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vs PM2

vs PM2

PM2 is an excellent process manager for the Node.js ecosystem. However, it is often misused as a general-purpose supervisor for Go, Python, or Java applications.

When used outside of Node.js, PM2 imposes a heavy “Runtime Tax”. Project Super offers a lighter, faster alternative.

1. The Memory Overhead

PM2 is written in JavaScript and runs on top of Node.js. This means even if you are managing a tiny 2MB Go binary, you must run a Node.js virtual machine (the PM2 daemon) in the background.

Benchmark: Idle Daemon Memory Usage

Process ManagerMemory Footprint (RSS)Overhead
PM2 (Node.js)~40 MB - 100 MBHigh
Project Super (Rust)~3 MB - 8 MBMinimal

For memory-constrained environments (like t3.micro instances, Raspberry Pis, or high-density containers), running PM2 is wasteful.

2. Resource Limits (Cgroups)

PM2 generally relies on the OS or Docker to handle resource limits. It does not have native support for strictly limiting a child process’s CPU or Memory usage via Linux Cgroups.

Super integrates natively with Linux Cgroups v2:

# super.toml
[programs.resource_limits]
memory_limit = 268435456 # 256MB
cpu_quota = 25.0         # 0.25 Core

If your worker process leaks memory, Super’s Cgroup enforcement will kill it before it crashes the entire server. PM2 cannot do this directly.

3. Language Agnostic

PM2 treats non-Node applications as “fork mode” citizens. Advanced features like “cluster mode” (load balancing) only work for Node.js scripts.

Super treats all binaries equally. Whether it’s a Rust binary, a Python script, or a Java JAR, they all get:

  • Unified Logging
  • Health Checks
  • Graceful Shutdown
  • Dependency Orchestration

4. Log Rotation

PM2 requires installing an extra module (pm2-logrotate) to handle log rotation.

Super has Log Rotation built into the core. You don’t need to install plugins or manage external dependencies to keep your disk from filling up.

Summary

  • Stick with PM2 if you are running a pure Node.js stack and need the specific “Cluster Mode” for zero-downtime Node.js reloads.
  • Switch to Super if you are running Go, Rust, Python, Java, or a mix of languages, and want to save ~50MB of RAM per instance while gaining better isolation features.
vs Supervisor