Server Load Balancing : Configuring content routes
 
Configuring content routes
You can use the content routes configuration to select the backend server pool based on matches to TCP/IP or HTTP header values.
Layer 7 content route rules are based on matches to the following header values:
• HTTP Host
• HTTP Referer
• HTTP Request URL
• SNI
• Source IP address
You might want to use Layer 7 content routes to simplify front-end coding of your web pages or to obfuscate the precise server names from clients. For example, you can publish links to a simple URI named example.com and use content route rules to direct traffic for requests to example.com to a server pool that includes server1.example.com, server2.example.com, and server3.example.com.
Layer 4 content route rules are based on matches to the following header values:
• Source IP address
Before you begin:
• You must have a good understanding of HTTP header fields.
• You must have Read-Write permission for Load Balance settings.
After you have configured a content routing rule, you can select it in the virtual server configuration.
To configure a content route rule:
1. Go to Server Load Balance > Virtual Server.
2. Click the Content Routes tab.
3. Click Add to display the configuration editor.
4. Give the rule a name, select the type, and specify rule settings as described in Table 9.
5. Save the configuration.
 
Table 9: Content routes configuration guidelines
Settings
Guidelines
Type
• Layer 4
• Layer 7
Pool
Select a real server pool.
Inherit Persistence
Enable to use the persistence object specified in the virtual server configuration.
Persistence
If not using inheritance, select a session persistence type.
Inherit Method
Enable to use the method specified in the virtual server configuration.
Method
If not using inheritance, select a load balancing method type.
Layer 4 Specifics
IPv4/Mask
Address/mask notation to match the source IP in the packet header.
IPv6/Mask
Address/mask notation to match the source IP in the packet header.
Layer 7 Match Condition
Object
Select content matching conditions based on the following parameters:
• HTTP Host Header
• HTTP Referer Header
• HTTP Request URL
• SNI
• Source IP Address
Note: When you add multiple conditions, FortiADC joins them with an AND operator. For example, if you specify both a HTTP Host and HTTP Request URL to match, FortiADC applies the specified action only to requests or responses that meet both conditions.
Tip: If you need to create a default route, create a condition that does not have any expression, then place it last in the condition table. This will match all requests that did not match any previous criteria.
Type
• String
• Regular Expression
Content
Specify the string or regular expression syntax.
Reverse
Rule matches if traffic does not match the expression.
Reordering
After you have saved a rule, reorder rules as necessary. The match condition table is consulted from top to bottom. The first rule that matches is applied and subsequent rules are not evaluated.