Determine Performance of Content-Aware Devices and Networks

IxLoad

• Determine Performance Limits of Load Balancers, Firewalls, and Content Switches

• Test Triple Play Network Performance by Emulating Subscribers• Test Enterprise Network Security and Data Center Performance• Comprehensive L4-7 Protocol Support Including Voice, Video, and Data

™ Leader in IP Performance Tes

ting

Leader in IP Performance Testing

How Can You Take Advantage of IxLoad™

?

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Equipment Manufacturers

Protocol Performance: IxLoad is used in the developmentprocess to test the functionality and scalability of individualprotocols. IxLoad offers functional depth to thoroughly testeach protocol and the ability to create load conditions tomeasure the impact.

Device Performance: IxLoad is used in the developmentprocess to test the functionality and scalability of networkcomponents. IxLoad allows for the creation of realistictraffic mixtures for test conditions that accurately assessthe performance of the device under test.

System Performance: IxLoad is used to measure the sys-tem capacity and behavior under load conditions. Utilizing arealistic mix of protocols, with real-time control of the loadconditions, makes it easy to understand the performancechanges as the device or network nears its limits.

Quality Assurance: IxLoad can be used to verify interoper-ability of integrated solutions. Using repeatable tests, engi-neers can stress-test networks components, and the resultscan be documented as changes to the network design andsoftware are implemented.

Technical Marketing: IxLoad ensures that the scalability androbustness of systems is understood in real customer sce-narios. Repeatable tests make it simple to compare the per-formance of different devices. Easy-to-use reporting toolsin IxLoad help illustrate results with real test conditions.

Test Labs

Network Performance: IxLoad is utilized to create real application traffic and measure performance in the lab environment. The full range of protocols and optionsprovided by IxLoad make it easy to create a real world network test.

Service Providers

Benchmarking performance: IxLoad is used to understandthe performance of network equipment prior to deploy-ment. Scalable and repeatable tests make it easy to findthe performance limits of devices with traffic similar to your own network.

Service Trials: IxLoad is used to determine the capacity of equipment running stateful traffic before subjecting thatequipment to live traffic. IxLoad enables you to understandthe capacity of the service before problems arise withreal customers.

Enterprises

Network Performance: IxLoad is used to stage newdevices and measure the effects of large traffic volumes onnetworks before implementation in a live system. IxLoadhelps to minimize problems by proactively testing if firewalland mail gateway policies are up to date and secure.

Data Center Performance: IxLoad is used to understand thefunctionality and performance of the architecture and com-ponents used in the data center. IxLoad provides a cost-effective way to ensure that systems are architected to perform as expected. IxLoad also helps determinehow any changes to network components will affect overall performance.

IxLoad Clients IxLoad Servers

Content Aware Device

Who is Ixia?Ixia is a leading provider of performance test systemsfor IP-based infrastructure and services

What distinguishes Ixia Test Systems from the competition?• Single Platform for Layer 2-7 that is forwardly and

backwardly compatible• Superior Functionality through granular control of a

greater number of test parameters• Universal Automation of every function throughout

the test environment

IxLoad™

– Determine Performance of Content-Aware Devices and Networks

Test ChallengesNetworks have evolved over time. Network components likeFirewalls and SLBs are increasingly aware of packet sequencesand state machines higher up in the protocol stack. Triple Playnetwork devices like IGMP routers and video servers are awareof the Triple Play subscriber actions, like changing channels with IPTV.

These intelligent devices contribute to the complex nature oftoday’s networks. As a result of this complexity, it has becomeincreasingly difficult to effectively test these intelligent networkcomponents with traditional network test gear. To effectively testthese intelligent network devices, real application traffic needs tobe created in large volumes. Moreover, it is important to havegranular control on the test traffic to benchmark these devices.

IxLoad Answers the ChallengeIxia’s IxLoad provides a comprehensive solution to determine theperformance of content-aware devices including SLBs, Firewalls,Web Servers and Mail Servers, as well as Triple Play networkdevices including video servers, multicast routers and SIP devices.IxLoad accomplishes this by emulating large numbers of clients,Triple Play subscribers, and servers. Key protocols supported

include data protocols, like HTTP, FTP, and SMTP/POP3; video protocols like IGMP, MPEG, and RTSP; and voice protocols like SIP. IxLoad provides a simple, logical interface that makes it easy toquickly set up complex test environments. Using IxLoad, testresults can be viewed in real time or can be saved for analysisand processing. IxLoad provides a comprehensive and customiz-able set of statistics that make it easy to assess the performanceof content-aware devices and networks. In short, Ixia’s IxLoad is specifically designed to meet the complex challenge of testingtoday’s internet.

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IxLoad Clients

Server UnderTest

Create Realistic Triple Play Test ScenariosIxLoad can be used to determine the performance of the Triple Playnetwork infrastructure by emulating a large number of Triple Playsubscribers with a combination of voice, video, and data traffic.

In addition to comprehensive testing of the data network infra-structure, IxLoad also tests the IPTV and VoIP infrastructure.IxLoad tests the performance of video servers, multicast routers,and video delivery networks. This is accomplished by emulatingvideo servers and millions of video subscribers in video ondemand and broadcast video scenarios. Key protocols includeMPEG, IGMP and RTSP. IxLoad tests the performance of SIPdevices and infrastructure by emulating thousand of SIP callersand callees in performance testing scenarios. In addition, IxLoadalso tests the performance of Layer 4-7 security devices includingFirewalls, SLBs, SSL Gateways, Virus Scanners, Spam Filters, and Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS).

Key IxLoad Triple Play Testing capabilities include the following: • Large numbers of IPTV subscribers with varying channel zapping

profiles can be emulated• Channel changing latencies for the various profiles and the

video quality as perceived by the subscriber can be measured • Large amounts of Voice over IP phone calls can be originated

from a simulated group of users to another. The call flow canbe controlled from within IxLoad

• Large volumes of web and email traffic from subscribers canbe emulated

• Malicious traffic can be injected by creating Distributed Denialof Service (DDoS) and Vulnerability attacks originating from awide range of IP and MAC addresses

• Realistic network impairments such as latency, jitter, packet loss,and packet reordering can be introduced to assess Triple Playnetwork performance

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IxLoad Servers

IxLoad Clients IxLoad Servers

Network UnderTest

Firewall

Content Switch

Servers

ContentCache

Servers

Mail Gateway

Validate Secure Enterprise InfrastructuresEnterprise data networks are under constant security threat.These data networks need to be constantly tested for their abilityto detect attacks and protect their valuable data resources. IxLoadcan emulate user traffic, legitimate and malicious, similar to thatexperienced by a large enterprise network, a corporate website, or an organization providing web-based services.

IxLoad can be used to:• Assess the ability of Email Gateways to detect and filter spam

and virus attachments. Email attachments and payloads can be customized

• Replay large amounts of custom data flows from captured traffic traces

• Assess that an appropriate action is taken for each traffic flowconfigured on firewalls, Intrusion Detection Systems, and similarsecurity devices

• Verify that the system performance does not decrease sharplywith increased load

• Ensure that the network infrastructure deployment performs as expected

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P/N:910-0516

IxLoad™

IxLoad provides a comprehensive solution to determine the performance of content-awaredevices including SLBs, Firewalls, Web Servers and Mail Servers as well as Triple Play network devices including video servers, multicast routers and SIP devices.IxLoad accomplishes this by emulating large numbers of clients, Triple Play subscribers andservers. Key protocols supported include data protocols like HTTP, FTP, SMTP/POP3; videoprotocols like IGMP, MPEG, RTSP; and voice protocols like SIP.

www.ixiacom.com/ixload

Worldwide Headquarters26601 West Agoura RoadCalabasas, California 91302United States of America Phone 818.871.1800Fax 818.871.1805