Custom routing accelerators improve performance for real-time applications by providing deterministic, fine-grained control over how user traffic is routed to specific backend resources, such as Amazon EC2 instances, within a Virtual Private Cloud (VPC). This approach is particularly beneficial for applications requiring consistent, low-latency connections and precise user-to-server mappings, such as real-time gaming, VoIP, and video conferencing.
How Custom Routing Accelerators Enhance Performance
- Deterministic User-to-Instance Mapping: Unlike standard accelerators that route traffic based on proximity and endpoint health, custom routing accelerators allow you to use your application logic to assign users to specific EC2 instances based on criteria like geographic location, player skill, or session type. This ensures that users consistently connect to the same backend server, which is critical for maintaining session state and reducing latency in real-time applications[3][4].
- Direct Port-Level Routing: Custom routing accelerators map listener port ranges to specific EC2 instance destinations and ports within your VPC subnets. This port-level control enables your application to listen on consistent ports across instances, simplifying client configuration and reducing connection setup time[3][4].
- Use of AWS Global Network: Traffic is routed over the AWS global network infrastructure, which optimizes network paths, reduces internet congestion, and minimizes packet loss. This results in lower latency and more reliable connections, essential for real-time responsiveness in gaming and communication apps[3][5][8].
- Support for UDP and TCP Protocols: Real-time applications often require UDP for fast, low-latency data transfer and TCP for reliable delivery. Custom routing accelerators support both protocols on a per-port basis, allowing applications to optimize transport protocols without duplicating configurations[3].
- Static IP Addresses and Consistent Endpoints: Custom routing accelerators provide static IP addresses that remain assigned as long as the accelerator exists. This stability allows clients to maintain consistent connection points, avoiding delays caused by DNS resolution or IP changes, which is vital for real-time session continuity[2][5].
- Granular Traffic Control and Security: By default, traffic to VPC subnet destinations is denied until explicitly allowed, providing secure and controlled access to backend instances. You can specify which IP address and port combinations are permitted to receive traffic, enhancing security without sacrificing performance[3].
- Automatic Failover and Health Monitoring: Although custom routing accelerators route traffic deterministically, they still leverage AWSâs health monitoring to ensure traffic is directed only to healthy endpoints, preventing disruptions in real-time sessions[5][8].
Use Cases in Real-Time Applications
- Online Gaming: Players can be assigned to game servers based on skill level, location, or game mode, ensuring low latency and consistent gameplay experience. The deterministic routing reduces lag and packet loss, improving responsiveness[3][4][5].
- VoIP and Video Conferencing: Multiple users can be routed to specific media servers for voice, video, and messaging sessions, ensuring stable connections and minimal latency for real-time communication[3][4].
- Other Stateful Applications: Applications requiring persistent connections and session affinity benefit from the fixed mapping of users to backend instances, reducing connection overhead and improving user experience[4][5].
In summary, custom routing accelerators improve real-time application performance by combining precise traffic routing control, optimized AWS global network paths, protocol flexibility, and stable, secure endpoints. This tailored routing approach reduces latency, maintains session consistency, and enhances overall application responsiveness critical for real-time use cases.
Citations:
[1] https://docs.aws.amazon.com/global-accelerator/latest/dg/about-custom-routing-accelerators.html
[2] https://docs.aws.amazon.com/global-accelerator/latest/dg/about-custom-routing-how-it-works.html
[3] https://cloudchipr.com/blog/aws-global-accelerator
[4] https://awstraininginpune.com/aws-global-accelerator-enhance-app-performance/
[5] https://www.nops.io/glossary/what-is-aws-global-accelerator/
[6] https://awscli.amazonaws.com/v2/documentation/api/latest/reference/globalaccelerator/create-custom-routing-accelerator.html
[7] https://hands-on.cloud/aws-services/global-accelerator/
[8] https://www.i3d.net/aws-gcp-network-solutions-true-cost-of-optimized-connectivity/
[9] https://www.alibabacloud.com/help/en/ga/user-guide/overview-2/
[10] https://pages.awscloud.com/rs/112-TZM-766/images/GC-800_ImprovingAppDelivery_eBook_updated_Final.pdf