Medianet Reference Guide - Cisco

Chapter 6
Medianet Management and Visibility Design Considerations
Network-Embedded Management Functionality
Table 6-1
Summary of Network-Embedded Management Functionality
Management Product /Tool Management Functionality Description
NetFlow
Performance and security
management
• NetFlow services embedded within Cisco router and
Cisco Catalyst switch platforms provide the ability to collect
and export flow information that can be used to determine
the amount of video traffic crossing key points within a
medianet. Flow information collected at a NetFlow collector,
such as the Cisco Network Analysis Module (NAM) can be
used to provide ongoing monitoring and/or reports that may
be used to determine whether adequate bandwidth is
provisioned per service class to support the video traffic
applications.
Cisco Network Analysis
Module (NAM)
IP service level agreements
(IPSLAs)
• NetFlow export version 9 provides the ability to export
multicast flows as well, providing some visibility into the
amount of multicast traffic crossing key points within the
medianet infrastructure.
• Netflow can also be used to identify anomalous flows within
the medianet infrastructure, alerting security operations staff
of potential worm propagation or a DDoS attack. For further
information, see the Cisco SAFE Reference Guide at the
following URL:
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/solutions/Enterprise/Sec
urity/SAFE_RG/SAFE_rg.html.
Performance management • The Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Network Analysis Module
(NAM) provides the ability to monitor and generate reports
regarding data flows within a medianet. Data flows from the
supervisor of a Cisco Catalyst 6500 switch platform,
SPAN/RSPAN ports, or NetFlow Data Export (NDE) from
other routers and switches within the medianet infrastructure
can be analyzed.
• The NAM provides the ability to monitor and generate
reports on traffic flows aggregated by Differentiated
Services Code Point (DSCP) marking. This can assist in
providing visibility into the amount of traffic per service
class crossing key points within the medianet, and can aid in
provisioning adequate bandwidth per service class across the
network infrastructure.
Performance management • IPSLA functionality embedded within Cisco Catalyst
switches, Cisco IOS routers, and Cisco TelePresence
endpoints can be used as a pre-assessment tool, to determine
whether the medianet infrastructure has the capability to
support additional video flows before becoming production
resources.
• IPSLAs may be used cautiously to perform ongoing
performance monitoring of the medianet infrastructure to
determine whether a particular video class is experiencing
degradation because of packet loss and/or jitter.
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Medianet Reference Guide
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