NetIQ Performance Endpoints allow you to send synthetic VoIP traffic between two nodes or devices on your network and take performance measurements.
For more information, see the following topics:
You can download free Performance Endpoints from the Current Performance Endpoints Product Upgrades page. PDFs are available on the same page that explain how to install and deploy endpoints for all of the supported operating systems.
In Microsoft Windows environments, the endpoint runs as a service after you enable it during installation. With other operating systems, the endpoint starts automatically. It functions only during diagnoses, and should not interfere with other application traffic.
Install NetIQ Performance Endpoints on the same subnets as the phones on your network, particularly in locations where users have reported poor call quality or network performance issues. The endpoints allows Vivinet Diagnostics to send test VoIP traffic between two nodes on your network and take performance measurements. For more information, see Section 1.1, How Vivinet Diagnostics Works.
Install one Performance Endpoint on each subnet in your network. Consider also installing Performance Endpoints near all phones, VoIP gateways, and critical VoIP servers in your network. Endpoints help Vivinet Diagnostics obtain more information about your VoIP hardware and software to use in each Diagnosis. Plan to install the endpoints on a variety of computers, and consider the following for present and future needs:
Install an endpoint in every subnet on the network where you anticipate VoIP traffic originating or terminating.
Install endpoints near phones that have reported problems in the past.
Install endpoints both close to and far from critical VoIP equipment such as gateways and servers. These endpoints will help you diagnose network-related issues in which location and access to equipment are factors.
Install a few endpoints on either side of a WAN link, which is likely to be the site of problems with your VoIP implementation.
Install endpoints on either side of a firewall. Some firewalls, particularly NAT-enabled firewalls, do not handle VoIP traffic very well.
Install enough endpoints so that you can troubleshoot problems all over your network, at all user sites.
Although using Performance Endpoints as Target Devices is optional, deploying them allows the Console to run diagnostic network tests that collect additional data for problem analysis. Without endpoints, Vivinet Diagnostics must use other tools (such as Cisco IOS IP SLA and CDP, or Nortel SONMP, RTPStatShow, the R-value trap, or RTCP-XR) to gather information. Vivinet Diagnostics can run with some older versions of the endpoints, but to get the most accurate Diagnosis, install the latest endpoint version.
Even with endpoints installed, Vivinet Diagnostics uses the Nortel tools when diagnosing Nortel environments. The endpoints drive RTP traffic during device polling, which makes the polling results more meaningful.
Vivinet Diagnostics is designed to discover the IP addresses of Performance Endpoint computers in a /24 subnet network, which has a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0 and a maximum of 254 hosts to scan for endpoints.
If you have something other than a /24 subnet network, Vivinet Diagnostics treats it as a /24 network and scans only 254 hosts for endpoints. To maximize the effectiveness of the data that Vivinet Diagnostics can gather from endpoints, consider the following options when deploying endpoints in your subnet network.
If phone IP addresses are not sparsely distributed throughout your network, deploy endpoints near groups of phones in your network so that the endpoints will be discovered.
Disadvantage: Even clustered phone IP addresses can require many endpoints.
Advantage: You can deploy endpoints to closely resemble the design of your physical network.
When defining a Diagnosis, use the Endpoint-to-Endpoint option and provide the IP address for both endpoints.
Disadvantage: You can lose phone-specific information from the Diagnosis.
When defining a Diagnosis, use the IP phone-to-Other option and provide the endpoint IP address as the “other” address.
Disadvantage: You can lose endpoint performance test information from the Diagnosis.