Sysplex-aware external load balancing solutions are typically comprised of an external load balancing solution that communicates with components within the z/OS® sysplex, to optimize load balancing based on the current conditions and workloads in the sysplex environment. Examples of these solutions include:
External load balancers can obtain detailed information regarding the state of target z/OS applications and systems by communicating with the z/OS Load Balancing Advisor using the SASP protocol. Using SASP, external load balancers can also obtain detailed recommendations on how workload should be distributed within the sysplex environment.
A key component of these recommendations is derived from the z/OS Workload Manager (WLM). The WLM information reflects the current available system capacity for target systems, and can also reflect how well individual server applications are performing compared to the WLM policy goals specified for that application. These recommendations are also influenced by how well the applications are performing from a TCP/IP perspective. For example, are the applications processing new requests quickly enough? Or are new requests filling up the backlog queues that TCP/IP maintains for each application?
Using SASP, external load balancers can perform load balancing that is optimized for your sysplex environment, based on the current configuration and workload conditions. SASP supports TLS/SSL for secure authentication, access control, and encryption of data. For more information on SASP and the z/OS Load Balancing Advisor, see z/OS Load Balancing Advisor.