Re: Network traffic simulator

[Tom Smyth]

Hi Michell,

the CCR series from MT is probably is as cost effictive a 10G+ Capable
system that you can use to generate and measure the packet troughput of a
core router under test... check out traffic generator
http://wiki.mikrotik.com/wiki/Manual:Tools/Traffic_Generator

you can generate small packets / large packets ... simulate TCP throughput
and play wireshark pcap files.. .. it is prety comprehensive...  somre of
the configuration syntax is not that intutive ... but its worakable...
any system that I have tested with traffic generator vs  an expensive
calibrated tests the results were always corelating between MT traffic
generator and the expensive testers with an error margin of 1-2 %
I hope that helps...

Peace out

On Tue, May 24, 2016 at 1:17 PM, Mitchell Lewis 
wrote:

> Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am
> looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of
> traffic. I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
> I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself etc.
> Thanks,Mitchell




-- 
Kindest regards,
Tom Smyth

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Re: Network traffic simulator

[Jim Greene]

 

Spirent can do this, Have worked with them at 100G. 

On 2016-05-24 08:17, Mitchell Lewis wrote: 

> Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am 
> looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of 
> traffic. I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
> I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself etc.
> Thanks,Mitchell

-- 

Jim Greene
Lockheed Martin
AFRL/RCM
2435 Fifth St
WPAFB, OH. 45433
937-656-5692
greenejk@afrl.hpc.mil 

Re: Network traffic simulator

[David]

On 2016-05-24 6:17 AM, Mitchell Lewis wrote:

Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am 
looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of traffic. 
I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself etc.
Thanks,Mitchell




SPIRENT offers such products (along with Ixia already mentioned).

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Saku Ytti]

On 25 May 2016 at 23:34, Sabri Berisha  wrote:
> This depends very much on which Ixia product you're using. In IxExplorer and 
> IxNetwork require a lot of manual labor when setting up a test. IxLoad has a 
> little less, but still. It is important to realize that most of the tests can 
> be automated using TCL scripts. The company I'm currently with has an entire 
> team doing nothing but test automation using Ixia TCL.

I think the problems I pointed out are not fixable by TCL. The
hardware itself simply cannot burst for any reasonable period, it only
paces.

You could create multiple streams and have TCL turn the burst on
occasionally, but how to synchronise this in nanosecond level with the
main stream, and at least in tens of microseconds resolution in
duration? You can't do that, it takes easily 10s to command it to do
something on TCL.

Lot can be done, but for device costing that much, and virtually no
QoS testing can be done, I'm not happy camper. QoS by nature is not
paced. And QoS configuration which looks perfect in IXIA may not work
in real-life. And in my case conversely, real-life problem we had, we
could not replicate in lab with IXIA. I know two other companies who
experienced same, and IXIA SE was unable to solve it.
It is very clear development of software is being dominated by
hardware vendors, not by SPs.

-- 
  ++ytti

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Sabri Berisha]

Hi,

This depends very much on which Ixia product you're using. In IxExplorer and 
IxNetwork require a lot of manual labor when setting up a test. IxLoad has a 
little less, but still. It is important to realize that most of the tests can 
be automated using TCL scripts. The company I'm currently with has an entire 
team doing nothing but test automation using Ixia TCL.

Before the N2X acquisition by Ixia, I used both when I was still at Redback 
Networks. For access related test cases I found both of them to be equally 
suitable, with a slight preference towards IxNetwork because of their more 
intuitive gui.

And pricing... yes, test gear is very expensive. But I guess that's because the 
market is pretty much dominated by Ixia and Spirent these days. 

Thanks,

Sabri

- Original Message -
> From: "Saku Ytti" <s...@ytti.fi>
> To: "Spencer Ryan" <sr...@arbor.net>
> Cc: "NANOG" <nanog@nanog.org>, "Mitchell Lewis" <mitch...@dash-networks.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, May 25, 2016 12:14:05 AM
> Subject: Re: Network traffic simulator

> Ugh. In all cases below, where it says Agilent it should say IXIA.
> 
>> Many times in QoS testing you'd have EF, AF, BE
>> traffic, and you have expectation how many percentage in given
>> situation should given class drop, doing this in Agilent is a chore.
>>
>> Agilent probably has best in the breed network with emulation
>> capabilities. And focus generally seems to be in protocol
>> testing/development where network emulation is tremendously useful.
>>
>> As the platforms are very expensive, not many SPs are using them, so
>> they're not getting input from SPs what the boxes should be doing.
>> This market is very poorly tapped, there is large demand in the market
>> for proper testing equipment but it's just priced out of reach. I
>> believe Spirent and Agilent should sell the hardware at-cost, then
>> sell timed licenses, where maybe 1000h license would be today's full
>> cost. Large segment of this market might not use box at all in some
>> year and would generally only require modest hours from it.
>> Bit harder to justify the cost with low use, compared to vendors who
>> run them automated 24/7.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> --
>   ++ytti

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Spencer Ryan]

Yeah. We run all of our IXIA gear 24/7 in automated feature/regression
testing. We are looking into high density layer 1 packet switches so we can
automate physical topology changes as well.
On May 25, 2016 3:14 AM, "Saku Ytti"  wrote:

Ugh. In all cases below, where it says Agilent it should say IXIA.

> Many times in QoS testing you'd have EF, AF, BE
> traffic, and you have expectation how many percentage in given
> situation should given class drop, doing this in Agilent is a chore.
>
> Agilent probably has best in the breed network with emulation
> capabilities. And focus generally seems to be in protocol
> testing/development where network emulation is tremendously useful.
>
> As the platforms are very expensive, not many SPs are using them, so
> they're not getting input from SPs what the boxes should be doing.
> This market is very poorly tapped, there is large demand in the market
> for proper testing equipment but it's just priced out of reach. I
> believe Spirent and Agilent should sell the hardware at-cost, then
> sell timed licenses, where maybe 1000h license would be today's full
> cost. Large segment of this market might not use box at all in some
> year and would generally only require modest hours from it.
> Bit harder to justify the cost with low use, compared to vendors who
> run them automated 24/7.




--
  ++ytti

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Saku Ytti]

Ugh. In all cases below, where it says Agilent it should say IXIA.

> Many times in QoS testing you'd have EF, AF, BE
> traffic, and you have expectation how many percentage in given
> situation should given class drop, doing this in Agilent is a chore.
>
> Agilent probably has best in the breed network with emulation
> capabilities. And focus generally seems to be in protocol
> testing/development where network emulation is tremendously useful.
>
> As the platforms are very expensive, not many SPs are using them, so
> they're not getting input from SPs what the boxes should be doing.
> This market is very poorly tapped, there is large demand in the market
> for proper testing equipment but it's just priced out of reach. I
> believe Spirent and Agilent should sell the hardware at-cost, then
> sell timed licenses, where maybe 1000h license would be today's full
> cost. Large segment of this market might not use box at all in some
> year and would generally only require modest hours from it.
> Bit harder to justify the cost with low use, compared to vendors who
> run them automated 24/7.




-- 
  ++ytti

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Saku Ytti]

On 24 May 2016 at 23:04, Spencer Ryan  wrote:

Hey,

> We are heavily invested in Ixia, they are very expensive, but if you need
> the kind of precision they provide they work very well.

I've used all big three, Agilent (back in packets and protocols), IXIA
and Spirent. And several smaller/cheaper like Anritsu, EXFO, etc.

I think Agilent was the best product for SP's. But you no longer can
purchase it. I was recently responsible for evaluating and purchasing
product for one company and shortlisted both IXIA and Spirent. Neither
one really was fully satisfactory after Agilent experience, but we
needed a solution so we purchased Spirent.
For that company QoS testing was one of the key use-cases and you
really can't do that in IXIA at all, as you cannot make it burst for
any significant time (i.e. not for even significant microseconds).
Testing QoS with precisely paced packets is not going to be useful.
Spirent can do this nicely, so we chose Spirent.
I'm not being nasty or funny, but I think best thing that ever
happened to Spirent was IXIA buying Agilent.

Both Spirent and IXIA has much poorer graphing capabilities than
Agilent had. In IXIA I mostly rely on exporting data and graphing with
GNUPlot instead. For example you cannot graph packet loss as
percentage in the tool itself. Which is huge annoyance to me, after
coming from Agilent. Many times in QoS testing you'd have EF, AF, BE
traffic, and you have expectation how many percentage in given
situation should given class drop, doing this in Agilent is a chore.

Agilent probably has best in the breed network with emulation
capabilities. And focus generally seems to be in protocol
testing/development where network emulation is tremendously useful.

As the platforms are very expensive, not many SPs are using them, so
they're not getting input from SPs what the boxes should be doing.
This market is very poorly tapped, there is large demand in the market
for proper testing equipment but it's just priced out of reach. I
believe Spirent and Agilent should sell the hardware at-cost, then
sell timed licenses, where maybe 1000h license would be today's full
cost. Large segment of this market might not use box at all in some
year and would generally only require modest hours from it.
Bit harder to justify the cost with low use, compared to vendors who
run them automated 24/7.


-- 
  ++ytti

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Scott Whyte]

On 5/24/16 05:17, Mitchell Lewis wrote:

Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am 
looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of traffic. 
I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself etc.


If you want DYI check out http://osnt.org/


Thanks,Mitchell

Re: Network traffic simulator

[chip]

If this is a one time thing, you're probably better off renting an Ixia or
Spirent device.  If you find yourself doing this a few times a year, might
be worth investing in one.  Not only for just throughput testing but
spamming packets for testing DoS, testing convergence times of routing
protocols, generating complex topology routing updates, etc.

On Tue, May 24, 2016 at 6:25 PM, James Bensley  wrote:

> On 24 May 2016 at 13:17, Mitchell Lewis 
> wrote:
> > Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am
> looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of
> traffic. I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
> > I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself
> etc.
> > Thanks,Mitchell
>
> COTS hardware is cheap enough, TRex should do what you want:
>
> http://trex-tgn.cisco.com/
>
> Cheers,
> James.
>



-- 
Just my $.02, your mileage may vary,  batteries not included, etc

Re: Network traffic simulator

[James Bensley]

On 24 May 2016 at 13:17, Mitchell Lewis  wrote:
> Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am 
> looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of 
> traffic. I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
> I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself etc.
> Thanks,Mitchell

COTS hardware is cheap enough, TRex should do what you want:

http://trex-tgn.cisco.com/

Cheers,
James.

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Dave Bell]

I've used Spirent in the past. They do a hardware option, as well as a VM.
Lots of things supported like BGP, and PPP.

Regards,
Dave

On 24 May 2016 at 21:31, Jason Lixfeld  wrote:

> I’m in the process of building a box using MoonGen [1] and a supported
> Intel 82599 6 port SFP+ NIC [2] that is coming in at just under US$3800
> all-in.  Supposed to be able to drive at least the entire card at line rate
> for that price and have enough CPU and memory slots free to fill the box up
> with as many of these NICs as it will take if need be.
>
> [1] https://github.com/emmericp/MoonGen
> [2]
> http://www.interfacemasters.com/index.php?option=com_content=article=153=103
>
> > On May 24, 2016, at 8:17 AM, Mitchell Lewis 
> wrote:
> >
> > Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am
> looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of
> traffic. I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
> > I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself
> etc.
> > Thanks,Mitchell
>
>

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Jason Lixfeld]

I’m in the process of building a box using MoonGen [1] and a supported Intel 
82599 6 port SFP+ NIC [2] that is coming in at just under US$3800 all-in.  
Supposed to be able to drive at least the entire card at line rate for that 
price and have enough CPU and memory slots free to fill the box up with as many 
of these NICs as it will take if need be.

[1] https://github.com/emmericp/MoonGen
[2] 
http://www.interfacemasters.com/index.php?option=com_content=article=153=103

> On May 24, 2016, at 8:17 AM, Mitchell Lewis  
> wrote:
> 
> Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am 
> looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of 
> traffic. I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
> I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself etc.
> Thanks,Mitchell 

RE: Network traffic simulator

[Ray Orsini]

Siama also does this. I don't own any. But I've used them with some of my
customers.

http://siamasystems.com/?page_id=2280

Regards,
Ray Orsini – CEO
Orsini IT, LLC – Technology Consultants
VOICE DATA  BANDWIDTH  SECURITY  SUPPORT
P: 305.967.6756 x1009   E: r...@orsiniit.com   TF: 844.OIT.VOIP
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Your Tickets



-Original Message-
From: NANOG [mailto:nanog-boun...@nanog.org] On Behalf Of Josh Luthman
Sent: Tuesday, May 24, 2016 4:05 PM
To: Mitchell Lewis <mitch...@dash-networks.com>
Cc: NANOG <nanog@nanog.org>
Subject: Re: Network traffic simulator

IXIA would be the only company I know of.


Josh Luthman
Office: 937-552-2340
Direct: 937-552-2343
1100 Wayne St
Suite 1337
Troy, OH 45373

On Tue, May 24, 2016 at 8:17 AM, Mitchell Lewis <mitch...@dash-networks.com>
wrote:

> Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I
> am looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps
> of traffic. I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
> I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself
> etc.
> Thanks,Mitchell

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Josh Luthman]

IXIA would be the only company I know of.


Josh Luthman
Office: 937-552-2340
Direct: 937-552-2343
1100 Wayne St
Suite 1337
Troy, OH 45373

On Tue, May 24, 2016 at 8:17 AM, Mitchell Lewis 
wrote:

> Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am
> looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of
> traffic. I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
> I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself etc.
> Thanks,Mitchell

Re: Network traffic simulator

[Spencer Ryan]

We are heavily invested in Ixia, they are very expensive, but if you need
the kind of precision they provide they work very well.


*Spencer Ryan* | Senior Systems Administrator | sr...@arbor.net
*Arbor Networks*
+1.734.794.5033 (d) | +1.734.846.2053 (m)
www.arbornetworks.com

On Tue, May 24, 2016 at 8:17 AM, Mitchell Lewis 
wrote:

> Hi,I am looking to validate the performance specs of a core router. I am
> looking for a network traffic simulator which can simulate 40 gbps of
> traffic. I am looking for a simulator with sfp+ ports.
> I am interested in any input as to brands to look at, build one myself etc.
> Thanks,Mitchell