Y.1564
ITU-T Y.1564 is an Ethernet service activation test methodology, which is the new ITU-T standard for turning up, installing and troubleshooting Ethernet-based services. It is the only standard test methodology that allows for complete validation of Ethernet service-level agreements (SLAs) in a single test. Purposes. ITU-T Y.1564 is designed to serve as a network service level agreement (SLA) validation tool, ensuring that a service meets its guaranteed performance settings in a controlled test time, to ensure that all services carried by the network meet their SLA objectives at their maximum committed rate, and to  perform medium- and long-term service testing, confirming that network elements can properly carry all services while under stress during a soaking period. ITU-T Y.1564 defines an out-of-service test methodology to assess the proper configuration and performance of an Ethernet service prior to customer notification and delivery. The test methodology applies to point-to-point and point-to-multipoint connectivity in the Ethernet layer and to the network portions that provide, or contribute to, the provisioning of such services. This recommendation does not define Ethernet network architectures or services, but rather defines a methodology to test Ethernet -based services at the service activation stage. Existing test methodologies: RFC 2544. The Internet Engineering Task Force RFC 2544 is a benchmarking methodology for network interconnect devices. This request for Comments (RFC) was created in 1999 as a methodology to benchmark network devices such as hubs, switches and routers as well as to provide accurate and comparable values for comparison and benchmarking. RFC 2544 provides engineers and network technicians with a common language and results format. The RFC 2544 describes six subtests: From a laboratory and benchmarking perspective, the RFC 2544 methodology is an ideal tool for automated measurement and  reporting. From a service turn-up and troubleshooting perspective, RFC 2544, although acceptable and valid, does have some drawbacks: Service definitions. The ITU-T Y.1564 defines test streams (individually called a "Test Flow") with service attributes linked to the Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) 10.2 definitions. Test Flows are traffic streams with specific attributes identified by different classifiers such as 802.1q VLAN, 802.1ad, DSCP and class of service (CoS) profiles. These services are defined at the user–network interface (UNI) level with different frame and bandwidth profile such as the service's maximum transmission unit (MTU) or frame size, committed information  rate (CIR), and excess information rate (EIR). A single Test Flow is also able to consist of up to 5 different frame sizes called an EMIX (Ethernet Mix). This flexibility allows the engineer to configure a Test Flow very close to real world traffic. Test rates. The ITU Y.1564 defines three key test rates based on the MEF service attributes for Ethernet virtual connection (EVC) and user-to-network interface (UNI) bandwidth profiles. Service configuration test. Forwarding devices such as switches, routers, bridges and network interface units are the basis of any network as they interconnect segments. If a service  is not correctly configured on any one of these devices within the end-to-end path, network performance can be greatly affected, leading to potential service outages and network-wide issues such as congestion and link failures. The Service configuration test is designed to measure the ability of DUT or network under test to properly forward in different states: Service performance test. As network devices come under load, they must prioritize one traffic flow over another to meet the KPIs set for each traffic class. With only one traffic class, there is no prioritization performed by the network devices since  there is only one set of KPIs. As the number of traffic flows increase, prioritization is necessary and performance failures may occur. The service performance test measures the ability of the DUT or network under test to forward multiple services while maintaining SLA conformance for each service. Services are generated at the CIR, where performance is guaranteed, and pass/fail assessment is performed on the KPI values for each service according to its SLA. Service performance assessment must also be maintained for a medium- to long-term period as performance degradation will likely occur as the network is under stress  for longer period of times. The service performance test is designed to soak the network under full committed load for all services and measure performance over medium and long test time. The time frame to complete this section of the test is recommended to follow ITU-T M.2110 which mentions intervals of 15min, 2hour or 24hour allowing network availability to be determined. Metrics. The Y.1564 focuses on the following KPIs for service quality: