Data Sheet

xSIGHT Session Trace uses data from xSIGHT Traffic Storage Agents (TSAs) to assure mobile performance, enabling:

y 10x less time to diagnose complex mobile network performance faults

y 60% less cost than competing protocol tracing tools

xSIGHT Customer Experience Assurance (CEA) Portfolio The xSIGHT CEA portfolio consists of three layers:

y Agents that collect data from a variety of sources including traffic, network elements (NEs), and probes

y A real-time intelligence platform that adapts, enriches, and correlates data

y A cloud-based portal that gives operators access to xSIGHT analytical applications

xSIGHT Session Trace is a powerful yet easy-to-use mobile network troubleshooting tool. xSIGHT Session Trace provides a graphic protocol-sequence diagram of a subscriber’s calls/sessions and lets a user perform detailed analyses of signaling procedures, including full decoding of messages. It provides near-real-time and historical analyses of each subscriber’s interaction with a 2G, 3G, LTE, or heterogeneous network. The scope of network interfaces covered is determined by the coverage of the associated xSIGHT TSAs.

Key Benefits

y Provides detailed insight into the processes delivering the accessibility, retainability, and mobility aspects of customer experience

y Significantly lower cost than traditional transaction-tracing tools without reducing diagnostic insight

y Delivers results significantly faster than traditional transaction-tracing tools enhancing user productivity

Key Features

y On-demand call/session tracing analysis when used with TSAs

y Automatic correlation of call/session data across all supported interfaces

y Fast identification of required call/session via powerful filtering using key field values

y Complete protocol transactional tracing and decoding of signaling/user data

y Automatically launches from xSIGHT Customer Experience Assurance (CEA) and Performance Explorer (PE) applications along with key search information

Use Cases

y Fault troubleshooting of mobile network, service, and customer performance

xSIGHT™ Session Trace ApplicationProtocol Transaction Tracing and Decoding for Mobile Network Calls and Data Sessions

xSIGHT CEA platform and applications

2 xSIGHT Session Trace Application

On-Demand Call/Session AnalysisThe traditional methodology for protocol transaction tracing involves pre-building records for all monitored calls and sessions. However, fewer than 0.01% of stored records are actually analyzed and more than 99.99% of the expensive pre-build processing is of no value. To reduce processing and storage costs, xSIGHT Session Trace and TSAs build tracing analysis on demand for just those calls or sessions that require troubleshooting. Proprietary Viavi database technology identifies, correlates, and retrieves required data in seconds, significantly reducing tracing response times.

Automatic Data Correlation Across Monitored InterfacesWhere call/session data is collected by TSAs from multiple network interfaces, Session Trace automatically correlates data into individual subscriber calls and sessions. It does this across different network technologies, such as when a subscriber session crosses GPRS and LTE networks.

Fast Call/Session Identification via Powerful FiltersSession Trace users set up search criteria for subscriber calls/sessions using an intuitive filter and time-entry menu.

A search based on simple filtering criteria such as IMSI or MSISDN automatically identifies all calls and sessions for a subscriber. More complex search filtering, containing multiple criteria, can narrow the range of query responses and reduce troubleshooting time.

Session Trace query results appear in a tabular form with each call or data session represented by a single row. Color coding highlights those calls or sessions where abnormal activity has been detected. Selecting one of the calls or sessions displays its protocol transactional-sequence diagram.

Call/session list display

Complete Protocol Transactional Tracing and DecodingThe xSIGHT transactional tracing display provides an insightful graphic representation of protocol transactions involved in a selected subscriber call or session. Color coding highlights any potential abnormal or errored transactions within the sequence.

Transactional tracing display

For more detailed analysis of protocol transactions, users can view full decodes of the individual messages by selecting any message on the tracing display. Alternatively, they can view the values of key field data associated with the individual call/session.

Message decode display

Example filtering criteria

3 xSIGHT Session Trace Application

Automatic Launch From xSIGHT KPI-Based ApplicationsThe xSIGHT Session Trace application can be automatically launched from the xSIGHT KPI-based applications, such as those in the CEA and PE categories. In this procedure, the IMSI values the KPI-based applications identify as being of interest are automatically transferred over to the Session Trace application. Using the KPI drill-down process (offered by the CEA and PE applications) as a first troubleshooting step significantly reduces the overall time it takes to resolve issues requiring detailed transaction tracing.

Use Case — Faster Troubleshooting, Lower CostsProtocol transaction tracing and decoding is an industry-recognized powerful tool for diagnosing mobile network and service faults affecting customer experience. The most in-depth way to identify where and why control-plane messaging conversations have broken down and to trace and decode protocol transactions is critical for any network operations department. Combining xSIGHT Session Trace with xSIGHT Traffic Storage Agents delivers feature-rich protocol transaction tracing and decoding much more affordably than competing solutions, and they can do it with a faster (trace building) response time. Minimizing the overall time it takes to troubleshoot customer experience issues can be achieved using protocol transaction tracing in conjunction with a KPI drill-down process, similar to integrating xSIGHT Session Trace with the xSIGHT CEA and PE applications.

Specifications — Service and Network Interface SupportThe xSIGHT Session Trace application supports troubleshooting for the following services:

y 2G/3G voice services

y 2G/3G data services

y LTE data services

y VoLTE voice services

The network interface support for the xSIGHT Session Trace application is determined by the coverage of the associated xSIGHT Traffic Storage Agents, including all major control-plane interfaces associated with the services listed above.

Complementary Products and ServicesTraffic Storage Agent (TSA) — TSA is an xSIGHT data access agent that captures and stores control-plane traffic with a Viavi-patented indexing method for quick retrieval by transaction-tracing troubleshooting applications. The TSA also passively monitors both control and user-plane IP-based traffic to build network, service, and customer (KPI) SMARTmetrics that are then fed to the xSIGHT mediation component or to third-party KPI-based apps. The TSA is available in either a physical (server plus Viavi software) or virtualized configuration (Viavi software running on a virtual machine).

xSIGHT TSA

Customer Experience Assurance (CEA) Applications — These xSIGHT applications deliver multidimensional KPI analysis in real time, linking the customer experience to the underlying network and service performance. It enables the industry’s most powerful assurance workflows with customer QoE “impact analysis” of detected issues and problem diagnosis via fast metric (KPI) drill-down.

xSIGHT CEA application

© 2016 Viavi Solutions, Inc. Product specifications and descriptions in this document are subject to change without notice. xsightsessiontrace-app-ds-maa-nse-ae 30176076 901 0416

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Performance Explorer (PE) Applications — These xSIGHT applications provide fully flexible, in-depth, analysis of any operator-selected aspect of network, service, or customer performance. A single screen with charts shows selected KPIs, for example, two associated dimensions and a failure code breakdown. This application is ideal for comparing pre- and post-event performance, such as managing network changes and investigating the root causes for problems.

Targeted Subscriber Search (TSS) Agent and Application — A member of the xSIGHT Diagnostics category, this application selectively (based on IMSI) captures full user-plane packets at line rate, enabling detailed analysis of user-plane content by third-party products, such as Wireshark®.

TSS application display

Viavi Professional Services — xSIGHT solutions are deployed, transitioned to production environments, and supported by our industry-leading professional services team.

y Rapid turnkey deployment with acceptance testing ensures full satisfaction before handover

y Maximize investment through user-adoption services

y Keep systems up to date through software upgrades

y Increase productivity with ongoing access to industry-leading experts that get to know your network, services, and your customers

The initial solution price includes a competitive support package with first year telephone support and software updates

Our services organization spans the globe and, on average, our service consultants have over 15 years of experience.

Ordering InformationPlease contact your Viavi representative for more information or for ordering assistance.