Why It Pays to Use a Software Load Balancer

Software-defined load balancers are a reliable solution to your business’ hosting needs. In the early days of e-commerce, businesses used a single server, which proved disastrous in the event of a surge in traffic or coordinated DDoS attacks. Today’s online-based organizations are more secure; this is achieved, in part, because of software load balancing solutions. In this post, we take a closer look at the benefits of using load balancers in your business.

1. On-Demand Deployment

Startups have to constantly weigh actions against scalability and cost. Software-based load balancers help with both. In contrast to hardware-based balancers, which need to be moved and installed physically before being configured, a software solution just needs a dedicated server and a license key to start working.

Whether you have a ready-to-load solution or a code-based one, you can set it up quickly and manage your traffic through on-premises servers or the cloud. With a load balancer, you can edit, delete, and even reorder listener rules, which determine how requests are routed to the targets. Software balancers may also create encrypted connections through SSL offloading.

2. Programmable

With software-based balancers, you can design your own health checks, which can be modified as needed. The parameters take immediate effect when you use software; in contrast, hardware takes a while to be configured. This is useful when you must implement SSL certificates for different route requests, or if you have target groups.

For example, this comes in handy for implementing SSL certificates on load balancers for different route requests. It also lets you configure certificates for different target groups. Furthermore, you can write automated scripts for the load balancer’s settings; you can write SNMP or ping mechanisms that can be used to avoid bottlenecks in traffic. You can also automate scripts for monitoring load balancer health.

3. Costs Less Than Hardware

One of the biggest reasons why companies should opt for software load balancing is its affordability. Unlike hardware, which is considered CAPEX, software solutions can be classified as operating expenses. The savings enables you to provision more balancers than if you purchase a hardware load balancer.

With software, you can provision your balancer using a CLI, or opt for a cloud-based solution. This gets rid of under- or overprovisioning; you can easily handle spikes in traffic without increasing expenses on your configuration.

4. No Limit on Scalability

Beyond being capable of handling traffic without increasing costs, another benefit of using load balancers is its scalability. Software can manage thousands of incoming requests much easier than hardware.

In addition, they can be prepared for surges in traffic; they are not affected by reducing or increasing the number of servers. Compare this to hardware, which needs separate, dedicated servers that allow a website to scale its capacity only up to a specific point.

5. Provides More Security

Load balancers create a level of security between the client and your server. They support encryption through SSL/TLS and prevent modification of messages while the packet is being transported to your server.

A software balancer also allows for inbound rules which can be set up in private subnets. This way, your server applications will only allow packets that passed through the load balancers. If you opt for a cloud solution, your balancers will be managed in part by your provider, who will be responsible for ensuring compliance with IT standards.

Why You Need Load Balancing for Your Business

Load balancers can be provisioned easily, are programmable, and can respond to various network needs. A load balancer enables SSL termination and aggregates your website’s session load and throughput. Apart from these, it can perform network health checks at different levels, costs far less to operate than hardware, and offers many benefits for small businesses.

Server Load Balancing Software by Resonate

For server load balancing software, contact us at Resonate today. Our products and solutions help your business optimize your delivery while cutting down on costs and minimizing risks!