It\u2019s unlikely there\u2019s anyone in IT today that doesn\u2019t understand the role of load balancing to scale. Whether cloud or not, load balancing is the key mechanism through which load is distributed to ensure horizontal scale of applications. It\u2019s also unlikely there\u2019s anyone in IT that doesn\u2019t understand the relationship between load balancing and high-availability (reliability). High-Availability (HA) architectures are almost always implemented using load balancing services to ensure seamless transition from one service instance to another in the event of a failure.
\nWhat\u2019s often overlooked is that scalability and HA isn\u2019t important just for applications. Services \u2013 whether application or network-focused \u2013 must also be reliable. It\u2019s the old \u201conly as strong as the weakest link in the chain\u201d argument. An application is only as reliable as its least reliable component \u2013 and that includes services and infrastructure upon which that application relies. It is \u2013 or should be \u2013 ops first rule; the rule that guides design of data center architectures.<\/p>\n