EndaceAccess
EndaceAccess™ network visibility headend systems give operations teams access to network traffic on 100G network segments. For organizations on the leading edge of networking, the ability to monitor, protect and record network traffic on 100G segments is critical, but to this point they have been entirely unable to monitor their traffic because 100G-capable tools simply don't exist.
The EndaceAccess family of headend systems solves the problem of ultra-high speed network access by ingesting 40G or 100G traffic and load balancing traffic out over multiple 10Gbps ports, which means that 10Gbps monitoring or security tool can now be used in 40G and 100G environments.
EndaceAccess at a glance
- Network visibility headend system for 40G and 100G network segments
- Accurately multiplexes 40G and 100G traffic into 12 x 10Gbps 'slices'
- Compatible with any 10Gbps-capable monitoring or security tool
- Flow-safe intelligent load balancing helps manage oversubscription.
EndaceAccess specifications
The EndaceAccess family of network visibility headend systems are available in 100G and 40G configurations.
| EndaceAccess 100 | EndaceAccess 40 (coming soon) | |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | 2 RU | 1 RU |
| Protocol support | 100G and 40G LAN and WAN | 40G LAN and WAN |
| Ingress Ports | 2 | 2 |
| Output ports | 24x10Gbps | 12x10Gbps |
| Power supplies | 2+2 redundant 650W AC | 1+1 redundant 650W AC |
| Download Datasheet |
EndaceAccess system architecture
EndaceAccess headend systems leverage the power of Endace’s proven DAG® technology to deliver continuous, 100% accurate feeds of traffic to third-party tools. Uniquely, EndaceAccess systems support both LAN and WAN protocols, making them ideal for both new data center builds and high-speed WAN deployments. They are designed to interoperate with any third-party or custom monitoring tool as well as our own range of intelligent network recorders and hosting platforms.
EndaceAccess systems support 2 ingress ports, which connect to the network in either direction via a passive network tap. Utilizing a custom-built flow-safe load-balancing algorithm, network traffic is steered towards 12x10Gbps egress ports for connection to 10Gbps ports on remote appliances. An important benefit of an intelligent load-balancing algorithm is that it allows traffic to be throttled to ensure that the receiving tool does not become overloaded. If the receiving 10Gbps monitoring tool can only handle 3Gbps of traffic before it saturates, the EndaceAccess system ensures that it never receives more than 3Gbps of traffic.
Deployment scenarios
EndaceAccess systems can be deployed in a number of ways to meet the differing needs of organizations. In addition to supplying a single tool they can:
- Feed multiple 10Gbps-capable tools with network traffic with the addition of a network packet broker appliance
- Feeding 10Gbps- or 1Gbps-capable tools with network traffic captured off a 100G link using a high-end switch
- Be used to create a 100G-capable EndaceProbe providing 100% accurate network recording at full 100G line rate.
Download our 100G visibility whitepaper to learn more about deployment scenarios.
Deployment and management
The headend system typically sits at the top of the rack and feeds multiple appliances racked below it. Each of the appliances in the rack sees a a discrete 10Gbps output feed from the originating 100G or 40G link.
Just how many appliances are required to consume the traffic depends on how much traffic there is and the real throughput performance of the appliances being used. With 20Gbps of traffic in each direction and an appliance that's capable of handling 5Gbps of bi-directional traffic, 4 appliances will be required. Up to 12x10Gbps ports can be fed from an EndaceAccess headend.
From a management perspective, EndaceAccess headends support CLI and web configuration interfaces, as well as providing support for SNMPv3 status and statistics. A full range of statistics can be extracted. EndaceAccess systems are highly resilient with redundant power supplies, fully redundant SSD-based system disks and can be upgraded without impacting packet processing.
Intelligent Network Recording at 100G
For many organizations, the transition to 100G prompts a complete reevaluation of their monitoring strategy. Although the ability to see a 100G link as multiple 10Gbps links solves the basic problem, it is not perfect as engineers ideally want to see the link as a single ‘rolled-up’ entity, which is beyond the capability of most of today's 10Gbps tools.
However, using EndaceProbes and EndaceVision, organizations can, for the first time, create a single, rolled-up view of a 40G or 100G network segment. By adding a Central Management System (CMS) into the EndaceProbe deployment, organizations can visualize, search and retrieve network traffic from any of the EndaceProbes capturing traffic from the wire through a single pane of glass.
