PacketCheck™ Software Ver 2.3.3 is Now Available! Download it
here
Overview |
Main Features |
Ethernet BER Testing |
Configuration Options |
Statistics and Results
Other VoIP Products |
Application Notes |
Buyer's Guide
Overview
GL's PacketCheck™ is a PC based Ethernet / IP BERT and Throughput test tool that is very easy to use.
It truly takes confusion out of Ethernet testing at all protocol layers - from raw Ethernet frames to IP/UDP packets.
It can be used as a general purpose Ethernet performance analysis for 10Mbps, 100Mbps and 1Gbps Ethernet
local area networks. The PacketCheck™ makes use of the network interface card (NIC) in the PC to transmit and
receive Ethernet packets over the network. Throughput up to 800 Mbps can be easily tested.
The PacketCheck™ allows generating full duplex (transmit and receive) multistream IP, UDP, or Ethernet frame traffic
with on-demand bandwidth (up to 800 Mbps). Also included is BER testing capability with provision to generate PRBS
patterns or user–defined test patterns. Users can control the duration of traffic, and specify the frame format length,
type, source IP and MAC address and destination IP and MAC address. The application can generate and receive various
PRBS pattern traffic and provide various measurements like Byte Error Rate, Sync Loss Count, Error Count etc. The
application allows monitoring end to end performance statistics such as total packets, packet loss, out of sequence packets,
error packets, correct pattern frames, pattern sync status, and so on.
The Ethernet tester can operate on any of the three layers - Layer 2 (Data Link), Layer 3 (Network), and Layer 4
(Transport) of the OSI reference model. Additionally, the tester can be accessed through a GUI as well as through
Command Line Interface (CLI).
PacketCheck™ Ethernet Tester at Layer 2 (Data Link), Layer 3 (Network),
and Layer 4
(Transport) of OSI model
Applications
- Determine the maximum IP bandwidth consumption, throughput, errors rates in a LAN / WAN
- Determine Round Trip Delay (RTD) between two IP address or two Ethernet MAC addresses with microsecond accuracy
- Testing LAN Data Switch for dropped packets, errors, overload, and so on
- Test CAT 6 / CAT 5 cables for efficiency
Main Features:
- PC based Ethernet Traffic generator which can generate/receive Ethernet or IP traffic of up to 800 Mbps bandwidth.
- Generates/receives Ethernet/IP/UDP traffic
- Multi-stream traffic generator – each stream can be configured for different frame size, bandwidth, MAC, IP and UDP
parameters, payload, mode of operation etc.
- Each stream can operate in Tx, Rx or Tx/Rx mode.
- Bit-error-rate testing (BERT) on layer 2, layer 3, and layer 4 with various measurements - Byte Error Rate, Sync Loss
Count, Error Count etc.
- Generates various PRBS patterns – QRSS, 2^6-1, 2^9-1, 2^11-1, 2^15-1, 2^20-1, 2^23-1
- User Defined test patterns – up to 24 bytes length
- Capability to measure RTD (Round Trip Delay) per stream of 800 µsec accuracy between two IP/MAC address locations
- Capability to generate various per stream Impairments – Insert/Delete Bytes, and Byte Level Impairments (AND, OR, XOR).
- Run time impairments generation – user can turn on/off impairments per stream any time while stream is running
- Capability to generate/respond to ARP requests, making it easy to work with Routers
- Jumbo frames are supported, in addition to all normal frame sizes from 64 bytes to 1518 bytes
- Capability to modify various header parameters for MAC, IP and UDP headers.
- Full flexibility to control per stream traffic duration
- Performs various measurements on the received traffic – Lost Frames, Out Of Order Frames etc.
Ethernet BER Testing
At Layer 2
The bridges, switches, and network interface cards (NIC) work at Layer 2 (Data Link) and handle physical addressing,
packing data into frames, and sequencing data frames. The Layer 2 consists of Logical Link Control (LLC) and Media
Access Control (MAC) sub-layers, which route the packets based on the MAC address. So, only the MAC addresses need
to be configured for layer 2 testing.
GL's PacketCheck™, in the configuration depicted below, can test the basic packet flow over the network. This
test is performed to
- Test the capability of the switch to handle the MAC frames at various bandwidths
- Test the forwarding capacity of the switch (based on the MAC addresses)
- Measure the ability of the switch to deliver the frames in sequence
- Verify incoming data by analyzing bit patterns of the received frames
Scenario 1 - Source & Destination PC in the same LAN, connected through a single switch
Ethernet BER Test Setup at Layer 2 connected through a single switch
Scenario 2 - Source & Destination PC located at different LANs connected through multiple switches.
Ethernet BER Test Setup at Layer 2 connected through multiple switches
At Layer 3/Layer 4
The Network Layer (Layer 3) uses routing technologies to connect various systems within a network or to connect
multiple networks together through Gateways. In Layer 3 testing, packets are routed between the Source and
Destination PCs based on both the IP address and MAC address. So, both the MAC address and the IP address have to
be configured for Layer 3 testing.
The Transport Layer (Layer 4), provides end-to-end, error-free reliable data transfer. TCP and UDP are the most
common Layer 4 protocols. For Layer 4 testing, source and destination UDP ports need to be configured in addition to
MAC and IP addresses.
The Ethernet Tester supports BER testing at Layer 3 as well as Layer 4.
Testing at Layer 3 using GL's PacketCheck™ can be accomplished as shown in the figure below. Here, two
PacketCheck™ applications operate in separate IP networks and are connected through routers, which route the
frames based on the IP addresses in the test frames. Since IP networks encompass various types of physical networks
consisting of LAN and WAN links, there is lot of scope for packet modification, packet loss and out of order packets. GL's
PacketCheck™ helps measure these metrics of the IP network.
Two test scenarios at Layer 3 / 4 are as depicted in the diagram where the information in layer 3 / layer 4 is
transmitted through the network in packets.
Scenario 1 - Source & Destination PC are located within the same IP network, and hence are directly reachable.
Ethernet BERT Indirect Routing Test Setup at Layer 3/ Layer 4 within the same IP network
Scenario 2 - Source & Destination PC are located at different IP networks, and are connected through routers.
Ethernet BERT Indirect Routing Test Setup at Layer 3/ Layer 4 at different IP networks
The test setup for Layer 4 is similar to test setup for Layer 3, as UDP is carried on IP. At Layer 4, proper UDP packets
are sent (instead of raw IP packets as in the case of Layer 3 testing). The testing at Layer 4 (UDP) is useful in cases where
there are firewalls in the network, which typically intervene at network boundaries and handle/modify packets at Layer
4 (TCP/UDP).
Configuration Options
Interface Selection and Details
The MAC address and IP address of the available network cards in a PC is automatically displayed using I/F (Interface)
selection option in the GUI. PacketCheck™ can be configured in Normal or Loopback mode. In “Normal” mode, application
can be configured to perform “Tx” | “Rx” | “Tx and Rx” on multiple streams. In “Loopback” mode the packets (layer2/3/4)
received from a device (DUT) is transmitted back to the same device without any modifications in the pattern.
Interface Selection and Details Settings
Parameter Configuration
Various test parameters can be configured for all the PCs connected to DUTs before starting the test using the
Configuration GUI window. Some key parameters include – Layer/Direction selection, Layer 2 MAC settings, Layer 3 IP
settings, Layer 4 UDP settings, Stream Payload, Tx & Rx Parameter Settings, RTD (µsecs), and various impairments settings.
Interface Configuration Settings
Layer – MAC, IP, UDP Parameters
- [Layer 2] - Ethernet
Configure with source and destination MAC Addresses (6 byte hex format). The source address can be automatically
fetched from the PacketCheck™ application, while the destination MAC address can be obtained using ‘Resolve IP
to MAC’ feature. In addition, user can specify the Length/Type field value
- [Layer 3] - IP
Configure with source and destination IP Addresses. The source address can be automatically fetched from the
PacketCheck™ application. Users can define destination IP address and configure various IP header fields like TOS
field, TTL field and protocol field
- [Layer 4] - UDP
Requires source and destination UDP ports to be defined for Layer 4 testing, which can also be changed as per the
user’s requirements
Receiver GUI Statistics
Payload
Users can choose to insert various types of packets into the stream by enabling the sequence number format, magic
pattern, PRBS patterns through predefined files, and user-defined fixed pattern of up to 24 bytes.
Result Log for Tx and Rx Mode
Tx & Rx Parameters
Tx Parameter settings are applicable to Tx or Tx and Rx modes. Used to configure Frame size, Bandwidth, and
transmission stop condition parameters. Users can specify frame size of fixed / random length, and define the transmission
rate in Bps units. Rx Parameter settings are relevant to Rx and Tx_Rx streams only. The received frame details can be
logged into a binary (*.bin), HDL, and also BERT files, which are used for diagnosis purposes.
CLI Interface Selection Window
Impairments
Users can introduce impairments into the outgoing traffic using various impairment types and duration. Supports
various types of impairments – DELETE BYTES, INSERT BYTES, AND, OR, & XOR. Impairments can be introduced at specific
interval or set to continuous insertion on each stream.
CLI Configuration Settings Window
Statistics and Results
Once the test is started users can view various statistics and measurements performed for the configured streams.
Some parameters displayed include StreamID, Stream Name, Mode, Tx/Rx Frames, Tx/Rx Rate, Lost Frames, Out Of Order
Frames, Frames Dropped, Pattern Error Frames, Good Frames, Non-test Frames Received, Byte Error Rate, Error Status,
Sync Loss Count, Error Count, & RTD.
- Stream ID – ID of the streams as added in the configuration window.
- Stream Name – displays the name of the streams specified while adding in the configuration window.
- Mode – indicates mode of traffic as specified for each stream during configuration.
- Tx Frames– is the number of frames being transmitted for the stream configured in Tx and Tx_Rx mode
- Tx Rate – gives total data rate at which the frames are being transmitted
- Rx Frames– is the number of frames received for the streams configured in Rx or Tx_Rx mode
- Rx Rate – gives rate at which the data are being received
- Lost Frames – gives the count of total lost frames for that particular stream.
- Out Of Order Frames – gives the count of total out of order frames which are received for the particular stream
- Pattern Error Frames– gives the count of total pattern error frames received on that particular stream. This is relevant
for Fixed Pattern only
- Good Frames– count of total frames with matching pattern received
- Non-test Frames Received- Count of all non test frames received on that stream. A received frame is said to be a non
test frame if it does not match the Layer addresses properly.
- Byte Error Rate –. This is relevant for PRBS patterns only. Displays the calculated Byte Error Rate for the PRBS pattern
being received.
- Error Status – Status condition displays 3 states – IN_SYNC, NO_SYNC, NO_RX_DATA (when no data is received)
- Sync Loss Count – display the number of time Sync loss has occurred. This is relevant for PRBS patterns only.
- Error Count - Displays the number of times Error has occurred. This is relevant for PRBS pattern only.
- Round Trip Delay (RTD) –Provides round trip delay measurement for the stream
Normal & Loopback Mode Statistics
Application Notes
Buyer's Guide:
* Specifications are subject to change without notice.
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