> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.greennode.ai/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.greennode.ai/load-balancer/network-load-balancer/how-it-works-nlb.md).

# How it works (NLB)

A Network Load Balancer (NLB) acts as a high-performance traffic distributor at the network layer (Layer 4 of the OSI model). It efficiently directs incoming TCP or UDP traffic to a pool of backend servers, ensuring optimal resource utilization and high availability for your services. Let's take a look at the high-level workflow of an NLB

<figure><img src="/files/V39LibtFrhQQUnlfEbYk" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>