--- canonical: "https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/clustering-software-vs-hardware-clustering/" llms_index: "https://safekit.eviden.com/llms.txt" llms_section: "Competitive Positioning" topics: "Software Clustering vs. Hardware Clustering for High Availability, Why SafeKit Software Clustering Outperforms Traditional Hardware Clusters, Difference between software clustering and hardware clustering?, Pros and cons of software clustering vs hardware clustering, 🔍 SafeKit High Availability Navigation Hub" --- # Software Clustering vs. Hardware Clustering for High Availability ## Why SafeKit Software Clustering Outperforms Traditional Hardware Clusters [🧑 Contact us](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/contact-us-for-safekit/) [🎁 SafeKit free trial](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/safekit-free-trial/) [🏅 Free certification](https://training.my.evidian.com/mod/page/view.php?id=712) [💰 Perpetual license cost](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/get-a-quote-safekit-en/) ## Difference between software clustering and hardware clustering? ### Overview This article explores the pros and cons of software clustering vs hardware clustering by looking at features like data replication, shared disks, load balancing, hardware and software prerequisites, skills to configure the cluster... ![Software clustering vs hardware clustering](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg'%20viewBox='0%200%20400%20189'%3E%3C/svg%3E)![Software clustering vs hardware clustering](https://safekit.eviden.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/high-availability-architectures-and-best-practices.png) The following comparative tables explain in detail the difference between hardware clustering and SafeKit, a software clustering product. ### What is hardware clustering? There are two types of hardware clustering solutions: hardware clustering for backend applications like databases and hardware clustering for frontend applications like web services. Hardware clustering for backend (like with [Microsoft failover cluster](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/failover-clustering/clustering-requirements)) is based on 2 servers sharing a disk with an automatic application failover in case of failure. Hardware clustering for frontend is based on load balancers (like with [F5 BIG-IP](https://www.f5.com/products/big-ip-services/local-traffic-manager)) in front of a farm of servers (2 servers or more). The load balancers distributes the TCP sessions to the available servers in the farm. ### What is software clustering? As with hardware clustering, there are two types of software clustering solutions: software clustering for backend applications like databases and software clustering for frontend applications like web services. Software clustering for backend (like with [SafeKit](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/)) is based on 2 servers replicating in real-time data with an automatic application failover in case of failures. Software clustering for frontend (like with SafeKit) is based on load balancing in a farm of servers (2 servers or more). The load balancing is made by software and distributes the TCP sessions to the available servers in the farm. ## Pros and cons of software clustering vs hardware clustering | | | | | --- | --- | --- | | **[SafeKit](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/) software clustering** Software clustering with SafeKitSoftware clustering with SafeKit | **Hardware clustering** Hardware clustering for a backendHardware clustering for a backend | **Hardware load balancers** Hardware clustering for a frontendHardware clustering for a frontend | | **Features** | | | | (1) Real-time file replication (2) Failover toolkit (3) Network load balancing (no dedicated proxy) | (1) Disk replication (2) Failover toolkit | (1) Network load balancing | | **Hardware** | | | | Standard physical servers, virtual servers or Cloud | Dedicated storage (shared or replicated) | Dedicated network load balancing boxes | | **Software** | | | | Standard editions of Windows, Linux and databases (even OS for PC and free editions of databases) | Enterprise editions of OS and databases | Firmware in load balancers | | **Skills** | | | | No specific IT skills for deploying SafeKit | High level skills in storage and OS | High level skills in network | ## 🔍 SafeKit High Availability Navigation Hub Explore SafeKit: Features, technical videos, documentation, and free trial | Resource Type | Description | Direct Link | | --- | --- | --- | | **Key Features** | Why Choose SafeKit for Simple and Cost-Effective High Availability? | [See Why Choose SafeKit for High Availability](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#why-choose-safekit-for-ha "Discover SafeKit features for simple and cost-effective high availability") | | **Use Cases** | Explore How SafeKit Ensures the High Availability of Critical Infrastructure | [See All Use Cases (OEM Software, Edge Servers, SCADA, and more)](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-use-cases "Explore SafeKit high availability use cases") | | **Deployment Model** | All-in-One SANless HA: Shared-Nothing Software Clustering | [See SafeKit All-in-One SANless HA](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#all-in-one-sanless-ha "Learn about all-in-one SANless high availability with shared-nothing software clustering") | | **HA Strategies** | SafeKit: Infrastructure (VM) vs. Application-Level High Availability | [See SafeKit HA & Redundancy: VM vs. Application Level](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-redundancy-choices "Compare VM-level redundancy with SafeKit application-level high availability strategies") | | **Technical Specifications** | Technical Limitations for SafeKit Clustering | [See SafeKit High Availability Limitations](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-limitations "Technical requirements and limitations for SafeKit application clustering") | | **Proof of Concept** | SafeKit: High Availability Configuration & Failover Demos | [See SafeKit Failover Tutorials](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-failover-tutorials "Step-by-step videos on SafeKit high availability, from installation to automated failover") | | **Architecture** | How the SafeKit Mirror Cluster works (Real-Time Replication & Failover) | [See SafeKit Mirror Cluster: Real-Time Replication & Failover](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-mirror-cluster "See technical architecture and failover mechanism of SafeKit Mirror Cluster") | | **Architecture** | How the SafeKit Farm Cluster works (Network Load Balancing & Failover) | [See SafeKit Farm Cluster: Network Load Balancing & Failover](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-farm-cluster "Technical overview of SafeKit Farm Cluster architecture with network load balancing") | | **Competitive Advantages** | Comparison: SafeKit vs. Traditional High Availability (HA) Clusters | [See SafeKit vs. Traditional HA Cluster Comparison](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-comparison "Detailed comparison of SafeKit software vs traditional hardware-based HA clusters") | | **Technical Resources** | SafeKit High Availability: Documentation, Downloads & Trial | [See SafeKit HA Free Trial & Technical Documentation](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-technical-resources "Access SafeKit free trial, technical documentation, and high availability white papers") | | **Pre-configured Solutions** | SafeKit Application Module Library: Ready-to-Use HA Solutions | [See SafeKit High Availability Application Modules](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-application-modules "Browse the library of pre-configured SafeKit modules for automated application failover") | [🧑 Contact us](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/contact-us-for-safekit/) [🎁 SafeKit free trial](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/safekit-free-trial/) [🏅 Free certification](https://training.my.evidian.com/mod/page/view.php?id=712) [💰 Perpetual license cost](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/get-a-quote-safekit-en/)