RWS Architecture article

ADR-006 External load-balancing vendor constraint

External load balancing is required for north-south traffic. Procurement constraints mandate the NetScaler vendor family, recorded in internal sourcing documentation.

  1. Typeadr
  2. Statusaccepted
  3. Domainplatform
On this page
  1. Context and Problem Statement
  2. Decision Drivers
  3. Considered Options
  4. Decision Outcome
  5. Next Decision Trigger
  6. Positive Consequences
  7. Negative Consequences
  8. Pros and Cons of the Options
  9. Option 1 – Mandated NetScaler family (chosen)
  10. Option 2 – Alternate vendor or platform-native (e.g., F5, Avi, NGINX)
  11. Links and References

Context and Problem Statement

External load balancing is required for north-south traffic. Procurement constraints mandate the NetScaler vendor family, recorded in internal sourcing documentation.

Decision Drivers

  • Procurement compliance.
  • Early availability for rollout.

Considered Options

  1. Use the mandated NetScaler family.
  2. Alternate vendor or platform-native (e.g., F5, Avi, NGINX).

Decision Outcome

Chosen option: Use the mandated NetScaler family.

This decision is vendor-family-only; form factor and deployment model are defined in ADR-005.

Next Decision Trigger

  • Decision owner: Platform Architecture with Procurement.
  • Revalidate this accepted vendor constraint when procurement evidence references or approved commercial scope are renewed.
  • If procurement scope changes, publish an amendment or superseding ADR and update downstream ADR dependencies before 2026-03-15.

Positive Consequences

  • Fixed vendor target for planning.

Negative Consequences

  • Reduced vendor flexibility.

Pros and Cons of the Options

Option 1 – Mandated NetScaler family (chosen)

  • Good: Meets procurement constraints.
  • Bad: Reduces flexibility.

Option 2 – Alternate vendor or platform-native (e.g., F5, Avi, NGINX)

  • Good: Potentially simpler lifecycle.
  • Bad: Conflicts with procurement constraints.