VoIP & Speed Test
Options Managing Configuration ChangesParameter File Settings MyVoIPSpeed
Server has many
options that
provide great
control and flexibility
in the test parameters,
applet display
and behavior.
Many of these
options can be
enabled/disabled/modified
by editing the myspeed.bin INI
file in the ‘www’ directory. Controlling Parameter Settings in MyVoIPSpeed Web Pages Any parameter in the myspeed.bin INI file can be overridden by setting a MyVoIPSpeed HTML applet paramater in the web page. Many of the MyVoIPSpeed example HTML files use this technique to create custom behaviors on a page by page basis. For example the HTML below can be inserted within the <applet></applet> tags to set the session ID tag to ‘UKnetwork’, which could be used to identify speed test results from a particular location. <param name="SID" value="UKnetwork"> This option to set any parameter individually in the web page enables you to customize web pages for different purposes, and cause different behaviors for different pages. Using Multiple Parameter Files It is also possible to create multiple myspeed.bin INI files with different parameter settings and refer to the specific INI file in the web page HTML. For example, the code below would use a user-created internal.bin file in place of the myspeed.bin INI file for the web page: <param name="myspeed.bin" value="internal.bin"> The use of multiple parameter files enables you to customize web pages for different purposes, such as displaying the same applet in multiple languages or causing different behaviors for internal and external networks. VoIP Test ParametersVoIP Capacity - assessed In addition to simulating a VoIP call to assess call quality, MyVoIPSpeed also measures the overall bandwidth and throughput of a connection. Knowing the bandwidth (speed) and the quality (consistency of data movement) of a tested connection allows MyVoIPSpeed to calculate and report an estimate for the number of simultaneous quality VoIP calls the connection should be able to sustain. More importantly, as many VoIP service providers operate different VoIP protocols MyVoIPSpeed allows the you to configure the parameters used in the capacity calculation (packet size/rate, etc). This approach enables you to tailor the internal MyVoIPSpeed capacity algorithms to more accurately match one or more VoIP service providers. This can prove very useful when comparing different VoIP providers for service selection as it essentially allows the capacity of each to be assessed independently. Simulation Measurement - actual The MyVoIPSpeed Server simulation engine allows you to adjust the VoIP parameters used for the capacity assessment to conduct the actual VoIP simulation. These parameters essentially change the VoIP load levels. In simple terms you are configuring MyVoIPSpeed to simulate the type and the number of simultaneous calls. The benefit of this approach is that it allows the capacity assessments (documented above) to be challenged and verified in real-time. This test measures all the salient VoIP metrics such as Jitter, Packet Loss and Packet Discards. MyVoIPSpeed Configuration Parameters The group of myspeed.bin parameters that configure the VoIP simulation and assessment tests (including the comment lines) are listed below. #------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Best Practices:There are many different VoIP services available from many different service providers. To provide accurate measurements both for the simulation and assessment it is important to configure the above parameters to match those defined by your VoIP service provider. If those values are not known, the default values above should be used as these settings are common for a number of the major VoIP providers. TimeoutThe timeout option in the myspeed.bin file is used to set the time length of the upload and download test. You cannot set upload and download test times independently. The one timeout option sets the same time value in milliseconds to both tests. Accepted values for timeout are between 2 and 60 seconds (2000 to 60000 milliseconds) Best practices: Changing the length of the MySpeed test from the default of 8 seconds is not normally required or necessary, however there are certain benefits to changing this option depending on your network connection type. Some slower designed networks and high latency networks such as satellite operate in dual speed modes to preserve network capacity for short duration tasks such as downloading a web page. These types of network are able to invoke a faster mode when a greater demand is detected such as downloading music or video. The difference between the two usage patterns is simply the amount of time data is being demanded, when this time point is reached the network engages the faster mode. Setting the timeout option allows the MyVoIPSpeed administrator to extend the test time to a suitable length that triggers the network's high speed mode. Session IDThe Professional and NOC Editions include the ability to tag individual speed test results with an identification string to easily identify results from an individual, web page, or remote system. The Session ID string appears as a column in the performance database of test results, and is a searchable field in the reports. The Session ID can be enabled in 3 different methods: • an editable text field that appears on the MyVoIPSpeed applet. The end-user fills in the text field to start the test, such as their name, employee id, or support ticket number. You may change the text that appears in the applet by editing the parameter text in the myspeed.bin file by setting the parameter in the web page running the applet. results. • an uneditable text field that appears in the MyVoIPSpeed applet, which can be used to record a SID value automatically without end-user input. To make the SID uneditable, place an "*" before the SID value, such as: <param name="SID" value="*UKnetwork"> in the MyVoIPSpeed web page, or• a set value from a Remote Test Agent (RTA) in the NOC Edition. The RTAs can be deployed to remote systems to automatically run bandwidth tests to troubleshoot specific network segments and/or proactively monitor bandwidth performance. Best practices: The Session ID is extremely useful for identifying and managing test results, both for support technicians to view specific test results for individual users, and for network analysts to track results from remote systems as part of an ongoing performance management program. You can easily set the Session ID in the web page running the applet, and thus track results on an individual or group basis. For instance, you could automatically pass an authenticated username to have a unique identifier for each test result, or set up multiple pages with fixed Session IDs that record a specific text string for each visitor to the corresponding page. Use of the Session ID tag with the NOC Edition remote agents allows you to easily identify results from each remote system or from groups of remote systems, for easy analysis of performance results. Overlay ImageThe Professional and NOC Editions include options to add images, such as your company logo, to the MyVoIPSpeed Server applet to provide customized branding capabilities. You can add images to the VoIP test tab, speed test tab and summary tab. To activate, remove the comment tag (#) from lines below in the myspeed.bin file, or set the parameter in the web page. Use the default file names below or change them as desired. #backgroundoverlay=overlay.gif Best practices: It is recommended to use an image with a transparent background for optimal display. If you make the overlay image the same size as the applet (default size is 600x400) it will help when positioning your logo over the corresponding applet tab. Download FileThe default file used for the HTTP download speed test is a fully compressed 10Mb file. The file may be changed to any file using the data.bin=data.bin parameter of the myspeed.bin file. However, if changed the replacement file should also be fully compressed, otherwise the speed test results may be inaccurate as compressions will reduce the amount of data transmitted for the test. Best practices: If you are running a high-speed network (100mbit+) you may want to increase the data.bin file size to ensure that there is sufficient data for the duration of the speed test, which is normally 8 seconds. This only applies to HTTP tests, not socket-to-socket tests. When socket tests are used MyVoIPSpeed will reuse the data until the test completes.JavaScriptWhen a MyVoIPSpeed test completes, you can use the JavaScript option to immediately call a JavaScript function within the web page running the applet. To activate, remove the comment tag (#) from line below in the myspeed.bin file, or set the parameter in the web page. To use this option you must also add the MAYSCRIPT flag into the <applet> tag. #js=mss($DSPEED$,$USPEED$,$QOS$,$RTT$,$MAXPAUSE$,$MSSID$,$JITTER$, Best practices: The Scripting example web page included with the MyVoIPSpeed Server program illustrates how this option can be used to fill in a table with the test results. You can view the source code of the scripting.html page in the www directory to see how the variables above are used to populate the table. You may utilize the JavaScript code from any of the example files with a licensed version of MyVoIPSpeed Server. The JavaScript
option enables
you to perform
customized actions
when a test completes,
and even based
on the test results
themselves, such
as: • Dynamically changing the web page Other ParametersThere are many additional options that can be controlled in the myspeed.bin file. Some of these are listed below, please refer to the myspeed.bin file for a complete list and for the values that can be set for individual options.
|
