Network Test Products

Network Test Product Overview

	Analysis Tools such as Protocol Analyzers starting with packet capture and decode provide in-depth analysis. Application Performance Analyzers provides network analysis of applicatons and code that perform poorly. And, Forensics and Audit products require a complete record of your network traffic with analysis and reconstructive tools.
		Network Load and Stress Test: Generate stateful network traffic to test network configuration or network devices. Test throughput, device configuration, connection quality and use to Burn-in devices.
	By simulating network impairments a WAN Emulator can be used to test applications under a variety of network conditions. With WAN Emulation it can be used to simulate an entire routed network to further test devices with network impairments.
	Physical Layer Switches Physical Layer switches are "wire-once" switching solutions ideal for test labs, where connections are set once and then reconfigured via software.

Protocol Analyzer and Application Performance

Application Vantage pinpoints the causes of poor end-user response times to the client, the network, a server or the application itself. Optional WAN Deployment Expert (WDE) predicts application performance for WAN connections.

Expert Observer is a feature rich network analyzer with application analysis and baselining components. Expert analysis shows error events and evaluates the health of the client, server and network. The WAN delay analysis provides a graphical view of latency and response time measurements across the WAN. What-If analysis starts with actual client/server conversations, and allows you to predict network bandwidth and response-time impact. GigaStor makes it easy to “rewind” your network, determine problem sources, and perform analysis. Retrospective network analysis speeds troubleshooting and provides long-term corporate-wide benefits.

Network Traffic Generator

Network Load and Stress Test

Candela Technologies creates LANforge - a network testing and simulation solution. LANforge FIRE is perfect for Stress and Load Testing of networks and devices.

LANforge FIRE is used for Traffic Generation and simulates the edge of the network under test. LANforge FIRE can generate FTP, HTTP, VoIP (SIP, RTP, RTCP), TCP/IP, UDP/IP, Ethernet and custom payloads. It supports 802.1Q VLANs, and can also emulate up to 250 Ethernet interfaces with unique MAC and IP addresses, allowing a single LANforge machine to appear as an entire subnet of machines. LANforge also supports the SIP VoIP messaging protocol, and can generate the RTP media stream as well. It can generate and receive traffic up to 999 Mbps per interface.

The LANforge WiFire appliance is an excellent choice for testing Access Points and other WiFi networks.

Affordable 10 Gigabit Line Rate Traffic Generator

The 10 gigabit rack-mount appliance can generate and receive 99.8 % 10 Gbps Line Rate to bidirectional (about 40 Gbps total across the backplane). Additional systems can be clustered for increased traffic generation capacity.

WAN Emulation LANforge ICE can simulate WAN connections or a multi-hop and multi-destination routed network. The LANforge ICE configuration is used to simulate the core of a network, and will be used to test and verify equipment that communicates through the core. The LANforge ICE platform is used to simulate T1, DS3, OC-3, OC-12, GigE, DSL, Satellite, Dial-Up, and other Wide Area Networks (WANs). LANforge Fire and Ice can be purchased separately or be fully integrated sharing a common GUI to simulate all aspects of an enterprise network. LANforge is scalable, but affordable.

Router Delay Simulators are appliances that simulate WAN links. The appliances are designed to be connected to routers or modems. The Router Delay Simulator family includes: Router Delay Simulator, Int/Clock to 2.048 Mbps, Variable Delays of Data & Control Signals Router Delay Simulator,Ext/Clock to 6 Mbps, Variable Delays of Data & Control Signals Router Delay Simulator W/Long Data Delays, Ext/Clock to 5 Mbps, Variable Delays of Data Only Router Delay Simulator PLUS, Int/Ext Clock, Errors, Delay & Rates to 53 Mbps, Serial Set-up & Control

Solutions for Test Lab Automation

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APCON "wire-once" switching solutions are ideal for test labs, where connections are set once and then reconfigured via software. The manual repatching of complicated configurations, and the errors associated with it, become a thing of the past.

Increase Device Utilization & Accelerate Product Time to Market

With APCON switching solutions, the manual rewiring of complicated configurations and the errors associated with it become a thing of the past. With just two clicks in the embedded web GUI, users can instantaneously configure connections between devices without touching a cable. For environments supporting automation via scripting, the IntellaPatch CLI enables users to control switch functions with common scripting languages.

Overall, APCON's intelligent switching solutions enable organizations to gain increased testing capacity – leading to more accurate and effective test results. This translates into the ability to achieve faster time to market with fewer resources and lower operational costs.

Series 2000

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I understand the applications running and the top resource users of my network bandwidth?
Protocol Analyzers and now Flo Technoloy (ie:NetFlow Sflow) agents can provide you with plenty of information. Information details such as Top Talkers, Top Pairs and distribution of protocols. Observer is both a Protocol Analyzer as well as a Flo technology agent.

Users call complaining of problems on our network, how can I go back and analyze what was causing the problem?
Retrospective network analysis allows you to quickly browse backwards through massive amounts of network traffic to view breaches and anomalies as they happened, within the context of other activity on the network. With continually captured data, Network Instruments GigaStor makes it easy to “rewind” your network, determine problem sources, and perform analysis.

I am trying to test a WAN connection what should I use?
It is important to test WAN long lines, satellite, wireless with a network traffic generator that generates stateful network traffic at various speeds, traffic generator require a device to generate traffic at each endpoint. The traffic generator has the ability to monitor packets for throughput and correctness.

I am trying to test a Firewall what should I use?
LANforge has been used for Firewall testing by both makers and end users who wish to validate specifications or test to the customer's desired peak traffic loads. In essence the primary objective is to understand how the Firewall will behave under heavy load. Performance and Stress Testing isolates any scalability or limitation issues of the firewall product and determines the performance limits of the firewall.

What can I use to test the configuration of my network equipment before deployment?
LANforge TCP and UDP Traffic can be used to test network device configuration. For IP based protocols, you can specify the ToS (aka QoS) bits in the IP header. This can be useful for testing QoS settings in the device under test. Also, LANforge supports creation and deletion of 802.1Q VLANs. 802.1Q VLANs speak a slightly different protocol on the ethernet network. This allows LANforge to test VLAN configuration as well.

Before taking my application live, is there something I can use to simulate netwrok impairments and test my applications performance?
LANforge Ice can modify various network attributes including: network-speed, latency, jitter, packet-loss, packet reordering, and packet-duplication. It also supports packet corruptions, including bit-flips, bit-transposes and byte-overwrites.

Is there a product to simulate a Wide Area Network with multiple locations?
LANforge Ice can be configured with many NIC ports, each port can represent a virtual router, and each virtual router can be linked to other virtual routers (WANlinks). Each WANlink can be configured for speed and the network impairments desired. Special versions have been configured for the gaming industry to test Internet games.