Abstract: Apparatus, systems, and methods may operate to calculate the cryptographic throughput for a gateway server, calculate the input-output throughput for the gateway server, and responsive to determining that the cryptographic throughput is less than the input-output throughput, add nodes to the gateway server cryptographic buffer queue when a projection indicates that the sum of data remaining in the cryptographic buffer queue and data available to enter the cryptographic buffer queue is greater than a preselected watermark value. Additional apparatus, systems, and methods are disclosed.