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We configured our lab environment so half the lab represented a remote connection, such as a remote WAN site or the Internet, and the other half was modeled after a corporate network. We used Cisco Systems 2948G-L3 switches to provide workgroup connectivity at each end of the network. These were connected to two Extreme Networks Summit switches, which provided a 100-Mbps connection between the local and remote sites.

Our simulated corporate network supported six Dell Computer Corp. OptiPlex servers running Microsoft IIS (Internet Information Server) 4.0 on Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 (SP6). Each server was an Intel Pentium III 600-MHz machine with 256 MB of RAM. The remote site comprised 16 separate clients--10 1U servers and six OptiPlex servers, all running NT 4.0 (SP6) as well as RadView Software's WebLoad 4.0 load-generating clients.

Each content switch was placed in-line between the router and the workgroup switch on the corporate LAN and configured to load-balance the six Web servers while the remote site barraged the switch with HTTP requests.

We evaluated each product in terms of configuration and management during the tests as well as individual performance capabilities. Each switch was configured for Layer 4 and benchmarked, then reconfigured for Layer 7 (according to each product's logic capabilities) and benchmarked again to determine if performance degradation occurred at Layer 7.