Setting up GSLB in a cluster

Last published : Sep 24, 2026
Note
Supported from NetScaler 10.5 Build 52.11 onwards.
To set up GSLB in a cluster you must bind the different GSLB entities to a node group. The node group must have a single member node.
Notes
  • If you have configured the static proximity GSLB method, make sure that the static proximity database is present on all the cluster nodes. It happens by default if the database file is available at the default location. However, if the database file is maintained in a directory other than /var/netscaler/locdb/, you must manually sync the file to all the cluster nodes.
  • The show gslb domain command is not supported in a cluster setup.
To set up GSLB in a cluster by using the CLI:
Log on to the cluster IP address and perform the following operations at the command prompt:
  1. Configure the different GSLB entities. For information, see GSLB Configuration Entities.
    Note
    When creating the GSLB site, make sure that you specify the cluster IP address and public cluster IP address. The public cluster IP address is needed only when the cluster is deployed behind a NAT device. While configuring a GSLB site, you must use the cluster IP address of the same site. These parameters are required to ensure the availability of the GSLB auto-sync functionality.
    add gslb site <siteName> <siteType> <siteIPAddress> -publicIP <ip_addr> -clip <ip_addr> <publicCLIP>
  2. Create a cluster node group.
    add cluster nodegroup <name> <name>@ [-strict ( YES | NO )] [-sticky ( YES | NO )] [-state <state>] [-priority <positive_integer>]
    Note
    Enable the sticky option if you want to set up GSLB based for VPN users.
  3. Bind a single cluster node to the node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -node <nodeId>
  4. Bind the local GSLB site to the node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -gslbSite <string>
    Note
    Make sure that the IP address of the local GSLB site IP address is striped (available across all cluster nodes).
  5. Bind the ADNS (or ADNS-TCP) service or the DNS (or DNS-TCP) load balancing virtual server to the node group.
    To bind the ADNS service:
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -service <string>
    To bind the DNS load balancing virtual server:
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -vServer <string>
  6. Bind the GSLB virtual server to the node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -vServer <string>
  7. To set up GSLB based on VPN users, bind the VPN virtual server to the GSLB node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -vServer <string>
  8. Verify the configurations.
    show gslb runningConfig
To set up GSLB in a cluster by using the GUI:
Log on to the cluster IP address and perform the following operations in the Configuration tab:
  1. Configure the GSLB entities.
    Navigate to Traffic Management > GSLB to perform the required configurations.
  2. Create a node group and perform other node group related configurations.
    Navigate to System > Cluster > Node Groups to perform the required configurations.
For the detailed configurations to be performed, see the description provided in the preceding CLI procedure.
Related information

Support for GSLB parent-child topology in a cluster

Starting with NetScaler 12.1 build 49.xx, GSLB parent-child topology is supported in cluster.
For more information about the parent-child topology, see Parent-child topology deployment using the MEP protocol.

To set up GSLB parent-child topology in a cluster by using the CLI

Parent site

Perform the following configuration:
  1. Create a cluster node group.
    add cluster nodegroup <name>
    Example:
    add cluster nodegroup parentng
  2. Bind a single cluster node to the node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -node <nodeId>
    Example:
    bind cluster nodegroup parentng -node n2
  3. Bind the local GSLB site to the node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -gslbSite <string>
    Example:
    bind cluster nodegroup parentng -gslbSite site1
  4. Bind the ADNS (or ADNS-TCP) service or the DNS (or DNS-TCP) load balancing virtual server to the node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -service <string>
    Example:
    bind cluster nodegroup parentng – service ADNS
  5. Bind the GSLB virtual server to the node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -vServer <string>
    Example:
    bind cluster nodegroup parentng -vServce gslbvs1

Child site

Perform the following configuration:
  1. Create a cluster node group.
    add cluster nodegroup <name>
    Example:
    add cluster nodegroup childng
  2. Bind a single cluster node to the node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -node <nodeId>
    Example:
    bind cluster nodegroup childng -node -n3
  3. Bind the local GSLB site to the node group.
    bind cluster nodegroup <name> -gslbSite <string>
    Example:
    bind cluster nodegroup childng -gslbSite site1
Note
For parent and child sites to exchange aggregated statistics in metric-based load balancing methods, you must add local GSLB services on the child site. The metric-based load balancing methods are least connection, least bandwidth, and least packets.

To set up GSLB parent-child topology in a cluster by using the GUI

  1. Configure the GSLB entities.
    Navigate to Traffic Management > GSLB to perform the required configurations.
  2. Create a node group.
    Navigate to System > Cluster > Node Groups to perform the required configurations.
  3. In the Node Group page, select the node group to which you want to bind a node, click Edit, and perform the following tasks. You can also perform these tasks when adding a node group.
    • Bind a node to the node group.
      In Advance Settings, click Cluster Nodes and perform the following tasks:
      • In Cluster Nodes section, click No Cluster Node.
      • In Select Cluster Node, click > and select the node that you want to bind to the node group. You can also add a cluster node.
    • Bind the local GSLB site to the node group.
      In Advance Settings, click GSLB Sites and perform the following tasks:
      • In the GSLB Sites section, click No GSLB Site.
      • In the Select GSLB Site, click > and select the GSLB site that you want to bind to the node group. You can also add a GSLB site.
    • Bind the GSLB virtual server to the node group.
      In Advance Settings, click Virtual Servers and perform the following task:
      • In the Virtual Servers pane, click +.
      • In Choose Virtual Server, select the server that you want to bind to the node group.
    • Bind the ADNS (or ADNS-TCP) service or the DNS (or DNS-TCP) load balancing virtual server to the node group.
      In Advance Settings, click Services and perform the following tasks:
      • In Services section, click No Service.
      • In Select Service, select the service that you want to bind to the node group. You can also add a service.
Note
For child sites, you only have to bind the cluster node and local GSLB site to the node group.