Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) Conformance and ... - Ixia

Ixia has developed two primary applications for MPLS performance testing, IxExplorer andIxScriptMate, each with a distinct testing focus.IxExplorer. IxExplorer provides a high level of flexibility and functionality in protocolemulation, traffic generation, and analysis. IxExplorer is the primary controlling applicationfor Ixia’s purpose-built hardware test platform, allowing detailed configuration of protocolsand analysis of test results.Within IxExplorer, a comprehensive set of IP routing and MPLS signaling protocols issupported, including OSPF, IS-IS, RIP, BGP, LDP, and RSVP-TE, as well as multicastprotocols. IxExplorer controls the protocol’s operation on Ixia’s test hardware architecture,which supports a CPU running Linux on each test port. This dedicated emulationenvironment allows hundreds of MPLS routers to be emulated on each network interface.Up to hundreds of thousands of LSPs can be signaled from each interface. Line rate trafficcan be generated over the established connections. Alternatively, Ixia’s IxChariot productcan be used to transmit emulated enterprise application traffic over the MPLS device ornetwork being tested to measure end-to-end application response times.IxScriptMate. IxScriptMate provides a framework for running automated test scenarios.Numerous test suites have been developed within the IxScriptMate environment for testingthe session and circuit scalability, traffic throughput performance, latency, and failoverrecovery capabilities of MPLS routers. IxScriptMate simplifies the configuration processby defining a configuration for the test and displaying the relevant parameters for userinput. Tests then run automatically, and the results are presented to the user. This isespecially useful for L2 and L3 VPNs, where the test configuration can involve multipleprotocols and complex traffic generation requirements.20