Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2
Network Load Balancing clusters
This section of Windows Clustering covers Network Load Balancing (NLB), one of two clustering technologies offered as part of Windows. For a general overview of this subject, see Windows Clustering. You can use Network Load Balancing to enhance the scalability and availability of server applications. Applications that can take advantage of Network Load Balancing include Web services like HTTP and File Transfer Protocol (FTP) (using Internet Information Services (IIS)), firewall and proxy (using ISA 2000), virtual private networking, Windows Media Services, Mobile Information Server, and Terminal Services. Network Load Balancing can also help you scale your server's performance to keep up with the increasing demands of your Internet-based clients.
A new Network Load Balancing feature is Network Load Balancing Manager. Network Load Balancing Manager allows you to create, configure, and manage all hosts of a Network Load Balancing cluster from a single computer. For more information, see Network Load Balancing key features.
- Before you enable and configure Network Load Balancing, it is vital that you review the checklist, including the sections on cluster parameters, host parameters and port rules. It is highly recommended that you read through these three topics before configuring Network Load Balancing.
Checklist: Enabling and configuring Network Load Balancing - To find features that have been changed in the Windows Server 2003 family of products, see New ways to do familiar Network Load Balancing tasks.
- For tips about using Network Load Balancing, see Network Load Balancing Best practices.
- For help with specific tasks, see Network Load Balancing How To....
- For general background information, see Network Load Balancing Concepts.
- For troubleshooting information, see Network Load Balancing Troubleshooting.
