Hello,

Please CC me directly if you respond to this.
I would like to know if anyone is currently using a load balancer with the
GNAT-Box Pro 3.2.x or higher product.  I am currently researching the
following 4 alternatives:

1) http://www.linuxvirtualserver.org/   -- this is a GNU load balancing
tool built on Linux!

2) Manufacturer 3COM
Manufacturer Part# 3C16120
Description SS3 SVR LOAD BALANCER 16K CONN
Retail Cost $8,995.00

3) Manufacturer NORTEL NETWORKS
Manufacturer Part# EB1404010
Description ALTEON 180E W/ AC P/S 8PT 10/100/1000
Retail Cost $26,395.00

4) Manufacturer NORTEL NETWORKS
Manufacturer Part# EB1404009
Description ALTEON ACEDIRECTOR3 W/ AC P/S 8PT 10/100
Retail Cost $15,595.00

I would like to know if anyone has any experience with these products in
particular, or another load balancing program/device.  We have standardized
on the GNAT-Box and don't want to move away from it, but I've heard
firewall+load balancer configurations can be very trick.  This article
explains more of why I'm concerned:
http://www.networkcomputing.com/1102/1102ws12.html

>  When a firewall is added to the mix, TCP state must be maintained at the
>  incoming and outgoing firewalls. Consider an HTTP transaction: First,
>  let's assume the asymmetric network path also contains a firewall but is
>  separate from another firewall for performance considerations. The
client
>  opens a session with a SYN packet that passes through the firewall and
>  load-balancer to the real server. The real server then sends a SYN ACK
>  packet back through the asymmetric route and the other firewall but not
>  through the original firewall. The client receives the SYN ACK and sends
>  an ACK to complete the three-way TCP handshake. At this point the
original
>  firewall has no idea that it was expecting an ACK in response to the SYN
>  ACK it never received and may react in any number of ways, including
>  dropping the session, triggering an alarm or initiating some response
>  procedure.

Would any other GNAT-Box customers feel better if GTA certified or
officially supported certain firewall + load balancer configurations?

Thank you!

Justin Kuntz
http://www.Prominic.NET
Phone: 217-356-2888 x 101 | Fax: 356-3356 | Pager: 888-241-0647
Internet: [EMAIL PROTECTED] | NotesNet: Justin Kuntz@Prominic@Notes Net
"In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity." -- Albert Einstein


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