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Chapter 15: IXIA Impairment Load Modules


This chapter provides specification and details of Ethernet Impairment Modules (EIM). This family of load modules consist of the following cards:

The Impairment load modules have a single-slot form factor and are inserted into a high-density XM2 or XM12 chassis to provide 2 to 12 modules per chassis configuration. The load modules offer 4x1GE, 4x10GE, or 2x40GE Ethernet interfaces that can emulate 64, 32, or 8 unidirectional network clouds respectively.

The high density 1GE, 10GE, and 40GE Impairment test modules are ideal for emulating real-life network impairments. The modules can emulate a WAN environment and simulate network characteristics, such as delay, delay variation, and impairments, such as packet loss, duplication, and re-ordering.

EIMs support the Impairment feature in IxNetwork and IxLoad applications that provides a quick and easy way to set up impairments, across multiple emulated WAN links. Using EIM ports, IxNetwork and IxLoad is capable of generating a number of impairments, for example packet drops, latency, or packet re-ordering, which replicates real-life WAN traversal conditions, whereby packet flows are impaired in different modes when traversing a network.

The EIM40G2Q load module is not supported in IxLoad.

For more information on the Impairment feature, refer to chapter on `Network Impairment' in the IxNetwork Help and IxLoad Help.

The key features of EIM are as follows:

The 1/10GE EIM load module is shown in the following figure:

Figure 15-1. ImpairNetTM 1/10GE Load Module

The 40GE EIM load module is shown in the following figure:

Figure 15-2. ImpairNetTM 40GE Load Module

Part Numbers

The part numbers are shown in Table 15-1.
Table 15-1. Part Numbers for Ethernet Impairment Load Module
Model Number
Part Number
Description
EIM1G4S
944-1081
ImpairNet EIM1G4S Gigabit Ethernet LAN Impairment module, 1-slot with 4-ports of SFP interfaces.
For XM12-02 (P/N 941-0009) High Performance and XM2-02 (P/N 941-0003) portable chassis, SFP transceivers are required. Options for transceivers include SFP-LX, SFP-SX, and SFP-CU (for RJ45 copper support).
EIM10G4S
944-1082
ImpairNet EIM10G4S 10 Gigabit Ethernet LAN Impairment module, 1-slot with 4-ports of SFP+ interfaces.
For XM12-02 (P/N 941-0009) High Performance and XM2-02 (P/N 941-0003) portable chassis, SFP+ transceivers are required. Options for transceivers include 10GBASE-SR/SW (948-0013), or 10GBASE-LR/LW (948-0014).
EIM40G2Q
944-1083
ImpairNet EIM40G2Q 40 Gigabit Ethernet LAN Impairment module, 1-slot with 2-ports of QSFP+ interfaces.
For XM12-02 (P/N 941-0009) High Performance and XM2-02 (P/N 941-0003) portable chassis QSFP+ 40GBASE-SR4 transceivers (P/N 948-0028) is required.

Specifications

The load module specifications are described in the following table:
Table 15-2. Ethernet Impairment Load Module 1/10GE Specifications
Feature
Specification
Number of ports per module
4-ports
Number of chassis slots per module
1
Chassis support
The EIM load modules are supported on the following XM2 chassis:
  • 941-0003-01 Rev. G and later version
  • 941-0003-02 Rev. C and later version
  • 941-0003-03 Rev. F and later version
  • 941-0003-04 Rev. G and later version
  • 941-0003-05 Rev. G or later version
  • 941-0003-06 Rev. A or later version
Note: Earlier models of XM2 chassis require factory upgrade for compatibility with EIM load modules.
Module support
Up to 12 modules per XM12 Chassis
Up to 2 modules per XM2 Chassis
SFP+ transceiver support
Available with 1GE SFP, Electrical SFP RJ45 1GE Transceiver, and 10GE SFP+ Ethernet interface options
Traffic Selection and Impairment Configuration
  • 16 traffic classifiers per link, total of 64 unidirectional classifiers per module for granular traffic classification
  • 16 impairment profiles per link, total of 64 profiles per module for granular service class emulation
  • Emulate 32 unidirectional or 16 bidirectional network clouds per port pair
  • Emulate 64 unidirectional or 32 bidirectional network clouds per module
  • Easy-to-use, packet-analyzer-based selection interface
  • Traffic classifier support for numerous protocols and applications like bridging, routing, carrier Ethernet, broadband, MPLS, IPv6, and miscellaneous application-layer protocols
  • Multiple service/traffic class emulation through independent and unique impairments per profile
  • Emulate network cloud aggregation using mask and match support for packet classifiers
  • Support for 8x16 bit frame matchers for each traffic classifier
Supported Impairments
  • Delay up to 600ms at 10GE, and up to 1.2s per module by cascading ports
  • Delay up to 6s at 1GE, and up to 12s per module by cascading ports
  • Packet Delay Variation using a selection of probability distributions
  • Delay resolution of 1µs
  • Emulate SLA validation by using normal/Gaussian, exponential, uniform, and custom probability distribution for delay variations
  • Packet drop at rates of up to 100% in clusters up to 65535 packets
  • Reorder packets at rates of up to 50% in clusters up to 255 packets
  • Packet duplication at a rate up to 100% in clusters up to 65535 packets by creating up to 31 copies of each packet
  • Emulation of network/transmission/processing error conditions through bit error insertion for L2-L7 protocols
  • WAN forwarding error emulation
  • Ethernet FCS correction
  • Emulation of DS3, OC3, DS1, DS0, E1, E3, and cable modem link speeds using rate limiting
Multi-core processor technology
Yes
Operating temperature range
41°F to 86°F (5°C to 30°C), ambient air
Minimum Delay
  • 1G: 300us
  • 10G: 30us

Table 15-3. EIM Load Module 40GE Specification
Feature
Specification
Interface Options
QSFP+
Ports/Module
1 port pair per module
Module/Chassis
  • 1 module per XM2 chassis
  • Up to 6 modules per XM12 chassis
Traffic Selection and Impairment Configuration
  • 16 traffic classifiers per up/down link, total of 32 unidirectional classifiers per module for granular traffic classification
  • 4 impairment profiles per link, total of 8 profiles per module for granular service class emulation
  • Emulates 32 unidirectional or 16 bidirectional network clouds per port pair
  • Emulate 64 unidirectional or 32 bidirectional network clouds per module
  • Easy to use packet analyzer based selection interface
  • Traffic classifier support for numerous protocols and applications like bridging, Routing, Carrier Ethernet, Broadband, MPLS, IPv6, and miscellaneous application-layer protocols
  • Multiple service/traffic class emulation through independent and unique impairments per profile
  • Emulate network cloud aggregation using mask and match support for packet classifiers
  • Real-time preview of classifier match on live traffic
  • Support for 8x16 bit frame matchers for each traffic classifier
Supported Impairments
  • Delay up to 500ms at 40GE, and up to 1s per module by cascading ports
  • Delay resolution of 1µs
  • Emulate SLA validation by using normal/Gaussian, exponential, uniform, and custom probability distribution for delay variations
  • Packet drop at rates of up to 100% in clusters up to 65535 packets
  • Reorder packets at rates of up to 50% in clusters up to 255 packets
  • Packet duplication at a rate up to 100% in clusters up to 65535 packets by creating up to 31 copies of each packet
  • WAN forwarding error emulation
  • Ethernet FCS correction
  • Emulation of DS3, OC3, DS1, DS0, E1, E3, and cable modem link speeds using rate limiting.


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