In our recent comparative tests of Web load-balancers, RND Networks/RADWARE Web Server Director Pro set a high standard. Now, Alteon Networks' souped-up switches--ACEDirector 1, ACEDirector 2, ACEswitch 110 and ACEswitch 180--boasting wire-speed Layer 4 load-balancing and filtering are trying to meet that standard.

We tested two ACEswitch 180s, suitable for wire-speed Ethernet, Fast Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet, at Network Computing's University of Wisconsin real-world lab, and came away very impressed. In a test environment identical to that of our first round of tests, the ACEswitch 180s nearly matched the Web Server Director Pro's showing. (See "Seven Web Load-Balancers Score With Round-the-Clock Access," www. networkcomputing.com/913/913r2.html.)

To view the Report card.The ACEswitch 180 ships with a Web-based management interface, ACElerate server load-balancing, EtherChannel-compatible trunk groups and gigabit functionality. With its eight Ethernet/Fast Ethernet and eight Gigabit Ethernet ports, ACEswitch can satisfy your load-balancing needs now and in the future. Its dedicated gigabit uplink port ensures that network administrators will not have to scrounge around for more bandwidth any time soon. Right out of the box, ACEswitch is a full-featured Ethernet switch ready to go without configuration. For Cisco shops, ACEswitch works with existing EtherChannel products, enabling faster than Fast Ethernet connections.

To use the server load-balancing and Layer 4 switching feature, we configured ACEswitch via a serial interface, and then connected our server to one of the ACEswitches via the ACEvision Web interface. ACEvision is comparable to--but much more comprehensive and easier to use than--Foundry Networks' ServerIron Web interface, which is predominantly text-based. ACEvision has three modes--Configuration, Statistics and Dashboard--that are easily selected from three large buttons located atop the Web interface. Dashboard mode provides quick access to the most commonly accessed information, such as server state and general switch data.

Serving an ACE Using ACEvision, we enabled the ACElerate portion of the switch's software, which provides the server load-balancing functionality we tested, and continued the server cluster setup. Using the Configuration mode, we easily defined and added each of our real servers to the real server group. We then bound the real server group to the virtual server we had created earlier using the same ACEvision interface. All that was left for us to do was to specify the default server port and indicate it as the HTTP service. ACEswitch's command-line interface was easy to navigate and accessible via telnet or serial connection. Be aware that ACEswitch lacks a standalone management utility, which may be a drawback for network administrators who want to limit Web and telnet access.

Redundancy Features ACEswitch 180's redundant configuration is by far the easiest to use of any load-balancer we have tested. Rather than requiring the administrator to enter identical information at each load-balancer, as Web Server Director Pro, ServerIron and Cisco Systems' Local Director do, the Alteon switches exchange configuration information over the network.

In order to establish a redundant configuration with our two ACEswitch 180s, we configured each unit to enable Layer 4 switching, indicated the IP address of the primary and secondary ACEswitch on each and connected the two ACEswitches using the gigabit uplink ports. Within moments, the redundant setup was completed and service was restored to the virtual IP.