hardware load-balancing device
Home > Networking Definitions - Hardware load-balancing device
SearchNetworking.com Definitions (Powered by WhatIs.com)
EMAIL THIS
LOOK UP TECH TERMS Powered by: WhatIs.com
Search listings for thousands of IT terms:
Browse tech terms alphabetically:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z #

hardware load-balancing device



Digg This!    StumbleUpon Toolbar StumbleUpon    Bookmark with Delicious Del.icio.us   

DEFINITION - A hardware load-balancing device (HLD), also known as a layer 4-7 router, is a physical unit that directs computers to individual servers in a network, based on factors such as server processor utilization, the number of connections to a server, or the overall server performance. The redirection process is one form of load balancing.

The use of an HLD minimizes the probability that any particular server will be overwhelmed and optimizes the bandwidth available to each computer or terminal. In addition, the use of an HLD can minimize network downtime, facilitate traffic prioritization, provide end-to-end application monitoring, provide user authentication, and help protect against malicious activity such as denial-of-service (DoS) attacks.

CONTRIBUTORS: Jonathan R. Caforio
LAST UPDATED: 18 Apr 2007

Read more about hardware load-balancing device:
- A paper at the Macromedia Web site compares currently available HLDs.
- RADirect Networking Equipment manufactures and distributes HLDs.


Do you have something to add to this definition? Let us know.
Send your comments to techterms@whatis.com


Digg This!    StumbleUpon Toolbar StumbleUpon    Bookmark with Delicious Del.icio.us   


RELATED CONTENT
How to route L3 switches for a serial LAN design
Learn from our routing and switching expert how to configure a Layer 3 switch in a serial LAN design to route from the interface to the last machine,...
How can I configure 10 VLANs with 5 unmanaged switches?
Given a Cisco Layer 3 (L3) switch and 5 unmanaged switches, learn how to create 10 VLANs from our routing and switching expert, Sudhanshu Gupta.
What is broadcasting and which switch will fix timed-out requests?
Broadcasting is defined by our routing and switching expert as he explains which network switch resolves time-out requests, in this response.

RELATED GLOSSARY TERMS
Terms from Whatis.com − the technology online dictionary
brouter  (SearchNetworking.com)
core router  (SearchNetworking.com)


HomeNewsTopicsITKnowledge ExchangeTipsAsk the ExpertsMultimediaWhite PapersNetworking Product Trials
About Us  |  Contact Us  |  For Advertisers  |  For Business Partners  |  Site Index  |  RSS
SEARCH 
TechTarget provides enterprise IT professionals with the information they need to perform their jobs - from developing strategy, to making cost-effective IT purchase decisions and managing their organizations' IT projects - with its network of technology-specific Web sites, events and magazines.

TechTarget Corporate Web Site  |  Media Kits  |  Reprints  |  Site Map




All Rights Reserved, Copyright 2000 - 2008, TechTarget | Read our Privacy Policy
  TechTarget - The IT Media ROI Experts