Load Balancing Algorithms

Load balancing:

• Used in distributed systems to distribute incoming network traffic across multiple servers or resources
• Crucial for optimizing performance and ensuring even distribution of workload
• Enhances system reliability by ensuring no single server becomes a bottleneck, thus reducing the risk of server overload and potential downtime

 

image source: Post | LinkedIn

Some popular load balancing algorithms:

• Round Robin
• distributes incoming requests sequentially to each server in a circular manner
• simple and easy to implement but may not take into account server load or capacity
• most used
• Weighted Round Robin
• similar to Round Robin, but with the ability to assign different weights to servers based on their capacity or performance
• Servers with higher weights receive more requests
• IP Hash
• Uses the client's IP address to determine which server to send the request to
• Requests from the same IP address are consistently routed to the same server
• Least Connections
• directs incoming requests to the server with the fewest active connections at the time
• helps distribute the load evenly among servers based on their current workload
• Least Response Time
• Routes requests to the server with the lowest response time or latency
• Aims to optimize performance by sending requests to the fastest server.
• Random
• Randomly selects a server from the pool to handle each request
• While simple, it may not ensure even distribution of load across servers

Each load balancing algorithm has its own advantages and considerations.

The choice of algorithm depends on the specific requirements of the system and the desired load distribution strategy.

Disclaimer:

All credits for the inspiration for the article, an infograph image and part of the content go to Sina Riyahi [https://www.linkedin.com/in/sina-riyahi/].