Patent ID: 8321733

Claim:
A method for optimizing a plurality of sampling parameters of a Serializer/Deserializer (SERDES) included in a network diagnostic component, the method comprising: an act of selecting first specific sampling parameters of the plurality of sampling parameters at which the SERDES is to receive network traffic, the plurality of sampling parameters including a sampling position of a clock for sampling the network traffic; an act of determining a number of errors included in a signal output by the SERDES at the selected first specific sampling parameters; an act of repeating for a specified number of the remaining sampling parameters of the plurality of sampling parameters the acts of selecting specific sampling parameters and determining the number of errors in a signal output by the SERDES at the selected specific sampling parameter, wherein the selected specific sampling parameters are different from previously selected specific sampling parameters; an act of recording the number of errors for each selected specific sampling parameter in an output record, and an act of applying a weighted center of mass optimization solution or a convolution optimization solution to the output record to thereby determine the specific sampling parameters of the plurality of sampling parameters that will cause the SERDES to output a signal with the lowest value of errors.