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Chapter 45 Configuring Cisco IOS IP SLAs Operations
Information About Configuring Cisco IOS IP SLAs Operations
Cisco IOS IP SLAs to Measure Network Performance
You can use IP SLAs to monitor the performance between any area in the networ k—core, distribution,
and edge—without deploying a physical probe. It uses generated t raffic to measure network performance
between two networking devices. Figure 45-1 shows how IP SLAs begins when the source device sends
a generated packet to the destination device. After the destination device receives the packet, depending
on the type of IP SLAs operation, it responds with time-stamp information for the source to make the
calculation on performance metrics. An IP SLAs oper ation performs a network measurement from the
source device to a destination in the network using a specific protocol such as UDP.
Figure 45-1 Cisco IOS IP SLAs Operation
To implement IP SLAs network performance measurement, you need to perform these tasks:
1. Enable the IP SLAs responder, if required.
2. Configure the required IP SLAs operation type.
3. Configure any options available for the specified operation type.
4. Configure threshold conditions, if required.
5. Schedule the operation to run, then let the operation run for a period of time to gather statistics.
6. Display and interpret the results of the operation using the Cisco IOS CLI or a network
management system (NMS) system with SNMP.
IP SLAs Responder and IP SLAs Control Protocol
The IP SLAs responder is a component embedded in the destination Cisco device that allows the system
to anticipate and respond to IP SLAs request packets. The responder provides accurate measurements
without the need for dedicated probes. The responder uses the Cisco IOS IP SLAs Control Protocol to
provide a mechanism through which it can be notified on which port it should listen and respond. Only
a Cisco IOS device can be a source for a destination IP SLAs Responder.
Figure 45-1 shows where the Cisco IOS IP SLAs responder fits in the IP network. The respo nder listens
on a specific port for control protocol messages sent by an IP SLAs operation. Upon receipt of the
control message, it enables the specified UDP or TCP port for the specified duration. During this time,
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