Summary Datasheet

2Q 2017

Network Performance Assurance Controller

The SkyLIGHT™ VCX Controller is the industry’s first performance assurance controller employing network function virtualization (NFV) to bring advanced monitoring capabilities network-wide, without the need for expensive, high-end test equipment.

The VCX Controller works together with Accedian’s Nano smart SFP (optical and copper transponder) and compact gigabit Ethernet ant modules to deliver multi-flow traffic generation and ability to monitor thousands of flows.

Don’t Promise Performance. Deliver It.The SkyLIGHT VCX Controller offers enhanced network performance, quality of service (QoS), and quality of experience (QoE) visibility. Applications as diverse as virtualized customer premises equipment (vCPE), mobile network monitoring, and financial services transaction assurance can all be implemented simply, quickly, and ubiquitously.

Designed to fit seamlessly into a service provider’s existing infrastructure and operational practices and procedures, the VCX Controller uses the same interfaces as Accedian standalone solutions to interoperate openly with standards-based network elements, management platforms, analytics platforms, and more.

Virtualized Performance Assurance The VCX Controller was crafted from the code, packet processing technology, and over forty patents that Accedian introduced to transform vanilla network interface devices into fully capable Network Performance Elements.

The VCX Controller assumes “CPU functionality” for thousands of Performance Modules, each acting as a “remote port.” The VCX Controller also maintains synchronization information for each endpoint, permitting highly precise one-way measurements over a variety of remote locations.

Controller Network Performance Modules

• Centralized control over performance assurance virtual network functions (VNFs) supporting thousands of remote Performance Modules • Performs highly scalable 24/7

active one-way L2/L3 performance monitoring directly from the VCX VM, or through NFV-Modules for distributed actuation.

• Enables full line-rate, multi-stream test traffic generation and turn-up test reporting (RFC-2544) through Accedian Modules.

• Enables multi-flow bandwidth utilization metering, filtering and classification on existing modules.

• Easily installed and scaled as a virtual appliance in data centers, or in KVM or VMWare based standalone COTS servers.

• Backward compatible with existing operational practices: • Supports standard Web, CLI

and SNMP management.

• Seamlessly interoperates with Accedian’s standalone Network Performance Elements (NIDs).

• Supports Accedian’s SkyLIGHT Director Vision Module network element management system.

• Plug & Go™ Module auto-discovery.

Solution Benefits

Datasheet • SkyLIGHT™ VCX • 2Q 2017 - 2 -

Continuous Active Performance Monitoring (NFV-PM) Leveraging Accedian’s patented virtual synchronization method, VCX can be used in large scale hub-spoke and full-mesh topologies to perform active, micro-second accurate, standards-based performance monitoring towards thousands of endpoints continuously. Delivering more than 50 precise and granular metrics, the SkyLIGHT solution can be used to monitor micro-outages, one-way delay variation, and service level agreement (SLA) compliance for today’s and tomorrow’s fixed and mobile services.

Through the ingenious architecture of Accedian’s small form factor Performance Modules, the SkyLIGHT solution can send performance flows (actuation) from any starting location to any destination in the network infrastructure, providing an easy-to-install test point originator. This concept allows both site-to-site and X2-interface monitoring, as well as anchored hub-spoke assurance. Since the solution is standards-based, third-/party devices can act as responders to the SkyLIGHT performance monitoring flows.

As a virtual network function (VNF), VCX controller instances can be deployed and orchestrated seamlessly with the network service descriptors, allowing fully-automated setup and assurance of virtual service chains.

Accedian Performance Modules allow instrumentation of physical network functions (PNFs) while VCX and reflector agents instrument the virtual infrastructure. This combination allows bottom-up physical network assurance combined with top-down software-based VNF assurance, providing the operator with a complete view of the end-to-end service.

Feature Benefits

• Virtualized performance monitoring • Probeless & effortless

mass-scale active performance monitoring.

• Monitor directly from within the VCX (KVM / VMWare) VM, or attach NFV-port modules for distributed applications.

• Integrate with northbound SDN, orchestrators, or visualization/analytics engines using APIs.

• Supports Virtual Sync one-way monitoring toward third-party responders from major vendors (Huawei, Cisco, Nokia, Ericsson).

Key Specifications

• Highly scalable active performance monitoring • Up to 80,000 PPS (4,000

flows) per VCX instance: Configurable packet size, reporting granularity, and rate per flow

• Standards compliant: RFC5357 TWAMP, Y-1731, UDP-echo, ICMP-echo

• Provisioning automation RESTful APIs on SkyLIGHT Director Manager

• Granular results reporting • Down to 5-second

reporting.

• 50+ metrics per direction.

• Efficient real-time northbound XML API for result mediation (SkyLIGHT Director Manager Module).

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Service Activation Testing (SAT) Unique to Accedian, Performance Modules are capable of full line-rate test traffic generation, able to create and analyze up to four L2 or L3 unique flows, or run a fully-fledged RFC-2544 service activation test suite toward Accedian or third party endpoints. This allows service providers to test the service path at turn-up and re-validate on-demand the capacity of a specific path or service during maintenance windows for troubleshooting.

Truck-rolls and on-site use of labor and test sets are eliminated with Modules. Customers can self-install, and retain Modules for their complementary performance monitoring capabilities once the service is activated. Limitations of head-end, probe-based solutions are also eliminated: high cost, network traffic load, scheduling limitations, and the inability to test directly between sites.

The VCX Controller assumes all session setup, control, and sequencing functions, as well as results analysis and reporting to file servers. Modules respond to traffic generation commands (burst or constant traffic type, rate, number of packets, flow characteristics) to conduct tests, and pass base-level metrics back to the VCX for results processing.

Layer 2 or 3 – Fully Automated Test Suite

SAT tests can be conducted between a VCX-controlled Nano Module and a standalone Performance Element (vCPE)—or any other standards-compliant test set or NID. To the far-end test device, the Module appears the same as any other standards-based test endpoint. Any SAT protocol messages received by the Module are mediated by the VCX Controller.

Feature Benefits

• Multi-flow traffic generation from any module installed in the network: • Delivers remote turn up

and full mesh testing without the cost, truck rolls and labor associated with hand-held test sets.

• Permits on-demand testing from any live service endpoint for service pre-deployment assessment and troubleshooting.

• Combines service activation testing (SAT) with continuous performance monitoring in a single remote device.

Key Specifications

• Full line-rate test traffic generation and analysis • User specified test flow

parameters: C/S V-LAN (stacked), MEG Level, constant or stepped bandwidth, bit rate, frame size, test duration, and more.

• Multiple simultaneous concurrent, unique flows.

• Test multiple endpoints simultaneously.

• Detailed results reporting • Frames sent, received, lost

gaps, OOO, delay: min / max / avg.

• Automated report generation.

• Available with GUI and CLI.

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Bandwidth Utilization Metering (FlowMETER™) Bandwidth utilization, when precisely measured, can reveal transient peaks leading to TCP throughput impairments. Per-service metering also permits usage-based billing, including on-demand and excess information rate (EIR) burst consumption pricing models, aside from trending and traffic pattern analysis.

The VCX Controller processes per-flow bandwidth utilization metrics from Modules under its control, using time-stamps as well as bytes and packets counters to accurately report throughput and consumption. When used in conjunction with packet loss and other measurements, service providers can detect network bottlenecks and estimate available capacity—key metrics to assure and enforce the delivery of off-net services. Upload and download usage statistics can be monitored separately. The VCX Controller records utilization data based on one second samples, and reports as either 1-second streamed data or 1-minute min/max/average metrics.

Multi-Flow Traffic Classification The traffic filters that specify monitored flows for bandwidth utilization can also be used to define loopbacks and traffic filtering.

Loopbacks Loopback reflectors can be setup to relay specific flows with MAC / IP address swap, allowing Modules to act as test endpoints for Accedian or third-party test sets and probes.

Filtering Drop/permit traffic passage for any defined flow, uni- or bi-directionally.

Feature Benefits

• Real-time bandwidth monitoring on classified flows from any installed Module • Define flows using granular

filtering criteria.

• Monitor in each direction or aggregate up/downstream metrics.

• Metrics visualization with the Accedian reporting module (ARM) or cloud-based VisionMETRIX.

Key Specifications

• Traffic Filtering Criteria • Logical filters at Layers 1,

2, 3 & 4, such as: L2CP, BDPU, per VLAN, Ethertype, Protocol type, MAC, IP, or User Defined, and more.

• Can be applied uni or bi-directionally.

• Traffic processing speed: Multiple flows totaling full line-rate (GbE).

• In-line or out-of-line Accedian FlexMonitor mode allows using FlowMETER on a mirror / span-port, for out-of-line metering.

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Module Management The VCX Controller acts as a lightweight Module element manager, providing a centralized platform to view the inventory of Modules available for VCX control, as well as addressing and feature support configuration for individual Modules.

Available Modules View list of modules available for remote port assignment, discovered using Accedian’s L2 Plug & Go™ or L3 IP-agnostic scanning zero-touch provisioning technologies:

Remote Port Management Quickly see and configure all remote ports in Modules under the VCX Controller’s management, along with status, connectivity state, media type and address:

Performance Monitoring Mode Management Enable TWAMP and Y.1731 frame reflection for compatibility with Accedian performance assurance solutions and test traffic generated by standards-based network elements and third-party test platforms.

Feature Benefits

• Fully automated remote Module discovery • Easily select from L2 Plug

& Go™ deployed units.

• Enables customer and installation technician install with no pre-configuration.

• Supports all network types.

• Proven in multi-domain, multi-technology networks with over 300,000 devices auto-provisioned in 350+ service provider networks.

• NNI and UNI ports easily defined for each discovered Module • Simplified operations,

reduced OpEx, and centralized management of hundreds of remote devices.

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Deployment Options SkyLIGHT VCX can be deployed on hosted cloud resources running VMware ESXi or KVM hypervisors as a virtual appliance (OVA), or can be installed on a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) server running VMware ESXi or KVM. A variety of highly scalable options make this solution adaptable to existing compute resource strategies, including D-NFV deployment approaches.

Accedian also offers a turnkey physical appliance version of the VCX Controller on company-supported and warranted hardware. These options, combined with support for distributed NFV deployment models, ensure capabilities scale economically as platform use increases.

VCX Virtual Appliance Specifications The specifications below relate to the VCX virtual instance. For detailed specifications on the Accedian performance Modules (Nano and ant gen 1 and gen 2), or the specifications of Accedian’s standalone physical SkyLIGHT Appliance, please refer to the respective datasheet for that product.

Supported Browsers Firefox version 21 and later, Google Chrome ver. 28 and above, Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 & 10

CLI Accessible via SSH or local VM console

Virtualization Platforms VMWare ESXi 5.5 or higher KVM kernel 3.10, QEMU 1.5.3 and libvirt 1.2.8

VM Requirements

Direct PM Actuation from VCX VM 1 Core @ 2Ghz (typical E5) 4 GB RAM

PM Actuation through NFV-Port Modules 4 Cores @ 2Ghz (typical E5) 8 GB RAM

40Gb HDD, thin provisioning1 NIC minimum, two recommended. Intel i350 chipset for increased PM accuracy using HW-assist

Supported Modules Nano and ant Modules (first generation and second generation with advanced features)

Max # of Controlled Modules 1,500 per VCX instance

Total Number of Interfaces 3,010 (3,000 remote, 10 VM local)

Northbound Integration SNMP, NTP client, Syslog; IPv4 & IPv6 management access

Northbound Reporting Supports Accedian Reporting Modules for FlowMETER data

Feature-Specific Details

24/7 Active Performance Monitoring Up to 4,000 concurrent Y.1731 / RFC5357 TWAMP flows at 20 pps each per VM instance. Remote actuation through NFV-Port Modules of up to 2,000 flows per NFV port.

Traffic Generator & RFC2544 Test Suite

Multiple configurable L2/L3 flows per remote port, up to 1Gbps in total. Test traffic generated at remote port on Module. Licensed feature.

Bandwidth Utilization Per Flow 4 configurable flow-definitions (filters) per Module port for up to 2,000 flow-definitions per VCX with 1 second reporting using VisionCollect, or 1 minute reporting using history buckets. Licensed feature.

FlowBROKER Support 10 flow-definitions (filters) per Module for up to 1,000 flow-definitions per VCX. Up to 4 Analyzers per Analyzer-set with up to 100 Analyzers per VCX. ERSPAN, RAW or PCAP output of captured data.

L2/L3/L4 Loopbacks, filters & PM Responders

2x configurable wirespeed loopback filters per Module. 16 TWAMP reflection sessions and one Y.1731 responder per Module. 500 MEP instances per VCX. 4,000 stateful TWAMP reflector instances per VCX

© 2017 Accedian Networks Inc. All rights reserved. Accedian, the Accedian logo, ant Module, airMODULE, FlowBROKER, FlowMETER, Nano Module, Network State+, Plug & Go, SkyLIGHT, VisionMETRIX, and Vision Module are trademarks or registered trademarks of Accedian Networks Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective companies. Accedian Networks may, from time to time, make changes to the products or specifications contained herein without notice. Some certifications may be pending final approval, please contact Accedian for current certifications.