EfficientIP has announced the release of what it says is the industry’s first edge DNS GSLB (Global Server Load Balancing) offering. With enterprises moving to multi-cloud environments, DNS GSLB helps strengthen resiliency.
DNS GSLB integrates load balancing functionality into both authoritative and recursive DNS servers, allowing application traffic routing decisions to be taken from the network edge. It can be used as an alternative or as a complement to traditional load balancers/application delivery controllers (ADCs). By adding global server load balancing to its SOLIDsever product suite, EfficientIP brings an all-in-one solution comprising DNS services, GSLB functions and purpose-built DNS security in the same appliance.
GSLB is a method of distributing traffic amongst servers potentially dispersed across multiple geographies. Combining DNS and GSLB functionality on the same server significantly reduces capex and opex for companies, simplifying rollout throughout company infrastructure. Enabling GSLB with EfficientIP DNS removes the requirement to move DNS domains towards specific load-balancing solutions such as ADCs. All DNS zones and records remain in a single management system easing transition to load-balancing, while at the same time centralizing administration and lowering costs.
Standard GSLB is based on authoritative DNS services deployed within data centers / centres. Implementing GSLB in recursive DNS servers adds unique capability for application traffic routing decisions to be made much closer to each user, enabling native geolocalization. This helps accelerate app response times which leads to improved user experience (UX), particularly with distributed topology in the context of multiple user sites. And to ensure that applications are available to users, DNS GSLB includes a constant health checking functionality. Load balancing strategies are consequently enhanced as they can be based on the current health of each node supporting the application.
The fact that edge GSLB can be deployed on remote sites significantly strengthens resiliency and extends coverage of failure detection to include data center, WAN, server and GSLB failure. Disaster recovery and business continuity ‘are guaranteed due to automatic or manual failover capability’.
