In tests conducted by EANTC, Crossbeam and Spirent Communications were able to emulate more than a million simultaneous mobile subscribers using their smartphones and tablets. The significance of the test is that the companies were able to simulate the effectiveness of network security devices and how they perform under real-world conditions.
Specifically, the test replicate the traffic loads that carriers experience at the mobile Internet gateway (Gi/SGi). Spirent’s Avalanche plat form was used to emulate more than 1 million users concurrently accessing the mobile data network with their connected devices. The traffic was sent through a single Crossbeam X-Series X80-S platform running Check Point software, where it underwent a series of firewall and IPS (intrusion prevention system) inspections, as well as network address translation (NAT). The real-world traffic model included using a 95 percent majority of HTTP sessions representing a range of user profiles. In addition, email (SMTP and POP3) connections were emulated alongside Smart Phone OS over-the-air updates.
“With so much misleading information about security product performance and the unpredictability of threats and traffic demands, there has been no clarity around what to test for and what methodology to use,�? said Chet Gapinski, vice president, product development at Crossbeam. “Any single measurement, such as network throughput, is meaningless unless tested and measured in combination with other metrics under real-world conditions. We saw an important opportunity to work with Spirent and EANTC on a set of real-world tests to move the industry forward to provide more accurate, uniform guidance.”
