props (in React) to achieve flexible injection and combination of component content, rather than extending functionality through class inheritance. This is the key to building flexible material systems.
• Clear Props API Design:Well-defined, typed props (TypeScript interfaces). Distinguish between required and optional. Provide reasonable defaults. To avoid over-cluttering the props, consider using v-bind=”object” (Vue) or the expansion operator {… rest}(React) to pass multiple properties. Event naming (emit/onEventName) needs to be semantic and consistent.
• Style Scope:Enforce the use of CSS Modules or Scoped CSS (Vue<style scoped>) or CSS-in-JS schemes to ensure that component styles are not leaked globally and avoid naming conflicts. This is the cornerstone of a large component library.
• Accessibility (A11Y):Following the WAI-ARIA specification, add the necessary role, aria-* attributes to the component to ensure keyboard operability and improve the user experience for people with disabilities. This is not only about ethics, but also about the requirements of enterprise-level products.

2.2 Engineering scheme for component communication and state management

The relationship between low-code platform components is intricate, and the designer state is huge, requiring rigorous communication and state management solutions.

Component Communication Mode:

1) Father-son communication:Basic mode. Father to son: props (Vue/React). Child Parent: The child component emit event (Vue) or the parent component passes a callback function (React) via props.

2) Sibling Communication/Deep Nested Component Communication:

(1) Status Improvement:Promote the shared status to their nearest common parent component for management. This is suitable for cases where the range of shared states is small and the level is not deep.

(2) Global state management (Vuex/Pinia in Vue; Redux/Zustand/Jotai in React)：This is standard for low-code platforms. The designer core state (canvas scaling, currently selected node ID, node list data, history stack, material definition, global configuration) must be centrally managed. Advantage:

• Single source of truth:The state is unique globally to avoid inconsistencies.
• Predictable state changes:Define mutations/actions(Vuex) or reducers/actions(Redux) /set/actions(Zustand/Jotai) to specify how the state changes, making it easy to track changes and understand logic.
• Cross-component access:Any component can be connected to the Store to get or modify (as specified) the desired state.
• DevTools supports:Mainstream state libraries have powerful browser plug-ins that support time travel debugging, state snapshots, and Action/Mutation logging, making them powerful tools for debugging complex state flows.

(3) Dependency injection/context (Context in React; provide/inject in Vue)：It is suitable for passing some global configuration, theme, internationalization information, or specific services (e.g., designer engine instances, API clients) deep in the component tree, avoiding prop drilling. Often used as a complement to state management.

(4) Event bus:Create a global event emitter/listener (in Vue it can be based on libraries such as new Vue() or mitt). It can be used to decouple simple notifications between components that are not parent and do not share state (e.g., “Save successful”, “Theme switch”). Use with caution! Overuse can make event streams difficult to track and maintain, and state management or context/provide should be prioritized. Not usually preferred in large applications.

3) Cross-designer module communication (e.g. canvas and property panel):This is usually the most straightforward and efficient way to manage the global state through a shared global state library (store). The Properties panel listens to the changes in the ID of the currently selected node in the store, loads the attribute configuration of the corresponding node, and renders the form. Form modification updates node data through store actions, triggering canvas repainting.

State management library selection considerations (using Vue as an example):

Vuex (Vue 2 Official):Proven solution with strict processes (state-> mutations (sync)-> actions (async)-> components) for large-scale projects that require strong process constraints. But the API is relatively cumbersome, especially when dealing with TypeScript type inference.

Pinia (Vue 3 Official Recommendation):The modern successor to Vuex. Core Benefits:

• Cleaner API:Based on the Composition API, define a store as if you were defining a component (defineStore).
• Perfect TypeScript Support:Powerful type inference out of the box.
• Removing mutations:Modifying the state directly (or in actions) is more in line with the Composition API habits.
• Modular design:Multiple stores are naturally decoupled and can be combined on demand via useStore().
• DevTools Integration:Support for time travel and editing.

Selection recommendations:For the new Vue 3 low-code platform project, Pinia is the top choice. Its simplicity, type friendliness, and development experience are better. The Vuex 4 is also available for the Vue 3, but Pinia represents a more modern direction.

2.3 Implementation of style isolation and theme customization

Style isolation scheme:

• Scoped CSS (Vue)：By <style>adding scoped attributes to tags, Vue Loader/Vite automatically adds unique attribute identifiers (e.g., data-v-f3f3eg9) to DOM elements and style pickers in component templates, enabling component-level style isolation. Simple and easy to use, it is the default recommendation for .vue single-file components.
• CSS Modules：More general scheme (both Vue/React are available). At build time, the tool converts the class name (className) in the CSS file to a unique, locally scoped class name (e.g., . Button_abc123）。 In JS/TS, use these class names by importing an object containing a mapping relationship (import styles from ‘./Button.module.css’; <button className={styles.primary}>)。 This approach completely avoids global naming conflicts and is type-safe (with d.ts generation). CSS Modules are the best choice for building independent component libraries or in scenarios where style isolation is extremely demanding.
• CSS-in-JS (React ecosystem is more mainstream):For example, styled-components, emotion. Write styles directly into JavaScript/TypeScript files, leverage the power of JS to dynamically generate CSS, and automate scopes. The advantages are strong dynamic styling capabilities, theme support, and a great developer experience (styles are logically aligned with component logic). The downside is that it increases runtime overhead and package volume, and conflicts slightly with Vue’s single-file component style. It’s worth considering in projects that are in the React tech stack and require highly dynamic styling.
• Shadow DOM：Web component standards that provide the strongest style isolation (true encapsulation). However, integration into the Vue/React framework is relatively complex, and there are some compatibility and style penetration (::p art, ::theme) considerations. It is not currently the preferred isolation solution for mainstream framework component libraries.

Theme customization implementation:

CSS Variables:A cornerstone approach to modern web development. Define a series of CSS variables (–primary-color: #1890ff; –border-radius: 4px; )。 These variables (color: var(–primary-color); border-radius: var(–border-radius); )。 Switching topics simply modifies the values of these variables on the root element dynamically via JS at runtime. The advantages are that there is no need for precompilation, support dynamic switching, and good performance. Browser compatibility needs to be dealt with (not supported by IE11).

SASS/LESS Variables + Precompilation:Define themes through preprocessor variables ($primary-color) and generate multiple sets of CSS based on different theme profiles at build time. Switching themes at runtime is actually loading different CSS files. The advantage is good compatibility and can take advantage of the preprocessor function. The downside is that generating multiple copies of CSS may increase the volume, and dynamic switching is not as flexible as CSS variables.

CSS-in-JS Theme Scheme:styled-components/emotion and other libraries have a powerful theme provider mechanism built in, passing the theme object (theme) to all style components through the React Context, which can be accessed through props.theme.primaryColor. Very flexible and suitable for complex subject matters.

Low-code platform theme strategy:The platform’s own UI should prioritize CSS variable schemes to enable the ability to dynamically switch topics (e.g., light/dark mode) at runtime. At the same time, it is necessary to provide theme customization capabilities for user-built applications. This usually means:

• CSS variables are also used internally in the material components provided by the platform.
• At the application rendering layer, an interface is exposed that allows the user to override the values of these CSS variables (either through the platform configuration interface or by injecting user-defined CSS).
• Ensure that user-defined styles don’t break style isolation (using CSS variables or specific namespaces) of the platform’s own UI.

3. Front-end performance optimization strategy

The performance challenges of low-code platforms come from two main aspects: the complexity of the platform itself, especially the visual designer, and the unpredictability of user-built applications, which can contain a large number of components or data. Optimization needs to run through the entire process of development, construction, deployment, and runtime.

3.1 Code splitting and on-demand loading

Routing-level code splitting:Utilize Vue Router’s component: () => import(‘./views/Designer.vue’) or React.lazy(() => import(‘./pages/Designer'<Suspense>))+ 。 Package different functional modules (such as designer, application management, user management, help center) into independent JS files (chunks) and load the corresponding code only when the user accesses the route. This is the most basic and effective optimization method, which significantly reduces the first-screen load time.

Component-level code splitting/dynamic components:Taking it a step further, for very large, non-immediately needed components inside the module, use dynamic import()). For example:

• Complex diagram configuration panel in the designer.
• Specific advanced editors (e.g., rich text editor, SQL editor) in the properties panel.
• Specific third-party chart library components referenced in the user’s app.
• Complex modal box content that appears only after a specific action, such as clicking Advanced Settings.

Third-party libraries are introduced on demand:

• Tree Shaking：Tree Shaking capabilities that rely on build tools (Webpack/Vite/Rollup). Make sure to use a library in ES Module format (import { Button } from ‘ui-lib’) and set “sideEffects”: false in the package.json or explicitly list files with side effects. Remove unused export code.
• Manual on-demand loading:For some libraries that don’t support Tree Shaking or are structured (e.g., Moment.js, Lodash), explicitly import on demand (import debounce from ‘lodash/debounce’) or use a plugin (babel-plugin-lodash, babel-plugin-importfor Antd).

Asynchronous components and loading states:Use <Suspense>(React) or asynchronous components + load state placeholders (Vue’s defineAsyncComponent) to provide a good loading experience with code splitting, avoiding empty space or stuttering.

3.2 Resource loading optimization

Nativeloading=”lazy”):Add the loading=”lazy” attribute to the image outside the viewport. Modern browsers natively support preferential use. Provide width/height attributes or reserve space through CSS to avoid layout shift (CLS).

Image Format Optimization:

• Next-Generation Format:Use WebP or AVIF instead of JPEG/PNG to significantly reduce volume at the same quality. Compatibility fallback (<picture>label) is required.
• Responsive Images:Use the srcset and sizes attributes to provide the most suitable image source based on the device screen size and resolution.
• CDN and Image Processing:Accelerate image delivery with CDN, combined with CDN’s image processing capabilities (scaling, cropping, compression, format conversion).

Font loading strategy:

• font-display: swap;：Avoid FOIT (Flash of Invisible Text) and display alternate fonts before replacing them (FOUT) after the custom font has finished loading. Acceptable after weighing.
• Preload keyword bodies:<link rel=”preload” href=”font.woff2″ as=”font” type=”font/woff2″ crossorigin>。
• Subsetization:Contains only the character sets actually used in the project, greatly reducing font files.

3.3 Runtime rendering performance optimization

Virtual Scroll :The best way to address large data volume list/table rendering performance. Principle: Render only a small number of DOM elements in the current viewport and its pre- and posterior buffers. As scrolling, the index of elements within the viewport is dynamically calculated, reusing DOM nodes and updating their contents. Commonly used libraries:

• Vue:vue-virtual-scroller,vue-virtual-scroll-grid (table)
• React: react-window (basic), react-virtualized (more feature-rich), @tanstack/react-virtual (modern)
• The list of nodes in the designer, the long list of properties panels, and the data table in the user application are all typical use cases for virtual scrolling.

Rendering Optimization Updates:

Vue：

• Fair use of v-once tags for static content that is never updated.
• Avoid writing complex calculations in the template and cache the results with the computed attribute.
• For large v-for lists, always provide a unique :key.
• Use v-memo (Vue 3.2+) on performance-sensitive parent components to skip child component updates based on conditions.

React：

• React.memo：Wrap function components and skip rendering when their props don’t have shallow comparison changes.
• useMemo: caches expensive computations to avoid recalculating them every time they are rendered.
• useCallback: caches function references to avoid unnecessary re-rendering of subcomponents that depend on the function (wrapped in React.memo) due to function reference changes. Pay attention to the correct settings of the dependency array (deps).
• Avoid creating new objects/arrays/functions in the render function (render):This causes the props reference of the child component to always change, breaking the optimization effect of React.memo/shouldComponentUpdate. Move them outside the component, in useState/useRef, or inside useMemo/useCallback.

General:Use Chrome DevTools’ Performance and React DevTools Profiler / Vue DevTools Performance panels for performance analysis to identify rendering bottlenecks (time-consuming components, unnecessary rendering).

Web Workers：Hand off CPU-intensive and non-UI-related tasks such as complex DSL parsing, large dataset sorting/filtering, and certain encryption/decryption operations to web worker threads to avoid blocking the main thread and causing interface stuttering or unresponsiveness.

3.4 Caching Strategy

Browser Cache (HTTP Cache):

• Strong caching:Controlled by the response header Cache-Control(e.g., max-age=3600, public, immutable) and Expires. The browser reads resources directly from the local disk/memory during the validity period without making requests. Suitable for versioned and long-term static assets (e.g. [hash].js, [hash].css, image fonts).
• Negotiated cache:via the Last-Modified/If-Modified-Since or ETag/If-None-Match headers. The browser sends a request asking if the resource has changed, and if it hasn’t, it returns 304 Not Modified, using the local cache. For resources that may be updated but not very frequently (such as user avatars, some configuration JSON).

Service Workers vs. PWAs:More powerful offline and caching capabilities. Key static resources can be pre-cached to achieve offline access. Customize the caching policy for API requests (e.g., prioritize access from slow access, update in the background); Support message push. Significantly improve user experience and perceptual performance. Introduction requires consideration of development and maintenance costs.

Memory cache (front-end state management):Data that does not change in a short period of time and is frequently used (such as current user information, permission lists, enumeration dictionaries, item metadata) can be requested once during app initialization and stored in Vuex/Pinia Store or React Context/State to avoid repeated requests in the future. Set a reasonable invalidation or refresh mechanism.

3.5 Server-side rendering (SSR) / static site generation (SSG) applications

Server-side rendering (SSR – Vue: Nuxt.js / React: Next.js):

Principle: Execute a Vue/React application on a Node.js server that renders components into full HTML strings and sends them to the browser. The browser can display the content immediately after receiving the HTML (direct above the fold). Then load the JS package, activate it, and make the page interactive.

Merit:

• Significantly improved above-the-fold loading speed (FCP, LCP):Users see content faster.
• Better SEO:Search engine crawlers directly fetch the rendered HTML content.
• Improve low-end devices/slow network experience:Even if the JS loads slowly or stutters on execution, users can see the underlying content.

Disadvantages and Challenges:

• Complex architecture:Node.js servers are required, increasing operational costs and complexity.
• Server load:Each request requires server rendering, high concurrency stress, optimization and caching.
• Development constraints:Pay attention to the generality of the code (it can run in both node and browser environments), and avoid using browser-specific APIs (e.g., window, document) in the SSR stage.
• Hydration Cost:The activation process still requires JS to be loaded and executed, TTI (Time to Interactive) may not be much faster than CSR, and there is a risk of hydration mismatch.

Applicable scenarios for low-code platforms:The platform’s own marketing pages, landing pages, help documentation center, and public preview pages (non-edited) for user-built apps are good candidates for SSR. The core designer workbench, due to its high degree of dynamism and interactivity, is often the simpler and more straightforward choice for CSR (client-side rendering).

Static Site Generation (SSG – Vue: Nuxt.js / VitePress / React: Next.js, Gatsby):

Principle:Pages are rendered as static HTML files when the project is built. After deployment, users request to return these static files directly, eliminating the need for real-time rendering by the server.

Merit:

• Extreme Performance:Fastest loading speed, close to native HTML.
• High security and low cost:Static files can be hosted on any static CDN without the need for an application server, low cost, and high security.
• Excellent SEO.

Shortcoming:

• For static or semi-static content only:It is not possible to handle user-personalized, real-time changing data (unless it is fetched via JS on the client).
• Long build time:If there are a lot of pages, the build process may be longer.

Applicable scenarios for low-code platforms:The platform’s product introduction pages, API documentation, help center, tutorial pages, and user-built pure static display application pages are ideal for using SSG. You can leverage platform metadata to generate parts of content at build time.

Performance optimization is not an overnight process, but a process that requires continuous monitoring (monitoring with Lighthouse, Web Vitals metrics), analysis (performance profiling tools), and iteration. An enterprise-grade low-code platform should establish a performance baseline and integrate performance considerations into daily development and design decisions. Choose Vue.js or React.js as the basic framework, combine rigorous componentized design, efficient code splitting, intelligent caching strategies, and targeted rendering optimization (virtual scrolling, avoid over-rendering), and carefully evaluate the value of SSR/SSG in specific scenarios to build an enterprise-level low-code platform front-end architecture with a smooth user experience, rapid response, and strong scalability.