Meaning
A network device or software service that distributes incoming application traffic across multiple backend servers to prevent overload and ensure high availability.
Three examples from work
High availability
DevOpsThe load balancer automatically routes traffic away from unhealthy server nodes.
LeadThat ensures zero downtime during individual container crashes.
Traffic spike
LeadIs the load balancer using round-robin or least-connections distribution?
DevOpsWe switched to least-connections to balance long-lived WebSocket requests better.
SSL termination
ArchitectTerminating SSL at the load balancer relieves our backend servers from crypto computation.
DevAnd makes certificate renewal centralized and straightforward.
Load balancers distribute load, perform health checks, and provide seamless horizontal scaling for web services.