Forum Discussion
yakaran_99767
Nimbostratus
Nimbostratusperformance of iRules
Hello iRules users,
The company I work for is currently investigating the various available load balancing solutions and
I have a very general question regarding the performance of rule languages such as iRules to control traffic. Any pointer or feedback is appreciated. I am looking both for user's feeling about this subject and benchmark results.
In particular:
- how does iRules compare with zeus trafficscript ?(or others)
- how does it scale ? (e.g. how many rules can be activated on the system without noticeable degradation...)
- what is the performance cost of a script performing basic scenario (e.g. select a destination based on http header)
versus having no script and using the default routing logic ?
- are there any guidelines to avoid performance issues or features of the language that are known as performance killers
thanks for any help or information
Yann
- Yann,
Yes, There are things to avoid with irules when considering performance. Regex, Logging, and Loops to name a few. Check out the "iRules Optimization 101" series on dev central or take the F5 iRules class for more info.
You can test the performance cost of a iRule with the "Timing on" command to collect CPU cycle info.
I suggest, if you haven't done so already download the LTM VE for free. And lab out some of the rules you are looking at. 
Michael_YatesFor the technical information you are looking for, I would suggest that you contact and F5 Sales Representative. A Sales Rep should have all of the technical information that you are looking for as well as a higher level overview of available Modules and how they can be tailored to meet your business needs.
As far as the performance and scalability of the F5’s. The F5’s are highly configurable, so you get out of them what you put into them. Hence DevCentral, an entire support community of fellow users helping each other that is supported by F5. Which in my opinion, speaks for itself considering the number of people that get questions answered here or learn new ways of toing things, rather than having to actually open up a support case.
But, this is just my opinion.
