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Technology Stocks : Ascend Communications-News Only!!! (ASND) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Maverick who wrote (726)	12/11/1997 1:16:00 AM
From: blankmind	Respond to of 1629

Smokin' Remote Access Pushed To The Max: Part II By Mike Fratto ÿThis past March, we tested remote-access servers (see "Remote-Access Servers Pushed to Their Limits"). In that instance, servers from Ascend Communications, Cisco Systems, Microcom (recently purchased by Compaq Computer Corp.), Shiva Corp., 3Com Corp. and U.S. Robotics (recently purchased by 3Com) were pushed to the max. For the many vendors that were in the middle of product cycles and could not participate in that earlier roundup, we offer this sequel. The six vendors from the first test were invited to participate again if their products underwent major upgrades, or if they had released new products since our last test (minor revisions or bug fixes did not count). Of the original players, only Ascend joined us again. To view the Report card. As in the first roundup, we tested remote-access servers capable of handling at least two T1 (48 channels, 46 for PRI) connections (four T1 were preferred) and able to negotiate PPP and IP/IPX. Access Beyond's AB4400 Remote Access Server, Advanced Computer Communications' Tigris Integrated Access Platform, Ascend Communications' MAX 4048, Bay Networks' Model 5399 Remote Access Concentrator, Cabletron Systems' CSX7000, Gandalf's Xpressway RLAN, General DataComm's SpectraComm RLN and Multi-Tech Systems' CommPlete Communication Server were tested. With the exception of identifying the best and worst servers, rating the devices was difficult because each vendor offered a little something different than the others. 3Com's AccessBuilder 5000, with superior performance, flexibility and accounting, retains its title from our first round of testing. Not too far behind, Access Beyond's AB4400 and the Compaq Microcom Access Integrator share second place. The units from Shiva, Cisco and Bay Networks are close on their heels. Access Beyond AB4400 Remote Access Server Access Beyond's AB4400 is the top finisher in this roundup, tying for second place overall behind 3Com's AccessBuilder 5000. It offers high throughput, excellent diagnostic tools and easy-to-use management and installation features, and it works extremely well as a medium-sized solution when PPP connectivity is needed for remote users. However, the AB4400 isn't as flexible as the servers from 3Com or Microcom. It lacks LAN-to-LAN routing and Multilink PPP support, and it does not have as high a port density as some of the others. On the outside, the AB4400 looks like a desktop PC. Inside the box, though, lies a modular architecture designed for custom configurations. It maximizes throughput by off-loading processing from the CPU to separate intelligent I/O boards. Routine PPP processing, for example, is handled on the port modules and packets flow through the device without processing from the CPU. This is a remote-access server that can push data from the WAN to the LAN with little degradation. IP and IPX transfer times rivaled those from Bay Networks' unit and--with the exception of ZIP file performance over IPX--blew away the rest of the pack. Access Beyond's diagnostic tools were second to none, and only the Cisco AS5200 offered a higher level of detail in traces. Using the terminal screen, via telnet or through an RS-232 connection to the console port, you can dig deep into call tracing from Layer 1 up to Layer 3 of the protocol stack. This could be very beneficial for you when you're setting up the AB4400. Additionally, with the AB4400 we were able to verify the operation of our test bed from the server side by looking at the T1 A/B signaling bits up to the IP negotiations within PPP. We did have initial problems setting up more than 16 calls connected simultaneously. Access Beyond located a limitation in the AB4400's hash table, which maintains the port IP addresses: It could hold only 16 addresses per Class B subnet. The code was recompiled, allowing for a larger range of addresses, and the connections ran well. Access Beyond states that this will be fixed and will appear in the next release of the code base. Server installation and management of AB4400 is relatively straightforward. Both the GUI and the terminal interface are well-thought-out, and important functions are placed where they are needed.

To: Maverick who wrote (726)	12/11/1997 1:18:00 AM
From: blankmind	Respond to of 1629

Smokin' Remote Access Pushed To The Max: Part II Ascend Communications MAX 4048 The MAX 4048 is Ascend Communications' latest medium-density remote-access unit. It performed a bit better than its predecessor, the MAX 4004, in the areas of accounting, performance and configuration. The newer unit has the same form factor and VT-100 interface as the MAX 4004, with one exception--it supports only two T1 lines and 48 analog modems. In addition, the MAX 4048 has a Java-based configuration tool--with its own Java virtual machine. The MAX 4048 showed average performance in our testing and it offers the best overall support for authorization and accounting facilities via RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service). Configuring the MAX 4048 was easily accomplished via its Java-based configuration tool. After setting the basic LAN interface parameters through the VT-100 interface, we were able to continue configuring the unit via the GUI. Unfortunately, we had trouble getting the GUI to run on our Microsoft Windows95 management station. After testing two versions of the Java application, we were able to get it functioning only on a Windows NT server. We found that to run smoothly, the applet requires the recommended configuration of a 133-MHz Pentium, but with more than 32 MB of RAM. Configuring and managing the MAX 4048 takes a considerable amount of buy-in to the Ascend mind-set. Configuring dial-in users, for example, is a two-step process where you must first create a user profile and then attach users who are associated with the profile. This process is tiresome and not nearly as versatile as the solutions offered by Access Beyond's AB4400 or the SpectraComm RLN. Once the MAX 4048 was configured properly, we faced the task of user setup. Here is where the Ascend product really shines. Offering extreme flexibility, the MAX 4048 lets you make minute changes to user connectivity options through RADIUS. Nearly all network access, authorization and accounting functionality is supported in the MAX 4048. For example, after we set up a remote client profile using Funk Software's Steel-Belted Radius user-authentication software, we were able to quickly make broad changes to our user parameters, including setting the idle time-out and authentication method. Many of the parameters, such as call setup, PPP link control and network access, could be assigned through Ascend's proprietary RADIUS extensions. This also eliminates the need to make separate profiles on each device and allows centralized management of users. Gandalf Xpressway RLAN Gandalf's Xpressway RLAN got off to a rough start in our tests because of some hardware problems and a few issues with the management system. But once the unit was up, our tests ran smoothly. Throughput was average for IP performance and just above average for IPX. However, we found the management GUI in Xpressway RLAN lacking and the VT-100 interface difficult to use. To maximize performance, we configured the chassis with two separate backplane segments; each with its own controller card, T1 card and digital modem cards. With its modular design, Gandalf's Xpressway RLAN can handle a variety of cards. Each segment in our configuration had a RAC9000e controller, a PRI 9346 T1/PRI card and two MRM (Modem Resource Module) 9340 modem cards. We attached each segment to the LAN via the RJ-45 connector located on the front of the RAC9000e rather than shuttling the traffic over the backplane. Although the terminal interface performs some real-time monitoring of the Xpressway RLAN, only a few debugging utilities are available to the administrator. This makes installation and maintenance difficult. For example, during the initial installation we had trouble configuring the T1 lines. Our Adtran CSU (the Xpressway doesn't have one built in) and the Madge Teleos switch showed "Out of Frame" errors--a red alarm--while the Xpressway showed nothing. Thus began several hours of painful troubleshooting. We eventually tracked the problem to a faulty RAC9000e controller card. We configured Xpressway RLAN via the RS-232 console port of the RAC9000e because of a problem we encountered with Gandalf's telnet terminal--it doesn't play well with Microsoft's telnet client. The application engineer at Gandalf suggested we try a shareware telnet client. We were unable to test the Xpressview Central GUI because of a known bug, which would inform us that our configuration had been deleted when we attempted to set it. Gandalf is aware of this problem and says it's working on a fix for its next release.

To: Maverick who wrote (726)	12/11/1997 1:19:00 AM
From: blankmind	Respond to of 1629

Smokin' Remote Access Pushed To The Max: Part II Cabletron Systems CSX7000 Cabletron Systems' CSX7000 uses a Cubix Corp. chassis to house separate PC subsystems along with the requisite modems and WAN cards. But at $75,775 when configured with 96 modems, the CSX7000 is the most expensive unit we tested. Add $4,995 for the management station software, an NT server and a SQL server, and you end up with a fairly steep price to pay for average performance and less-than-simple configuration and management. However, the CSX7000 was the most stable server in the bunch. It connected every call--on the first try--and didn't drop a single one during any of our testing; these claims can't be made for any other remote-access server in this roundup. You can configure the CSX7000 in two ways, depending on your goals. Both methods are terminal based--the static management application on the CSX7000 lets you configure the remote-access server and the hardware on the Cubix box. Once you've made the appropriate changes with the static console, you must reboot the box. For other management and configuration tasks, you can use an interactive manager that makes changes to the server on the fly. Cabletron's static editor is menu-driven, and configurations can take you several layers deep. For example, while configuring users on the CSX7000, we found that it takes no less than four separate menu choices. Adding users to the system quickly became monotonous. The interactive configuration utility is command-line-driven, with menus appearing as commands are entered. The interactive systems are fairly easy to navigate and can be accessed via a telnet session for remote management. Because the CSX7000 is built atop Cubix hardware, installation of additional hardware is an exercise in patience. We found that it is quite easy to misconfigure the physical resources of the device--to the point that it won't communicate or provide any indication of the error. Multi-Tech Systems CommPlete Communications Server The CommPlete Communications Server was a disappointment because of random hardware problems and a lack of a common management system. CommPlete's performance was average, but its management GUI, the Multi Modem Manager, offered little value other than occasionally showing modem status. Inside the chassis are four independent DOS-based computers running RASExpress remote-access server and its associated modem hardware. The modem modules are connected to a common backplane and can attach to your network through a central shared hub. We experienced several hardware-related problems, such as fatal errors, when attempting to configure the 13th modem connection. In addition, during our throughput tests, the server stalled when trying to find its devices. Multi-Tech is aware of these boot failures and says they stem from a modem problem; the modem card fails to load and the RASExpress dies on the next modem card load. Multi-Tech says it thought this issue was fixed. However, we received two modem cards that suffered from this problem. Configuring and managing the CommPlete Communications Server is a chore because of a lack of a common management scheme. Every module is isolated; to initiate change you must attach to servers individually, either through the console port or via telnet. After all the time and energy spent configuring the server, the CommPlete Communications Server yielded average performance. Advanced Computer Communications Tigris Integrated Access Platform "Not ready for prime time" is the phrase that best describes this remote-access server. Lacking in management, acceptable throughput and stability, Advanced Computer Communications (ACC)'s Tigris fell to the bottom of this roundup.

To: Maverick who wrote (726)	12/11/1997 1:20:00 AM
From: blankmind	Respond to of 1629

Smokin' Remote Access Pushed To The Max: Part II We uncovered several problems with the Tigris during our testing that simply should not be found in a shipping product. The Tigris failed to identify misconfigured compression packets and subsequently failed to stop attempting CCP compression or drop the connection. The result was garbage across the link. Once we resumed testing, results were still alarmingly slow. After another call to ACC, we learned that there was a problem in the V.42 compression scheme and that turning it off would improve performance. We did note an improvement in performance, but it was still double the average of the other servers. ACC states that there is a problem with a low-level driver that forwards packets from the modems to the network stack. If a connection is up for longer than 10 to 15 minutes, the driver would choke and stop passing data. Another firmware fix was issued, but the sluggish throughput remained. At the time we went to press, ACC said it was still working on the problem. ACC's command-line interface and its cryptic commands left us scratching our heads on more than one occasion. On a more positive note, however, we did receive an early look at a the company's RiverView SNMP management product. RiverView, which is designed for the Tigris, will run with CastleRock's SNMPc application, the company says. It shows much promise and will greatly facilitate easier configuration and management. Mike Fratto can be reached at mfratto@nwc.com. Testing Enterprise Remote Access Although we tested only analog connections, most of the servers can handle both analog and ISDN PRI simultaneously. Our performance testing was designed specifically to stress servers with a constant stream of traffic--down to each of the 96 simultaneous ports tested. Instead of rounding up 96 computers and trying to coordinate their communications, we used two Micron Millennia Pro 200-MHz servers, each configured with a 48-port Digi EPC/CON multiport serial board. The servers ran Windows NT 4.0; 48 dial-up networking clients were created, each with its own preconfigured IP address and separate Class C network to ensure that data was passed down every port, rather than down the first port of the subnet. We used V.34 modems topping out at 33.6 with V.42 compression. On the dial-out side, two Compaq Computer Corp. Microcom 6100 chassis were connected to a Madge Networks Teleos Model 60 T1/PRI switch via a T1 connection. Funk Software's Steel-Belted Radius provided user authentication. The majority of the severs came in with transfer times between 5.5 KB to 7.5 KB per second for IP and IPX file transfers. The Access Beyond AB4400 and Bay Networks Model 5399 offered the fastest overall throughput. ACC Tigris came in a disappointing last with no transfer times greater than 3 KB per second.

To: Maverick who wrote (726)	12/11/1997 1:25:00 AM
From: blankmind	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 1629

Smokin' Remote Access Pushed To The Max: Part II (you will need to go to the link - very cool - put your own values in and see how the scores change - blankmind) techweb.cmp.com Welcome to NETWORK COMPUTING's Interactive Report Card, v2. To launch it, click on the Interactive Report Card icon to the right. The program components take a few moments to load. ( Once launched, enter your own product feature weights and click the Recalc button. The Interactive Report Card will re-sort (and re-grade!) the products based on the new catagory weights you entered. For more information about our Interactive Report Card.