Axtrinet APG4 User manual

Ethernet Packet Generator
TEST SUITE USER GUIDE
APG-TS-TCL-UG-V1.0 1 8 February 2018
Ethernet Packet Generator
TEST SUITE
USER GUIDE
Version 1.0
APG4 APG8 APG200 APG208

Ethernet Packet Generator
TEST SUITE USER GUIDE
APG-TS-TCL-UG-V1.0 2 8 February 2018
Software Revisions
This document applies to the following software versions:
APG Unit Firmware
Version 2.1
APG Processing Core
Version 6.010E
APG TCL API
Version 1.1.3
APG TCL TS API
Version 1.0.2
APG TS RFC2544
Version 1.0.2
Revision History
Date
Version
Changes
8 February 2018
1.0
First release

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TEST SUITE USER GUIDE
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Document Conventions
INFORMATION:
Additional information to clarify functionality or usability
WARNING:
Clarification of unexpected or restricted functionality
Disclaimer
Axtrinet retains the right to make changes to this document at any time, without notice. The
information in this document is believed to be accurate and reliable. Axtrinet does not warrant
the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics or other items contained within
this document.
Axtrinet provides the software and the documentation "as is" without warranties of any kind.
Axtrinet disclaims all warranties and representations of any kind relating to products, software
or services provided hereunder, whether express, implied, statutory, including without
limitation the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy,
or non-infringement of third party rights.
Axtrinet does not warrant that the software will in every case process all data correctly, or that
operation of the products, including software, will be uninterrupted, free from error, or secure.
The disclaimers in this section will not apply to the extent prohibited by applicable law.
The software is not designed, intended, or certified for use in components of systems intended
for the operation of weapons, weapons systems, nuclear installations, means of mass
transportation, aviation, medical systems, devices, implants, or equipment, pollution control,
hazardous substances management, or for any other dangerous application in which the failure
of the products could create a situation where bodily injury or death may occur. The use of the
software in any such application is solely at your own risk.
Copyright statement
Copyright © 2018 Xentech Solutions Limited, all rights reserved. The information contained in
this document is the property of Xentech Solutions Limited. No part of this publication shall be
reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written
permission of Xentech Solutions Limited.
Axtrinet™ is a trading name and registered trademark of Xentech Solutions Ltd.
Trademarks
Windows is a registered trademark or trademark of Microsoft Corporation, registered in the
U.S. and other countries.
Axtrinet is a registered trademark of Xentech Solutions Limited, registered in the UK.

Ethernet Packet Generator
TEST SUITE USER GUIDE
APG-TS-TCL-UG-V1.0 4 8 February 2018
Preface
About This Document
This manual describes the structure and commands of the Axtrinet Test Suite, and contains the
following sections:
Section
Description
1. INTRODUCTION
Introduction to the Axtrinet Test Suite Interface.
2. INSTALLATION
Installation, running the interface and getting started.
3. MENU BAR
Menu Bar options
4. CONNECTION PANE
Connecting to and disconnecting from an Axtrinet APG.
5. CONFIGURATION TABS
Test Configuration options, port selection and running tests.
6. REPORTS
Location of Report directories
Related Documentation
[1] APG-UG Axtrinet User Guide (including APG Control Interface)
[2] APG-TCL-UG Axtrinet TCL User Guide
[3] APG-TCL-TS-UG Axtrinet TCL Test Suite User Guide
[4] APG-SW-TC Axtrinet APG Software License Terms And Conditions
Visit www.axtrinet.com/documentation for the latest documentation.
References
[5] RFC 1242 Benchmarking Terminology for Network Interconnect Devices. July 1991
https://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc1242.txt
[6] RFC 2544 Benchmarking Methodology for Network Interconnect Devices, March 1999
https://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2544.txt

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Glossary
APG Axtrinet Packet Generator
API Application Programming Interface
DA Destination Address
DUT Device Under Test
FCS Frame Checksum
GUI Graphical User Interface
LAN Local Area Network
MAC Media Access Controller
MPLS Multiprotocol Label Switching
pps Packets per Second
SA Source Address
SFP Small Form-Factor Pluggable (1Gbps)
SFP+ Small Form-Factor Pluggable (10Gbps)
TCL Tool Command Language
VLAN Virtual LAN

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Contents
1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................. 7
1.1 Tests Suites .................................................................................................... 7
1.2 Test Environment ........................................................................................... 7
1.3 Software Licences and Support....................................................................... 7
1.4 Contact Details ............................................................................................... 8
2. INSTALLATION ............................................................................................... 9
2.1 Prerequisites .................................................................................................. 9
2.1.1 Windows Environment........................................................................................ 9
2.1.2 Linux Environment............................................................................................. 9
2.2 Running the Test Suite ................................................................................... 9
2.3 Getting Started ............................................................................................. 10
3. MENU BAR .................................................................................................... 11
3.1 File Menu ...................................................................................................... 11
3.2 Test Suite Menu ............................................................................................ 11
3.3 Report Menu ................................................................................................. 12
3.4 About............................................................................................................ 12
4. CONNECTION PANE ...................................................................................... 12
5. CONFIGURATION TABS ................................................................................. 13
5.1 Report Tab.................................................................................................... 13
5.2 Global Tab .................................................................................................... 14
5.2.1 VLAN Headers ..................................................................................................14
5.2.2 MPLS Headers ..................................................................................................15
5.3 RFC2544 Tab ................................................................................................ 15
5.3.1 Traffic .............................................................................................................15
5.3.2 Throughput Test ...............................................................................................16
5.3.3 Latency Test ....................................................................................................16
5.3.4 Frame Loss Test ...............................................................................................17
5.3.5 Back-to-Back Frame Test...................................................................................17
5.3.6 Recovery Test ..................................................................................................17
5.3.7 Reset Test .......................................................................................................18
5.4 Port Mapping Tab.......................................................................................... 18
5.5 Run Tab ........................................................................................................ 19
6. REPORTS ...................................................................................................... 20
6.1 Test Suite Results Directory ......................................................................... 20
6.1.1 Windows Environment.......................................................................................20
6.1.2 Linux Environment............................................................................................20
6.2 DUT Results Directory................................................................................... 20
6.3 Output Files .................................................................................................. 20

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1. INTRODUCTION
The APG Test Suite provides configuration and control of the RFC2544 Test Suite within the
APG TCL environment.
APG TCL API
API Interface
APG Control
Interface
Management Interface
Ethernet
API Interface
APG Management
Packet Generator FPGA
10Gbps 10Gbps 10Gbps 10Gbps 10Gbps 10Gbps 10Gbps 10Gbps 40Gbps 40Gbps
Test Suites
User TCL
DUT
TS-GUI
1.1 TESTS SUITES
The APG Test Suite supports:
RFC2544 Benchmarking Methodology for Network Interconnect Devices, March 1999
1.2 TEST ENVIRONMENT
The Test Suite Test Environment consists of a single Axtrinet Packet Generator, managed from
a single APG TCL environment.
The APG Test Suites use the APG TCL API that only runs over the Ethernet
Management Interface.
1.3 SOFTWARE LICENCES AND SUPPORT
See the Axtrinet APG Software License Terms & Conditions [4]
Email based software support is included in the purchase price for the first 12 months after
delivery. Extended Software Support is available for purchase; please contact Axtrinet or your
reseller for more information.

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TEST SUITE USER GUIDE
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1.4 CONTACT DETAILS
Technical assistance is available from Axtrinet at the following address:
Address:
Xentech Solutions
Suite 6 Stanta Business Centre
3 Soothouse Spring
St Albans
AL3 6PF
UK
Phone:
[phone]
Email:
Technical Support:
Sales:
[e-mail]
[email protected]
Web Site:
www.axtrinet.com

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TEST SUITE USER GUIDE
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2. INSTALLATION
The APG Test Suite are installed as part of the standard TCL installation process as described
in the APG User Guide [1] Section 2.
2.1 PREREQUISITES
2.1.1 Windows Environment
A TCL distribution (such as Activestate®ActiveTcl) must be installed before using the APG
TCL TS API. The distribution must include TK.
The PDF Report Generation uses pdflatex, included in appropriate latex package.
TeX Live for Windows and MiKTex are recommended, but any working pdflatex should
be acceptable.
2.1.2 Linux Environment
The TCL package for your 8.6.x distribution must be installed before using the APG TCL TS
API. The distribution must include TK.
The PDF Report Generation uses pdflatex, included in appropriate latex package for your
distribution. TeX Live is recommended, but any working pdflatex should be acceptable.
Likely suitable packages are: on Arch, texlive-bin; on Fedora/Centos, texlive-latex; and on
on Debian/Ubuntu, texlive.
2.2 RUNNING THE TEST SUITE
Start the APG Control Interface:
On Linux, click the home / APGTestSuite icon or execute user/bin/apgtestsuite
On the Windows Start menu, locate the Axtrinet directory and click on the APG Test Suite
icon.
The APG Test Suite management window will be displayed:
Menu Bar
Connection Pane
Configuration Tabs
APG Test Suite on Linux APG Test Suite on Windows
The following screenshots show the Test Suite on Linux.

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2.3 GETTING STARTED
The minimum set of actions required to run the RFC2544 Tests is:
1. Enter the IP Address of the Axtrinet APG unit and click on the connect checkbox.
2. Select the 'Port Mapping' tab and select 2 test ports.
3. Select the 'Run' tab and select the required tests.
4. Click the 'Start' button to run the tests
The selected tests will run and generate a log file and PDF report of the tests (see Section 6)

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3. MENU BAR
3.1 FILE MENU
The FILE Menu provides:
NEW CONFIGURATION
Clears all configuration fields to their default
values.
OPEN CONFIGURATION
Opens a file select window to select and load
an existing configuration file.
SAVE CONFIGURATION
Opens a file select window to save the current
test configuration and test port configuration to
a file.
EXIT TEST SUITE
Close the Test Suite application.
SAVE CONFIGURATION saves the current configuration as a TCL script that can be loaded
later.
If connected to an Axtrinet unit, the default filename is the unit serial number (eg APG000010)
followed by "-TS.apg", ie APG000010-TS.apg. The Test Suite and selected port configurations
are saved.
If not connected to a unit, only the Test Suite configuration is saved. The default filename is
TESTSUITE.apg.
The behaviour of the OPEN CONFIGURATION also depends on the connection status. The
Port Configuration settings are ignored if not connected to a unit.
3.2 TEST SUITE MENU
The TEST SUITE Menu provides the Test Suite
selection options.
Currently only RFC2544 is available.

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3.3 REPORT MENU
The REPORT Menu provides the report generation
options:
VERBOSE OUTPUT
If checked, displays the test progress when run
from the command line.
For the PDF output:
FULL REPORT
If checked, generates the test description and
methodology in the report.
PAPER SIZE - A4 or Letter size
3.4 ABOUT
The ABOUT option displays:
Test Suite GUI Version
RFC2544 Test Version
4. CONNECTION PANE
The CONNECTION PANE provides the connection to the Axtrinet unit.
The Unit IP address is entered in the Connection
Panel.
Click the Net checkbox to connect to the unit.
The connection status, unit type, serial number
and API version are displayed.
To disconnect, click the Net checkbox.
The 'Not Connected' message is displayed.

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5. CONFIGURATION TABS
The Configuration Tabs allow configuration of:
Report settings
Global and test specific variables
Axtrinet APG test port settings
Test enable/disable
5.1 REPORT TAB
The REPORT Tab provides the data entry fields for the report title page:
Note: Report variables are for
information only and are not required to
run the tests. Blank fields are not
included in the report.
Where:
FULL REPORT
MODEL
SERIAL NUMBER
HARDWARE VERSION
FIRMWARE VERSION
SOFTWARE VERSION
REVISION
TEST PORTS
NOTES
CLASSIFICATION
START TIME
TEST DATE
TEST
DATE
TEST
ENABLE
MODEL
AUTHOR
COMPANY

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5.2 GLOBAL TAB
The GLOBAL Tab allows configuration of the global packet and test variables:
PACKET OPTIONS
The MAC DA/SA and Ethertype headers are
always configured for the test packet.
Up to 1024 MAC Address, up to 3 VLAN and
MPLS headers can be added if required.
Payload data can be configured to All-0s,
All-1s, Incrementing or Random.
FRAME SIZES
Space delimited list of frame sizes (packet
lengths) to be used for the tests.
If no frame sizes are defined, the default set is
used (64,128,256,512,1024,1280,1514)
TEST CONFIGURATION
Sets Number of MAC addresses, Test Duration
and Test Timeout.
The test packet can be configured with up to 65535 MAC Addresses, 0-3 VLAN headers, 0-5
MPLS headers
HEADERS PAYLOAD FCS
TIMESTAMP
(if requried)
EG:
All-1s, All-0s, Incrementing, Random
DA SA MPLSTYPE MPLS
DA SA VLAN TYPEVLAN ←2 VLAN HEADERS
←3 MPLS HEADERS
FRAME_SIZES
MPLS
5.2.1 VLAN Headers
Up to 3 VLAN headers can be configured on the test packet, with the following values:
The value of the TPID field depends on the number of stacked VLANs. It is set to 0x8100
for single or inner VLANs, and 0x9200 if on the outer VLAN.
The PRI field is always 0
The CFI field is always 0.
The VID field increments from 1 for each level
If a VLAN header is enabled, VLAN-aware Ethernet Switches may discard
packets if the switch VLAN configuration does not match the header
configuration.

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5.2.2 MPLS Headers
Up to 5 MPLS headers can be configured on the test packet, with the following values:
The Label field increments from 1 for each level
The Traffic Class field is always 0
The Bottom-of-Stack field is set to 1 if the last header, otherwise it is set to 0.
The Time-To-Live field is always 64.
5.3 RFC2544 TAB
The RFC2544 Tab allows configuration of the variables specific to the RFC2544 tests:
TRAFFIC
Fixed Uni-directional
TEST RUNS
Number of test runs (Latency, Back-to-Back,
Recovery and Reset tests only). Default 50.
CLEAN RUNS
Frame Loss tests only. Default 2
The test-specific variables are:
Latency
Duration, Samples and Measurement Mode
Back-to-Back Frames
Maximum Burst Size at the start of each test.
Recovery
Overload period
Reset
Paths to OFF and ON scripts, and reset delay.
5.3.1 Traffic
The RFC2544 tests are point-to-point tests, run with unidirectional traffic.
a) Uni-directional Tests
DUTAPG
DUTAPG
Port A
Port B
{1 1}
{1 2}
Port A
Port B
{1 1}
{1 2}

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5.3.2 Throughput Test
The Throughput Test measures the maximum input data rate between the test ports at each
specified frame size where no packet loss occurs.
The test reports the throughput rate for each FRAME SIZE.
5.3.3 Latency Test
The Latency Test measures the delay through the test ports at each specified FRAME SIZE.
The Latency Test requires the Throughput Test to be run first to determine the throughput rate
of the test port. The Throughput Test will be run automatically if not selected.
DURATION specifies the length of each latency test in seconds. The measurement window
occurs after half of the DURATION has elapsed, when SAMPLES timing samples are taken
from the received packet stream.
DURATION (secs)
T=0 Sampling
Window
Transmit continuous
packets at MAX
THROUGHPUT RATE
Measurements taken from
SAMPLES packets
0% 50% 100%
MODE sets the measurement type for "Store and Forward" or "Cut Through" devices, and
changes the way the latency is measured:
TEST PACKET
TIME
T=TOUT
TEST PACKET
T=TIN
“FIRST BIT IN” TO “FIRST BIT OUT” Used for CUT THROUGH Latency Measurements
TEST PACKET
TIME
T=TOUT
TEST PACKET
T=TIN
“LAST BIT IN” TO “FIRST BIT OUT” Used for STORE AND FORWARD Latency Measurements
The latency tests capture packets and post-process the extracted timestamp information at the
end of each test.
The Axtrinet APG timestamps the transmitted packet as it leaved the Packet Generator Engine,
and the received packet as it enters the Receiver. The latency through the transmitter MAC /
SERDES and receiver SERDES / MAC are known, and are subtracted from the calculated
transmit-to-receive latency.
Optical transceivers and Direct Attach (DA) cables transmit the serial data stream from the
SERDES directly, and do not add to the internal latency.

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Inserting 10GBase-T transceivers into the SFP+ ports adds an additional delay as the packet
passes through the device.
The latency tests automatically subtract the known latencies from the overall latency
measurement.
The test is run TEST RUN times.
The test reports the averaged latency for each FRAME SIZE.
5.3.4 Frame Loss Test
The Frame Loss Test measures the frame loss across the range of input data rates and FRAME
SIZEs. Each test passes if the number of consecutive CLEAN RUNS result in no packet loss.
The test reports the frame loss for each FRAME SIZE and frame rate.
5.3.5 Back-to-Back Frame Test
The Back-to-Back Frame Test characterises the ability of the DUT to process a burst of
wirespeed packets at varying FRAME SIZEs. On the first run, MAX BURST SIZE packets are
transmitted into the DUT. The burst size is adjusted until no packet are lost.
The test is run TEST RUN times.
The test reports the averaged burst size for each FRAME SIZE.
5.3.6 Recovery Test
The Recovery Test requires the Throughput Test to be run first to determine the throughput
rate of the test port. The Throughput Test will be run automatically if not selected.
The test is run if the throughput rate is not wirespeed, or the overload rate is calculated at less
than wirespeed.
The test requires the port to be saturated with traffic at a rate of 110% of the recorded
throughput for an OVERLOAD duration of at least 60 seconds, then reduced to 50% of the
recorded throughput. The recovery time is the measured between the transmit rate dropping
to 50% and the receive rate dropping to 50%.
TIME
T=T1 T=T0
Recovery Time
110%
100%
50%
RATE
Transmit Rate
Receive Rate
The test is run TEST RUN times.
The test reports the averaged recovery time for each FRAME SIZE.

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5.3.7 Reset Test
The Reset Test requires the Throughput Test to be run first to determine the throughput rate
of the test port. The Throughput Test will be run automatically if not selected. Only the first
specified FRAME SIZE is used for this test.
The Reset Test measures the time the DUT takes to recover from a power cycle:
1. Transmit timestamped frames at the known FRAME SIZE and throughput rate.
2. Cut the power to the DUT (manually or OFF SCRIPT)
3. Monitor the timestamp of the last received packet from the DUT.
4. Wait for reset DELAY
5. Apply power to the DUT (manually or ON SCRIPT)
6. Start transmitting traffic to the DUT
7. Monitor the time it takes for the ports to link up
8. Monitor the timestamp of the first received packet from the DUT.
The test is run TEST RUN times.
The test reports the averaged link-up and first packet times.
5.4 PORT MAPPING TAB
The PORT MAPPING tab selects the Axtrinet ports
for test. At least 2 ports must be selected
(enabled) before being able to start the tests.
The DUT Port Name field is a label that can be
used to identify the DUT port, but can be left blank.
If set, the DUT Port Name is only used in the test
report.
The combination of enabled ports and TRAFFIC (on RFC2544 tab) determines the number of
test port combinations.
It is not recommended to specify more than 4 test ports in APGPORTS as
the number of tests (and time) will increase exponentially.

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5.5 RUN TAB
The RUN Tab allows selection of the RFC2544 tests to be run:
Tests are enabled by setting the checkbox next to
each test.
The Throughput Tests are enabled automatically if
the Latency, Recovery or Reset tests are enabled.
The START button is only visible if at least 2 ports
are enabled on the Port Mapping tab, and at least 1
test is enabled.
Test progess is shown on the progress text and
status bars for each enabled test, and the overall
progress bar.
The test can be stopped at any time by clicking the
STOP button. The button is highlighted RED when
the stop is pending. The test will stop at the end of
the current test. The log file is saved, but the PDF
file is not generated.
The report paths can be viewed by clicking on the
PATHS button.
Completed tests are marked COMPLETED.

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6. REPORTS
6.1 TEST SUITE RESULTS DIRECTORY
6.1.1 Windows Environment
The APG Test Suite creates the RFC 2544 results directory in:
C:\Users\[USER]\Documents\APG-Test-Suite-Results\RFC2544
where it creates the results directory for the DUT.
6.1.2 Linux Environment
The APG Test Suite creates the RFC 2544 results directory in:
/usr/[USER]/apg/APG-Test-Suite-Results/RFC2544
where it creates the results directory for the DUT.
6.2 DUT RESULTS DIRECTORY
If either of the DUT [MODEL] and [SERIAL] fields are set, the results directory is:
/[MODEL]-[SERIAL]
otherwise the results directory is:
/DUT
6.3 OUTPUT FILES
Each test run creates an ASCII log file and a PDF Report in the DUT Directory.
If either of the DUT [MODEL] and [SERIAL] fields are set, the output files are:
[MODEL]-[SERIAL]-[TIMESTAMP].log
[MODEL]-[SERIAL]-[TIMESTAMP].pdf
otherwise the output files are:
DUT-[TIMESTAMP].log
DUT-[TIMESTAMP].pdf
Where [TIMESTAMP] is local [DATE] and [TIME] that the test started.
Example PDF and LOG file can be downloaded from www.axtrinet.com/documentation