NETSCOUT Supports Federal Agency Migration to a 40GB Environment and Expanded Network Monitoring Fabric
Highlights
- Federal Agency’s new data center required IT visibility and scalable network monitoring fabric
- Network update needs include 40 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) switching core
- Enhanced data storage retention needed at critical capture points
- IT identified goal to reduce switching infrastructure load
- InfiniStreamNG™ 9800 appliances with NETSCOUT® Adaptive Service Intelligence™ (ASI), supporting 40 GbE infrastructure
- InfiniStreamNG Extended Storage Unit (ESU) technology
- nGenius® 5000 series packet flow switch
- Next-generation NETSCOUT technology enhances Agency Return on Investment by leveraging deployed nGeniusONE®, nGenius InfiniStream®, and nGenius 3900 series packet flow switch environment
- NETSCOUT “pay-as-you-grow” deployment model enables the agency to adopt a phased approach for its service assurance technology refresh
- Federal agencies benefit from higher network performance through NETSCOUT’s ability to support 40GbE environment
- NETSCOUT solution provides necessary visibility into the agency’s physical links
- InfiniStreamNG and ESU technology provides needed data storage and security to the agency
Customer Profile
This Federal agency shares Information Technology (IT) solutions with some government agencies, while providing financial processing services to other Federal departments.
Business Challenge
The agency, a long-time NETSCOUT customer, was building and deploying a new data center. Given the nature of the IT support and financial services being provided to Federal agencies, the agency’s IT team realized the importance of network monitoring solutions. For those reasons and from the earliest stages of the project, they planned on incorporating nGeniusONE, InfiniStream appliances, and packet flow switches in their new data center.
As part of the planned data center launch, the agency made the decision to migrate to a 40 GbE switching core. As the agency evaluated the different approaches to gaining access to the data, they determined they needed to reduce the load on their switching infrastructure and move away from their reliance on SPANs for on-demand troubleshooting of problem ports on the switch. Taps would provide the desired visibility. However, this presented further challenges in ensuring their monitoring solution would be supportive of much higher-speed backbone, as well as continuous monitoring for post-event troubleshooting and trending & capacity planning.
NETSCOUT Solution
In addressing the agency’s business challenges, NETSCOUT enhanced the already-installed nGenius technology platform of nGeniusONE platform with Unified Communications (UC) support and nGenius InfiniStream appliances for network, application, and UC service assurance for multiple agency environments and its own internal network.
The agency’s service assurance solution also included NETSCOUT nGenius 3900 series packet flow switch (PFS) technology, which provides a network monitoring fabric solution used to efficiently and intelligently manage the distribution of network traffic for performance management and security purposes.
For the new data center, they selected InfiniStreamNG 9800 appliances with extended storage unit (ESU) technology to ensure support in the 40Gb, high-traffic backbone. This next-generation InfiniStream platform provides the agency with a solution for their expanded packet retention requirements.
In providing the required network monitoring fabric expansion support, the agency selected the nGenius 5000 series packet flow switch platform to complement its nGenius 3900 series packet flow switch deployment.
The agency also selected NETSCOUT TAPs offering 1Gigabit Per Second (Gbps) and 40 Gbps fiber optic support.
NETSCOUT Solution in Action
Critical to the success of this implementation was the selection of an InfiniStreamNG 9800 appliance that would monitor the new 40GbE environment, specifically addressing the agency’s high-traffic environment and expanded packet retention requirements.
By deploying NETSCOUT’s next-generation packet flow switch solution, the nGenius 5010 packet flow switch extends and streamlines traffic-based intelligence for the agency, enabling comprehensive network monitoring, performance management, capacity planning, and security strategies. The nGenius 5010 packet flow switch brings industry-leading scalability to meet the agency’s monitoring needs of high-density, high-growth locations in the new data center deployment.
NETSCOUT TAPs support nGenius solutions through their traffic capture and forwarding. When used with nGenius packet flow switch technology, NETSCOUT TAPs provide a simple, external, and passive approach for providing full access to traffic in the agency’s network.
Business Value
The NETSCOUT next-generation technology enhancement supports the agency’s abilities to successfully function as a valuable service provider to other agencies with a new data center, while leveraging the expanded NETSCOUT solution to assure its internal network performance and service assurance for quality end-user experience.
With NETSCOUT’s approach to addressing their requirements, the agency realizes a Return on Investment on its existing nGenius deployment, as the nGenius 5000 packet flow switch leverages the agency’s existing nGenius 3900 series packet flow switch environment, with both packet flow switch solutions providing both network monitoring fabric support and synergistic integration with the installed nGeniusONE and InfiniStream platform for streamlined monitoring operations.
NETSCOUT’s “pay-as-you-grow” deployment model also allows the agency to take an incremental approach toward its network enhancement project and manage its annual budget cycles.
