Availability and Clustering Software

Application clustering (sometimes called software clustering) is a method of turning multiple computer servers into a cluster (a group of servers that acts like a single system). Clustering software is installed in each of the servers in the group. Each of the servers maintains the same information and collectively they perform administrative tasks such as load balancing, determining node failures, and assigning failover duty. The other clustering method, hardware clustering, requires that specialized hardware be installed in a single server that controls the cluster.

Шn application or software clustering, some of the protocols and administrative duties that would have been handled on each individual machine are handled by the joint software program. In other words, the software application is the control unit for the cluster. This is contrasted with a system called hardware clustering, where one individual machine runs the cluster through its operating system.

One of the advantages of application clustering is the scalability of these kinds of systems. With available specialized software, companies can easily set up multiple pieces of hardware that obey the same instructions, and refer to the same sets of information. IT pros refer to a cluster-aware application as an application that can assess systems to assign failover duties or handle delegation for transaction processing. These are kinds of principles supported by application clustering.