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I am doing research on SDN (Software Defined Networks), I do not understand the concepts of this question

the load balancer shall have the ability to serve traffic over a static IP address

I understand the meaning of Load balancing refers to efficiently distributing incoming network traffic across a group of backend servers, also known as a server farm or server pool and the Static IP which IP address, it does not change.

But I can't interpret or understand the above question and its concepts in SDN network.

Could anyone would be able to explain to me?

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  • I removed the part about asking for an outside resource, which is explicitly off-topic here.
    – Ron Maupin ♦
    Commented Aug 8, 2016 at 3:32

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There are applications and appliances which can perform load balancing as you described, but it may be for resources other than servers. The load balancer will have a fixed, known IP address, and that is the address which hosts will use to access a resource on the other side of the load balancer. The requesting host will really have no idea which resource behind the load balancer is actually used. The load balancer will maintain session and state for the the duration of each connection.

This is true, whether or not SDN is used, because the destination of host traffic to and from the resource is a single device with a single IP address. From the perspective of the network, all the hosts are connecting to a single device.

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  • So does it mean the main load balancer name is A and anyone who requests will only know A. Inside the load balancer A-A1-A2-A3-A4, other A's never appear to request? (A's=IP) thx
    – Cin Sb Sangpi
    Commented Aug 8, 2016 at 4:18
  • If by the name you mean the DNS name, that is a protocol above OSI layer-4, which is off-topic here. Networks use addresses, not names. Applications may use names, but applications are off-topic here.
    – Ron Maupin ♦
    Commented Aug 8, 2016 at 4:20
  • Sorry, I didn't mean DNS name. Just want to clarify my understanding. "A" was just used to the abbreviation for IP address. Basically, Load balancer have many IPs but only let requester know one IP address, right.thx
    – Cin Sb Sangpi
    Commented Aug 8, 2016 at 4:27
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    The load balancer has an IP address which the outside world knows. It may have a completely different network on the other side for the resources for which it load balances. As far as the world knows, it is the single device to which hosts connect. It merely spreads the load around to the resources for which it fronts.
    – Ron Maupin ♦
    Commented Aug 8, 2016 at 4:30

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