nGenius Performance Manager Quick Reference Guide

ENTERPRISE SoluTIoNS 

Products and Solutions 

Reference Guide 

NetScout Systems 

Product and Solutions Pocket Reference GuideEnterprise 

Solutions

Table of Contents 

Unified Service Delivery Management 4 

nGenius Service Assurance Solution 8 

nGenius Performance Manager 10 

nGenius K2 Service Delivery Manager 12 

Sniffer Analysis 14 

nGenius Analytics for Flows 20 

nGenius Intelligent Data Sources 22 

Third-Party Integration 36 

Global Support and Services 39 

In today’s dynamic business environment, the modern IP network 

has emerged as a critical success factor. The Information 

Technology (IT) organization is under increasing pressure to 

orchestrate the seamless and reliable delivery of services to meet 

increasing user expectations. Today’s IT organizations must provide 

more services and greater business value with fewer resources and 

lower operating budgets than ever before. Yet operational costs can 

consume as much as 70 percent of the average IT budget. 

Today’s IT mission is focused on reducing the cost of IT while 

increasing IT performance, improving operational efficiencies and 

delivering the highest quality and availability of IT services possible. 

Because of the lack of unified and consistent visibility into network 

and application performance with dynamic correlation to services, 

the business and user experience is no longer acceptable. This 

coupled with the ever changing technology landscape and the 

continued increasing complexity of IT infrastructure drives the need 

for more a more automated and unified approach to managing 

service delivery. IT management must reduce the cost of service 

delivery, address increasing complexity, scale globally and adapt to 

emerging technologies such as cloud services, virtualization and 

unified communication services. 

2 N e t S c o u t P r o d u c t s a n d S o l u t i o n s R e f e r e n c e G u i d e 

3

Unified Service Delivery Management 

Leveraging the Unified Service Delivery Management framework from NetScout ® 

Systems, Inc. can help your organization construct a dynamic, scalable and sustainable 

approach to service delivery management that will enable better alignment of IT with 

business objectives and improve service quality and reliability. A unified view of the 

service delivery environment--extending from the data center, to the network, to the 

users--empowers the IT organizations to manage services, networks and users in 

unison, reducing the underlying complexity and achieving a unified business and service 

perspective of converged global networks. NetScout solutions can help IT organizations 

address business and technology challenges due to the explosion of data volume and 

transactions, the proliferation of smart devices and the emergence of new technologies 

such as unified communications, application virtualization, SOA, cloud services and 

data center consolidation. NetScout can help your organization create a unified and 

flexible service delivery management architecture that will increase the efficiency and 

effectiveness of your IT organization and help to: 

• Assure business service continuity 

• Achieve optimal user experience 

• Optimize service delivery performance 

• Better leverage existing infrastructure 

• Simplify managing service delivery 

• Reduce complexity 

• Lower the overall total cost of IT operations 

Leveraging advanced packet flow technologies, NetScout solutions give you greater 

visibility for effective monitoring, analyzing and assuring the end-to-end performance 

of applications and services for enterprise, government and service providers. This 

visibility delivers better business value, enhances the user experience, gains more from 

existing technology investments, and simplifies the management of IP service delivery. 

The Unified Service Delivery Management framework from NetScout brings rapid 

return on investment while dramatically enhancing organizational agility, allowing the IT 

organization to: 

• Optimize the service delivery environment, better leverage existing investments, 

and roll out new services with confidence 

• Protect network and application performance, and assure the quality of user 

experience 

• Simplify operations, improve workflow, consolidate tools, improve efficiency and 

collaboration and lower the overall cost of IT operations 

Support for IT Initiatives 

The value of NetScout nGenius ® and Sniffer ® technologies enable IT organizations to 

dramatically improve service quality while evolving their service management model from 

a reactive approach that responds to complaints, to a more proactive model that delivers 

a high performance, always-on services. This enables organizations to assure service 

delivery consistently from data center to the desktop and over the WAN to the branch 

office, while freeing up scarce IT resources to spend time on more strategic initiatives. 

Some of the more common IT initiatives include: 

• Data Center & Virtualization–View service delivery across virtual and physical 

environments for a comprehensive, unified view of application and network 

performance; the correlation of physical and virtual services in the data center 

enables IT organizations to optimize data center infrastructure investments, protect 

against service degradations, and simplify the operation of complex, multi-tier 

application environments 

• Unified Communications–Delivers the ability to view voice, data and video services 

side by side in order to understand the interrelationships of all services that 

traverse the network infrastructure 

• Branch Office & WAN–Brings extended visibility into the performance of 

applications and networks at and between locations, unified into an end-to-end 

solution that promotes collaborative problem-solving and planning 

• Enterprise Mobility–Provides service assurance across the infrastructure and 

applications supporting wireless service delivery, and rapid-response network 

troubleshooting with integration into Cisco ® wireless networks 

• Process Improvement & ITIL–Delivers real-time and historical information that 

provides the necessary insight to restore service, manage capacity, and understand 

the users’ quality of experience–as well as streamline your workflow in support of 

Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) process improvements 

• Service Assurance & Troubleshooting–Provides real-time enterprise-wide views, 

backed up by high-definition, actionable information on all network traffic, including 

individual applications, segments, and end users, to rapidly isolate network issues, 

restore service quickly, and minimize business impact 


5

NetScout Network and Application Performance 

Product Families 

NetScout is the market leader in Unified Service Delivery Management solutions focused 

on assuring service delivery for the world’s most demanding and complex service delivery 

environments. With a rich, sustained history of 25 years of technology innovation NetScout 

continues to lead the market and has dramatically changed how IT organizations assure 

service delivery across modern IP networks. NetScout has remained focused on aligning 

its product portfolio to meet the needs of the modern IT organization, providing robust 

tools for the efficient and effective management of dynamic network and application 

environments. This product portfolio has been architected to help IT organizations improve 

service availability and reliability with highly scalable, flexible, real time service delivery 

management capabilities that support a wide range of IT operational teams, including 

network managers, data center operations, application management, network operations 

centers, network engineering and IT operations. 

In today’s rapidly evolving technology environment, the IT organization is charged with 

delivering applications and services to users in a predictable, reliable and cost-effective 

way. Network and application analysis products from NetScout provide deploymentproven, 

valuable insight into the dynamic nature of data, voice and video running across 

modern IP networks. These highly sophisticated tools provide both a business and 

technical perspective of service delivery that allows IT and business management staff 

to fully understand resource impact and all interdependencies across networks, servers, 

applications and users to optimize service delivery and protect against service outages. 

NetScout has designed three distinct 

product families that range from portable 

field service tools, to dedicated hot-spot 

deep packet analysis and forensics, to 

end-to-end always-on service assurance 

with intelligent early warning capabilities. 

This comprehensive range of dynamic 

tools all leverage the power of packetflow 

knowledge to support both strategic 

and tactical approaches to managing the 

performance of applications and networks. 

Regardless of the design center deployed, 

NetScout products will enable the IT 

organization to meet the challenges and 

demands associated with modern day 

service delivery. 

TACTICAL 

The Sniffer Portable Analyzer product 

family provides best-in-class portable network 

and application analysis for plug-and-play, ondemand 

field deployments. Built on legendary 

and widely deployed Sniffer technology, the 

software is deployed on individual laptops for 

portable analysis and troubleshooting to rapidly 

isolate issues for wired and wireless networks. 

NetScout has taken the idea of the portable 

network analyzer to the next level by adding 

enterprise-class security and control of user 

access to sensitive network data. 

Field-service portable 

analysis with security 

and control 

TRouBlESHooTING 

The Sniffer Analysis software suite provides 

a direct connection to nGenius InfiniStream 

appliances for highly optimized forensic analysis 

and packet data mining to fully exploit the 

valuable information contained within network 

packets. The Sniffer Analysis software suite 

can be deployed on a standalone basis or 

in concert with the comprehensive nGenius 

Service Assurance Solution. When deployed in 

a standalone mode, Sniffer Analysis provides 

unsurpassed segment-by-segment deep packet 

analysis and troubleshooting capabilities by 

leveraging any number of nGenius InfiniStream 

appliances deployed across the network. The 

Sniffer Analysis software suite provides a 

powerful view deep into IP network packets, 

revealing granular information about network 

and application interactions and response time 

and latency metrics. 

Segment-specific troubleshooting 

and analysis with deep packet 

capture 

FoRENSIC ANAlYSIS AND PACKET DATA MINING 

The nGenius Service Assurance Solution 

delivers comprehensive, always-on visibility 

into end-to-end performance of the network, 

applications, services and users. Leveraging 

a family of unified software modules and rich 

packet flow-based metadata, the nGenius 

solution delivers unprecedented visibility into 

the end-to-end service delivery environment. 

Leveraging a robust range of intelligent data 

sources, the nGenius solution provides unified 

visibility from virtually any place in the network- 

-extending from the data center infrastructure 

and virtualized servers to the network core, 

edge and branch office—delivering highly 

accurate and flexible visibility into the user’s 

experience of application and network 

performance. This highly scalable, always-on 

network-wide solution provides IT organizations 

the tools and streamlined workflows needed 

to significantly improve the quality of services 

delivered, thereby dramatically reducing 

the time required to identify and resolve 

performance problems and make possible a 

more predictive and preventative approach to 

managing service delivery. 

Intelligent Data Sources: 

nGenius InfiniStream, 

Probes, Virtual Agents 

and Collectors 

STRATEGIC 

6 N e t S c o u t P r o d u c t s a n d S o l u t i o n s R e f e r e n c e G u i d e 7 

PREDICTIVE AND PREVENTATIVE SERVICE DElIVERY MANAGEMENT 

INTELLIGENCE 

DEPTH

nGenius Service Assurance Solution 

The nGenius Service Assurance Solution is a unified service delivery management 

platform that provides comprehensive, real-time network, application and service 

performance intelligence, allowing the IT organization to assure optimized network and 

application performance and quality of experience. The nGenius Service Assurance 

Solution provides always-on network and application visibility with a common and 

consistent view of service-oriented analysis and reporting functions that increases 

productivity and collaboration across the IT organization with team-oriented workflows. 

Solution capabilities include: 

• Unified aggregate service views with intelligent, automated anomaly detection 

to understand service-level performance and predict network, application, 

and service performance degradations in order to minimize or avoid serviceimpacting 

degradations 

• Network, application and service performance management with unified 

real-time and historical views, giving critical visibility into today’s most complex 

service delivery environments 

• Packet-level forensic analysis for deep-packet visibility and granular backin-time 

historical analysis to resolve the most difficult application and service 

delivery problems 

• Planning and optimization capabilities showing how resources are being 

consumed and revealing capacity shortfalls to keep service delivery 

environments running at peak efficiency and performance levels, and to best 

leverage existing IT technology investments 

• Service and policy validation delivers key metrics and insight into the service 

delivery environment to validate the impact of the implementation of new 

network optimization and policies for applications and services 

The nGenius Service Assurance Solution brings a unified approach to managing service 

delivery that empowers the IT organization to dramatically improve the overall quality 

of service for applications and services delivered across the entire organization. 

Unified insight into the service delivery environment enables greater service reliability 

and availability with improved network performance and responsiveness. A unified 

framework for service delivery management helps the organization lower the total 

cost of IT operations by consolidating operations into a single unified tool set that 

can be leveraged across the entire organization. This improves IT staff productivity 

and collaboration, and enables better cross-functional leverage of management tool 

investments. Consequently, the IT organization gains better insight into the real-time 

operation of the service delivery environment, reducing the overall total cost of ownership 

for IT while maximizing network and application investments. 

The nGenius Service Assurance Solution is a unified platform that leverages a number of 

specialized modules and intelligent data sources that consist of: 

• nGenius Performance Manager–Analyzes and leverages the meta-data delivered 

by a comprehensive range of intelligent data sources for integrated network, 

application and service performance monitoring, response time analysis, 

troubleshooting, capacity planning and trending, and long-term reporting, enabling 

end-to-end assurance and visibility of service delivery 

• nGenius K2 Service Delivery Manager–Used in conjunction with nGenius 

Performance Manager, nGenius K2 Service Delivery Manager delivers serviceoriented 

views and virtual topology maps, providing a high-level view of the health 

of applications and services, and automatically detecting anomalous changes in 

network, application and service behavior 

• Sniffer Analysis–Enables unrestricted packet mining, forensic analysis and 

decodes from the nGenius InfiniStream ® appliance packet store to speed 

troubleshooting 

• Sniffer MultiSegment Analysis–Combines and correlates trace files from multiple 

nGenius InfiniStream appliances for multi-segment and multi-tier analysis, 

comparative session reporting and logical application and service mapping 

• nGenius Intelligent Data Sources–nGenius intelligent data sources range from 

intelligent Deep Packet Capture (iDPC) appliances, to hardware probes, to 

software-based agents for virtual environments, to NetFlow and sFlow collection 

devices. These data sources utilize a common framework that enables the 

disparate metrics collected to be displayed in comprehensive and unified views, 

with seamless workflows across the fully integrated and unified nGenius Service 

Assurance Solution 

• nGenius Performance Manager for Flows & nGenius Analytics for Flows– 

Leverages Cisco NetFlow, sFlow, and IP SLA data for analysis and reporting 

of performance problems, analysis and reporting for application utilization and 

conversation-level statistics, and MIB II data collected by nGenius Collectors 

8 9

nGenius Performance Manager 

Overview 

The nGenius Performance Manager is the cornerstone of the nGenius Service Assurance 

Solution, providing IT organizations with an unprecedented, unified end-to-end view of 

service delivery, performance and consumption from the data center to the end user. 

Highly optimized to support the most complex and demanding network environments, 

nGenius Performance Manager leverages robust and pervasive packet flow data collected 

by a comprehensive family of nGenius intelligent data sources. Deployed across the 

network, these data sources capture and analyze real-time IP traffic flows. In addition, the 

nGenius Performance Manager can also leverage NetFlow and sFlow data from deployed 

network devices to gain broader insight from key network aggregation points. 

Capabilities 

• Unified view of a converged network environment with the ability to view voice, 

video and data metrics side-by-side in the same easy-to-use workspace 

• Application recognition and monitoring of well-known, custom-developed, 

virtualized, and Web-based applications and services 

• Critical application and network performance metrics that identify interrelationships 

and interdependencies between applications over the network infrastructure 

• Response time analysis and latency metrics provide granular understanding of 

application behavior with early detection of application performance degradation 

and quality of experience (QoE) issues 

• Highly flexible reporting and analysis capabilities including long-term trending and 

capacity planning with support for on-demand and scheduled reporting 

• Unified monitoring of the network, applications and application server infrastructure 

to include both physical and virtual environments 

Uses 

• Properly manage application and network performance with a high-definition 

understanding of service delivery 

• Optimize the existing network infrastructure for peak performance, forecast 

bandwidth growth, recognize capacity shortfalls, validate and optimize new service 

roll-outs and properly plan for new technology initiatives 

• Validate service delivery over QoS classes and ensure that users have access to 

the networked applications they need to meet their business objectives 

• Recognize and address service delivery issues as they emerge to minimize user 

impact 

Benefits 

• Comprehensive, end-to-end understanding of application and service delivery 

across the network infrastructure, assuring a high performance service delivery 

environment 

• Optimized and efficient network infrastructure to run at peak efficiency and deliver 

a consistent high quality end-user experience 

• Granular understanding of how users access key business applications and assure 

users have access to the services needed to meet business objectives 

• Real-time recognition of poor service delivery conditions, speeding the 

identification and diagnosis of service degradation to minimize the impact to users 

nGenius Performance Manager real-time and historical views provide high-definition visibility to virtually 

all applications on the network, including well-known, custom, complex and Web-based services, and 

applications within virtualized computing environments. 

Long-term reporting provides valuable information regarding trends in the service delivery environment and 

aids in understanding the impact new technology initiatives will have on existing services. 


11

nGenius K2 Service Delivery Manager 

Overview 

nGenius K2 Service Delivery Manager delivers a unified and aggregate view of services 

and applications providing a powerful, at-a-glance visualization and correlation of network 

and application health across the service delivery environment. Leveraging a selflearning 

predictive statistical modeling engine, nGenius K2 Service Delivery Manager 

helps IT organizations assure the availability and performance of business services 

through automated detection of exceptions and anomalies in service traffic coupled 

with subsequent diagnostics through nGenius Performance Manager. The nGenius K2 

Service Delivery Manager combines data from applications, network service enablers, 

and network elements into an aggregated view of services and delivers a wide range of 

robust key performance indicators (KPIs) to provide an always-on service-oriented view 

with actionable early-warning notification of issues as they are emerge. 

Capabilities 

• Provides a unified vantage point for all services across the service delivery 

environment with a highly scalable cross-organization view into business service 

performance and health 

• Dynamic automated discovery of services and applications with a real-time service 

status dashboard provides at-a-glance visualization of the health of the service 

delivery environment, across multiple applications and services 

• Automated anomaly detection offers predictive behavioral analysis that 

automatically identifies abnormal changes in service performance and provides 

early warning notification of emerging performance problems 

• KPI analysis provides focused metrics on the health of key business services from 

an end-user perspective 

• Service summaries provide application and service-specific charts that supply 

focused and relevant evidence about the state of the network at the time of the 

incident 

• Service maps graphically illustrate the flow of each application and service across 

the network by displaying the nGenius intelligent data sources and servers that 

have seen the application or service 

• Anytime, anyplace access to nGenius K2 alerts and summaries from wireless/ 

mobile PCs or handheld devices, enterprise desktops or network operation center 

(NOC) consoles 

Uses 

• View the health of key business service delivery with at-a-glance service 

visualization 

• Take preemptive action and preventative measures by identifying changes in 

behavior before they degrade service delivery 

• Speed problem resolution with the ability to view focused and relevant evidence 

about the state of the network at time of incident 

• Unified management of service delivery by understanding the flow of each 

application and service across the network 

• Anytime, anyplace access to alerts and summaries from mobile PCs or handheld 

devices, desktops or NOCs 

Benefits 

• Assures high availability and quality performance of today’s complex IP business 

services 

• Intelligent early warning capabilities enable the IT organization to become more 

predictive with a preventative mode of addressing business-impacting issues 

• Automated detection of service-impacting issues with streamlined workflows for 

seamless detailed diagnostics 

• Enhanced IT productivity with unified service views to proactively monitor the 

status of all related service delivery elements 

• Maximized service levels and uptime of service delivery environment and end-toend 

service health 

• Track critical metrics focused on analyzing the errors and responsiveness 

degradations that impact business critical services 

• Improve service delivery by automatically identifying anomalous behavior with 

action-oriented alarms that provide powerful early warning of performance 

degradations to avoid service meltdowns 

The nGenius K2 Service 

Delivery Manager at-a-glance 

dashboard view provides a clear 

understanding of the health of the 

services that end users rely on to 

meet their business objectives. 

The nGenius K2 Service Delivery 

Manager service status view 

delivers an applicationspecific 

summary overview 

containing relevant and focused 

performance details essential for 

rapid problem diagnosis, such as 

response time, key performance 

indicators or application usage. 


13

Sniffer Analysis Software 

Sniffer Analysis enables IT staff to perform highly granular packet analysis, mining, and 

decode of packets captured and stored by nGenius InfiniStream appliances. Optimized 

for direct connection to an nGenius InfiniStream appliance, the Sniffer Analysis software 

suite is used within the nGenius Service Assurance Solution or on a standalone basis to 

provide unprecedented granular packet forensic analysis that enhances and simplifies 

troubleshooting. This packet-level analysis quickly pinpoints performance anomalies and 

isolates root cause so the IT staff can rapidly solve the most challenging and complex 

application and network performance issues. A number of components of the Sniffer 

Analysis software suite are included with each nGenius InfiniStream appliance and 

provide a direct-connect interface to nGenius InfiniStream appliances including: 

Base Software 

• Sniffer Intelligence (base module)–Back-in-time application-aware analysis 

software supplies packet-level forensic analysis to simplify troubleshooting, 

including enterprise application and voice intelligence capabilities 

• InfiniStream Console–Direct-connect interface to an nGenius InfiniStream 

appliance 

• Sniffer Focused Intelligence–A packet retrieval and manipulation tool to support 

in-depth packet searches and focused frame analysis 

Specialized Applications 

• Sniffer Financial Intelligence–An optional software module that is highly optimized 

to analyze and troubleshoot financial trading environments 

Sniffer Intelligence 

Overview 

Sniffer Intelligence is application forensic analysis software that provides a back-in-time, 

graphical view of the conversations traversing the network to speed troubleshooting 

and analysis. Users can mix and match multi-dimensional views of hundreds of preprocessed 

statistics to create customized charts that compare data, profile applications 

or isolated anomalies. The Sniffer Intelligence base module is provided with Sniffer 

Analysis at no additional cost and is deployed on the user’s desktop. An optional 

specialized add-on module is available for analysis of financial trading applications. 

Capabilities 

• Automatic identification of popular packaged applications and next-generation 

IP-based services 

• More than one hundred flow-based statistics and metrics including detailed server 

and network response times, TCP efficiencies, anomalies, and QoS levels 

• Recognition of Voice over IP (VoIP) call detail records 

• Patented HyperLock multi-dimensional filtering to speed data retrieval and 

expedite troubleshooting 

• Comprehensive yet flexible views of the data 

• Industry-leading Sniffer decodes and experts 

Uses 

• Track conversation details for root cause analysis 

• See and hear how VoIP applications are affected by jitter 

• Graphically compare application performance side by side 

• Analyze incidents from a forensic perspective to determine how multiple 

applications or services interrelate 

Benefits 

• Simplifies troubleshooting of complex application issues using easy to understand 

charts and graphs 

• Provides flexible filtering, allowing a troubleshooter to drill down one path, then 

seamlessly explore another direction 

• Accelerates identification of root cause by quickly mining application and VoIP 

performance data 

Sniffer Intelligence provides easy navigation 

using dynamic metrics and charts. 

InfiniStream Console 

VoIP conversations are easily graphed to visualize 

voice impairments. Audio playback is also 

included. 

Overview 

The InfiniStream Console provides a direct-connect interface to nGenius InfiniStream 

appliances. Stored packet data can be directly accessed with unrestricted mining and 

does not require a secondary server. The InfiniStream Console provides a streamlined 

view to vital data that is needed when troubleshooting high-priority issues. Although often 

used in standalone mode, the InfiniStream Console can serve as a complementary user 

interface with the nGenius Service Assurance Solution, allowing users to drill down to 

highly granular deep packet analysis from within the unified solution. 

Capabilities 

• Provides a direct connection to nGenius InfiniStream appliances so users can view 

and analyze native packet data for unrestricted data mining to perform detailed 

forensic analysis on network traffic 


15

• QuickSelect thumbnail overview of traffic over time 

• Merges multiple streams to provide a consolidated view 

• Visually shows which packets and statistical time slices are available for retrieval 

• Automatically launches Sniffer Intelligence and its decodes for detailed 

troubleshooting analysis 

• Quickly reacts to service delivery issues using a “crash-cart” problem resolution 

approach 

• Provides health statistics on the nGenius InfiniStream appliance 

Uses 

• The InfiniStream Console software is used to quickly focus, understand, 

troubleshoot and tune critical applications and networks; it provides unrestricted 

mining directly on the nGenius InfiniStream appliance when time to resolution is 

critical 

• The granular forensic analysis along with high-level overview of individual or 

merged traffic streams and a wide array of analysis criteria is vital to assess and 

resolve service delivery issues or security-related incidents 

Benefits 

• Simplify troubleshooting of application issues by providing quick and unrestricted 

packet mining and access to Sniffer Intelligence and the decodes necessary to 

solve the most complex service-delivery issues, minimizing the impact on the end 

user 

The InfiniStream Console provides a QuickSelect 

view to include traffic over time as well as detailed 

statistics on the highlighted traffic spike. 

Sniffer Financial Intelligence 

Overview 

Sniffer Financial Intelligence is an optional add-on module to Sniffer Intelligence that is 

specifically designed for financial trading firms and exchanges that transmit trade order 

flows and use market data feeds. The software provides detailed visibility into messaging 

protocols to trade orders as well as hundreds of common data feeds critical to automated 

trading. The software integrates with the base Sniffer Intelligence module. 

Capabilities 

• Automatically identifies trade applications, such as Financial Information eXchange 

(FIX) and TradElect, breaking out the details of the individual orders 

• Recognizes more than 600 financial market data feeds, including Arcabook, 

ARCA-FAST, CME-MDP, IBM LLM, TIBCO, NASDAQ UQDF, OPRA FAST, and 

Russell 1000 

• Supplies enhanced time stamping across nGenius InfiniStream appliances using 

GPS or CDMA options to correct for μsec drift where latency is critical 

• Breaks out latencies by transport and the time for the transaction to be turned by 

the server 

• Includes more than one hundred flow-based statistics and metrics including 

detailed server and network response times, TCP efficiencies, anomalies, and QoS 

levels 

• Leverages the patented HyperLock multi-dimensional filtering to speed data 

retrieval and expedite troubleshooting 

• Includes industry-leading Sniffer decodes and experts 

Sniffer Financial Intelligence breaks out order 

details of individual trades to see exactly how they 

executed. 

Uses 

• Helps resolve problems within FIX or TradElect networks 

• Reports on client latency/delivery, and compliance 

• Tracks which orders closed properly and which were left open 

• Determines if certain transaction types run faster than others 

• Isolates delays, microbursts, or loss in S,G feeds 

16 N e t S c o u t P r o d u c t s a n d S o l u t i o n s R e f e r e n c e G u i d e 17

Benefits 

• Helps simplify and accelerate complex financial trade application troubleshooting 

by detailing financial data such as order type, status, symbol, and order ID 

• Monitors market feeds for signs of packet loss or sequence issues that can 

negatively impact automated trading 

• Exposes latency issues in time-critical financial applications that have the potential 

to turn profitable trades upside down 

• Isolates which trading stations are processing orders faster than others 

• Enables accelerated root cause identification by quickly mining trade details to 

keep overall orders flowing smoothly 

Sniffer MultiSegment Analysis 

Overview 

Sniffer MultiSegment Analysis automates the tedious process of matching packet 

traces across multiple network segments. It is a post-capture analysis tool that exposes 

network latencies and application turn times between segments, determining exactly 

where network delays occur. 

Capabilities 

• Automates and synchronizes conversation flows across multiple segments 

• Provides a structured drill-down approach to solving complex performance 

problems 

• Visually depicts delays and networking anomalies 

• Algorithmically correlates front-end Web transactions with SQL-based back-end 

queries for multi-tiered applications 

• Presents transactions from multiple network perspectives or combined together in 

a multi-tiered view 

• Allows drill down from higher-level reporting to the packet details 

Uses 

• Track and coordinate conversation flows across multiple segments to troubleshoot 

complex applications 

• Monitor the delivery of multi-tier applications from a hop-by-hop perspective 

• Determine the effect of chatty applications across a network 

• Plan, test, and validate complex or multi-tiered application rollouts 

Benefits 

• Streamlines the process of troubleshooting complex or multi-tiered applications 

• Gives IT staff an understanding of application delivery across segments with 

graphical views of specific conversations 

• Simplifies diagnosis of complex issues for multi-tier and multi-hop applications 

• Verifies exactly where performance degradations occur 

• Recognizes how front-end processes can trigger complex database queries 

This Sniffer MultiSegment Analysis view 

graphically depicts individual packet 

flows and their associated conversations 

(complete with inter-segment delays) 

across the network. Problems such as 

bottlenecks and packet loss are easily 

identified. 


nGenius Analytics for Flows and 

nGenius Performance Manager for Flows 

Overview 

The nGenius Performance Manager for Flows and the nGenius Analytics for Flows 

products are specifically optimized to leverage Cisco NetFlow or sFlow data from other 

popular network devices as their primary source of network traffic data. Using flow 

records from network infrastructure devices collected by nGenius Collector appliances, 

nGenius Analytics for Flows provides action-oriented alerts that contain evidentiary 

details and graphical charts used as the starting point to guide diagnosis. From the alert, 

IT organizations can easily drill down to nGenius Performance Manager for Flows for 

additional details necessary to resolve problems. The nGenius Performance Manager 

for Flows analyzes and maps NetFlow and sFlow data and IP SLA results gathered by 

nGenius Collector appliances into the powerful real-time screens and historical reports 

necessary for problem resolution and capacity planning activities. 

Capabilities 

• Gain an accurate view of data contained within NetFlow and sFlow datagrams and 

results from IP SLA tests 

• Advanced alerting that forecasts abnormal or unusual changes in behavior 

• Workflow-based drill down from preemptive alerts to the associated Cisco NetFlow 

or sFlow data 

• Application delivery and response time metrics based on NetFlow datagrams and 

active IP SLA tests 

• Quality of service (QoS) configuration and statistical information derived from the 

Cisco Class-Based QoS MIB (CBQoS), including discard packets, discard bytes 

and discard BIT rate 

Uses 

• Leverage thresholdless anomaly detection with automatic detection of changes in 

data delivered by NetFlow-enabled network infrastructure devices, minimizing the 

need to consistently update thresholds as networks evolve 

• View intelligent early warning alerts that contain evidentiary details and graphical 

summaries to help identify and resolve service delivery problems quickly 

• View application, response time and utilization data for easy enterprise-wide 

analysis and reporting 

• Manage and forecast capacity shortfalls by leveraging the core on-demand and 

long-term reporting functionality of the nGenius Service Assurance Solution 

Benefits 

• The nGenius Analytics for Flows and nGenius Performance Manager for Flows 

work in unison to recognize and resolve network problems quickly and efficiently 

and to support capacity planning initiatives 

• Combined understanding of how users are accessing the services they need to 

meet their business goals of application delivery across the network infrastructure, 

including utilization, application responsiveness and QoS configuration 

• Improved service delivery by automatically identifying anomalous behavior with 

action-oriented alarms that provide powerful early warning of performance 

degradations, minimizing the impact on the end user 

• Visibility that enables proper capacity planning for new technology initiatives and 

cost justification when upgrades are needed 

The nGenius Analytics for Flows 

alert list provides detailed 

information about detected 

anomalies, providing guidance 

into which issues are the most 

critical and streamlining the 

problem resolution process. 

nGenius Performance Manager 

for Flows displays multiple 

NetFlow/sFlow-enabled devices 

and ports simultaneously for a 

fundamental understanding of 

application performance. IP SLA 

data tests provide response time 

information. 


21

nGenius Intelligent Data Sources 

Overview 

NetScout offers a comprehensive family of intelligent data sources to provide packet 

flow-based visibility for all applications and services that flow across global networks. 

NetScout intelligent data sources range from intelligent Deep Packet Capture (iDPC) 

appliances deployed in strategic, high-bandwidth locations, to real-time hardware 

and software probes and Cisco NetFlow and sFlow collection devices. All NetScout 

intelligent data sources leverage the Common Data Model (CDM) architecture. CDM is 

a NetScout technology innovation that creates a common set of statistics and metrics 

across multiple data sources that derive traffic intelligence regardless of interface 

type--IP, ATM, Frame Relay, NetFlow, etc. CDM provides a highly scalable technology 

foundation that feeds into the nGenius Service Assurance Solution and enables 

consistent metrics across a broad-range of interfaces and data sources. 

NetScout intelligent data sources provide: 

• Industry-leading nGenius and Sniffer packet flow technologies 

• Non-invasive data collection, with no impact to network, applications or services, 

provide granular visibility into LAN, WAN and virtualized computing environments 

• Comprehensive support for a broad range of network links and interfaces--from 

WAN-specific links to 10 Gigabit Ethernet links 

• Packet storage capacity ranging from 500 GB to 16 TB for back-in-time forensic 

analysis 

• Resilient power and storage options for critical deployment environments 

Intelligent data source options for the nGenius Service Assurance Solution include: 

• nGenius InfiniStream Appliances–iDPC based appliances strategically positioned 

across the network collect packet flow statistics and perform continuous packet 

capture for back-in-time analysis; providing exceptional investment leverage, 

nGenius InfiniStream appliances can be deployed on a standalone basis using 

Sniffer Analysis software for in-depth troubleshooting requirements or as part 

of the always-on nGenius Service Assurance solution to provide intelligent early 

warning, application response time, real-time analysis with packet-level and drilldown 

capabilities and historical reporting 

• nGenius Probes–Traditional hardware-based intelligent data source that provides 

deep packet monitoring and analysis of packets as they traverse the network to 

visualize application performance and behavior for the nGenius Service Assurance 

solution 

• nGenius Virtual Agent–Next generation software-based intelligent data sources 

that virtualize hardware probe technology for deployment within virtualized 

computing environments 

• nGenius Collector–Hardware appliance that collects Cisco NetFlow-, IP SLA- and 

S-Flow-based statistical data and integrates with nGenius Performance Manager, 

nGenius K2 Service Delivery Manager, nGenius Performance Manager for Flows, 

and nGenius Analytics 


23

nGenius Probe 

IP PBX 

SQL Database Server 

e-Mail Server 

Active Directory Server 

Virtualized Server 

Headquarters 

nGenius Virtual Agent 

IP IP 

Data Center 

Branch Office (

nGenius InfiniStream Appliances 

Overview 

The nGenius InfiniStream appliance delivers highly scalable iDPC capabilities for 

the long-term storage of network packets for deep packet analysis and forensics. 

InfiniStream appliances offer multi-core high performance processing capabilities that 

enable local, distributed analysis of packets to support intelligent capabilities such as 

voice quality analysis, and the generation of Extended Data Records (xDRs). nGenius 

InfiniStream appliances are deployed where detailed packet analysis and historical backin-time 

analysis is needed. Because the nGenius InfiniStream continually stores packets 

to disk, it provides the native packet data to go back in time to understand exactly 

how networked applications interrelate and to troubleshoot problems as they happen. 

Packet and statistical data from nGenius InfiniStream appliances can be leveraged in a 

standalone analysis mode or through the nGenius Service Assurance Solution. 

nGenius InfiniStream 6900 Series 

Best-in-class packet flow iDPC storage 

technology. Optimized for speed, performance, 

and resilience, the 6900 Series provides storage 

capacity up to 16 TB, redundant power and 

RAID storage, hot-swappable drives and power 

supplies, and supports high-capacity links up to 

10 GbE. 

nGenius InfiniStream 2900 Series 

The 2900 series is a small footprint iDPC 

appliance that extends the market-leading 

InfiniStream technology to space-constrained 

locations and lower capacity links, such as access 

layers, wiring closets, and medium-sized branch 

offices that only require up to 500 GB of packet 

storage capabilities. 

Capabilities 

• Linux ® -based, security-hardened with integrated manageability and per-device 

access control 

• Continuously analyzes, creates robust CDM statistics and captures packets to 

storage in real-time 

• Generates KPI metrics 

• Generates real-time XDR records for supported applications and protocols** 

• Provides efficient indexing for rapid retrieval and isolation of data 

• Flexible, non-intrusive deployment with standard network mirror port or link tap 

technologies 

• Hardware-based time-stamping and synchronization for millisecond granularity to 

better track packets and flows* 

• Hot-swappable drives, redundant power sources, and RAID for locations that 

require options for added reliability* 

• Ships with the Sniffer Analysis software suite, which includes InfiniStream Console, 

Sniffer Intelligence, Sniffer Focused Intelligence and industry-leading Sniffer 

decodes and experts 

• Supports multiple Ethernet interface connections for copper or fiber and from 

10/100/1000 to 10 Gigabit Ethernet* 

• Flexible storage options with storage capacity up to 16 TB* 

Uses 

• The nGenius InfiniStream appliance is deployed at strategic points across the 

network to deliver critical visibility of high capacity network links 

• Collects, analyzes and stores packet flow data for real-time and historical analysis 

• Specialized Smart Recording and Data Mining (SRDM) configuration options 

optimize storage and adhere to policy and compliance requirements such HIPAA 

and PCI standards 

• All collected data and detailed packet information is available to the full 

complement of the nGenius Service Assurance Solution 

• The appliance can be leveraged for standalone deployments with the included 

Sniffer Analysis software suite 

Benefits 

• Enables the forensic analysis of historical network traffic eliminating the need to 

wait for intermittent performance issues to re-occur 

nGenius InfiniStream Appliances in Standalone Mode 

• Granular packet analysis capabilities isolate problems quickly 

Analysis of the nGenius InfiniStream data can run directly on the appliance 

without the need for centralized software or server hardware. Sniffer Analysis 

• Provides the industry’s broadest iDPC offering, ensuring proper visibility across the 

software provides a direct connection and interface to an InfiniStream appliance 

enterprise 

to access, analyze and perform unrestricted packet mining. Further forensic 

• Local, distributed processing scales solution and reduces management traffic 

analysis and troubleshooting is accomplished using Sniffer Intelligence. This 

impact on the network 

combination provides a fast link to data in troubleshooting or crash-cart 

• Provides an unmatched combination of intelligent deep packet capture and packet 

deployment scenarios. As organizations look to gain more unified visibility, 

analysis capabilities 

or move to a predictive, proactive model, the InfiniStream appliance can be 

leveraged by the nGenius Service Assurance Solution. NOTES: 

* Support varies by specific model; refer to product data sheet or NetScout for details and specific models supported. 

** XDR data record support varies by nGenius module; XDR data will also be leveraged in future product releases. 


27

nGenius Probes 

Overview 

The nGenius Probes are highly 

optimized intelligent data sources 

that analyze network traffic to deliver 

key network metrics to the nGenius 

Service Assurance Solution. The 

nGenius Probes are ideally suited for deployment at the WAN edge and network edge 

locations that do not require continuous capture and storage of network packets. The 

nGenius Probes fully support the nGenius Service Assurance Solution by generating key 

performance metrics, such as traffic, application and service utilization, conversations, 

error conditions, resource utilization, response time and many others. 

Capabilities 

• Analyzes all network traffic in real time and generates metadata statistics for use in 

the nGenius Service Assurance Solution 

• Delivers KPI metrics 

• Leverages the NetScout CDM architecture to provide unified metrics that scale 

across multiple topologies and interfaces 

• Automatically recognizes well-known, Web-based, peer-to-peer, and custom 

applications 

• Generates network and application metadata, providing insight into the hosts and 

traffic conversations such as traffic, application, and service utilizations 

• Provides one-minute data-sampling granularity 

• Tracks utilization, response times, QoS metrics, and VoIP information 

• Provides short-term on-demand packet capture based upon user request or 

defined triggers 

• Wide range of models available to support WAN and Gigabit Ethernet interface 

connections with support for fiber and copper links 

Uses 

• Ideal for deployment at the WAN edge and for less critical network links that 

require snapshot statistics with trending and utilization analysis 

• Intended for links that do not require intelligent Deep Packet Capture or highperformance 

local processing capabilities 

Benefits 

• Provides a consistent source of data across WAN and LAN interfaces 

• Leverages packet flow statistical data to facilitate real-time monitoring and longterm 

historical analysis with the nGenius Service Assurance Solution 

• Provides always-on visibility across the enterprise by monitoring physical links and 

their corresponding virtual links 

• Packaged in a small-footprint (1RU) size to fit into tight-edge deployment rack 

space 

nGenius Virtual Agent 

Overview 

The nGenius Virtual Agent is a software-based 

intelligent data source that extends the visibility of 

the nGenius Service Assurance Solution deeper 

into the data center to include virtual computing 

environments. The nGenius Virtual Agent is a 

self-contained virtual appliance that is easy to 

deploy and manage. It is deployed within a virtual 

server and is contained within a protected and 

dedicated environment with no impact on other 

virtual applications. The nGenius Virtual Agent automatically discovers all applications 

and their interdependencies and monitors all traffic on the host hypervisor, providing 

visibility for intra-server, inter-server and virtual server to physical server traffic. 

Capabilities 

• Virtualizes nGenius probe technology to deploy packet flow visibility in virtual 

servers 

• Provides unified views of applications and services across virtual and physical 

infrastructure 

• Identifies and tracks application traffic that exits and enters the virtual server and 

traverses to physical servers, tracking multi-tier applications end to end 

• Provides short-term on-demand packet capture based upon user request or 

defined triggers 

• Identifies application movement to recognize application additions, relocations, and 

removals from the network perspective 

• Virtual TAP (vTAP) mode forwards packet flow traffic from within a virtual machine 

to an external InfiniStream appliance for intelligent Deep Packet Capture of more 

granular forensic analysis and application profiling 

• Seamlessly deploys into existing NetScout nGenius Service Assurance instances 

• Supports VMware ® virtual server environments 

Uses 

• The nGenius Virtual Agent is purpose-built for deployment within a virtual server to 

monitor multi-tier applications across physical and virtual servers 

• Extends end-to-end service assurance, optimization and troubleshooting 

capabilities to inside virtualized servers 

Benefits 

• Enables the IT organization to regain a true end-to-end application and services 

view in context with service delivery environment and user experiences. 

• Assures operational consistency with common application performance metrics 

and a high level of extensibility 

• Allows IT organizations to leverage existing service assurance investments, gaining 

critical visibility into virtual computing environments 


29

nGenius Collector 

Overview 

The nGenius Collector is a high 

capacity, high-performance data source 

optimized to collect NetFlow, S-Flow 

and IP SLA statistics for analysis by the 

nGenius Service Assurance Solution. 

NetFlow- and IP SLA-enabled routers and switches provide a cost-effective option to 

direct NetFlow datagrams and IP SLA test results to the nGenius Collector. Collecting 

and delivering NetFlow and IP SLA data allows the nGenius Service Assurance Solution 

to analyze and display this information in common formats and reports along with data 

from other nGenius intelligent data sources. 

Capabilities 

• The NetScout CDM architecture provides a universal format that scales across 

multiple topologies and interfaces, including NetFlow, S-Flow and IP SLA 

• Collects NetFlow and S-Flow metrics for many network switches and routers, 

providing insight into the hosts and traffic conversations 

• Measures network performance and availability between IP SLA-enabled devices 

and end points such as application servers 

• Recognizes well-known and custom application port/server associations 

• Provides five-minute data-sampling granularity 

• Tracks utilization, response times, QoS metrics, and VoIP information 

Uses 

• A low-cost data option that leverages widely available traffic metrics from many 

existing switches and routers; typically leveraged at remote locations where more 

granular hardware-based data sources, like probes and deep packet capture 

appliances, may be cost-prohibitive 

• Near real-time network-based traffic analysis 

• The nGenius Collector is often placed near clusters of NetFlow or S-Flow-enabled 

network devices to minimize the impact of additional traffic on the network 

Business Benefits 

• Utilizes standard NetFlow, S-Flow and IP SLA technology, providing a low-cost 

option to monitor secondary traffic paths 

• Facilitates near-time monitoring to optimize network traffic and performance 

• Small-footprint (1RU) appliance saves valuable rack space in space-constrained 

environments 

Portable Network Analysis 

Sniffer Portable Analyzer Family 

The industry’s original Sniffer technology, the Sniffer Portable Analyzer software family 

provides on-demand plug-and-play network analysis for wired and wireless networks. 

Ideally suited for rapid response to network and application issues on location in the 

field, these software-based solutions are built on the industry’s most advanced and 

widely deployed Sniffer decodes and expert analysis software. Leveraging a common 

technology foundation, Sniffer Portable Analyzer software is available in a single 

standalone solution, or in an enterprise-class solution that supports from 10 to hundreds 

of users with centralized control and reporting of its use on the network. 

Sniffer Portable Professional Analyzer 

The world’s most widely deployed portable network analyzer, Sniffer Portable 

Professional is an easy-to-use plug-and-play, single-user analyzer that delivers powerful 

on-demand troubleshooting capabilities. Sniffer Portable Professional Analyzer delivers 

best-in-class protocol decodes and integrated packet-level expert analysis of wired and 

wireless environments, making it ideal for field technicians and problem escalation staff 

to rapidly identify root cause of performance issues for both network and application 

traffic on a segment-by-segment basis 

Sniffer Global Analyzer 

Building on the Sniffer Portable Professional Analyzer technology, Sniffer Global is an 

enterprise-class solution that adds centralized, policy-based access controls and reporting 

capabilities that govern and track what a user can see and analyze on the network. In 

addition, Sniffer Global integrates with the Cisco 3300 Series Mobility Service Engine for 

location-based troubleshooting on Cisco wireless network environments. 

Sniffer Portable 

Sniffer 

Features 

Professional Analyzer 

Global Analyzer 

licensing Single user 10-user or unlimited Enterprise 

Intuitive, easy-to-use dashboards p p 

Supports wired (Ethernet 10/100/1000) and wireless 

(802.11 a/b/g/n) network links 

p p 

Decodes 500+ protocols p p 

Rich expert modes and alarms p p 

Robust filters and event triggers p p 

Wireless 802.11a/b/g/n + 802.11e/h decodes p p 

Wireless encryption monitoring p p 

Automatic detection of known and rogue Wi-Fi devices p p 

Wireless expert p 

Functionality access control, per-user/per-role p 

Centralized authentication for tool access p 

Online and offline tool activity tracking and reporting p 

Integration with Cisco 3300 Series Mobility Services Engine p 

Centralized license, upgrade and patch management p 


Sniffer Portable Professional Analyzer 

The Sniffer Portable Professional Analyzer is a single-user 

portable network and application analyzer that provides 

a high-level view of network traffic and application 

performance using its dashboard view and drill-downs 

into deep packet analysis. The dashboard displays 

important data about the network and creates statistical 

measurements about network traffic, providing an accurate 

picture of network activity in real time. Network managers 

can easily drill down from the dashboard to view individual 

hosts and protocols. The capture function collects and 

stores the actual packets from the network. During 

capture, expert analysis is performed on packets and 

results are displayed in an easy-to-read, real time view. 

Capabilities 

• On-demand monitoring of network and application statistics for 10/100/1000 

Ethernet and wireless 802.11 a/b/g/n network segments 

• Dashboard views with deep drill-down to rich packet-level analysis 

• On-demand and post-capture decode of more than 500 protocols, including 

popular VoIP, financial, mobile, and wireless 802.11a/b/g/n + 802.11e/h 

protocols 

• Rich expert analysis to quickly identify errors during packet-level examination 

• Robust filters and alarms to quickly identify and isolate network problems 

• Wi-Fi device list inventories of all 802.11a, 11b, 11g and 11n devices operating in 

the wireless environment 

• Encryption monitoring plus rogue access point and rogue client detection to 

identify potential wireless security issues 

Uses 

• Rapidly identify network and application performance issues over wired and 

wireless networks 

• Deploy and troubleshoot networks, applications or services--in production and prior 

to roll-out 

• Manage and validate infrastructure changes on-demand 

• Analyze and validate security threats on wired and wireless network links as well as 

the wireless control infrastructure 

• Ideal for troubleshooting in branch offices, remote sites or temporary locations 

where permanently installed monitoring equipment may not be deployed 

• Rapidly deployed in the field to allow real-time analysis and troubleshooting of 

service interruptions, performance degradations, or application issues 

Benefits 

• Faster time-to-knowledge for network and application problems, dramatically 

accelerating problem resolution, helping restore peak performance and assuring 

service delivery sooner 

• Network engineers can monitor both network and application statistics from a 

single tool 

• Analysis of wired and wireless network links and wireless control infrastructure 

reduces the need for multiple point tools to troubleshoot wired and wireless 

networks 

• Software-based solution deploys on most laptop devices, reducing specialized field 

technician equipment 

Sniffer Portable Professional 

provides on-demand and postcapture 

decode of more than 500 

protocols, including popular VoIP, 

wireless, financial and mobile 

protocols. 

Rich expert modes assist users in 

quickly identifying errors during 

packet-level analysis for a wide 

range of protocol decodes. 


33

Sniffer Global Analyzer 

Sniffer Global Analyzer extends enterprise-class 

functionality to the Sniffer Portable Analyzer technology. 

Unlike other portable protocol analyzers, which give users 

full, uncontrolled access to network traffic traversing the 

wire, Sniffer Global Analyzer offers a unique, centralized, 

policy-based access control system that governs how 

and what a user can access on the network using the 

software-based client application. An administrative 

server controls user access to network data and analyzer 

functions, monitors activity within the tool, and provides 

usage reports--plugging a commonly overlooked and 

dangerous gap in security at many organizations. Sniffer 

Global is available in a 10-user and unlimited-user license 

version, for deployment flexibility across distributed and 

global organizations. 

Capabilities 

• Leverages all capabilities found in the Sniffer Portable Professional Analyzer software 

• Centralized usage controls on a per-user/per-role basis to limit who can access 

sensitive data using the client application 

• Policy-based user authentication to avoid compromising network or application security 

• Online and offline user activity tracking and reporting for better auditing 

• Integration with the Cisco 3300 Series Mobility Service Engine (MSE) to display 

physical location of wireless devices in context with relevant wireless performances 

metrics 

• Centralized license, upgrade and patch management to assure consistency and 

transparency across multiple IT audiences and geographies 

Uses 

• Rapidly identifies network and application performance issues over wired and 

wireless networks 

• Troubleshoots new technologies, applications, services or infrastructure changes— 

in production and prior to roll-out 

• Enforces adherence to corporate policies with centralized usage controls that limit 

who can access sensitive data 

• Protects the integrity and security of corporate information with centralized user 

authentication 

• Audits user activity both online and offline 

• Analyzes and validates security threats on wired and wireless network links as well 

as the wireless control infrastructure 

• Quickly identifies the location of wireless devices creating or experiencing 

performance issues by leveraging the map and location services in the Cisco MSE 

and correlating it with rich device and network information to highlight changing 

locations of wireless devices in real-time 

Benefits 

• Faster time-to-knowledge for network and application problems, dramatically 

accelerating problem resolution, helping restore peak performance and assuring 

service delivery sooner 

• Integrated access control and reporting prevents unauthorized access to sensitive 

data contained in packet payloads 

• Provides secure visibility into wired and wireless network traffic to identify 

performance issues and simplify troubleshooting 

• Eliminates the need for multiple tools to manage wired and wireless networks 

• Accelerates problem resolution in wireless networks through integration with the 

Cisco MSE, displaying the physical location of wireless devices in context with 

relevant wireless performances metrics 

• Simplifies administration and reduces the cost of managing large-scale 

deployments with centralized license and version upgrade management 

Sniffer Global Server provides 

activity logs to monitor both 

administrative activities on 

the server and Sniffer Global 

application usage. 

A profile is a set of permissions 

for controlling the use of the 

Sniffer Global application. 

Permissions can be set on 

a wide range of activities, 

including offline usage, real-time 

monitoring and capture, and 

packet slice sizes. 


35

Third-Party Enterprise Management Systems Integration 

NetScout collaborates with best-in-class technology partners to provide integrated 

solutions and extend the value of the nGenius Service Assurance Solution for application 

and network performance management across the organization. 

By leveraging packet flow data, KPIs and other sources of performance information 

derived from the nGenius Service Assurance Solution, combined solutions enhance an 

organization’s ability to optimize, simplify and protect the service delivery environment and 

consequently, the business. 

Cisco Systems 

NetScout is a member of the Cisco Developer Network Program for 

Mobility and the first management vendor to integrate with the Cisco 3300 

Series Mobility Services Engine (MSE). Sniffer Global Analyzer leverages 

contextual location services within the Cisco MSE to simplify and improve 

management of wireless networks. Benefits to customers include: 

• Mapping of the physical location of wireless devices in context with relevant 

network and application performance metrics 

• Dramatically faster identification and resolution of network and service 

performance issues in wireless environments 

• Optimized performance of the service delivery environment with an improved 

quality of experience for users 

EMC ® Ionix Control Center (formerly SMARTS ® ) 

NetScout is an EMC Velocity2 partner and provides integration between 

the nGenius Service Assurance Solution and the following EMC products: 

• EMC Ionix Service Assurance Manager 

• EMC Ionix IP Availability Manager 

• EMC Ionix Discovery Manager 

Integration between the nGenius solution and EMC Ionix products provides users with 

complementary visibility into the packet flow data within the service delivery environment 

and a bi-directional workflow between the nGenius solution and EMC Ionix. Integration 

between the nGenius solution and EMC Ionix accelerates problem resolution by 

leveraging the following functionality: 

• Forwarding of nGenius data source and server-based alarms to deliver the 

packet flow data that is critical in managing today’s most complex service delivery 

environments 

• A centralized view of network and application performance events consolidated 

within the same console for real-time event notification 

• Intelligent, action-oriented nGenius solution alerts that aid in the diagnosis of 

service-impacting problems 

• Context-sensitive drill down into nGenius K2 and nGenius Performance Manager 

to accelerate problem resolution 

Hewlett-Packard 

NetScout is a Platinum Business Partner in the HP ® 

Enterprise Management Alliance Program, and provides 

integration between the nGenius Service Assurance 

HP Software 

Certified Application 

Solution with the following HP Business Technology Optimization (BTO) Software 

solutions: 

• HP OpenView Network Node Manager (HP NNMi) 

• HP Business Availability Center 

• HP Operations Manager 

Together the integrated solutions provide true single-pane-of-glass troubleshooting to 

speed problem identification and resolution, such as: 

• Forward nGenius intelligent data source and server-based alarms to HP 

dashboards for consolidated viewing of fault and performance views and faster, 

simpler problem diagnosis 

• Intelligent, action-oriented nGenius solution alerts contain descriptive information 

that facilitates escalation of incidents 

• Context-sensitive launch of the nGenius solution from the HP management 

environment streamlines and focuses the troubleshooting process 

Integration with HP NNMi provides the following additional features: 

• Display nGenius solution devices on the NNM L2 and L3 network maps with 

NetScout giving a complete view of the network environment 

• Launch NNM Layer 2 (physical) and Layer 3 (topology) neighbor views for 

performance incidents and to easily see the location of trouble spots 

• Launch NNM path view to see performance incidents that clarify the relationships 

between the physical infrastructure and application performance for faster problem 

identification 

IBM 

NetScout is an IBM ® PartnerWorld member, and has been awarded 

“Ready for IBM Tivoli Software” validation status to nGenius 

Performance Manager and nGenius K2 for its integration with: 

• IBM Tivoli ® NetView ® 

• IBM Tivoli Enterprise Console ® (TEC) 

• IBM Tivoli Netcool ® Ready for 

software 

/OMINbus 

The integration between NetScout and IBM platforms provides users with expanded 

reach of their Event Management Systems (EMS) by combining integrated fault 

management and service delivery assurance into a single integrated console view with a 

seamless troubleshooting workflow. The benefits of the integrated solution include: 

• Generate and forward network and application performance alarms upstream to 

consolidate alerts within the IBM consoles 

• Enable quick drill down to alarm details to accelerate problem resolution with rapid 

root cause analysis 

• Lower total cost of ownership by easing tool clutter and enhancing overall visibility 

• Promote proactive service delivery management to maximize system uptime and 

profitability 


37

Riverbed 

The combined NetScout and Riverbed ® solution provides a marketleading 

product set for application acceleration and network and 

application performance analysis. This partnership helps enterprises 

optimize performance by allowing them to accelerate their applications over WANs 

without any loss of visibility into application performance. 

The added visibility that NetScout brings to the Riverbed optimized environments enables 

organizations to: 

• Identify WAN segments, branch offices, and applications in need of acceleration 

and optimization 

• Troubleshoot and tune the Riverbed implementation to maximize its impact and 

ensure the success of the deployment 

• Verify and quantify the benefits of the Riverbed deployment and justify the 

investment 

• Perform ongoing performance analysis on accelerated and optimized networks and 

applications 

NetScout Global Support and Services 

NetScout offers a full range of technical support, consulting and training services to help 

customers maximize their investment in the NetScout solutions. 

MasterCare 

MasterCare is the NetScout industry-leading global support service. With four global 

technical support centers, NetScout is dedicated to providing a rich variety of awardwinning 

services that support the business objectives of our customers, lower their total 

cost of ownership, and maximize the value of their investment in NetScout technology. 

MasterCare Highlights 

Having access to the right resources at the right time is invaluable when assistance is 

needed. That’s why the MasterCare Support program provides: 

• 24x7 access to award-winning technical support staff 

• One-hour priority response on technical support calls (after business hours by 

phone only) 

• Access to software and firmware updates for covered products 

• Advanced replacement or onsite repair of most hardware 

• Access to technical self-help on the MasterCare Portal 

• Up-to-date knowledge transfer and best practices via the Online Learning Center 

• Free subscriptions to the MasterCare newsletter 

• Discounts to the annual NetScout Engage user conferences 

For those customers who need even more advanced support options, the NetScout 

support organization offers Technical Account Manager, Onsite Engineer and Remote 

Site Engineer programs as described below: 

• Technical Account Manager (TAM)–The TAM is a regional NetScout engineer 

assigned to a specific customer account to shepherd incident-driven product 

issues or other concerns on the organization’s behalf; the TAM is able to help 

resolve issues faster and more effectively, resulting in a better return on investment 

and a lower total cost of ownership 

• Remote Site Engineer (RSE)–An RSE is a NetScout support engineer who 

spends 20 hours per week dedicated to monitoring and managing the customer’s 

NetScout environment remotely from a NetScout location; in addition to acting as 

the customer’s primary point of contact into the NetScout support organization, the 

RSE provides remote assistance with day-to-day, backend administration of the 

customer’s NetScout environment 

• Onsite Engineer (OSE)–For the most mission-critical environments, NetScout 

offers the OSE, a full-time Level-3 engineer hired and trained by NetScout, but 

who resides at the customer location to offload the planning, deployment and dayto-day 

maintenance of the customer’s NetScout environment, freeing the network 

operations team to take advantage of NetScout solutions to troubleshoot problems 

or tackle other strategic activities 


39

Consulting Services 

Many of today’s network management and support organizations are operating with 

increased workloads and limited staffing, leaving fewer resources available for deploying 

new services or solutions, or for taking a more proactive approach to service assurance. 

Many leading global enterprises, tier-one service providers, and government agencies 

around the world have turned to NetScout to optimize, protect, and simplify their network 

infrastructure, applications, and services. Having selected the world-class nGenius 

Service Assurance Solution for unified management of service delivery, the next step in 

the value chain is to begin using it efficiently. NetScout Consulting Services provides a 

robust set of services to help customers get up and running effectively and expeditiously, 

and to accelerate ROI. 

The NetScout Consulting Services team offers a broad portfolio of deployment, 

specialized and industry-focused consulting services, including: 

Deployment Services 

• nGenius Implementation–Focuses on installing and configuring the nGenius 

Service Assurance Solution to optimize and accelerate the customer’s ability to 

quickly resolve service delivery issues 

• Knowledge Transfer–Employs mentoring and hands-on learning within an 

organization’s network environment to increase IT staff proficiency with NetScout 

solutions and technologies 

• nGenius K2 Quick Start–Provides deployment assistance so network management 

staff can quickly start reaping the benefits of the nGenius K2 Service Delivery 

Manager services-aware dashboard and early warning system 

Specialized Services 

• nGenius K2 Optimization–Defines, tunes and configures an organization’s most 

critical business services and applications in order to provide maximum value from 

nGenius K2 Service Delivery Manager 

• Health Check–A quarterly review of the nGenius solution environment to assure 

that changing business objectives and performance management needs are being 

optimally met 

• Virtualization Services–Three distinct services designed to facilitate the successful 

adoption and management of virtualized environments within the nGenius Service 


• DoD Certification and Accreditation–Provides review, remediation and 

documentation support to help implement STIG certifications within government 

networks in a timely manner 

• Trusted Internet Connection (TIC) Compliance–Assists government agencies with 

meeting two key requirements of the TIC initiative: capturing and storing seven 

days of packet data for easy, post-incident analysis, and archiving 30 days of 

captured data for longer term analysis 

Industry Services 

• Financial Services Network Assessment–Baseline, document and provide 

recommendations on the overall health of trading environments to help identify 

delays in market data delivery and execution 

• Market Feed Operations Review–Proactively monitor the scheduled and published 

changes in market feed standards and implement all necessary changes to assure 

real-time, packet-level visibility into the performance of the nGenius Service 


Sniffer University 

Sniffer University provides a wide variety of comprehensive training programs designed 

to educate network professionals on NetScout technologies in order to effectively 

analyze, troubleshoot, and mitigate performance issues. Sniffer University utilizes a variety 

of educational approaches, allowing students to chose the option that best meets their 

needs and individual learning style, including: 

• Face-to-face classroom instruction–Instructor-led training classes at NetScout 

or onsite at customer locations 

• Subscription-based training programs–Long-term or company-wide training plans 

to maximize the benefits of NetScout solutions 

• On-demand training–Self-paced tutorials of the most popular Sniffer University 

courses and technical documentation 

• Community peer training–NetScout users contribute best practice advice in the 

online NetScout User Forum (NUF) 

• Online learning portals–Customized microsites created on a per-organization basis 

so students can access training information remotely regardless of their location, 

and can gain valuable instruction through self-paced training courses, related 

documentation and online interaction with Sniffer University instructors 

Sniffer University Courses 

Sniffer University offers intensive two, three, or five-day classes on how to more 

effectively use and solve problems with the NetScout Service Assurance Solution and 

specific products. Detailed technology courses on everything from TCP/IP, to Windows ® 

troubleshooting, to IPv6 technology are also available. The curriculum is 50 percent 

lecture, 50 percent labs for a “learn by doing, try it now” experience that facilitates the 

rapid transfer of knowledge so that students gain skills they can use the first day back on 

the job. These courses are designed and led by highly experienced instructors who have 

trained more than 100,000 students since 1990. 


41

Multi Certification Programs 

Sniffer University offers a range of certification programs that enable students to build 

their level of expertise with the nGenius Service Assurance Solution and use that 

expertise to help their organization meet operational and business goals. There are three 

levels of certification: 

• nGenius Certified Professional (nCP)–Designates broad understanding in the 

use of nGenius Performance Manager to monitor and troubleshoot network and 

application performance 

• nGenius Certified Expert (nCE)–Indicates advanced knowledge of the Internet 

Protocol (IP) suite, network troubleshooting and how to optimize application 

performance 

• nGenius Certified Master (nCM)–Demonstrates an advanced understanding of 

network and application troubleshooting techniques, networking technology and 

application principles, and the use of NetScout software and instrumentation 

NetScout User Forum (NUF) 

A customer-driven user group, NetScout User Forum is dedicated to providing the 

NetScout user community with a network of peers for collaboration and information 

sharing. The group’s mission is to “share practical experience, promote technical 

understanding, and provide expert insight into deploying NetScout products for maximum 

business value.” 

Membership is open to all NetScout customers and entitles users to: 

• Join the online blog and forum discussions 

• Participate in private podcasts, webinars and other special events 

• Share tips and ask technical questions on the message board 

• Gain exclusive access to product news, downloadable files, and much more 

• Provide product feedback and ideas to the product development process 

Visit www.netscoutuserforum.com for details on how to join the NUF community. 

Engage User Summit 

The Engage User Summit brings together NetScout customers from around the globe 

for advanced learning, networking, and sharing of ideas. The conference features 

presentations from NetScout executives and customers, individualized training labs, 

roundtable and panel discussions, demonstrations of new products, and interactive 

discussions on future product direction. 


43

About NetScout Systems 

NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTCT) is the market leader in Unified Service 

Delivery Management enabling comprehensive core-to-access network and application 

assurance. For 25 years, NetScout has delivered breakthrough packet-flow technology 

that provides trusted and comprehensive real-time network and application performance 

intelligence for unified assurance of the network, applications and users. These solutions 

allow enterprise organizations to predict, preempt and resolve network and service 

delivery problems while facilitating the optimization and capacity planning of the network 

infrastructure. NetScout nGenius and Sniffer solutions are deployed at more than 20,000 

of the world’s largest enterprises, government agencies, and service providers, on more 

than 740,000 network segments to assure the network, applications, and service delivery 

to their users and customers. 

For More Information 

For more information please visit www.netscout.com or contact 

NetScout sales at 800-309-4804 or +1 978-614-4000 

Corporate Headquarters 

310 Littleton Road 

Westford, MA 01886-4105 

Phone: 978-614-4000 

Toll Free: 888-999-5946 

www.netscout.com 

European Headquarters 

NetScout Systems (UK) Ltd. 

100 Pall Mall 

London SW1Y 5HP 

United Kingdom 

Phone: +44 (0)20 7321 5660 

Asia/Pacific Headquarters 

Room 105, 17F/B, No. 167 

TunHwa N. Road 

Taipei, Taiwan 

Phone: +886 2 2717 1999 

www.netscout.cn 

Copyright © 2010 NetScout Systems, Inc. All Rights Reserved. NetScout, Sniffer, nGenius and InfiniStream are 

registered trademarks, and HyperLock , the NetScout logo and MasterCare are trademarks of NetScout Systems, 

Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States or other countries. This document is not a representation of functional 

specifications. Refer to product data sheets or documentation for actual details. NetScout Systems, Inc. reserves 

the right, at its sole discretion, to make changes at any time to its technical information, specifications, service and 

support programs. 

EMC and SMARTS are registered trademarks and Ionix is a trademark of EMC Corporation. IBM, NetView, Tivoli, 

Tivoli Enterprise Console and Netcool are registered trademarks and OMNIbus is a trademark of International 

Business Machines Corporation. Cisco is a registered trademark of Cisco Systems, Inc. Microsoft and Windows 

are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. VMware is a registered trademark of VMware Inc. Riverbed 

is a registered trademark of Riverbed Technology. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other 

registered or nonregistered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 

GDES_01_2010

nGenius Performance Manager Quick Reference Guide

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