DATA, NETWORK & APPLICATION MANAGEMENT

Why do you need server load balancers? When you design your application, storage, network, and tools infrastructure, you choose the number of physical and virtual machines based on the kind of traffic and volume you see. Server Load Balancers help you direct traffic to servers with available bandwidth to support the request. 

Whether your applications and data are on-premise, on-cloud, or in a hybrid cloud environment, you need adequate server load balancers to make sure your enterprise landscape is performing at peak efficiency. Whether it is a Network Load Balancer, HTTP(S) Load Balancer, Internal Load Balancer, Hardware Load Balancer, Software Load Balancer, or a Virtual Load Balancer, the end-objective of a server load balancer is like a traffic regulator on the streets in a busy junction, preventing choking and maintaining a smooth flow of traffic. 

Here are the types of load balancing found in computing:

Link load balancing means using a multilayer switch to evenly distribute data center processing functions and heavy network traffic loads across multiple servers so as not to overwhelm any single device.

A link load balancer, also called a link balancer, is a network device that distributes in-bound and out-bound traffic to and from multiple Internet Service Provider (ISP) links. Link load balancers are typically located between gateway routers and the firewall.

Server load balancing is the process of distributing network traffic across multiple servers. This ensures no single server bears too much demand. By spreading the work evenly, load balancing improves application responsiveness. It also increases availability of applications and websites for users.

A server load balancer is a network device that sits between client devices and backend servers, receiving and then distributing incoming requests to any available server capable of fulfilling them.

SSL acceleration refers to off-loading processor-intensive SSL encryption and decryption from a server to a device configured to accelerate the SSL encryption/decryption routine.

Load balancing is used to:

• Increase capacity for concurrent users by improving service availability
• boost reliability of applications by preventing downtimes
• Load balancing serves as a solution to hardware and software performance. It distributes the workload among an array of devices, while also allowing capacity to be added or removed as necessary. Load balancing provides redundancy and an automatic recovery mechanism as your go-to disaster strategy. And above all, load balancing is cheaper and easier to employ.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM LOAD BALANCING SOLUTIONS

There is a variety of load balancing methods, which use different algorithms best suited for a particular situation, like Least Connection Method, Least Response Time Method, Round Robin Method, IP Hash. Server Load Balancer solutions need to identify your needs, balance access with cost, and consider the different inter-system integrations in your enterprise landscape to appropriately direct network traffic. 

Different load balancers have different capabilities, which include the L4, L7, and GSLB levels of a 7-layer Open System Interconnection (OSI) model. Load Balancing solutions should offer you insights into what kind of load balancing you need, and how you can go about implementing them.  

Although traditionally load balancers used to be pieces of hardware, with the advent of cloud, software-defined load balancers have cropped up to meet user demands as traffic volume grows. These software-defined load balancers are most cost-effective, as compared to hardware appliances, since these usually run on the less expensive standard Intel x86 hardware. It can run on any standard device.

Besides, software-defined load balancers are more flexible to adjust as per your needs.

HOW IVALUE CAN HELP

Our team will help you choose the right load balancer solution for your enterprise by researching and understanding your use case. Your load balancer should handle maximum traffic without compromising on good user experience. And we will ensure you receive actionable insights from load balancers to help optimise the number of servers you have, the number you need, and the best way to direct traffic so you are not creating wasteful redundancy. We can complete your digital transformation with our next-gen solutions for faster application rollouts, visibility with actionable analytics, and major cost savings.

Ask us how!