Introduction

In Chapter 4, we reviewed Single Entry Point (SEP) VPNs. The key to a SEP VPN is to utilize high-availability (HA) and clustering solutions. Of course, if you choose not to utilize the VPN features of FireWall-1, you can still use the HA and clustering features described in this chapter. Check Point, Nokia, and other third-party companies offer many methods for deploying HA solutions. Here we focus on the Check Point ClusterXL product, review the new Nokia IP clustering and VRRP solutions, and discuss the performance of these solutions. We also spend some time describing how each solution actually works and what the life of a connection is like through each clustering solution.

When you set up a cluster, one of the first things you want to do is test that it is working as expected. In this chapter, we cover a quick list of tests that you can do on each cluster to make sure you get the right responses. We also cover some of the command-line tools you can use to check the status of each node in the cluster.