Traffic Shifting

Definition

Traffic shifting is a technique used in software deployment and network management to gradually redirect user traffic from one service version to another. This approach allows for controlled testing and validation of new features or updates in a production environment, minimizing the risk of widespread issues. Traffic shifting can be implemented using various strategies such as canary releases, blue-green deployments, or A/B testing, and is often managed through load balancers or service meshes.

Secure Settings Example

apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1alpha3
kind: VirtualService
metadata:
  name: my-service
spec:
  hosts:
  - my-service.example.com
  http:
  - route:
    - destination:
        host: my-service
        subset: v2
      weight: 10
    - destination:
        host: my-service
        subset: v1
      weight: 90

In this Istio VirtualService configuration, traffic is securely shifted by directing 10% of the traffic to the new version (v2) while 90% continues to go to the stable version (v1). This allows for gradual testing and monitoring of the new version.

Insecure Settings Example

apiVersion: networking.istio.io/v1alpha3
kind: VirtualService
metadata:
  name: my-service
spec:
  hosts:
  - my-service.example.com
  http:
  - route:
    - destination:
        host: my-service
        subset: v2
      weight: 100

In this configuration, all traffic is immediately shifted to the new version (v2) without any gradual rollout or fallback mechanism. This can lead to service disruptions if the new version has undetected issues, as there is no opportunity to monitor and adjust based on real-time feedback.