Load Balancer Bypass for Single-Address Tenant Scalability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Load balancers face scalability issues due to memory-intensive state information management, particularly when handling single-address tenants, which affects performance and overhead in computing environments.
Innovation Solution
A load balancer detects virtual addresses associated with single or multiple destination addresses, sets flags, and sends configuration messages to routers to bypass or engage the load balancer, thereby optimizing state information storage and routing for improved scalability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If load balancers store state information for all virtual addresses to maintain connection flow routing, then connection reliability is improved, but memory usage increases and scalability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by treating single-address and multi-address virtual addresses differently. For single-address VAs, the load balancer does not store state information and allows direct router routing, while for multi-address VAs, it maintains state information and performs load balancing. This differentiated approach optimizes memory usage while preserving connection reliability where needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the state information storage requirement from single-address virtual addresses. By detecting that a VA maps to only one destination address, the load balancer removes the need to store state information for that VA, allowing the router to handle routing directly. This extraction eliminates unnecessary memory overhead while maintaining connection reliability through router-based routing.
2Measurement precision
If load balancers route all packets through themselves for state tracking, then connection management accuracy is improved, but network hops increase and performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements local quality by applying different routing strategies based on the virtual address type. Single-address VAs use direct router routing without load balancer intervention, while multi-address VAs use load balancer-mediated routing with state tracking. This localized differentiation improves network performance by reducing unnecessary hops for single-address VAs while maintaining connection management accuracy for multi-address VAs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses the router as an intermediary for single-address virtual addresses. Instead of requiring the load balancer to mediate all routing decisions, the router directly routes packets for single-address VAs based on configuration information. This intermediary approach reduces network hops and improves performance while the load balancer continues to mediate routing for multi-address VAs where state tracking is necessary.
3Device complexity
If load balancers manage all virtual addresses uniformly, then system simplicity is improved, but adaptability to optimize for single-address tenants deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces dynamics by making the load balancer's behavior adaptive based on virtual address characteristics. The system dynamically detects whether a VA maps to a single or multiple destination addresses and adjusts its operation accordingly. This dynamic adaptation allows the load balancer to optimize for single-address tenants by bypassing them directly while maintaining uniform management simplicity for the overall system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary action by having the load balancer detect and classify virtual addresses based on their destination address mapping during configuration or initial operation. This preliminary classification enables the system to apply optimized routing strategies from the outset, improving adaptability without adding complex runtime decision-making. The router is pre-configured with appropriate routing information based on this preliminary analysis.
Data Source
AI summary
When a load balancer detects that a virtual address is associated with a single destination address, the load balancer sets a flag to distinguish the virtual address from virtual addresses that are associated with a plurality of destination addresses. The load balancer instructs the router to bypass the load balancer for network packets that are addressed to the virtual address, and refrains from storing subsequent flow state for the virtual address. When the virtual address is to be scaled up with an additional destination address, the load balancer sets a flag to distinguish the virtual address from virtual addresses that are associated with a single destination addresses. The load balancer instructs the router to route network packets that are addressed to the virtual address through the load balancer, instead of bypassing the load balancer, and starts storing flow state for the virtual address.