---
title:  Topology and Communication General Concepts
---

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Before you configure your <%=vars.product_name_long%> members, make sure you understand the options for topology and communication.

-   **[Topology Types](topology_types.html)**

    The <%=vars.product_name_long%> topology options allow you to scale horizontally and vertically.

-   **[Planning Topology and Communication](member_communication.html)**

    Create a topology plan and a detailed list of machines and communication ports that your members will use. Configure your <%=vars.product_name_long%> systems and the communication between systems.

-   **[How Member Discovery Works](how_member_discovery_works.html)**

    <%=vars.product_name_long%> provides various options for member discovery within a distributed system and between clients and servers.

-   **[How Communication Works](how_communication_works.html)**

    <%=vars.product_name%> uses a combination of TCP and UDP unicast and multicast for communication between members. You can change the default behavior to optimize communication for your system.

-   **[Using Bind Addresses](using_bind_addresses.html)**

    You use a bind address configuration to send network traffic through non-default network cards and to distribute the load of network traffic for <%=vars.product_name%> across multiple cards. If no bind address setting is found, <%=vars.product_name%> uses the host machine's default address.

-   **[Choosing Between IPv4 and IPv6](IPv4_and_IPv6.html)**

    By default, <%=vars.product_name_long%> uses Internet Protocol version 4 for <%=vars.product_name%> address specifications. You can switch to Internet Protocol version 6 if all your machines support it. You may lose performance, so you need to understand the costs of making the switch.


