Cluster networks are groups of computing devices working together for a common purpose, providing increased processing power, scalability, and high availability. There are three types of compute clusters: load balancing, high availability, and high performance. Clustering architectures vary, including mirrored disk, shared disk, and shared-nothing configurations.
A cluster network consists of two or more computing devices working together for a common computing purpose. These networks take advantage of the parallel processing power of computing devices. In addition to increased processing power, shared computing resources in a cluster network can also provide scalability, high availability, and failover capability in the event of a problem with a computing device. There are three basic types of compute clusters: load balancing clusters, high availability clusters, and high performance clusters.
Load balancing clusters consist of two or more computing systems, also called nodes. The workload of the network is distributed across these nodes to increase the processing performance of the network. From the user’s point of view, the nodes function as a single computer system.
A highly available cluster network consists of two or more computing nodes that provide redundancy in the event of hardware or software failure. It is also referred to as a failover cluster. When a computer system fails, its operations are transferred to the redundant node to provide continuous computing services.
High performance clusters use the parallel processing power of multiple cluster nodes to provide high performance computing. This allows nodes to work together on an issue. It is often a good solution for companies whose networks have high processing requirements but are on limited budgets.
Clustering architectures can vary greatly depending on the network technologies used and the purpose of the computer system. There are three primary clustering architectures: mirrored disk, shared disk, and non-sharing configurations. A mirrored disk cluster architecture replicates application data stored in a backup storage site. Its basic purpose is to provide high availability of computer resources and disaster recovery in case of some kind of computer failure.
A shared-disk cluster network uses central input/output (I/O) devices that are accessible to all nodes in the cluster. Usually, they are used to share disk storage for files and databases. Some shared disk configurations distribute information to all nodes in a cluster, while other configurations use a central metadata server.
A shared-nothing clustering architecture has independent, self-sustaining nodes. Each node has its own memory and I/O devices. It does not provide simultaneous disk access from multiple nodes, because only one node at a time needs access to storage. Often each node in this type of architecture is responsible for a different set of network activities. A shareless cluster network can scale to hundreds of nodes and is a popular option in web development environments.
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