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915-2803-01 Rev. B, December 2013www.ixiacom.com

Xcellon-Flex™: Next-Generation Aggregation Architecturefor Next-Generation Testing

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Table of ContentsIntroduction ................................................................................................ 4

Data Center Evolution .................................................................................. 4

The Need for The “Right Kind” of Testing ................................................... 7

Ixia Introduces Xcellon™ – the Future of Testing ........................................ 8

Xcellon-Flex™ .............................................................................................10

Conclusion .................................................................................................. 11

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Introduction It’s no great statement to note that the Internet has become a ubiquitous part of daily life for most people. We have entered an always-on, always connected world where globally people transmit data not hour to hour, but minute to minute, and are rapidly moving to second by second. Data transmission across the various Internet segments has increased exponentially. The types of traffic, and the network infrastructure, network computing power, and bandwidth required to support it has multiplied as more and more people use multiplay, media-rich content services and applications daily.

The increasing demand and dependency on Internet resources is undeniable. High speed Internet used to be a luxury 10 to 15 years ago, but has evolved into a primary method of communication and research – from college students to professionals to friends and relatives. Web presence, social networking sites, and high definition media services grew explosively, while businesses and enterprises continued to expand existing large databases with one or more duplicate backup sites. More recently, a rapid adoption of network based services such as desktop virtualization and cloud computing has begun to manifest as a new paradigm of network management.

With that comes the effect on WANs, LANs, and data centers across the world. There is no doubt as we move into an even more mobile and connected world that the scale, types, and complexities of traffic will continue to exponentially grow. As new technologies interact with and supersede existing networking architectures, the test methods to validate new network designs for high scale services must also grow to accommodate new requirements.

Core routers have evolved from simple forwarding devices to multi-dimensional protocol powerhouses that must be able to support high-speed, multi-function interfaces that can forward traffic at full line-rate – often at rates of 40 and 100 Gbps. The Internet of today services a massive scale of users and services, and requires next-generation edge and core routers that can meet the control and data plane demand.

Globally, empowered consumers at home, at work, and on the move now demand “any play” services-rich experiences that combine voice, video, and data to any device, at any time, over multiple access types. Experience providers that can deliver this level of service convergence can enjoy the following business and networking benefits:

• Capitalize on new service and market opportunities

• Provision secure, blended experiences for rapid consumer adoption

• Enable consumers to personalize next-generation services for virtually any end-user device

Data Center EvolutionData centers are undergoing a tremendous evolution in an effort to improve infrastructure utilization, energy-efficiency, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness, as well as to streamline cloud computing and high performance computing (HPC) services. The convergence of services into single packet-based network, along with huge demands for media-rich content (including HD video, gamining, and streaming services) have created demands for higher bandwidth and higher speed Ethernet and port density.

The increasing demand and

dependency on Internet resources is

undeniable.

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Key trends include I/O consolidation, server virtualization, integration of higher speed Ethernet, and convergence of Internet storage and HPC traffic over a unified Ethernet network.

Key trends include I/O consolidation, server virtualization, integration of higher speed Ethernet, and convergence of Internet storage and HPC traffic over a unified Ethernet network. A new generation of data center equipment and technologies is under development to facilitate this transformation.

Evolving data center

Fibre channel over Ethernet (FCoE) and Fibre Channel (FC) switches are responsible for the overall performance of the converged data center. The next generation data center will carry various technologies over a converged 10 GE link, and data center operators expect the switches to be high density, high throughput, ultra-low latency/jitter, and be able to bridge the FCoE network to the native fibre channel infrastructure.

Storage area networks (SANs) hold the lifeline of an organization’s operations. The storage area network must be able to process requests with minimum latency, minimum error, and maximum performance from hundreds of initiators simultaneously.

Data center virtualization is one of the most important IT paradigm shifts in decades. By virtualizing the hardware/software interface, the applications are freed from the constraints of the underlying hardware platform. In this new data center model hardware resources – even server-grade platforms – become a commodity that can be replaced or upgraded with no impact on mission-critical services.

Virtualization software introduces new variables with respect to server performance, which must be taken into consideration before migrating services to the virtual environment. For example, a company might not migrate all database servers to virtual architectures due to additional latency and storage access issues that lead to vast reductions in end user quality of experience (QoE).

Virtualization, along with convergence of LAN and SAN traffic over converged network adapters (CNAs), makes more efficient and flexible use of data center resources, but in doing so, it also increases the workload and complexity of server architecture, and puts new and significant demands on server resources.

All these new and converging technologies have led to an amazing and rapid evolution in data center scope and expectation. There has been a rapid growth in switch density, converged Ethernet network infrastructure, server virtualization, and cloud-computing deployments.

FCoESwitch

LosslessEthernet

StorageArea Network

VirtualizedServers

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Recent studies have shown that for the period between 2008 and 2013, 10 GE network equipment will have a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 72% for copper and optical interfaces, as well as a CAGR of 40% for SONET, wave-division multiplexing (WDM), and Ethernet.

Projected growth in the market for Higher Speed Ethernet ports, Infonetics Research1

This expansion is necessary for data centers to capitalize on the expected increase in monetization of network services and applications.

1. Infonetics Research, 10G/40G/100G Annual Worldwide Market Size and Forecast, 2/16/2010

Recent studies have shown that for the

period between 2008 and 2013, 10 GE network equipment will

have a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 72% for copper and optical interfaces, as well as a CAGR of 40% for SONET, wave-

division multiplexing (WDM), and

Ethernet.

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As data centers begin adding new devices and creating new networks to handle the influx of traffic, they will need to test on a completely new level in order to validate their approach with pre-deployment testing.

Higher Speed Ethernet Revenue Growth Projections, Infonetics Research2

The Need for The “Right Kind” of TestingAs data centers begin adding new devices and creating new networks to handle the influx of traffic, they will need to test on a completely new level in order to validate their approach with pre-deployment testing. Equipment manufacturers designing products for data centers must validate their network equipment at a new and unprecedented performance and scale levels. Network equipment must be built to anticipate increases in scale, performance, and services that require more memory and bandwidth. Devices that only meet current requirements will not have capacity to meet future needs. Equipment must be stress tested in anticipation of future network requirements.

The growth in network bandwidth doubles every 18 months and the growth in network computing doubles every 24 months. An IT infrastructure manager has to anticipate switch, router, server, storage, and security devices with these growth trends in mind. Besides the initial outlay of hardware expense, operating vast numbers of testing devices consumes ever-increasing levels of resources and energy. Both equipment manufacturers and service providers need to watch the bottom line as they develop the tools and delivery mechanisms

of next-generation of data centers. A testing solution for these next-generation networks and devices must also take into account a customer’s ROI for testing solutions and platforms.

2. Infonetics Research, 10G/40G/100G Annual Worldwide Market Size and Forecast, 2/16/2010

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Ixia Introduces Xcellon™ – the Future of TestingWith this new paradigm in mind, Ixia introduces its newest high-performance and scale 10 GE test solution – Xcellon™. Xcellon is a new architecture specifically designed to validate next-generation core and data center networks. Its flexibility provides the required performance, scalability, port density, and energy efficiency needed to address the expanding testing requirements of next-generation networks and smart devices.

Xcellon-Flex is designed to adapt and fully support the data center convergence and cloud-computing paradigms that are changing the dynamics of business IT. It validates the performance of a wide range of networking devices and services, including routers, switches, web application servers, application-aware firewalls, application delivery controllers, and security platforms. Ixia’s new state-of-the-art load modules, based on the Xcellon architecture, ensure that carrier and data center networks are ready to handle millions of mobile and fixed subscribers, with a high quality of service (QoS). The Xcellon product family leverages cutting-edge multi-core processors, huge per-port memofy allocations, and high test port density to generate traffic and routing protocol emulations on the extreme scale required for next-generation networks. Its unique design provides aggregation technology combining the processing power of multi-core CPUs, delivering up to 12 times the per-port performance of the nearest competitor.

Ixia Xcellon testing solution is:

• The first product in the industry to offer flexibility of performance, scale, and expanded testing modes

• Able to offer scalable performance through aggregation

• Double the port density of any 10 GE product in the industry

• Future-proof, with a design that delivers greater ROI than any other existing product

• Greater than 30% more energy efficient than existing 10 GE solutions

The power of Xcellon comes from its cutting-edge aggregation architecture that leverages multi-core processors and memory into distinct “resource groups.” Each port uses several processors and large amounts of memory to generate high levels of traffic, but the resources can also be switched behind a single port – bringing to bear the entire processing and memory power of a port group to a single port interface. This resource allocation allows QA engineers to send massive amounts of data and traffic types through a single physical port connection.

CPU and memory aggregation technology maximizes per port scaling and capacity performance by 4 times. Aggregation provides the maximum resource flexibility required for high-scale testing.

Xcellon-Flex is designed to adapt and fully support

the data center convergence and cloud-computing

paradigms that are changing

the dynamics of business IT.

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Xcellon-Flex using a single resource group in normal mode

Xcellon-Flex using a single resource group in aggregation mode

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The Xcellon-Flex architecture lowers

total cost of test and is future-proofed

to scale with future network demands.

Ixia introduced aggregation in its NGY product as early as 2007, and has capitalized and improved upon on the success of that platform in its new Xcellon family of load modules.

Xcellon-Flex™The Xcellon-Flex™ product line breaks the terabit traffic generation barrier in a single chassis, with full layer 2-7 10 GE network testing. It provides double the port density of competitive solutions, up to 12 times the per-port performance of other solutions, and 30% less power consumption than the previous generation of 10 GE ports. It supports data center bridging technologies such as Fiber Channel over Ethernet (FCoE), priority flow control (PFC), and data center bridging exchange (DCBX).

Xcellon-Flex adapts to changing test needs through aggregation – the combination of processor and memory power from multiple ports into a single port. A single chassis with eight 10 GE load modules can transmit over 1.2 terabits of line-rate data, which is equivalent to all 22 Blu-Ray DVDs from the James Bond movie collection within 4 seconds.

Xcellon-Flex load module

Xcellon-Flex is state-of-the-art hardware that:

• Uses 16 ports with SFP+ interfaces

• Has up to 12 times the scaling/performance as closest competitor

• Supports full layer 2-3 protocol emulation

• Emulates high performance layer 4-7 stateful TCP and application layer protocol testing

• Can emulate up to 24 thousand BGP peers per port

• Can emulate up to 13 thousand OSPF sessions per port

• Can emulate up to 1500 BFD sessions per port

• Demonstrates a BGP route convergence time (150M routes) of under 25 seconds

The Xcellon-Flex architecture lowers total cost of test and is future-proofed to scale with future network demands.

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To meet the challenges of this new level of traffic, Ixia introduces Xcellon-Flex – an extremely high performance solution, with incredibly high-scaling protocol emulation capability.

ConclusionWe are entering a new and challenging phase in network deployment. Just around the corner is an unprecedented level of media-rich traffic that requires next-generation devices and systems that can accommodate the unbelievable levels of complex traffic, performance, and scale required for future users of the network. Both wired and wireless traffic use will exponentially escalate as more and more people become connected.

To meet the challenges of this new level of traffic, Ixia introduces Xcellon-Flex – an extremely high performance solution, with incredibly high-scaling protocol emulation capability. Xcellon-Flex’s aggregation technology offers maximum flexibility. It provides the best of both worlds: regular mode for normal testing, and aggregated mode for ultra-high scale testing. Xcellon-Flex is the first test solution to offer aggregation at 10 Gbps.

Xcellon-Flex will grow and expand in capabilities as future enhancements are needed, leveraging its aggregation technology. The customer’s investment is protected. Xcellon-Flex 10 GE test solutions provide unique innovations that add new levels of performance and test approaches to Ixia’s portfolio of layer 1 through 7 test systems not available for other sources.

Ixia stands ready to meet and exceed these challenges with its new Xcellon testing hardware – next generation test architecture for next generation networks.

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(Toll Free North America)1.877.367.4942

(Outside North America)+1.818.871.1800(Fax) 818.871.1805www.ixiacom.com

Ixia European HeadquartersIxia Technologies Europe LtdClarion House, Norreys DriveMaidenhead SL6 4FLUnited Kingdom

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915-2803-01 Rev. B, December 2013