Server Load Balancing

[octave_anderson]

Hi colleagues,

My schoolmates and I are configuring server redundancy in a test environment however we have some issues with the end to end network layout. Here are our concerns.

Can the 3560 L3 switch support server load balancing? Or is this only a router function? I read some where that all Cisco IOS supports Server Load Balancing but just want to confirm it.

Thanks in advance

[Reza Sharifi]

Hi,

That is correct.  Only routers with IOS SLB (Server Load Balancing) support it.  Switches do not support that.

HTH

[Steven Williams]

But a 3560 L3 will support LACP wont it, which is server load balancing?

[Steve Fuller]

Hi Steven,

No LACP and SLB are different.

LACP is the Link Aggregation Control Protocol, which is the protocol used within the IEEE 802.3ad (now 802.1AX) Link Aggregation mechanism to control the bundling and unbundling of the physical links into an aggregate link.

Server Load Balancing is a feature in IOS to load balance traffic destined to a virtual IP across a group of real IP. From Configuring Server Load Balancing:

The SLB feature is a Cisco IOS-based solution that provides IP server load balancing. Using the IOS SLB feature, the network administrator defines a virtual server that represents a group of real servers in a cluster of network servers known as a server farm.

Server Load Balancing is effectively what the Cisco Application Control Engine (ACE) etc., does but in IOS.

Regards