Over the years, the web has evolved and so have the habits of Internet users. Much more than just a place to do research, it’s now possible to buy items from websites. With all this progress, Internet traffic is constantly increasing. At times, it can be difficult for servers to keep pace. To cope with these traffic peaks, a new technology has been invented: load balancing. This article explains how load balancing helps to keep traffic flowing smoothly.
What is load balancing?
First of all, what is load balancing?
In French, it’s called load balancing. Quite simply, it’s an IT service that takes the load off servers by distributing requests across different servers.
What are the different types of load balancer?
There are different types of load balancer on the market. The systems in charge of distribution are called algorithms. The choice of device is very important. The best-known are: Round Robin, Weighted Round Robin, Least Connections and Weighted Least Connections.
Round Robin
This is the most classic method. Think of it as a queue of incoming requests. It simply distributes the various requests without taking into account the degree of urgency or the load they represent for the servers.
Weighted Round Robin
Unlike Round Robin, Weighted Round Robin uses a weighted distribution. The administrator is responsible for determining the weighting of each server. To give an example, the value assigned can range from 1 to 100, with 1 being the least powerful and 100 the most powerful. As a result, the most powerful server will be assigned more loads.
Least Connections
Unlike the two previous methods, Least Connections takes into account the number of connections the server has to handle. Based on this information, it allocates the next request to the server with the fewest incoming requests.
Weighted Least Connections
This algorithm complements the Least Connections algorithm. Like Least Connections, it examines the volume of connections, but also the weighting determined by the administrator. This distribution method is considered optimal.
What are the strengths of load balancing?
The main advantage of load balancing is that it reduces the response time of a site. This considerably reduces the risk of overload-related breakdowns. Needless to say, this type of failure can be dramatic for a merchant site. This kind of incident can discourage a visitor and cut short his or her purchasing process.
By choosing a load balancer, you can ensure that your customers and prospects receive a quality online service.
How do I configure a load balancing service?
If you don’t know your way around, it can be difficult to set up a load balancing system. But don’t panic: many companies specializing in server hosting offer pre-configured solutions. Some sites even provide their customers with complete presentation guides.
If, despite everything, you still don’t understand the subject, there are specialists who can guide you through the whole process.
How to choose an IT service provider
Choosing the right IT service provider is of the utmost importance. Before making your choice, you need to analyze the profile of your load balancing specialist.
To help you make your choice, you can take several parameters into consideration.
First, the experience of the IT expert. It goes without saying that his or her skills will have an impact on the quality of the service. Find out about your service provider’s experience. Which customers does he work with? Are they used to dealing with this type of request? Does he have a clear understanding of your needs? Or does it have a competent customer service department to deal with incidents?
For this last point, make sure that your service provider’s customer service is responsive. Your company’s future depends on it. If there’s an incident on your site, you’ll need to react quickly to restore service.
Finally, what better way to check the quality of a service than with customer reviews? Before you make your choice, take a look at the customer reviews of your future service provider. This will give you an initial idea of the quality of the service.