How to Load Balance Citrix Web Interface with NLB

By Trond Eirik Haavarstein 03/05/2010 – 11:37

Every Citrix Web Interface Server (WI) without any form of load balancing is a potential single point of failure in your environment. Network Load Balancing is available in both the Standard and Enterprise Editions of Windows 2008 so there shouldn’t be to many excuses for not implementing. This picture tutorial will take you through the process of creating a Network Load Balancing Cluster for your Citrix Web Interface Servers.

IP Address Overview :

winlb1.ctxlab.local    10.0.10.40
winlb2.ctxlab.local    10.0.10.41
nlb.ctxlab.local         10.0.10.42

Configure Citrix Web Interface :

  1. Assign static IP Address to both nodes in the NLB Cluster
  2. Install and create a Site on Citrix WI on Node A
  3. Install and create a Site on Citrix WI on Node B
  4. Customize, test and replicate WI Site from Node A to Node B
  5. RoboCopy c:\inetpub\wwwroot\Citrix \\winlb2\c$\inetpub\wwwroot\Citrix /MIR

Configure Network Load Balancing :

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  1. 10 Responses to “How to Load Balance Citrix Web Interface with NLB”

  2. Very informative and its nice!

    By bpaul on May 3, 2010

  3. Check ‘Retain suspended state …’ to avoid a webserver kicking in after rebooting during controlled maintenance

    By Tom on May 4, 2010

  4. Thanks Tom, that’s correct, but this can easily be set in the Cluster Properties after if somebody missed it.

    Eric

    By admin on May 4, 2010

  5. Yes, but if you for example also are running CSG on the boxes, and are just ‘looking’ on these settings afterwards, you’ll end up disconnecting the CSG sessioms.
    That’s why its a good idea to set it up first, before we are getting user sessions in.
    Anyway, nice documented feature of the NLB setup.
    People are not always aware that this is available.

    By Tom on May 5, 2010

  6. How about linking the two xenapp webinterface URLs to the nlb.ctxlab.local?

    By Joshua on May 27, 2010

  7. Hi Joshua,

    When you have the WI working on node A and Node B separately, you should make a DNS entry e.g. nlb.ctxlab.local

    Eric

    By admin on May 27, 2010

  8. Well, i am on VMware virtual machine. I have tried with both unicast and multicast options but both fails. The two nodes in NLB can talk to each other in muticast mode but not any other clients. In unicast mode only one node in the NLB works not the other node. However, all the clients can talk to this one node.

    By Joshua on May 31, 2010

  9. Hi,

    Seems like you have routing problems. I have seen this before and I fixed this by using 5 instead of 3 IP-addresses. Which means ProdA, NLBA, ProdB, NLBB and NLBCluster IP. Then I needed to set the GW on NLBA & NLBB Nic’s.

    For more information check out this resources :
    Configuring Network Load Balancing (NLB) on Windows 2008 for Exchange CAS Servers
    Emulating a Redirecting Load Balancer for WI and PNAgent

    Eric

    By admin on Jun 1, 2010

  10. I already have the 5 IP scenario in multicast mode but clients are not able to talk to NLB. Any client machine can talk to the NLB in unicast mode but the two nodes in the cluster are not able to talk to each other so I am not sure clients are talking to which node in the cluster.

    We are planning to do some switch reconfiguration next week and see if it helps.

    By Joshua on Jun 3, 2010

  11. It works now with modification on switch level configuration for arp resolution.

    Thanks

    By Joshua on Jun 8, 2010

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