Standard Deployment as a Network Firewall
The standard deployment places the Barracuda Link Balancer as the default gateway for the client’s network. Sitting in between the Internet and switch, administrators can utilize the Barracuda Link Balancer to apply traditional network firewall rules, including DHCP and DNS services to local clients.

Optional Deployment with Existing Network Firewall
An optional deployment configuration simply places the Barracuda Link Balancer at the perimeter between the Internet and a network firewall for local network address translation. The Internet connection links plug into the Barracuda Link Balancer’s multiple WAN ports and the firewall is connected to the Barracuda Link Balancer’s LAN port.

Deployment for High Availability
A pair of Barracuda Link Balancers can be configured for high availability in an active-passive cluster. High availability is easy to set up with the Barracuda Link Balancer’s Web interface. Administrators simply point the secondary Barracuda Link Balancer to the primary Barracuda Link Balancer’s management IP address and configurations are automatically synchronized.

High availability deployment is based on the Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP) with the clustered devices sharing a virtual IP address. The passive device will take over and handle all traffic upon failure of the active device.

The examples below show a pair of Barracuda Link Balancers configured as an active-passive cluster in front of existing Network Firewalls or with the integrated Firewall enabled. Please refer to the Barracuda Link Balancer administration guide for other deployment options.

In front of a single Network Firewall

In front of dual Network Firewalls

Using the Barracuda Link Balancer with the integrated Firewall enabled