voip testing

Sipera Systems, Top VoIP Company 2008: FierceVoIP, Fierce 15

Tue, 04 Nov 2008 14:44:55 -0500

Sipera Systems

Where it's based: Richardson, Texas
When it was founded: 2003
Website: www.sipera.com

Why it's Fierce: Proactive VoIP security testing and vulnerability assessment is something Fierce to our professionally paranoid hearts, so Sipera would win consideration simply for its in-house VIPER lab. However, Sipera has moved beyond simply flogging the latest VoIP threats to incorporate unified communications into its assessments and security appliances. Its latest product release offers advanced security for SIP trunking, better integration into SIP trunk provider services and adding additional SBC functionality. We expect to see more out of Sipera in the months to come.

NetIQ adds Microsoft OCS 2007 support

Doug Mohney — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 16:46:48 -0400

NetIQ has added support for Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007.

With a new module to NetIQ's AppManager VoIP management software, NetIQ now provides event monitoring, service performance and availability reporting for all industry-leading VoIP platforms. Capabilities in the new module include real-time monitoring, alerts on server health, application performance tracking with call and message session activity and failure metrics for aggregated reporting.

NetIQ is capable of monitoring a variety of unified communications platforms and applications, including vanilla VoIP, Microsoft Exchange Server 2007, SQL Server, Active Directory and BlackBerry.

List pricing for the OCS 2007 module is $1,500 per managed server.

For more:
- Read the NetIQ release announcing Microsoft Office Communications Server support.

Fluke buys Viola properties

Pete Wylie — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 10:16:21 -0400

Fluke Networks announced the acquisition to the intellectual property right of Viola Networks, including the popular NetAlly product line. Terms of the acquisition were not announced.

Fluke will apply the Viola acquisitions to its present services, which include installing hardware, testing systems and monitoring performance of both wireline and wireless networks.

The Viola properties will be integrated into existing Fluke solutions to improve present services and enable new ones, such as VoIP pre-assessment capability, advanced active network performance assessment and VoIP infrastructures monitoring through call manager visibility.

For more:
- Fluke buys Viola assets release here

Related Articles:
(Fluke parent company) Danaher to buy Tektronix for $2.85 billion
TI unveils PIQUA for IP QoS testing

SPOTLIGHT: 30 Million Units of VQmon

Doug Mohney — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 22:42:39 -0400

If you are trying to troubleshoot VoIP or IPTV performance, it is likely you will end up touching Telchemy's embedded software at some point. The company has shipped over 30 million units of VQmon to over 100 equipment manufacturers, with the code ended up in everything from IP phones and gateways to routers, SBCs, and diagnostic probes; there's also another estimated 100 million additional shipments floating around on large ISP licenses. Customers include AudioCodes, Empirix, Ixia, Nortel, TI, Spirent and Tektronix.

For more
- Telchemy's release for 30 million units of VQmon

Related articles:
SSA Gets NetIQ for VoIP
Keynote Kicks VoIP Reliability and Clarity

Keynote Kicks VoIP Reliability and Clarity

Doug Mohney — Wed, 21 May 2008 22:17:36 -0400

Keynote Systems has released its latest VoIP testing report comparing VoIP and PacketCable services against wireline providers. The study finds "tolerable" audio delays on the alternative services.

All the service providers (AT&T CallVantage, EarthLink trueVoice, Lingo, Packet8, Verizon VoiceWing, Vonage, and Vonics Digital on the VoIP side; Time Warner Digital Phone and Comcast Digital Voice with PacketCable) were compared to AT&T's local wireline service from calls made from residential locations in New York and San Francisco.

Results indicate consumers are more likely to experience "merely tolerable" rather than completely satisfactory audio delays on VoIP calls. One VoIP provider had no calls with MOS scores of 4.0 or better; one experienced audio delays of more than 150 ms for every call placed--a serious no-no for call quality since 150 ms is the threshold for good calls and one VoIP provider required six seconds more than other VoIP providers to connect calls after dialing. In addition, there were large quality gaps between VoIP providers on unmanaged networks and other service providers.

For more:
- Read Keynote's VoIP Telephony Quality release

Related articles:
Keynote's VoIP Quality Report Circa 2006
VoIP quality on the upswing in 2007

SSA Gets NetIQ for VoIP

Doug Mohney — Wed, 14 May 2008 16:39:41 -0400

NetIQ has been bought in under Nortel's 10 year contract with the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) to provide VoIP network diagnostics, monitoring and professional services for day-to-day operations and management.

Support for the SSA implementation will include NetIQ AppManager for VoIP to monitor quality of service and end user experience with VoIP apps, network readiness diagnostics for converged networks to ensure consistent application performance, and proactive diagnostics for troubleshooting of call quality problems. The suite of applications will allow SSA to monitor and manage service levels across the Nortel-provided infrastructure and to quickly troubleshoot issues. It will also provide SSA with capacity planning data for fine-tuning of network traffic patterns and usage.

Nortel's contract with SSA is worth an estimated $300 million over 10 years and ultimately will replace phone systems in all of SSA's nearly 1,600 field offices.

For more:
- Read the NetIQ Press release with the Nortel and SSA VoIP Network