I have used and supported WLBS/NLB on Windows NT 4.0/2000 for the last 3 years in Fortune 250 and 500 companies. I have used it on switches and hubs with many machines and a few.
WLBS works very well if configured properly. I will agree that some of the docs are confusing until you work with the technology for a while, but I can say the same for many man docs as well. WLBS doesn't cause reboots, typically the reboots stem from instabilities in IIS 4.0 (many of which are corrected in IIS 5.0), but many required reboots are caused by shoddy in-house developed code.
WLBS does do an interesting Layer 2 slight-of-hand, but this novel approach makes it very efficient from a server perspective, and on a properly configured switch, the network cost is minimal. WLBS allows scaling out with insignificant diminishing returns, which makes it very cost effective, and no additional hardware is required, especially hardware that would need to be made redundant itself.
As an additional item to many others who have posted here, you cannot flatly say that a Linux solution is cheaper that Microsoft. This is not just a rehash of the TCO arguments, but if your company has a large developer base that scripts for Active Server Pages, or a great application that is making your company serious cash, but uses COM+, Linux is not appropriate. There is no definitive right or wrong here. The point of commerce it to make money, and if you do that with Microsoft's technologies, then the business needs drive that decision.
There is another more fundamental reason why a cashless society will not come to the States anytime soon. It has to do with the beliefs of many influential ultra-conservative religious groups.
These christian groups point to Revelation 13:16-18 as indicating that a cashless society is one of the "marks of the beast." These groups oppose a cashless society believing they are staving off the takeover of the Anti-Christ.
Slashdot Mirror
I have used and supported WLBS/NLB on Windows NT 4.0/2000 for the last 3 years in Fortune 250 and 500 companies. I have used it on switches and hubs with many machines and a few.
WLBS works very well if configured properly. I will agree that some of the docs are confusing until you work with the technology for a while, but I can say the same for many man docs as well. WLBS doesn't cause reboots, typically the reboots stem from instabilities in IIS 4.0 (many of which are corrected in IIS 5.0), but many required reboots are caused by shoddy in-house developed code.
WLBS does do an interesting Layer 2 slight-of-hand, but this novel approach makes it very efficient from a server perspective, and on a properly configured switch, the network cost is minimal. WLBS allows scaling out with insignificant diminishing returns, which makes it very cost effective, and no additional hardware is required, especially hardware that would need to be made redundant itself.
As an additional item to many others who have posted here, you cannot flatly say that a Linux solution is cheaper that Microsoft. This is not just a rehash of the TCO arguments, but if your company has a large developer base that scripts for Active Server Pages, or a great application that is making your company serious cash, but uses COM+, Linux is not appropriate. There is no definitive right or wrong here. The point of commerce it to make money, and if you do that with Microsoft's technologies, then the business needs drive that decision.
There is another more fundamental reason why a cashless society will not come to the States anytime soon. It has to do with the beliefs of many influential ultra-conservative religious groups.
These christian groups point to Revelation 13:16-18 as indicating that a cashless society is one of the "marks of the beast." These groups oppose a cashless society believing they are staving off the takeover of the Anti-Christ.
Google search with more info