SPIRENT AVALANCHECLIENT AND SERVER EMULATION—STREAMING VIDEO TEST SOLUTIONHTTP ADAPTIVE BITRATE STREAMING (ABR)
By 2013, Video over IP will represent 90% of Internet traffic and 64% of mobile data. HTTP
Adaptive Bitrate Streaming (ABR) technologies deliver a seamless video viewing experienceby adapting to bandwidth constraints and endpoints resources. The Spirent Avalanche L4-7
testing solution provides scalability, performance, functional, and interoperability testing ofOver-The-Top (OTT) streaming video servers and video delivery networks to ensure the Internetwill support bandwidth-consuming video traffic.
APPLICATIONSVideo over IP is not a new technology, but recent developments
have brought it to the forefront of possible solutions to a range ofchallenges facing MSOs, content providers, service providers andnetwork equipment manufacturers.

Video Asset

Unlike traditional video delivery technologies, Video over IP is
subject to quality-of-experience (QoE) degradation due to latency,
jitter, buffering and packet loss. The picture is further complicatedby the wide disparity between end-user devices, from huge flat
screen televisions to mobile phone screens.
Industry experts expect HTTP ABR to improve user QoE for video overthe Internet. As client devices encounter video transport and processing
bottlenecks, the video server adapts to client requests for streaming
video at different bitrates, adjusting quality based on available resourcesand delivering an uninterrupted viewing experience.

HTTP
Cache
ModuleManifest
FilePackage

Media
Fragment

HTTP
OriginModuleManifest
Files

Live Video
Protect
Fragment
Audio Asset

Video
Ingress
ServerDistribution
ServerManifest
Live
PackageLive Audio

Video Source

NEMs continue to find ways to push the boundaries ofperformance and scalability with devices designed to make itpossible to address the challenges and meet these goals.

CONSUMPTION

Protect
Fragment

Packet video lowers the barrier to entry for alternate providers
servicing a niche market, but even established MSOs now
look to OTT to address challenges such as the “cut the cord”
phenomenon, where consumers cancel cable contracts for othersources of video perceived as less expensive, such as broadband
or over-the-air broadcasts.
In addition, content owners with billions of dollars in video
distribution contracts in traditional cable, satellite, and broadcast
markets, see OTT streaming as a new distribution platform forreducing operating costs and increasing profitability.

DISTRIBUTIONENCODING AND FRAGMENTATION

NetworkEquipment
Encoders

Origin Storage

Ethernet
Delivery
Networks

Media Clients(Netflix, Webbrowsers,
InternetConnected TV’s,
Blu-Ray players,
STBs, etc.)

VIDEO TEST METHODOLOGY
Spirent’s L4-7 test methodologies enable those developing HTTP
ABR solutions to validate scalability, performance, functionality,
and interoperability of their solutions under a wide range ofdeployment scenarios to ensure high user QoE in real networks.
•Video server performance testing•Verify video transport KPI (Key Performance Index)•Benchmark user load server performance testing•Video bitrate shifting testing•Video network device testing•Video content availability testing•

Built-in ABR Quality Scoring•

Apple HLS server emulation for end-to-end testing capabilities

SPIRENT AVALANCHEHTTP ADAPTIVE BITRATE STREAMING (ABR)
FEATURES & BENEFITSTECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONSHTTP ABR Video Client Emulations: Avalanche ABR streaming
clients emulate real-world video clients that test server
functionality, from sending manifest/playlist files to streaming
video over TCP to the clients.

•Adobe Flash Video Specification 10.1•

Microsoft IIS Smooth Streaming Client 1.1•

HTTP Live Streaming draft-pantos-http-live-streaming-06

Avalanche ABR support the following manifest/playlist file formats:

SUPPORTED MODULES & PLATFORMS•

Supports all Avalanche appliances: C1, 290, 2900, 3100
and C100•

Supports all Spirent TestCenter Hypermetrics CM, AP, mX modules•

Adobe Zeri VOD Client•

Apple HTTP Live Streaming (client and server support)•Apple HLS VOD (client and server support)•Apple HLS Encrypted Client

REQUIREMENTS•

Microsoft Smooth Live Client•

Microsoft Smooth VOD Client

An IBM® compatible PC must meet the following minimum
requirements to run the Spirent Avalanche:Avalanche ABR streaming emulation also support DVR and user
activities with trick play commands such as play, seek, pause,and GO-Live.
Bitrate Adaptation/Shifting: The Spirent-owned proprietary
Smart algorithm allows Avalanche ABR streaming clients toautomatically shift to different video bit streams based on
network conditions, including bandwidth, delays, and various
network impairments. The adaptive bitrate application also allows
user to set criteria for shifting or test at a constant bitrate.
Adaptive Streaming Statistics: On top of Avalanche standard
HTTP statistics, new ABR statistics allow users to assess thequality of video transport by measuring video manifest/playlist
and fragments transport delays, keeping count of bit rates
requests and receives, and Spirent patent-pending Adaptive
Streaming score. Adaptive streaming score is a QoE index
providing an effective indicator of a video server providing a clientwith a seamless video viewing experience.
Authentic Testing: Avalanche ABR clients emulate actual usertransactions and provide control over TCP/ IP stack characteristics
such as maximum segment size, delayed ACKs, IP fragmentation
and TCP time-out behavior. Avalanche ABR clients can emulate
video client browsers, decompress gzips, encode URLs and apply
realistic user level attributes.
Multi-play performance testing with ABR video: Spirent
Avalanche can perform Triple Play testing, validate Triple Play
service from the user’s point of view, with realistic voice calling,
unicast/multicast and ABR streaming video, and simulate Internet
data traffic using static IP address or IP address assign by DHCP
over PPPoE, VLAN and Stacked VLANs (e.g., Q-in-Q)•

One 10/100/1000 Base-T unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cable•

One 10 Mbps or 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet NIC card•

Intel® E6300 Core 2 Duo 4 (or equivalent)•One serial port•

Minimum of 2GB of RAM•

Minimum 10 GB free space on the hard drive
Windows® XP operating system, Service Pack 2 (SP2)••An SVGA color monitor (or equivalent) and a mouse•

Microsoft Terminal Services™ or HyperTerminal™, orequivalent communications software package•

CD-ROM drive
ORDERING INFORMATION
DescriptionPart Number

AVALANCHE PORTABLE ABR VIDEOSTREAMING CLIENT

CEE-SW-ABR-PT

AVALANCHE ABR VIDEO STREAMING CLIENT

CEE-SW-ABR

AVALANCHE ABR VIDEO STREAMING CLIENT

BPK-1228A

AVALANCHE ABR VIDEO STREAMING CLIENT 2PK MOD

BPK-1228A-2XMODSPIRENT SERVICES
Spirent Global Services provides a variety of professional
services, support services and education services—all focusedon helping customers meet their complex testing and service
assurance requirements. For more information, visit the Global
Services website at www.spirent.com or contact your Spirent
sales representative.

AMERICAS 1-800-SPIRENT • +1-818-676-2683 • sales@spirent.com
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ASIA AND THE PACIFIC +86-10-8518-2539 • salesasia@spirent.com© 2012 Spirent Communications, Inc. All of the company names and/or brand names and/or product names referred to in this document,in particular the name “Spirent” and its logo device, are either registered trademarks or trademarks pending registration in accordancewith relevant national laws. All rights reserved. Specifications subject to change without notice. Rev. B 09/12