23rd June 2004 - Spirent Communications (NYSE: SPM; LSE: SPT) unveiled its new SmartSight portfolio of diagnostic software and appliances, network interface devices, and professional services to help wireline, wireless, cable service providers, and enterprises diagnose specific service failures for IP-based services such as VoIP, IP VPNs, Video over IP, and Ethernet VLANs. SmartSight and other Spirent solutions will be exhibited during the SUPERCOMM tradeshow (booth #11400).

With Spirent’s new SmartSight suite, customers now have a comprehensive solution that goes beyond just fault and performance testing – one that diagnoses the specific source of an IP service failure and answers the question "what went wrong?" Spirent’s SmartSight solution makes it easier, faster, and less expensive for service providers and enterprises to roll out new services, troubleshoot problems, and ensure required quality levels.

"As service providers continue to introduce new services that depend on new technology and protocols, this will drive increased spending on centralized diagnostic software that crosses departmental boundaries and network domains. The value of a centralized diagnostic system is measured on its ability to reduce truck rolls and eliminate fallout in turning up new services," says Patrick Kelly, partner, OSS Observer.

Spirent’s SmartSight portfolio is an integrated solution that combines powerful hardware and software diagnostic tools to significantly improve visibility into IP and Ethernet services from the customer premise level to the network and operational levels. The new portfolio consists of the SmartSight Operational Support System, SmartSight Quality of Service Scope, and SmartSight Network Interface Device, as well as the previously announced SmartSight Broadband Remote Test Unit. In addition, Spirent offers its Service Edge™ suite of professional services to help customers with IP network planning, testing, and implementation.

"The success of new VoIP and other IP services requires greater visibility at all layers of the network, and from the customer premise and inside the network," said Jim Schleckser, president of Spirent Communications’ Service Assurance - Broadband group. "The SmartSight portfolio is an integrated suite of products that addresses the full requirements of service providers or enterprises rolling out IP and Ethernet services to their customers."

Spirent’s SmartSight Portfolio Offers Complete Solution

The SmartSight suite includes the following products and capabilities:

Spirent SmartSight Operational Support System (OSS)—Operational support system deployed in operations centers to help technicians quickly troubleshoot and resolve complex IP service issues. The Spirent OSS offers the following capabilities and benefits:

• Coordinates automated IP and Ethernet service and diagnostics tests to isolate, identify, and explain service issues
  
• Interfaces with other network data resources to provide comprehensive service availability and quality information
  
• Conducts active testing and passive monitoring for quality of service measurements, including jitter, loss, latency, and utilization
• Places VoIP calls and measures signaling performance, media performance, and voice quality
• Allows technicians to view service both from a network and an end-user perspective, utilizing customer and service identification numbers as diagnostic input
  

Spirent SmartSight Quality of Service Scope—New network appliance which can be deployed at an enterprise premise or service provider’s central offices and serving exchanges. The device offers the following capabilities and benefits:

• Determines if a network infrastructure can correctly handle Ethernet and IP traffic when provisioning new installations
  
• Emulates IP traffic from the customer location to calculate throughput, delay, packet loss, and jitter—critical factors in the quality of IP telephony and video applications
  
• Sectionalizes and correlates problems at multiple layers of the network
  
• Conducts active and passive testing
  
• Provides management reports on top talkers, protocol distribution, and utilization by port or connection details, as well as giving actionable information for troubleshooting service problems
  

Spirent SmartSight Network Interface Device—New and inexpensive device, measuring 2x4x4 inches, is installed at customer premise locations and used to quickly determine the cause of VoIP, IP, and Ethernet service issues. The product is ideal for service providers that are offering managed IP and Ethernet services. The Spirent SmartSight Network Interface Device is an innovative demarcation device providing the following capabilities and benefits:

• Remotely diagnoses customer traffic, thereby reducing the need to send a technician to a customer premise location for troubleshooting service issues
  
• Economically priced to make it cost-effective to deploy at enterprise locations
  
• VoIP modules support a range of signalling protocols and report on call set-up and tear down times, call duration, and endpoints
  
• Ethernet module supports 10 Mbps and 100 Mbps, and reports such performance statistics as throughput, latency, packet loss, and utilization
  
• Layer 3+ Expert module offers layer 3 demarcation, traffic statistics, and expert analysis of IP, IP routing, ICMP, TCP and UDP, and network-enabling protocols such as DNS and DHCP
  

Spirent SmartSight Broadband Remote Test Unit—New network appliance designed to interface with next-generation ADMs and MSPPs at the metro edge. The device offers the following capabilities and benefits:

• Enables testing, provisioning, and maintenance of services from the metro edge
  
• Offers a full suite of tests for DS1, DS3, OC-3 and OC-12 signals and IP, VoIP, ATM, and FR services
  
• Sectionalizes and correlates IP problems between Ethernet and ATM networks
  
• Increases efficiency of the troubleshooting process and reduces the need for technicians to become experts in all protocols and technologies across 7 layers
  
• Architecture is extensible to new hardware modules for higher-speed interfaces such as OC-48, OC-192, and 10 Gigabit Ethernet, and provides flexibility in allowing support for new technology standards via software upgrades

About Spirent Communications
Spirent Communications (www.spirentcom.com) is a global provider of integrated performance analysis and service assurance systems that enable the development and deployment of next-generation networking technology such as Internet telephony, broadband services, 3G wireless, global navigation satellite systems, and network security equipment. Spirent’s solutions are used by more than 1,500 customers in 30 countries, including the world’s largest equipment manufacturers, service providers, enterprises and governments. Based in Rockville, Maryland, Spirent Communications reported 2003 revenue of $394 million and has 1,800 employees worldwide.

Back to News Reports