IXIA Novus QSFP28 Load Modules
This chapter provides details about Novus 5-speed family of load modules and their specifications and features.
Novus is a 5-speed, high density, 8-port or 4-port, native QSFP28 100/50/40/25/10GbE load module. This load module family supports the test needs of both high-density, multi-rate switch/router makers and the organizations implementing the network equipment. Novus supports 8 native QSFP28 100/40GbE, 16 ports of 50 GbE and 32 ports of 25/10GbE per load module, and enables interoperability and functional testing, as well as high-port count performance testing. Its native QSFP28 100GbE/40GbE interfaces with 10GbE and 25GbE speed and fan-out cable support, that provides a more efficient and flexible set of 100/50/40/25/10GbE test use cases.
Key Features
The key features of Novus load module are as follows:
- Supports multi-vendor interoperability 100GbE, 50GbE , 40GbE, 25GbE and 10GbE testing between speeds that run over these QSFP28 optical transceivers, Active Optical Cables and passive copper Direct Attach Cable media:
- 100GBASE-SR4, 100GBASE-LR4 and 100GASE-CR4
- 50GBASE-SR2 and 50GBASE-CR2
- 40GBASE-SR4, 40GBASE-LR4 and 40GBASE-CR4
- 25GBASE-SR and 25GBASE-CR
- 10GBASE-SR, 10GBASE-LR and 10GSFP+Cu(Through fanout)
- Supports mid-range protocol testing for L2/3 routing/switching and data center test cases with the Ixia’s IxNetwork application
- Supports traffic and protocol scale and benchmark performance stress tests to ensure error-free network data transmission with long-term stability and high reliability at full 100GbE, 50GbE, 40Gbe, 25GbE, and 10GbE line rate
- Provides 100Gb/s, 50Gb/s, 40Gb/s, 25Gb/s and 10Gb/s line rate packet capture and decode tools to detect and de-bug data transmission errors
- Provides an excellent test platform for full line rate 100Gb/s to evaluate the new 100GbE ASIC designs, FPGAs, and hardware switch fabrics that use the 4x25Gb/s, 1x40Gb/s and 4x10Gb/s electrical interface
- Supports benchmarking of the data plane and protocol emulation performance and scale of ultra-high-density 100/50/40/25/10GbE-capable network equipment using industry-standard RFC benchmark tests in test beds with hundreds of 100GbE and/or 50GbE and/or 40GbE and/or 25GbE ports and/or 10GbE in a single test
- 25GbE speed support (requires purchase of the 25GbE load module option):
- Support for independent 25GbE virtual and physical fan-out configurations including: 4x25GbE
- Up to 4x25GbE links over single point-to-point 100GbE cable media (MT-MT, AOC, or DAC media)
- 50GbE speed support (requires purchase of the 50GbE load module option):
- Support for independent 50GbE virtual and physical fan-out configurations including: 2x50GbE
- Up to 2x50GbE links over single point-to-point 100GbE cable media (MT-MT, AOC, or DAC media)
- 40/10GbE speed support (requires purchase of the 40/10GbE load module option):
- Support for independent 40/10GbE virtual and physical fan-out configurations including: 1x40GbE and 4x10GbE
- Up to 1x40GbE/4x10GbE links over single point-to-point 100GbE cable media (MT-MT, AOC, or DAC media)
- Ethernet Forward Error Correction on 100GbE, 50GbE and 25GbE, auto-negotiation, and link training on 100GbE, 50GbE , 40GbE, and 25GbE
- Provides a broad range of application support including: IxExplorer, IxNetwork, and the related Tcl and automation APIs.
Load Modules
The Novus family consists of the following models on a single slot card:
-
Novus100GE4Q28+FAN
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Novus100GE4Q28+FAN+25G
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Novus100GE4Q28+FAN+50G
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Novus100GE4Q28+FAN+25G+50G
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Novus100GE4Q28+FAN+10G+25G+40G+50G
- Novus100GE8Q28+FAN
- Novus100GE8Q28+FAN+25G
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Novus100GE8Q28+FAN+50G
-
Novus100GE8Q28+FAN+25G+50G
- Novus100GE8Q28+FAN+10G+25G+40G+50G
The load module is described as follows:
Novus100GE8Q28+FAN
Novus100GE8Q28+FAN is a 100 Gigabit Ethernet full-featured load module. It has 1-slot with 8-ports with the native QSFP28 physical interface. It provides L2-3 support and is compatible with the XGS2-SD 2-slot standard performance chassis (940-0010), XGS12-SD rack mount chassis (940-0011), XGS2-HSL, 2-slot high performance chassis (940-0014), and the XGS12-HSL, 12-slot high speed rackmount chassis (940-0016).
The Novus100GE8Q28+FAN load module is shown in the following figure:
Novus100GE4Q28+FAN
Novus100GE4Q28+FAN is a 4-port enablement on the NOVUS100GE8Q28+FAN load module. It has 1-slot with 4-ports with the native QSFP28 physical interface. It provides L2-3 support and is compatible with the XGS2-SD 2-slot, 3RU standard performance chassis (940-0010), XGS12-SD 12-slot, 11RU rack mount chassis (940-0011), XGS2-SDL, 2-slot, 3RU standard performance rack-mountable chassis bundle (940-0013), XGS2-HSL 2-slot, 3RU high performance chassis (940-0014), XGS12-SDL 12-slot, 11RU standard performance rack-mountable chassis bundle (940-0015), and the XGS12-HSL, 12-slot 11RU high speed rackmount chassis (940-0016).
.
2x50GbE/4x25GbE options for Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN
2x50GbE/4x25GbE options for Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN are available in two forms:
- Factory Installed
-
Field Upgrade
2x50GbE/4x25GbE factory installed
The 2x50GbE/4x25GbE Fan-Out FACTORY INSTALLED option for the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN/Novus100GE4Q28+FAN load module enables 2x50GbE/4x25GbE capability on all eight 100GbE QSFP28 ports on the module. The 2x50GbE/4x25GbE capability is per 100GE port and is ONLY supported over a single 100GbE point-to-point QSFP28 cable where each channel of the cable is rated for 25GbE and 50GbE per channel operation. This is ONLY supported on the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN (944-1140) and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN (944-1165) load modules.
Note: The factory installed option is required for new purchases of the 2x50GbE/4x25GbE capability for the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN load modules with native QSFP28 8x100GbE physical interfaces.
2x50GbE/4x25GbE field upgrade
The 2x50GbE/4x25GbE Fan-Out FIELD UPGRADE option for the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN load module enables 2x50GbE/4x25GbE capability on all eight 100GbE QSFP28 ports on the module. The 2x50GbE/4x25GbE capability is per 100GbE port and is ONLY supported over a single 100GbE point-to-point QSFP28 cable where each channel of the cable is rated for 25GbE and 50GbE per channel operation. This is ONLY supported on the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN (944-1140) and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN (944-1165) load modules.
Note: The field upgrade option is required on field upgrade purchases of the 2x50GbE/4x25GbE capability for the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN load modules with native QSFP28 8x100GbE physical interfaces. Please provide the serial number of the desired load module at the time of placement of order, to install the option.
1x40GbE/4x10GbE options for Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN
1x40GbE/4x10GbE options for Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN are available in two forms:
- Factory Installed
-
Field Upgrade
1x40GbE/4x10GbE factory installed
The 1x40GbE/4x10GbE Fan-Out FACTORY INSTALLED option for the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN load modules enables 1x40GbE/4x10GbE capability on all eight 100GbE QSFP28 ports on the module. The 1x40GbE/4x10GbE capability is per 100GE port and is ONLY supported over a single 100GbE point-to-point QSFP28 cable where each channel of the cable is rated for 40GbE and 10GbE per channel operation. This is ONLY supported on the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN (944-1140) and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN (944-1165) load modules.
Note: The factory installed option is required for new purchases of the 1x40GbE/4x10GbE capability for the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN load modules with native QSFP28 8x100GbE physical interfaces.
1x40GbE/4x10GbE field upgrade
The 1x40GbE/4x10GbE Fan-Out FIELD UPGRADE option for the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN load modules enables 1x40GbE/4x10GbE capability on all eight 100GbE QSFP28 ports on the module. The 1x40GbE/4x10GbE capability is per 100GbE port and is ONLY supported over a single 100GbE point-to-point QSFP28 cable where each channel of the cable is rated for 40GbE and 10GbE per channel operation. This is ONLY supported on the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN (944-1140) and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN (944-1165) load modules.
Note: The field upgrade option is required on field upgrade purchases of the 1x40GbE/4x10GbE capability for the Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN load modules with native QSFP28 8x100GbE physical interfaces. Please provide the serial number of the desired load module at the time of placement of order, to install the option .
Novus 2x50GbE/4x25GbE and 1x40GbE/4x10GbEcapability through 25GbE, 50GbE and 40/10GbE license
2x50GbE/4x25GbE and 1x40GbE/4x10GbE options can be upgraded in the following Novus load module through license. By default, the ports are in 100GbE mode for the following load modules:
- Novus100GE8Q28+FAN (944-1140)
- Novus100GE4Q28+FAN (944-1165)
Part Numbers
Part Numbers for Novus Load Module and Supported Adapters are provided in the following table.
Model Number | Part Number | Description |
---|---|---|
Novus100GE8Q28+FAN |
944-1140 |
|
Novus100GE4Q28+FAN | 944-1165 |
4-ports of 100GbE with the QSFP28 physical interface. |
905-1096 | Field Upgrade from Novus100GE4Q28+FAN 4-port full scale and performance load module (944-1165) to Novus100GE8Q28+FAN 8-port, QSFP28 100GE full scale and performance load module (944-1140). | |
Novus100GE8Q28+FAN and Novus100GE4Q28+FAN |
905-1007 |
|
905-1008 |
|
|
905-1011 |
|
|
905-1012 |
|
|
905-1025 |
|
|
905-1026 |
|
Specifications
The load module specifications are contained in the following table.
Feature | Novus100GE8Q28+FAN | Novus100GE4Q28+FAN |
---|---|---|
Hardware Load Module Specifications |
||
Slot / Number of Ports |
1-slot / 8x100GE native QSFP28, 16x50GbE, 8x40GbE, ports, 32x25GbE ports to 32x10GbE ports via fan-out media. |
1-slot / 4x100GE native QSFP28, 8x50GbE, 4x40GbE, ports, 16x25GbE ports to 16x10GbE ports via fan-out media. |
Physical Interface |
8-ports of Native QSFP28 |
NOVUS100GE4Q28+FAN is an 8-port hardware load module with 4-ports enabled. |
Supported Port Speeds |
|
|
CPU and Memory |
Multicore processor with 2GB of CPU memory per port |
|
IEEE Interface Protocols |
|
|
25G Consortium specification |
25GbE: Compatible with version 1.5 50GbE: Compatible with version 1.5 |
|
Advanced Layer 1 support |
10GbE:
25GbE:
40GbE:
50GbE:
100GbE:
|
|
Transceiver Support |
|
|
Cable Media |
|
|
Cables |
|
|
Load Module Dimensions |
17.3” (L) x 1.3” (W) x 12.0” (H) 440mm (L) x 33mm (W) x 305mm (H) |
|
Load Module Weights |
Module only: 11.8 lbs. (5.35 kg) Shipping: 18.6 lbs. (8.44 kg) |
|
Temperature |
Operating: 41°F to 95°F (5°C to 35°C) Storage: 41°F to 122°F (5°C to 50°C) |
|
Humidity |
Operating: 0% to 85%, non-condensing Storage: 0% to 85%, non-condensing |
|
Chassis Capacity: Maximum Number of Cards and Ports per Chassis Model |
||
XGS12-SD Chassis (940-0011) |
12 load modules:
|
12 load modules:
|
XGS12-HSL Chassis (940-0016) |
12 load modules:
|
12 load modules:
|
XGS2-SD Chassis (940-0010) |
2 load modules:
|
2 load modules:
|
XGS2-HSL Chassis (940-0014) |
2 load modules:
|
2 load modules:
|
XGS12-SDL Chassis (940-0011) |
12 load modules:
|
12 load modules:
|
XGS2-SDL Chassis (940-0013) |
2 load modules:
|
2 load modules:
|
Transmit Feature Specifications |
||
Transmit Engine |
Wire-speed packet generation with timestamps, sequence numbers, data integrity signature, and packet group signatures |
|
Max. Streams per Port |
For High Stream Mode:
|
|
Max. Streams per Port in Data Center Ethernet |
For High Stream Mode:
|
|
Inter-burst gap: min-max |
10: 6400ns-429s in 800ns steps100: 640ns-42.9s in 80ns steps1000: 64ns-16.7ms in 16ns steps Advanced Scheduler: 10: 0.419s 100: 0.0419s 1000: 0.0167s |
|
Stream Controls |
Rate and frame size change on the fly, sequential and advanced stream scheduler |
|
Minimum Frame Size |
60 bytes at full line rate |
|
Maximum Frame Size |
14,000 bytes |
|
Maximum Fame Size in Data Center Ethernet |
9,216 bytes |
|
Priority Flow Control |
For High Stream Mode:
|
|
Frame Length Controls |
Fixed, increment by user-defined step, weighted pairs, uniform, repeatable random, IMIX, and Quad Gaussian |
|
User defined fields (UDF) |
Fixed, increment or decrement by user-defined step, sequence, value list, and random configurations. Up to ten, 32-bit wide UDFs are available. UDF 1-10 supports Value Lists. For High Stream Mode, UDF 1-5 supports Value Lists. |
|
Value Lists (max.) |
1M/UDF For High Stream Mode, the values are:
|
|
Sequence (max.) |
|
|
Error Generation |
Generate good CRC or force bad CRC, undersize and oversize standard Ethernet frame lengths, and bad checksum |
|
Hardware Checksum Generation |
Checksum generation and verification for IPv4, IP over IP, IGMP/GRE/TCP/UDP, L2TP, GTP |
|
Link Fault Signaling |
Reports, no fault, remote fault, and local fault port statistics; generate local and remote faults with controls for the number of faults and order of faults, plus the ability to select the option to have the transmit port ignore link faults from a remote link partner. |
|
Latency Measurement Resolution |
2.5 nanoseconds |
|
Intrinsic Latency Compensation |
Removes inherent latency |
|
Transmit line clock adjustment |
Ability to adjust the parts per million line frequency over a range of -100 ppm to +100 ppm across all ports on the load module. |
|
Receive Feature Specifications |
||
Receive Engine |
Wire-speed packet filtering, capturing, real-time latency and inter-arrival time for each packet group, with data integrity, sequence and advanced sequence checking capability |
|
Trackable Receive Flows per Port |
100GbE/40GbE:
50GbE:
25GbE/10GbE:
|
|
Limited Stats Capability |
Supports a higher number of PGID/flows, but each with reduced measurements
|
|
Minimum Frame Size |
64 bytes at full line rate into the capture buffer |
|
Filters (User-Defined Statistics, UDS) |
2 SA/DA pattern matchers, 2x16-byte user-definable patterns with offsets capability for start of: frame, IP, or protocol. Up to 6 UDS counters are available. |
|
Hardware Capture Buffer per Port or Resource Group |
By Default, there are two 512 MB capture buffers on the card. You can select the port or resource group each capture buffer may be assigned for capture. Only one capture buffer may be assigned to a single Resource Group, that is 4x25 GbE or 4x10 GbE mode or 2x50 GbE mode. If you turn on Capture Extended Mode, all 8 ports will support capture. To turn on this mode, refer to the IxServer Guide. |
|
Statistics and Rates |
Link state, line speed, frames sent, valid frames received, bytes sent/received, fragments, undersize, oversize, CRC errors, VLAN tagged frames, 6 user-defined stats, capture trigger (UDS 3), capture filter (UDS 4), 8 QoS counters, data integrity frames, data integrity errors, sequence and advanced sequence checking frames, sequence checking errors, ARP, and PING requests and replies, FEC statistics: RS-FEC Corrected and Uncorrected Codeword Counts. |
|
Latency / Jitter Measurements |
Cut-through, store and forward, forwarding delay, up to 16 Latency bins / jitter, MEF frame delay, and inter-arrival time. |
|
Receive-side PCS Lanes Port Statistics Counters |
PCS Sync Errors, Illegal Codes, Remote Faults, Local Faults, Illegal Ordered Set, Illegal Idle, Illegal SOF, Out Of Order SOF, Out Of Order EOF, Out Of Order Data, Out Of Order Ordered Set. |
|
100GE Physical Coding Sublayer (PCS) Receive-Side Statistics and Indicators |
IEEE 802.3ba-compliant PCS transmit and receive side test capabilities include: Per PCS lane, receive lanes statistics - PCS Sync Header and Lane Marker Lock, Lane Marker mapping, Relative lane deskew up to 104 microseconds for 100GE, Sync Header and PCS Lane Marker Error counters, indicators for Loss of Synch Header and Lane Marker, and BIP8 errors. |
|
Layer 2-3 Protocol Support | ||
Routing and Switching |
BGP4/BGP4+, OSPFv2/v3, ISISv4/v6, EIGRP/EIGRPv6, RIP/RIPng, BFD, Seamless BFD, IGMP/MLD, PIM-SM/SSM, STP/RSTP/MSTP, PVST+/RPVST+, Link Aggregation (LACP), LISP |
|
Software Defined Network |
OpenFlow, Segment Routing MPLS (ISIS, OSPFv2, OSPFv3, BGP), Segment Routing IPv6 (ISIS, L3VPN, EVPN), BGP Link State (BGP-LS), PCEP, VXLAN, EVPN VXLAN, OVSDB, GENEVE, BGP FlowSpec, BGP SR TE Policy, Netconf, BIER, eCPRI, Flex-Algo (ISIS, OSPFv2) |
|
MPLS |
RSVP-TE P2P/P2MP, LDP/LDPv6/mLDP, LDP L2VPN (PWE/VPLS), BGP VPLS/VPWS, L3VPN/6VPE, 6PE, BGP RFC3107, MPLS-TP, MPLS OAM, EVPN/PBB-EVPN, Multicast VPN Rosen Draft, NG Multicast VPN |
|
Broadband and Authentication |
PPPoX/L2TPv2, DHCPv4/DHCPv6, ANCP, IPv6 Autoconfiguration (SLAAC), IGMP/MLD, 802.1x, Bonded GRE HG |
|
Industrial Ethernet |
Link OAM (IEEE 802.3ah), CFM/Y.1731, PBB/PBB-TE, ELMI, Sync-E ESMC, IEEE 1588v2 (PTP), NTP |
|
Data Center Ethernet |
DCBX/LLDP, FCoE/FIP, PFC (IEEE 802.1Qbb), TRILL, Cisco FabricPath, SPBM, VEPA |
|
L2 Security | MACsec |
Application Support
The Ixia application support Novus load modules is provided in the following table:
Application | Support |
---|---|
IxNetwork |
Provides wire-rate traffic generation with service modeling that builds realistic, dynamically-controllable data-plane traffic. IxNetwork offers the industry's best test solution for functional and performance testing by using comprehensive emulation for routing, switching, MPLS, IP multicast, broadband, authentication, Carrier Ethernet, and data center Ethernet protocols. |
IxExplorer |
Provides layer 2-3 wire-speed traffic generation and analysis and IEEE 802.3ba HSE PCS Lanes testing. |
Tcl API |
Allows custom user script development for layer 1-3 testing. |
Mechanical Specifications
Front Panel
The front panel of Novus load modules is shown in the following figure:
Figure: Front panel of Novus100GE8Q28+FAN
LED Panel
There are 3 tricolor LEDs per port. The LED panel specifications for Novus are provided in the following table.
Speed Mode | LED1: TX LED | LED2: RX LED | LED3: MODE LED |
---|---|---|---|
100GbE |
Port Inactive/No Power=Off Link Down (all)=Solid Red Link Up (all)=Solid Green Tx Active=Blinking Green |
Port Inactive/No Power=Off Rx Active with Errors=Blinking Red Rx Active=Blinking Green |
Mode=Off Card Fault=Solid Red |
50GbE |
Link Up (1 link) = Solid Yellow Link Down = Solid Red Link Up (all) = Solid Green Tx Axctive = Blinking Green |
Port Inactive/No Power = Off Rx Active with Errors = Blinking Red Rx Active = Blinking Green |
Mode = Solid White Card Fault = Solid Red |
25GbE |
Link Up (1,2, or 3 links) =Solid Yellow Link Down (all)=Solid Red Link Up (all)=Solid Green Tx Active=Blinking Green |
Port Inactive/No Power=Off Rx Active with Errors=Blinking Red Rx Active=Blinking Green |
Mode=Solid Blue Card Fault=Solid Red |
40GbE |
Link Down = Solid Red Link Up (1 link) = Solid Yellow Link Up (all) = Solid Green TX Active = Blink Green |
Rx Active with Error = Blinking Red Rx Active = Blinking Green |
Mode = Solid Green Card Fault = Solid Red |
10GbE |
Link Down = Solid Red Link Up (1,2 or 3 links) = Solid Yellow Link Up (all) = Solid Green TX Active = Blink Green |
Rx Active with Error = Blinking Red Rx Active = Blinking Green |
Mode = Solid Yellow Card Fault = Solid Red |