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Table of Contents

IOS Server Load Balancing

IOS Server Load Balancing

This feature module describes the Cisco IOS Server Load Balancing (SLB) feature. It includes the following sections:

Overview of the IOS SLB Feature

The IOS SLB feature is an IOS-based solution that provides IP server load balancing. Using the IOS SLB feature, you can define a virtual server that represents a group of real servers in a cluster of network servers known as a server farm. In this environment, the clients connect to the IP address of the virtual server. The virtual server IP address is configured as a loopback address, or secondary IP address, on each of the real servers. (When you configure IOS SLB in server NAT mode, you do not need to configure these loopback addresses.) When a client initiates a connection to the virtual server, the IOS SLB function chooses a real server for the connection based on a configured load balancing algorithm.

Figure 1 illustrates a logical view of a simple IOS SLB network.


Figure 1: Logical View of IOS SLB


Functions and Capabilities of the IOS SLB Feature

This section describes the following functions and capabilities provided by IOS SLB:

This section also describes the following aspects of IOS SLB:

Algorithms for Load Balancing

IOS SLB provides two load balancing algorithms: weighted round robin and weighted least connections. You may specify either algorithm as the basis for choosing a real server for each new connection request that arrives at the virtual server.

Weighted Round Robin

The weighted round robin algorithm specifies that the real server used for a new connection to the virtual server is chosen from the server farm in a circular fashion. Each real server is assigned a weight, n, that represents its capacity to handle connections, as compared to the other real servers associated with the virtual server. That is, new connections are assigned to a given real server n times before the next real server in the server farm is chosen.

For example, assume a server farm comprised of real server ServerA with = 3, ServerB with = 1, and ServerC with = 2. The first three connections to the virtual server are assigned to ServerA, the fourth connection to ServerB, and the fifth and sixth connections to ServerC.


Note   Assigning a weight of n=1 to all of the servers in the server farm configures the IOS SLB switch to use a simple round robin algorithm.

Weighted Least Connections

The weighted least connections algorithm specifies that the next real server chosen from a server farm for a new connection to the virtual server is the server with the fewest active connections. Each real server is assigned a weight for this algorithm, also. When weights are assigned, the server with the fewest connections is based on the number of active connections on each server, and on the relative capacity of each server. The capacity of a given real server is calculated as the assigned weight of that server divided by the sum of the assigned weights of all of the real servers associated with that virtual server, or n1/(n1+n2+n3...).

For example, assume a server farm comprised of real server ServerA with = 3, ServerB with = 1, and ServerC with = 2. ServerA would have a calculated capacity of 3/(3+1+2), or half of all active connections on the virtual server, ServerB one-sixth of all active connections, and ServerC one-third of all active connections. At any point in time, the next connection to the virtual server would be assigned to the real server whose number of active connections is farthest below its calculated capacity.


Note   Assigning a weight of n=1 to all of the servers in the server farm configures the IOS SLB switch to use a simple least-connection algorithm.

Alternate IP Addresses

IOS SLB enables you to telnet to the load balancing device using an alternate IP address. To do so, use either of the following methods:

This function is similar to that provided by the LocalDirector (LD) Alias command.

Automatic Server Failure Detection

IOS SLB automatically detects each failed connection attempt to a real server, and increments a failure counter for that server. (The failure counter is not incremented if a failed connection from the same client has already been counted.) If a server's failure counter exceeds a configurable failure threshold, the server is considered out of service and is removed from the list of active real servers.

Automatic Unfail

When a real server fails and is removed from the list of active servers, it is assigned no new connections for a length of time specified by a configurable retry timer. After that timer expires, the server is again eligible for new virtual server connections and IOS SLB sends the server the next qualifying connection. If the connection is successful, the failed server is placed back on the list of active real servers. If the connection is unsuccessful, the server remains out of service and the retry timer is reset.

Client-Assigned Load Balancing

Client-assigned load balancing allows you to limit the subnets that use a virtual server.

Delayed Removal of TCP Connection Context

Because of IP packet ordering anomalies, IOS SLB might "see" the termination of a TCP connection (a finish [FIN] or reset [RST]) followed by other packets for the connection. This problem usually occurs when there are multiple paths that the TCP connection packets can follow. To correctly redirect the packets that arrive after the connection is terminated, IOS SLB retains the TCP connection information, or context, for a specified length of time. The length of time the context is retained after the connection is terminated is controlled by a configurable delay timer.

Dynamic Feedback Protocol for IOS SLB

The IOS SLB Dynamic Feedback Protocol (DFP) is a mechanism that allows host agents in load-balanced environments to dynamically report the change in status of the host systems that provide a virtual service. The status reported is a relative weight that specifies a host server's capacity to perform work.

When a DFP agent is defined on IOS SLB, a TCP connection is initiated from the manager to the DFP agent. Once this connection is established, the agent periodically sends update information across the connection to IOS SLB. This information is used by IOS SLB as an aid in load balancing the real servers, as well as acting as an application-level keep-alive for the connection. If an agent on the real server has no information to send, and an inactivity timeout was specified for this DFP agent, the agent must send an empty report to prevent removal of the connection. In the event of a failure, IOS SLB uses a default weight for the real servers.

The DFP agent can be either software running on the real server or a separate unit that collects information from one or more real servers. The DFP agent consolidates the information, formats it into the DFP, and reports the information to IOS SLB at periodic intervals. If a need arises, such as a sudden change in a real server's ability to handle traffic, the DFP agent can send an early report.

HTTP Probes

HTTP probes are a simple way to monitor applications being server load balanced. With frequent probes, the operation of each application is verified, not just connectivity to the application.

For server load balancing:

Maximum Connections

IOS SLB allows you to configure maximum connections, a limit on the number of active connections that a real server is assigned. If the maximum number of connections is reached for a real server, IOS SLB automatically switches all further connection requests to another server until the connection number drops below the specified limit.

Network Address Translation (NAT)

Cisco IOS NAT, RFC 1631, allows unregistered "private" IP addresses to connect to the Internet by translating them into globally registered IP addresses. Cisco IOS NAT also increases network privacy by hiding internal IP addresses from external networks.

IOS SLB can operate in one of two redirection modes:

IOS SLB supports the following types of NAT:

The network designer must ensure that outbound packets travel through IOS SLB, using one of the following methods:

  • Direct wiring

  • Default gateways or policy-based routing

  • IOS SLB NAT of client addresses, enabled as an outbound feature on server-side interfaces


Note   The same connection supports server NAT and client NAT.

Port-Bound Servers

You must specify which Transmission Control Protocol/User Datagram Protocol (TCP/UDP) port a virtual server handles. Port-bound servers allow one virtual server IP address to represent one set of real servers for one service, such as Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and a different set of real servers for another service, such as Telnet. Packets destined to a virtual server address for a port that is not specified in a virtual server definition are not redirected.

IOS SLB supports both port-bound and non-port-bound servers, but port-bound servers are recommended.

Redundancy Enhancements

An IOS SLB could represent a point of failure and the servers could lose their connections to the backbone if power fails, or if a link from a switch to the distribution-layer switch is disconnected. IOS SLB supports two redundancy options you can use to reduce that risk:

Slow Start

In an environment that uses weighted least connections load balancing, a real server that is placed in service initially has no connections, and could therefore be assigned so many new connections that it becomes overloaded. To prevent such an overload, slow start controls the number of new connections that are directed to a real server that has just been placed in service.

Sticky Connections

When you use sticky connections, new connections from a client IP address are assigned to the same real server as were previous connections from that address. This behavior is controlled by a configurable sticky timer. If the timer is configured on a virtual server, new connections from a client are sent to the same real server that handled the previous client connection, provided one of the following is true:

Sticky connections also permit the coupling of services that are handled by more than one virtual server. This allows connection requests for related services to use the same real server. For example, Web server (HTTP) typically uses TCP port 80, and HTTP over Secure Socket Layer (HTTPS) uses port 443. If HTTP virtual servers and HTTPS virtual servers are coupled, connections for ports 80 and 443 from the same client IP address are assigned to the same real server.

SynGuard

SynGuard limits the rate of TCP SYNs handled by a virtual server to prevent a type of network problem known as a SYN flood denial-of-service attack. A user might send a large number of SYNs to a server, which could overwhelm or crash the server, denying service to other users. SynGuard prevents such an attack from bringing down IOS SLB or a real server. SynGuard monitors the number of SYNs to a virtual server over a specific time interval and does not allow the number to exceed a configured SYN threshold. If the threshold is reached, any new SYNs are dropped.

TCP Session Reassignment

IOS SLB tracks each TCP synchronous idle character (SYN) sent to a real server by a client attempting to open a new connection. If several consecutive SYNs are not answered, or if a SYN is replied to with an RST, the TCP session is reassigned to a new real server. The number of SYN attempts is controlled by a configurable reassign threshold.

Transparent Webcaches Balancing

You can use IOS SLB to balance transparent Webcaches if you know the IP addresses they are serving. Simply configure the IP addresses, or some common subset of them, as virtual servers.


Note   A Webcache can start its own connections to real Web sites if pages are not available in its cache. Those connections cannot be load balanced back to the same set of Webcaches. IOS SLB addresses this by allowing you to configure "client exclude" statements, so that IOS SLB does not load balance connections initiated by the Webcaches.

Benefits

IOS SLB facilitates scalability and availability. The addition of new servers and the removal or failure of existing servers can occur at any time without affecting the availability of the virtual server.

In a branch office, IOS SLB allows balancing of multiple sites and disaster recovery in the event of full-site failure, and distributes the work of load balancing.

Restrictions

IOS SLB has the following restrictions:

Related Documentation

This section describes the documentation available for the Catalyst 4840G SLB Switch. Both printed manuals and electronic documents are available.

The Documentation CD-ROM is updated monthly; the documentation on Cisco Connection Online (CCO) is updated as changes are made. Therefore, these electronic documents might be more current than the printed documentation.

Use these release notes with the following documents:

Supported Platforms

Supported Standards, MIBs, and RFCs

Standards

MIBs

RFCs

Configuration Tasks

This section describes the required and optional IOS SLB network configuration tasks.

Required Configuration Tasks

This section describes the tasks required to configure a basic IOS SLB network.

Configuring IOS SLB involves identifying server farms, configuring groups of real servers in server farms, and configuring the virtual servers that represent the real servers to the clients. See the following sections for required configuration tasks for the IOS SLB feature.

Figure 2 shows a sample IOS SLB network with the following components:


Figure 2: Example SLB Network


To configure the IOS SLB network described and shown in Figure 2, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

Command Purpose
Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm serverfarm-name
Router(config-slb-sfarm)#

Adds a server farm definition to the SLB configuration and initiates server farm configuration mode. See the ip slb serverfarm command for more details.

Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real ip-address

Identifies a real server to the SLB function and initiates real server configuration mode. See the real command for more details.

Router(config-slb-real)# inservice

Enables the real server for use by SLB. See the inservice (real server) command for more details.

Router(config-slb-real)# exit

Return to server farm configuration mode.

Router(config-slb-real)# end

Return to global configuration mode.

Router(config)# ip slb vserver virtserver-name

Identifies a virtual server and initiates virtual server configuration mode. See the ip slb vserver command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# virtual ip-address {tcp | udp} port-number [service service-name]

Specifies the virtual server IP address, type of connection, port number, and optional service coupling. See the virtual command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# serverfarm serverfarm-name

Associates a real server farm with a virtual server. See the serverfarm command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# inservice

Enables the virtual server for use by SLB. See the inservice (virtual server) command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# client ip-address network-mask

Specifies which clients are allowed to use the virtual server. See the client command for more details.

The following sections include examples of the configuration commands used to configure and verify the SLB network shown in Figure 2:

Configuring the Server Farms

The following commands configure the server farm PUBLIC and associate the three real servers:

Router# config t
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.1
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice
Router(config-slb-real)# exit
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.2
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice
Router(config-slb-real)# exit
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.3
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice
Router(config-slb-real)# end
 

The following commands configure the server farm RESTRICTED and associate the two real servers:

Router# config t
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm RESTRICTED
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.20
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice
Router(config-slb-real)# exit
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.21
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice
Router(config-slb-real)# end
Router#
 

Verifying the Server Farms

The following show ip slb reals command displays the status of server farms PUBLIC and RESTRICTED, the associated real servers, and their status:

Router# show ip slb real
 
real                    server farm      weight   state          conns
---------------------------------------------------------------------
10.1.1.1                 PUBLIC           8       INSERVICE      0
10.1.1.2                 PUBLIC           8       INSERVICE      0
10.1.1.3                 PUBLIC           8       INSERVICE      0
10.1.1.20                RESTRICTED       8       INSERVICE      0
10.1.1.21                RESTRICTED       8       INSERVICE      0
Router#
 

The following show ip slb serverfarm command displays the configuration and status of server farms PUBLIC and RESTRICTED:

Router# show ip slb serverfarm
 
server farm      predictor    nat   reals   bind id
---------------------------------------------------
PUBLIC           ROUNDROBIN   none  3       0
RESTRICTED       ROUNDROBIN   none  2       0
Router#
 

Configuring the Virtual Servers

The following commands configure the virtual servers PUBLIC_HTTP and RESTRICTED_HTTP:

Router#
Router# config t
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# virtual 10.0.0.1 tcp www
Router(config-slb-vserver)# serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-vserver)# inservice
Router(config-slb-vserver)#
.
(Information Deleted)
.
index = 1
Router(config-slb-vserver)# exit
Router(config)# ip slb vserver RESTRICTED_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# virtual 10.0.0.2 tcp www
Router(config-slb-vserver)# serverfarm RESTRICTED
Router(config-slb-vserver)# inservice
Router(config-slb-vserver)#
.
(Information Deleted)
.
index = 1
Router(config-slb-vserver)# end
Router#
 

Verifying the Virtual Servers

The following show ip slb vservers command verifies the configuration of the virtual servers PUBLIC_HTTP and RESTRICTED_HTTP:

Router# show ip slb vservers
 
slb vserver      prot  virtual               state         conns
-------------------------------------------------------------------
PUBLIC_HTTP      TCP   10.0.0.1:80           INSERVICE     0
RESTRICTED_HTTP  TCP   10.0.0.2:80           INSERVICE     0
Router#
 
Router#
 

Configuring the Restricted Clients

The following commands remove the virtual server RESTRICTED_HTTP from service, configure the restricted client access to the virtual server, then enable the virtual server again:

Router# config t
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
Router(config)# ip slb vserver RESTRICTED_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# no inservice
Router(config-slb-vserver)#
.
(Information Deleted)
.
index = 1
Router(config-slb-vserver)# client 10.4.4.0 255.255.255.0
Router(config-slb-vserver)# inservice
Router(config-slb-vserver)#
src = 0 - 0
.
(Information Deleted)
.
index = 1
Router(config-slb-vserver)# end
Router#
 

Verifying the Restricted Clients

The following show ip slb conns command verifies the restricted client access and status:

Router# show ip slb conns
 
vserver         prot client                real                  state     nat
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RESTRICTED_HTTP TCP  10.4.4.0:80           10.1.1.20             CLOSING   none
Router#
 

The following show ip slb conns command displays detailed information about the restricted client access status:

Router# show ip slb conns client 10.4.4.0 detail
VSTEST_UDP, client = 10.4.4.0:80
  state = CLOSING, real = 10.1.1.20, nat = none
  v_ip = 10.0.0.2:80, TCP, service = NONE
  client_syns = 0, sticky = FALSE, flows attached = 0
Router#
 

Verifying IOS SLB Connectivity

To verify that the IOS SLB feature has been installed and is operating correctly, ping the real servers from the IOS SLB switch, then ping the virtual servers from the clients.

The following show ip slb stats command displays detailed information about the IOS SLB network status:
Router# show ip slb stats
Pkts via normal switching:  0
Pkts via special switching: 6
Connections Created:        1
Connections Established:    1
Connections Destroyed:      0
Connections Reassigned:     0
Zombie Count:               0
Connections Reused:         0
Router#
 

See the "Monitoring and Maintaining the IOS SLB Feature" section for additional commands used to verify IOS SLB networks and connections.

Example Configuration of a Basic IOS SLB Network

The following show running-config command example displays the IOS SLB network described and shown in Figure 2:

Router# show running-config
Building configuration...
 
.
(Information Deleted)
.
ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
 real 10.1.1.1
  inservice
 real 10.1.1.2
  inservice
 real 10.1.1.3
  inservice
!
ip slb serverfarm RESTRICTED
 real 10.1.1.20
  inservice
 real 10.1.1.21
  inservice
!
ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
 virtual 10.0.0.1 tcp www
 serverfarm PUBLIC
 inservice
!
ip slb vserver RESTRICTED_HTTP
 virtual 10.0.0.2 tcp www
 serverfarm RESTRICTED
 client 10.4.4.0 255.255.255.0
 inservice
!
 

Optional Configuration Tasks

This section describes the following optional tasks you can use to fine tune the IOS SLB configuration:

Specifying a Load Balancing Algorithm

To determine which real server to use for each new connection request, the IOS SLB feature uses one of two load balancing algorithms: weighted round robin (the default) or weighted least connections. (See the "Weighted Round Robin" section or the "Weighted Least Connections" section for detailed descriptions of these algorithms.)


Note   You can configure a real server with a weight relative to other real servers in the server farm, using the weight real server configuration command.

To specify the load balancing algorithm, use the following command in server farm configuration mode:
Command Purpose
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# predictor [roundrobin | leastconns]

Specifies whether the weighted round robin algorithm or the weighted least connections algorithm is to be used to determine how a real server is selected. See the predictor command for more details.

The following example shows how to configure weighted least-connections algorithm:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm RESTRICTED
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# predictor leastconns
 

See the "Monitoring and Maintaining the IOS SLB Feature" section for additional commands used to verify SLB network connections and the "Complete Example Configuration" section for an example of a SLB network configuration.

Specifying a Bind ID

The bind ID allows a single physical server to be bound to multiple virtual servers and report a different weight for each one. Thus, the single real server is represented as multiple instances of itself, each having a different bind ID. DFP uses the bind ID to identify for which instance of the real server a given weight is specified. The bind ID is needed only if you are using DFP.

To configure a bind ID on the server farm for use by DFP, use the following command in server farm configuration mode:
Command Purpose
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# bindid [bind_id]

Specifies a bind ID on the server farm for use by DFP. See the bindid command for more details.

The following example shows how to configure a bind ID of 309 on server farm RESTRICTED:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm RESTRICTED
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# bindid 309
 

See the "Monitoring and Maintaining the IOS SLB Feature" section for additional commands used to verify SLB network connections and the "Complete Example Configuration" section for an example of a SLB network configuration.

Configuring Real Server Attributes

You can configure any of the following real server attributes, by using the following real server commands beginning in global configuration mode:
Command Purpose
Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm serverfarm-name
Router(config-slb-sfarm)#

Adds a server farm definition to the SLB configuration and initiates server farm configuration mode. See the ip slb serverfarm command for more details.

Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real ip-address

Identifies a real server to the SLB function and initiates real server configuration mode. See the real command for more details.

Router(config-slb-real)# faildetect numconns number-conns [numclients number-clients]

Specifies the number of consecutive connection failures and, optionally, the number of unique client connection failures, that constitute failure of the real server. See the faildetect command for more details.

Router(config-slb-real)# maxconns number-conns

Specifies the maximum number of active connections allowed on the real server at one time. See the maxconns command for more details.

Router(config-slb-real)# reassign threshold

Specifies the number of consecutive unanswered SYNs that initiates assignment of the connection to a different real server. See the reassign command for more details.

Router(config-slb-real)# retry retry-value

Specifies the interval, in seconds, to wait between the detection of a server failure and the next attempt to connect to the failed server. See the retry command for more details.

Router(config-slb-real)# weight weighting-value

Specifies the real server's workload capacity relative to other servers in the server farm. See the weight command for more details.

Router(config-slb-real)# inservice

Enables the real server for use by SLB. See the inservice (real server) command for more details.

The following example shows how to configure the consecutive connection failures to 16 that constitute the failure of real server 10.1.1.1:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm RESTRICTED
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.1
Router(config-slb-real)# faildetect numconns 16 
 

The following example shows how to configure maximum number of connections to 1000:

Router(config-slb-real)# maxconns 1000
 

The following example shows how to configure the number of consecutive unanswered SYNs to 4 that initiates assignment of the connection to a different real server:

Router(config-slb-real)# reassign 4 
 

The following example shows how to configure the retry interval to 120 seconds between the detection of a server failure and the next attempt to connect on real server 10.1.1.1:

Router(config-slb-real)# retry 120 
 

The following example shows how to configure workload capacity to 16, relative to other servers in the server farm:

Router(config-slb-real)# weight 16 
 

The following example shows how to enable the real server back into service after making changes to its configuration:

Router(config-slb-real)# inservice 
 

See the "Monitoring and Maintaining the IOS SLB Feature" section for additional commands used to verify SLB network connections and the "Complete Example Configuration" section for an example of a SLB network configuration.

Adjusting Virtual Server Values

To change the default settings of the virtual server values, use the related virtual server command beginning in global configuration mode:
Command Purpose
Router(config)# ip slb vserver virtserver-name

Identifies a virtual server and initiates virtual server configuration mode. See the ip slb vserver command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# no advertise

Omits the virtual server IP address from the routing protocol updates. See the advertise command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# client ip-address network-mask

Specifies which clients are allowed to use the virtual server. See the client command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# delay duration

Specifies the amount of time IOS SLB maintains TCP connection context after a connection has terminated. The default value is 10 seconds. See the delay command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# idle duration

Specifies the minimum amount of time IOS SLB maintains connection context in the absence of packet activity. The default value is 3600 seconds (60 hours). See the idle command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# sticky duration [group group-id] [netmask netmask]

Specifies that connections from the same client use the same real server, as long as the interval between client connections does not exceed the specified duration. See the sticky command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# synguard syn-count interval

Specifies the rate of TCP SYNs handled by a virtual server in order to prevent a SYN flood denial-of-service attack. See the synguard command for more details.

Router(config-slb-vserver)# inservice

Enables the virtual server for use by SLB. See the inservice (virtual server) command for more details.

The following commands remove the virtual server RESTRICTED_HTTP from service and then configures the restricted client access to the virtual server:

Router(config)# ip slb vserver RESTRICTED_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# no inservice
Router(config-slb-vserver)#
.
(Information Deleted)
.
index = 1
Router(config-slb-vserver)# client 10.4.4.0 255.255.255.0
 

By default, virtual server addresses are advertised. That is, static routes to the Null0 interface are installed for the virtual server addresses. To advertise these static routes using the routing protocol, you must configure redistribution of static routes for the routing protocol. To prevent the installation of a static route, use the no form of the advertise command:

Router(config-slb-vserver)# no advertise
 

The following command configures the delay timer to 20 seconds after the termination of the TCP connection to the virtual server:

Router(config-slb-vserver)# delay 20
 

The following command configures the idle time to 180 seconds (3 minutes) that the SLB maintains connectivity to the virtual server in the absence of packet activity:

Router(config-slb-vserver)# idle 180
 

The following command configures the time to 60 seconds for connections from the same client to use the same real server:

Router(config-slb-vserver)# sticky 60 group 1
 

The following command configures the rate of TCP SYNs to 3600000 handled by the virtual server:

Router(config-slb-vserver)# synguard 3600000
 

The following example enables the virtual server again after modification:

Router(config-slb-vserver)# inservice
Router(config-slb-vserver)#
src = 0 - 0
.
(Information Deleted)
.
index = 1
Router(config-slb-vserver)# 
 

See the "Monitoring and Maintaining the IOS SLB Feature" section for additional commands used to verify SLB network connections and the "Complete Example Configuration" section for an example of a SLB network configuration.

Configuring IOS SLB Dynamic Feedback Protocol

The IOS SLB Dynamic Feedback Protocol (DFP) is a mechanism that allows host agents in load balanced environments to dynamically report the change in status of the host systems providing a virtual service. The status reported is a relative weight that specifies a host server's capacity to perform work.

To configure IOS SLB DFP, enter the following commands in order, beginning in global configuration mode:
Command Purpose

Step 1

Router(config)# ip slb dfp [password password [timeout]]

Configures DFP and, optionally, sets a password and initiates DFP configuration mode. See the ip slb dfp command for more details.

Step 2

Router(config-slb-dfp)# agent ip_address port [timeout [retry_count [retry_interval]]]

Configures a DFP agent. See the agent command for more details.

The following commands set the DFP password to Cookies, the timeout as 360 seconds, and then changes the CLI to DFP configuration mode:

Router(config)# ip slb dfp password Cookies 360
Router(config-slb-dfp)# 
 

The following DFP command configures the IP address of the DFP agent as 10.1.1.1 and sets the connection port to use as 2221 (FTP):

Router(config-slb-dfp)# agent 10.1.1.1 2221
 

See the "Monitoring and Maintaining the IOS SLB Feature" section for additional commands used to verify SLB network connections and the "Complete Example Configuration" section for an example of a SLB network configuration.

Configuring IOS SLB NAT

Cisco Network Address Translator (NAT), RFC 1631, allows unregistered "private" IP addresses to connect to the Internet by translating them into globally registered IP addresses. NAT also increases network privacy by hiding internal IP addresses from external networks. For a detailed description of NAT and the difference between "client" and "server" mode, see the "Network Address Translation (NAT)" section.

To configure IOS SLB NAT for client mode, enter the following commands in order, beginning in global configuration mode:

Command Description

Step 1

Router(config)# ip slb natpool pool-name start-ip end-ip [netmask netmask | prefix-length leading_1_bits] [entries netmask leading_1_bits]

Configures the client address pool.

Step 2

Router(config-slb-sfarm)# nat {server | client pool-name}

Configures which NAT mode to use. See the nat command for more details.

The following commands configure a NAT server on server farm PUBLIC:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# nat server
 

To configure IOS SLB NAT client mode for a specific server farm, enter the following commands in order, beginning in global configuration mode:

Command Description

Step 1

Router(config)# ip slb natpool pool-name start-ip end-ip [netmask netmask | prefix-length leading_1_bits]

Configures the client address pool.

Step 2

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm serverfarm-name

Adds a server farm definition to the IOS SLB configuration and initiates server farm configuration mode. See the ip slb serverfarm command for more details.

Step 3

Router(config-slb-sfarm)# nat {server | client pool-name}

Configures which NAT mode to use. See the nat command for more details.

Step 4

Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real ip-address [port_number]

Identifies a real server to the IOS SLB function and initiates real server configuration mode. See the real command for more details.

Step 5

Router(config-slb-real)# inservice

Enables the real server for use by IOS SLB. See the inservice (real server) command for more details.

Step 6

Router(config-slb-real)# exit

Return to server farm configuration mode.

Step 7

Router(config-slb-real)# end

Return to global configuration mode.

Step 8

Router(config)# ip slb vserver virtserver-name

Identifies a virtual server and initiates virtual server configuration mode. See the ip slb vserver command for more details.

The following commands configure NAT clients on server farm FARM2:

Router# config t
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
Router(config)# ip slb natpool web-clients 128.3.0.1 128.3.0.254 netmask 255.255.0.0
Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm FARM2
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# nat client web-clients
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.3.1.1
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice
Router(config-slb-real)# exit
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.4.1.1 8080
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice
Router(config-slb-real)# exit
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.4.1.1 8081
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice
Router(config-slb-real)# exit
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.4.1.1 8082
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice
Router(config-slb-real)# end
Router#
00:27:00: %SYS-5-CONFIG_I: Configured from console by console
Router# config terminal
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
Router(config)# ip slb vserver HTTP2
Router(config-slb-vserver)# virtual 128.2.0.1 tcp www
Router(config-slb-vserver)# serverfarm FARM2
Router(config-slb-vserver)# inservice
Router(config-slb-vserver)#
 
(Information Deleted)
 
Router# copy running-config startup-config
Destination filename [startup-config]?
Building configuration...
[OK]
 
Router# 
 

Following is the final configuration after a NAT client pool is configured using the previous process:

Router# show running-config
Building configuration...
 
(Information Deleted)
 
!
ip slb natpool WEB-CLIENTS 128.3.0.1 128.3.0.254 netmask 255.255.0.0 entries 800
0 13851890
ip slb serverfarm FARM2
 nat server
 nat client WEB-CLIENTS
 real 10.3.1.1
  faildetect numconns 8 numclients 2
  inservice
 real 10.4.1.1 8080
  faildetect numconns 8 numclients 2
  inservice
 real 10.4.1.1 8081
  faildetect numconns 8 numclients 2
  inservice
 real 10.4.1.1 8082
  faildetect numconns 8 numclients 2
  inservice
!
ip slb vserver HTTP2
 virtual 128.2.0.1 tcp www
 serverfarm FARM2
 inservice
!
 

Configuring HTTP Probes

HTTP probes monitor applications being server load balanced. For a detailed description of HTTP probes, see the "HTTP Probes" section.

To configure an HTTP probe, enter the following commands in order, beginning in global configuration mode:

Command Description

Step 1

Router(config)# ip slb probe name http

Configures the IOS SLB probe name and changes to HTTP configuration submode. See the ip slb probe command for more details.

Step 2

Router(config-slb-probe)# request url path 

(Optional) Configures the URL path to request from the server. See the request method, request url command for more details.

Step 3

Router(config-slb-probe)# request [method {get | post | head | name name}] [url path]

(Optional) Configures the method used to perform the request to the server. See the request method, request url command for more details.

Step 4

Router(config-slb-probe)# expect [status number]

(Optional) Configures the expected HTTP status code. See the expect command for more details.

Step 5

Router(config-slb-probe)# interval seconds

(Optional) Configures the HTTP probe transmit timers. See the interval (HTTP Probe) command for more details.

Step 6

Router(config-slb-probe)# header {name field-name [field-value]}

(Optional) Configures basic authentication values for the HTTP probe. See the header command for more details.

Step 7

Router(config-slb-probe)# credentials {username [password]}

(Optional) Configures basic authentication values for the HTTP probe. See the credentials command for more details.

The following example shows how to configure an HTTP probe named TREADER:

Router(config)# ip slb probe TREADER http
Router(config-slb-probe)# request method post url /probe.cgi?all
Router(config-slb-probe)# header Cookie
Router(config-slb-probe)# credentials Semisweet chips
Router(config-slb-probe)# exit
Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# probe TREADER
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# end
 

The proceeding example configures the following HTTP probe parameters:


Step 1   Configures an HTTP probe named TREADER and change the CLI to IOS SLB probe configuration mode.

Step 2   Configures the request method as POST and sets the URL as /probe.cgi?all.

Step 3   Configures the header authentication as Cookie.

Step 4   Configures the basic authentication username and password.

Step 5   Exits to global configuration mode.

Step 6   Enters IOS SLB server farm configuration mode for server farm PUBLIC.

Step 7   Configures the HTTP probe on the server farm.


To verify that the HTTP probe is configured correctly, use the following show ip slb probe command:

Router# show ip slb probe
 
Server:Port            Status Outages  Current  Cumulative
----------------------------------------------------------
10.1.1.1:80              200        0  never    00:00:00
10.1.1.2:80              200        0  never    00:00:00
10.1.1.3:80              200        0  never    00:00:00
 
 

Following are the HTTP probe configuration statements for the HTTP probe configured in the previous example:

!
Router(config)# ip slb probe TREADER http
Router(config-slb-probe)# request method post url /probe.cgi?all
Router(config-slb-probe)# header Cookie
Router(config-slb-probe)# header Authorization Basic U2VtaXN3ZWV0OmNoaXBz
!
Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# nat server
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.1
Router(config-slb-sfarm)#  inservice
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.2
Router(config-slb-sfarm)#  inservice
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.3
Router(config-slb-sfarm)#  inservice
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# probe TREADER
! 
 

Implementing IOS SLB Stateless Backup

Stateless backup, based on the Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP), provides high network availability by routing IP traffic from hosts on Ethernet networks without relying on the availability of any single Layer 3 switch. Stateless backup is particularly useful for hosts that do not support a router discovery protocol (such as the Intermediate System-to-Intermediate System [IS-IS] Interdomain Routing Protocol [IDRP]) and do not have the functionality to shift to a new Layer 3 switch when their selected Layer 3 switch reloads or loses power.

How IOS SLB Stateless Backup Works

A Layer 3 switch running the HSRP detects a failure by sending and receiving multicast User Datagram Protocol (UDP) "hello" packets. When the IOS SLB switch running HSRP detects that the designated active Layer 3 switch has failed, the selected backup Layer 3 switch assumes control of the HSRP group MAC and IP addresses. (You can also select a new standby Layer 3 switch at that time.) Both the primary and the backup Layer 3 switch must be on the same subnetwork.

The chosen MAC and IP addresses must be unique and must not conflict with any others on the same network segment. The MAC address is selected from a pool of Cisco MAC addresses. Configure the last byte of the MAC address by using the HSRP group number. When the HSRP is running, it selects an active Layer 3 switch and instructs its device layer to listen on an additional (dummy) MAC address.

IOS SLB switching software supports HSRP over 10/100 Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, FEC, GEC, and BVI (Bridge-Group Virtual Interface) connections.

HSRP uses a priority scheme to determine which HSRP-configured Layer 3 switch is to be the default active Layer 3 switch. To configure a Layer 3 switch as active, you assign it a priority higher than that of all other HSRP-configured Layer 3 switches. The default priority is 100, so if you configure just one Layer 3 switch to have a higher priority, that switch becomes the default active switch.

HSRP works by the exchange of multicast messages that advertise priority among HSRP-configured Layer 3 switches. When the active switch fails to send a hello message within a configurable period, the standby switch with the highest priority becomes the active switch. The transition of packet-forwarding functions between Layer 3 switches is completely transparent to all hosts accessing the network.

HSRP-configured Layer 3 switches exchange the following types of multicast messages:

At any time, HSRP-configured Layer 3 switches are in one of the following states:

Configuring IOS SLB Stateless Backup

Configuration of stateless backup requires the following:

To configure stateless backup over VLANs between SLB switches, perform the following tasks in order:


Step 1   Configure the server farms, real servers, and virtual servers--See the
"Required Configuration Tasks" section.


Note   When you use the inservice (virtual server) command to configure the virtual server as "in-service" you must use the optional standby command and configure an HSRP group name.

Step 2   Configure the IP routing protocol--See the "Configuring IP Routing Protocols" chapter of the Catalyst 4840G Software Feature and Configuration Guide.

Step 3   Configure the VLAN between the switches--See the "About Virtual LANs" chapter of the Catalyst 4840G Software Feature and Configuration Guide.

Step 4   Enable HSRP--See the "Enabling HSRP" section.

Step 5   Customize group attributes--See the "Customizing Group Attributes" section.

Step 6   Verify the IOS SLB HSRP configuration--See the "Verifying the IOS SLB Stateless Backup Configuration" section.


A sample stateless backup configuration is shown in the "Sample IOS SLB Stateless Backup Configuration" section.

Enabling HSRP

To enable HSRP on an IOS SLB interface, enable the protocol, then customize it for the interface. Enter the following command in interface configuration mode:
Command Purpose
Router(config-if)# standby [group-number] ip [ip-address [secondary]]

Enables HSRP.

Customizing Group Attributes

To customize "hot standby" group attributes, use one or more of the following commands in interface configuration mode:
Command Purpose
Router(config-if)# standby [group-number] authentication string

Selects an authentication string to be carried in all HSRP messages.

Router(config-if)# standby [group-number] name group-name

Specifies an HSRP group name with which to associate an IOS SLB interface.

Router(config-if)# standby [group-number] preempt

Specifies that if the local router has priority over the current active router, the local router should attempt to take its place as the active router.

Router(config-if)# standby [group-number] priority priority

Sets the hot standby priority used to choose the active router.

Router(config-if)# standby [group-number] timers hellotime holdtime

Configures the time between hello packets and the hold time before other routers declare the active router to be down.

Router(config-if)# standby [group-number] track type-number [interface-priority]

Configures the interface to track other interfaces, so that if one of the other interfaces goes down, the hot standby priority for the device is lowered.

Verifying the IOS SLB Stateless Backup Configuration

To verify that stateless backup has been configured and is operating correctly, use the following show ip slb vserver commands to display information about the IOS SLB virtual server status:

Router# show ip slb vserver
 
slb vserver      prot  virtual               state         conns   
-------------------------------------------------------------------
VS1              TCP   10.10.10.12:23        INSERVICE     2 
VS2              TCP   10.10.10.18:23        INSERVICE     2 
 
Router# show ip slb vserver detail
VS1, state = INSERVICE, v_index = 10
  virtual = 10.10.10.12:23, TCP, service = NONE, advertise = TRUE
  server farm = SERVERGROUP1, delay = 10, idle = 3600
  sticky timer = 0, sticky subnet = 255.255.255.255
  sticky group id = 0 
  synguard counter = 0, synguard period = 0
  conns = 0, total conns = 0, syns = 0, syn drops = 0
  standby group = None
VS2, state = INOFSERVICE, v_index = 11
  virtual = 10.10.10.18:23, TCP, service = NONE, advertise = TRUE
  server farm = SERVERGROUP2, delay = 10, idle = 3600
  sticky timer = 0, sticky subnet = 255.255.255.255
  sticky group id = 0 
  synguard counter = 0, synguard period = 0
  conns = 0, total conns = 0, syns = 0, syn drops = 0
  standby group = None
 
Sample IOS SLB Stateless Backup Configuration

The following commands enable the HSRP standby group 100 IP address, priority, preempt, timers, configure a name and authentication for Device A in Figure 3:

Router(config-if)# standby 100 ip 172.20.100.10
Router(config-if)# standby 100 priority 110
Router(config-if)# standby 100 preempt
Router(config-if)# standby 100 timers 5 15
Router(config-if)# standby 100 name Web_group1
Router(config-if)# standby 100 authentication Secret
Router(config-if)# exit
Router# 

Configuring IOS SLB Stateful Backup

Stateful backup enables SLB to incrementally back up its load-balancing decisions, or "keep state," between primary and backup Layer 3 switches. The backup switch has its virtual servers in a dormant state until failover is detected by HSRP; then the backup (now primary) switch begins advertising virtual addresses and filtering traffic. You can use HSRP to configure how quickly the failover is detected.

This enhancement provides SLB with a one-to-one stateful or idle backup scheme. This means that only one instance of SLB is handling client or server traffic at a given time, and that there is at most one backup platform for each active SLB switch.

To configure stateful backup to keep state across primary and backup Layer 3 switches, enter the following commands in order, beginning in global configuration mode:

Command Description

Step 1

Router(config)# ip slb vserver virtserver-name

Configures a virtual server and enters virtual server configuration mode.

Step 2

Router(config-slb-vserver)# replicate casa listening-ip remote-ip port-number [interval] [password password timeout]

Configures a stateful backup of SLB decision tables to a backup switch. See the replicate casa command for more details.

The following commands configure stateful backup for virtual server RESTRICTED_HTTP using listening IP 10.10.3.132 and remote IP 10.10.99.3 over port 1032 and configures the password as PASS for Device A in Figure 7:

Router(config)# ip slb vserver RESTRICTED_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# virtual 10.10.10.12 tcp telnet
Router(config-slb-vserver)# replicate casa 10.10.3.132 10.10.99.3 1032 password PASS
Router(config-slb-vserver)# inservice standby virt 
Router(config-slb-vserver)#
.
(Information Deleted)

Monitoring and Maintaining the IOS SLB Feature

To obtain and display runtime information about IOS SLB, use the following commands in EXEC mode:

Command Purpose
Router# show ip slb conns [vserver virtserver-name] [client ip-address] [detail]

Displays all connections handled by IOS SLB, or, optionally, only those connections associated with a particular virtual server or client. See the show ip slb conns command for more details.

Router# show ip slb dfp [agent ip_addr port] [detail] [weights]

Displays information about DFP and DFP agents, and about the weights assigned to real servers. See the show ip slb dfp command for more details.

Router# show ip slb reals [vserver virtserver-name] [detail]

Displays information about the real servers defined to IOS SLB. See the show ip slb reals command for more details.

Router# show ip slb serverfarms [name serverfarm-name] [detail]

Displays information about the server farms defined to IOS SLB. See the show ip slb serverfarms command for more details.

Router# show ip slb stats

Displays IOS SLB statistics. See the show ip slb stats command for more details.

Router# show ip slb sticky [client ip-address]

Displays information about the sticky connections defined to IOS SLB. See the show ip slb sticky command for more details.

Router# show ip slb vservers [name virtserver-name] [detail]

Displays information about the virtual servers defined to IOS SLB. See the show ip slb vservers command for more details.

Router# show ip slb probe [name probe_name] [detail]

Displays information about the HTTP probe defined to IOS SLB. See the show ip slb probe command for more details.

Router# show ip slb replicate

Displays information about the IOS SLB replication configuration. See the show ip slb replicate command for more details.

Configuration Examples

This section provides real-world examples of Layer 3 switching configurations and includes the following sections:


Note   The IP and network addresses in these examples are generic, so you must replace them with the actual addresses for your network.

Complete Example Configuration

The following example provides a complete configuration using the commands described in this feature module:

Router# show running-config
Building configuration...
 
Current configuration:
!
.
(Information Deleted)
.
ip slb probe TREADER http
 request method POST url /probe.cgi?all
 header Cookie
 header Authorization Basic U2VtaXN3ZWV0OmNoaXBz
! 
ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
 nat server
 real 10.1.1.1
  inservice
 real 10.1.1.2
  inservice
 real 10.1.1.3
  inservice
 probe TREADER
!
ip slb serverfarm RESTRICTED
 predictor leastconns
 bindid 309
 real 10.1.1.1
  weight 32
  maxconns 1000
  reassign 4
  faildetect numconns 16
  retry 120
  inservice
 real 10.1.1.20
  inservice
 real 10.1.1.21
  inservice
!
ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
 virtual 10.0.0.1 tcp www
 serverfarm PUBLIC
 no inservice
!
ip slb vserver RESTRICTED_HTTP
 virtual 10.0.0.2 tcp www
 serverfarm RESTRICTED
 no advertise
 sticky 60 group 1
 idle 1800
 client 10.4.4.0 255.255.255.0
 synguard 3600000
 inservice
!
 

Example of a Layer 3 Switch with ISL, VLAN, and BVI with GEC

This example configuration focuses on both the Inter-Switch Link (ISL) and virtual LANs (VLANs), as well as integrated routing and bridging (IRB) using a bridge-group virtual interface (BVI) over Gigabit EtherChannel (GEC). The Cisco proprietary ISL allows any Fast Ethernet port to be configured as a trunk. The Spanning-Tree Protocol detects and breaks loops on all the VLANs carried across the trunk.

The Gigabit Ethernet interface information applies to both two-port and eight-port Gigabit Ethernet interfaces for a Catalyst 8540 campus Layer 3 switch. This example also includes port snooping and Network Time Protocol (NTP) configurations.

!
ip subnet-zero
no ip domain-lookup
ip name-server 171.69.2.132
ip name-server 198.92.30.32
ip multicast-routing
ip dvmrp route-limit 20000
bridge irb
!
interface FastEthernet1
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive
!
interface FastEthernet1.128
    ip address 172.68.16.10 255.255.255.0 ip helper-address 172.68.16.15 no ip redirects no ip directed-broadcast ip pim dense-mode ip multicast ttl-threshold 1 encapsulation isl 128
!
interface FastEthernet1.199
    ip address 172.68.17.15 255.255.255.0 ip helper-address 172.68.16.16 ip helper-address 172.68.16.17 ip helper-address 172.68.16.18 no ip redirects no ip directed-broadcast ip pim dense-mode ip multicast ttl-threshold 1 encapsulation isl 199
!
interface FastEthernet1.201
    ip address 172.68.18.10 255.255.255.0 ip helper-address 172.68.16.16 ip helper-address 172.68.16.17 ip helper-address 172.68.16.18 no ip redirects no ip directed-broadcast ip pim dense-mode ip multicast ttl-threshold 1 encapsulation isl 201
!
interface FastEthernet2
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive shutdown
!
interface FastEthernet3
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive shutdown
!
interface FastEthernet4
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive shutdown
!
interface FastEthernet5
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive shutdown
!
interface FastEthernet6
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive shutdown
!
interface FastEthernet7
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive shutdown
!
interface FastEthernet8
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive shutdown
!
interface FastEthernet9
    ip address 172.68.19.10 255.255.255.0 ip helper-address 172.68.16.16 ip helper-address 172.68.16.17 ip helper-address 172.68.16.18 no ip redirects no ip directed-broadcast ip pim dense-mode ip multicast ttl-threshold 1 ip sdr listen no keepalive
!
interface FastEthernet10
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive shutdown
!
interface FastEthernet11
    no ip address no ip directed-broadcast no keepalive shutdown
!
.
(Information Deleted)
.
interface GigabitEthernet41
 snoop interface FastEthernet3 direction both
 snoop interface FastEthernet5 direction both
 snoop interface FastEthernet6 direction both
    ip address 172.68.21.10 255.255.255.0 ip helper-address 172.68.16.19 ip helper-address 172.68.16.20 ip helper-address 172.68.16.21
!
interface GigabitEthernet42
    ip address 172.68.1.1 255.255.255.0
    no ip directed-broadcast
    ip pim sparse-dense-mode
!
interface BVI1
    ip address 171.201.1.2 255.255.255.0
    no ip directed-broadcast
    ip pim dense-mode
    no ip route-cache cef
!
interface Ethernet0
    ip address 172.68.20.10 255.255.255.0 no ip directed-broadcast
!
router eigrp 170
 network 171.200.0.0
 network 171.201.0.0
 network 172.68.0.0
 network 172.69.0.0
 no auto-summary
!
router bgp 180
 network 172.68.1.0
 network 172.69.1.0
 no auto-summary
!
ip classless
!
bridge 1 protocol ieee
bridge 1 route ip
!
ip http server
!
line con 0
line aux 0
line vty 0 4
    login
!
ntp clock-period 17181168
ntp update-calendar
ntp server 171.71.150.52
ntp server 171.69.4.143
ntp server 171.69.5.10
end

Example of an IOS Layer 3 Switch with HSRP

This example configuration for an IOS Layer 3 switch focuses on the HSRP, which provides high network availability. HSRP makes network topology changes transparent to the host. The active router is monitored by other standby routers, and as soon as an active router becomes unavailable, the standby router takes its place. Helper addresses facilitate connectivity by forwarding certain broadcasts to a target server.

Figure 3 shows the topology of an IP network with two Layer 3 switches configured for HSRP.


Figure 3: HSRP Example Network Topology


In this network:

If the connection between Device A and the client accessing virtual server IP address 10.10.10.12 tcp 23 or 10.10.10.18 tcp 23 fails, fast converging routing protocols, such as OSPF and the Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (Enhanced IGRP), can respond within seconds, ensuring that Device B is prepared to transfer packets that would have gone through Device A.

The following is the configuration for Device A (active):

hostname Device A
!
ip slb serverfarm ServerGroup1
   real 172.20.100.3
   inservice
   real 172.20.100.4
   inservice
!
ip slb serverfarm ServerGroup2
   real 172.20.200.3
   inservice
   real 172.20.200.4
   inservice
!
ip slb vserver VS1
   virtual 10.10.10.12 tcp 23
   serverfarm ServerGroup1
   in-service standby Web_Group1
!
ip slb vserver VS2
   virtual 10.10.10.18 tcp 23
   serverfarm ServerGroup2
   in-service standby Web_Group2
!
ip routing
router rip
network 172.20.0.0
!
interface vlan100
ip address 172.20.100.1 255.255.255.0
standby 100 ip 172.20.100.10
standby 100 priority 110
standby 100 preempt
standby 100 timers 5 15
standby 100 name Web_Group1
standby 100 authentication Secret
!

interface vlan200
ip address 172.20.200.1 255.255.255.0
standby 200 ip 172.20.200.10
standby 200 priority 110
standby 200 preempt
standby 200 timers 5 15
standby 200 name Web_Group2
standby 200 authentication Covert
!
 
 

The following is the configuration for Device B (standby):

hostname Device B
!
ip slb serverfarm ServerGroup1
   real 172.20.100.3
   inservice
   real 172.20.100.4
   inservice
!
ip slb serverfarm ServerGroup2
   real 172.20.200.3
   inservice
   real 172.20.200.4
   inservice
!
ip slb vserver VS1
   virtual 10.10.10.12 tcp 23
   serverfarm ServerGroup1
   in-service standby Web_Group1
!
ip slb vserver VS2
   virtual 10.10.10.18 tcp 23
   serverfarm ServerGroup2
   in-service standby Web_Group2
!
ip routing
router rip
network 172.20.0.0
!
interface vlan100
ip address 172.20.100.2 255.255.255.0
standby 100 ip 172.20.100.10
standby 100 preempt
standby 100 timers 5 15
standby 100 name Web_Group1
standby 100 authentication Secret
!
interface vlan200
ip address 172.20.200.2 255.255.255.0
standby 200 ip 172.20.200.10
standby 200 preempt
standby 200 timers 5 15
standby 200 name Web_Group2
standby 200 authentication Covert
 

The standby ip interface configuration command enables HSRP and establishes 10.10.10.12 and 10.10.10.18 as the IP addresses of the virtual servers. The configurations of both Layer 3 switches include this command so that both switches share the same virtual IP address. The number 100 establishes Hot Standby group 100. (If you do not specify a group number, the default is group 0.) The configuration for at least one of the Layer 3 switches in the Hot Standby group must specify the IP address of the virtual server; specifying the IP address of the virtual router is optional for other routers in the same Hot Standby group.

The standby preempt interface configuration command allows the Layer 3 switch to become the active switch when its priority is higher than all other HSRP-configured switches in this Hot Standby group. The configurations of both switches include this command so that each can be the standby Layer 3 switch for the other switch. The number 100 indicates that this command applies to Hot Standby group 100. If you do not use the standby preempt command in the configuration for a Layer 3 switch, that switch cannot become the active Layer 3 switch.

The standby priority interface configuration command sets the Layer 3 switch's HSRP priority to 110, which is higher than the default priority of 100. Only the configuration of Device A includes this command, which makes Device A the default active Layer 3 switch. The number 100 indicates that this command applies to Hot Standby group 100.

The standby timers interface configuration command sets the interval (in seconds) between hello messages (called the hello time) to five seconds, and sets the interval (in seconds) that a Layer 3 switch waits before it declares the active Layer 3 switch to be down (called the hold time) to eight seconds. (The defaults are three and 10 seconds, respectively.) To modify the default values, you must configure each Layer 3 switch to use the same hello time and hold time. The number 100 indicates that this command applies to Hot Standby group 100.

The standby name interface configuration command associates the IOS SLB interface with an HSRP group name (in this case, Web-Group), previously specified on an inservice (virtual server) command. The number 100 indicates that this command applies to Hot Standby group 100.

The standby authentication interface configuration command establishes an authentication string whose value is an unencrypted eight-character string that is incorporated in each HSRP multicast message. This command is optional. If you choose to use it, each HSRP-configured Layer 3 switch in the group should use the same string so that each switch can authenticate the source of the HSRP messages that it receives. The number 100 indicates that this command applies to Hot Standby group 100.

Example of a Layer 3 Switch Configured with IOS SLB

Figure 4 shows an example configuration with IOS SLB server connections configured as part of a server farm, using real and virtual servers over Fast Ethernet interfaces.


Figure 4: Network Configuration for IOS SLB


As shown in the following sample configuration, the example topology has three public Web servers and two restricted Web servers for privileged clients in subnet 10.4.4.x. The public Web servers are weighted according to their capacity, with server 10.1.1.2 having the lowest capacity and having a connection limit imposed on it. The restricted Web servers are configured as members of the same sticky group, so that HTTP connections and Secure Socket Layer (SSL) connections from the same client use the same real server.

The network configuration to provide the previously described IOS SLB functionality follows:

! Unrestricted Web server farm
ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
! Use weighted least connections algorithm
  predictor leastconns
! First real server
  real 10.1.1.1
    weight 16
    inservice
! Second real server
  real 10.1.1.2
    weight 4
!  Restrict maximum number of connections
    maxconns 1000
    inservice
! Third real server
  real 10.1.1.3
    weight 24
    inservice

! Restricted Web server farm
ip slb serverfarm RESTRICTED
! Use weighted least connections algorithm
  predictor leastconns
! First real server
  real 10.1.1.20
    in-service
! Second real server
  real 10.1.1.21
    in-service
!
! Unrestricted Web virtual server
ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
! Handle HTTP requests
  virtual 10.0.0.1 tcp www
! Use public Web server farm
  serverfarm PUBLIC
  inservice
!
! Restricted HTTP virtual server
ip slb vserver RESTRICTED_HTTP
! Handle HTTP requests
  virtual 10.0.0.1 tcp www                 
! Use restricted Web server farm
  serverfarm RESTRICTED
! Only allow clients from 10.4.4.x
  client 10.4.4.0 255.255.255.0
! Couple connections with RESTRICTED_SSL
  sticky 60 group 1
  inservice
!
! Restricted SSL virtual server
ip slb vserver RESTRICTED_SSL
! Handle SSL requests
  virtual 10.0.0.1 tcp https
! Use restricted Web server farm
  serverfarm RESTRICTED
! Only allow clients from 10.4.4.x
  client 10.4.4.0 255.255.255.0
! Couple connections with RESTRICTED_WEB
  sticky 60 group 1
  inservice

Example of IOS SLB with NAT Configuration

Figure 5 shows an example configuration with IOS SLB real server connections configured as part of a server farm, focusing on the configuration of the NAT server and address pool of clients.


Figure 5: Sample IOS SLB NAT Topology


The topology in Figure 5 has four Web servers, configured as follows:

Server 1 and Server 2 are load balanced using Switch A, which is performing server address translation.

Server 3 and Server 4 are load balanced using Switch B and Switch C. These two switches are performing both server and client address translation since there are multiple paths between the clients and the servers. These switches also must perform server port translation for HTTP packets to and from Server 4.

The configuration statements for Switch A are:

ip slb serverfarm FARM1
! Translate server addresses
  nat server
! Server 1 port 80
  real 10.1.1.1
    inservice
! Server 2 port 80
  real 10.2.1.1
    inservice
!

ip slb vserver HTTP1
! Handle HTTP (port 80) requests
  virtual 128.1.0.1 tcp www
  serverfarm FARM1
  inservice
 
 

The configuration statements for Switch B are:

ip slb natpool web-clients 128.3.0.1 128.3.0.254
! NAT address pool for clients
ip slb serverfarm FARM2
! Translate server addresses
  nat server
! Translate client addresses
  nat client web-clients
! Server 3 port 80
  real 10.3.1.1
    inservice
! Server 4 port 8080
  real 10.4.1.1 port 8080
    inservice
! Server 4 port 8081
  real 10.4.1.1 port 8081
    inservice
! Server 4 port 8082
  real 10.4.1.1 port 8082
    inservice
!
ip slb vserver HTTP2
! Handle HTTP (port 80) requests
  virtual 128.2.0.1 tcp www
  serverfarm FARM2
  inservice

The configuration statements for Switch C are:

ip slb natpool web-clients 128.5.0.1 128.5.0.254
! NAT address pool for clients
ip slb serverfarm FARM2
! Translate server addresses
  nat server
! Translate client addresses
  nat client web-clients 
! Server 3 port 80
  real 10.3.1.1
    inservice
! Server 4 port 8080
  real 10.4.1.1 port 8080
    inservice
! Server 4 port 8081
  real 10.4.1.1 port 8081
    inservice
! Server 4 port 8082
  real 10.4.1.1 port 8082
    inservice
!
ip slb vserver HTTP2
! Handle HTTP (port 80) requests
  virtual 128.4.0.1 tcp www
  serverfarm FARM2
  inservice

Example of IOS SLB with an HTTP Probe Configuration

Figure 6 shows an example configuration with IOS SLB real server connections configured as part of a server farm, focusing on using HTTP probe to monitor the IOS SLB connections.


Figure 6: Sample HTTP Probe Topology

:

The topology shown in Figure 6 is a heterogeneous server farm servicing a single virtual server. Following are the Catalyst 4840G switch router configuration statements for this topology:

!
ip slb probe TREADER http
 request method post url /probe.cgi?all
 header Cookie
 credentials Semisweet chips
!
ip slb serverfarm XEBEC
 real 10.0.0.1
  inservice
 probe TREADER
!

Example of IOS SLB with Stateful Backup Configuration

This example configuration focuses on the IOS SLB real server connections configured as part of a server farm, with real and virtual servers over Fast Ethernet interfaces configured with stateful backup standby connections.

Figure 7 is an example of a stateful backup configuration, using HSRP on both the client and server sides to handle failover. The real servers route outbound traffic to 10.10.3.100, which is the HSRP address on the server side interfaces. The client (or access router), routes to the virtual IP address (10.10.10.12) through 10.10.2.100, HSRP address on the client side.

Notice the loopback interfaces configured on both boxes for the exchange of these messages. Each IOS SLB should also be given duplicate routes to the other switch loopback address. This allows replication messages to flow despite an interface failure.


Note   To allow HSRP to function properly, set spantree portfast must be configured on any Layer 2 device between the SLB switches.


Figure 7: IOS SLB Stateful Environment


Following is the stateful backup configuration for switch SLB1 shown in Figure 7:

!
ip slb serverfarm SF1
  nat server
  real 10.10.3.1
   inservice
  real 10.10.3.2
   inservice
  real 10.10.3.3
   inservice
!
ip slb vserver VS1
  virtual 10.10.10.12 tcp telnet
  serverfarm SF1
  replicate casa 10.10.99.132 10.10.99.99 1024 password PASS
  inservice standby virt
 !
interface Loopback1
  ip address 10.10.99.132 255.255.255.255
!

interface FastEthernet1
  ip address 10.10.3.132 255.255.255.0
  no ip redirects
  no ip mroute-cache
  standby priority 5 preempt
  standby name out
  standby ip 10.10.3.100
  standby track FastEthernet2
 !
 interface FastEthernet2
  ip address 10.10.2.132 255.255.255.0
  no ip redirects
  standby priority 5 preempt
  standby name virt
  standby ip 10.10.2.100
  standby track FastEthernet1
 !
 

Following is the stateful backup configuration for switch SLB2 shown in Figure 7:

ip slb serverfarm SF1
  nat server
  real 10.10.3.1
   inservice
  real 10.10.3.2
   inservice
  real 10.10.3.3
   inservice
 !
ip slb vserver VS1
  virtual 10.10.10.12 tcp telnet
  serverfarm SF1
  replicate casa 10.10.99.99 10.10.99.132 1024 password PASS
  inservice standby virt
 !
interface Loopback1
  ip address 10.10.99.99 255.255.255.255
 !

interface FastEthernet2
  ip address 10.10.2.99 255.255.255.0
  no ip redirects
  no ip route-cache
  no ip mroute-cache
  standby priority 10 preempt
  standby name virt
  standby ip 10.10.2.100
  standby track FastEthernet3
 !
interface FastEthernet3
  ip address 10.10.3.99 255.255.255.0
  no ip redirects
  no ip route-cache
  no ip mroute-cache
  standby priority 10 preempt
  standby name out
  standby ip 10.10.3.100
  standby track FastEthernet2
 

Example of IOS SLB with Redistribution of Static Routes

Figure 8 shows an IOS SLB network configured to distribute static routes to a virtual server's IP address. The route to the address is added to the routing table as static if you advertise the address when you bring the virtual server into service (using the inservice command). See the advertise command for more details about advertising virtual server IP addresses.

Because the routing configuration varies from protocol to protocol, sample configurations for several different routing protocols are given.


Figure 8: IOS SLB Redistribution of Static Routes


Routing Information Protocol (RIP)

Following is the RIP static route redistribution configuration for the SLB switch shown in Figure 8:

router rip
 redistribute static
 network 10.0.0.0
 network 8.0.0.0
 

Following is the RIP static route redistribution configuration for the access router that is listening for routing updates shown in Figure 8:

router rip
 network 10.0.0.0
 network 8.0.0.0

Open Shortest Path First (OSPF)

Following is the OSPF static route redistribution configuration for the SLB switch shown in Figure 8:

router ospf 1
 redistribute static subnets
 network 10.10.6.217 0.0.0.0 area 0
 network 8.8.8.0 0.0.0.255 area 0
 

Following is the OSPF static route redistribution configuration for the access router that is listening for routing updates shown in Figure 8:

router ospf 1
 network 10.10.6.2 0.0.0.0 area 0
 network 8.8.8.0 0.0.0.255 area 0

Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP)

Following is the IGRP static route redistribution configuration for the SLB switch shown in Figure 8:

router igrp 1
 redistribute connected
 redistribute static
 network 8.0.0.0
 network 10.0.0.0
 

Following is the IGRP static route redistribution configuration for the access router that is listening for routing updates shown in Figure 8:

router igrp 1
 network 8.0.0.0
 network 10.0.0.0

Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (Enhanced IGRP)

Following is the Enhanced IGRP static route redistribution configuration for the SLB switch shown in Figure 8:

router eigrp 666
 redistribute static
 network 10.0.0.0
 network 8.0.0.0
 

Following is the Enhanced IGRP static route redistribution configuration for the access router that is listening for routing updates shown in Figure 8:

router eigrp 666
 network 10.0.0.0
 network 8.0.0.0
 

Command Reference

This section documents new or modified commands. All other commands used with this feature are documented in the Cisco IOS Release 12.1 and 12.1(1)T command reference publications.

advertise

By default, virtual server addresses are advertised. That is, static routes to the Null0 interface are installed for the virtual server addresses.

To control the installation of a static route to the Null0 interface for a virtual server address, use the advertise virtual server configuration command. Advertisement of this static route using the routing protocol requires that you configure redistribution of static routes for the routing protocol. To prevent the installation of a static route for the virtual server IP address, use the no form of this command.

advertise

no advertise

Syntax Description

This command has no arguments or keywords.

Defaults

The virtual server IP address is added to the routing table.

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example prevents advertisement of the virtual server's IP address in routing protocol updates:

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# no advertise

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

agent

To configure a DFP agent, use the agent DFP configuration command. To remove an agent definition from the DFP configuration, use the no form of this command.

agent ip-address port [timeout [retry_count [retry_interval]]]

no agent ip-address port

Syntax Description

ip-address

Agent IP address

port

Agent port number

timeout

(Optional) Time period, in seconds, during which the DFP manager must receive an update from the DFP agent. The default is 0 seconds, which means there is no timeout.

retry_count

(Optional) Number of times the DFP manager attempts to establish the TCP connection to the DFP agent. The default is 0 retries, which means there are infinite retries.

retry_interval

(Optional) Interval, in seconds, between retries. The default is 180 seconds.

Defaults

Timeout default: 0 seconds (no timeout)

Retry_count default: 0 (infinite retries)

Retry_interval default: 180 seconds

Command Modes

DFP configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

You can configure up to 1024 agents.

A DFP agent collects status information about a server's load capability and reports that information to a load manager. The DFP agent may reside on the server, or it may be a separate device that collects and consolidates the information from several servers before reporting to the load manager.

Examples

The following example configures a DFP agent:

Router(config)# ip slb dfp
Router(config-slb-dfp)# agent 17.17.17.17 22

Related Commands
Command Description

ip slb dfp

Configures the IOS SLB DFP.

bindid

To configure a bind ID, use the bindid server farm configuration command. To remove a bind ID from the server farm configuration, use the no form of this command.

bindid [bind_id]

no bindid [bind_id]

Syntax Description

bind_id

(Optional) Bind ID number. The default bind ID is 0.

Defaults

Bind_id default: 0

Command Modes

Server farm configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

You can configure one bind ID on each bindid command.

The bind ID allows a single physical server to be bound to multiple virtual servers and report a different weight for each one. Thus, the single real server is represented as multiple instances of itself, each having a different bind ID. DFP uses the bind ID to identify for which instance of the real server a given weight is specified.

Examples

The following example configures bind ID 309:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# bindid 309

Related Commands
Command Description

ip slb dfp

Configures the IOS SLB DFP.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the SLB server farms.

clear ip slb

To clear IP SLB connections or counters, use the clear ip slb command.

clear ip slb {connections [serverfarm farm_name | vserver server_name] | counters}

Syntax Description

connections

Clears the IP SLB connection database.

serverfarm

Clears the connection database for the serverfarm named.

farm_name

Character string used to identify the serverfarm.

vserver

Clears the connection database for the virtual server named.

server_name

Character string used to identify the virtual server.

counters

Clears the IP SLB counters.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(1)E

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example clears the connection database of server farm FARM1:

Router# clear ip slb connections serverfarm FARM1

The following example clears the connection database of virtual server VSERVER1:

Router# clear ip slb connections vserver VSERVER1

The following example clears the SLB counters:

Router# clear ip slb counters

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb conns

Displays information about the SLB connections.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the SLB server farms.

show ip slb stats

Displays IOS SLB statistics.

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the SLB virtual servers.

client

To define which clients are allowed to use the virtual server, use the client virtual server configuration command. You can use more than one client command to define more than one client. To remove a client definition from the IOS SLB configuration, use the no form of this command.

client ip-address network-mask

no client ip-address network-mask

Syntax Description

ip-address

Client IP address. The default is 0.0.0.0 (all clients).

network-mask

Client IP network mask. The default is 0.0.0.0 (all subnetworks).

Defaults

Ip_address default: 0.0.0.0 (all clients)

Network_mask default: 0.0.0.0 (all subnetworks)

Taken together, the default is client 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 (allows all clients on all subnetworks to use the virtual server).

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The network-mask value is applied to the source IP address of incoming connections. The result must match the ip-address value for the client to be allowed to use the virtual server.

Examples

The following example allows only clients from 10.4.4.x access to the virtual server:

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# client 10.4.4.0 255.255.255.0

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

virtual

Configures the virtual server attributes.

credentials

To configure basic authentication values for the HTTP SLB probe, use the credentials configuration command. To remove a credentials configuration, use the no form of this command.

credentials {username} [password]

no credentials {username} [password]

Syntax Description

username

Configures the authentication username of the HTTP probe header. The character string is limited to 15 characters.

password

Configures the authentication password of the HTTP probe header. The character string is limited to 15 characters.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

HTTP probe configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example configures an HTTP probe named TREADER, changes the CLI to IOS SLB HTTP probe submode, sets the HTTP authentication to username lauren, and sets the password to develop:

Router(config)# ip slb probe TREADER http
Router(config-slb-probe)# credentials lauren develop
 

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb probe

Displays the SLB HTTP probe configuration.

delay

To change the amount of time IOS SLB maintains TCP connection context after a connection has terminated, use the delay virtual server configuration command. To restore the default delay timer, use the no form of this command.

delay duration

no delay

Syntax Description

duration

Delay timer duration in seconds. The valid range is 1 to 600 seconds. The default value is 10 seconds.

Defaults

Duration default: 10 seconds

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The delay timer allows out-of-sequence packets and final acknowledgments (ACKs) to be delivered after a TCP connection ends.

Do not set this value to zero (0).

If you are configuring a delay timer for HTTP traffic, choose a low number such as 5 seconds as a starting point.

Examples

The following example specifies that IOS SLB maintains TCP connection context for 30 seconds after a connection has terminated:

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# delay 30

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

virtual

Configures the virtual server attributes.

expect

To configure a status code to expect from the HTTP probe, use the expect configuration command. To remove a status code configuration, use the no form of this command.

expect status number

no expect status number

Syntax Description

number

Configures the expected HTTP status code within the range 100-599.

Defaults

No default expected status code is 4XX.

Command Modes

HTTP probe configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The expect command configures the expected status code or regular expression to be received from the servers. A real server is considered to have failed and is taken out of service if any of the following events occurs:

Examples

The following example configures an HTTP probe named TREADER, changes the CLI to HTTP submode, and configures the HTTP probe to expect the status code 40l:

Router(config)# ip slb probe TREADER http
Router(config-slb-probe)# expect status 401

Related Commands
Command Description

ip slb probe

Configures the IP SLB probe name.

show ip slb probe

Displays the SLB HTTP probe configuration.

faildetect

To specify the conditions that indicate a server failure, use the faildetect real server configuration command. To restore the default values that indicate a server failure, use the no form of this command.

faildetect numconns number-conns [numclients number-clients]

no faildetect

Syntax Description

numconns

Number of consecutive TCP connection reassignments allowed before a real server is considered to have failed.

number-conns

Connection reassignment threshold value in the range from 1 to 255. The default is 8 connection failures.

numclients

(Optional) Number of unique client connection failures allowed before a real server is considered to have failed.

number-clients

(Optional) Client connection reassignment threshold value in the range from 1 to 8. The default is 2 client connection failures.

Defaults

If the faildetect command is not specified, the default value of the connection reassignment threshold is 8.

If the numclients keyword is not specified, the default value of the unique client failure threshold is 2.

Command Modes

Real server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

In the following example the connection reassignment threshold is set to 16 and, because the number-clients keyword is not configured, the threshold for unique client connection failure is set to the default value 8. The real server is considered to have failed when 8 unique clients have had connection failures and there have been 16 connection reassignments.

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.10.1.1
Router(config-slb-real)# faildetect numconns 16

Related Commands
Command Description

real

Identifies a real server.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

show ip slb reals

Displays information about the real servers.

header

To configure the basic authentication values for the HTTP probe, use the header HTTP probe configuration command. To remove a header HTTP probe configuration, use the no form of this command.

header field-name [field-value]

no header field-name [field-value]

Syntax Description

field-name

Configures the name of the HTTP probe header. The character string is limited to 15 characters.

field-value

(Optional) Configures the value of the HTTP probe header.

Defaults

No default behavior or values, although the following headers are inserted in the server script by default:

Accept: */*
Connection: close
User-Agent: cisco-slb-probe/1.0
Host: virtual IP address

Command Modes

HTTP probe configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The header HTTP probe command configures authentication parameters of the header.


Note   The colon ( : ) separating the field-name and field-value is automatically inserted if not provided. Multiple headers with the same name are not allowed.

Examples

The following example configures an HTTP probe named TREADER, changes the CLI to HTTP submode, and configures the HTTP probe header name as Cookie:

Router(config)# ip slb probe TREADER http
Router(config-slb-probe)# header Cookie

Related Commands
Command Description

ip slb probe

Configures the IP SLB probe name.

show ip slb probe

Displays an SLB HTTP probe configuration.

idle

To specify the minimum amount of time IOS SLB maintains connection information in the absence of packet activity, use the idle virtual server configuration command. To restore the default idle duration value, use the no form of this command.

idle duration

no idle

Syntax Description

duration

Idle connection timer duration in seconds. Valid values range from 10 to 65535. The default is 3600 seconds (1 hour).

Defaults

Duration default: 3600 seconds

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

TCP connections that do not send traffic or keepalives before the idle timer expires are assumed to be inactive and are reset (RST).

If you are configuring an idle timer for HTTP traffic, choose a low number such as 120 seconds as a starting point. A low number ensures that the IOS SLB connection database maintains a manageable size if problems at the server, client, or network result in a large number of connections. However, do not choose a value under 60 seconds; such a low value can reduce the efficiency of IOS SLB.

Examples

The following example instructs IOS SLB to maintain connection information for an idle connection for 120 seconds.

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# idle 120

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

virtual

Configures the virtual server attributes.

inservice (real server)

To enable the real server for use by IOS SLB, use the inservice real server configuration command. To remove the real server from service, use the no form of this command.

inservice

no inservice

Syntax Description

This command has no arguments or keywords.

Defaults

If the inservice command is not specified, the real server is defined to IOS SLB but is not used.

Command Modes

Real server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example enables the real server for use by the IOS SLB feature:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.10.1.1
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice

Related Commands
Command Description

real

Identifies a real server.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

show ip slb reals

Displays information about the real servers.

inservice (virtual server)

To enable the virtual server for use by IOS SLB, use the inservice virtual server configuration command. To remove the virtual server from service, use the no form of this command.

inservice [standby group-name]

no inservice [standby group-name]

Syntax Description

standby

(Optional) Configures the HSRP standby virtual server for use with stateless and stateful backup.

groupname

(Optional) Specifies the HSRP group name with which the IOS SLB virtual server is associated.

Defaults

If the inservice command is not specified, the virtual server is defined to IOS SLB but is not used.

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

12.1(1)E

The standby keyword and group-name variable were added.

Examples

The following example enables the real server for use by the IOS SLB feature:

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# inservice

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

virtual

Configures the virtual server attributes.

interval (HTTP Probe)

To configure an HTTP probe interval, use the interval configuration command. To remove an HTTP probe interval configuration, use the no form of this command.

interval seconds

no interval seconds

Syntax Description

seconds

Designates the number of seconds to wait before reattempting the probe. Valid values range from 1-65535 seconds.

Defaults

The default interval value is 8 seconds.

Command Modes

HTTP probe configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example configures an HTTP probe named TREADER, changes the CLI to HTTP submode, configures the HTTP probe timer interval to transmit every 11 seconds:

Router(config)# ip slb probe TREADER http
Router(config-slb-probe)# interval 11

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb probe

Displays an SLB HTTP probe configuration.

ip slb dfp

To configure DFP and supply an optional password, use the ip slb dfp global configuration command. To remove the DFP configuration, use the no form of this command.

ip slb dfp [password password [timeout]]

no ip slb dfp

Syntax Description

password

(Optional) Specifies a password for MD5 authentication.

password

(Optional) Password value for MD5 authentication. This password must match the password configured on the host agent.

timeout

(Optional) Delay period, in seconds, during which both the old password and the new password are accepted. The default value is 180 seconds.

Defaults

Timeout default: 180 seconds

Command Modes

Global configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The timeout option allows you to change the password without stopping messages between the DFP agent and its manager. The default value is 180 seconds.

During the timeout, the agent sends packets with the old password (or null, if there is no old password), and receives packets with either the old or new password. After the timeout expires, the agent sends and receives packets only with the new password; received packets that use the old password are discarded.

If you are changing the password for an entire load-balanced environment, set a longer timeout. This allows enough time for you to update the password on all agents and servers before the timeout expires. It also prevents mismatches between agents and servers that have begun running the new password and agents, and servers on which you have not yet changed the old password.

Examples

The following example configures DFP, sets the password to flounder, and configures a timeout period of 60 seconds and changes to DFP agent configuration mode:

Router(config)# ip slb dfp flounder 60
Router(config-slb-dfp)#
 

Related Commands
Command Description

agent

Configures a DFP agent.

ip slb entries

To configure an initial allocation and a maximum value for SLB database entries, use the ip slb entries global configuration command. To restore the default values, use the no form of this command.

ip slb entries [conn [init-conn [max-conn]] | frag [init-frag [max-frag]] | sticky [init-sticky [max-sticky]] ]

no ip slb entries [conn | frag | sticky]

Syntax Description

conn

(Optional) Configure an initial allocation and a maximum value for IOS SLB connection database entries.

init-conn

(Optional) Initial allocation of connection database entries. The number of connection database entries can grow dynamically: When the number of available connection database entries is less than half of init-conn, IOS SLB allocates additional connection database entries.

Valid range is 1 to 1000000 connection database entries. The default is 8000 connection database entries.

max-conn

(Optional) Maximum number of connection database entries that may be allocated. Valid range is 1 to 8000000 connection database entries. The default is 8000000 connection database entries.

frag

(Optional) Configure an initial allocation and a maximum value for IOS SLB fragment database entries.

init-frag

(Optional) Initial allocation of fragment database entries. The number of fragment database entries can grow dynamically: When the number of available fragment database entries is less than half of init-frag, IOS SLB allocates additional fragment database entries.

Valid range is 1 to 1000000 fragment database entries. The default is 2000 fragment database entries.

max-frag

(Optional) Maximum number of fragment database entries that may be allocated. Valid range is 1 to 8000000 fragment database entries. The default is 32000 fragment database entries.

sticky

(Optional) Configure an initial allocation and a maximum value for IOS SLB sticky connection database entries.

init-sticky

(Optional) Initial allocation of sticky database entries. The number of sticky database entries can grow dynamically: When the number of available sticky database entries is less than half of init-sticky, IOS SLB allocates additional sticky database entries.

Valid range is 1 to 1000000 sticky database entries. The default is 4000 sticky database entries.

max-sticky

(Optional) Maximum number of sticky database entries that may be allocated. Valid range is 1 to 8000000 sticky database entries. The default is 8000000 sticky database entries.

Defaults

For connections, the default initial allocation is 8000 connections, and the default maximum is 8000000 connections.

For fragments, the default initial allocation is 4000 fragments, and the default maximum is 8000000 fragments.

For sticky connections, the default initial allocation is 2000 sticky connections, and the default maximum is 3200 sticky connections.

Command Modes

Global configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

If you configure an initial allocation value that exceeds the amount of available memory, memory may not be available for other features. In extreme cases, the router or switch may not boot properly. Therefore, be careful when you configure initial allocation values.

Examples

The following example configures an initial allocation of 128,000 connections, which can grow dynamically to a limit of 512,000 connections:

Router(config)# ip slb entries conn 128000 512000

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb conns

Displays all connections handled by IOS SLB, or, optionally, only those connections associated with a particular virtual server or client.

ip slb natpool

To configure an IOS SLB NAT, use the ip slb natpool configuration command to create at least one client address pool. To remove an ip slb natpool configuration, use the no form of this command.

ip slb natpool pool-name start-ip end-ip [netmask netmask | prefix-length leading_1_bits] [entries init-addr [max-addr]]

no ip slb natpool pool-name

Syntax Description

pool-name

Configures a character string used to identify this client address pool. The character string is limited to 15 characters.

start-ip

Configures a starting IP address that defines the range of addresses in the address pool.

end-ip

Configures an ending IP address that defines the range of addresses in the address pool.

netmask

(Optional) Keyword used to configure the subnet mask.

netmask

(Optional) Mask for the associated IP subnet.

prefix-length

(Optional) Keyword used to configure the subnet mask.

leading_1_bits

(Optional) Mask for the associated IP subnet.

entries

(Optional) Configure an initial allocation and a maximum value for IOS SLB client NAT address entries for pool-name.

init-addr

(Optional) Initial allocation of client NAT address entries. The number of client NAT address entries can grow dynamically: When the number of available client NAT address entries is less than half of init-addr, IOS SLB allocates additional client NAT address entries.

Valid range is 1 to 1000000 client NAT address entries. The default is 8000 client NAT address entries.

max-addr

(Optional) Maximum number of client NAT address entries that may be allocated. Valid range is 1 to 8000000 client NAT address entries.

The default is the maximum number of ports that can be allocated within the IP address range specified for pool-name. For example, the following command:

ip slb natpool 3.3.3.1 3.3.3.5 prefix-length 24 entries 8000

has a default max-addr of (3.3.3.1-3.3.3.5)*54535, or 4*54535, or 218140.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Global configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

If you want to use client NAT, you must create at least one client address pool.

Examples

The following example configures an IOS SLB NAT server farm pool of addresses with the name web-clients, the IP address range from 128.3.0.1 through 128.3.0.254, and a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0:

Router(config)# ip slb natpool web-clients 128.3.0.1 128.3.0.254 netmask 255.255.0.0

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

ip slb probe

To configure an HTTP probe name and to change to HTTP probe configuration submode, use the ip slb probe configuration command. To remove an ip slb probe configuration, use the no form of this command.

ip slb probe name http

no ip slb probe name

Syntax Description

name

Configures a name for the HTTP probe. The character string is limited to 15 characters.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Global configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

This command configures the HTTP probe name and application protocol. The ip slb probe command also changes the user interface to HTTP submode.

The HTTP probe cannot be unconfigured while it is being used by the server farm.

Only one HTTP probe can be configured per server farm.

Examples

The following example configures an IOS SLB probe with TREADER, then changes to HTTP configuration submode:

Router(config)# ip slb probe TREADER http
Router(config-slb-probe)#

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb probe

Displays an SLB HTTP probe configuration.

ip slb serverfarm

To identify a server farm and enter server farm configuration mode, use the ip slb serverfarm global configuration command. To remove the server farm from the IOS SLB configuration, use the no form of this command.

ip slb serverfarm serverfarm-name

no ip slb serverfarm serverfarm-name

Syntax Description

serverfarm-name

Character string used to identify the server farm. The character string is limited to 15 characters.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Global configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

Grouping real servers into server farms is an essential part of IOS SLB. Using server farms enables IOS SLB to assign new connections to the real servers based on their weighted capacities, and on the load balancing algorithms used.

Examples

The following example identifies a server farm named PUBLIC:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)#?

Related Commands
Command Description

real

Identifies a real server.

ip slb vserver

To identify a virtual server and enter virtual server configuration mode, use the ip slb vserver global configuration command. To remove a virtual server from the IOS SLB configuration, use the no form of this command.

ip slb vserver virtserver-name

no ip slb vserver virtserver-name

Syntax Description

virtserver-name

Character string used to identify the virtual server. The character string is limited to 15 characters.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Global configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example identifies a virtual server named PUBLIC_HTTP:

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)#

Related Commands
Command Description

serverfarm

Associates a real server farm with a virtual server.

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

maxconns

To limit the number of active connections to the real server, use the maxconns real server configuration command. To restore the default of no limit, use the no form of this command.

maxconns maximum-number

no maxconns

Syntax Description

maximum-number

Maximum number of simultaneous active connections on the real server. Valid values range from 1 to 4294967295. The default is 4294967295.

Defaults

Maximum_number default: 4294967295

Command Modes

Real server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example limits the real server to a maximum of 1000 simultaneous active connections:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.10.1.1
Router(config-slb-real)# maxconns 1000

Related Commands
Command Description

real

Identifies a real server.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

show ip slb reals

Displays information about the real servers.

nat

To configure SLB NAT you must specify which NAT mode is to be using the nat configuration command. To remove a NAT configuration, use the no form of this command.

nat {server | client pool-name}

no nat {server | client}

Syntax Description

server

Configures the destination address in load-balanced packets sent to the real server as the address of the real server chosen by the server farm load balancing algorithm.

client

Configures the client address in load-balanced packets using addresses from the client address pool.

pool-name

Configures the pool name and must match the pool-name parameter from a previous ip slb probe command.

Defaults

None

Command Modes

Server farm configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(1)E

This command was introduced.

12.1(2)E

The client keyword and pool-name variable were added.

Usage Guidelines

The no nat command is allowed only if the virtual server was removed from service with the no inservice command.

Examples

The following example changes to IOS SLB server farm configuration mode and configures NAT mode as server address translation on server farm FARM2:

Router# ip slb serverfarm FARM2
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# nat server
 

The following example configures the NAT mode on server farm FARM2 to client translation mode and using the real command configures the real server IP address as 10.3.1.1:

Router(config-slb-sfarm)# nat client web-clients
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.3.1.1

Related Commands
Command Description

ip slb serverfarm

Associates a real server farm with a virtual server.

real

Identifies a real server as a member of a server farm.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

predictor

To specify the load balancing algorithm for selecting a real server in the server farm, use the predictor server farm configuration command. To restore the default load balancing algorithm of weighted round robin, use the no form of this command.

predictor [roundrobin | leastconns]

no predictor

Syntax Description

roundrobin

(Optional) Use the weighted round robin algorithm for selecting the real server to handle the next new connection for the server farm. See the "Weighted Round Robin" section for a detailed description of this algorithm.

leastconns

(Optional) Use the weighted least connections algorithm for selecting the real server to handle the next new connection for this server farm. See the "Weighted Least Connections" section for a detailed description of this algorithm.

Defaults

Weighted round robin

Command Modes

Server farm configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example specifies the weighted least connections algorithm:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# predictor leastconns

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

weight

Specifies the real server's capacity, relative to other real servers in the server farm.

probe

To associate a probe with a server farm, use the probe server farm configuration command. To remove the association, use the no form of this command.

probe name

no probe name

Syntax Description

name

Name of the probe to associate with this serverfarm.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Server farm configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example associates probe TREADER with server farm PUBLIC:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# probe TREADER

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

real

To identify a real server as a member of a server farm, use the real server farm configuration command. To remove the real server from the IOS SLB configuration, use the no form of this command.

real ip-address [port_number]

no real ip-address [port_number]

Syntax Description

ip-address

Real server IP address.

port_number

Port translation for the server. Valid values range from 1 to 65535.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Server farm configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

12.1(2)E

The port-number variable was added.

Usage Guidelines

A server farm comprises a number of real servers. The real servers are the physical devices that provide the load balanced services.

Examples

The following example identifies a real server as a member of the server farm:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.1.1.1
Router(config-slb-real)#

Related Commands
Command Description

inservice (real server)

Enables the real server for use by IOS SLB.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

show ip slb reals

Displays information about the real servers.

reassign

Use the reassign real server configuration command to specify the threshold of consecutive unanswered synchronizations that, if exceeded, result in an attempted connection to a different real server. To restore the default reassignment threshold, use the no form of this command.

reassign threshold

no reassign

Syntax Description

threshold

Number of unanswered TCP SYNs that are directed to a real server before the connection is reassigned to a different real server. An unanswered SYN is one for which no SYN or ACK is detected before the next SYN arrives from the client. IOS SLB allows 30 seconds for the connection to be established or for a new SYN to be received. If neither of these occurs within that time, the connection is removed from the IOS SLB database.

The 30-second timer is restarted for each SYN as long as the number of connection reassignments specified on the faildetect command's numconns keyword is not exceeded. See the faildetect command for more information.

Valid threshold values range from 1 to 4 SYNs. The default value is 3.

Defaults

Threshold default: 3 SYNs

Command Modes

Real server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example sets the threshold of unanswered SYNs to 2:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.10.1.1
Router(config-slb-real)# reassign 2

Related Commands
Command Description

real

Identifies a real server.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

show ip slb reals

Displays information about the real servers.

replicate casa

To configure a stateful backup of IOS SLB decision tables to a backup switch, use the replicate casa virtual server configuration command. To remove a replicate casa configuration, use the no form of this command.

replicate casa listening-ip remote-ip port-number [interval] [password password timeout]

no replicate casa listen-ip remote-ip com-port

Syntax Description

listening-ip

Specifies the listening IP address for state exchange messages that are advertised.

remote-ip

Specifies the destination IP address for all state exchange signals.

port-number

The ports and the valid name or number for the port-number argument are as follows:

  • Domain Name System: dns   53

  • File Transfer Protocol: ftp   21

  • HTTP over Secure Socket Layer: https   443

  • Mapping of Airline Traffic over IP, Type A: matip-a   350

  • Network News Transport Protocol: nntp   119

  • Post Office Protocol v2: pop2   109

  • Post Office Protocol v3: pop3   110

  • Simple Mail Transport Protocol: smtp   25

  • Telnet: telnet   23

  • World Wide Web (HTTP): www   80

interval

(Optional) Maximum replication delivery interval from 1 to 300 seconds.

password

(Optional) Specifies a password for MD5 authentication.

password

(Optional) Password value for MD5 authentication. This password must match the password configured on the host agent.

timeout

(Optional) Delay period, in seconds, during which both the old password and the new password are accepted.

Defaults

The interval default is 10 seconds.

The password timeout default is 180 seconds.

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The timeout option allows you to change the password without stopping messages between the backup and primary Layer 3 switches. The default value is 180 seconds.

During the timeout, the backup sends packets with the old password (or null, if there is no old password), and receives packets with either the old or new password. After the timeout expires, the backup sends and receives packets only with the new password.

When setting a new password timeout, keep the following in mind:

Examples

The following example configures a stateful backup Layer 3 switch with a listening IP address of 10.10.10.11, a remote IP address of 10.10.11.12, over HTTP port 4231:

Router(config)# ip slb vserver VS1
Router(config-slb-vserver)# replicate casa 10.10.10.11 10.10.11.12 4231

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb replicate

Displays the configuration of IOS SLB IP replication.

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

request method, request url

To configure an HTTP probe to check the status of the real servers, use the request method/url configuration command. To remove a request method/url configuration, use the no form of this command.

request [method {get | post | head | name name}] [url path]

no request [method {get | post | head | name name}] [url path]

Syntax Description

method

Configures the way the data is requested from the server.

get

Configures the Get method to request data from the server.

post

Configures the Post method to request data from the server.

head

Configures the header data type to request data from the server.

name

Name keyword to be followed by the name of the data to request data from the server.

name

Configures the name string of the data to send to the servers. The character string is limited to 15 characters.

url

Configures the path from the server.

path

Path from the server.

Defaults

If no values are configured following the method keyword, the default is Get.

If no URL path is set to the server, the default is /.

Command Modes

HTTP SLB probe configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The request method/url command configures the IOS SLB HTTP probe method used to receive data from the server. Only one IOS SLB HTTP probe can be configured for each server farm.

Examples

The following example configures an IOS SLB HTTP probe named TREADER, changes the CLI to SLB probe submode, and configures HTTP requests to use the post method and the URL /probe.cgi?all:

Router(config)# ip slb probe TREADER http
Router(config-slb-probe)# request method post url /probe.cgi?all
 

Related Commands
Command Description

ip slb probe

Configures the IOS SLB IP probe name.

show ip slb probe

Displays an IOS SLB HTTP probe configuration.

retry

To specify how long to wait before a new connection is attempted to a failed server, use the retry real server configuration command. To restore the default retry value, use the no form of this command.

retry retry-value

no retry

Syntax Description

retry-value

Time, in seconds, to wait after the detection of a server failure before a new connection to the server is attempted.

If the new connection attempt succeeds, the real server is placed in operational state. If the connection attempt fails, the timer is reset, the connection is reassigned, and the process repeats until it is successful or until the server is placed outofservice by the network administrator.

Valid values range from 1 to 3600. The default value is 60 seconds.

Defaults

The retry-value default is 60 seconds.

Command Modes

Real server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example specifies that 120 seconds must elapse after the detection of a server failure before a new connection is attempted:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.10.1.1
Router(config-slb-real)# retry 120

Related Commands
Command Description

real

Identifies a real server.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

show ip slb reals

Displays information about the real servers.

serverfarm

To associate a real server farm with a virtual server, use the serverfarm virtual server configuration command. To remove the server farm association from the virtual server configuration, use the no form of this command.

serverfarm serverfarm-name

no serverfarm

Syntax Description

serverfarm-name

Name of a server farm that has already been defined using the ip slb serverfarm command.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example shows how the ip slb vserver, virtual, and serverfarm commands are used to associate the real server farm named PUBLIC with the virtual server named PUBLIC_HTTP.

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# virtual 10.0.0.1 tcp www
Router(config-slb-vserver)# serverfarm PUBLIC

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

virtual

Configures the virtual server attributes.

show ip slb conns

To display the active IOS SLB connections, use the show ip slb conns privileged EXEC command.

show ip slb conns [vserver virtserver-name] [client ip-address] [detail]

Syntax Description

vserver

(Optional) Displays only those connections associated with a particular virtual server.

virtserver-name

(Optional) Name of the virtual server to be monitored.

client

(Optional) Displays only those connections associated with a particular client IP address.

ip-address

(Optional) IP address of the client to be monitored.

detail

(Optional) Displays detailed connection information.

Defaults

If no options are specified, the command displays output for all active IOS SLB connections.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example shows IOS SLB active connection data:

router# show ip slb conns
 
vserver          prot   client                real                  state
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
TEST             TCP    7.150.72.183:328      80.80.90.25:80        CLOSING 
TEST             TCP    7.250.167.226:423     80.80.90.26:80        CLOSING 
TEST             TCP    7.234.60.239:317      80.80.90.26:80        CLOSING 
TEST             TCP    7.110.233.96:747      80.80.90.26:80        CLOSING 
TEST             TCP    7.162.0.201:770       80.80.90.30:80        CLOSING 
TEST             TCP    7.22.225.219:995      80.80.90.26:80        CLOSING 
TEST             TCP    7.2.170.148:169       80.80.90.30:80        CLOSING 

Table 1: show ip slb conns Command Field Information

Field Description

vserver

Name of the virtual server whose connections are being monitored and displayed. Information about each connection is displayed on a separate line.

prot

Protocol being used by the connection.

client

Client IP address being used by the connection.

Field (continued) Description (continued)

real

Real IP address of the connection.

state

Current state of the connection:

  • CLOSING--IOS SLB TCP connection deactivated (awaiting a delay timeout before cleaning up the connection)

  • ESTAB--IOS SLB TCP connection processed a SYN-SYN/ACK exchange between the client and server

  • FINCLIENT--IOS SLB TCP connection processed a FIN from the client

  • FINSERVER--IOS SLB TCP connection processed a FIN from the server

  • INIT--Initial state of the IOS SLB TCP connection

  • SYNBOTH--IOS SLB TCP connection processed one or more TCP SYNs from both the client and the server

  • SYNCLIENT--IOS SLB TCP connection processed one or more client TCP SYNs

  • SYNSERVER--IOS SLB TCP connection processed one or more server 1 TCP SYNs

  • ZOMBIE--Destruction of the IOS SLB TCP connection failed, possibly because of bound flows. Destruction will proceed when the flows are unbound.

show ip slb dfp

To display DFP manager and agent information, such as passwords, timeouts, retry counts, and weights, use the show ip slb dfp privileged EXEC command.

show ip slb dfp [agent ip_address port | detail | weights]

Syntax Description

agent

(Optional) Displays information about an agent.

ip_address

(Optional) Agent IP address.

port

(Optional) Agent port number.

detail

(Optional) Displays all data available.

weights

(Optional) Displays information about weights assigned to real servers for load balancing.

Defaults

If no options are specified, the command displays summary information.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example shows IOS SLB DFP data:

router# show ip slb dfp detail
DFP Manager:
      Current passwd:NONE Pending passwd:NONE
      Passwd timeout:0 sec 
      Uned errors:0
DFP Agent 161.44.2.34:61936 Connection state:Connected
   Timeout = 0      Retry Count = 0      Interval = 180   (Default)
   Security errors = 0
   Last message received:10:20:26 UTC 11/02/99
   Last reported Real weights for Protocol TCP, Port www
      Host 17.17.17.17 1      Weight 1
      Host 68.68.68.68   Bind ID 4      Weight 4
      Host 85.85.85.85   Bind ID 5      Weight 5
   Last reported Real weights for Protocol TCP, Port 22
      Host 17.17.17.17   Bind ID 111    Weight 111

router# show ip slb dfp weights
Real IP Address 17.17.17.17 Protocol TCP Port 22 Bind_ID 111 Weight 111
      Set by Agent 161.44.2.3458490 at 132241 UTC 12/03/99
Real IP Address 17.17.17.17 Protocol TCP Port www Bind_ID 1 Weight 1
      Set by Agent 161.44.2.3458490 at 132241 UTC 12/03/99
Real IP Address 68.68.68.68 Protocol TCP Port www Bind_ID 4 Weight 4
      Set by Agent 161.44.2.3458490 at 132241 UTC 12/03/99
Real IP Address 85.85.85.85 Protocol TCP Port www Bind_ID 5 Weight 5
      Set by Agent 161.44.2.3458490 at 132241 UTC 12/03/99

router# show ip slb dfp
DFP Manager:
      Current passwd:NONE Pending passwd:NONE
      Passwd timeout:0 sec 
 
Agent IP          Port    Timeout   Retry Count   Interval
---------------------------------------------------------------
161.44.2.34       61936   0         0             180 (Default)

Table 2: show ip slb dfp Command Field Information

Field Description

Agent IP

IP address of the agent about which information is being displayed.

Port

Port number of the agent.

Timeout

Time period, in seconds, during which the DFP manager must receive an update from the DFP agent. A value of 0 means there is no timeout.

Retry Count

Number of times the DFP manager attempts to establish the TCP connection to the DFP agent. A value of 0 means there are infinite retries.

Interval

Interval, in seconds, between retries.

State

Current state of the connection.

  • NOT_OPEN--This is the initial state when the Agent block is created.

  • TRYING--When the Agent tries to open the socket, it is moved to this state.

  • CONNING--This state is set after the Agent opens the socket, and is connecting.

  • OPEN--The Agent is talking to the Host. This is the functioning state.

  • FAILED--This state is set when there is an error in the data, or when the maximum number of retries is reached.

  • SEC_ERR--This state is set when there is a security error in the received message. Either there is no security vector when one was required, or the MD5 string in the message did not match the expected result (password not correct).

show ip slb natpool

To display the IP SLB NAT configuration, use the show ip slb natpool command.

show ip slb natpool [name pool-name] [detail]

Syntax Description

name

Keyword to display a specific NAT pool.

pool-name

NAT pool name string to display.

detail

Lists all the interval ranges currently allocated in the client NAT pool.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

EXEC configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example displays the default show ip slb natpool command:

Router# show ip slb natpool
nat client B  1.1.1.6  1.1.1.8  Netmask 255.255.255.0
		nat client A  1.1.1.1  1.1.1.5  Netmask 255.255.255.0
 

The following example displays the show ip slb natpool command with the additional detail parameter:

Router# show ip slb natpool detail
nat client A  1.1.1.1  1.1.1.5  Netmask 255.255.255.0
     Start NAT        Last NAT         Count     ALLOC/FREE 
     -------------------------------------------------------
     1.1.1.1:11001    1.1.1.1:16333    0005333   ALLOC
     1.1.1.1:16334    1.1.1.1:19000    0002667   ALLOC
     1.1.1.1:19001    1.1.1.5:65535    0264675   FREE
 
nat client B  1.1.1.6  1.1.1.8  Netmask 255.255.255.0
     Start NAT        Last NAT         Count     ALLOC/FREE 
     -------------------------------------------------------
     1.1.1.6:11001    1.1.1.6:16333    0005333   ALLOC
     1.1.1.6:16334    1.1.1.6:19000    0002667   ALLOC
     1.1.1.6:19001    1.1.1.8:65535    0155605   FREE

Related Commands
Command Description

ip slb natpool

Configures the IOS SLB NAT.

show ip slb probe

To display an IOS SLB HTTP probe, use the show ip slb probe configuration command.

show ip slb probe [name probe_name] [detail]

Syntax Description

name

(Optional) Displays information about the specific probe named.

probe_name

(Optional) Probe name to display.

detail

(Optional) Displays detailed information.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example shows IOS SLB HTTP probe data:

Router# show ip slb probe
 
Server:Port            Status Outages  Current  Cumulative
----------------------------------------------------------
10.11.2.2:80              200       0  never    00:00:00
 


Table 3: show ip slb probe Command Field Information
Field Description

Server:Port

IP address and port of the real server.

Status

Operational status of the probe:

  • A status of 0 indicates a TCP connect timeout; the probe has failed.

  • A status other than 0 indicates an HTTP status code. IOS SLB compares this code to the expected HTTP status code (configured with the expect HTTP probe configuration command) to determine the probe's success or failure. The default expected status is 200.

Outage

Number of intervals between successful probes.

Current

Time since the last probe success. That is, the duration (so far) of the current outage.

Cumulative

Total time the real server has been under test by the probe and has failed the probe test. This value is the sum of the Current time plus the total time of all previous outages.

show ip slb reals

To display information about the real servers, use the show ip slb reals privileged EXEC command.

show ip slb reals [vserver virtserver-name] [detail]

Syntax Description

vserver

(Optional) Displays information about only those real servers associated with a particular virtual server.

virtserver-name

(Optional) Name of the virtual server.

detail

(Optional) Displays detailed information.

Defaults

If no options are specified, the command displays information about all real servers.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example shows IOS SLB real server data:

router# show ip slb reals
 
real             server farm      weight   state           conns
--------------------------------------------------------------------
80.80.2.112      FRAG             8        OUTOFSERVICE    0        
80.80.5.232      FRAG             8        OPERATIONAL     0        
80.80.15.124     FRAG             8        OUTOFSERVICE    0        
80.254.2.2       FRAG             8        OUTOFSERVICE    0        
80.80.15.124     LINUX            8        OPERATIONAL     0        
80.80.15.125     LINUX            8        OPERATIONAL     0        
80.80.15.126     LINUX            8        OPERATIONAL     0        
80.80.90.25      SRE              8        OPERATIONAL     220      
80.80.90.26      SRE              8        OPERATIONAL     216      
80.80.90.27      SRE              8        OPERATIONAL     216      
80.80.90.28      SRE              8        TESTING         1        
80.80.90.29      SRE              8        OPERATIONAL     221      
80.80.90.30      SRE              8        OPERATIONAL     224      
80.80.30.3       TEST             100      READY_TO_TEST   0        
80.80.30.4       TEST             100      READY_TO_TEST   0        
80.80.30.5       TEST             100      READY_TO_TEST   0        
80.80.30.6       TEST             100      READY_TO_TEST   0        

Table 4: show ip slb reals Command Field Information

Field Description

real

IP address of the real server about which information is being displayed. Used to identify each real server. Information about each real server is displayed on a separate line.

server farm

Name of the server farm to which the real server.

weight

Weight assigned to the real server. The weight identifies the real server's capacity, relative to other real servers in the server farm.

state

Current state of the real server.

  • DFP_THROTTLED--DFP agent sent a weight of 0 for this real server (send no further connections to this real server)

  • FAILED--Removed from use by the predictor algorithms; retry timer started

  • MAXCONNS--Maximum number of simultaneous active connections reached

  • OPERATIONAL--Functioning properly

  • OUTOFSERVICE--Removed from the load balancing predictor lists

  • PROBE_FAILED--Probe failed

  • PROBE_TESTING--Probe failed as a result of a TCP connect timeout

  • READY_TO_TEST--Queued for testing

  • TESTING--Queued for assignment

show ip slb replicate

To display the SLB replication configuration, use the show ip slb replicate privileged EXEC command.

show ip slb replicate

Syntax Description

This command has no arguments or keywords.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(2)E

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example displays the SLB replication configuration:

Router# show ip slb replicate
VS1, local = 10.10.99.132 remote = 10.10.99.99 port = 1024
  current password = none pending password = none
  password timeout = 180 sec (Default)
  unsent conn updates: 0
  conn updates received: 32
  conn updates transmitted: 471
  update packets received: 12
  update packets transmitted: 34
  failovers: 0
Router#

Related Commands
Command Description

request method, request url

Configures SLB replication.

show ip slb serverfarms

To display information about the server farms, use the show ip slb serverfarms privileged EXEC command.

show ip slb serverfarms [name serverfarm-name] [detail]

Syntax Description

name

(Optional) Displays information about only a particular server farm.

serverfarm-name

(Optional) Name of the server farm.

detail

(Optional) Displays detailed server farm information.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example shows IOS SLB server farm data:

router# show ip slb serverfarms
 
server farm      predictor     reals   bind id
-------------------------------------------------
FRAG             ROUNDROBIN    4       0       
LINUX            ROUNDROBIN    3       0       
SRE              ROUNDROBIN    6       0       
TEST             ROUNDROBIN    4       0       
 

Table 5: show ip slb serverfarms Command Field Information

Field Description

server farm

Name of the server farm about which information is being displayed. Information about each server farm is displayed on a separate line.

predictor

Type of load balancing algorithm (ROUNDROBIN or LEASTCONNS) used by the server farm.

reals

Number of real servers configured in the server farm.

bind id

Bind ID configured on the server farm.

show ip slb stats

To display IOS SLB statistics, use the show ip slb stats privileged EXEC command.

show ip slb stats

Syntax Description

This command has no arguments or keywords.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example shows IOS SLB statistics:

router# show ip slb stats
Pkts via normal switching: 530616
Pkts via special switching:1812710
Connections Created:       783774
Connections Established:   633418
Connections Destroyed:     782752
Connections Reassigned:    0
Zombie Count:              0

Table 6: show ip slb stats Command Field Information

Field Description

Pkts via normal switching

Number of packets handled by IOS SLB via normal switching since the last time counters were cleared.

Pkts via special switching

Number of packets handled by IOS SLB via special switching since the last time counters were cleared.

Connections Created

Number of connections created since the last time counters were cleared.

Connections Established

Number of connections created and have become established since the last time counters were cleared.

Connections Destroyed

Number of connections destroyed since the last time counters were cleared.

Connections Reassigned

Number of connections reassigned to a different real server since the last time counters were cleared.

Zombie Count

Number of connections that are currently pending destruction, awaiting a timeout or some other condition to be met.

show ip slb sticky

To display the IOS SLB sticky database, use the show ip slb sticky privileged EXEC command.

show ip slb sticky [client ip_address]

Syntax Description

client

(Optional) Displays only those sticky database entries associated with a particular client IP address.

ip-address

(Optional) IP address of the client.

Defaults

If no options are specified, the command displays information about all virtual servers.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example shows the IOS SLB sticky database:

Router# show ip slb sticky
 
client           netmask          group  real                  conns
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
10.10.2.12       255.255.0.0      4097   10.10.3.2             1 
 
Router#
 


Table 7: show ip slb sticky Command Field Information
Field Description

client

Client IP address which is bound to this sticky assignment.

netmask

Subnet mask for this sticky assignment.

group

Group ID for this sticky assignment.

real

Real server used by all clients connecting with the client IP address detailed on this line.

conns

Number of connections currently sharing this sticky assignment.

show ip slb vservers

To display information about the virtual servers, use the show ip slb vservers privileged EXEC command.

show ip slb vservers [name virtserver-name] [detail]

Syntax Description

name

(Optional) Displays information about only this virtual server.

virtserver-name

(Optional) Name of the virtual server.

detail

(Optional) Displays detailed information.

Defaults

If no options are specified, the command displays information about all virtual servers.

Command Modes

Privileged EXEC

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example shows virtual server data:

router# show ip slb vservers
 
slb vserver      prot   virtual               state          conns   
---------------------------------------------------------------------
TEST             TCP    80.80.254.3:80        OPERATIONAL    1013    
TEST21           TCP    80.80.254.3:21        OUTOFSERVICE   0       
TEST23           TCP    80.80.254.3:23        OUTOFSERVICE   0       

Table 8: show ip slb vserver Command Field Information

Field Description

slb vserver

Name of the virtual server about which information is being displayed. Information about each virtual server is displayed on a separate line.

prot

Protocol being used by the virtual server detailed on a given line.

virtual

Virtual IP address of the virtual server detailed on a given line.

state

Current state of the virtual server detailed on a given line.

conns

Number of connections associated with the virtual server detailed on a given line.

standby authentication

To configure an authentication string for the Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP), use the standby authentication interface configuration command. To delete an authentication string, use the no form of this command.

standby [group-number] authentication string

no standby [group-number] authentication string

Syntax Description

group-number

(Optional) Group number on the interface to which this authentication string applies.

string

Authentication string. It can be up to eight characters in length.

Defaults

The group number default is 0.

The string default is cisco.

Command Modes

Interface configuration

Command History
Release Modification

10.0

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The authentication string is transmitted unencrypted in all HSRP messages. The same authentication string must be configured on all routers and access servers on a cable to ensure interoperation. Authentication mismatch prevents a device from learning the designated Hot Standby IP address and the Hot Standby timer values from other routers configured with HSRP. Authentication mismatch does not prevent protocol events such as one router taking over as the designated router.

When group number 0 is used, no group number is written to NVRAM, providing backward compatibility.

Examples

In the following example, "word" is configured as the authentication string required to allow Hot Standby routers in group 1 to interoperate:

Router(config)# interface fastethernet 1
Router(config-if)# standby 1 authentication word
 

standby name

To specify an HSRP group name with which to associate an IOS SLB interface, use the standby name interface configuration command. To remove the group name association on the interface, use the no form of this command.

standby [group-number] name group-name

no standby [group-number] name group-name

Syntax Description

group-number

(Optional) Group number of the interface to which the timers apply. The default is 0.

group-name

Specifies the HSRP group name with which the IOS SLB virtual server is associated.

Defaults

The default group number is 0.

Command Modes

Interface configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.1(1)E

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The HSRP group name must first be specified on the inservice (virtual server) command.

Examples

In the following example, HSRP is enabled for group number 1, group name Web-Group, on Ethernet port 0 on the EIP that is installed in slot 5:

Router(config)# interface Ethernet5/0
Router(config-if)#   ip address 172.18.48.154 255.255.255.128
Router(config-if)#   standby 1 ip 172.18.48.124
Router(config-if)#   standby 1 priority 2 preempt
Router(config-if)#   standby 1 name Web-Group

Related Commands
Command Description

inservice

Enables the virtual server for use by IOS SLB.

standby priority, standby preempt

To configure Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP) priority, preemption, and preemption delay, use the standby interface configuration command. To restore the default values, use the no form of this command.

standby [group-number] priority priority [preempt [delay delay]]

standby [group-number] [priority priority] preempt [delay delay]

no standby [group-number] priority priority [preempt [delay delay]]

no standby [group-number] [priority priority] preempt [delay delay]

Syntax Description

group-number

(Optional) Group number on the interface to which the other arguments in this command apply.

priority priority

(Optional) Priority value that prioritizes a potential Hot Standby router. The range is 1 to 255.

preempt

(Optional) The router is configured to preempt, which means that when the local router has a Hot Standby priority higher than the current active router, the local router should attempt to assume control as the active router. If preempt is not configured, the local router assumes control as the active router only if it receives information indicating that there is no router currently in the active state (acting as the designated router).

delay delay

(Optional) Time in seconds. The delay argument causes the local router to postpone taking over the active role for delay seconds since that router was last restarted. The range is 0 to 3600 seconds (1 hour).

Defaults

The group number default is 0.

The priority default is 100.

The delay default is 0 seconds (if the router wants to preempt, it will do so immediately).

Command Modes

Interface configuration

Command History
Release Modification

11.3

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

When using this command, you must specify at least one keyword (priority or preempt), or you can specify both.

When group number 0 is used, no group number is written to NVRAM, providing backward compatibility.

The assigned priority is used to help select the active and standby routers. Assuming preemption is enabled, the router with the highest priority becomes the designated active router. In case of ties, the primary IP addresses are compared, and the higher IP address has priority.

Note that the device's priority can change dynamically if an interface is configured with the standby track command and another interface on the router goes down.

When a router first comes up, it does not have a complete routing table. If it is configured to preempt, it will become the active router, yet it is unable to provide adequate routing services. This problem is solved by configuring a delay before the preempting router actually preempts the currently active router.

Examples

In the following example, the router has a priority of 120 (higher than the default value) and waits for 300 seconds (5 minutes) before attempting to become the active router:

Router(config)# interface fastethernet 1
Router(config-if)# standby ip 172.19.108.254
Router(config-if)# standby priority 120 preempt delay 300

Related Commands
Command Description

standby track

Configures the standby track on an interface so that the Hot Standby priority changes based on the availability of other interfaces.

standby timers

To configure the time between hellos and the time before other routers declare the active Hot Standby or standby router to be down, use the standby timers interface configuration command. To restore the timers to their default values, use the no form of this command.

standby [group-number] timers hellotime holdtime

no standby [group-number] timers hellotime holdtime

Syntax Description

group-number

(Optional) Group number on the interface to which the timers apply.

hellotime

Hello interval in seconds. This is an integer from 1 to 255.

holdtime

Time in seconds before the active or standby router is declared to be down. This is an integer from 1 to 255.

Defaults

The default group number is 0.

The default hellotime is 3 seconds.

The default holdtime is 3 seconds.

Command Modes

Interface configuration

Command History
Release Modification

10.0

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The standby timers command configures the time between standby hellos and the time before other routers declare the active or standby router to be down. Routers or access servers on which timer values are not configured can learn timer values from the active or standby router. The timers configured on the active router always override any other timer settings. All routers in a Hot Standby group should use the same timer values. Normally, holdtime is greater than or equal to 3 times hellotime (holdtime > 3 * hellotime).

When group number 0 is used, no group number is written to NVRAM, providing backward compatibility.

Examples

In the following example, for group number 1 on Fast Ethernet interface 1, the time between hello packets is set to 5 seconds, and the time after which a router is considered to be down is set to 15 seconds:

Router(config)# interface fastethernet 1
Router(config-if)# standby 1 ip
Router(config-if)# standby 1 timers 5 15
 

standby track

To configure an interface so that the Hot Standby priority changes based on the availability of other interfaces, use the standby track interface configuration command. To remove the tracking, use the no form of this command.

standby [group-number] track type number [interface-priority]

no standby [group-number] track type number [interface-priority]

Syntax Description

group-number

(Optional) Group number on the interface to which the tracking applies.

type

Interface type (combined with interface number) that will be tracked.

number

Interface number (combined with interface type) that will be tracked.

interface-priority

(Optional) Amount by which the Hot Standby priority for the router is decremented (or incremented) when the interface goes down (or comes back up).

Defaults

The default group number is 0.

The default interface priority is 10.

Command Modes

Interface configuration

Command History
Release Modification

10.3

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

This command ties the router's Hot Standby priority to the availability of its interfaces. It is useful for tracking interfaces that are not configured for the HSRP.

When a tracked interface goes down, the Hot Standby priority decreases by 10. If an interface is not tracked, its state changes do not affect the Hot Standby priority. For each interface configured for Hot Standby, you can configure a separate list of interfaces to be tracked.

The optional argument interface-priority specifies how much to decrement the Hot Standby priority by when a tracked interface goes down. When the tracked interface comes back up, the priority is incremented by the same amount.

When multiple tracked interfaces are down and interface-priority values have been configured, these configured priority decrements are cumulative. If tracked interfaces are down, but none was configured with priority decrements, the default decrement is 10 and it is noncumulative.

When group number 0 is used, no group number is written to NVRAM, providing backward compatibility.

Examples

In the following example, Fast Ethernet interface 1 tracks Fast Ethernet interface 10 and Gigabit Ethernet interface 49. If one or both of these two interfaces go down, the Hot Standby priority of the router decreases by 10. Because the default Hot Standby priority is 100, the priority becomes 90 when one or both of the tracked interfaces go down.

Router(config)# interface fastethernet 1
Router(config-if)# ip address 198.92.72.37 255.255.255.240
Router(config-if)# no ip redirects
Router(config-if)# standby track fastethernet 10
Router(config-if)# standby track gigabitethernet 49
Router(config-if)# standby preempt
Router(config-if)# standby ip 198.92.72.46

Related Commands
Command Description

standby priority, standby preempt

Configures the Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP) priority, preemption, and preemption delay.

sticky

To assign all connections from a client to the same real server, use the sticky virtual server configuration command. To remove the client/server coupling use the no form of this command.

sticky duration [group group-id] [netmask netmask]

no sticky

Syntax Description

duration

Sticky timer duration in seconds. Valid values range from 0 to 65535.

group

(Optional) Places the virtual server in a sticky group, for coupling of services.

group-id

(Optional) Number identifying the sticky group to which the virtual server belongs. Valid values range from 0 to 255.

netmask

(Optional) Places the virtual server as part of a sticky subnetwork, for coupling of services.

netmask

(Optional) Sticky subnet mask number.

Defaults

Sticky connections are not tracked.

Virtual servers are not associated with any groups.

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

12.1(2)E

The netmask keyword and netmask variable were added.

Usage Guidelines

The last real server that was used for a connection from a client is stored for the set duration seconds. If a new connection from the client to the virtual server is initiated during that time, the same real server that was used for the previous connection is chosen for the new connection. If two virtual servers are placed in the same group, coincident connection requests for those services from the same IP address are handled by the same real server.

Examples

The following example specifies that if a client's subsequent request for a virtual server is made within 60 seconds of the previous request, then the same real server is used for the connection. This example also places the virtual server in group 10.

Router(config)# ip slb vserver VS1
Router(config-slb-vserver)# sticky 60 group 10

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb sticky

Displays information about the virtual server sticky configuration.

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

virtual

Configures the virtual server attributes.

synguard

To limit the rate of TCP SYNs handled by a virtual server to prevent a SYN flood denial-of-service attack, use the synguard virtual server configuration command. To remove the threshold, use the no form of this command.

synguard syn-count [interval]

no synguard

Syntax Description

syn-count

Number of unanswered SYNs that are allowed to be outstanding to a virtual server. Valid values range from 0 (off) to 4294967295. The default is 0.

interval

(Optional) Interval, in milliseconds, for SYN threshold monitoring. Valid values range from 50 to 5000. The default is 100 ms.

Defaults

Syn-count default: 0 (off)

Interval default: 100 ms

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example sets the threshold of unanswered SYNs to 50:

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# synguard 50

Related Commands
Command Description

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

virtual

Configures the virtual server attributes.

virtual

To configure virtual server attributes, use the virtual virtual server configuration command. To remove the attributes, use the no form of this command.

virtual ip-address {tcp | udp} [port-number] [service service-name]

no virtual

Syntax Description

ip-address

IP address for this virtual server instance, used by clients to connect to the server farm.

tcp

Perform load balancing for only TCP connections.

udp

Perform load balancing for only UDP connections.

port-number

IOS SLB virtual port (the TCP or UDP port number or port name). If specified, only the connections for the specified port on the server are load balanced. The ports and the valid name or number for the port-number argument are as follows:

  • Domain Name System: dns   53

  • File Transfer Protocol: ftp   21

  • HTTP over Secure Socket Layer: https   443

  • Mapping of Airline Traffic over IP, Type A: matip-a   350

  • Network News Transport Protocol: nntp   119

  • Post Office Protocol v2: pop2   109

  • Post Office Protocol v3: pop3   110

  • Simple Mail Transport Protocol: smtp   25

  • Telnet: telnet   23

  • World Wide Web (HTTP): www   80

Specify a port number of 0 to configure an all-port virtual server (that is, a virtual server that accepts traffic destined for all ports).

service

(Optional) Couple connections associated with a given service, such as HTTP or Telnet, so all related connections from the same client use the same real server.

service-name

(Optional) Type of connection coupling. Currently, the only choice is:

  • ftp--Couple FTP data connections with the control session that created them.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

Virtual server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Usage Guidelines

The no virtual command is allowed only if the virtual server was removed from service by the no inservice command.

For some applications, it is not feasible to configure all the virtual server port numbers for IOS SLB. To support such applications, you can configure IOS SLB virtual servers to accept traffic destined for all ports. To configure an all-port virtual server, specify a port number of 0.


Note   In general, you should use port-bound virtual servers instead of all-port virtual servers. When you use all-port virtual servers, traffic can be passed to servers for which no application port exists. When servers reject this traffic, IOS SLB may fail the server and remove it from load balancing.

Examples

The following example specifies that the virtual server with the IP address 10.0.0.1 performs load balancing for TCP connections for the port named www. The virtual server processes HTTP requests.

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# virtual 10.0.0.1 tcp www
 

The following example specifies that the virtual server with the IP address 10.0.0.13 performs load balancing for UDP connections for all ports. The virtual server processes HTTP requests.

Router(config)# ip slb vserver PUBLIC_HTTP
Router(config-slb-vserver)# virtual 10.0.0.13 udp 0
 

Related Commands
Command Description

ip slb vserver

Identifies a virtual server.

show ip slb vservers

Displays information about the virtual servers.

weight

To specify a real server's capacity, relative to other real servers in the server farm, use the weight real server configuration command. To restore the default weight value, use the no form of this command.

weight weighting-value

no weight

Syntax Description

weighting-value

Weighting value to use for real server predictor algorithm. Valid values range from 1 to 155. The default weighting value is 8.

Defaults

Weighting-value default: 8

Command Modes

Real server configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

Examples

The following example specifies the relative weighting values of three real servers as 16, 8 (by default), and 24, respectively:

Router(config)# ip slb serverfarm PUBLIC
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.10.1.1		First real server
Router(config-slb-real)# weight 16		Assigned weight of 16
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice		Enabled
Router(config-slb-real)# exit
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.10.1.2		Second real server
Router(config-slb-real)# inservice		Enabled; default weight
Router(config-slb-real)# exit
Router(config-slb-sfarm)# real 10.10.1.3		Third real server
Router(config-slb-real)# weight 24		Assigned weight of 24; 	 not enabled

Related Commands
Command Description

real

Identifies a real server.

show ip slb serverfarms

Displays information about the server farm configuration.

show ip slb reals

Displays information about the real servers.

Debug Commands

This section documents the following new debug command related to the IOS SLB feature:

debug ip slb

To display debug messages for IOS SLB, use the debug ip slb EXEC command. To stop debug output, use the no form of this command.

debug ip slb {conns | dfp | icmp | natpool | probe | reals | replication | all}

no debug ip slb {conns | dfp | icmp | natpool | probe | reals | replication | all}

Syntax Description

all

Displays all debug messages for IOS SLB.

conns

Displays debug messages for all connections being handled by IOS SLB.

dfp

Displays debug messages for the IOS SLB DFP and DFP agents.

icmp

Displays all Internet Control Message Protocol debug messages for IOS SLB.

natpool

Displays debug messages related to the IOS SLB client NAT pool.

probe

Displays debug messages related to HTTP probe.

reals

Displays debug messages for all real servers defined to IOS SLB.

replication

Displays debug messages related to IOS SLB stateful backup virtual server.

Defaults

No default behavior or values.

Command Modes

EXEC configuration

Command History
Release Modification

12.0(7)XE

This command was introduced.

12.1(2)E

The natpool and replication keywords were added.

Usage Guidelines

See the following caution before using debug commands:


Caution Because debugging output is assigned high priority in the CPU process, it can render the system unusable. For this reason, only use debug commands to troubleshoot specific problems or during troubleshooting sessions with Cisco technical support staff. Moreover, it is best to use debug commands during periods of lower network traffic and fewer users. Debugging during these periods reduces the effect these commands have on other users on the system.

Examples

The following example configures a debug session to check all IP SLB parameters:

Router# debug ip slb all
SLB All debugging is on
Router# 

The following example stops all debugging:

Router# no debug all
All possible debugging has been turned off
Router#

The following example configures debugging to check IP IOS SLB replication used with stateful backup and displays the output from the send or transmit virtual server:

Router# debug ip slb replication
*Mar  2 08:02:38.019:  SLB Replicate: (send) update vs: VS1 update_count 42

FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

The following questions and answers can help you troubleshoot IOS SLB, if you have problems.
Question Answer

Why am I able to connect to real servers directly, but unable to connect to the virtual server?

Make sure that the virtual IP address is configured as a loopback in each of the real servers (if you are running in dispatched mode).

Why is IOS SLB not marking my real server as failed when I disconnect it from the network?

Tune the values for the numclients, numconns, and delay keywords.

If you have a very small client population (for example, in a test environment), the numclients keyword could be causing the problem. This parameter prevents IOS SLB from mistaking the failure of a small number of clients for the failure of a real server.

Why is IOS SLB not marking my connections as established even though I'm transferring data?

If you are using dispatched mode, make sure there are no alternate paths that allow outbound flows to bypass IOS SLB. Also, make sure the clients and real servers are not on the same IP subnet.

Why does IOS SLB show my real server as inservice even though I have taken it down or physically disconnected it?

The inservice and outofservice states indicate whether the network administrator intends for that real server to be used when it is operational. A real server that was inservice but was removed from the selection list dynamically by IOS SLB as a result of automatic failure detection, is marked as failed. Use the show ip slb reals detail command to display these real server states.

In release 12.1(1)E, inservice is changed to operational, to better reflect what is actually occurring.

Why is IOS SLB not balancing correctly? I am using dispatched mode, the servers are leaving sockets open, and I am seeing RSTs in response to a number of SYNs. Curiously, sometimes things work fine.

Enter the show mls flow command:

Router# sh mls flow
current ip flowmask for unicast: full flow
current ipx flowmask for unicast: destination only
 

The current IP flowmask must be full flow. If it is not, correct the problem using the mls flow ip full command:

Router# config t
Enter configuration commands, one per line.
End with CNTL/Z.
Router(config)# mls flow ip full
Router(config)# 

How can I verify that IOS SLB sticky connections are working properly?

Use the following procedure:

    1. Configure the sticky connections.

    2. Start a client connection.

    3. Enter the show ip slb reals detail and show ip slb conns commands.

    4. Examine the real server connection counts. The real server whose count increased is the one to which the client connection is assigned.

    5. Enter the show ip slb sticky command to display the sticky relationships that IOS SLB stored.

    6. End the connection.

    7. Ensure that the real server's connection count decreased.

    8. Restart the connection, after waiting no longer than the sticky timeout value.

    9. Enter the show ip slb conns command again.

    10. Examine the real server connection counts again, and verify that the sticky connection is assigned to the same real server as before.

How can I verify that server failures are being detected correctly?

Use the following procedure:

    1. Use a large client population. If the number of clients is very small, tune the numclients keyword on the faildetect command so that the servers are not displayed as failed.

    2. Enter the show ip slb reals detail command to show the status of the real servers.

    3. Examine the status and connection counts of the real servers.

    • Servers that failed show a status of failed, testing, or ready_to_test, based on whether IOS SLB is checking that the server came back up when the command was sent.

    • When a real server fails, connections that are assigned but not established (no SYN or ACK is received) are reassigned to another real server on the first inbound SYN after the reassign threshold is met. However, any connections that were already established are forwarded to the same real server because, while it may not be accepting new connections, it may be servicing existing ones.

    • For weighted least connections, a real server that has just been placed in service starts slowly so that it is not overloaded with new connections. (See the "Slow Start" section for more information.) Therefore, the connection counts displayed for a new real server show connections going to other real servers (despite the new real server's lower count). The connection counts also show "dummy connections" to the new real server, which IOS SLB uses to artificially inflate the connection counts for the real server during the slow start period.

Glossary

CASA--Content Aware Services Architecture. CASA is a protocol designed to allow network appliances to selectively control the flow of IP packets through a router, switch, or other network device.

cluster--Set of computer systems that are connected through multisystem hardware or software to supply services traditionally provided by a single system. This arrangement provides higher availability and better scalability of the system.

content-aware networking--Networking strategy that enables content to be dynamically distributed. Because content can be dynamically cached, it can be located at any given place at any given time and distributed between the servers and the location of the Web cache. Cisco has developed the ContentFlow architecture and the DFP to enable networks to provide content-aware networking services.

ContentFlow architecture--Cisco's content-aware networking architecture that describes message flows and actions in a distributed environment.

DFP--Dynamic Feedback Protocol. Allows host agents to dynamically report the change in status of the host systems providing a virtual service. The status reported is a relative weight that specifies a host server's capacity to perform work.

Dynamic Feedback Protocol--See DFP.

IOS SLB--IOS Server Load Balancing. Load balancing scheme in which the network administrator defines a virtual server that represents a group of real servers in a cluster of network servers known as a server farm. When a client initiates a connection to the virtual server, IOS SLB chooses a real server for the connection based on a configured load balancing algorithm.

load balancing--Spreading user requests among available servers within a cluster of servers, based on a variety of algorithms.

MD5--Message Digest Algorithm Version 5. Neighbor router authentication scheme used to ensure reliability and security when routing updates are exchanged between neighbor routers.

Message Digest Algorithm Version 5--See MD5.

NAT--Network Address Translation. Modification of one or more of the following fields in an IP packet: source IP address, destination IP address, source TCP/UDP port, destination TCP/UDP port.

NetFlow switching--High-performance network-layer switching path that captures as part of its switching function a rich set of traffic statistics including user, protocol, port, and type of service information.

Network Address Translation--See NAT.

real server--The specification of a physical server associated with a virtual server. The specification includes the real server's IP address and an optional weight to be used by the virtual server predictor.

round robin--See weighted round robin.

Secure Socket Layer--See SSL.

server cluster--See server farm.

server farm--Also called a server cluster. Group of real servers that provide various applications and services.

Server Load Balancing--See IOS SLB.

services manager--Functionality built into IOS SLB that makes load-balancing decisions based on application availability, server capacity, and load distribution algorithms such as weighted round robin or weighted least connections, or the DFP. The services manager determines a real server for the packet flow using load balancing and server/application feedback.

SLB--See IOS SLB.

SSL--Secure Socket Layer. Encryption technology for the Web used to provide secure transactions such as the transmission of credit card numbers for e-commerce.

virtual server--Presents a single address that represents an application server farm to clients.

weighted least connection--Load balancing algorithm in which the next real server chosen for a new connection to the virtual server is the server with the fewest active connections. Each real server is assigned a weight, n, that represents its capacity to handle connections, as compared to the other real servers associated with the virtual server. The server with the fewest connections is based on the number of active connections on each server, and on the relative capacity of each server. The capacity of a given real server is calculated as the assigned weight of that server divided by the sum of the assigned weights of all of the real servers associated with that virtual server, or n1/(n1+n2+n3...).

weighted round robin--Load balancing algorithm in which the real server used for a new connection to the virtual server is chosen in a circular fashion. Each real server is assigned a weight, n, that represents its capacity to handle connections, as compared to the other real servers associated with the virtual server. New connections are assigned to a given real server n times before the next real server in the list is chosen.

workload agents--Value-added software components developed for specific platforms by third-party developers. Workload agents run on server platforms or on platforms that manage server farms. Workload agents deliver server and application information to the services manager. This information enables the services manager to make optimum server selection.


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Posted: Thu Aug 10 14:15:18 PDT 2000
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