The VeriWave product line includes multiple entries all focused squarely on the testing of networking gear--primarily wireless gear--to determine how it will stand up to real-world traffic scenarios. At the heart of--and required by--each of the product offerings is the WaveTest hardware chassis.

The WaveTest is a modular chassis served in portable 2 slot and rack mountable 9 slot configurations. Into each slot can be loaded the user's choice of WaveBlade line cards, each of which supports both the multi, stateful-client generation and analysis of specific types of network traffic. Available cards for the chassis as of this writing include the WBW1000, for the generation and analysis of 802.11a/b/g traffic, the WBW2000, specifically for the generation and testing of 802.11n traffic, and the WBE1000, an Ethernet line card with the ability to generate and analyze 10/100/1000 Ethernet traffic. While the VeriWave products focus primarily on the testing of WLAN gear and networks, the WBE1000 could conceivably be used to test wired-only gear, as well.

Each of the WaveBlade cards is capable of generating simultaneous traffic from up to 500 stateful clients; each with its own setup parameters including power transmission levels (to emulate distance, roaming, etc.), full 802.11 MAC control, and Layer 3/4 controls. Each emulated client additionally supports multiple traffic flows, with each flow stateful at Layers 2-7. The 9 slot chassis thus supports the generation of traffic from up to 4,500 emulated clients; and up to 6 chassis can be daisy chained together and controlled by a single station. On the capture side, each line card includes a 256 MB buffer and supports the collection of real-time port statistics & per-flow statistics, and packet filters & triggers.

On top of this core platform, the vendor offers several components which focus on specific WLAN testing needs, including:

- WaveManager, a Windows XP GUI that facilitates interaction with the system, including the parameters effecting the traffic generation and emulated client setups (including such specifications as encryption and authentication parameters), through the capturing and viewing of statistics and counters.

- The VCL (VeriWave Command Library) which enables scripted access to the testing environment via Perl, Tcl, or Python.

- WaveAutomation, which facilitates complete test suite setups and executions for regression or repetitive testing. WaveAutomation includes features enabling the systematic control of both the traffic generators as well as the system under test (through CLIs)

- WaveDynamix, the newest entry in the product line, which provides functional testing capabilities primarily for 802.11n hardware or software components as they are being developed, including the ability to generate traffic and clients independently (i.e., the ability to send traffic without creating a client)

Other components and features of the VeriWave product suite include pre-packaged software test suites (which run on the WaveBlades) focused on testing specific types of real-world traffic environments, including VoIP, Muni-Mesh, roaming, and benchmarking; and specialized RF enclosures (WaveChambers) with Ethernet and RF cabling that facilitate the isolation of specific APs or radios for controlled testing.

The WaveTest platform is available now. A starter package (WT90 w/1 Ethernet WaveBlade, 2 WLAN WaveBlades, WaveManager, Benchmarking test suite, and programming API) is priced at $45,000.

Visit the VeriWave Web site for further information.