IXIA Introduces the Advanced TCL Script Suite

Business Wire, Oct 21, 1998

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 21, 1998--IXIA Communications Wednesday announced the creation of a powerful new suite of test scripts written in TCL designed to accurately measure performance of advanced layer 2 and layer 3 IP/IPX functionality in Ethernet switches.

"This is a sophisticated, first-of-its-kind, set of new test capability," said Ed Mier of Mier Communications Inc., "and we were proud to have co-developed with IXIA Communications, who we have found to be very responsive to state-of-the-art projects of this kind."

Going beyond the existing RFC benchmark tests, the ATSS tests provide developers, SQA departments, and end users a thorough analysis of performance.

The seven new tests include: Throughput and Latency, Throughput and Jitter, Throughput with Layer 2 and Layer 3 Mixed Frames, Throughput with Multiple Frame Sizes, IP Header Time-To-Live Counter Checks, Error Handling Throughput with VLAN Tagged Frames and Variable Inter-Frame Gap.

Throughput and Latency: This test is similar to RFC 1944 Throughput test with the following differences: The initial percentage of maximum rate is specified along with the percent increments or decrements of rate to transmit the frames for a certain number of iterations. The test runs through these increments or decrements of rate and simply outputs the throughput of the DUT. There is no binary search algorithm executed. The latency is also calculated as in the RFC 1944 Latency test. The results of the test are stored in a text file which shows the port pair configurations, number of frames transmitted and received, throughput and percentage of maximum rate, latency, total number of frames transmitted and received, percent loss of frames, average throughput and average latency for all iterations.

Throughput and Jitter: This throughput test is similar to the Throughput and Latency test. Instead of calculating the latency of one tagged frame, this test collects a random sample of captured frames throughout the test and calculates the average latency, standard deviation and average deviation of the latencies. This test provides a more accurate result than the regular latency results as different incoming frames may have slightly different latencies.

Throughput with Layer 2 and Layer 3 Mixed Frames: This throughput test transmits a mixture of MAC and IP frames of a particular frame size and calculates the throughput of the DUT. This test is useful to check the performance of the switch when it receives layer 2 frames along with application level data (IP), which relates more closely with real world scenarios. Optionally, jitter may also be calculated in this test.

Throughput with Multiple Frame Sizes: This throughput test transmits a mixture of frames with up to six frame sizes simultaneously. This test also depicts a real-world scenario as data could be transmitted in any size to switches and routers. The six sizes are 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024 and 1518 bytes. They can be sent as layer 2 or layer 3 frames. Optionally, jitter may be calculated in this test.

IP header Time-To-Live counter: The Time-To-Live (TTL) series of field in the IP header is decremented every time an IP frame passes through a DUT. Streams of IP data are transmitted to the switch with different TTL values. The output is measured to determine the packets lost, valid CRC, and correct decrementing of the TTL.

VLAN Tagged frame: In this throughput test, two VLANS are set up in the DUT to which 802.1q VLAN tagged frames are sent with unique VLAN IDs. Either MAC, IP, or IPX frames may be used as part of validation streams. Frames are tagged with the appropriate VLAN ID, transmitted to the DUT, and checked on the receive port to determine receipt of the intended packets. Optionally, jitter may be calculated during the test.

Variable Inter-Frame Gap: This test transmits frames with incrementing inter-frame gaps and reports received frames as a percentage the number of frames received for each IFG. This test exercises the PHY transmit and receive capabilities over a range of IFGs.

The IXIA1600 pricing starts at $41,000 for the 16-slot chassis, two Gigabit Ethernet ports and eight 10/100Base-TX ports and the ATSS test scripts sell for an additional $2,500. The IXIA200, with four 10/100 Mbps Ethernet ports, and the IxExplorer software is priced at $12,995.

About IXIA Communications

IXIA Communications, located in Calabasas, Calif., was founded by Errol Ginsberg in 1997 and is funded with private venture capital. IXIA Communications delivers powerful platforms for testing and verifying today's advanced LAN and WAN networking gear.

IXIA's products are differentiated by their accuracy and reliability; high-port density; support of emerging, high-speed interfaces and protocol standards; and adaptability to the industry's constant evolution.

For more information, contact IXIA at 4505 Las Virgenes Rd., Suite 209, Calabasas, Calif. 91302; telephone: 818/871-1800; fax: 818/871-1805; e-mail: info@ixiacom.com; or visit the Web site at http://www.ixiacom.com.