load-balancing
load-balancing is an engineering AI skill with a core value of Configure load balancers and traffic distribution. It
helps developers solve real-world problems in the engineering domain, boosting
efficiency, automating repetitive tasks, and optimizing workflows.
Configure load balancers and traffic distribution. Implement health checks and SSL termination. Use when distributing traffic across servers.
Quick Facts
mkdir -p ./skills/load-balancing && curl -sfL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sickn33/antigravity-awesome-skills/main/skills/load-balancing/SKILL.md -o ./skills/load-balancing/SKILL.mdRun in terminal / PowerShell. Requires curl (Unix) or PowerShell 5+ (Windows).
Skill Content
# Load Balancing
Distribute traffic across application servers for high availability, scalability, and fault tolerance.
When to Use
- Distributing HTTP/HTTPS traffic across multiple backend servers.
- Implementing health checks to route around unhealthy instances.
- Terminating TLS at the load balancer for simplified certificate management.
- Enabling blue/green or canary deployments with traffic shifting.
- Scaling horizontally behind a single entry point.
Prerequisites
- Two or more backend servers running the same application.
- TLS certificate for HTTPS termination (ACM, Let's Encrypt, or self-signed for internal).
- For AWS: VPC with public and private subnets across availability zones.
- For nginx/HAProxy: Linux server with root access.
nginx Load Balancer
Basic Round-Robin
# /etc/nginx/conf.d/loadbalancer.conf
upstream app_backend {
server 10.0.1.10:8080;
server 10.0.1.11:8080;
server 10.0.1.12:8080;
}
server {
listen 80;
server_name app.example.com;
return 301 https://$host$request_uri;
}
server {
listen 443 ssl http2;
server_name app.example.com;
ssl_certificate /etc/ssl/certs/app.example.com.pem;
ssl_certificate_key /etc/ssl/private/app.example.com-key.pem;
ssl_protocols TLSv1.2 TLSv1.3;
ssl_ciphers HIGH:!aNULL:!MD5;
location / {
proxy_pass http://app_backend;
proxy_set_header Host $host;
proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
proxy_connect_timeout 5s;
proxy_read_timeout 30s;
proxy_send_timeout 30s;
}
location /health {
access_log off;
return 200 "OK";
}
}Weighted and Backup Servers
upstream app_backend {
least_conn; # Route to server with fewest active connections
server 10.0.1.10:8080 weight=5; # Gets 5x traffic
server 10.0.1.11:8080 weight=3; # Gets 3x traffic
server 10.0.1.12:8080 weight=1; # Gets 1x traffic
server 10.0.1.20:8080 backup; # Only used when others are down
server 10.0.1.21:8080 down; # Temporarily removed from pool
}Health Checks (nginx Plus / OpenResty)
upstream app_backend {
zone backend 64k; # Shared memory zone for health data
server 10.0.1.10:8080;
server 10.0.1.11:8080;
server 10.0.1.12:8080;
}
# Health check (requires nginx Plus or third-party module)
# match healthy {
# status 200;
# body ~ "OK";
# }
# health_check interval=5s fails=3 passes=2 match=healthy;Sticky Sessions (IP Hash)
upstream app_backend {
ip_hash; # Same client IP always goes to the same server
server 10.0.1.10:8080;
server 10.0.1.11:8080;
server 10.0.1.12:8080;
}HAProxy Configuration
Full Production Config
# /etc/haproxy/haproxy.cfg
global
log /dev/log local0
maxconn 4096
daemon
ssl-default-bind-ciphers ECDHE-ECDSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256:ECDHE-RSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256
ssl-default-bind-options no-sslv3 no-tlsv10 no-tlsv11
tune.ssl.default-dh-param 2048
defaults
mode http
log global
option httplog
option dontlognull
option forwardfor
timeout connect 5s
timeout client 30s
timeout server 30s
timeout http-request 10s
timeout http-keep-alive 5s
retries 3
frontend http_front
bind *:80
redirect scheme https code 301 if !{ ssl_fc }
frontend https_front
bind *:443 ssl crt /etc/ssl/certs/app.example.com.pem
http-request set-header X-Forwarded-Proto https
# Route based on path
acl is_api path_beg /api/
acl is_ws path_beg /ws/
use_backend api_servers if is_api
use_backend ws_servers if is_ws
default_backend web_servers
backend web_servers
balance roundrobin
option httpchk GET /health HTTP/1.1\r\nHost:\ app.example.com
http-check expect statu🎯 Best For
- Claude users
- AI users
💡 Use Cases
- Using load-balancing in daily workflow
- Automating repetitive engineering tasks
📖 How to Use This Skill
- 1
Install the Skill
Copy the install command from the Terminal tab and run it. The SKILL.md file downloads to your local skills directory.
- 2
Load into Your AI Assistant
Open Claude and reference the skill. Paste the SKILL.md content or use the system prompt tab.
- 3
Apply load-balancing to Your Work
Provide context for your task — paste source material, describe your audience, or share existing work to guide the AI.
- 4
Review and Refine
Edit the AI output for accuracy, tone, and completeness. Add human insight where the AI lacks context.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
How do I install load-balancing?
Copy the install command from the Terminal tab and run it. The skill downloads to ./skills/load-balancing/SKILL.md, ready to use.
Can I customize this skill for my team?
Absolutely. Edit the SKILL.md file to add team-specific instructions, examples, or workflows.
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
Not reading the full skill
Skills contain important context and edge cases beyond the quick start.