Load balancers in AWS ensure that cloud applications can handle large amounts of traffic and remain reliable. On AWS, there are two types of load balancers, namely, classic (CLB) and elastic load balancers (ALB & NLB).
Table of contents
Load Balancers in AWS
Classic Load Balancer (CLB)
The Classic Load Balancer (CLB) is the original load balancer service offered by AWS. It distributes incoming traffic across multiple EC2 instances within a region, allowing applications to handle increased traffic loads.
CLB operates at the transport layer (Layer 4) of the OSI model, performing TCP and SSL termination. It supports both internet-facing and internal load balancing, making it suitable for various scenarios.
Elastic Load Balancers (ELB): ALB & NLB
On the other hand, the Elastic Load Balancer (ELB) is an evolution of CLB, providing more advanced features and functionalities.
ELB consists of two types:
- Application Load Balancer (ALB)
- Network Load Balancer (NLB).
ALB operates at the application layer (Layer 7) and can route requests based on content, enabling more advanced load-balancing scenarios. NLB, on the other hand, operates at the transport layer (Layer 4) and is ideal for handling extreme traffic volumes with low latency.
Both ALB and NLB provide scalability and high availability by automatically distributing incoming traffic across multiple targets such as EC2 instances, containers, or IP addresses.
They can adapt to changing traffic patterns, scale up or down, and automatically distribute traffic to healthy targets. ELB also integrates with other AWS services, such as Auto Scaling and AWS Certificate Manager, to provide a comprehensive solution for load balancing.
Load Balancers: Scalability
Unparalleled Elasticity: AWS load balancers effortlessly handle varying levels of traffic with ease. They have the remarkable ability to automatically scale their capacity, ensuring optimal performance even under intense workloads. By dynamically distributing traffic across available resources, load balancers guarantee a seamless experience for users.
Robust Health Checks: Load balancers are equipped with powerful health monitoring capabilities. With continuous health checks, they maintain a vigilant watch over registered targets, swiftly detecting any anomalies or performance issues. By intelligently routing traffic only to healthy targets, load balancers ensure the highest level of reliability and availability for your applications.
Seamless Integration with Auto Scaling: The integration between load balancers and AWS Auto Scaling is nothing short of ingenious. With this seamless partnership, your infrastructure can effortlessly adapt to changing traffic demands in real-time. The load balancer works hand in hand with the Auto Scaling feature, enabling automatic scaling of EC2 instances based on predefined conditions or metrics. The result? An infrastructure that gracefully scales to meet any surge in demand.
Bulletproof Fault Tolerance with Availability Zones: Embracing the concept of high availability, load balancers can be configured to distribute traffic across multiple Availability Zones (AZs) within a region. This architectural approach ensures maximum uptime and fault tolerance for your applications. In the event of an AZ failure, load balancers intelligently redirect traffic to healthy instances in other AZs, seamlessly mitigating any potential disruption. With load balancers, your applications stay up and running, no matter what challenges may arise.
Conclusion
Load balancers in AWS are used to distribute incoming traffic across multiple resources. They are scalable, highly available, and can adapt to changing traffic patterns. These services integrate with other AWS services and provide fault tolerance by using multiple Availability Zones. Organizations can use load-balancing services to handle increased traffic loads while maintaining performance and reliability.
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