Q: What do I need to do to make sure my Digital Voice implementation is a success?

A: Although a Digital Voice deployment can seem like a daunting task, achieving perfect voice quality essentially boils down to one thing: building a fault-free network with enough bandwidth to support your Digital Voice application. Testing and monitoring during the pre-deployment, implementation, and operation phases are the methods through which you verify that you have indeed created that network. If you have, and if you build in the ability to maintain that level no matter how your network changes, your Digital Voice deployment will be a success.

Q: What do Testing and Monitoring mean?

A: Testing and monitoring of Digital Voice networks are two distinct but equally necessary components of a Digital Voice roll-out and of successful network management. A successful Digital Voice deployment depends significantly upon three factors: the capabilities of your existing network, the correct performance of your new system's functions, and the ability to receive real-time feedback regarding the status of calls on your network. These factors address the questions: Will it work? Does it work? and Is it continuing to work?

Testing and monitoring solutions give you the tools to evaluate your strengths and liabilities in each of those areas.

Q: What exactly is testing and how does it work?

A: Testing solutions usually test two things: the integrity of a network and the functionality of features. The solutions most often involve a hardware or software based signal generation tool paired with a diagnostic monitoring solution. The signal generation components manufacture call scenarios which are then evaluated by monitoring systems to determine how the system performs under conditions ranging from ordinary to extreme. This data is then compiled and, in a good system, highlights the areas of the network or system that are not functioning correctly or that need to be upgraded.

Q: What exactly is monitoring and how does it work?

A: Digital Voice monitoring solutions provide feedback on the performance of the network with respect to actual calls. They can be either hardware or software based and often have the ability to report problems in real-time. Monitoring system feedback simplifies the process of troubleshooting the network and allows for greater network viability.

Q: What is the difference between testing and monitoring?

A: Digital Voice testing products generate traffic in order to check specific Digital Voice network capabilities (max load functionality etc) at the time of testing. Because these products generate their own calls, they are indifferent to Digital Voice protocols. This makes them ideal for pre-deployment testing of the capabilities of the existing network. In addition to these capabilities, some vendors also verify specific Digital Voice features (call waiting etc) once the Digital Voice system has been installed.

Digital Voice monitors, on the other hand, passively report on the actual status of the network and can provide feedback on the location and reason for any issues that arise. This makes them ideal for locating and remedying problems in the network.

Both Testing and Monitoring are necessary components to a successful Digital Voice deployment

Q: Doesn't my service provider do this?

A: No, often service providers do not. According to a survey performed by Empirix, only 20% of service providers reported using Digital Voice application monitoring systems to ensure Digital Voice call quality.

Q: What about Protocol types?

A: Digital Voice analysis tools are often oriented toward particular Digital Voice protocol environments. As such, it is important to make sure that your testing solution is compatible with your particular protocol specifications.

Q: Will testing products affect my system?

A: Traffic simulators embed hardware or software within the network and create

simulated Digital Voice traffic across important paths. That traffic is then analyzed to provide feedback regarding the state of the network. Because traffic simulators travel on the network, they can be intrusive, especially when testing with multiple voice streams. This can potentially cause service issues in an active converged network.

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