TOLLY. Extreme Networks, Inc.

Transcription

1 No June 2002 BlackDiamond 6800 series 10GLRi module versus Cisco Systems, Inc. Catalyst 6509 outfitted with WS-X GE 10-Gigabit Ethernet LAN PHY Interface Competitive Performance Evaluation Premise: Network managers deploying Gigabit Ethernet switches already understand the importance of installing wirespeed devices in their networks. But in order to reap the full benefits of increased bandwidth provided by Gigabit Ethernets speeds, these devices also need to provide flexibility and traffic management capabilities to ensure increased bandwidth maximization. commissioned The Tolly Group to evaluate its BlackDiamond 6800 series 10GLRi module, a 10-Gigabit Ethernet interface and to compare its performance against a Cisco Systems, Inc. Catalyst 6509 outfitted with a WS-X GE module, a 10-Gigabit Ethernet interface. Testing was performed in June T H E TOLLY G R O U P Test Summary Delivers 8 Gbit/s full-duplex throughput across a 10-Gbit/s uplink versus the Catalyst 6509's 4.6 Gbit/s, using 64-byte packets Achieves zero reduction in line rate with ACL filters enabled across a 10-Gbit/s uplink compared to an 8% reduction in line rate on the Catalyst 6509 in the same scenario Manages QoS traffic priorities effectively across a 10-Gbit/s uplink compared to Catalyst 6509's absence of QoS traffic management capabilities Delivers of the theoretical maximum throughput with flow control enabled compared to the Cisco device which forwarded 47% of the theoretical maximum throughput with 64-byte packets Percentage of utilization 77.8% Test Highlights Bidirectional Zero-Loss Throughput Layer 3 with 10,000 IP Addresses as Reported by IxExplorer % % Test results show that the Extreme Networks BlackDiamond 6800 equipped with a 10GLRi module consistently offers superior performance to the similarly 64 1,518 Frame size (bytes) Source: The Tolly Group, June 2002 Figure The Tolly Group Page 1

2 equipped Cisco switch. The BlackDiamond 6800 not only outperformed the Cisco Catalyst 6509 in throughput tests, but also proved capable of providing enhanced functionality, such as traffic filtering, QoS support and flow control, across a 10-Gbit/s uplink, whereas the Catalyst 6509 was either not capable of providing the same feature across its 10-Gbit/s uplink or throughput suffered degradation when the same features were activated across the 10-Gbit/s uplink. Results Zero-loss Throughput using 10,000 unique IP addresses Tests demonstrate that the 77.8% 1 of bidirectional throughput when forwarding 64-byte packets across a 10-Gbit/s uplink at Layer 3 using 10,000 IP addresses, compared to the Catalyst 6509, which delivered 46.7% in the same scenario. Tests also demonstrate that the 8 of bidirectional throughput when forwarding 1,518-byte packets across a Percentage of throughput degradation Throughput Degradation with Access Control Lists enabled using 64-byte frames as reported by IxExplorer (lower numbers are better) 1 8% 6% 4% 2% % Source: The Tolly Group, June 2002 Figure 2 Percentage of theoretical maximum throughput QoS Traffic Prioritization on 10-Gigabit Interface Percent of High Priority Traffic Delivered as Reported by IxExplorer % 44.1% 43.5% 1 Note: Due to RFC standards limiting and defining test tool throughput parameters, this percentage of throughput across the BlackDiamond 6800's 10-Gbit/s uplink was dependent upon the amount of traffic the IXIA 1600T could generate. Ixia acknowledged that the IXIA 1600T performed according to the RFC standard specifications. QoS Disabled QoS Enabled Scenario Source: The Tolly Group, June 2002 Figure The Tolly Group Page 2

3 10-Gbit/s uplink at Layer 3 using 10,000 IP addresses, compared to the Catalyst 6509, which delivered almost 78% in the same scenario.(see Figure 1.) ACL functionality When Tolly Group engineers measured the effect of dynamically activating and logging Access Control Lists (ACLs) in a scenario in which the device was configured to deny and log 5 of traffic using 10,000 IP addresses across a 10-Gbit/s uplink, tests demonstrate that the BlackDiamond 6800 suffered no loss in line rate throughput, whereas the Catalyst 6509 suffered a 7.8% loss of line rate throughput in the same scenario. (See Figure 2.) 802.1p/Q QoS tests Tests demonstrate that the BlackDiamond 6800 was capable of appropriately assigning priority and mapping incoming traffic of a specific IP address according to defined parameters using 802.1p at utilization of the Gigabit Ethernet uplink. In contrast, the Catalyst 6509 was not capable of QoS management functionality across the 10-Gbit/s uplink. (See Figure 3 and Configuration and Methodology section.) Flow Control functionality Tests demonstrate that the of the theoretical maximum throughput with flow control enabled across a 10-Gbit/s port using 64-byte packets compared to the Catalyst 6509, which delivered 47.3% of the maximum theoretical throughput even though flow control was invoked on the Cisco device. (See Figure 4.) Jumbo Frames throughput Tests reveal that the 78% of the theoretical maximum throughput across a 10-Gbit/s uplink using 9,216-byte frames. The Catalyst 6509 also delivered 78% of the theoretical maximum throughput in the same scenario. Analysis The availability of 10-Gigabit Ethernet uplinks on Gigabit Ethernet switches from Extreme Networks and rival vendors ushers in a new era of bandwidth availability. But high bandwidth alone is not enough to service the needs of enterprise network managers, who must guarantee application performance for latency-sensitive voice traffic, video and other businesscritical applications. Tests show that Extreme's BlackDiamond 6800, outfitted with a 10GLRi 10-Gigabit Ethernet interface module, delivers higher throughput across its Gigabit uplink than Extreme Networks, Inc. BlackDiamond 6800 series 10GLRi 10-Gigabit Ethernet LAN PHY Competitive Performance BlackDiamond 6800 Series Switches Product Specifications* Performance BlackDiamond Gbit/s non-blocking bandwidth 48 million pps BlackDiamond Gbit/s non-blocking bandwidth 96 million pps BlackDiamond Gbit/s non-blocking bandwidth 192 million pps Features Passive backplane Redundant load sharing and hot-swappable Switch Fabric Modules Redundant load sharing and hot-swappable power supplies Extreme Standby Router Protocol (ESRP ) OSPF Equal Cost Multipath Routing (ECMP) 10-Gigabit Ethernet WDM optical broadband networking MPLS and BGP-4 Packet-over-SONET and ATM Policy-based QoS, IEEE 802.1p, and IETF DiffServ 4,096 IEEE 802.1Q VLANs IEEE 802.3ad link aggregation, and redundant PHY Access control lists, access profiles, RADIUS, SSH2, and network login Extensive management: Telnet, CLI, SNMP, RMON and HTTP For more information contact: 3585 Monroe Street, Santa Clara, CA Phone: (888) Fax: (408) URL: *Vendor-supplied information not verified by The Tolly Group 2002 The Tolly Group Page 3

4 comparable Cisco switches outfitted with a 10-Gigabit Ethernet adapter. The BlackDiamond 6800 goes a step beyond performance, providing operational features such as QoS and traffic filtering functionality that enable network managers to make the most efficient usage out of the bandwidth they have. In throughput tests, the BlackDiamond 6800 yielded 4 more throughput over the 10-Gbit/s uplink than the Catalyst 6509 over its 10-Gbit/s uplink when handling 64-byte packets. Such throughput benchmarks take on increased meaning when tests take into account active ACLs, which users employ regularly for security reasons. With ACLs active, the BlackDiamond 6800 did not suffer any performance degradation, unlike the Catalyst 6509, which suffered nearly an 8% throughput hit with ACLs enabled. Even when flow control was activated, the BlackDiamond 6800 and its 10-Gbit/s uplink suffered no performance degradation while the Catalyst 6509 delivered just over 43% of possible throughput over its 10-Gbit/s port. More disturbing, tests show that the Catalyst 6509, outfitted with its 10-Gigabit Ethernet adapter, could not invoke QoS capabilities during a port-oversubscription scenario, while the Percentage of Frames Successfully Forwarded with Flow Control enabled Input Load using 64-byte frames as reported IxExplorer Percentage of theoretical maximum throughput BlackDiamond 6800 appropriately handled prioritized traffic. In possible 10-Gigabit Ethernet uplink congestion scenarios, this shows the Extreme solution can segregate traffic and apportion bandwidth according to policy parameters. Test Configuration and Methodology For performance tests, The Tolly Group tested an Extreme Networks BlackDiamond 6800 series chassis equipped with a 10GLRi, a 10-Gigabit Ethernet module, running software version v6.2 and a Cisco Systems WS-X GE 10-Gigabit Ethernet module (hardware version 1.0, and running 47.3% Source: The Tolly Group, June 2002 Figure 4 software version V7.2) installed in a Catalyst 6509 chassis system running IOS version 12.1(11b)EX1. For performance measurement tests, the device under test (DUT) connected to an IXIA 1600T, version Both the DUT and the IXIA device supported a PC-based console. For bidirectional, zero-loss ( 0.001%) throughput tests, engineers configured both 10-Gigabit Ethernet ports on the DUT for maximum speed and full-duplex configuration using 64- and 1,518-byte frames at a load of 8 utilization. Engineers configured Layer 3 traffic using 10,000 unique IP addresses to simulate a core 2002 The Tolly Group Page 4

5 Test Bed Extreme BlackDiamond 6800 outfitted with 10GLRi Two 10-Gigabit Ethernet Ten 1-Gigabit Ethernet Ixia 1600T Source: The Tolly Group, June 2002 Figure 5 network environment. For Access Control List functionality tests, engineers configured the DUT to deny and log 5 of traffic. For QoS tests of traffic prioritization, engineers configured the DUT to assign priority for 1-Gbit/s worth of traffic contending for bandwidth in a two to one over-subscription configuration in which one 10-Gigabit Ethernet port and ten 1-Gigabit Ethernet ports mapped to one 10-Gigabit Ethernet egress port. For this series of performance tests, engineers disabled Spanning Tree, flow control (except during the flow control tests) and all other features that would otherwise have an impact on switch performance. Then they configured the IXIA 1600T for the tested frame sizes, network utilization and test duration. Engineers initiated the tests and recorded results. If frame loss occurred, they repeated the test procedure and lowered the network utilization by 1% until no frame loss occurred. Engineers performed three iterations of each test using 500,000,000 (1,000,000 for tests involving Jumbo Frames) IP packets. Ixia's IxExplorer application recorded total transmitted frames and total received frames, plus frame loss, if any. Tests were run three times and results were averaged. Equipment Acquisition and Support The Cisco Systems WS- X GE module was acquired through normal product distribution channels. The Tolly Group contacted executives at Cisco and invited 2002 The Tolly Group Page 5

6 them to provide a higher level of support than available through normal channels. After Cisco executives expressed initial interest in supporting the test, they neither accepted nor declined to provide support. The Tolly Group engineers did not require technical support to configure the device for the test suites executed by The Tolly Group. The Tolly Group verified product release levels and shared test configurations with Cisco executives in order to give them an opportunity to optimize their device for the tests. Results were shared with Cisco executives who neither acknowledged nor disputed their accuracy. For a more complete understanding of the interaction between The Tolly Group and Cisco, check out the Technical Support Diary for Competitive Products Tested posted on The Tolly Group's World Wide Web site at The Tolly Group gratefully acknowledges the providers of test equipment used in this project. Vendor Product Web address Ixia IXIA 1600T Ixia IxExplorer Tolly Group Services With more than a decade of testing experience of leading-edge network technologies, The Tolly Group employs time-proven test methodologies and fair testing principles to benchmark products and services with the highest degree of accuracy. Plus, unlike narrowly focused testing shops, The Tolly Group combines its vast technology knowledge with focused marketing services to help clients better position product benchmarks for maximum exposure. The company offers an unparalleled array of reports and services including: Test Summaries, Tolly Verifieds, performance certification programs, educational Webcasts, white paper production, proof-ofconcept testing, network planning, industry studies, end-user services, strategic consulting and integrated marketing services. Learn more about The Tolly Group services by calling (732) , or send to info@tolly.com. For info on the Fair Testing Charter, visit: Project Profile Sponsor: Document number: Product Class: 10-Gigabit Ethernet module Products under test: BlackDiamond 6800 series 10GLRi Module, version V6.2 Testing window: June 2002 For more information on this document, or other services offered by The Tolly Group, visit our World Wide Web site at send to info@tolly.com, call (800) or (732) Internetworking technology is an area of rapid growth and constant change. The Tolly Group conducts engineering-caliber testing in an effort to provide the internetworking industry with valuable information on current products and technology. While great care is taken to assure utmost accuracy, mistakes can occur. In no event shall The Tolly Group be liable for damages of any kind including direct, indirect, special, incidental, and consequential damages which may result from the use of information contained in this document. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. The Tolly Group doc rev. kco 23 July The Tolly Group Page 6