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What’s the role of a service worker in a progressive web app?
Asked on Oct 29, 2025
Answer
Service workers play a crucial role in Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) by acting as a proxy between the web application and the network. They enable offline capabilities, caching strategies, and background synchronization, enhancing the app's performance and reliability.
Example Concept: A service worker is a script that the browser runs in the background, separate from a web page. It intercepts network requests, caches or retrieves resources from the cache, and allows offline access to the application. This leads to faster load times and a seamless user experience even when the network is unreliable or unavailable.
Additional Comment:
- Service workers are event-driven and can handle events like 'fetch' and 'push'.
- They require HTTPS due to their powerful capabilities.
- Service workers can also enable features like push notifications and background sync.
- They are part of the web app's lifecycle and need to be registered and activated.
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