Load Balancing Algorithms

A load balancer is a software or hardware device that keeps any one server from becoming overloaded. A load balancing algorithm is the logic that a load balancer uses to distribute network traffic between servers (an algorithm is a set of predefined rules).

There are two primary approaches to load balancing. Dynamic load balancing uses algorithms that take into account the current state of each server and distribute traffic accordingly. Static load balancing distributes traffic without making these adjustments. Some static algorithms send an equal amount of traffic to each server in a group, either in a specified order or at random.