Table of Contents

Product Overview

Cisco LocalDirector 430
Cisco LocalDirector 416

Key Features and Benefits
Specifications
Ordering Information

Cisco 400 Series — LocalDirector

Product Overview

Cisco 400 Series LocalDirector is a high-availability, scalable load balancing solution for TCP/IP and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) traffic across multiple servers and mainframe computer platforms. By providing a unified virtual image to service requestors, LocalDirector enables continuous access to multiple redundant servers for Internet-based e-commerce applications.

A sophisticated server connection management system, LocalDirector enables administrators to direct TCP traffic to different servers based on service requested, distribution method, and server availability. All FTP requests can be sent to one cluster of servers while web requests are forwarded to another cluster of servers. LocalDirectors Session Distribution Algorithm (SDA) enables proportionate forwarding of traffic based on weights and maximum number of open connections, ensuring that servers do not fail from traffic overload. LocalDirctor can also probe server applications to determine real-time availability.

LocalDirector supports secure e-commerce applications and complex network topographies. By reading Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) IDs, LocalDirector can maintain state between a particular browser and a particular server for the duration of a specific transactionwhen a client browser is hidden behind a proxy. LocalDirector can direct traffic between virtual and real servers across clusters and across subnets, providing extra flexibility and ease of administration.

Traffic can be prioritized for better Quality of Service (QoS) for selected users and applications. LocalDirector colors or marks packets with IP precedence, a priority ranking value used by networking devices. QoS is also enhanced by LocalDirectors ability to bring servers on- and offline transparently as the need arises. Also, LocalDirector can be configured for redundancy with a hot standby unit.

LocalDirector is a networking appliance that delivers more than 200 Mbps throughput. Its reliability has been proven in the highest-traffic Internet sites, and in the largest number of installations of any load-balancing device. Because it is an appliance, LocalDirector requires minimal set up and no network address changes, making administration simpler and less costly.

Cisco LocalDirector 430

The Cisco LocalDirector 430 is ideal for high-traffic internet sites requiring up to 200 Mbps of throughput, as well as for rapidly growing web sites that receive 100 million or more hits per day.

Cisco LocalDirector 416

The Cisco LocalDirector 416 is a value-priced, high-availability solution for all TCP applications including the following:

• Intranets

• Database access

• TN3270 sessions

The following figure illustrates Local Director in a distributed environment with four servers available for access from the internet.

The figure below shows a front view of LocalDirector.

The figure below shows a rear view with a failover connection cable between two LocalDirector units

Key Features and Benefits

LocalDirector provides the following key features and benefits:

• Hot standby and stateful failover, which eliminates all points of failure and enables configuration of robust, high-availability server farms.

• Transparent support for all common TCP/IP services, which accommodates Web, FTP, Telnet, Gopher and SMTP without requiring special software configuration.

• Provides over 80 Mbps or 200 Mbps (with Fast Ethernet technology) throughput, which offers a range of price-performance solutions.

• Supports up to 16 Fast EtherChannel 10/100 interfaces for LocalDirector 430, which offers network flexibility.

• Session Distribution Algorithm supports up to 1,000,000 simultaneous TCP sessions (for LocalDirector 430), which accommodates rapid user population growth.

• Supports up to 64,000 virtual and real servers, which offers flexibility in domain names and network configuration.

• Compatibility with any server operating system, which enables administrators to mix and match while protecting IS investments.

• Network address translation, which allows servers with unregistered addresses to access the public Internet.

• Integrated security capability, which protects servers from unauthorized access.

• Normal configuration requires only 10 commands, which ensures an easy setup with little disruption to existing network configuration, and no changes to network addresses.

• Graphical User Interface, which simplifies most configuration commands.

Specifications

For additional software specification information, access Cisco Connection Online at http://www.cisco.com.

Ordering Information

Posted: Wed Sep 27 05:13:18 PDT 2000
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