VB330-SW 10G Software Probe

Applies to software release v6.0

Form 8160E • November 2020

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual
Revision bbd42ba (2020-11-18)

Copyright
© 2020 Sencore, Inc. All rights reserved.
3200 Sencore Drive, Sioux Falls, SD USA
www.sencore.com
This publication contains confidential, proprietary, and trade secret information. No part of this document
may be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, or reduced to any machine-readable or electronic
format without prior written permission from Sencore. Information in this document is subject to change
without notice and Sencore Inc. assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies.
Sencore, Sencore Inc, and the Sencore logo are trademarks or registered trademarks in the United
States and other countries. All other products or services mentioned in this document are identified by
the trademarks, service marks, or product names as designated by the companies who market those
products. Inquiries should be made directly to those companies. This document may also have links to
third-party web pages that are beyond the control of Sencore. The presence of such links does not imply
that Sencore endorses or recommends the content on those pages. Sencore acknowledges the use of
third-party open source software and licenses in some Sencore products. This freely available source
code can be obtained by contacting Sencore Inc.

About Sencore
Sencore is an engineering leader in the development of high-quality signal transmission solutions for the
broadcast, cable, satellite, IPTV, and telecommunications markets. The company’s world-class portfolio
includes video delivery products, system monitoring and analysis solutions, and test and measurement
equipment, all designed to support system interoperability and backed by best-in-class customer support.
Sencore products meet the rapidly changing needs of modern media by ensuring the efficient delivery
of high-quality video from the source to the home. More information about Sencore is available at the
company’s website, www.sencore.com.
This product can include software developed by the following people and organizations with the following
copyright notices:

• Curl. Copyright © Daniel Stenberg and many contributors. All rights reserved.
• Dropbear. Contains software copyright © 2008 Google Inc. All rights reserved.
• OpenSSL Project for use in the OpenSSL Toolkit. (http://www.openssl.org/).
Copyright © 1998-2017. The OpenSSL Project. All rights reserved.

All trademarks and registered trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners.
Contents

Contents 3

Document Revision History 8

1 INTRODUCTION 9
1.1 About the Software Probe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.1.1 VB330-SW – Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.1.2 Software Probe – Platform alternatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
1.1.3 Software Probe – Functionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
1.2 How to Use This Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2 PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION 13

3 INSTALLATION AND INITIAL SETUP 15

3.1 System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.2 First-time Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
3.3 Deploying in a Virtualized Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
3.4 Maintaining the underlying Operating System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
3.5 Verifying Correct Initial Setup and Software Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
3.6 Initial Setup Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
3.7 Upgrading From a Previous Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
3.7.1 Upgrading by Re-Installing the System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
3.7.2 Upgrading From Version 5.3.0 or later . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3.7.3 Accessing the Cockpit administrative interface after Upgrade . . . . . . . 22
3.8 Upgrading To a Maintenance Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3.9 Accessing the User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3.10 Accessing the administrative interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
3.11 Deactivating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

4 QUICK SETUP GUIDE 24

4.1 Basic Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.2 Input Signal Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.2.1 Multicasts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.2.2 OTT Input (OTT Engine Option Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 3

 4.3 Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
4.4 Adjusting Alarm Thresholds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

5 THE SOFTWARE PROBE GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE 27

5.1 Main . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
5.1.1 Main — Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
5.1.2 Main — CPU usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.1.3 Main — Thumb overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.1.4 Main — Eii graphing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.2 Alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
5.2.1 Alarms — All Alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.2.2 Alarms — Alarm setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
5.2.3 Alarms — Flash Alarms (FLASH option) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5.3 OTT (Option) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
5.3.1 OTT — Active testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
5.3.2 OTT — Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.3.2.1 OTT — Details — Profiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.3.2.2 OTT — Details — Manifest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
5.3.2.3 OTT — Details — Alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
5.3.2.4 OTT — Details — Thumbnails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
5.3.2.5 OTT — Details — Alignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
5.3.3 OTT — Latency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
5.3.4 OTT — Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
5.3.5 OTT — Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
5.3.6 OTT — Thresholds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
5.4 Multicasts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
5.4.1 Multicasts — Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
5.4.2 Multicasts — Parameters — Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
5.4.3 Multicasts — Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
5.4.4 Multicasts — History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
5.4.5 Multicasts — Detect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
5.4.6 Multicasts — SAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
5.4.7 Multicasts — Join . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
5.4.8 Multicasts — Streams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
5.4.9 Multicasts — Ethernet thresh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
5.5 MW (Media Window) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
5.5.1 Media Window — Selected channel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
5.5.2 Media Window — Bandwidth graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
5.5.3 Media Window — Inter Arrival Time graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
5.6 RDP (Return Data Path) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
5.6.1 RDP — Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
5.6.2 RDP — Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
5.7 Traffic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

4 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 5.7.1 Traffic — Protocols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
5.7.2 Traffic — Detect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
5.7.3 Traffic — Filter statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
5.7.4 Traffic — Filter setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
5.7.5 Traffic — Microbitrate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
5.7.6 Traffic — Multicast scan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
5.8 Ethernet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
5.8.1 Ethernet — FSM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
5.8.1.1 Ethernet — FSM — Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
5.8.1.2 Ethernet — FSM — Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
5.8.1.3 Ethernet — FSM — Syslog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
5.8.2 Ethernet — IGMP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
5.8.3 Ethernet — PCAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
5.9 ETR 290 (Option) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
5.9.1 ETR 290 — Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
5.9.2 ETR 290 — ETR Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
5.9.3 ETR 290 — PIDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
5.9.4 ETR 290 — Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
5.9.5 ETR 290 — Bitrates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
5.9.6 ETR 290 — Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
5.9.7 ETR 290 — PCR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
5.9.8 ETR 290 — T2MI (requires T2MI-OPT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
5.9.9 ETR 290 — SCTE 35 (requires SCTE35-OPT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
5.9.10 ETR 290 — Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
5.9.11 ETR 290 — Compare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
5.9.12 ETR 290 — ETR threshold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
5.9.13 ETR 290 — PID thresholds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
5.9.14 ETR 290 — Service thresh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
5.9.15 ETR 290 — Gold TS thresholds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
5.10 Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
5.10.1 Content — Captions (requires CONTENT-OPT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
5.10.2 Content — EBP (requires CONTENT-OPT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
5.10.3 Content — Timeline (requires TIMELINE-OPT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
5.10.4 Content — Content thresh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
5.10.5 Content — Service thresh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
5.10.6 Content — Setup (requires TIMELINE-OPT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
5.11 Redundancy (requires IP-SWITCH-OPT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
5.11.1 Redundancy — Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
5.11.2 Redundancy — Switch setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
5.11.3 Redundancy — Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
5.11.4 Redundancy switch operation modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
5.11.5 Setup guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
5.12 Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 5

 5.12.1 Setup — Params . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
5.12.2 Setup — Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
5.12.3 Setup — Colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
5.12.4 Setup — Ethernet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
5.12.5 Setup — VBC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
5.12.6 Setup — Login . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
5.12.7 Setup — ETR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
5.12.8 Setup — VBC thresh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
5.12.9 Setup — Scheduling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
5.12.10Setup — Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
5.12.11Setup — Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
5.12.11.1Setup — Security — Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
5.12.11.2Setup — Security — Authentication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
5.12.11.3Setup — Security — Tacacs+ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
5.12.11.4Setup — Security — Local users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
5.12.11.5Setup — Security — Password . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
5.13 Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
5.13.1 Data — Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
5.13.2 Data — Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
5.13.3 Data — Table Descriptors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
5.13.4 Data — Eii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
5.13.5 Data — Storage (FLASH option) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
5.14 About . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
5.14.1 About — Release info . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
5.14.2 About — License . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
5.14.3 About — Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
5.14.4 About — Credits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
5.14.5 About — System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

A Appendix: VB330-SW Versus VBC Alarms 229

B Appendix: Monitoring Practices 231

B.1 RTP Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
B.2 Default Multicast Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
B.3 Strategy for MediaWindow Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
B.3.1 IAT Before and After Router . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
B.3.2 Identifying UDP Packet Loss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
B.4 Multicast Thresholds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
B.5 Dedicated interface for OTT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
B.6 OTT descrambling with Verimatrix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
B.7 OTT Bandwidth requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

C Appendix: OTT Profile Health 237

6 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 C.1 OTT Profile Health Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
C.2 OTT Profile Health Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

D Appendix: Network configuration 239

D.1 Web-based configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
D.2 Command-line based configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

E Appendix: Using HTTPS with Apache 244

F Appendix: Enabling NTP time synchronization 246

G Appendix: On-line License Activation 247

G.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
G.2 Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

H Appendix: Software Maintenance 250

I Appendix: Software Upload 251

I.1 Obtain the software image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
I.2 Export and save the probe configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
I.3 Transfer the image to the probe and save . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
I.4 Wait while the software is being saved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
I.5 Verify the new image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
I.6 Software upload troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 7

Document Revision History
Date Version Description
November 2020 6.0 Updated manual to reflect changes in v6.0 software
February 2020 5.6 Updated manual to reflect changes in v5.6 software
February 2019 5.5 Updated manual to reflect changes in v5.5 software
February 2018 5.4 Updated manual to reflect changes in v5.4 software
February 2017 5.3 Updated manual to reflect changes in v5.3 software
March 2016 5.2 Updated manual to reflect changes in v5.2 software
February 2015 5.1 Updated manual to reflect changes in v5.1 software
January 2014 5.0 Updated manual to reflect changes in v5.0 software

8 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 About the Software Probe
1.1.1 VB330-SW – Overview
With support for up to 100 Gbit/s Ethernet connectivity and a massive multiprocessor architecture the
VB330 can deliver monitoring and analytics of thousands of streams and a multitude of technologies
in real-time and in parallel. The VB330 is deployed either on dedicated embedded hardware, as a
pre-configured and pre-installed appliance or as a software-only solution. This gives the operator
greater flexibility when it comes to tailoring the monitoring solution towards the underlying system
architecture in the best possible manner. Feature parity is ensured across the various deployment
options, varying only in factors such as scalability, power consumption and longevity. The web-based
user experience and feature availability stays the same across all the deployment alternatives.
MDC – MicroDEVICE Controller™

VBC – VideoBRIDGE Controller™

Remote Video Wall – Site 1

VB330 PROBE VB220 PROBE

microVB™

VB330 PROBE
DSLAM OR
VB330 PROBE PC
FIBRE
VB288 CONTENT EXTRACTOR AGGREGATION

RG STB
SUPER HEADEND CORE NETWORK REGIONAL METRO NETWORK ACCESS NETWORK

HOME NETWORK
TV PHONE PAD

DIGITAL SATELLITE CABLE DISTRIBUTION DIGITAL TERRESTRIAL

REGIONAL
CABLE
IP ASI QPSK/ IP ASI QAM NETWORK IP ASI COFDM
DVB-S/S2 VB12-RF PROBE GPS
RF

VB120 PROBE & VB272 QPSK/DVB-S/S2 MODULE VB120 PROBE & VB262 QAM/VSB DVB-C MODULE VB120 PROBE & VB252 DVB-T/T2 MODULE
REGIONAL MONITORING OF SATELLITE AND IP REGIONAL MUX AND QAM MODULATOR REGIONAL MUX AND COFDM MODULATOR

The OTT software option is available on the VB330-SW and enables monitoring of up to 1000
adaptive bitrate channels in steps of 5 or 50 (Bulk OTT option) OTT engines depending on licensing.
A built-in web server in the VB330-SW allows remote signal monitoring using a standard web
browser. This can be managed either through a separate Ethernet network, or by using the regular
video/data network – both IPv4 and IPv6 are supported.
The VB330-SW Software Probe can also be managed via the VideoBRIDGE Controller. The Video-
BRIDGE Controller will add management features like alarm aggregation and report functionality.
The Software Probe is a server appliance, that can be installed onto any server that meets
the minimum requirements specified in chapter 3 or delivered as a pre-configured and pre-
installed appliance server.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 9

1.1.2 Software Probe – Platform alternatives
The VB330, VB330-SW and VB330-SW probes supports similar functionality for all the available
platforms, in contrast to the VB120 and VB220 probes which support a wide range of interface
cards, such as VB242, VB252, VB262, and VB272, only available for the embedded version.

VB330 Embedded Hardware VB330/VB380 Appliance VB330 Software Image

Server
Custom electronics developed Pre-selected server hardware Software image for installation
by Sencore with pre-loaded software on CentOS/RHEL
Low power consumption. Server power consumption Suitable for 3rd party server in-
Each VB330 draws approx. stallation
35 W
Dual 10 Gbit/s SFP+ network Dual QSFP28 10/25/40/50/ Suitable for cloud-based infras-
interface 100 Gbit/s network interface tructure
1RU 40 cm depth rack solution 1RU 50 cm depth rack solution Suitable for architectures
with space for 2 VB330 mod- where virtualization technol-
ules ogy is utilized
Dual 10 Gbit/s network con- Delivered as working system Warranty depends on underly-
nectivity per VB330 out of the box ing system
Capacity: 12 Gbit/s per VB330 Capacity: Up to 20 Gbit/s Capacity: Will depend on un-
with second input option en- derlying drivers and architec-
abled ture
24 month standard warranty 24 month standard warranty
Designed for long lifetime and Powerful and future-proof License manager / floating li-
long product availability server based platform censes

Note that the VB330 software image can be licensed to run any bitrate from 1 Gbit/s to 100 Gbit/s.

1.1.3 Software Probe – Functionality

An IP-based network is fully transparent with respect to signal contents quality, provided that the IP
packets arrive, and provided that they arrive in time. The Software Probe therefore uses the patented
MediaWindow to allow monitoring at-a-glance of packet loss and errors in inter-packet arrival time.
This way the operator can conveniently ensure correct signal quality at IP-level.
The advanced Ethernet protocol analysis tool automatically detects all protocols carried over Ethernet
past the port the Software Probe is connected to, and it displays statistics like percentage utilization
of the interface and percentage of the different transported protocols. This gives the Software Probe
a real-time sniffer capability.
The Software Probe allows the user to define a Return Data Path (RDP), using the regular video/data
network or the management network to return a stream. A faulty signal can then be further analyzed
at the studio premises, when necessary.

10 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

The recording functionality allows the user to record a stream, either triggered manually by the user
or triggered by a user defined alarm.

Full Service Monitoring (FSM) checks that vital system components like CA-servers are active.
Optional Ethernet TR 290 monitoring allows the operator to check parameters like transport stream
sync and PSI/SI standards conformity. This option also performs further PSI/SI analysis, making it
possible to view PSI/SI contents. PID and service bitrates are also continuously measured.
Optional OTT monitoring allows the operator to set up active testing of Over-the-top type signals
as found in adaptive bitrate streaming architectures. Formats supported include Apple ™ HLS,
Microsoft ™ Smoothstream, RTMP, MPEG DASH, Adobe ™ HDS and Nullsoft SHOUTcast™.
The Software Probe can be expanded through license options to monitor the T2MI protocol layer as
found in DVB-T2 networks.
The Software Probe can also be licensed with an SCTE 35 option that allows monitoring and logging
of splice time codes embedded in the transport streams.
The Content Extraction and Analysis option adds QoE monitoring, including freeze-frame, MOS
and VMAF scoring, closed caption and audio level monitoring, thumbnail and metadata extraction,
as well as Encounder Boundary Point monitoring. The Timeline view includes an analysis capability
for an enormously data analysis technology that allows users to play through recorded data in an
NLE-style Timeline display to observe correlations and patterns of errors occurring over any time
period.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 11

1.2 How to Use This Manual
This User’s Manual is valid for software version 6.0 of the VB330-SW Software Probe.
Throughout this manual the term stream is often used rather than unicast or multicast. One stream
may consist of one or more services, and refers to one IP uni- or multicast.
Chapter 2 PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION provides a simplified block-diagram overview of the
probe.
Chapter 3 INSTALLATION AND INITIAL SETUP explains how to install the software on a
server.
Chapter 4 QUICK SETUP GUIDE contains a quick setup guide; a step-by-step description of how
to setup the Software Probe once the initial setup has been performed.
Chapter 5 THE SOFTWARE PROBE GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE describes the graphi-
cal user interface (GUI) as seen when pointing a web browser to the Software Probe’s IP address.
A Appendix: VB330-SW Versus VBC Alarms describes the alarm handling in the Software Probe
versus the VideoBRIDGE Controller.
B Appendix: Monitoring Practices explains some useful monitoring practices.
C Appendix: OTT Profile Health explains the OTT profile health bar and timeline.
D Appendix: Network configuration gives a brief introduction to the server OS network configu-
ration.
E Appendix: Using HTTPS with Apache describes how to configure the HTTPS protocol in the
Apache web server.
F Appendix: Enabling NTP time synchronization provides some basic information about setting
up time synchronization.
G Appendix: On-line License Activation outlines the on-line license verification procedure.
H Appendix: Software Maintenance briefly describes software maintenance licenses and how
they are used.
I Appendix: Software Upload explains how to upgrade the software on the Software Probe.
Note that current version of the User’s Manual can be obtained from Sencore ProCare support by
emailing [email protected].

12 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

2 PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION
The VB330-SW Software Probe can utilize all the network interfaces on the host system. The user
selects which interface to be used by the monitoring engine. Management of the Software Probe is
configured in the operating system web server setup1 .

VB330-SW Software

Ethernet Management
SNMP Traps

Main network port

Monitoring Engine

Optional network port(s)

Figure 2.1: The VB330-SW Software – Principle of Operation

A simplified diagram of the alarm handling mechanisms of the Software Probe is shown in figure 2.2.
The input signals are continuously analyzed, and measured data are checked against user defined
threshold values. If the data do not comply with the threshold values alarms will be generated. The
overall alarm settings further make it possible to enable and disable alarms, thus defining which
alarms should be reported in the Software Probe alarm list and sent as SNMP traps to an external
management system.
1 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-US/Red_Hat_Enterprise_Linux/7/html/System_

Administrators_Guide/ch-Web_Servers.html

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 13

 SNMP Alarm
Alarms Lists

Alarm
Settings

Threshold
Settings

Signal
Measurements

Figure 2.2: Simplified Diagram of the Alarm Handling in the Software Probe

14 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

3 INSTALLATION AND INITIAL SETUP
These instructions apply when installing the Software Image. The Appliance Server comes with the
software pre-installed, please skip directly to chapter 3.5.

3.1 System Requirements

The minimum hardware requirements for virtualized or natively running Software Probe with
performance similar to or better than VB330:

• Intel XEON D-1537 1.7 GHz, 12 Mbyte Cache, 8 cores

• 8 Gbyte RAM
• 100 Gbyte HDD
• 10 Gbit/s Network Interface card for data: Intel X550/X552/X557
• Additional 10/100/1000T Ethernet Network Interface card with support for CentOS Linux 7
or Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 for management
• Note that there are motherboards with the 10Gbit/s NICs referred to above built-in. The
XEON D family of CPUs has built-in support for these 10 Gbit/s NICs.

The Software Probe can be license upgraded to a higher bitrate independently of the hardware. It
may thus be useful to obtain better hardware which allows for future license upgrade.

Recommended NICs
Interface NIC Notes
1G BASE-T Intel I340 and Intel RJ45 connector.
I350 Dual or single input.
10G BASE-T Intel X550-T2 (dual) RJ45 connector.
Dual or single input.
Supports 100Mb/1GbE/2.5GbE/5GbE/10GbE.
10G SFP28 Mellanox ConnectX-4 SFP+ compatible connector.
Lx 10gbe Dual or single input.
Supports 1/10GbE.
25G SFP28 Mellanox ConnectX-4 Dual or single input.
Lx 25gbe Also available for OCP with Host Management.
Supports 1/10/25GbE.
100G QSFP28 Mellanox ConnectX-5 Dual or single input.
Ex 100gbe PCIe 4.0 Supports 1/10/25/40/50/100GbE.

Supported platforms:

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 15

 • CentOS Linux release 7 (7.3–7.6) for x86_64

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server release 7 (7.3–7.6) for x86_64

If the system is upgraded to an unsupported operating system release, an error message will be
displayed in the Application notification menu upon accessing the user interface. Check the release
notes available for the currently installed software version before updating to a new operating system
release.

3.2 First-time Installation

Make sure that the server hardware matches the requirements listed above and then follow the
procedure outlined below.
For more details, please refer to the CentOS Linux1 or Red Hat Enterprise Linux2 Installation Guide.

1. Obtain the latest installation kickstart image from Sencore.

Installation media is provided both for CentOS Linux and Red Hat Enterprise Linux. If you
install the Red Hat Enterprise Linux version, you will need an active subscription for Red Hat
Enterprise Linux server.

2. Insert the installation medium into the server:

• For DVD-based installations, burn the downloaded ISO image to a DVD and insert into
the server.
• For USB-based installation, transfer the downloaded image to a USB mass storage device
using a tool such as dd (Mac, Unix, Linux) or USBWriter3 (Windows).
• For installation in a virtualized environment, attach the downloaded ISO image to a
virtual DVD-ROM unit.
Note: Please read the advice on how to configure the virtual machine in section 3.3 to
ensure optimal performance.

3. Boot the server and make sure that the primary boot device is set appropriately. If the system
fails to boot from the medium, you may need to configure the boot loader for ‘legacy BIOS
mode’.

4. The installer will run, please follow the on-screen prompts to install the system, taking note of
the following:
1 https://docs.centos.org/en-US/centos/install-guide/
2 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/installation_

guide/index
3 https://sourceforge.net/projects/usbwriter/

16 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 • IMPORTANT: Leave ‘Software selection’ at ‘Custom software selected’.
• IMPORTANT: In the ‘Installation Destination’, the default partitioning will create a
large /home partition, which is unused. To avoid this, use the ‘I will configure partitioning’
option. Then use the ‘Click here to create them automatically’ and manually reduce the
size of (or remove) the /home partition, instead giving that space to the / partition.
Please refer to the Installation Manual4 for details on disk partitioning.
• We recommend that you configure network settings (IP address, gateway, DNS) within
the installer. Post-installation network configuration can be performed using the nmtui
utility, please refer to D Appendix: Network configuration for details.
• The default installation does not provide any graphical user interface environment. This
can be installed later if desired, please refer to the CentOS Linux5 or Red Hat Enterprise
Linux6 Installation Guide for more details.

5. At the end of the installation procedure, the server is rebooted. Remove the installation media
and ensure that the system boots up properly.
6. If you installed the Red Hat Enterprise Linux server flavor, make sure you follow the instruc-
tions on how to subscribe the system to the Red Hat Customer Portal7 .
If you install the CentOS Linux flavor, you may want to enable the Continuous Release
repository8 to be able to get access to security updates as quickly as possible.
7. Enter the selected IP address in your web browser to access the Software Activation page. If
your host is using dynamic addressing, you can log in to the account created during installation
and issue the command ip addr to display the address assigned to the system.
Continue to chapter 3.5 for details on how to enable the Software Probe system.

The kickstart will install CentOS Linux 7 or Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 on the server. The
disks will be formatted and all contents lost. Make sure that any important data on the server
has been backed up before beginning the procedure.

3.3 Deploying in a Virtualized Environment

It is also possible to deploy the software in a virtualized environment. For optimal performance,
check the processor configuration of cores per socket on your host server and use the same
configuration setting of cores per virtual sockets on the virtual machine.
4 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/installation_

guide/appe-disk-partitions-overview
5 https://docs.centos.org/en-US/centos/install-guide/
6 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/installation_

guide/index
7 https://access.redhat.com/solutions/253273
8 https://wiki.centos.org/AdditionalResources/Repositories/CR

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 17

 For accurate measurements, you must configure the data network interface card(s) in pass-through
mode on the host server.
Please follow the steps from chapter 3.2 when installing the software in the virtualized environment.
We recommended disabling any ‘Easy install’ or similarly worded option, and not selecting the
operating system type when initially creating the new virtual machine instance in your virtualization
environment. These options may override the installation instructions included in the provided
installation image, causing an incomplete installation.
Pre-built images for VMware (vSphere/Workstation/Player) are provided in OVA (Open Virtualization
Format Archive) format. These images contains a system already installed according to the steps
described in the previous chapter, with VMware Tools already installed and activated.
To deploy the image, you need to import it to the virtualization host, please refer to the documentation
of your virtualization environment for more details on how to do this.
If installed in a VMware vSphere environment, the machine should report back its network configu-
ration to the host environment. Please allow some time for it to do so, and then continue with point 6
as described in the previous chapter.
When logging in to the console of the pre-built images, the default password for the root user is
elvis. The same password is also used for logging in remotely using Secure Shell (ssh) and the
Cockpit administrative interface. Please change the password for the root user after finishing
the install, log in and use the passwd command to do this.

3.4 Maintaining the underlying Operating System

The software installed on the system is using CentOS Linux or Red Hat Enterprise Linux (depending
on the installation image used) as its base system. For information on how to maintain the operating
system, including how to update it to install security patches, please refer to the Red Hat Enterprise
Linux system documentation (this documentation is also valid for CentOS Linux).
An overview of Red Hat Enterprise system documentation can be found at https://access.redhat.
com/documentation/en-US/Red_Hat_Enterprise_Linux/7/index.html

At this point, we recommend you read the After Installation chapter of the Installation Guide9 .

3.5 Verifying Correct Initial Setup and Software Activation

Once the software has been installed and restarted all further configuration takes place through the
web interface.
9 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/installation_

guide/part-after-installation (Red Hat)

https://docs.centos.org/en-US/centos/install-guide/Part_After_Install/ (CentOS)

18 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Figure 3.1: Cockpit administrative interface

1. Launch a web browser application on the management system. One of the following browsers
are recommended:

• Google Chrome
• Mozilla Firefox
• Microsoft Edge
• Apple Safari

2. Type the IP address of the server in the browser URL field and press Enter .
If you get a HTTPS certificate warning, just accept it.
The network settings should have been set when the operating system was installed. If the web
browser is unable to reach the web server, check the server’s network settings in the operating
system.

3. The Cockpit administrative interface should be displayed inside the browser. Cockpit is
password-protected and uses the system accounts for logging in. When logging in to the
console of the pre-built images, the default password for the root user is elvis. The page
displayed should look similar to figure 3.1.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 19

 4. If this is a new server, and you need to obtain license keys for the purchased products, please
click the link labeled export hardware keys as XML and send the downloaded file to your
sales representative as an e-mail attachment.

5. The Software Probe is not enabled by default on the newly installed server. To enable it, click
the icon next to its name. This will open a detailed view with display details of the installed
software, such as the installed version and the hardware key. If you have a license key that
you want to enable and have not yet done so, enter the key in the field labeled Apply license
key and click the Add license button.

6. Click the button labeled Activate and wait for it to finish. If successful, the Software Probe
should now be activated, and you will be presented with a link to the user interface. The next
time you access the server using a web browser, you should be taken automatically to the
enabled software.
Please note that it may take some additional time before the user interface of the activated
product becomes available. If you receive an error trying to access it, please wait for a few
minutes before trying again.
Note that it is not possible to activate the Software Probe and the VB7880 Advanced Content
Extractor on a single system at the same time.

To return to the Cockpit administrative interface to make changes, open the About — License tab
in the Software Probe user interface and click the link labeled Manage server.
It is strongly recommended that the system time is configured to be synchronized against an
external NTP server. Please refer to F Appendix: Enabling NTP time synchronization for more
information on configuring time synchronization.

3.6 Initial Setup Troubleshooting

If you are having trouble bringing up the Software Activation interface, or the Software Probe web
based management interface, verify the following:

• Verify that the client machine and the Software Probe are configured on the same subnet and
that they have different addresses, or, if you use different subnets, verify that the routing and
gateways are set correctly on both the client machine and the Software Probe.

• Make sure that the IP address of the gateway and the network interface are not the same.

• Verify that the appropriate Ethernet link indicators of the PC and the Software Probe are lit.

• Verify that web browser proxy settings are not interfering.

• Verify that local firewall settings on the PC are not interfering.

20 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 • Try rebooting the server and make sure all services start as expected.
• Clear the browser’s cache.
• Verify that the web server is running, by entering the command

systemctl status httpd

on the server’s command line. If it is not running properly, or you are seeing DNS lookup
failure errors, try issuing the command

echo "ServerName localhost" >> /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf

and then restart the server by issuing the command

systemctl restart httpd

• If you can reach the Cockpit administrative interface, but the Software Probe GUI is not
working, enter the command probehello on the server’s command line to verify that the
VB330-SW services are running. If services are not running, try re-installing the VB330-SW.

Please refer to D Appendix: Network configuration for more information on server network configu-
ration using the Cockpit administrative interface.

3.7 Upgrading From a Previous Version

You can either re-install the system as mentioned below, or by using one of the provided upgrade
images.

3.7.1 Upgrading by Re-Installing the System

If you want to re-install the system from scratch, please follow these steps:

1. Backup the system configuration (Data — Configuration — Full configuration).

2. Export the current license (About — License — Export current license and software
maintenance keys).
3. Possibly back up the system network configuration by logging in to the machine and copying
any files matching the wildcard /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-* to a safe location
(off the system).
4. Re-install the system as described above.
5. Activate the software and import or re-enter the license key, using the Data — Configuration
and About — License views, respectively.
6. Import the configuration from Data — Configuration — Import configuration XML.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 21

3.7.2 Upgrading From Version 5.3.0 or later
Please refer to chapter 5.13.2 and I Appendix: Software Upload for details on how to install the
upgrade image.

3.7.3 Accessing the Cockpit administrative interface after Upgrade

When upgrading from a version prior to 6.0, the Cockpit administrative interface should be installed.
In some rare cases, the automatic installation can fail and the packages must be installed manually.
Please run the following command to install the necessary packages:

yum install cockpit cockpit-packagekit mod_ssl

If you are running Red Hat Enterprise Linux, the above command might fail because the correct
repository not being enabled. Please run the following commands and try again:

subscription-manager repos --enable=rhel-7-server-extras-rpms

subscription-manager repos --enable=rhel-7-server-optional-rpms

Then re-install the upgrade image as described above to enable the administrative interface.

3.8 Upgrading To a Maintenance Release

Please refer to chapter 5.13.2 and I Appendix: Software Upload for details on how to upgrade to
maintenance releases.

3.9 Accessing the User Interface

Once the software has been installed and activated all further configuration takes place through
HTTP.
The following web browsers are supported for the management interface:

• Google Chrome
• Mozilla Firefox
• Microsoft Edge
• Apple Safari

The default management view should look similar to figure 3.2. If you have problems accessing the
user interface, refer to chapter 3.6 for troubleshooting.

22 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Figure 3.2: The VB330-SW Graphical User Interface

3.10 Accessing the administrative interface

To return to the administrative interface after activating the Software Probe, you can either navigate
to the About — License view and follow the Manage sever link, or navigate your web browser to
the address https://<IP>/admin, where <IP> is the IP address (or host name, if using DNS) of the
server.

3.11 Deactivating
To deactivate Software Probe, you must first access the administrative interface (see the previous
section) and make sure that it is not set to the default. Expand the product details heading and click
the Remove as default button.
Once this is done, access the Software Probe user interface and de-activate it from the About —
License view.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 23

4 QUICK SETUP GUIDE
This quick setup guide is intended to provide a step-by-step explanation of how to setup a probe
once the initial setup has been performed (as described in chapter 3).
More detailed instructions are found in chapter 5 of this manual.
The Return Data Path and Full Service Monitoring features are not covered by this quick setup
guide.

4.1 Basic Setup

1. Set appropriate parameters in the Setup — Params view.
2. Enabling Time synchronization is strongly recommended. Please see F Appendix: Enabling
NTP time synchronization for further details on how to configure the date and time.
3. If access control is required, first log in as the admin user using the Setup — Login view,
and then define users and password in the Setup — Security view.
Note: it is important to read the instructions in the associated section of this manual, see
chapters 5.12.6 and 5.12.11.

4.2 Input Signal Definitions

4.2.1 Multicasts
1. Define multicasts using the Multicasts — Streams view. You can also import multicast
lists from another probe using the Data — Configuration view, or add them automatically,
either by using the multicast detect feature in the Multicasts — Detect view, or from SAP
announced streams using the Multicasts — SAP view.
Note: Often upstream equipment will not transmit multicasts unless join messages have been
received, and in this case it will usually not be possible to detect multicasts automatically.
Select predefined threshold templates that seem appropriate for the signal.
Note: The sequence of the multicast definitions will be reflected in monitoring, so order the
multicasts correctly if required. Also note that ETR 290 monitoring for Ethernet streams is
disabled by default, so if this is required, it will have to be enabled by the user (on a per-stream
basis).
2. Define stream page name(s) in the Setup — Pages view (not strictly necessary).
3. Join multicasts in the Multicasts — Join view or in the Multicasts — Streams view.

24 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

4.2.2 OTT Input (OTT Engine Option Only)
1. Define the OTT channel manifest URLs and channel names in the OTT — Channels view.
Leave the Threshold and VBC threshold settings at default values for now. Remember to tick
the Enable box in the dialog box. If you have multiple OTT engines installed (1 to 50 are
allowed) then select which engine to assign to the channel. Any number of OTT channels can
be assigned to each OTT engine. Each engine works in parallel to each other.
Note: When monitoring both multicast (UDP) and OTT (TCP) traffic, we recommend using
different network interfaces. Mixing the two traffic types on the same network can have
unwanted impact on the monitored signals. The interface used for OTT traffic is controlled
using the Setup — Routing view.

2. Inspect the OTT monitoring progress using the OTT — Active testing dialog. Useful infor-
mation on OTT monitoring can be found in Appendix C.

4.3 Monitoring
When input signal parameters have been set, the signals may be monitored.
For Ethernet multicasts the relevant monitoring views are Main, Alarms, Multicasts, MW, Traffic
and Ethernet. If the probe is equipped with the ETR 290 and/or the OTT option then the views
ETR 290 and OTT are of relevance as well.
Ethernet monitoring hints are found in B Appendix: Monitoring Practices.

4.4 Adjusting Alarm Thresholds

When the probe inputs and streams have been defined using default thresholds, the result will usually
be a number of more or less permanent alarms, some which may not be relevant under the current
circumstances. In order for the user to get rid of unwanted alarms, the probe provides alarm filtering
functionality in the form of alarm thresholds and alarm on/off selection.
Multicasts
By default Ethernet thresholds are set to raise alarms when service affecting errors occur, that are
caused by the network. There may however be reasons for these thresholds to be altered, for instance
to reflect receiver robustness in the case of IAT, or to reflect a TS into IP mapping different from the
default (7TS/UDP). Creating a new threshold template is done either by copying an existing one and
altering the copy, or by creating a new threshold template from scratch. The Ethernet thresholds are
defined in the Multicasts — Ethernet thresh. view. These thresholds are associated with streams
in the Multicasts — Streams view.
In addition to the miscellaneous thresholds, that affect only the streams with which they are
associated, the Alarm — Alarm setup view allows the user to enable and disable alarms on an
overall basis. You can also define the alarm severity levels for different alarms in this view.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 25

OTT
When an OTT channel is defined the default OTT threshold template is assigned to it. To change
threshold values create one or more new templates in the OTT — Thresholds view and assign them
to OTT channels in the OTT — Channels — Edit view.
ETR 290
By default the streams configured in the probe will be set up to use the ETR 290 threshold named
Default. This has the most important alarms enabled but have been adjusted to match real world
systems and only alarm on more severe problems. The threshold named ETSI TR 101 290 is based
on the ETSI TR 101 290 guidelines and are fairly strict generating more alarms. The ETR 290
thresholds should be changed if there are tables that are not relevant for a system, or if the user
requires alarm functionality that exceeds the ETR 290 guidelines. The ETR engines has a lot of
powerful functionality not enabled by default, for instance the ability to raise alarms if the number
of services present in a signal is lower than a preset limit.
The default PID and service thresholds do not affect alarming at all, they are completely transparent.
The thresholds may be altered for instance in order to mask an alarm generated by an unreferenced
PID or to ensure an alarm is raised if a service or PID bitrate is outside preset limits.
Creating a new threshold template is done either by copying an existing one and altering the copy,
or by creating a new threshold template from scratch. The thresholds are defined in these views:
ETR 290 — ETR thresh., ETR 290 — PID thresh., ETR 290 — Service thresh.
The thresholds are associated with streams in the Multicasts — Streams — Edit view.

26 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5 THE SOFTWARE PROBE GRAPHICAL USER
INTERFACE

The VB330-SW web interface is reached by pointing a web browser to the IP address of the Software
Probe as shown in the screenshot above. The following web browsers are recommended:

• Google Chrome

• Mozilla Firefox

• Microsoft Edge

• Apple Safari

Note that different web browsers behave differently with respect to memory leaking, and if the
VB330-SW GUI should be available at all times the browser should be selected carefully. A browser

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 27

memory leak manifests itself as the browser responding more and more slowly, and this is corrected
by closing down the application and restarting.
The interface is easy and intuitive to use. Navigate by clicking on the tabs just below the Software
Probe logo. Some of the pages have their own tabs for accessing nested pages. The bottom frame of
the interface is always the Alarms & events list, usually referred to as the alarm list. The alarm list
can be displayed or hidden by clicking the Toggle link, which is displayed as an arrow head.
The web interface has been designed to be resizable in both vertical and horizontal directions with a
minimum screen resolution of 1280×800 pixels.
Tool-tips are available for most buttons and labels. To access tool-tip information simply navigate
the mouse pointer towards a button or a label and leave it hovering for a second or two.
In this manual the term stream is generally used instead of the terms multicast and/or unicast. A
stream may thus contain a single service or multiple services.

28 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.1 Main
5.1.1 Main — Summary

The intention of this page, together with the alarm list, is to provide enough information for the
operator to immediately see if there is anything seriously wrong with one or more input streams.
The following parameters are shown:

NTP/timesync
(Bulb): The NTP/timesync bulb indicates whether the VB330-SW clock is locked to an
external time reference signal. Green indicates that the VB330-SW is locked to an
external reference whereas grey indicates that the VB330-SW runs in unlocked
mode or the status is unknown.
Updated: The time since the last time synchronization update.
Freq offset: Indicates the measured frequency offset for the system clock.
Timezone: The time zone relative to UTC. Configured in the OS.
Time: The current local time.

We recommend using the standard operating system tools for configuring the system clock. Please
refer to the operating system instructions1 for further details on how to configure the date and time.

RDP
(Bulb): The RDP bulb indicates whether RDP is active or not. Green indicates RDP active
whereas grey indicates that RDP is currently not active.

1 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-US/Red_Hat_Enterprise_Linux/7/html/System_

Administrators_Guide/chap-Configuring_the_Date_and_Time.html

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 29

Active: The RDP active state is either yes or no, yes indicating that RDP relaying or alarm
triggered recording mode has been selected by the operator in the RDP view.

Counters and alarms

Clear all: Click the Clear all button to reset all counters, graphs and alarms. All VB330-
SW measurement and alarm history is cleared. Note that it is not possible to
undo this operation.
Last cleared: The time the Clear all button was last clicked. If no time is indicated the counters
have not been cleared since VB330-SW startup/reboot time.

Probe
Name: The VB330-SW name as defined by the operator in the Setup — Params view.
Location: The VB330-SW location as defined by the operator in the Setup — Params view.
Access: The access rights of the current user. Access rights are either full access or read only
access, and are defined by the operator in the Setup — Security view.

Traffic
RX data: The total bitrate of received data traffic
Monitored data: The total bitrate of multicasts and unicasts monitored (analyzed) by the probe

ETH info
Joined: The number of joined streams (multicasts and unicasts)
Unicasts: The number of unicasts currently being joined/monitored by the probe
Multicasts: The number of multicasts currently being joined/monitored by the probe
IGMP ver: The IGMP version currently used by the probe. IGMPv2 is used unless the operator
has enabled IGMPv3 in the Setup — Params view.

ETH alarms per type

No signal: The number of currently active Ethernet ‘No signal’ alarms
CC skips: The number of currently active Ethernet ‘CC skips’ alarms
MLR>=thresh: The number of currently active Ethernet MLR alarms, i.e. the total number of
‘MLR>= warning-threshold’ and ‘MLR>= alarm-threshold’ alarms
IAT>=thresh: The number of currently active Ethernet IAT alarms, i.e. the total number of
‘IAT>= warning-threshold’ and ‘IAT>= alarm-threshold’ alarms

30 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 RTP alarms: The number of currently active RTP alarms, i.e. the total number of ‘RTP
packet drop’, ‘RTP duplicates’ and ‘RTP out of order’ alarms
Other alarms: The total number of currently active Ethernet alarms not included in the alarm
figures specified above

OTT info
Channels: The number of enabled OTT channels.
Profiles: The total number of profiles in the enabled OTT channels.

At the very bottom of the Summary page, an overview of the Ethernet network interfaces on the
VB330-SW are displayed.

Network interfaces
Interface: The ID of the selected network interface.
Link: Indicates whether the interface is connected.
Speed: Shows the current bitrate for the interface.
Description: Provides a human-readable description of the interface, if available2 .
IPv4 address: Lists the IPv4 address and netmask of the network interface, if set.
IPv6 address: Lists the IPv6 address and netmask of the network interface, if set.
Timestamp: Indicates whether the network interface supports hardware timestamping for
precise measurements, or if kernel timestamping is used.

2A description can be set using the command ip link set interfacename alias "Description"

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 31

5.1.2 Main — CPU usage

The CPU usage view is meant for troubleshooting performance issues in case of excessively high
traffic load.
Three internal performance indicators (System, User and Idle) are displayed as percentage numbers
and also graphed for the last minute. Issues can potentially arise if the System indicator becomes
high (>80%).
The CPU usage view displays CPU usage of the Software Probe. To view the CPU usage averaged
over the last 10 seconds click the Current button. To view the usage averaged over the last 60
seconds click the Last 60 seconds button. Clicking the Peak any 10 secs or Peak any 60 seconds
button will display the historical maximum value for an averaging period of 10 s and 60 s respectively.
To clear peak values click the Clear peaks button.
The length of the queues for multicast video analysis are displayed in the Backlog column, with the
highest recorded value in the Peak backlog column. If these values keep growing, the probe is not
able to keep up with the amount of data it has been set to monitor, and will eventually start dropping
data to catch up again. Additionally, the currently running process (at the time of update) on each
CPU core is displayed in the Current task column.

32 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.1.3 Main — Thumb overview

The Thumb overview view displays a mosaic of all decoded thumbnails. By default the Normal
mode is used. Placeholder images will be displayed if thumbnailing has not been enabled in the
Setup — Params view, indicating the type of stream being received.
If the Small button is clicked the Thumb overview view will display service names and thumbs
only, allowing more thumbnails to be displayed in a view. To display the stream address and name
(as defined in the Multicasts — Streams and OTT — Channels views) click the Stream info
button.
The following information is displayed for each stream:

Thumb overview
Service name: Shows the name defined for the TV service in the SI service descriptor.
If no SI is present in the stream the service id will be shown.
Service ID: For TS services, the ID of the selected service within a transport stream.
Type: For non-TS services, the service type is displayed.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 33

 Audio status: If the probe has been licensed with the Content Extraction and Alarming
option, status bulbs are displayed indicating the current audio alarm
status for the streams.
The audio threshold values are set as part of the content threshold tem-
plate associated with each multicast or OTT channel (refer to the Con-
tent – Content thresh. view). The different bulb colors are:
Grey: audio thresholds are disabled.
Green: audio thresholds are enabled, and audio is currently normal.
Yellow: audio thresholds are enabled, and we have detected an abnormal
audio situation, but the timeout value has not been exceeded.
Red: audio thresholds are enabled, and we have detected an abnormal
audio situation and the timeout value has been exceeded, thus resulting
in an alarm.
Freeze-frame status: Status bulbs are displayed indicating the current freeze-frame and color-
freeze status for the streams.
The freeze-frame error timeout values are set as part of the content
threshold template associated with each multicast or OTT channel (refer
to the Content – Content thresh. view). The different bulb colors are:
White: Unknown (typically due to the VB330-SW being unable to
decode video)
Grey: freeze-frame detection is disabled.
Green: freeze-frame detection is enabled, no freeze-frame is detected.
Yellow: freeze-frame detection is enabled. Two consecutive equal
frames have been detected, but the freeze-frame error timeout value
has not been exceeded.
Red: freeze-frame is enabled. Freeze-frame has been detected and the
freeze-frame error timeout value has been exceeded, thus resulting in an
alarm.
MOS average status: If the probe has been licensed with the Content Extraction and Alarming
option, status bulbs are displayed indicating the current MOS average
alarm status for the streams.
The MOS average threshold values are set as part of the content threshold
template associated with each multicast or OTT channel (refer to the
Content – Content thresh. view). The different bulb colors are:
Grey: MOS average thresholds are disabled.
Green: MOS average thresholds are enabled, and the MOS average is
above the configured threshold.
Red: MOS average thresholds are enabled, and the MOS average has
dropped below the configured threshold, thus resulting in an alarm.

34 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Alignment status: If the probe has been licensed with the Content Extraction and Alarming
option, status bulbs are displayed indicating the current OTT alignment
status for the streams. OTT alignment check is defined as part of the
content threshold template associated with OTT channel (refer to the
Content – Content thresh. view). The different bulb colors are:
Grey: Alignment check is disabled.
Green: Alignment check is enabled, and the OTT profiles are currently
aligned.
Red: Alignment check is enabled, and the OTT profiles are currently
not aligned; an alarm is active.

The Thumbs Details pop-up view is accessed by clicking a thumb in the Thumb overview view.
For more information about the details displayed in the Thumbs Details pop-up see chapter 5.4
for multicast streams, and chapter 5.3.2 for OTT channels. Note that thumbnails are only decoded
automatically if the Extract thumbnails option has been enabled in the associated OTT or multicast
setup, or if freeze-frame or color-freeze alarming (Content Extraction and Alarming option) has
been enabled in the Content threshold template. The same pop-up details are displayed as when
opened from the ETR 290 — Services view.
Clicking the Close button will close the view.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 35

5.1.4 Main — Eii graphing

Eii is short for External Integration Interface and constitutes a set of XML files accessible through
the VB330-SW web server interface for machine access to measurement data.
Portions of the Eii interface are available in this view for simple trend graphing over arbitrary long
time by the web browser.
The screenshot shows the bandwidth of two IP streams being graphed by sampling the Eii interface
every 2 seconds. The graph is stored in the client web browser for as long as the graph window
remains open. The graph starts again with zero history if the window is closed and then opened
again.

Eii stream parameter

Using the Eii stream parameter plot, it is possible to plot parameters from up to five IP streams.
Select the streams in the Stream N to plot (where N is 1 through to 5) drop-downs and the parameter
in the Parameter to plot drop-down.

Eii stream parameters

bitrate: Bitrate (bits per second)
rtp_drops: Number of dropped IP frames due to network errors

36 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 iat_avg: Average Inter-Arrival Time
cc_errs: The number of discontinuities detected

Refresh (seconds) selects how often samples are read and plotted on the graph. Click Apply to
store the parameters and then click the Plot chart link to open the chart.

Eii protocol parameter

Using the Eii protocol parameter plot, it is possible to plot up to five network interface parameters.
Select the parameters in the Parameter N to plot (where N is 1 through to 5) drop-downs.

Eii protocol parameters

vlanTaggedPerc: Percentage of frames being VLAN tagged
ipFragPerc: Percentage of frames being IP fragmented
eth0txBitr: Total TX bitrate including units on first data interface
eth0rxBitr: Total RX bitrate including units on first data interface
udpUnicastBitr: Bitrate of the unicast traffic
udpMulticastBitr: Bitrate of the multicast traffic
udpUnicastStreams: Number of UDP unicast streams present
udpMulticastStreams: Number of UDP multicast streams present
copPayloadBitr: Bitrate of FEC protected payload
copFec1Bitr: Bitrate of the FEC columns
copFec2Bitr: Bitrate of the FEC rows
copCorrected: IP packets correctable by the FEC
copUncorrected: IP packets not correctable by the FEC
copErrors: FEC packets with errors

Refresh (seconds) selects how often samples are read and plotted on the graph. Click Apply to
store the parameters and then click the Plot chart link to open the chart.

Eii OTT parameter

Using the Eii OTT parameter plot, it is possible to plot analysis parameters from any of the
monitored OTT channel. Select the channel in the Service to plot drop-down and the parameter in
the Parameter to plot drop-down.

Eii OTT parameters

profileBps,actualBps: Plots both the profileBps and actualBps parameters

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 37

 profileBps: Bitrate of this profile as listed in meta-data (bits per second)
actualBps: Bitrate of this profile calculated from downloaded chunk (bits per sec-
ond)
chunkDur: Last chunk length (seconds)
firstByte: Time to first byte (milliseconds)
downloadDur: Time to download chunk (seconds)
chunkSize: Size of downloaded chunk (bytes)

Refresh (seconds) selects how often samples are read and plotted on the graph. Click Apply to
store the parameters and then click the Plot chart link to open the chart.
Please refer to the separate Eii documentation for further details.

38 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.2 Alarms

SNMP Alarms Alarm Lists

Alarm Settings
System Events
and Scheduling

FSM Settings
FSM Measurements

OTT Thresholds ETR Thresholds ETH Thresholds Content Thresholds

PID Thresholds Service Thresholds Content Service Thresholds

OTT Channel ETH Multicast

OTT Analysis ETH Measurements

OTT Option ETR 290 Option Content Option

Figure 5.1: Alarm handling in the Software Probe.

Figure 5.1 shows an overview of the alarm handling in the Software Probe. It is useful to obtain an
understanding of the alarm processing of the Software Probe – in particular how threshold settings
and alarm setup will affect alarm handling.
The Software Probe continuously compares measurement data with user defined thresholds in order
to generate alarms. These alarms are further checked against the settings defined in the Alarms —
Alarm setup view, and the resulting alarms are presented in the alarm lists. These alarms will also
be sent as SNMP traps to support third party management systems. Refer to Appendix: VB330-SW
Versus VBC Alarms for a description of alarm handling in the VideoBRIDGE Controller.
The Software Probe distinguishes between events and alarms. The ETR software module will always
generate alarms and the Systems software module will always generate events. The Ethernet software
module will by default generate events for errors that are resolved within 1 second, otherwise it will

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 39

 generate alarms. This can be overridden by checking the ‘Treat Ethernet events as alarms’ box in
the Setup — Params view. The OTT module generates alarms only.

5.2.1 Alarms — All Alarms

The Alarms view gives the user the possibility of viewing alarms according to type or as one
combined list. The individual alarm lists can hold the number alarms indicated below independently
of each other, meaning that one may become full without affecting the other lists.

Alarm list capacity

Ethernet alarms (ETH) 10000 alarms
Full Service Monitoring and Microbitrate (FSM) 100 alarms
Over The Top Television (OTT) 2500 alarms
ETSI TR 101 290 Analysis (ETR) 1000 alarms
Content (CNT) 2500 alarms
System alarms (SYS) 2500 alarms

If Auto-refresh list is selected, the alarm list will be continuously updated with new alarms. Active
alarms are always located at the top of the list.
Clicking the View list offline button gives the user the opportunity to view the complete alarms and
events list. By clicking one of the blue information icons leftmost in the offline list, a detailed alarm
description can be viewed. The search field in the upper right corner of the view allows the user
to type a text string and the alarm list is updated to display only streams and alarms matching the
specified text. To update the offline alarm list click the Auto-refresh list button and then go back to
the offline mode.

40 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 The alarm lists can be deleted by clicking the Flush alarms button. However it should be noted that
this action will permanently clear the alarm lists — they cannot be restored.
The Export button enables export of the corresponding alarm list as an XML file. This file will
open in a new window.

5.2.2 Alarms — Alarm setup

The Alarm setup represents the final filtering stage for VB330-SW alarms. The user selects whether
an alarm should be enabled or ignored, and associates an error severity level with each alarm, and
associates an error severity level with each alarm. When changes have been made to alarm settings
click the Apply changes button for changes to take effect.
Figure 5.1 gives an overview of the total alarm handling of a Software Probe. The settings in the
Alarm setup view are represented by the Alarm Settings box in this figure.
Note that the probe alarm handling will also depend on the threshold template settings defined by the
user in the Multicasts — Ethernet thresh., ETR 290 — ETR thresh., ETR 290 — PID thresh.,
ETR 290 — Service thresh., and OTT — Thresholds views.
Also note that only enabled alarms are shown in the alarm lists and forwarded as SNMP traps.
Enabling or disabling Software Probe alarms does however not affect the alarms presented by the
VBC. Refer to Appendix: VB330-SW Versus VBC Alarms for a description of the VB330-SW
versus VBC alarm handling.
The following alarm severity levels may be selected:

OK: If enabled, the alarm will be present in the alarm list, color green
Warning: If enabled, the alarm will be present in the alarm list, color yellow
Error: If enabled, the alarm will be present in the alarm list, color orange
Major: If enabled, the alarm will be present in the alarm list, color red
Fatal: If enabled, the alarm will be present in the alarm list, color black

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 41

The following alarms and events are configured:

ETH (Ethernet) alarms

No signal: There has been no UDP Default: Enabled,
packet for the predefined pe- severity Major
riod of time (default 1sec)
FEC packet drop: One or more RTP packets Default: Enabled,
could not be corrected by the severity Error
FEC
RTP packet drop: Number of consecutive Default: Enabled,
dropped RTP packets exceeds severity Error
the error-thresholds – only
available if RTP headers are
present
RTP duplicates: Number of RTP packets with Default: Disabled,
identical RTP counters – only severity Warning
available if RTP headers are
present
RTP out of order: There are RTP packets re- Default: Disabled,
ceived out of order – only severity Warning
available if RTP headers are
present
CC skips: Number of transport stream Default: Disabled,
discontinuities due to packet severity Warning
loss. Note that the CC skips
number does not necessarily
equal the number of lost pack-
ets, as several consecutive
packets lost will be counted
as one CC skip.
IAT >= err-thresh: The Inter-packet Arrival Time Default: Disabled,
exceeds the error threshold severity Error
IAT >= warn-thresh: The Inter-packet Arrival Time Default: Disabled,
exceeds the warning thresh- severity Warning
old
MLR >= err-thresh: The Media Loss Rate exceeds Default: Enabled,
the error-threshold severity Error
MLR >= warn-thresh: The Media Loss Rate exceeds Default: Disabled,
the warning-threshold severity Warning
TTL changed: The Time-To-Live field is Default: Enabled,
changing severity Error

42 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 TOS changed: The Type-Of-Service field is Default: Enabled,
changing severity Error
Multiple mcast sources: There are multiple multicast Default: Enabled,
sources severity Error
Mcast source changed: The multicast source changed Default: Enabled,
to one of the valid multicast severity Error
sources specified by the oper-
ator
Bitrate overflow: The net stream bitrate exceeds Default: Enabled,
the maximum bitrate Ethernet severity Error
threshold value specified by
the operator
Bitrate underflow: The net stream bitrate goes Default: Enabled,
below the minimum bitrate severity Error
Ethernet threshold value spec-
ified by the operator

FSM (Full service monitoring & Microbitrate) alarms

Full service monitoring: No reply was obtained within Default: Enabled,
timeout period for the config- severity Major
ured FSM service
Microbitrate bursting: Raised if the bitrate of Default: Enabled,
the user-interval exceeds the severity Warning
Burst threshold setting
Microbitrate excessive ES bursting: Raised whenever the bitrate Default: Enabled,
of the user-interval exceeds severity Error
the Burst threshold for ES
threshold number of seconds
during the last ES Alarm
window seconds
Full service monitoring: No reply was obtained within Default: Enabled,
timeout period for the config- severity Major
ured FSM service

CNT (Content) alarms

Freeze-frame detected: The service has frozen frames Default: Enabled,
severity ‘Major’

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 43

 Color-freeze detected: The service has frozen in one Default: Enabled,
color severity ‘Major’
Audio silence detected: The service has silent audio Default: Enabled,
tracks severity ‘Major’
Audio too loud detected: The service has too loud au- Default: Enabled,
dio tracks severity ‘Major’
Audio out of phase detected: The service has audio tracks Default: Enabled,
that are out of phase severity ‘Major’
EBP PTS gap: The PTS gap between two Default: Enabled,
subsequent EBPs is outside of severity ‘Major’
the min and max thresholds
EBP group PTS skew: The PTS skew between the Default: Enabled,
stream’s and the group refer- severity ‘Major’
ence’s EBP is outside of the
threshold
IDR PTS gap: The PTS gap between two Default: Enabled,
subsequent IDR frames is out- severity ‘Major’
side of the min and max
thresholds
IDR group PTS skew: The PTS skew between the Default: Enabled,
stream’s and the group refer- severity ‘Major’
ence’s IDR frames is outside
of the threshold
EBP and IDR PTS unaligned: The difference between the Default: Enabled,
IDR frame and EBP PTSs is severity ‘Major’
outside of the threshold
MOS below threshold: The average MOS for the ser- Default: Enabled,
vice is below the configured severity ‘Major’
threshold
Wrong DAR: The stream has wrong Dis- Default: Enabled,
play Aspect Ratio severity ‘Major’
Wrong PAR: The stream has wrong Pixel Default: Enabled,
Aspect Ratio severity ‘Major’
Caption service missing: The service has less caption Default: Enabled,
services than specified in the severity ‘Major’
threshold
Bad caption quality: The received caption data was Default: Enabled,
corrupt severity ‘Major’

44 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 ETR (ETR 290) alarms
TS Sync: No TS Sync (no signal) Default: Enabled,
severity Major
Sync byte: Sync byte error, sync byte not Default: Enabled,
0x47 severity Major
PAT: Program Association Table er- Default: Enabled,
ror severity Major
Continuity: Continuity counter error Default: Enabled,
severity Major
PMT: Program Map Table error Default: Enabled,
severity Major
Missing PID: PID is missing Default: Enabled,
severity Major
Transport: Transport stream error indica- Default: Enabled,
tor is set severity Major
CRC: Table checksum error Default: Enabled,
severity Major
PCR: Program Clock Reference er- Default: Enabled,
ror severity Major
PCR Accuracy: Program Clock Reference ac- Default: Enabled,
curacy error (PCR jitter) severity Major
PTS: Presentation Time Stamp er- Default: Enabled,
ror severity Major
CAT: Conditional Access Table er- Default: Enabled,
ror severity Major
NIT: Network Information Table Default: Enabled,
error severity Major
SI Rep Rate: Wrong repetition rate for SI Default: Enabled,
tables severity Major
Unref PID: PID is unreferenced Default: Enabled,
severity Major
SDT: Service Description Table er- Default: Enabled,
ror severity Major
EIT: Event Information Table error Default: Enabled,
severity Major
RST: Running Status Table error Default: Enabled,
severity Major

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 45

 TDT: Time Date Table error Default: Enabled,
severity Major
MGT: Master Guide Table error Default: Enabled,
(ATSC mode) severity Major
VCT: Virtual Channel Table error Default: Enabled,
(ATSC mode) severity Major
PIM/PNM: PIM/PNM error (ATSC Default: Enabled,
mode) severity Major
RRT: Region Rating Table error Default: Enabled,
(ATSC mode) severity Major
ATSC EIT: ATSC EIT Table error (ATSC Default: Enabled,
mode) severity Major
STT: System Time Table error Default: Enabled,
(ATSC mode) severity Major
ETT: Extended Text Table error Default: Enabled,
(ATSC mode) severity Major
CA System: CA System error Default: Enabled,
severity Major
PID min. bitr. PID minimum bitrate below Default: Enabled,
threshold severity Major
PID max. bitr. PID maximum bitrate ex- Default: Enabled,
ceeds threshold severity Major
PID checks: PID check error Default: Enabled,
severity Major
Service min. bitr. Service minimum bitrate be- Default: Enabled,
low threshold severity Major
Service max. bitr. Service maximum bitrate ex- Default: Enabled,
ceeds threshold severity Major
Service checks: Service check error Default: Enabled,
severity Major
MIP: Megaframe Insertion Packet Default: Enabled,
error severity Major
Reference: Reference check error (com- Default: Enabled,
paring the stream with a Gold severity Major
TS)
Gold TS: Error found while comparing Default: Enabled,
the stream with the stored severity Major
Gold TS snapshot)

46 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Interface overflow: Input interface overflow error. Default: Enabled,
Means that the probe is over- severity Major
loaded and can not properly
analyze the signals.

SYS (System) events

[Critical system errors]: Critical system errors prevent- Default: Enabled,
ing the Software Probe from severity ‘Fatal’
operating correctly
[System errors]: Enable this to view all system Default: Enabled,
errors severity ‘Major’
[System info]: Enable this to view system in- Default: Enabled,
formation messages severity ‘OK’

OTT Alarms
The number of profiles changed: The number of profiles Default: Enabled,
flagged in the manifest file severity ‘Warning’
changed
Profile stream type changed: The stream type of the profile Default: Enabled,
changed in the manifest severity ‘Warning’
Minimum profiles The channel has less profiles Default: Enabled,
than specified in the threshold severity Warning
Wrong profile type The channel has profiles of a Default: Enabled,
different type than specified severity Warning
in the threshold
Download bitrate low: The download duration time Default: Disabled,
exceeds the OTT bitrate severity Warning
threshold. The bitrate thresh-
old is part of the OTT thresh-
old template defined in the
OTT — Thresholds view. A
threshold template is assigned
to a stream in the OTT —
Channels view.
Download bitrate too low: The download duration time Default: Enabled,
exceeds the OTT chunk dura- severity Error
tion time

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 47

 Manifest size: The manifest file size exceeds Default: Enabled,
the OTT manifest size thresh- severity Warning
old
Actual bitrate: The actual measured bitrate Default: Enabled,
does not match the profile bi- severity Warning
trate specified in the manifest
file
Download timeout: The download time exceeds Default: Enabled,
twice the chunk duration time severity Major
Address resolve error: Unable to resolve address Default: Enabled,
name severity ‘Error’
Connection failed: Connection failed Default: Enabled,
severity ‘Error’
Send error: Could not send data to host Default: Enabled,
severity ‘Error’
Receive error: Could not receive data from Default: Enabled,
host severity ‘Major’
Empty reply: Response did not contain any Default: Enabled,
data in body severity ‘Major’
HTTP error: Invalid HTTP response Default: Enabled,
severity ‘Major’
HTTP redirect error: HTTP 3xx redirection error Default: Enabled,
severity ‘Major’
HTTP client error: HTTP 4xx client error Default: Enabled,
severity ‘Major’
HTTP server error: HTTP 5xx server error Default: Enabled,
severity ‘Major’
Static manifest: Manifest file unchanged for Default: Enabled,
longer than configured thresh- severity Major
old
Mis-alignment detected: One or more profiles are out Default: Enabled,
of visual alignment severity ‘Major’
Manifest parse error: Failed to parse manifest file. Default: Enabled,
Invalid format severity ‘Major’
Chunk error: Expected chunk missing from Default: Enabled,
manifest severity ‘Major’
Unknown manifest: Cannot recognize manifest Default: Enabled,
XML format severity ‘Fatal’

48 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.2.3 Alarms — Flash Alarms (FLASH option)

The FLASH option enables the Flash alarms tab. This alarm list contains the last 20,000 alarms
and keeps them on the hard disk so that they survive reboots and power-outages. This opens up a
lot of possibilities for probes that cannot be reached while doing measurements and for probes that
need to be powered down and consulted elsewhere. It also severely increases the size of the alarm
list allowing browsing of older alarms.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 49

5.3 OTT (Option)
5.3.1 OTT — Active testing

The OTT option enables monitoring of up to 1000 OTT channels. Up to 50 OTT engines (depends
on license) can operate in parallel, and each engine licensed allows any channels to be analyzed.
Each engine analyses channels in series and can be configured with any number of channels up to
the maximum allowed by the license.
The Software Probe will parse a channel’s manifest file, and for a live channel one of the latest
chunks in each OTT profile’s chunk sequence will be analyzed. The engine then moves on to the
next OTT channel in the channel list defined by the user. For a VoD channel the OTT engine will
analyze all chunks in the VoD file, one in each round-robin loop.
If manifest file parsing or chunk analysis reveals an error, an alarm will be raised. Note that some
alarms depend on user defined threshold values. Alarms must also be enabled in the Alarm —
Alarm setup view.
Thumbnail decoding is available for non-encrypted HLS, HDS, DASH, Smoothstream and RTMP
channels, as well as AES128 and SAMPLE-AES encrypted HLS channels, and fixed key CENC
encrypted DASH.
The page to display can be selected from a drop-down menu.
The following OTT information is displayed in the Active testing view:

OTT channels
Status bulb: A bulb indicates the current status of the channel, i.e. the most severe
profile status.

50 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Thumb: If the selected channel is of type HLS, HDS, DASH, Smoothstream
or RTMP a thumbnail of the content will be decoded and updated.
Thumbnail decoding is a process asynchronous of the channel analysis
and therefor should not be expected to be updated at the same time.
The main purpose of the thumbnails is to provide brief information
about the channel contents.
Channel: The channel name defined by the user and linked to a URL in the OTT
— Channels view.
Progress: Channels will be analyzed sequentially, and the progress bar shows
which channel is currently being monitored and how analysis is pro-
gressing.
Alarm history: A bar graph showing alarm severity history. It can show the last 120
minutes, 24 hours or four days. To switch between the graphs, press the
“24h”, “2h” or “4d” button on the left under the channel list. Each bar
color represents the alarm severity level as configured under Alarms
— Alarm setup.
Current profile status: The channel health bar displays the current status for individual channel
profiles. Profiles are separated by vertical black lines.
Colors indicate profile alarm status:
• Green: OK
• Yellow: Warning
• Orange: Error
• Red: Major
• Black: Fatal

Profiles: The number of profiles associated with a channel.

Encryption: Scrambling information is resolved from the profile manifest. If the
profile is scrambled the encryption field will read Yes. If the profile is
transmitted in clear the encryption field will read No.
Profile info: Channel and profile information is resolved from the manifest files.
At channel level the OTT format is displayed (Smoothstream, HLS,
Adobe HDS, MPEG DASH or SHOUTcast). At profile level the profile
bitrate is displayed.
Engine: Indicates which OTT engine is assigned to what channel. The Software
Probe can be licensed with anywhere from 1 up to 50 OTT engines.
Each engine is capable of handling any number of channels.
Lat.eng.: Indicates which OTT latency engine has been automatically assigned
to this channel. This column is only displayed if latency engines have
been configured in the OTT — Settings view, and will only contain
numbers for channels configured to perform latency measurements.
See chapter 5.3.3 for more details.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 51

5.3.2 OTT — Details
Click the blue information button on a channel to open the details window. This window provides
detailed information about the status and alarms on all the profiles for the selected channel. The
same pop-up can be opened from the Main — Thumb Overview view, see chapter 5.1.3 for more
information.

5.3.2.1 OTT — Details — Profiles

The Profiles view in this pop-up consists of two tables detailed below:
The following information relevant for the overall OTT channel is shown in the first part of the
Details — Profiles pop-up window:

Channel
Channel: The channel name defined by the user and linked to a URL in the OTT —
Channels view. A bulb indicates the current status of the channel, i.e. the most
severe profile status.
Progress: Channels will be analyzed sequentially, and the progress bar shows which
channel is currently being monitored and how analysis is progressing.

52 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Profiles: The number of profiles associated with a channel.
Profile status: The channel health bar displays the current status for individual channel profiles.
Profiles are separated by vertical black lines.
Colors indicate profile alarm status:
• Green: OK
• Yellow: Warning
• Orange: Error
• Red: Major
• Black: Fatal

Stream type: Channel and profile information is resolved from the manifest files. At channel
level the OTT format is displayed (Smoothstream, HLS, Adobe HDS, MPEG
DASH or SHOUTcast).

In the same view below the table for the overall channel a more detailed view per channel profile is
shown with the following information in it:

Profiles
Profile: The name of the OTT profile as flagged in the manifest files.
Type: Live for live content or VoD for stored content. The distinction between
the two is done based on whether the profile sequence numbers update or
not.
Profile health: * A timeline graph display of a combined bitrate and alarm representation
for individual profiles. Refer to Appendix C for a description of these
graphs. The timeline duration is either 2 or 24 hours, and the graph
resolution is one minute for the 2 hour graph, and twelve minutes for the
24 hour graph.
Profile bps: * The profile nominal bandwidth as flagged in the manifest files.
Actual bps: * The actual profile bitrate, i.e. the chunk size (megabits) divided by the
chunk length (seconds). The actual profile bitrate should match the man-
ifest bitrate specification within limits defined by the user in the OTT
thresholds template associated with a channel. Otherwise an alarm will be
raised.
Download bps: * The download bitrate, i.e. the chunk size (megabits) divided by the down-
load time (seconds).
Chunk length: * The profile chunk length (seconds) specified in the manifest file.
Download time: * The actual profile chunk download time (seconds).
First byte: * The time (in seconds) before the first payload data byte was received.
Download size: * The actual profile chunk size (bytes).

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 53

 Encrypt.: Yes or No depending on whether the content for that profile is encrypted
or not.
HTTP header: * The current HTTP header of the last chunk downloaded for that profile.

Note: Items marked with * are not available if the channel has been configured to only perform
latency measurements (see chapter 5.3.3 for more details).

54 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.3.2.2 OTT — Details — Manifest

The Manifest view shows health information on the overall manifest file for the channel as well as
for the manifest files for the individual profiles.

Channel
Channel: The channel name defined by the user and linked to a URL in the OTT —
Channels view. A bulb indicates the current status of the channel, i.e. the most
severe profile status.
Progress: Channels will be analyzed sequentially, and the progress bar shows which
channel is currently being monitored and how analysis is progressing.
Profiles: The number of profiles associated with a channel.
Profile status: The channel health bar displays the current status for individual channel profiles.
Profiles are separated by vertical black lines.
Colors indicate profile alarm status:
• Green: OK
• Yellow: Warning
• Orange: Error
• Red: Major
• Black: Fatal

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 55

 Profile info: The type of stream is shown here. Apple HLS, Microsoft Smoothstream,
Adobe HDS, MPEG DASH or SHOUTcast.
Manifest size: The size in bytes of the main/top manifest file for the overall channel.
Manifest file: Clickable URL for displaying the manifest file as text for the overall channel.
Manifest URL: A clickable link to the current main/top manifest file for the overall channel.
HTTP header: The current HTTP header of the main/top manifest file for the overall channel.

Just below the channel manifest information in the same window is the detailed manifest information
per profile. This view contains the following information:

Profiles
Profile: The name of the OTT profile as flagged in the manifest files.
Profile bps: The profile nominal bandwidth as flagged in the manifest files.
Type: Live for live content or VoD for stored content. The distinction between the
two is done based on the contents of the manifest file.
Seq.age: The profile sequence shows how long it has been since the manifest was
updated in whole seconds.
Manifest size: The size in bytes of the manifest file for a particular profile.
Manifest file: Clickable URL for displaying the manifest file as text for this particular profile.
Manifest URL: Clickable URL to the profile manifest file.
HTTP header: URL to HTTP header in text form for a particular profile manifest file.

56 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.3.2.3 OTT — Details — Alarms

The Details — Alarms view gives an at-a-glance overview of any active OTT alarms for the selected
channel. An alarm log for the selected channel is also provided here.
In the right corner of the pop-up window is a free text search field used to narrow down the entries
in the alarm log.
The alarms are the same ones as explained for the Alarms — Alarm setup view, see chapter 5.2.2
for more information.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 57

5.3.2.4 OTT — Details — Thumbnails

The Thumbnails tab will provide information about the current thumbnails in the channel.
The quality of the content in the selected profile can be viewed in the thumbnail section, and the
user may alter the selected profile in the drop down list.
The section on the right hand side provides specific decoder and chunk information.
By pressing the Apply button without selecting a profile from the drop-down list the thumbnail will
be switched to the default selection; Auto select. Auto select will select the profile with the highest
bitrate and video data.

Video information
Size: The video picture size of the selected profile
Aspect ratio: The video aspect ratio of the selected profile
Pixel aspect ratio: The video pixel aspect ratio of the selected profile
Codec: The video encoding format of the selected profile
Pixel format: The video sampling format of the selected profile
Frame rate: The video frame rate of the selected profile (Hz)
Blockiness: Detected picture blockiness, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is
enabled.

58 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Blurriness: Detected picture blurriness, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is
enabled.
Noisiness: Detected picture noisiness, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is
enabled.
Brightness: Detected picture brightness, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is
enabled.
Contrast: Detected picture contrast, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is
enabled.
MOS score: Calculated picture quality score, on a scale from 1.0 to 5.0, where 5.0
is best. Displayed if QoE scoring is enabled.
MOS running average: If MOS average alarming has been enabled, the current MOS running
average is displayed here
MOS average window: If MOS average alarming has been enabled, the averaging window is
displayed here

The QoE scores are only calculated for the profile with the highest bitrate. To measure the quality
loss between profiles, enable VMAF scoring and use the measurements displayed on the Alignment
tab.

Audio Information
Codec: The audio encoding format
Sample rate: The audio sample rate
Channels: The number of audio channels represented by the audio PID
Layout: The audio channel layout
Bitrate: The effective audio bitrate
Peak level: The audio peak level for the currently decoded chunk

Chunk Information
Engine ID: The OTT engine monitoring the selected channel.
Channel ID: The ID of selected channel corresponding to the list of channels defined
by the user.
Profile ID: The ID of the selected profile.
Bitrate: Bitrate rate of the a chunk.
Streamtype: The type of the stream detected; live or video on demand.
Sequence Number: The sequence number of a chunk.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 59

5.3.2.5 OTT — Details — Alignment

The Alignment tab gives the user a view of all the profiles for a selected channel with thumbnails
and corresponding data.

Profile Alignment Information

Profile: This is a generated ID that identifies the OTT profile. The first
profile listed is always the one with the highest signaled bitrate.
Chunk/Sequence Number: The chunk or sequence number for the current thumbnail. This is
either signaled in the stream, or generated by the VB330-SW.
If the sequence numbers are highlighted in yellow, the thumbnails
are not generated from the same chunk for all profiles, and may
therefor appear to be out of synchronization.
Please note that VMAF scoring and alignment testing is only
performed when the profiles sequence numbers are in alignment.
Bitrate: The signaled bitrate for this profile (bits/s).
Size & FPS: Indicates the original video size (pixels) and the frame-rate (Hz).
VMAF score: If enabled in the OTT thresholds, a VMAF score is calculated for
each of the profiles, with the highest-bitrate profile used as the
reference.
60 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0
 Audio: Indicates the audio channel layout.

The current version of the VMAF algorithm and model (denoted as VMAF 0.3.1), released as part
of the VMAF Development Kit open source software, uses the following elementary metrics fused
by Support Vector Machine (SVM) regression: Visual Information Fidelity (VIF), Detail Loss
Metric (DLM), Motion
Software Probe release 6.0 utilizes the VMAF 0.3.1 DLM metrics for its QoE scoring.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 61

5.3.3 OTT — Latency

The OTT Channel Latency Distribution feature makes it possible to measure the delay from when a
chunk is available through different caches, compared to its origin.
Before using this feature, you must set aside a number of OTT engines to exclusively measure the
timings of one channel on one server. This is done in the OTT — Settings view. In general, you
would need to use two Latency Engines per channel: one for the origin and one for the cache.
After selecting the number of Latency Engines, open the OTT — Channels view and add the channel
from multiple sources (URLs), using the same base name, but different classes, e.g. TV1@Origin
and TV1@CDN. Then set the Measurement mode to Latency if you are only interested in the
timings from this server, or Both if you also want the traditional Active Testing measurements. Each
added channel will use one dedicated Latency Engine, if you try setting Latency or Both and there
is no free Latency Engine available, it will default back to Normal.
Once the configuration is finished, you are ready to use this feature. Select the channel to produce a
latency graph for using the Channel drop-down. Then select which of the classes of the channel
that is to be used as the reference in the Reference drop-down. This is used to calculate the time
delta difference.
The graph will start off showing the difference in availability time of each chunk for the last minute
and will build up history until displaying the last hour. Due to the nature of timing in different
engines, these measurements are accurate down to ±0.5 seconds. To minimize these inaccuracies, a
moving average is provided, smoothing the spikes. The sliding window can be manually controlled
by moving the Avg window slider. It is also possible to display the minimum and maximum values
by checking the Show min/max checkbox.

62 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.3.4 OTT — Channels

The OTT Channel Configuration list shows OTT channels configured by the user.
To add a channel to the list click the Add new channel button. This will open the Edit channel
pop-up view, allowing the user to define channel parameters. A channel entry can be selected
by clicking the channel; the list entry will be highlighted. Several list entries can be selected by
using regular Ctrl + click functionality. Clicking the Duplicate selected button will open the Edit
channel pop-up view with all channel parameters duplicated, except the channel name. Clicking
Delete selected will delete the highlighted list entry. Clicking Distribute selected will distribute
the selected channels across the licensed OTT engines (the VB330-SW can be licensed with up to
50 OTT engines). Clicking Edit selected will open the Edit channel pop-up view associated with
the highlighted channel. Batch editing is supported; this is convenient if a new threshold template
should be assigned to a number of channels or if monitoring of several channels should be enabled
or disabled. Select the channels and click the Edit selected button. Parameters differing between
channels will be indicated in the Edit selected pop-up view by an asterisk wildcard symbol.
The search field in the upper right corner of the view allows the user to type a text string, and the
OTT channel list is updated to display only channels matching the specified text.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 63

 General
Enabled: Check the ‘Enabled’ check box to start monitoring the OTT service.
Select engine: A number between 1 and 50, depending on license activated, indicating
which OTT engine the channel uses.
Page: Choose which Active Testing page this channel should be displayed on.
Having too many channels on the same page can cause the page reloading
to stutter.
OTT Threshold: The OTT threshold that should be assigned to the OTT channel. OTT
thresholds that have been defined in the OTT — Thresholds view are
available for selection from the drop-down menu.
Content thresholds: The Content thresholds specify content alarming options. Selectable
Content thresholds templates are defined in the Content — Content
thresh. view.
VBC thresholds: The alarm threshold template used to configure when alarms are gener-
ated towards the VBC server.
Measurement mode Specify if you want Normal active testing measurements, OTT Channel
Distribution Latency measurements, or Both kinds of measurements for
this channel.
Each channel you set to either Latency or Both uses up one Latency
Engine. If you do not have any spare, it will be set back to Normal. See
OTT — Latency for more info.
64 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0
 Name: A name should be assigned to each OTT channel. The name will be
used throughout the VB330-SW’s user interface when referring to this
channel.
Manifest URL: The URL of the OTT channel.
Player URL: In this field you can enter the URL to a web page which will open
the OTT channel in your browser. If entered, a ‘play’ button will be
displayed in the OTT overview tab, which will open the selected URL in
a new browser tab.
Smooth Streaming For Smooth Streaming, this specifies which chunk, counted from the
target chunk: bottom of the list, the VB330-SW should download when doing active
testing on a live channel. For other formats, this option is ignored.
Availability mode: If this option is enabled, the engine will only check for chunk presence
but not download the entire file. This also disables thumbnail generation.
RTMP: Check this check box if the channel is an RTMP channel.
RTMP live: Check this check box if the RTMP channel is a live service.
Monitor HLS profile This option makes the OTT engine only download the master manifest
manifests only: once. After the initial download, it will only re-download it if one of the
profiles gets an error or the connection reset timeout occurs.
This option can be used if the server hosting the manifest is generating
an unique session for each download of the master manifest.
Extract thumbnails: If the thumbnail option is enabled thumbnails will be available for the
selected channels in the Active testing and Thumbnails sections.
Alignment: If the alignment option is enabled the alignment section will be available.
If the Content Extraction and Alarming option is licensed, alignment
checking is enabled in the Content threshold and this setting is not visible.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 65

 DRM
DRM system: If this channel is encrypted using a Verimatrix VCAS 3.7 server, selecting
the Verimatrix VCAS 3.7 option and entering the IP address or hostname
of the VCAS server’s encoder interface in the DRM hostname field will
allow descrambling of the encrypted chunks. See OTT descrambling with
Verimatrix for more info.
If this channel is encrypted using an Irdeto server, select the Irdeto option
and configuring access to the Irdeto server will allow descrambling of the
encrypted chunks.
Select None option for streams that are not encrypted, or where you have a
fixed key or IV available.
Fixed key: The key that will be used to descramble the chunks for this channel. Using
this field will override any key found during manifest parsing.
For HLS, use a Base64 encoded string, like this:
8MS4DlpKATr242Xafknb4w==
For DASH, use a hex encoded string, like this:
b42ca3172ee4e69bf51848a59db9cd13
Fixed IV: The IV to be used during descrambling of the HLS chunks. Using this field
will override any IV found or calculated during manifest parsing.
Use a 0x-prefixed hex encoded string, like this:
0x86125135375afe3f5f51d4df269caaad
DRM hostname: If used with a DRM system, configure enter the IP address or hostname of
the DRM server here.
DRM username: When using the Irdeto DRM system, add the username used to log in to the
Irdeto server here.

66 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

DRM password: When using the Irdeto DRM system, add the password used to log in to the
Irdeto server here.
Account ID: When using the Irdeto DRM system, this should be set to the ID of the
account that this channel is configured to.
Please refer to the Irdeto User Manual for more details.
Content ID: When using the Irdeto DRM system, this should be set to the ID of the
channel on the Irdeto server.
Please refer to the Irdeto User Manual for more details.
Crypto Period: When using the Irdeto DRM system, this should be set to match the configu-
ration on the Irdeto server.
Please refer to the Irdeto User Manual for more details.

Adv. manifest
Enable adv. settings: Check this box to enable the advanced manifest settings. If unchecked,
all settings on this page are ignored.
Method: Determines which HTTP method to use when requesting the top-level
manifest file. Supported methods are GET and POST.
Content-Type: When requesting the manifest using the HTTP POST, use this Content-
Type for the submitted request body.
Additional headers: To provide additional custom request headers or overwrite the default
headers when requesting the top-level manifest file, create a text file
containing the headers and upload them here.
Body: When requesting the manifest using the HTTP POST, upload the file to
submit here.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 67

 The advanced manifest options can be used in instances where the master manifest file is not directly
available to download. If your channel needs several steps of authentication or other web service
calls before supplying clients with an URL to the master manifest, you can make an “in-between”
web service which the VB330-SW sends all required info to do the authentication and/or channel
look-ups through this interface, and which returns an JSON file with an “url” parameter containing
the URL to the master manifest file.

5.3.5 OTT — Settings

The Settings tab makes it possible to change global and per-engine OTT monitoring parameters.
Press Apply to confirm changes made.

68 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Settings
Reset connection after: Configures the VB330-SW OTT engines to reset the connections after
the specified number of minutes. This is useful for cases where the
server has a limit for how long a session can live. By resetting before
that limit a new session is created and the problem is avoided.
Latency engines: Select the number of engines to dedicate to OTT latency monitoring.
These engines will not be available for regular OTT monitoring, and
the value must be less than the total number of licensed OTT engines
on the probe. See OTT — Latency for more info.
Latency engines are assigned to channels automatically, and are listed
in the OTT — Active Testing view.
Normal engines: The number of normal OTT engines (i.e., not dedicated to OTT latency
monitoring) is automatically calculated and displayed here.
Round time (s): Sets the minimum round time for each OTT engine, in seconds (default:
15 seconds). If an engine finishes processing all its channels in less
time than this, it waits until this amount of seconds has passed since it
started the round before starting to process through its channels again.
Note: The round time may not be set to a value less than 2 seconds.
Routing interface: Selects the interface on which to connect to the OTT server. This
defaults to the interface selected in the Setup — Routing view, but
can be overridden for each engine. The routing applies to all channels
monitored by this engine.
Latency engines are assigned to channels automatically, and are listed
in the OTT — Active Testing view.
Page name: This setting allows names to be associated with different pages. In-
dividual channels can be assigned to different pages in the OTT —
Channels view, to facilitate easier navigation in the different OTT
views.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 69

5.3.6 OTT — Thresholds

The OTT Threshold presets list shows OTT threshold templates configured by the user.
To add a threshold template to the list click the Add new threshold button. This will open the Edit
threshold pop-up view, allowing the user to define threshold parameters. A threshold template entry
can be selected by clicking the threshold template; the list entry will be highlighted. Several list
entries can be selected by using regular Ctrl + click functionality. Clicking the Duplicate selected
button will open the Edit threshold pop-up view with all threshold template parameters duplicated,
except the threshold template name. Clicking Delete selected will delete the highlighted list entry.
Clicking Edit selected will open the Edit threshold pop-up view associated with the highlighted
threshold template. Batch editing is supported. Select the threshold templates and click the Edit
selected button. Parameters differing between templates will be indicated in the Edit selected
pop-up view by an asterisk wildcard symbol.
The search field in the upper right corner of the view allows the user to type a text string, and the
threshold list is updated to display only thresholds matching the specified text.

70 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

To disable a threshold alarm, set the threshold value to –1 or Any. This does not apply for Manifest
XML size.

Threshold preset
Name: The threshold template name defined by the user.
Refs: The number of channels associated with the threshold template
Profile stream type: The stream type (Live or VoD). If any of the profiles have a different
type a wrong profile type alarm will be raised.
Download speed error: The maximum allowed difference between profile bitrate and down-
load bitrate (%). If the difference exceeds the threshold value a bitrate
error alarm will be raised.
Download speed warn: The maximum allowed difference between profile bitrate and down-
load bitrate (%). If the difference exceeds the threshold value a bitrate
error warning will be raised.
Actual bitrate min: The minimum allowed bitrate when measured actual bitrate is com-
pared to profile bitrate (%). If the actual bitrate goes below the thresh-
old an actual bitrate alarm will be raised.
Actual bitrate max: The maximum allowed bitrate when measured actual bitrate is com-
pared to profile bitrate (%). If the actual bitrate exceeds the threshold
an actual bitrate alarm will be raised.
Sequence age: The maximum time a manifest can remain unchanged before a mani-
fest age alarm is raised.
Manifest XML size: The maximum detected size of the manifest before a manifest size
alarm is raised.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 71

 Min. profiles: Minimum number of profiles in the selected channel before an alarm
is raised.

72 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.4 Multicasts
5.4.1 Multicasts — Parameters

The Multicasts — Parameters view displays detailed information about each stream.
The user selects which group of measurements should be displayed. Selections are IP parameters, TS
parameters, Ethernet parameters, RTP and FEC parameters, User-defined parameters and Statistical
parameters. If User-defined parameters is selected, the Multicasts view displays parameters selected
by the user in the Multicasts — Parameters — Fields view.
For each page the Accumulated row at the bottom of the multicast list displays accumulated values
for all streams associated with the page. The accumulated Min bitrate and Max bitrate is the
minimum and maximum value of the Accumulated current bitrate.
When the Current page button is clicked it is possible to select the page from a drop-down menu.
The associated thumbnails are shown in the leftmost column of the list of measurements. Click one
of the small thumbnails to view a larger thumbnail that is updated more frequently. Note that it is
possible to disable probe thumbnail extraction in the Setup — Params view.
When All streams (offline) is clicked a complete list of measurements for all joined streams is
displayed. A search field allows the user to type a text string and the multicast list is updated to
display only multicasts matching the specified text. Note that monitoring parameters and thumbs
will not be updated in All streams (offline) mode.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 73

Peak and aggregate measurements are cleared when the Clear counters or Clear counters all
pages button is clicked. Clicking this button also restarts the ETR monitoring for the streams have
this enabled.
Clicking the Export button will allow export of the measurement data as an XML file that is opened
in a new window.

Clicking a stream brings up the Detailed monitoring pop-up described later in this section.
In All streams (offline) mode a search field allows the user to type a text string and the multicast
list is updated to display only multicasts matching the specified text.

74 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Click the Trim ch-list button to unjoin streams with current status ‘No signal’, thereby removing
them from the list. The Statistical parameters view lists sum or peak values for parameters over
the interval indicated by the selected time button (Last 4d, Last 24h, Last 8h, Last 20m, Last 1m).

Joined multicasts
:
i Click the information icon to access the Detailed Monitoring pop-up view.
Thumb: A thumbnail is displayed for each stream. Click the small thumbnail to view a
larger image that is updated more frequently.
Name: The stream name specified by the user in the Edit Multicast view
Signal: Time since last signal loss
Page: The page associated with the multicast
CPU: CPU core monitoring this multicast
Input: Network interface used to receive this multicast
Mapping: For MPEG-2 Transport streams, the number of MPEG-2 packets mapped into
each RTP or UDP packet is displayed here. For SMPTE 2022-6 SDI over IP
streams, “SDI/RTP” is displayed, and for other unsupported RTP streams, “RTP
data” is displayed.
Net bitrate: Instantaneous MPEG-2 Transport Stream bitrate excluding null packets (PID
8191). The instantaneous bitrate is measured over a time period of 1000 ms.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 75

 CC errs: The number of times a discontinuity has been detected for all the MPEG-
2 Transport Stream continuity counters. This value is the total number of
discontinuities detected for all PIDs present. Note that this value does NOT
represent the number of MPEG-2 TS packets lost because any continuity counter
mismatch detected for an IP-frame will increase CC errs by one. CC errors are
serious as they will in practice usually result in visual video artifacts (‘blocking’)
if occurring on the video PIDs. CC errors can be due to an erroneous input
signal to the streaming head-end (e.g. from satellite rain fading or changes in
the uplink). Alternatively, CC errors can arise from IP packets being dropped in
the network.
PIDs: Number of PIDs in the MPEG2-TS
Syncb errs: Number of transport stream packets with wrong syncbyte (0x47)
#Services: The number of services found in the multicasts
Curr bitrate: Instantaneous MPEG-2 Transport Stream bitrate including null packets (PID
8191). The instantaneous bitrate is measured over a time period of 1000 ms,
and is calculated from the size of the RTP, L2TP or UDP payloads.
Min bitrate: The minimum current bitrate measurement
Max bitrate: The maximum current bitrate measurement
IP packets: The number of IP packets received
Dst address: Multicast/unicast destination address : port
TOS: Type-Of-Service (also called Differentiated Services Field)
TTL: Time-To-Live
VLAN ID: Native VLAN ID of this stream
Src address: Multicast/unicast source address : port
Joined src: The source address of the originally joined multicast.
IAT avg: Average Inter-Arrival Time. The average time between consecutive IP frames
(in milliseconds). Recalculated each second.
IAT min: The Minimum Inter-Arrival Time is the minimum registered time between two
consecutive IP frames carrying video. Units are in milliseconds.
IAT max: The Maximum Inter-Arrival Time is the maximum registered time between two
consecutive IP frames carrying video. Units are in milliseconds. The Max-IAT
is a measure of the maximum amount of network-induced packet jitter present.
IP packet jitter affects video quality and should be minimized.
Src MAC: Source MAC address
Dst MAC: Destination MAC address

76 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 RTP drops: Accumulated number of dropped IP-frames due to network errors. Only avail-
able for multicasts that carry RTP information. When running video inside an
RTP wrapper it is possible to exactly deduce the number of dropped IP frames
due to network issues. This is possible as a result of the 16-bit sequence counter
inside the RTP header. The following sequence will generate an RTP drops of
+3: . . . , 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, . . .
RTP dups: Accumulated number of duplicate IP-frames. Only available for multicasts that
carry RTP information. Duplicate IP-frames in the network can occur under
normal circumstances and does not necessarily indicate network problems. The
following sequence will generate an RTP dups of +2: . . . , 10, 11, 12, 12, 12, 13,
14, . . .
RTP ooo: Accumulated number of times a packet has been found to be out of order. Only
available for multicasts that carry RTP information. An out-of-order situation is
defined to have occurred when the current sequence number is lower than the
previous one. The following sequence will generate an RTP ooo of +2 (since
there are two occurrences): . . . , 10, 11, 15, 12, 16, 17, 13, 14, 18, 19, . . .
RTP lag: The maximum number of packet positions an out-of-order packet has been
moved relative to its correct position. So for example 1,2,3,5,6,7,8,4,9,10 will
result in an RTP lag of 4. The RTP lag is a good measure of how big a packet
re-ordering buffer is needed in the receiving equipment to re-order packets.
Min hole size: Minimum number of consecutive dropped RTP packets. The sequence
1,2,3,10,11,12,15 gives a min hole size of 2.
Max hole size: Maximum number of consecutive dropped RTP packets. The sequence
1,2,3,10,11,12,15 gives a max hole size of 6.
Min hole sep: Minimum number of RTP packets separating any holes. The sequence
1,2,3,10,11,12,15 gives a min hole sep of 3.
Num holes: Number of packet loss sequences. The sequence 1,2,3,10,11,12,15 gives a num
holes of 2.
FEC mode: The CoP3 FEC mode
FEC drops: Number of RTP packet drops in the main stream that the FEC could not correct
C-FEC drops: Number of IP packets in the column-FEC streams dropped
R-FEC drops: Number of IP packets in the row-FEC streams dropped

Statistical parameters

MPEG-2 transport stream parameters

:
i Click the information icon to access the Detailed Monitoring pop-up view.
Name: The stream name specified by the user in the Edit Multicast view

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 77

 ES(IAT): Number of seconds during selected period with Inter-packet Arrival Time higher
than associated Ethernet IAT warning threshold
ES(MLR): Number of seconds during selected period with Media Loss (corresponding to
number of seconds with CC-errors)
ES(RTP): Number of seconds during selected period with RTP packet drops
ES(overfl): Number of seconds during selected period with bitrate overflow
ES(nosig): Number of seconds during selected period without signal
Peak(IAT): Peak Inter-packet Arrival Time during selected period.
Sum(MLR): Sum of Media Loss during selected period (equals number of TS packets lost)
Peak(bitr): Peak stream bitrate during selected period

Thumbnails
The probe will try to generate thumbnail pictures for all streams. For multi-program transport
streams (MPTS) the first video component is selected. MPEG-2, H.264/MPEG-4, H.265/HEVC
and JPEG 2000 video formats in standard definition, high definition or ultra-high definition are
supported in MPEG-2 transport streams, as well as SMPTE 2022-6 uncompressed video in RTP
streams.
The thumbnail update rate will depend on how the streams are coded and if they are standard
definition, high definition or ultra-high definition. It is possible to increase the update rate by
opening the Thumb View pop-up, described below.
If the probe is unable to generate a thumbnail from the signal, it will present one of the following
icons:

Shown if no data is received for the stream. There should be a match between
presenting this icon and a No-signal alarm; however since the alarm and thumbnail
mechanisms work independently of each other they have been given different names
(loss of signal and no signal).
Shown while the thumbnail engine is trying to decode a thumbnail picture and more
precise status information has not yet been obtained. This icon is typically displayed
after probe reboot or if new streams have recently been joined.
Shown if the service does not carry a video PID — which is the case for radio
services.

The stream contains no service, as signaled in PSI/SI.

The signal cannot be decoded due to excessive CC errors or RTP packet drops.

78 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 The probe does not support thumbnail generation for this protocol mapping.

The signal is recognized as being MPEG-2 encoded but the thumbnail extractor is
unable to correctly decode a thumbnail picture.
The signal is recognized as being MPEG-4/H.264 encoded but the thumbnail extractor
is unable to correctly decode a thumbnail picture.
The signal is recognized as being MPEG-H/H.265 encoded but the thumbnail extrac-
tor is unable to correctly decode a thumbnail picture.
The signal is recognized as being JPEG 2000 encoded but the thumbnail extractor is
unable to correctly decode a thumbnail picture.
The signal is recognized as being an uncompressed (raw) video stream but the
thumbnail extractor is unable to correctly decode a thumbnail picture.
This icon is shown if the probe is unable to receive or analyze the PMT PID. Only
streams with PSI information can have thumbnails decoded since the probe does not
support a manual specification of the video PID.
The probe can only generate a thumbnail picture if the video data is not scrambled.

Detailed Monitoring
The Detailed Monitoring pop-up is activated by clicking a stream line in the monitoring list.
The current parameters for the selected stream are displayed in the bottom of the dialog, as in the
Joined multicasts list.
Clicking the Clear button will clear all information about the selected stream, including PSI/SI
analysis data. Clicking the MediaWindow button will open the Media Window Selected channel
view. This is described in section 5.5.
Detailed Monitoring — Services

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 79

The Software Probe is continuously gathering detailed information for the selected multicast. The
VB330-SW will continue updating the detailed information for the selected multicast until another
is selected.
The Detailed Monitoring — Services view lists detected MPEG-2 TS services (by analyzing the
PSI/SI tables) or SMPTE 2022-6 SDI over IP components, providing the following aggregate
information for each service:

Service/Pid: For each service, the service-name or service-id is obtained from the PSI/SI tables.
PIDs that do not belong to a service are denoted ‘Other PIDs’. The service ID is
presented in square brackets.
Bitrate: Service or component bitrate in bits per second
Min bitr.: Minimum service or component bitrate in bits per second
Max bitr.: Maximum service or component bitrate in bits per second
CC errors: Number of Continuity Counter occurrences
Thumb: Click the i icon to access the Thumb pop-up view, explained below
Type: The list entry service type or PID type
PCR: This field will be checked if the corresponding PID carries PCR
Scr: This field will be checked if the corresponding PID is scrambled

Detailed Monitoring — Event Log

80 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

To be written
Detailed Monitoring — IAT

In the Detailed Monitoring — IAT view, the Inter Arrival Time histogram shows the accumulated
number of IAT measurements within each presented interval. Vertical green lines indicate the
maximum and minimum IAT values. By clicking the IAT range buttons it is possible to change the
zooming of the graph. If the Auto zoom button is pressed the diagram will auto-scale to always
include the minimum and maximum IAT readings.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 81

The IAT histogram is a very useful and intuitive measure of how well the network is performing in
terms of forwarding real-time traffic. A predictable and tightly bunched graph indicates small levels
of network jitter. An unbound graph indicates network jitter issues typically brought forward by
traffic congestion or misconfigured routers. Clicking the Clear IAT button will clear the IAT graph.
Note that for variable bitrate streams the IAT histogram will show a very different IAT distribution
compared to the histogram for a constant bitrate stream. The histogram in the screenshot above
displays the IAT distribution for a CBR stream.

Thumb View

The Thumb View pop-up is accessed by clicking an information icon in the Detailed Monitoring
— Services view. This view presents a large thumbnail, as well as video and audio metadata for the
selected stream, with an increased update rate compared to non-selected streams. Service loudness
and audio phase data are indicated in graphs for each audio component. The same pop-up can be
opened from the Main — Thumb Overview view, see chapter 5.1.3 for more information.
Clicking the Close button will close the Thumb View view.
The following metadata is displayed for multicasts:

82 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Audio fields
PID: The audio PID for which the associated parameters apply
Language: The audio language, as derived from PSI/SI
Channels: The number of channel and the layout of the audio track
Loudness: If loudness monitoring has been enabled for the channel, a loudness graph covering
the last ten seconds will be shown here.
Portions that fall outside the defined thresholds will be colored red.
Phase: If the audio phase monitoring has been enabled for the channel, a phase graph will
be shown here for stereo sources.
Portions that fall outside the defined thresholds will be colored red.

Please note that audio information is only decoded when enabled through the assigned content
threshold. Audio information is updated periodically, and the initial display can take up to ten
seconds. For more details on the content thresholds, please refer to the Content — Content thresh.
view.
If caption monitoring has been enabled for the channel, the last two caption events for the service
are displayed. For more details on these events, compare the Content — Captions view.
The following stream status information will be displayed (bulbs will be green for status OK, red to
indicate an active alarm and grey if the associated check has been disabled):

Status description
Audio silence: A bulb indicates the audio silence status with reference to the defined require-
ment.
Threshold: The audio silence detection threshold (LUFS/LKFS) as defined
in the stream threshold template associated with the stream.
Audio too loud: A bulb indicates the audio too loud status with reference to the defined require-
ment.
Threshold: The audio peak detection threshold (LUFS/LKFS) as defined in
the stream threshold template associated with the stream.
Audio phase: A bulb indicates the audio phase status with reference to the defined require-
ment.
Threshold: The audio phase detection threshold as defined in the stream
threshold template associated with the stream.
Freeze-frame: A bulb indicating the freeze-frame detection status. The freeze-frame error
timeout value is set as part of the content threshold group associated with
each multicast (refer to the Content — Content thresh. and Multicasts —
Streams — Edit views).
Consecutive frozen frames: The number of consecutive equal frames that
have been detected

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 83

 Color-freeze: A bulb indicating the color-freeze detection status. The freeze-frame error
timeout value is set as part of the content threshold group associated with
each multicast (refer to the Content — Content thresh. and Multicasts —
Streams — Edit views).
Consecutive frozen frames: The number of consecutive single color frames
that have been detected
MOS average: A bulb indicating the MOS average status. The MOS averaging window is set
as part of the content threshold group associated with each multicast (refer to
the Content — Content thresh. and Multicasts — Streams — Edit views).
Running average: The current running average MOS score
Threshold: The MOS average threshold as defined in the stream threshold
template associated with the stream.
Window: The window over which the MOS average is calculated.

The right-hand column will display the following detailed metadata:

Multicast
Transport stream ID: The ID of the selected stream as shown in the list of multicasts in the
Ethernet section; non-TS services display 1 here
Name: The name of the multicast containing the selected service, as defined by
the user
Type: The type of the stream containing the selected service; multicast or
unicast
Multicast address: The multicast address of the stream containing the selected service
Multicast port: The port number of the multicast containing the selected service
Bitrate: The total stream bitrate of the multicast containing the selected service
(bits/s)
Content Threshold: The name of the content threshold template assigned to the multicast
Service Threshold: The name of the service threshold template assigned to the multicast
Schedule: The name of the content alarm masking schedule template assigned to
the multicast

Service
Service ID: The service ID of the selected service; non-TS services display
1 here
PSI/SI Name: The name of the selected service, as derived from PSI/SI;
non-TS services display the multicast name here instead
Number of PIDs/Components: The number of PIDs or components associated with the se-
lected service

84 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Video PID/Component
PID/Component: The video PID of the selected service for MPEG-TS services, or the video
component number for non-TS services
Has PCR: Yes if the selected stream contains PCR, No if not
Bitrate: The video PID bitrate of the selected service

Video Information
Size: The video picture size of the selected service
Aspect ratio: The video aspect ratio of the selected service, or “N/A” if no information is
available
Pixel aspect ratio: The video pixel aspect ratio of the selected service, or “N/A” if no informa-
tion is available
Codec: The video encoding format of the selected service
Pixel format: The video sampling format of the selected service
Frame rate: The video frame rate of the selected service (Hz)
Interlace: Whether the video source is interlaced or not
Blockiness: Detected picture blockiness, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is en-
abled.
Blurriness: Detected picture blurriness, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is enabled.
Noisiness: Detected picture noisiness, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is enabled.
Brightness: Detected picture brightness, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is enabled.
Contrast: Detected picture contrast, in percent. Displayed if QoE scoring is enabled.
MOS score: Calculated picture quality score, on a scale from 1.0 to 5.0, where 5.0 is
best. Displayed if QoE scoring is enabled.

Audio PID/Component
PID/Component: The audio PID of the selected service for MPEG-TS services, or the audio
component number for non-TS services
Note that there may be several audio PIDs or components associated with a
service
Type: The audio encoding standard
Has PCR: Yes if the selected Audio PID contains PCR
Bitrate: The audio bitrate for this PID or component (bit/s)
Language: The language of the audio, as defined in the MPEG-TS Program Map Table
(PMT)

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 85

 Audio Information PID/Component
Codec: The audio encoding format
Samplerate: The audio sample rate (Hz)
Channels: The number of audio channels represented by the audio PID or component
Layout: The audio channel layout

5.4.2 Multicasts — Parameters — Fields

The Multicasts — Parameters — Fields view enables selection of the parameters to be displayed
in the Multicasts — Parameters view. Note that thumbnails must also be enabled in the Setup —
Params view for thumbnail availability.

86 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.4.3 Multicasts — Summary

The intention of this page, together with the alarm list, is to provide enough information for the
operator to immediately see if there is anything seriously wrong with one or more Ethernet input
streams. The overall status for the Full Service Monitoring (FSM) is also shown.
Throughout this view the bulb colors indicate the most severe active alarm. They may be green (no
alarm), yellow (warning), orange (error) or red (major). The bulb color is based on user defined
alarm severity settings for each alarm. A grey bulb indicates that monitoring is disabled.
The following Ethernet parameters are shown:

Eth streams withactive alarms: Shows the number of streams that are presently in an alarm
state. Note that the number of alarms counted refers to default
settings, and alarms disabled by the user will still be counted.
Interface bitrate: This is the total bitrate sensed on the data/video interface(s).
It should be greater than or equal to the Monitoring bitrate.
Monitoring: This is the total number of Ethernet streams monitored and
the total bitrate for these streams.
Full Service Monitoring status: The number of enabled FSM services / number of OK FSM
services

The probe is capable of monitoring several thousand streams simultaneously. The probe splits
streams into pages for easy handling. Each of the 30 predefined pages can be given a name and have
a user defined number of streams associated.
Part of the page-status is error-second statistics for the fundamental parameters MLR, RTP, overfl
and nosig summed across all streams belonging to that page.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 87

 The error-second statistics interval is selected by clicking the buttons. For example, clicking the
ES–8h button will present error-seconds for the last 8 hours. If 10 streams for a page have been
without signal for the last 8 hours, the nosig will show as 80hours.
The following parameters are presented (note that the error second values are accumulated from
probe boot time, and they will only be cleared by reboot or by clicking the Clear all counters button
in the Main view):

‘Bulb’: The bulb indicates the most severe active alarm for any of the streams on the page.
Active alarms are located on top of the alarm list. The alarm severity is reflected by
the color of the associated icon.
Next to the bulb is a link that will lead to the Monitoring page if pressed. The
Monitoring page will present error-second statistics for each stream individually.
OK: Shows how many of the streams monitored on this page are without active alarms
ES(MLR): Number of seconds in selected period with continuity counter errors in the MPEG2
transport stream (which corresponds to the number of seconds with non-zero Media
Loss Rate).
ES(RTP): Number of seconds in selected period with RTP packet-drop
ES(overfl): Number of seconds in selected period with bitrate overflow
ES(nosig): Number of seconds in selected period where no signal (i.e. no data) was received

5.4.4 Multicasts — History

The probe keeps statistical Ethernet information for the last 4 days for visual inspection in the
history timeline view.
Each bar in the histogram corresponds to a number of events that occurred within a certain time
interval. The interval that each bar represents depends on the scale, from 1 minute (when 90 min is
selected) to 1 hour (when 4 days is selected).

88 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Clicking the Clear history button will reset all history graphs.
Tool-tip information is available for each bar and shows the time-interval for the bar and its exact
value. For example, the tool-tip information ‘1315-1330:2’ means that within the time interval
13:15–13:30 there were 2 occurrences.
The histogram is updated every minute.
Any subset of the following parameters can be selected, click the Apply button for changes to take
effect:

No signal: The number of streams that reported the ‘No signal’ alarm during the interval
represented by the bar.
CCerr: The number of times a discontinuity has been detected for all the MPEG-2 Transport
Stream continuity counters in the interval represented by the bar. This parameter
corresponds to the sum of CC errs reported by all streams.
RTPdrop: Accumulated number of dropped IP-frames due to network errors in the interval
represented by the bar. This parameter corresponds to the sum of RTP drops
reported by all streams.
RTPdup: Accumulated number of duplicate IP-frames in the interval represented by the bar.
This parameter corresponds to the sum of RTP dups reported by all streams.
RTPooo: Accumulated number of times a packet has been found to be out of order in the
interval represented by the bar. This parameter corresponds to the sum of RTP ooo
reported by all streams.
Tot bitr: Bitrate sensed on the data/video interface(s).
Mon bitr: Bitrate on the data/video interface(s) corresponding to joined multicasts.
CRC errs: Detected CRC errors. Ethernet CRC errors are most likely caused by a bad cable or
a misconfigured router. A CRC error may impact packet loss measurements such as
CC errors and RTP errors.

Note that the history graphs show the sum for all streams being analyzed across all pages. So for
example, if two streams experience No signal at the same time the No signal graph will increase by
2.

5.4.5 Multicasts — Detect

Please see chapter 5.7.2 on page 110.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 89

5.4.6 Multicasts — SAP

The SAP view displays streams announced using the Session Announcement Protocol, detected by
the VB330-SW.
As long as Enable SAP discovery is enabled in the Setup — Params view, the VB330-SW will
continuously try to detect streams. Click the View list offline button to view the stream list in offline
mode. Click the Refresh button to update the stream list in offline mode.
The source address makes it possible for the Software Probe to distinguish between multicasts with
the same destination IP address and port, provided that Source specific multicasts has been enabled
in the Setup — Params view.
If the stream is currently joined by the Software Probe (i.e. the VB330-SW is currently monitoring
the stream), the Joined field is set to yes.
Detected streams can be added to the VB330-SW’s stream list by selecting streams and clicking the
Add selected to stream list. To add all detected streams the Add all to stream list button can be
pressed.

90 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.4.7 Multicasts — Join

In order for the defined Ethernet multicasts to be monitored by the probe, they must be joined.
The Multicasts — Join view and the Multicasts — Streams view allow the user to select which
multicasts that are joined by the probe.
Streams defined in the Multicasts — Streams view will appear as available streams on the left hand
side of the arrows in this view. Select streams to be monitored by clicking them and moving them to
the right hand side of this view using the arrow. Changes should be confirmed by clicking the Apply
changes button.
Joined streams may be freely associated with the 30 probe pages. The streams will be presented in
the Joined multicasts list in the Multicasts — Parameters view.
It is possible to flush or fill the multicasts/unicasts to monitor list by clicking the corresponding
button. Note that these operations will take effect immediately; it is not necessary to click Apply
changes for multicasts to be joined or unjoined.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 91

5.4.8 Multicasts — Streams

In this view the operator can define multicasts available to the probe and associate a name with each
multicast address. This name will be used by the probe when referring to the multicast. If no name
has been defined the probe will use the multicast address:port notation.
It is possible to add, delete or edit several entries simultaneously. Several entries are selected by
using the regular Ctrl + click or Shift + click functionality. When adding new entries the current
dialogue values will be used as the template with the values for Name and Address incremented for
each.
Note that both multicast and unicast addresses can be entered here.
The Distribute ETR engines button will distribute the selected streams, with ETR disabled, on
the unused ETR engines. An ETR engine is considered unused if no stream with ETR enabled is
assigned to it.
The search field in the upper right corner of the view allows the user to type a text string, and the
multicast list is updated to display only streams matching the specified text.
Clicking Add new or selecting one or more multicasts and clicking Edit selected will open the
Multicast — Streams — Edit pop-up view. When multicasts have been defined, clicking Join
selected will join the selected multicasts and enable monitoring. The probe will only analyze joined
multicasts. Clicking Join all will join all multicasts in the list (up to the licensed maximum number
of channels). Unjoining one or more multicasts is done by selecting multicasts and clicking Unjoin
selected or by clicking Unjoin all.
When the Edit button is clicked it is possible to define the following multicast parameters (note
that some parameters are only relevant and selectable when the probe is equipped with the correct
options):

92 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 General
Name: A name should be assigned to each unicast/multicast. The name will
be used throughout the VB330-SW user interface when referring to this
stream. It may also be used by an external management system like the
VideoBRIDGE Controller.
To add copy of one stream for use with 2022-7, give the two streams the
same name, but add a different class to them. The class is everything
added after @ in the name. The probe will know that two streams are
related, if they have the same name, only differing by the class.
Group Names: A comma separated list of groups this stream belongs to. The first group
in this list will be used as the stream’s group for EBP monitoring. See
section 5.10.2.

Address: The IP address of the unicast or multicast. For a T2MI inner stream enter
a dummy address.
Port: The port number of the unicast or multicast. For a T2MI inner stream
enter a dummy port number.
Ethernet thresholds: The Ethernet thresholds specify various error limits. Selectable Ethernet
thresholds templates are defined in the Multicasts — Ethernet thresh.
view. For a T2MI stream select a dummy threshold template.
VBC thresholds: The VBC thresholds specify various error limits to be used by Video-
BRIDGE Controller to generate alarms. These thresholds are only rele-
vant if the VideoBRIDGE Controller is used. VBC threshold templates
are defined in the Setup — VBC thresh. view.
Join stream: Check the ‘Join stream’ check box to join a multicast or unicast. Only
joined streams are analyzed. A stream may also be joined from the
Multicasts — Join or Multicasts — Streams views, and the status of
this check box will be updated accordingly.
VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 93
 Extract thumbnails: When enabled, the probe will generate thumbnails for this multicast. In
order to enable this option, Extract thumbnails also needs to be enabled
in the Setup — Params view
Join interface: Select which interface to join the selected multicast. The data interface(s)
are listed.
Page: For easy navigation, each stream can be assigned a specific page. The
names of the pages are defined in Setup — Pages.

Seamless Protection Switching (SMPTE 2022-7) monitors the same stream transmitted twice. The
probe verifies that the two streams combined do not have packet loss and the jitter between the
two streams. When two multicast/unicast streams are selected, the probe will report errors report
errors if the same RTP packets are missing from both streams. Errors are also reported if the timing
between the two stream exceeds the threshold settings.

SSM
SSM source 1: If a zero source address is specified for a multicast it will be joined without
a source. This allows both source specific multicasts and non-source specific
multicasts to co-exist in the same network and be joined by the VB330-SW.
SSM source 2: Additional SSM source addresses may be specified to enable back-up solutions.
Note that it is the operator’s responsibility to ensure that a multicast is only
transmitted by one SSM source at any time.
SSM source 3: Additional SSM source address
SSM source 4: Additional SSM source address
SSM source 5: Additional SSM source address

94 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 ETR (ETR290 Option)
Enable ETR: ETR monitoring of a stream will not take place unless it is enabled by this
setting. This parameter is only relevant if the probe is ETR enabled.
Select ETR engine: If the probe is licensed for several Ethernet ETR engines the user may
select which engine should be used to analyze the stream. The default
ETR engine selection is Ethernet1. It is also possible to use the Distribute
ETR engines button described above to assign streams to engines.
ETR thresholds: The ETR thresholds specify various error limits and alarm conditions.
Selectable ETR thresholds templates are defined in the ETR 290 — ETR
thresh. view. The round-robin cycling time is also defined by this thresh-
old template. This parameter is only relevant if the probe is ETR enabled.
PID thresholds: The PID thresholds specify various error limits and alarm conditions.
Selectable PID thresholds templates are defined in the ETR 290 — PID
thresh. view. This parameter is only relevant if the probe is ETR enabled.
Service thresholds: The Service thresholds selection defines various error limits and alarm
conditions. Selectable service thresholds templates are defined in the
ETR 290 — Service thresh. view. This parameter is only relevant if the
probe is ETR enabled.
Reference table set: The Reference table set selection is used to compare the tables in the
transport stream with a set of stored tables. These tables are defined in the
ETR 290 — Gold TS thresholds view.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 95

 Content
Group reference: This option is used to set a group reference for EBP and IDR frame PTS
skew measurements. A group reference’s name will be emboldened in the
Content — EBP view.
Content thresholds: The Content thresholds specify content alarming options. Selectable
Content thresholds templates are defined in the Content — Content
thresh. view.
Service thresholds: The Content service threshold group that should be assigned to the mul-
ticast. Content service threshold groups that have been defined in the
Content — Service thresh. view are available for selection from the
drop-down menu.
Schedule: The scheduling scheme that should be assigned to the content monitoring
for the multicast. Scheduling schemes that have been defined in the Setup
— Scheduling view are available for selection from the drop-down menu.
Scheduling allows masking content alarms at predefined time periods. The
schedules can be overridden for specific services using Content service
thresholds.

96 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 T2MI (T2MI Option)
Container stream: For an T2MI inner stream the container stream (outer stream) must be
specified. Select the container stream from the drop-down menu. For
streams other than T2MI inner streams (none) should be selected.
Data PID: The container stream PID carrying the inner stream
PLP ID: The PLP ID for the inner stream. Select a fixed PLP ID value from the
drop-down menu or specify that the first detected PLP ID should be used.

FEC
Has FEC: The stream carries COP3 (SMPTE 2022-5) Forward Error Correction. If enabled,
statistics about FEC drops and correctible errors will be reported for the stream.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 97

 L2TP
Session ID: The session ID of the L2TP stream is specified here (or 0 if not used). It is used
together with the multicast address to identify the L2TP stream.

L2TP (remote PHY) streams are mapped into multicasts. In order to identify the correct stream the
multicast address is entered in the General tab and the session ID of the L2TP stream is specified
here. The port number is not used, and will be shown as 0.
To identify available session IDs, join the stream first and then use the Multicasts — Detect view
to see the session IDs that are available. Both IPv4 and IPv6 is supported.

5.4.9 Multicasts — Ethernet thresh.

Thresholds are used to determine when to actually raise an alarm upon detection of an error. The
Ethernet thresholds are used for generating Ethernet probe alarms as well as for calculating error-
seconds. Error seconds and ETH probe alarms are issued whenever measurements exceed the

98 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

defined threshold levels for a parameter. Ethernet thresholds are also used to scale some graphs like
the MediaWindow graphs. The alarm level of each of these alarms is set in the Alarms — Alarm
setup view. Note that it is also possible to disable alarms in the Alarms — Alarm setup view.
The Multicasts — Ethernet thresh. view makes it possible to define threshold values that operate
at stream level. Thresholds are associated with each stream in the Multicasts — Streams — Edit
view. There are two different ways of creating user-defined thresholds. To create a new threshold
template from scratch the operator should click the Add new threshold button. A pop-up window
will appear allowing the user to define alarm conditions. Another way of creating a user-defined
threshold template is by highlighting one of the threshold templates already defined and then click
the Duplicate highlighted button.
Deleting a threshold template is done by highlighting the threshold template that should be removed
and clicking Delete selected. It is possible to delete or edit several entries simultaneously. Several
entries are selected by using the regular Ctrl + click or Shift + click functionality. Click the Edit
button to edit one or more selected threshold templates. Note that the predefined ‘Default’ threshold
template cannot be deleted or changed.
In the threshold presets list the ‘Refs’ column displays how many streams are associated with each
stream threshold template.

Ethernet thresholds
Name: A text string that identifies the Ethernet threshold

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 99

 IAT:MLR error: This threshold contains error limits for IAT (Inter-packet Arrival Time)
and MLR (Media Loss Rate).
The IAT limit is the first parameter (before the colon), the MLR limit
is the last parameter. If the IAT limit is exceeded the alarm ‘IAT >=
err-thresh’ will be raised. If the MLR limit is exceeded the alarm ‘MLR
>= err-thresh’ will be raised. The severity (and hence the color used in the
MediaWindow view) for IAT:MLR errors depend on the severity assigned
to these alarms in the Alarms — Alarm setup view.
Note that error seconds based on MLR are counted regardless of this
threshold if one or more packets are missing.
IAT:MLR warning: This threshold contains warning limits for IAT (Inter-packet Arrival Time)
and MLR (Media Loss Rate).
The IAT limit is the first parameter (before the colon), the MLR limit
is the last parameter. If the IAT limit is exceeded the alarm ‘IAT >=
warn-thresh’ will be raised. If the MLR limit is exceeded the alarm ‘MLR
>= warn-thresh’ will be raised. The severity (and hence the color used
in the MediaWindow view) for IAT:MLR errors depend on the severity
assigned to these alarms in the Alarms — Alarm setup view.
Max bitrate: The maximum bitrate in Mbit/s. An alarm will be raised if the stream
bitrate exceeds the maximum bitrate.
Min bitrate: The minimum bitrate in Mbit/s. A value of 0 will never generate an
alarm. A value of 0.1 Mbit/s will generate an alarm if the minimum
bitrate threshold is less than 0.1 Mbit/s.
No signal: Number of milliseconds without receiving any signal before the ‘No
signal’ alarm is raised
RTP drop limit: If the number of lost RTP packets exceeds the RTP drop limit an alarm
will be raised. Note that error seconds based on packet drops are counted
regardless of this threshold.
Ignore PID loss: A comma separated list of PIDs for which the probe should ignore packet
loss. Packet loss that affects these PIDs will not result in an error-second
count, and the ETR monitoring engine will not count these errors.

100 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.5 MW (Media Window)

The MW Media Window view provides an at-a-glance status for each of the multicasts/unicasts
being monitored. From the graphs it is easy to see the jitter characteristics of the signal and if there
is packet loss or CC errors present in the signal. Periods of no signal are also displayed.
The measurements are always aggregated over a time interval – typically one second. The IAT(max)
is the maximum time measured between two neighboring IP frames within the measurement time
interval (the peak packet Inter-arrival time). IAT is expressed in milliseconds.
The MLR is the peak estimated number of lost MPEG-2 Transport Stream packets inside any second
within the actual time period. The number of lost TS packets is derived from the continuity counters
inside the TS packet headers.
A common scenario is to have 7 TS packets per UDP frame. Losing an IP packet will therefore
usually (but not always) result in an MLR of 7 (not always the case because some TS packets such
as null packets or PCR packets do not carry a valid CC field).
The patented Sencore VideoBRIDGE Media Window presents both jitter and packet loss mea-
surements in one graph, with jitter (IAT) values growing upwards (+ve Y) and packet loss (MLR)
growing downwards (-ve Y). Each sample along the x-axis corresponds to a measurement time-
interval that depends on the range of the graph selected. Periods of no sync are also displayed in the
graph.
Error-second statistics for the graph-interval is displayed to the right. As the graphs are zoomed or
scrolled the error-second statistics is updated as well as the graphs.
Tool-tip provides the exact jitter (IAT) and packet loss (MLR) values for a selected bar in a selected
graph, the denotation is IAT::MLR. The current graph value displayed under ‘Running’ provides the
maximum MLR and IAT values measured during the last 3 seconds.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 101

 Red color is used to indicate that within the period represented by the bar there has been one or
more occurrences of no-signal. Orange is used to indicate error while yellow indicates warning. The
error and warning thresholds are allocated to each multicast in the Multicasts — Streams view.
The user determines whether only multicasts associated with the currently selected page should be
displayed (by clicking the Cur page button), or if all joined multicasts should be presented in one
list (by clicking the All button). The time window buttons allow selection of x-axis resolution in the
graphs, and by using the arrow buttons it is possible to move the timeline to view an error incident
more accurately. Clicking Clear will clear all graphs. Note that clearing graphs cannot be undone.
Clicking the +1 button will display the next page. Clicking the –1 button will display the previous
page.

By zooming and panning the user can pinpoint more accurately when errors occurred. In the above
diagram tool-tip reveals that ‘No signal’ occurred between 9:15 and 9:20.

5.5.1 Media Window — Selected channel

102 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 The Media Window — selected channel view is activated by clicking a multicast label in the MW
page. Clicking anywhere in the running graph will zoom in, unless you already are at the maximum
zoom level.
This high-resolution version of the Media Window reveals more details than the compressed version.
There are 3 times more samples along the X-axis, and the graph indicates visually the error and
warning thresholds. Note that the time windows of the regular Media Window and Media Window
— selected channel are not exactly the same, even if the same time window has been selected for
both views.

By clicking the Popup button, a pop-up window will appear. This separate window can be used
to display the selected channel even when navigating away from the probe. This also provides the
ability to monitor media windows for several streams without starting several browser sessions.

5.5.2 Media Window — Bandwidth graph

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 103

 By clicking the BW:MLR button the graph displays the peak bandwidth as a function of time. The
negative part of the composite graphs is still the packet loss (i.e. the MLR).
If the stream contains a transport stream (mapping TS/x) the bitrate corresponds to the Multicasts
parameter Net bitrate (i.e. bitrate excluding null packets). Otherwise the bitrate is the UDP payload
bitrate corresponding to the Multicasts parameter Curr bitrate.
The bandwidth error threshold is configured in the Multicasts — Ethernet thresh. view.

5.5.3 Media Window — Inter Arrival Time graph

By clicking the IAT:RTP button the graph displays the packet jitter as a function of time. The
composite graphs displays the RTP packet loss below the X-axis. If the monitored stream is not RTP
encapsulated, IAT will be represented by grey color and there will never be any indication of packet
loss in the graph.

5.6 RDP (Return Data Path)

The Return Data Path feature enables forwarding of streams from any probe interface to another
destination IP address. Stream may also be recorded to file, either directly or triggered by alarms.
The probe supports forwarding or recording of two streams in parallel.

104 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.6.1 RDP — Control

Click the icons in the Control tab to activate or de-activate an RDP engine. There are different icons
for controlling RDP engines depending on whether they are configured to relay or record. The state
of each RDP engine is restored after a reboot.
For recordings and triggered recordings the last recording is made available in the Destination column
along with the metadata file. The metadata file contains basic information about the recording such
as the recording size, list of PIDs and CC-errors for each PID. In the case of triggered recording, the
alarm causing the recording is also included. Pressing the Delete button deletes the recording. For
triggered recordings the number of recordings is stated in the Status column. Pressing the Delete
button resets this counter. The buffer utilization is stated as a percentage and should never approach
100% for correct relaying or recordings.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 105

5.6.2 RDP — Setup

Each of the RDP engines is configured separately. First the Mode is selected. Depending on the
mode either the Relay or Record settings needs to be configured. The Input selects the stream or
interface to relay or record.
These are the settings:

Mode and Input

Mode: Select whether this RDP engine should relay, record or trigger-record.
Source interface: The source interface drop-down menu allows selection of available input
signals.
Source Stream: When Ethernet input is selected the user selects the stream to forward or
record. Ethernet streams being joined/monitored by the probe are available
for selection.
Content: The user selects the service to be relayed or recorded, or alternatively selects
that the complete stream should be used. The PIDs associated with the
service are automatically displayed in the ‘Selected PIDs’ field, and these
may be edited if required.
Selected PIDs: The user can specify the PIDs to be selected, default is all PIDs. Typically
PAT and PMT PIDs should be forwarded in addition to video and audio PIDs,
however this depends on the equipment receiving the forwarded stream.

When mode Relay over IP has been selected, the RDP parameters are:

RDP Ethernet

106 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 IPv4-address: The unicast address or multicast address to forward to. Multicast addresses
are in the range 224.0.0.0 – 239.255.255.255.
Port: The port to forward to. The combination of IP address and port fully
describes the destination address.
TTL: The Time-To-Live flagging of the relayed signal. The default value is 64.
Timeout: The relaying period in minutes. If the value 0 is selected, no timeout
applies, and relaying will continue until it is stopped manually.
Encapsulation: The encapsulation format of the relayed stream. UDP or RTP may be
selected.
Relay via interface: The available interfaces for forwarding the stream are listed.

When mode Record or Trigger recording has been selected the options are:

Record and trigger options

Rec timeout: The maximum recording time in seconds. This setting enables the user to
limit recordings of low-bitrate streams.
Rec size: The total file size of the recording. When in alarm trigger mode the
resulting recording will consist of a fixed sized portion of data before the
alarm is raised and the remaining recording from data after the trigger
occurred.
Protect: When in alarm trigger mode the user may select to protect a recording from
being overwritten due to a new alarm occurrence. The user may select
between ‘Never overwrite’, ‘Do not protect’, ‘30 seconds’, ‘60 seconds’
and ‘5 minutes’.
Alarm trigger 1–3: Select a maximum of three different alarms that should trigger recording.
Note that a recording will start upon a transition from status OK to status
alarm. Alarms that have been disabled in the Alarm — Alarm setup view
will be shown in brackets – these will never trigger a recording.

The maximum recording size depends on the amount of free disk on the probe, up to a maximum of
1500 Mbyte.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 107

5.7 Traffic
5.7.1 Traffic — Protocols

The Protocols view allows monitoring of IP traffic on the selected port in terms of the protocols
used.
The interface can be selected using the drop-down at the bottom of the page. Clicking the Clear
statistics button will reset displayed values.
The following measurements are presented, depending on which statistic is selected:

Statistics
Statistic: The protocol for which the following measurements apply
Cur bitrate: The current total bitrate for this protocol (measured over the last 1s period)
Max bitrate: The maximum bitrate during any 1s period
Min bitrate: The minimum non-zero bitrate during any 1s period
Frames/sec: Traffic speed in number of IP packets per second
Frames: Number of Ethernet frames
Frames %: Percentage of total number of frames
Min flen: Minimum Ethernet frame length
Max flen: Maximum Ethernet frame length

Bitrates
Statistic: As above
Cur bitrate: As above
Bitrates: A graph displaying the bitrate over time, displaying the last five minutes

108 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Bitrate graph: Click the bitrate graph button to display a detailed bitrate graph for the specified
protocol

Frames
Statistic: As above
Frames/sec: Traffic speed for this protocol expressed in number of IP packets per second
Frames: A graph displaying frames per second over time, displaying the last five minutes
Frames graph: Click the frames graph button to display a detailed frames per second graph for
the specified protocol

Interface statistics
Link status: Displays whether the interface is up or down
Link speed: Displays the interface speeds, as bits per second
Link duplex: Indicates whether the interface is operating at full or half duplex
UDP unicasts: The number of detected UDP unicasts
UDP multicasts: The number of detected UDP multicasts
COP3 Correctable: Total count of dropped payload IP packets that are correctable by the
FEC
COP3 Uncorrectable: Total count of dropped payload IP packets that cannot be corrected by
the FEC
COP3 Late: Payload or FEC packets are received slightly too late according to the
buffer model and may result in errors in another implementation of the
specifications. The number of packets with this error.
COP3 Errors: Either the L/D parameters are not consistent across the streams or
payload/FEC packets are received too late or too early according to the
buffer model. The number of packets with these errors.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 109

5.7.2 Traffic — Detect

The Traffic Detect view displays all UDP traffic sensed by the probe. Note that promiscuous
network mode should be enabled in the Setup — Params view for the probe to detect all traffic,
and not only multicasts already joined by the probe. Note that generally the upstream switch or
router will not output streams that are not joined by downstream equipment, i.e. usually only joined
streams will be available for monitoring.
If the unicast/multicast destination address is known to the probe (i.e. listed in the Multicasts —
Streams view) the stream’s Name is looked up, otherwise a generic name is used.
When the Traffic — Detect view is entered after probe booting, the probe will continuously try to
detect streams. Click the View list offline button to view the stream list in offline mode. Click the
Refresh button to update the stream list in offline mode.
The source address makes it possible for the probe to distinguish between multicasts with the same
destination IP address and port, provided that Source specific multicasts has been enabled in the
Setup — Params view.
If the stream is currently joined by the probe (i.e. the probe is currently monitoring the stream), the
Joined field is set to yes.
Detected streams can be added to the probe’s stream list by selecting streams and clicking the Add
selected to stream list. To add all detected streams the Add all to stream list button can be pressed.
Only streams not already in the probe’s stream list are considered. Clicking the Export button will
generate an XML-file that opens in a new window.
A drop down menu allows filtering of detected streams, making is possible to view streams of a
specific type only. Stream types are defined in the Traffic — Filter setup view. If the AEO option
is enabled for the probe the Detect list will contain the following additional columns: Mapping,
signal, RTP drops, CC errors and Bitrate. These parameters are the same as on the Multicasts page.

110 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 :
i Click the blue information icon to pop up the detailed stream info.
Dst address: The multi- or unicast address
Src address: The stream source address
Name: The stream name, as defined in the Multicasts — Streams view. A generic name
will be used for multi- or unicasts not defined by the user.
Interface: The stream source network interface (physical or VLAN)
Joined: If the stream is joined by the probe this field will read ‘Yes’.
Session ID: The session ID of the L2TP stream is specified here (or 0 if not used). It is used
together with the multicast address to identify the L2TP stream.
Mapping: The transport stream to IP mapping. Typically seven transport stream packets are
mapped into one IP packet.
Signal: The duration of stream availability
RTP drops: The number of detected RTP drops for the stream. This is only valid if the stream
is RTP encapsulated.
CC errors: The number of detected continuity counter errors for the stream.
Bitrate: The stream bitrate
CPU: The probe CPU used to analyze the stream (1-7)

Please note that the Multicast scan and the Detect features are mutually exclusive, so it is necessary
to click the Exit scan mode in the Multicast scan view to resume population of the Detect list.

5.7.3 Traffic — Filter statistics

The Traffic — Filter statistics view makes it possible to view statistics for different stream types.
Stream types are defined by the user in the Traffic — Filter setup view.
Statistics is displayed for a time period selected by clicking one of the time duration buttons.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 111

 Filter statistics:
Filter: The filter name, as defined by the user in the Traffic — Filter setup view.
Streams: The number of streams matching the associated filter.
Bitrate: The total summed bitrate for streams matching the associated filter.
RTP loss %: Percentage of time an average stream that matches the filter experiences RTP
packet loss inside selected time period.
Example: If the Last 1m period is selected and there are totally three streams
caught by filter:

• stream A: present for 60 seconds, 4 RTP error seconds

• stream B: present for 30 seconds, 0 RTP error seconds

• stream C: present for 30 seconds, 5 RTP error seconds

RTP loss % = 9ES / 120s

RTP loss % = 9ES / 3streams / 120s *100% = 7.5%
MLR %: Percentage of time an average stream that matches the filter experiences
MLR inside selected time period.
The calculation is similar to that for RTP loss %.
Avg str bitr: The average bitrate for streams matching the associated filter.
Avg str duration: The stream duration is calculated for each stream by identifying the stream’s
average stream alive counter inside the selected time period, then multiply
by 2.
The stream alive counter is the number of seconds the stream has existed.
This gives accurate results for streams that begin within the selected time
period, but may give up to twice the real bitrate for streams that begin (long)
before the selected period.
Examples: a stream exists for 100 seconds, and begins within the selected
period. The calculation becomes:
Stream duration = (1+2+. . . +100)/100*2 = 101
If the same stream started 50 seconds before the selected period, the calcula-
tion becomes:
Stream duration = (51+52+. . . +100)/50*2 = 151

Clicking the icon next to each value brings up the detailed graph window.

112 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

The detailed graph window displays up to 4 days of history.
Trending
Clicking the Trending last 60m button will present at-a glance trending graphs for each parameter
for the last 60 minutes.

Clicking a graph icon displays the corresponding detailed graph for the selected filter. Clicking the
trend graphs itself will bring up the same detailed graph but will plot all the filters so that they can
easily be compared.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 113

 The detailed trending graph above displays MLR errors for all filters.

5.7.4 Traffic — Filter setup

The Traffic — Filter setup view makes it possible to define stream filter requirements affecting the
Traffic — Detect and Traffic — Filter statistics views. Ten filters can be defined and enabled by
the user.

Statfilter settings:
Name: A text string defining the filter
Enabled: Only enabled filters are in use
Streams: The number of streams matching filter requirements
Cast: The type of stream: No filtering, Only unicasts or Only multicasts
RTP: The RTP mode: No filtering, Only with RTP header or Only without RTP header
VLAN: VLAN selection mode: No filtering, Only tagged traffic, Only untagged traffic
or Require matching specified value (a specific VLAN ID).

114 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 IP dst: The IP destination address mode: No filtering or Require matching specified
value (a specific IP address/netmask)
IP src: The IP source address mode: No filtering or Require matching specified value
(a specific IP address/netmask)
UDP dst: The UDP destination mode: No filtering or Require matching specified value (a
specific UDP port number)
UDP src: The UDP source mode: No filtering or Require matching specified value (a
specific UDP port number)
UDP payload: The UDP payload mapping type: No filtering, 7 TS/UDP or N TS/UDP (any
integer number of TS to UDP mapping)
Edit: Click the Edit link to edit filter settings.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 115

5.7.5 Traffic — Microbitrate

The Microbitrate feature allows sampling of bitrate at various sampling intervals. When enabling
this feature, each Ethernet frame is timestamped in hardware on probe ingress. This timestamp is
used to calculate exact bitrates at various sampling intervals.
The Interval is the sampling interval of each bitrate calculation. There are six intervals tracked
simultaneously, the five pre-defined intervals and the user-interval. The User-interval is a user-
given sampling interval shown in the graph and used for microbitrate alarming.
The Max interval frames is the max number of frames within one interval last second. The Max
interval bitrate is the max sum of Ethernet frame sizes inside one interval last second converted to
bits per second. This number should always be bigger or equal for shorter intervals.
Click the legends in the graph to show or hide graphs.
The above graph is a typical OTT-traffic graph where the client periodically requests limited amounts
of data at maximum speed resulting in traffic that is bursting near line-speed at 10 Gbit/s for
short intervals while the average bitrate for larger intervals is only a fraction. This traffic shape is
challenging for network equipment since it demands all remaining capacity up to line speed.

116 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

For multicast type traffic the traffic pattern will look more like the graph above. Here the bitrate is
much more steady even for short intervals. The network never experiences near line-speed bursting
since each stream is bitrate controlled by the sender.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 117

Microbitrate Thresholds

There are two alarms defined for Microbitrate:

• Microbitrate bursting

• Microbitrate excessive ES bursting

These alarms are both associated with the user-interval, which is a user-specified graph sampling
interval.
If the bitrate of the user-interval exceeds the Burst threshold setting, the Microbitrate bursting
alarm will be raised.
Sometimes this will yield a lot of alarms, so a second alarm has been defined. Whenever the bitrate
of the user-interval exceeds the Burst threshold for ES threshold number of seconds during the
last ES Alarm window seconds, the Microbitrate excessive ES bursting alarm is raised.

118 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.7.6 Traffic — Multicast scan

The Multicast scan feature is useful for scanning an IPv4 multicast interval to see which multicasts
are available in the network. Detected multicasts can easily be added to the stream list. The
parameters displayed are the same as in the Traffic — Detect view, please see chapter 5.7.2 for
details.
Configure the scan interval and other scan parameters in the Setup view.

Setup
Multicast range: The multicast range to scan (IPv4 addresses).
All UDP ports: Check this to disable filtering on UDP port.
UDP port range: Filter to be used for UDP port unless All UDP ports is checked.
Simultaneous joins: Number of joins performed simultaneously.
Expect traffic within (s): The probe will wait this long to determine if the multicasts joined
actually exist.
Select input: Input interface to scan.
VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 119
 In fast networks it is useful to increase the Simultaneous joins to a larger number.
Please note that the Multicast scan and the Detect features are mutually exclusive, so it is necessary
to click the Exit scan mode to resume population of the Detect list.

5.8 Ethernet
5.8.1 Ethernet — FSM
Full Service Monitoring (FSM) allows easy validation of any server reachable by the probe via
Ethernet. The servers may be probed by either sending an ICMP Echo Request packet (also known
as Ping) or performing an HTTP Get request.
Up to 10 services may be defined and each service will be checked at regular intervals. Any errors
will be logged. An error is defined as no reply within 5 seconds for the Ping option or no, or
incorrect, reply within 5 seconds for the HTTP option. If there are more consecutive errors than a
fails threshold value an alarm will be raised.

5.8.1.1 Ethernet — FSM — Monitor

The following parameters are continuously monitored for each service:

Status: Red = active alarm, Green = no alarm

Name: User defined service name
Protocol: Type of protocol. HTTP or Ping

120 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 IP address: IP address. Must be numeric, host name is not accepted
OK: Total number of valid checks
Fail: Total number of invalid checks
Max: Maximum response time recorded
Min: Minimum response time recorded
Current: The current (most recent) response time
Timer: Button to reset and immediately restart the service
State: Current state of the service. The states are: ‘Disabled’, ‘Waiting to send’, ‘Waiting
for reply’, ‘Got reply’ and ‘Reset’.

For convenience a manual ping field is located below the status table. By entering a valid IP address
or host name and clicking the Ping button an arbitrary server may be pinged.
The Clear all button will clear accumulated data for all enabled FSM services, but active alarms
will not be removed.
Clicking the Traceroute button will open a new window, allowing the user to trace the network
route to a specified IP address.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 121

5.8.1.2 Ethernet — FSM — Setup

Each of the 10 FSM services may be defined or edited by clicking on the corresponding Edit button
in the left hand table.
The probe supports ping and generic HTTP GET protocols for online status verification of arbitrary
targets. After completing configuration of the selected service Apply changes must be pressed to
save and apply the changes.

These fields are common for both the ping and the HTTP GET protocols:

Enable: Enable by checking toggle button.

122 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Name: User-defined name of service
Protocol: Select between ping and HTTP.
Device: Ethernet interface to use for this service.
Probe cycle: Time interval in seconds to wait between each activation. A value below 30 is
not recommended.
Fails threshold: The number of consecutive errors needed to raise an alarm
Hostname: The IP address for the target. Host names are supported for HTTP.
Comment: Optional comment field – maximum 100 characters

These fields are specific for the HTTP GET protocol:

http://<IP address>: The request to send to the target, for example index.html
Expect word reply: A case sensitive word or sentence to be expected in the reply. To find a
suitable string, use the Show content link. Leave this field empty to let
the probe ignore the contents of the reply.
Last reply: The last reply Show content link points to the last HTML file that was
generated by this service.
Port: The port used by the target server, often 80 for HTTP requests
Support cookies: If enabled, the HTTP GET request will remember cookies returned by
the target and provide them in subsequent requests.

5.8.1.3 Ethernet — FSM — Syslog

The VB330-SW has a built-in syslog server which captures all incoming messages (UDP, port 514).
Messages are displayed in a pageable grid with the following columns: Facility, Severity, Timestamp,
Hostname, Agent and Message. Currently displayed page can be exported as an XML-document.
Since the syslog server typically stores about 100 pages of messages there is a group of buttons for a
fast navigation:

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 123

 Newest Move to the first page
Much newer Move 10 pages backwards
Newer Move 1 page backwards
Older Move 1 page forwards
Much older Move 10 pages forwards
Oldest Move to the last page

Syslog server has a limited capacity which is usually enough to store the latest 10,000 messages
depending on the size of the syslog messages. When a new message arrives and no storage space
remains the oldest messages are removed.
Note that the syslog server is very sensible to time settings, so it is strongly recommended to have a
time synchronization enabled.

5.8.2 Ethernet — IGMP

The IGMP view shows all IGMP (version 2 or 3) messages detected by the probe. This includes
IGMP query messages sent by routers, IGMP reply messages sent by the probe itself and IGMP
reply messages sent by other probes and devices on the same subnet.
The live IGMP page can be paused by clicking the View list offline button. The IGMP messages
can be exported as XML by clicking the Export. . . button, and the list is cleared by clicking the
Clear list button.

:
i Click the blue information icon to open the IGMP record pop-up view

124 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 No: The message number since the list was cleared
Time: The probe time when the message occurred
Millisec: The milliseconds timestamp
Source: The source IP address
Destination: The destination IP address
Code: The timeout code
Message: The interpreted IGMP message
Group: The IGMP group address

5.8.3 Ethernet — PCAP

The VB330-SW can make PCAP recordings on the data interface based on simple user configurable
filters. If the FLASH option is available, the recorded PCAP files can be moved to the internal hard
drive using the Data — Storage view. The PCAP format supports microsecond timing accuracy.
Incoming traffic is recorded if it matches one or more of the enabled filters while outgoing traffic is
always recorded. So for instance, to record all OTT traffic on the data interface it is sufficient to
enable the “Capture all TCP traffic” filter (since OTT uses the HTTP protocol which is always TCP).

Flags and filters

Capture only header: If enabled, only 64 first bytes of Ethernet frame is captured. This
allows higher bitrate traffic to be recorded and over longer time.
Capture all Check to record non-IPv4 traffic such as ARP, PIM or IPv6.
non TCP/UDP traffic:

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 125

 Capture all TCP traffic: Check to capture all IPv4 TCP traffic.
Capture all UDP traffic: Check to capture all IPv4 UDP traffic.
IP DST and IP SRC Check to activate test. Will capture stream if IP destination address
filters: matches. If SRC is specified it has to match too.

Recording
Size: Size of current recording.
Dropped packets: Number of dropped packets due, usually caused by running temporarily
out of buffer due to too high traffic. To allow higher bitrate recordings
Capture only headers may be enabled.
Buffer use %: Current buffer utilization. At 100% the Dropped packets will start
counting.
Disk free: Remaining disk size.
Capture: The recorded capture. May be invalid if recording is still in progress.
Start recording: Click to start a new recording. This will clear the current rec.pcap file.
Stop recording: Click to stop the current recording.
Sort recorded frames At high bitrates, some Ethernet frames may be recorded out of order as
on packet time: a result of the multi-core architecture. Click to sort frames in recording
according to time-stamp.

5.9 ETR 290 (Option)

The ETR 290 tab and all sub-views will only be present in the user interface provided that the probe
is licensed with the ETR 290 option.
The ETR 290 views show information as reported by the ETSI TR 101 290 monitoring engines.
If ETR 290 analysis has been configured for multiple Ethernet streams to be monitored by a
particular Ethernet ETR engine (refer to Multicasts — Streams — Edit), they will be analyzed in a
round-robin fashion by the engine. A maximum of 2000 Ethernet streams may be analyzed in total.
The number of ETR 290 analysis engines depends on the license. The SW currently support up
to 1000 engines. More engines make it possible to reduce the analysis round-trip time or allowing
simultaneous full-time ETR analysis of many multicasts. The ETR 290 analysis engines operate in
parallel.
It is possible to hide disabled inputs from being displayed in the various ETR 290 sub-views. This
setting is found in the Setup — ETR view.

126 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.9.1 ETR 290 — Overview

The ETR 290 — Overview view will show ETR 290 status for ETR 290 monitored streams. ETR
290 monitoring may be enabled for Ethernet streams in the Multicasts — Streams — Edit view.
The streams currently being analyzed are highlighted and a circular progress icon shows the
monitoring progress.
The analysis time for each stream is set as part of the ETR thresholds parameters list in the ETR
290 — ETR thr. — Edit view.
The result of the different ETR 290 tests are shown as table entries in a condensed view called
MicroETR, a scaled down version of the regular ETR display, one icon representing one stream.
Green color indicates status OK whereas red color indicates an active alarm for that particular test.
A white field shows that a check has not yet been performed, usually due to lack of measurement
data, and grey indicates that a check is disabled. Tool-tip functionality allows the user to view the
name of an individual check in the MicroETR display. Let the mouse pointer hover over the field for
a moment to view the tool-tip.
When clicking one of the MicroETR icons the detailed ETR 290 status for that stream is displayed
in the ETR 290 — ETR Details view. By entering this view through the MicroETR, the view will
remain static irrespective of the round-robin looping, thus making it easy to examine one stream in
detail without interruptions. The round-robin looping and associated alarm handling will continue
in the background.
Note that it is possible to deactivate individual ETR 290 alarms by defining appropriate ETR
thresholds.
If the user wants to examine one particular Ethernet stream in more detail, he can lock the ETR 290
analysis to that stream by clicking the lock field at that stream. The round-robin operation of the

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 127

 ETR 290 engine will then be stopped and a lock icon will appear as an indication that the monitoring
is locked to that stream. If a time limit has been set for the time lock (Setup — ETR view), a
clock icon will be superimposed on the lock icon. To re-activate the round-robin cycling the lock
icon should be clicked. Note that locking the ETR 290 processing to one stream will affect alarm
handling and all ETR 290 views. Active alarms for streams that are not currently being analyzed
will freeze (remain active) until the processing lock is deselected and ETR 290 analysis eventually
shows that the error state is cleared.
The user can select one input to be displayed exclusively by clicking the corresponding Show only
this input button. This does not affect ETR 290 processing or alarming.

5.9.2 ETR 290 — ETR Details

The ETR Details view shows the ETR 290 status for the current stream of the user-selected input.
The name of the current stream is displayed in addition to the two round-robin indicator icons when
relevant: the time cycle icon and the lock icon. By clicking the lock icon the round-robin tuning
process is stopped (locked to the current frequency) or resumed. A DVB, ATSC or ISDB icon
indicates the analysis mode. The analysis mode is defined as part of the ETR threshold template.
The ETR 290 parameters are grouped into five different categories. The first three groups are
defined in the ETSI TR 101 290 guidelines. The fourth category contains checks defined by Sencore
allowing CA system checks, custom PID and service checks and the Gold TS reference checks. The
last category contains checks of the input interfaces.
For each check a bulb indicates the current status of that parameter check: green indicates status
OK whereas red indicates an active alarm. When the probe has not yet received data relevant for
a particular check, the corresponding bulb is white. Grey color indicates that the check has been
deactivated (as set in ETR 290 — ETR thr. — Edit).
When clicking one of the ETR 290 parameters, details about the current status can be viewed for
that item.

128 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Enable the Show additional measurements checkbox to view additional measurements that are
performed but which are ignored when determining the alarm status. These will appear with a
‘half-bulb’ icon indicating that the check is disabled whilst also showing the status of this element.
As an example this can be used to view the BAT section repetition interval and section gap, or
to view a list of PIDs with CC errors including the PIDs for which this check has been manually
disabled.
Click a PID in a PID list to view PID details. Similarly you can click on a service to view service
details.
If the Clear status button is clicked the error counts are reset and the ETR 290 analysis restarts.
The details of the individual ETR 290 measurements are described in a separate document called
Sencore VideoBRIDGE ETR 290 Details — Extended ETSI TR 101 290 Testing.
Clicking the Show alarm graph button opens the Alarm graph pop-up view.

The alarm graph shows the ETR alarm status over time in the form of a status timeline. The timeline
bar shows the stream status for a time span of 90 minutes, 8 hours or 24 hours as selected by

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 129

 clicking the time selection buttons below the timelines. The stream bar reveals any alarm that has
been present during the selected time period. The bar color is either green for OK or colored in
accordance with the alarm severity if an alarm has occurred. Refer to section 5.2.2 for a description
of the alarm color representation. Periods of time when the stream has not been ETR monitored due
to round-robin operation are represented by grey. By using the arrow buttons it is possible to view
alarm occurrences up to 24 hours back in time even if the highest graph time resolution is selected.
If alarms have occurred during the selected time period, the status timeline will not be all green. In
this case it is possible to expand the timeline tree by clicking the plus sign at the timeline. Individual
timelines for different ETR priorities and for different alarms may be viewed as the tree is expanded
into several levels. Tool-tips reveals details about an error incident such as which PIDs have had CC
errors.
By default the ‘Show only errors’ mode is selected, and only timelines that are not all green will be
displayed.

5.9.3 ETR 290 — PIDs

130 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

This view lists the PIDs of the currently active stream of the selected input. The PID list can be
sorted by clicking a table column header.
The name of the current stream is displayed in addition to the two round-robin indicator icons when
relevant: the time cycle icon and the lock icon. By clicking the lock icon the round-robin cycling is
stopped or resumed. A DVB, ATSC or ISDB icon indicates the analysis mode. The analysis mode is
defined as part of the ETR thresholds.
By clicking the button Clear counters the minimum and maximum bitrates and the CC error
counters will be reset. Note that this cannot be undone.
When clicking the blue information icon associated with a PID details concerning that PID will be
displayed. All services referring to the PID are listed, and scrambling information is shown.

The following PID details are displayed:

PID Details:
PID: The PID for which the following parameters apply
Current bitrate: The current bitrate measurement for this PID. The bitrate is averaged
over 1 second.
Minimum bitrate: The minimum bitrate measurement for this PID since the start of the
monitoring period. (I.e. when the probe tuned to the frequency or when
the monitoring of this frequency was restarted by the user clicking on
Clear status in the ETR 290 — ETR Details view.)
Maximum bitrate: The maximum bitrate measurement for this PID since the start of the
monitoring period.
Carries PCR: If the PID carries Program Clock Reference information, this field will
be set to Yes. If PCR analysis is enabled in the ETR threshold template
a link will be shown to bring up the PCR histogram data for this PID.
Scrambling: If the PID is scrambled, this field will show if it is scrambled with Odd
or Even control word.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 131

 Number of CC errors: The number of CC errors for the specified PID. For the Ethernet inter-
face the number of CC errors is measured from when the probe started
to monitor the multicast or when the user clicked Clear counters in
the Multicasts — Parameters view.
References: All the references for this PID in the PSI/SI/PSIP tables. This will show
the reference type and the service that refers the PID (if applicable).
The service can be clicked to show the detailed service information.

5.9.4 ETR 290 — Services

The ETR290 — Services view lists the services and service components of the current stream of
the selected input.
The name of the current stream is displayed in addition to the two round-robin indicator icons when
relevant: the time cycle icon and the lock icon. By clicking the lock icon, the round-robin cycling is
stopped or resumed. A DVB, ATSC or ISDB icon indicates the analysis mode. The analysis mode is
defined as part of the ETR thresholds.
When tree nodes are selected, detailed information will be displayed on the right hand side of the
view.
If the service tree ‘Services’ top node is clicked, a summary list of stream services and PIDs is
displayed. Each service’s service ID and each component’s PID value and bitrate are displayed
together with individual PID and service bitrates.

132 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Services top node
Service: Service name and service ID
PID: Service component PID value
Type: Service and component encoding format
Bitrate: Individual current bitrate of services and components

When clicking a service, details about the service and service components will be displayed.

If a PID is scrambled this is indicated in the service tree by the color green or blue (for even and odd
scrambling respectively). A missing PID is indicated by the color red. Click on the PID to show
more details.
Click the Show thumbnail button to view a thumbnail of the selected service. Thumbnails can only
be shown for services that are not scrambled.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 133

 Service node
Service name: Name of the highlighted service, as signaled in SDT or VCT
Service ID: Service ID number
Service type: Service type as signaled in SDT
Service provider name: The name of the service provider as signaled in SDT. Not applicable
for ATSC streams.
Current bitrate: The current bitrate measurement for this service. The bitrate is aver-
aged over 1 second.
Minimum bitrate: The minimum bitrate measurement for this service since the start of
the monitoring period. (I.e. when the probe tuned to the frequency
or when the monitoring of this frequency was restarted by the user
clicking Clear status in the ETR 290 — ETR Details view.)
Maximum bitrate: The maximum bitrate measurement for this service since the start of
the monitoring period.
PMT PID: The service’s PMT PID
PCR PID: The service’s PCR PID
ECM PIDs: The service’s ECM PID(s) and name of CA system(s). This infor-
mation will only be displayed if ECM PIDs are signaled in the PMT
table, usually only done when one or more service components are
scrambled.
Components: A list of the component PIDs and reference types. For PIDs which
have a language descriptor (typically audio PIDs) the language code
is also shown.
EPG: If DVB EIT is present in the stream, the EIT check is enabled in the
ETR template used by the stream and EIT table IDs are configured
in the Setup — ETR view, EIT present/following is displayed. If
EIT schedule is present in the stream, a blue ‘Show full EPG’ link is
displayed. By clicking the link it is possible to view the EIT schedule
information.
Show thumbnail Opens the Thumbnail view for this service. Thumbnails are only
decoded automatically if the Extract thumbnails option has been
enabled in the associated multicast setup.
The same pop-up details are displayed as when opened from the Main
— Thumb overview view.

When clicking a service component, associated key parameters and references will be displayed.

134 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

For PIDs carrying PCR it is possible to view a PCR jitter histogram by clicking the blue ‘show
histogram’ link. If one of the blue service links is clicked, service details are shown.

Service component node

Current bitrate: The current bitrate measurement for this PID. The bitrate is averaged
over 1 second.
Minimum bitrate: The minimum bitrate measurement for this PID since the start of the
monitoring period. (I.e. when the probe tuned to the frequency or when
the monitoring of this frequency was restarted by the user clicking
Clear status in the ETR 290 — ETR Details view.)
Maximum bitrate: The maximum bitrate measurement for this PID since the start of the
monitoring period.
Carries PCR: An indication of whether the PID carries PCR or not. The value may
be ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. If PCR is carried by the PID, a blue ‘show histogram’
link is displayed. By clicking this link it is possible to view the PCR
jitter histogram.
Scrambling: An indication of whether the PID is scrambled or not. If the PID is not
scrambled, the value will be ‘No’. If the PID is scrambled, information
about the current control word is displayed: ‘Even 0x3’ or ‘Odd 0x2’.
Number of CC errors: The number of CC errors detected during the monitoring period
References: A list of PSI/SI references to the component PID. When one of the
blue service links is clicked, detailed service information is displayed.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 135

5.9.5 ETR 290 — Bitrates

This view shows a graphical representation of service and PID bitrates. The current bitrate is shown
as the length of the light blue bar whereas the dark blue bar represents bitrate variation, spanning
from minimum to maximum measured bitrate.
The name of the current stream is displayed in addition to the two round-robin indicator icons when
relevant: the time cycle icon and the lock icon. By clicking the lock icon the round-robin tuning
process is stopped (locked to the current frequency) or resumed. A DVB, ATSC or ISDB icon
indicates the analysis mode. The analysis mode is defined as part of the ETR thresholds.
The user may select to view a list of services and component PIDs, to view PIDs only or to view
PIDs without the null PID. This is selected by clicking the Show Services, Show only PIDs or
Show only PIDs but not NULL PID button respectively.

136 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.9.6 ETR 290 — Tables

This view lists the PSI and SI or ATSC tables and table contents of the currently active stream of the
selected input.
The name of the current stream is displayed in addition to the two round-robin indicator icons when
relevant: the time cycle icon and the lock icon. By clicking the lock icon the round-robin cycling is
stopped or resumed. A DVB, ATSC or ISDB icon indicates the analysis mode. The analysis mode is
defined as part of the ETR thresholds.
Clicking the ‘Sections’ node displays detected tables and associated repetition rates.
Clicking a table enables viewing the table contents in a readily readable format.

By clicking the plus-icon at a table the table contents is displayed in detail.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 137

Clicking one of the table entries will allow viewing the table contents as a hexadecimal dump for
detailed inspection.

The selected table entry is highlighted in the table dump. Note that values shown in the table list
may not correspond directly to the highlighted hex dump byte(s), because some of the table entries
do not add up to whole bytes.
By hovering the cursor over the items in the tree a tool-tip is displayed showing the start position of
the data in the hexadecimal dump and the length of data. Press the save icon to download and save
the raw table data on your computer.
A description of each PSI/SI table is beyond the scope of this manual, please refer to the specifications
for more information about PSI/SI.
If you get “Unknown descriptor” in the table parsing it could be that the stream contains additional
descriptors that can be enabled. Make a note of the descriptor_tag and go to Setup — ETR to
enable the parsing of the descriptor.

138 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

For streams which have electronic program guide information in the EIT table and the extraction of
this information is enabled (in ETR thresholds and in Setup — ETR) the tree will show the text
EPG. Clicking on this will bring up the list of present/following events (the current program and the
next program to be broadcast) for the current stream will be displayed. If the stream has EIT p/f
other information (and this table is enabled in Setup — ETR) then the list will also contain EPG
present/following for other streams. If the stream has EIT schedule information for the actual and/or
other streams (and these tables are enabled in Setup — ETR) then the list will also contain the link
Show EIT schedule. Clicking this will show the full schedule for the selected service. The amount
of data shown depends on the signal. A common practice is to send EPG for 7 days ahead.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 139

To get detailed information about one event, click the binary symbol . This will open a popup
window with parsing of the underlying EIT table. The information can be displayed either in detailed
hex mode:

Or in summary mode:

140 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.9.7 ETR 290 — PCR

The PCR jitter histogram displays PCR jitter as measured by the probe. A list of detected PCR PIDs
in the selected stream is shown together with their current and maximum PCR jitter values. A PCR
PID is selected for histogram presentation by clicking the associated table entry. The histogram
shows the number of received PCR values versus jitter. PCR jitter is by default measured as PCR-AC
for all interfaces. By creating an ETR threshold template that enables PCR-OJ and assigning this
template to a stream it is possible to select PCR-OJ measurement mode by clicking the PCR_OJ
button. The PCR_OJ measurement is not relevant for Ethernet streams.
Please note PCR analysis will be disabled if none of the PCR-AC, PCR-OJ, PCR Accuracy or PCR
Jitter checks are enabled in the ETR thresholds. So to use the ETR 290 — PCR functionality this
needs to be enabled.
The name of the current stream is displayed in addition to the two round-robin indicator icons when
relevant: the time cycle icon and the lock icon. By clicking the lock icon the round-robin cycling is
stopped or resumed. The push-buttons Zoom in and Zoom out enables rescaling of the graph. This
makes it possible to view PCR jitter values that are outside the range defined by the auto-scaling.
Clicking the Clear button will clear historical data from the histogram.
Tool-tip functionality provides information about each histogram bar: the number of samples, the
percentage of total number of samples and the jitter interval represented by the bar. For PCR
measurements to be valid it is essential that the signal be stuffed with null packets (PID 8191) to
obtain an absolutely constant bitrate. The stream info above the histogram shows if the analyzed
stream contains null packets or not. A color indicator above the PCR jitter histogram indicates
whether the signal is of constant bitrate or not, as perceived by the PCR filter in the processing
engine. Green indicates OK, red indicates that the PCR jitter measurements are not valid due to the
bitrate not being constant.
Note that PCR jitter measurements for Ethernet streams are very sensitive to packet loss, and packet
loss results in a large jitter values – often for all PCR PIDs of an MPTS.
The PCR PID list displays the following parameters:

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 141

 PID: The PID for which the following parameters apply.
Current: The last PCR jitter value measured.
Overall max: The maximum PCR jitter value measured since transport stream sync was ob-
tained. Note that this may not correspond to the maximum value for PCR jitter
in the histogram, as the histogram displays values measured from the time when
a PCR PID was selected.
Threshold: The PCR jitter threshold currently valid for the stream, as defined in the associated
ETR threshold template.

In addition to the histogram itself, the following parameters are displayed:

Max jitter (ns): The maximum jitter value measured from the time the PID was selected.
Average jitter (ns): The average jitter in nanoseconds.
Bin resolution (ns): The width of the jitter interval spanned by each histogram bar.
Outside thresholds: The number of PCR values that are outside the PCR jitter thresholds
(defined by the user as part of the ETR threshold template).
Out of view: The number of PCR values that are out of the currently displayed view.

5.9.8 ETR 290 — T2MI (requires T2MI-OPT)

T2MI monitoring is a licensed option available for transport streams over Ethernet. T2MI is enabled
on a per stream basis, most of the information is found in this GUI extracted from the L1 current
packets in the T2MI streams. The full parsing of this information table is found in the ‘Tables’
section.

142 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Please note that the T2MI stream needs to have either a relative or an absolute T2 Timestamp to be
received properly. Signals without timing information can not be received.

Overview:
T2 timestamp: The last received T2 timestamp. The probe supports both
relative and absolute timestamps.
Super frame index: The last received superframe index.
Frame index: The index of the last received frame.
Input streams: Indicates whether Single or Multiple Input Streams are used.
Coding and modulation: Whether the stream uses Constant Coding and Modulation or
Adaptive Coding and Modulation.
Input stream sync: The Input Stream Synchronizer (ISSY) value.
Input stream format: The format of the input stream. Will normally be ‘TS’.
Input stream identifier: The input stream identifier for the current stream.
Num TS pkt. last T2MI frame: The number of transport stream packets that was in the last
T2MI frame.
Null packet deletion: Whether null packet deletion is in use or not.
High efficiency mode: Whether high efficiency mode is active or not.
Crc Errors BB header: The number of CRC errors on the BB header detected since
the monitoring of the stream started.
Crc Errors whole packet: The number of CRC errors calculated over the whole T2MI
packet since the monitoring of the stream started.

L1 information:
T2 version: The version of the T2 spec used. Up to version 1.3.1 is supported
including T2 lite.
Type: The type of data carried in the Transport stream.
T2 lite profile used: Set to true if the T2 lite profile is used for sending power efficient
broadcasts to portable clients.
BW ext: The carrier mode (normal or extended).
S1: T2-SISO, T2-MISO or Non-T2.
S2: FFT mode and guard interval.
PAPR: The PAPR reduction mode (if any).
Pilot pattern: Pilot pattern PP1 to PP8.
TX ID availability: Should always be set to ‘No transmitter identification signals are used’.
Cell id: The cell ID for the transmitter.
Network id: The network id for this DVB-T2 network.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 143

 T2 system id: The T2 system id.
L1 post scrambling: Says whether post scrambling is used or not.
L1 modulation: The L1 modulation type used. BPSK, QPSK, 16-QAM or 64-QAM.
L1 FEC type: The L1 fec type in use. Only ‘LDPC 16K’ is currently supported in
DVB-T2.
L1 repetition: Shows if dynamic signaling is provided.
L1 post size: The L1 post size.
L1 post info size: The L1 post info size.
L1 post extension: Shows if extension field is provided.
L1 change counter: The value of the L1 change counter.
Guard interval: The guard interval used for the transmission. 1/32, 1/16, 1/8 or 1/4.
Num T2 frames: The number of T2 frames signaled.
Num data symbols: The number of data symbols signaled.
Sub slices per frame: How many sub slices are used per T2 frame.
Num aux: The number of auxiliary channels transmitted.
Aux config rfu: The aux config rfu number.
Number of RF: The number of RF frequencies used to transmit the signal.
Frequencies: The list of frequencies used to transmit the signal. Normally only one
frequency will be used.
Current RF index: The index of the frequency currently being used for the transmission.
Start RF idx: The starting RF index.
Frame idx: The frame index.
Sub slice interval: The interval between sub slices.
Type 2 start: The value of the type 2 start parameter.
Regen flag: The value of the regen flag.

PLP (Physical Layer Pipes) information:

Current PLP: The PLP currently being received. If a specific PLP was configured the
interface settings T2MI extraction (Multicasts — Streams), this will be used.
If auto mode is used the first PLP detected will be used.
Detected PLPs: The detected PLP ids in the T2MI stream. In some error situations this may
differ from the list of Signaled PLPs show below.
Signaled PLPs: Lists the PLPs signaled in the stream.
PLP type: The signaled type of the PLP. Data PLP Type 1 is the most common, some
signals can have a common PLP as well as well as other PLP types.

144 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Payload: Payload type of this PLP. Will typically be the Transport Stream format
PLP Group: The group signaled for this PLP. The PLPs in a group shares one common PLP
and when analyzing a PLP both the data in the specified PLP and the common
PLP in the same group (if present) are extracted. The PLP contains PIDs
which are shared such as PAT, SDT, NIT, CAT and EMMs. In the example
above , analyzing PLP 0 will also analyze PLP 2.
Code: The FEC coding scheme used for this PLP.
Modulation: Modulation for the the PLP.
Rotation: Specifies if IQ rotation is enabled.
FEC: Specifies the FEC coding type for this PLP.

Clicking the blue information symbol in the PLP list will bring up more detailed information for
that PLP.

Detailed PLP information:

PLP: The ID of the signaled PLP.
Type: The signaled type of the PLP. Data PLP Type 1 is the most common,
some signals can have a common PLP as well as well as other PLP
types.
Payload: Payload type of this PLP. Will typically be the Transport Stream format
FF flag: The FF flag value.
First RF idx: The first first RF index used for transmitting this PLP.
First frame idx: The first frame index used to transmit this PLP.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 145

 PLP group id: The group signaled for this PLP. The PLPs in a group shares one
common PLP and when analyzing a PLP both the data in the specified
PLP and the common PLP in the same group (if present) are extracted.
The PLP contains PID which are shared such as PAT, SDT, NIT, CAT
and EMMs.
Coding: The FEC coding scheme used for this PLP.
Modulation: Modulation used for transmitting this PLP.
Rotation: Specifies if IQ rotation is enabled for this PLP.
FEC type: Specifies the FEC coding type for this PLP.
PLP num blocks max: The maximum number of blocks which can be used by this PLP.
Frame interval: The frame interval for this PLP.
Time IL length: The length of the time interleaver.
Time IL type: The time interleaving type in use.
In band A: Says if in-band type A signaling is used for this PLP.
In band B: Says if in-band type B signaling is used for this PLP.
PLP mode: The PLP mode for this PLP.
Static: Says whether the PLP bandwidth is static or not static.
Static padding: Says whether the padding is static or can change between each BB
frame.
PLP start: The start value for the PLP in the stream.
PLP num blocks: The number of blocks used for this PLP.

146 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.9.9 ETR 290 — SCTE 35 (requires SCTE35-OPT)

SCTE 35 is a specification which allows equipment to splice in local content at specific times, SCTE
35 is basically just the signaling mechanism the equipment uses to know when to switch from the
master transmission to insert local content. It can be used to allow insertion of local advertising at
certain points in time or to allow the local operator to insert their own programs such as local news
transmission.
SCTE 35 requires a license for the probe and also an ETR 290 engine to connect it to.
The SCTE 35 option enables monitoring of SCTE 35 events of all streams captured by the ETR
engines. It is recommended to have one ETR engine dedicated to each SCTE 35 stream to get
continuous monitoring.

The stream list parameters

Stream name: Name specified by the user when adding a multicast or tuning.
Interface: The input source of the transport stream.
Services incl. SCTE 35: The number of services in the transport stream which has SCTE 35
information.
Events: The number of SCTE 35 events occurred in a transport stream.
Time since last event: The time since the last SCTE 35 event specified in seconds, minutes,
hours or days.

If an ETR engine is monitoring a transport stream containing SCTE 35 information, the current
stream will be added to the list in the SCTE 35 view. By pressing the blue information button a

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 147

new pop-up will show up, the pop-up will give specific information about events in the specified
transport stream.

The event information list parameters:

Parameter Description
Time: When the event occurred.
SID: The ID of the service for which the event applies.
Service name: The name of the service for which the event applies.
PID: The PID carrying the SCTE 35 information. A service can have multiple
SCTE 35 PIDs signaled in the PMT table(s).
Splice command: The type of the splice command.
Cmd id: The hex value of the command.
Event ID: Id of the specific event.
Cxl: Canceled indicator, if set it indicates that this splice message cancels a
previously sent splice message.
Imm: Immediate mode, if set it indicates that this message should take effect
immediatelyg.
Switch mode: Specifies whether it is a splice in (switch to local content/ads) or splice out
event (switch back to the audio/video in the stream). For messages with
the splice command type ’Time signal’ the Switch mode parameter will be
empty and the Segment type parameter will contain the details.
Seg. type: The segmentation type found in the segmentation descriptor (if found).
Type id: The hex value of the segmentation type parameter.
Duration: The time when a splice occurred to its end.
Tier: Specifies which tier group are to use this splice message. Multiple splice
messages can be sent addressed to different tier groups to allow switching at
different times.

When pressing the information button for a specific event a new window will pop-up with detailed
information about the event. The pop-up will show a log of the SCTE 35 events signaled for the
specified transport stream. Splice NULL messages are not logged.

148 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.9.10 ETR 290 — Status

The ETR 290 — Status view shows a stream content overview linked to current alarms, making it
easy to view what services and PIDs are currently affected by errors.
By clicking any of the ‘view’, service or PID nodes, more information will be displayed on the right
hand side of the table. This information is described in ETR 290 — Services.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 149

5.9.11 ETR 290 — Compare

The Compare view is based on analysis performed by the ETSI TR 101 290 engine and only the
streams monitored by ETR will be listed.
The Compare view allows comparison of services or transport streams across different probe
interfaces. Clicking Show streams results in a list of selectable transport streams and services,
and clicking Show services results in a list of selectable services. Note that the screen is not
auto-refreshed, click the Compare tab to perform an active refresh.

One or more services or transport streams are selected by clicking and later Ctrl + clicking items
from the list. Clicking the Compare selected button will launch a condensed overview page that
allows status parameters for services or streams to be viewed side by side. Key parameters are

150 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

presented in one column for each service/stream, and it is easy to recognize differences in signal
contents or alarm status. The number of streams that can be compared depends on screen size.

The compare column consists of several sub-views:

Stream overview

Stream overview shows a number of key parameters for the selected stream/service.

Stream overview
TS ID: The transport stream ID of the selected stream or the stream containing the
selected service
NW ID: The network ID of the selected stream or the stream containing the selected
service
Orig NW ID: The original network ID of the selected stream or the stream containing the
selected service

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 151

 Min. eff. bitr: The minimum effective bitrate (null packets removed) measured for the selected
stream or the stream containing the selected service
Max. eff. bitr: The maximum effective bitrate (null packets removed) measured for the selected
stream or the stream containing the selected service
Min. tot. bitr: The minimum total bitrate (including null packets) measured for the selected
stream or the stream containing the selected service
Max. tot. bitr: The maximum total bitrate (including null packets) measured for the selected
stream or the stream containing the selected service
Last update: The time since the last update. The information will be updated when the round
robin ETR engine stops monitoring a stream or once every minute for streams
which are permanently monitored.

Error statistics
Total monitoring time: The total time the stream has been monitored by the ETR engine
ETR Priority 1: The time the stream has been affected by ETSI TR 101 290 Priority 1
errors
ETR Priority 2: The time the stream has been affected by ETSI TR 101 290 Priority 2
errors
ETR Priority 3: The time the stream has been affected by ETSI TR 101 290 Priority 3
errors
No signal: The time the stream has been affected by ‘No signal’ alarm
CC errors: The time the stream has been affected by ‘CC error’ alarm
Interface errors: The time the stream has been affected by ‘Interface error’ alarm
Other checks: The time the stream has been affected by miscellaneous ‘Other’ alarms

Pie charts indicate for how long the stream has been affected by errors compared to the total
monitoring time, green color representing ‘OK’ and red color ‘Error’.
Service alarm

152 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

If a transport stream is selected for comparison the Service alarms subview displays a list of services
present in the stream. If there is one or more active alarms for a service this will be indicated by
a red ‘bulb’ whereas a green ‘bulb’ indicates no active alarms. If a service is affected by one or
more active alarms these alarms may be viewed by expanding the service tree. If relevant the PIDs
affected by alarms are also displayed. Note that only alarms detected during the last monitoring
period are displayed.
If a service is selected for comparison this subview simply shows the selected service and any active
alarms affecting the service.
Services

If a transport stream is selected for comparison the Services subview displays a list of services present
in the stream. Clicking the plus icon at a service will expand the service tree, displaying the service’s
individual components. The minimum and maximum effective bitrates of a service/component are
also shown, in addition to the number of continuity counter errors and the maximum measured PCR
jitter (if relevant).
Colored PIDs indicate scrambling; blue and green representing odd and even scrambling respectively.
Note that all references to a PID will result in a PID entry, i.e. one PID may be displayed several
times in the list.
Alarm graph

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 153

The Alarm graph subview shows similar alarm graphs as the ETR 290 — ETR Details — Alarm
graph popup view. Please refer to the ETR 290 — ETR Details section of this User’s Manual for
a comprehensive description of this view.
ETR Details

The ETR details subview shows the same alarm overview as the ETR 290 — ETR Details view.
Clicking a check will open a pop-up view displaying alarm details. Please refer to the ETR 290 —
ETR Details section of this user’s manual for a comprehensive description of this view.

154 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.9.12 ETR 290 — ETR threshold

The ETR thresholds make it possible to define detailed conditions for ETR 290 alarm triggering on
a per-stream basis. There are seven predefined ETR threshold templates that are write-protected and
cannot be edited by the operator:

• Default
• ETSI TR 101 290
• ATSC Default
• Optimised
• IP-SPTS
• CMTS downlink
• Analog carrier

These predefined thresholds may be used when defining a monitoring configuration, but it is a
good idea to create editable copies of these threshold templates and use these copies rather than the
originals. Doing so will allow fine-tuning of parameters later on.
There are two different ways of creating user-defined thresholds. To create a new threshold template
from scratch the operator should click the Add new threshold button. A pop-up window will appear
allowing the user to define alarm conditions and set the round-robin cycling time. The default values
of the different parameters settings are in accordance with the template Default. Another way of
creating a user-defined threshold template is by highlighting one of the threshold templates already
defined and then click the Duplicate highlighted button. The copy created this way may be edited
during the fine-tuning phase of system configuration.
Deleting an ETR threshold template is done by highlighting the threshold template that should be
removed and clicking Delete highlighted. Note that if the deleted threshold template is assigned to

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 155

a stream currently being monitored, the new threshold for that stream will default to the predefined
Default threshold template.
It is possible to perform multi-editing of existing threshold templates by selecting several threshold
templates (using the regular Ctrl + click or Shift + click functionality) and clicking Edit selected.
Parameters that differ between the threshold templates will be represented by an asterisk in the Edit
ETR threshold view. Changes made will affect all selected threshold templates.

The ETR threshold template has the following settings:

ETR Thresholds — Parameters:

Name: A text field with the name of the ETR threshold template
Description: Text field that should contain a meaningful description of the threshold
Analyzing Mode: The mode of table analysis. DVB, ATSC or ISDB may be selected.
Error timeout (s): The number of seconds an alarm stays active before it is cleared, if no new
alarms are generated. For all table related alarms the actual alarm timeout
used is the sum of the Error timeout parameter and the maximum table
repetition period. E.g. the TDT (Time Date Table) with table repetition
set to 30 seconds will have an effective error timeout of 40 seconds. This
avoids toggling of alarms for tables that are sent infrequently. Default
value: 10 s
156 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0
Tuning duration (s): The time (in seconds) the probe will stay tuned to a frequency/multicast
during the round-robin loop. For setting the tuning duration, use the
following expression: max_table_rep*2 + 10
Use the maximum table repetition, multiply it by 2 and then add 10
seconds.
E.g. with TDT repetition set to 30 seconds, use 30*2+10=70 seconds
tuning duration.
In order to speed up the tuning process tables should be transmitted more
frequently. For instance if TDT, which is usually the least frequently
transmitted table, is sent every 10 seconds, a tuning duration of 30 seconds
may be used. For signals without TDT (common in SPTS) the TDT check
can be disabled and the tuning duration may be reduced. If the tuning
duration is set too low the checks for tables with long table repetition
periods will still be in an unknown state as the probe does not have
enough measurements to determine the state for these. Tuning duration
should never be set to less than 10 seconds for Ethernet streams and 15
seconds for all other streams (the minimum for RF steams depends on
the setup). Default value: 70 s
Sync loss tuning The time (in seconds) the probe will stay tuned to a frequency/multicast
duration (s): with TS Sync loss during the round-robin tuning process. Usually there
is no need to stay tuned to a frequency/multicast once the probe has
established that there is no signal on the tuning setup. When monitoring
a tuning setup with signal loss, the probe will use the lowest value of
‘Tuning duration’ and ‘Sync loss tuning duration’, e.g. if the former is
set to 60 seconds and the latter to 1000 seconds, 60 seconds will be used.
Default value: 15 s
Minimum section The minimum allowed gap between transmission of two consecutive
gap (ms): sections with the same table ID. If the sections are transmitted too rapidly
the STB may not be able to process the data in time and various problems
can occur. However newer STBs can normally handle lower section
gaps than the default value of 25ms. The section gap time is measured
as the time between reception of the last TS packet of two consecutive
(complete) sections. This section gap setting is used for PAT, PMT, CAT,
NIT, RST, TDT, MGT, VCT, PIM/PNM, RRT, ATSC EIT, ETT and STT.
There are separate gap settings for SDT and EIT. Default value: 25 ms

ETR Thresholds — Priority 1:

TS sync: Enable or disable alarming of no signal error (TS sync loss)
Sync byte: Enable or disable alarming of sync byte errors

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 157

 PAT: Enable or disable alarming of Program Association Table errors
PAT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the PAT table.
interval (ms): Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 500 ms

PAT – Minimum The minimum number of services that must be present in the PAT.
number of services: Set to 0 to disable this check. Default: 0

PAT – Allowed When this field is left blank all TS IDs are considered valid. If one or
Transport Stream IDs: more TS IDs are specified (separated by commas or as a range) only
these IDs are considered valid, and any other TS ID will trigger an
alarm. Example of a valid field: ‘100-120, 300,320’
Continuity: Enable or disable alarming of Continuity Counter errors
PMT: Enable or disable alarming of Program Map Table errors
PMT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the PMT tables.
interval (ms): Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 500 ms

PMT – Minimum The minimum number of components that must be present in all
number of components: services. Set to 0 to disable this check. Default: 0

PMT – Require If enabled it requires a language descriptor to be present for all audio
language descriptors: components signaled in the PMT. Default: Disabled

Missing PID: Enable or disable alarming of missing PID errors

Note that errors affecting individual PIDs may be effectively masked by creating suitable PID
threshold templates that are associated with these PIDs. This is particularly useful for PIDs affected
by continuity counter errors, missing PID errors and unreferenced PID errors.

ETR Thresholds — Priority 2:

Transport: Enable or disable alarming of Transport error indicator errors
CRC: Enable or disable alarming of checksum errors for tables
PCR: Enable or disable alarming of Program Clock Reference errors
PCR – Maximum The maximum interval between reception of PCR values. Default
interval (ms): according to ETSI TR 101 290: 40 ms

PCR – Minimum The minimum interval between reception of PCR values. Nor-
interval (ms): mally this setting should be 0. Default: 0 ms

PCR – Discontinuity The maximum change in the PCR value between two adjoining
threshold (ms): PCR values (where the discontinuity indicator flag has not been
set). Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 100 ms

158 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 PCR – Require When enabled an alarm will be raised if a PID signaled as PCR
presence of PCR: in the PMT does not carry PCR information

PCR Accuracy: Enable or disable alarming of PCR Accuracy (PCR Jitter) errors
for OCR_AJ and PCR_OJ. PCR_OJ is not relevant for Ethernet
streams.
PCR Accuracy – Maximum The maximum allowed PCR jitter for PCR_AC measurements.
PCR_AC jitter (ns): Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 500 ns

PCR Accuracy – Maximum The maximum allowed PCR jitter for PCR_OJ measurements.
PCR_OJ jitter (ns): PCR_OJ measurement does not apply to IP streams. Default
according to ETSI TR 101 290: 500 ns
PTS: Enable or disable alarming of Presentation Time Stamp errors
PTS – Maximum The maximum allowed interval between the reception of two PTS
interval (ms): values. Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 700 ms
CAT: Enable or disable alarming of Conditional Access Table errors
CAT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the CAT
interval (ms): table. Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 500 ms

ETR Thresholds — Priority 3:

NIT: Enable or disable alarming of Network Information Table errors.
Only relevant when DVB mode is selected.
NIT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the NIT Actual
interval Actual (ms): table. Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 10 s

NIT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the NIT Other
interval Other (ms): table. Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 10 s

NIT – Require If enabled the probe will require that the network ID found in the
network id: NIT matches the configured value. Default: Disabled

NIT – Require If enabled the probe will require that the original network ID found
orig. netw. id: in the NIT matches the configured value. Default: Disabled

NIT – Min. The minimum number of transport streams that must be present in
num. transport streams: the NIT. Set to 0 to disable this check. Default: 0

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 159

 NIT – Cable If set to ‘Required’ an alarm will be generated if a DVB-C Cable
descriptor (DVB-C): descriptor is not present in the NIT for the monitored frequency.
Similarly if set to ‘Not allowed’, an alarm will be generated if the
DVB-C Cable descriptor is present. Default: Optional
NIT – Cable If set to ‘Required’ an alarm will be generated if a DVB-C2 Cable
descriptor (DVB-C2): descriptor is not present in the NIT for the monitored frequency.
Similarly if set to ‘Not allowed’, an alarm will be generated if the
DVB-C2 Cable descriptor is present. Default: Optional
NIT – Satellite If set to ‘Required’ an alarm will be generated if a DVB-S Satellite
descriptor (DVB-S): descriptor is not present in the NIT for the monitored frequency.
Similarly if set to ‘Not allowed’, an alarm will be generated if the
DVB-S Satellite descriptor is present. Default: Optional
NIT – Satellite If set to ‘Required’ an alarm will be generated if a DVB-S2 Satellite
descriptor (DVB-S2): descriptor is not present in the NIT for the monitored frequency.
Similarly if set to ‘Not allowed’, an alarm will be generated if the
DVB-S2 Satellite descriptor is present. Default: Optional
NIT – Terrestrial If set to ‘Required’ an alarm will be generated if a DVB-T Terrestrial
descriptor (DVB-T): descriptor is not present in the NIT for the monitored frequency.
Similarly if set to ‘Not allowed’, an alarm will be generated if the
DVB-T Terrestrial descriptor is present. Default: Optional
NIT – Terrestrial If set to ‘Required’ an alarm will be generated if a DVB-T2 Terres-
descriptor (DVB-T2): trial descriptor is not present in the NIT for the monitored frequency.
Similarly if set to ‘Not allowed’, an alarm will be generated if the
DVB-T2 Terrestrial descriptor is present. Default: Optional
NIT – Compare If enabled the NIT will be compared with the NIT on the reference
with reference NIT: frequency, and an alarm will be generated if a mismatch is found.
The first frequency in the tuning list will be used as the reference
frequency. Both the CRC values of the different sections and the
number of sections must be identical. Default: Disabled
SI Repetition Rate: Enable or disable alarming of SI Repetition Rate errors.
Unreferenced PID: Enable or disable alarming of Unreferenced PID errors. To mask
Unreferenced PID alarms for a PID create a PID threshold template
where this error is masked.
SDT: Enable or disable alarming of Service Description Table errors. Only
relevant when DVB mode is selected.
SDT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the SDT Actual
interval Actual (ms): table. Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 2 000 ms

160 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 SDT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the SDT Other
interval Other (ms): table. Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 10 000 ms

SDT – Minimum The minimum allowed section gap interval for the SDT table. De-
gap interval (ms): fault according to ETSI TR 101 290: 25 ms

SDT – Verify If enabled an alarm will be generated if a service found in the PAT
SDT against PAT: is not listed in the SDT. Default: Disabled

SDT – Require If enabled an alarm will be generated if a service found in the

service name: PAT does not have a service name or if the service name is empty.
Default: Disabled
SDT – Require If enabled an alarm will be generated if BAT is not present in the
BAT Presence: stream. Default: Disabled
EIT: Enable or disable alarming of Event Information Table errors. Only
relevant when DVB mode is selected.
EIT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the EIT Actual
interval Actual (ms): table. Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 2 000 ms

EIT – Minimum The minimum allowed section gap interval for the EIT tables. De-
gap interval (ms): fault according to ETSI TR 101 290: 25 ms

EIT – Required If one or more table IDs are specified an alarm will be generated
Table IDs: if these table IDs are not present in the stream on the EIT PID.
Entries should be separated by commas, or a range may be specified.
Example: ‘78,79,80-85’ Default: Disabled
EIT – Verify that If enabled, an alarm will be raised if one or more services don’t have
present event is a present event transmitted in the EIT (i.e. no EPG for the current
transmitted program)

EIT – Check valid If enabled, an alarm will be raised if time signaled for the present
time for present event event (the current program) is not correct. The maximum offset
from the current time can be configured.
EIT – Maximum timing The maximum timing error to allow for the present event. If the
error for present event(s) current time is not inside the program start/stop times by this margin
then an alarm will be raised.
EIT – Verify that If enabled, an alarm will be raised if one or more services don’t
following event is have a following event transmitted in the EIT (i.e. no EPG for the
transmitted next program)

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 161

 RST: Enable or disable alarming of Running Status Table errors. Only
relevant when DVB mode is selected.
RST – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the RST table.
interval (ms): Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 20 s
TDT: Enable or disable alarming of Time Date Table errors. Only relevant
when DVB mode is selected.
TDT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the TDT and
interval (ms): TOT tables. Default according to ETSI TR 101 290: 30 000 ms

TDT – Require Check this checkbox if TOT presence is required. Default: disabled
TOT presence:

MGT: Enable or disable alarming of Master Guide Table errors. Only

relevant when ATSC mode is selected.
MGT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the MGT table.
interval (ms): Default: 150ms
VCT: Enable or disable alarming of Virtual Channel Table errors. Only
relevant when ATSC mode is selected.
Require TVCT: Require presence of the Terrestrial Virtual Channel Table.
Require CVCT: Require presence of the Cable Virtual Channel Table.
VCT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the VCT table.
interval (ms): Default: 400ms
PIM/PNM: Enable or disable alarming of Program Information Message and
Program Name Message tables. Only relevant when ATSC mode is
selected.
Require PIM: Require presence of the Program Information Message table.
Maximum interval The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the PIM table.
PIM (ms): Default: 500ms
Require PNM: Require presence of the Program Name Message table.
Maximum interval The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the PNM table.
PNM (ms): Default: 1000ms
RRT: Enable or disable alarming of Rating Region Table errors. Only
relevant when ATSC mode is selected.
RRT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the RRT table.
interval (ms): Default: 30000ms

162 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 STT: Enable or disable alarming of System Time Table errors. Only
relevant when ATSC mode is selected.
STT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the STT table.
interval (ms): Default: 1000ms
ATSC EIT: Enable or disable alarming of ATSC Event Information Table errors.
Only relevant when ATSC mode is selected.
ATSC EIT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the ATSC
interval EIT–0 (ms): EIT–0 table. Default: 500ms

ATSC EIT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the ATSC
interval EIT–1 to EIT–1 to EIT–3 tables. Default: 5000ms
EIT–3 (ms):

ATSC EIT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the ATSC
interval EIT–4 to EIT–4 to EIT–127 tables. Default: 30000ms
EIT–127 (ms):

ETT: Enable or disable alarming of Extended Text Table errors. Only

relevant when ATSC mode is selected.
ETT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the ATSC
interval ETT–0 (ms): ETT–0 table. Default: 2000ms

ETT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the ATSC
interval ETT–1 to ETT–1 to ETT–3 tables. Default: 5000ms
ETT–3 (ms):

ETT – Maximum The maximum allowed section repetition interval for the ATSC
interval ETT–4 to ETT–4 to ETT–127 tables. Default: 30000ms
ETT–127 (ms):

ETR Thresholds — Other checks:

CA system checks: Enable or disable alarming of Conditional Access System errors.
CA system checks – The maximum allowed ECM repetition interval. Default: 500 ms
Maximum ECM
interval (ms):

CA system checks – The maximum time allowed between ECM changes. Default:
Maximum ECM 25000ms
change period (ms):

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 163

 CA system checks – The minimum allowed average EMM bitrate. Default: 1000 bps
Minimum avg.
EMM bitrate (bps):

CA system checks – The averaging period used to calculate EMM bitrate. Note that the
EMM bitrate average average period must be at least 20s less than the round-robin tuning
period (s): period, e.g. with a round-robin tuning period of 70s the maximum
EMM bitrate average period is 50s. Default: 10s
CA system checks – The maximum allowed control word period (the maximum time
Maximum control word that can go by without a change in the scrambling control bits for
period (ms): scrambled PIDs). Default: 25 000 ms

PID minimum Enable or disable alarming of PID minimum bitrate. The bitrates
bitrate checks: are set in the PID threshold template.

PID maximum Enable or disable alarming of PID maximum bitrate. The bitrates
bitrate checks: are set in the PID threshold template.
PID checks: Enable or disable alarming of PID presence errors, scrambling/clear
requirements and PID type checks. The checks are set in the PID
threshold template.
Service minimum Enable or disable alarming of service minimum bitrate errors. Re-
bitrate checks: quirements are specified in the service threshold template associated
with the stream.
Service maximum Enable or disable alarming of service maximum bitrate errors. Re-
bitrate checks: quirements are specified in the service threshold template associated
with the stream.
Service checks: Enable or disable alarming of service presence, scrambling/clear
required, service type, service name and service ID errors. Require-
ments are specified in the service threshold template associated
with the stream.
Service checks – Check this box to enable service ID checks against the service ID
Only allow services listed list specified in the service threshold template associated with the
in service template: stream.

MIP check: Enable or disable alarming of errors related to the Megaframe

Insertion Packet.
MIP checks – Check this box to enable an alarm if the MIP table is missing for
Require presence of MIP: the stream.

164 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 MIP checks – The maximum MIP timing error before raising an alarm. The unit
Max MIP timing is µs. Default: 10 µs
error(µs):

Gold TS check: Enable or disable alarming for tables failing Gold TS reference
checking.
Gold TS check – When enabled an alarm will be raised for any change, including a
Also check version change in the table version number and CRC.
number and CRC:

Gold TS check – Do verification of the PAT table against the stored reference PAT
Verify PAT table: table.

Gold TS check – Do verification of the PMT tables against the stored reference PMT
Verify PMT tables: tables.

Gold TS check – Do verification of the CAT table against the stored reference CAT
Verify CAT table: table.

Gold TS check – Do verification of the SDT actual table against the stored reference
Verify SDT actual table: SDT actual table.

Gold TS check – Do verification of the SDT other tables against the stored reference
Verify SDT other tables: SDT other tables.

Gold TS check – Do verification of the BAT table against the stored reference BAT
Verify BAT table: table.

Gold TS check – Do verification of the NIT actual table against the stored reference
Verify NIT actual table: NIT actual table.

Gold TS check – Do verification of the NIT other tables against the stored reference
Verify NIT other tables: NIT other tables.
Time information check: Enable or disable alarming if there are errors in the time information
sent in the streams. Probe should use NTP time sync to use this
functionality.
Time information check – Check the time in the TDT table and alarm if it is wrong.
Check TDT:

Time information check – Check the time in the TOT table and alarm if it is wrong.
Check TOT:

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 165

 Time information check – Check the time in the Logical Time Code table and alarm if it is
Check LTC: wrong.

Time information check – The maximum number of seconds the time information provided
Max time offset: in the stream can deviate from the probe time before an alarm is
raised.
Time information check – The maximum time without any time information before an alarm
Max repetition time: is raised.

5.9.13 ETR 290 — PID thresholds

The PID thresholds make it possible to define detailed conditions for alarm triggering on a PID or
PID type basis. There is one predefined PID threshold template that cannot be edited by the operator:
‘Default’. The ‘Default’ PID threshold template contains no PID definitions and will therefore not
alter alarming for any service.
By associating scheduling templates to checks it is possible to disable alarming at pre-selected time
intervals. Scheduling templates are defined in the Setup — Scheduling view and will be available
from a selection drop-down menu for some of the checks.
In the ‘PID Thresholds’ table, the ‘Refs’ column shows how many streams are associated with each
threshold template.
There are two different ways of creating user-defined thresholds. To create a new threshold template
from scratch the operator should click the Add new threshold template button. A pop-up window
will appear allowing the user to define alarm conditions. Another way of creating a user-defined
threshold template is by highlighting one of the templates already defined and then click the
Duplicate highlighted button.

166 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Deleting a PID threshold template is done by highlighting the threshold template that should be
removed and clicking Delete highlighted. Note that if the deleted threshold template was assigned
to a stream being monitored, the new threshold for that stream will default to the predefined Default
threshold template.
The PID threshold template has the following settings:

Edit PID Threshold:

Name: The name of the PID threshold template
Description: Text field that should contain a meaningful description of the threshold template

PID Threshold Parameters:

Selection: The user selects if the requirements should apply for a specific PID or for
all PIDs of a specified type. Note that the PID type detection depends on
correct PSI/SI/PSIP signaling.
PID: The PID for which the specified requirements apply. If a PID type is
selected in the ‘Selection’ column, this field will update to read N/A when
the Apply changes button is clicked.
Description: A text field describing the PID or PID type requirement.
Require pres.: If this field is checked an alarm will be raised provided that the specified
PID is not present in the transport stream. Note that this check is only
available for specified PIDs and not for PID types.
Monitor min BW: An alarm is raised if the PID bandwidth goes below the specified minimum
bandwidth (bandwidth in kbit/s or Mbit/s) and monitoring is enabled.
Monitor max BW: An alarm is raised if the maximum PID bandwidth specified is exceeded
(bandwidth in kbit/s or Mbit/s) and monitoring is enabled.
Req. language: If the PID need to have a certain language code signaled in the language
descriptor it can be set here. An alarm will be raised if a wrong language is
signaled or if the language is not signaled.
VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 167
 Ignore CC: Select a scheduling template different from ‘Never’ for the probe to ignore
CC errors for the specified PID or PID type.
Ignore missing: Select a scheduling template different from ‘Never’ for the probe to ignore
that the specified PID or PID type is signaled in PSI but missing in the
stream.
Ignore PCR: Select a scheduling template different from ‘Never’ for the probe to ignore
any PCR errors for this PID or PID type.
Ignore unref.: Select a scheduling template different from ‘Never’ for the probe to ignore
that the specified PID is present in the stream but unreferenced in PSI.
Ignore all: Select a scheduling template different from ‘Never’ for the probe to ignore
all errors for a specified PID or PID type.
Scrambling: An alarm will be raised provided that the specified PID is scrambled when
‘require clr’ has been selected. Similarly an alarm will be raised if the
specified PID is clear when ‘require scr’ has been selected. The default
setting is to ignore whether the PID or PID type is scrambled or not.

5.9.14 ETR 290 — Service thresh.

The Service thresholds make it possible to define detailed conditions for alarm triggering on a
per-service basis. There is one predefined service threshold template that cannot be edited by the
operator: Default. The Default service threshold template contains no service definitions and will
therefore not alter alarming for any service.
By associating scheduling templates to service threshold templates it is possible to disable alarming
at pre-selected time intervals. Scheduling templates are defined in the Setup — Scheduling view
and will be available from the schedule drop-down menu.
In the ‘Service Thresholds’ table, the ‘Refs’ column shows how many streams are associated with
each threshold template. Thresholds are associated with each stream in the Multicasts — Streams
— Edit view.

168 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

There are two different ways of creating user-defined thresholds. To create a new threshold template
from scratch the operator should click the Add new threshold group button. A pop-up window
will appear allowing the user to assign a name and value to the new threshold and define the alarm
conditions. Another way of creating a user-defined threshold template is by highlighting one of the
templates already defined and then click the Duplicate selected button.
Deleting a service threshold template is done by highlighting the template that should be removed
and clicking Delete selected. Note that if the deleted threshold template was assigned to a stream
being monitored, the new threshold template for that stream will default to the Default template.
The settings Service minimum bitrate checks, Service minimum bitrate checks and Service
checks in the ETR threshold template controls whether or not to report alarms based on the service
threshold template parameters.

Edit Service Threshold

Name: A text string that identifies the service threshold group
Description: Text field that should contain a meaningful description of the threshold

Service Threshold Parameters

Selection: The user selects if the requirements should apply for a specific service
ID (as specified in the ID column), for all services of a specified type or
for a service with a specified service name (as specified in the Monitor
name column). Note that the service type detection depends on correct
PSI/SI/PSIP signaling.
ID: The service ID for which the associated thresholds should apply. For
an SPTS the service ID will generally be 1; adding several list entries
with different service IDs allows different thresholds to apply for different
services within an MPTS.
This value only applies if ‘SID’ is selected in the Selection column.
Monitor name: A text string may be specified that should match the service name of the
associated service ID, as analyzed from the received SDT. Note that the
check is case sensitive. An alarm will be raised if there is not a perfect
match.
VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 169
 Require presence: If this field is checked an alarm will be raised provided that the specified
service is not present in the stream. This check only requires that the
service is present in the PAT, the other ETR checks will give alarms if
there are other problems with the service, such as missing PMT or missing
components. Note that this check is only available for specified services
and not for service types.
Monitor min BW: If enabled an alarm is raised provided that the minimum service bandwidth
goes below the specified bandwidth (in kbit/s or Mbit/s).
Monitor max BW: If enabled an alarm is raised provided that the maximum service bandwidth
specified (in kbit/s or Mbit/s) is exceeded.
Report name: It is possible to define the service name that should be used for alarm
traps and for alarm reporting to the VideoBRIDGE Controller. This can be
convenient to be able to track a service that changes name (as signaled in
PSI/SI) in the signal chain, when services within an MPTS are unnamed
(no service names in the SDT) or when services should be recognized by
the VideoBRIDGE Controller under a different name than indicated in the
SDT.
Note that this functionality will only work for services specified by service
ID or by name (specified in the Selection column).
Scrambling: If a value different from ‘Ignore’ is selected an alarm will be raised if
the service scrambling status differs from the requirement. A service is
considered scrambled if one of its components is scrambled.
Service type: If a value different from ‘Ignore’ is selected it should match the service
type detected by analyzing the received SDT. An alarm will be raised if
the service types differ.
Ignore EIT: Ignore missing EIT errors for this service. This is used for services which
does not have EIT data. By ignoring EIT alarms on these services, false
EIT alarms are avoided.
Schedule: The Schedule drop-down menu allows the user to associate a scheduling
scheme to a service, in effect masking alarms during selected intervals.
Scheduling templates are defined in the Setup — Scheduling view. The
predefined scheduling templates ‘Never’ and ‘Always’ will always be se-
lectable, and these will result in service alarms never and always being
masked, respectively.
Note that if a PID is shared between several services and alarm masking
is defined for one of the services, no alarms will be raised due to errors
affecting this service.

Note that it is possible to create a service threshold template that allows probe alarming if a new
service appears in a stream. This is done by creating a threshold template listing the service IDs

170 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 that are allowed to be present in a stream, and associating it to the stream. A complementary ETR
threshold template should be created, that has the ‘Only allow services listed in service template’
check enabled. This ETR threshold template should also be associated with the stream.

5.9.15 ETR 290 — Gold TS thresholds

The Gold TS reference feature is used to compare the tables in the transport stream with a set of
stored reference tables. This allows the operator to be notified of any changes in the PSI/SI tables
such as:

• A service disappearing

• A new service being added

• Language descriptors suddenly changing

• Changes in service names

• Changes in frequencies used to transmit the signals

• And lots of misconfigurations in multiplexers

To use the Gold TS reference functionality, first store away tables for a stream or a set of streams.
Go to ETR 290 — Gold TS thr..
Here you can see the reference thresholds currently stored on the probe and they can be renamed or
edited.
To add new reference thresholds or update the existing thresholds click on the button named
Add/update threshold. The following dialog is then shown:

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 171

There are two different ways of creating a Gold TS reference template:

• Creating a template for the currently tuned stream on a specific input

• Creating a template for all streams on a specific input (or all inputs)

When creating a template for a specific stream the table set is saved immediately. It is therefore
recommended that the ETR tuning is locked to this stream to avoid the round-robin operation from
tuning to a new frequency just before the table set is stored. It can take 30 seconds after tuning to
receive all tables.
When creating templates for all streams on an input this is done as a part of the round robin cycle at
the end if the tuning period. It can then take a while for all thresholds to be generated (or updated)
depending on the number of streams on that input.
When the reference template have been created it is automatically associated with the stream for
which it was generated.
The operation of the Gold TS reference thresholds are controlled by the ETR threshold template
associated with the stream. No settings are changed here when creating the reference templates so
this needs to be done manually by going to ETR 290 — ETR thr.
If needed a new template can be created and associated with the stream(s). Or the existing template(s)
can be changed.

172 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

The reference check needs to be set to alarm if the Gold TS reference checking are to be performed.
The settings are as follows:

Also check version By default the version number and the original CRC of the tables are
number and CRC not checked. In many systems the version number can be updated
even if no other changes are performed (for instance if a multiplexer
is rebooted). So for most cases this should be left disabled.
Verify PAT table When enabled the Program Allocation Table will be checked. This
allows the operator to catch addition and removal of services as well
as changes to the PMT PIDs used for the different services.
Verify PMT table When enabled the Program Map Table will be checked. This allows
the operator to catch lots of changes to the different services:

• Addition or removal of the various components such as audio

and video PIDs.

• Changes in language descriptors

• Changed PCR PIDs

• Changed or removed ECM PID

• Lots of changes in the descriptors can be detected

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 173

 Verify CAT table When enabled the Conditional Access Table will be checked. This
allows the operator to catch errors related to the signaling for the CA
Systems such as EMM PID disappearing or the CA System ID being
changed
Verify SDT actual table When enabled the SDT table for the current stream will be checked.
This allows the operator to catch changes is service and operator
names, service types and the various descriptors, both DVB defined
and private descriptors
Verify SDT other tables When enabled the SDT tables for the other streams will be checked.
Checking is not enabled as default. This allows the operator to catch
changes is service and operator names, service types and the various
descriptors, both DVB defined and private descriptors
Verify BAT table When enabled the Bouquet Association Table will be checked. The
BAT table is not checked as default.
Verify NIT actual table When enabled the Bouquet Association Table will be checked. The
BAT table is not checked as default When enabled the Network
Information Table for the current network will be checked. This
allows the operator to catch changes such as:

• Changes in frequency

• Changes in modulation parameters

• Network name

• Changes in service lists per transport stream

• Changes in private as well as MPEG/DVB defined descriptors

Verify NIT actual tables When enabled the Network Information Tables for the other networks
will be checked. This is disabled as default. This allows the operator
to catch changes such as:

• Changes in frequency

• Changes in modulation parameters

• Network name

• Changes in service lists per transport stream

• Changes in private as well as MPEG/DVB defined descriptors

The Gold TS reference checking is performed by the ETR engines and can be performed in round

174 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

robin. To view the status go to the ETR Details page for the stream and click the Reference check:

All the different tables and sections monitored are listed here. If there have been any changes to the
tables the check will turn red and alarms be sent.
When the ETR engine is tuned to a stream it is possible to compare the tables for this stream with
the stored reference tables by clicking on the entry in the list. This opens up a new window where
the table data can be compared, both as a tree-breakdown and as a hexadecimal dump:

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 175

If the tables are inspected and the change found to be OK the operator can then go back to ETR 290
— Gold TS thr. and update the stored table set to the new version.

176 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.10 Content
5.10.1 Content — Captions (requires CONTENT-OPT)

The Content — Captions view provides an overview of the closed caption status of each service.
The services that the Software Probe extracts captions from are presented in a list of services.

Thumb: Thumbnail
Name: Service name
Parent MC stream: Name of the multicast stream this service is extracted from.
#SCTE 20: Number of SCTE 20 caption services detected in this service.
#CEA 608: Number of non-SCTE 20, CEA 608 caption services detected in this
service.
#CEA 708: Number of CEA 708 caption services detected in this service.
Errors: Number of caption related errors on this service since joined.

Caption service
Press the blue information button on a service to open the caption service window. This window
gives you access to view all closed caption services, and see the alarms for this service.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 177

 The Caption service — Captions view in this pop-up consists of a closed caption service format
selector, and the list to display the select captions.
By default, only the closed caption text is shown in the list. If you would like to see all control
messages as well, check the Show control messages checkbox at the bottom left.

5.10.2 Content — EBP (requires CONTENT-OPT)

The Encoder Boundary Point (EBP) monitoring is designed to monitor Adaptive Transport Streams
(ATS) carrying boundary signaling. The VB330-SW presents Presentation Time Stamp (PTS) mea-
surements and calculations for IDR frames, and EBPs following the OpenCable EBP specification3 .
Buttons in the GUI control which data is presented in the table. Parsing of the OpenCable EBP
3 Encoder Boundary Point Specification, Version I01, OC-SP-EBP-I01-130118 https://www.cablelabs.com/
specifications/encoder-boundary-point-specification?v=I01

178 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

descriptors will be added in future software updates. Streams that belong to the same ATS group can
be grouped together, and a reference stream can be selected. The VB330-SW will give information
about each stream and compare streams within the groups.
The table in the GUI uses a tree structure. Each group will have an entry in the table followed by
the streams in the group. Streams without a group will be put under Not grouped. The different
measurements and calculations, along with all elements of the Content — EBP view, are described
in the following tables. A setup guide is located at the end of this section. A short guide is also
available directly in the GUI by clicking the How to set up EBP button.

Thumb: The thumbnails will not always be generated at the same time for all
streams in a group. This means that the thumbnails displayed in the user
interface might differ even though the streams are synchronized.
Name: The name of the stream or group. A group row will have a + or - sign to the
left of the name. This can be used to expand and collapse the group. If a
name is highlighted in the table it means that it is the reference for Group
PTS skew calculations for the group members.
Status: The EBP status of the stream or group. The colors reflect the status of the
EBP or IDR frame alarms. A group’s status will have one field per member
and show the status of all stream members. These are not in order. The
colors show the following
• Green: No active alarms
• Red: One or more alarms are active
• Grey: The stream has No signal

PTS: The latest PTS read, for the boundaries (EBP or IDR frame) depending on
the Measurement type selected.
Group PTS skew The skew between the stream’s and the group reference’s boundary PTSs.
This value is calculated based on the points that are expected to be synchro-
nized. If a stream has fallen out of sync with the group, the value is updated
continuously. The value is calculated by subtracting the reference’s PTS
from the stream’s PTS. A positive value means the PTS of the stream is
larger (later in time) than that of the reference. A negative value means
smaller (before in time). Typically the streams will share the same PTSs,
and the skew is expected to be 0.
EBP-IDR PTS diff The difference between the PTS of the packet containing the EBP, and
the PTS of the IDR frame. As the header indicates, the IDR frame PTS
is subtracted from the EBP PTS. A positive value means the PTS of the
stream is larger (later in time) than that of the reference. A negative value
means smaller (before in time). An ATS is expected to carry an EBP in
the IDR frame. In this case they have the same PTS with no difference
between the EBP and IDR frame.
PTS gap The gap between the EBP or IDR frame PTSs of the respective stream.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 179

 PTS gap min The minimum value measured within the selected Time window.
PTS gap max The max value measured within the selected Time window.
PTS gap avg The average calculated from the gaps within the selected Time window.
Graph Column used to open the graph pop-up.

The table below describes the buttons found at the bottom of the page.

Measurement type: Selects which measurements are displayed in the table. The currently
selected measurement type’s button is highlighted.
Options: Encoder Boundary Points or IDR frames
Time window: Selects the time window of the gap statistics. The currently selected
time window’s button is highlighted. Time units: m = minute, h = hour,
d = day.
Options: 5m, 20m, 1h, 8h, 1d or 4d
Reset measurements: These buttons are used to reset the EBP data of the streams.
Reset selected: reset the EBP data of streams (table rows) currently
selected in the table.
Reset all streams: resets the EBP data of all streams.
How to set up EBP Opens a pop-up with a short description of how to set up the EBP
monitoring.

Setup guide
By default, the EBP and IDR frame PTS monitoring is not enabled. The setup consists of two main
steps: create content thresholds, and configure the streams. The monitoring is controlled by the
content thresholds. A stream must be assigned a content thresholds template with EBP and/or IDR
frame monitoring enabled to appear in the Content — EBP view.
Create content thresholds:
1. Go to the Content — Content thresh. view.

2. Create new, or edit existing, thresholds.

• The EBP related settings are under the EBP header.
• Hover over the field in the Threshold column for a tool-tip.

3. Enable EBP and/or IDR frame PTS monitoring.

4. Set the thresholds according to your specifications.

Add streams:
1. Go to the Multicasts — Streams view.

180 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 2. Add the streams you want to monitor.
3. When editing set the following: (remember that multi edit is possible)
• Group name under the General.
• Group reference under Content for the skew reference.
• Content thresholds under Content selects content thresholds.
4. All streams with the same Group name are considered a group.
5. A reference is selected automatically if no group member has Group reference checked.

5.10.3 Content — Timeline (requires TIMELINE-OPT)

The Timeline view requires the Timeline option. Select Timeline from the Content tab, and the
timeline should load in the main content area.

Choosing what to inspect

To change which stream and service you are looking at, select the desired service from the drop
down at the top left. Note that tracks that are already added will stay put to enable comparing
services. If you do not want to have the old tracks there, click the small × in the top right of each
track. You can filter which streams you see by typing part of the stream or service name into the
filter box. The drop down should now only be populated by the matching streams or services. To
clear the filter, just click on the × in the right hand part of the filter box.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 181

In the bottom left you can select the different types of data available for the selected service.
To remove a track, press the × located at the top right of the track you want to remove.
Some tracks can be resized by clicking on the vertical arrows located under the close button for the
track.

Navigating in time

To navigate in time you have two options. Back and forth in time, and zoom in / out.
To go back and forth it time you can select the desired time from the time and date picker located at
the center top. The time and date picker is most useful for large jumps in time, like if you want to
look at data from days/weeks/months back in time. Just select the correct date and time, and the
timeline should automatically jump to that point in time.
The buttons to the left and right of the time-picker let you move in small increments in both directions,
and are most suited for smaller adjustments in time.
The last way to navigate in time is to drag the timeline in the direction you would want to move
it. The timeline should smoothly glide with the dragging motion, and new data should pop up
seamlessly.
To zoom in and out, use the + and – buttons located to the right of the filter box. Between the buttons
the current zoom level is shown. The zoom level describes how much time is shown in one box.

Persistent layout

When you are happy with the widget layout, you may save the layout by pressing the Save button on
the top of the screen and giving the layout an unique name. If you later want to update this layout,
just save with the same name, and the new layout will override the old.

182 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 To load a previously saved layout, press the Load button on the top of the screen, find the layout you
want in the list, and press the Load button. You can also delete layouts you no longer need from this
view. Select the layout from the list, press the Delete button and confirm the deletion.

5.10.4 Content — Content thresh.

Thresholds are used to determine when to actually raise an alarm upon detection of an error. The
Content thresholds are used for generating content alarms as well as for calculating error-seconds.
Error seconds and content alarms are issued whenever measurements exceed the defined threshold
levels for a parameter. The alarm level of each of these alarms is set in the Alarms — Alarm setup
view. Note that it is also possible to disable alarms in the Alarms — Alarm setup view.
The Content — Content thresh. view makes it possible to define threshold values that operate at
stream level. Thresholds are associated with each stream in the Multicasts — Streams — Edit
and OTT — Channels views. There are two different ways of creating user-defined thresholds.
To create a new threshold template from scratch the operator should click the Add new threshold
button. A pop-up window will appear allowing the user to define alarm conditions. Another way of
creating a user-defined threshold template is by highlighting one of the threshold templates already
defined and then click the Duplicate highlighted button.
Deleting a threshold template is done by highlighting the threshold template that should be removed
and clicking Delete selected. It is possible to delete or edit several entries simultaneously. Several
entries are selected by using the regular Ctrl + click or Shift + click functionality. Click the Edit

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 183

button to edit one or more selected threshold templates. Note that the predefined ‘Default’ threshold
template cannot be deleted or changed.
In the threshold presets list the ‘Refs’ column displays how many streams are associated with each
stream threshold template.
The available thresholds depend on the currently active license.
The Sources column indicates which of the different threshold settings are supported where.

Content thresholds
Name: A text string that identifies the Content threshold

184 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Freeze-frame detection sensitivity: Picture matching in video streams is not an exact science,
as noise can be introduced in many of the stages the
stream goes through. This setting makes it possible to de-
fine the amount of noise to be allowed when performing
freeze-frame detection.
When set to Disabled, the freeze-frame detection is dis-
abled. When set to Trigger seldom, only a small amount
of noise is allowed when deciding whether the picture has
changed or not. This means that the pictures have to be
close to identical before the freeze-frame alarm is raised.
Normal is the recommended setting and should be used
in most cases. Trigger often allows a high amount of
noise. This means that it allows pictures to be quite dif-
ferent while still classifying them as identical, which may
result in too many freeze-frame alarms.
Freeze-frame error timeout: The time (in minutes) a freeze-frame error should persist
before the Extractor will raise an alarm
Color-freeze detection sensitivity: This setting makes is possible to define the amount of
noise to be allowed when performing color-freeze detec-
tion.
When set to Disabled, the color-freeze detection is dis-
abled. When set to Trigger seldom, only a small amount
of noise is allowed when comparing to the list of solid
colors. Normal is the recommended setting, whereas
Trigger often allows a high amount of noise, which may
result in too many color-freeze alarms.
Color-freeze error timeout: The time (in seconds) a color-freeze error should persist
before the Extractor will raise an alarm.
Profile alignment sensitivity: OTT channels only: Picture matching in video streams is
not an exact science, as noise can be introduced in many
of the stages the stream goes through. This setting makes
it possible to define how much noise is allowed when
performing profile alignment detection.
When set to Disabled, profile alignment detection is dis-
abled. When set to Trigger seldom, a large amount of
noise is allowed when comparing the frames across pro-
files for out-of-alignment conditions. Normal is the rec-
ommended setting, whereas Trigger often allows only
a small amount of noise, which may result in too many
out-of-alignment alarms.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 185

 Expected display aspect ratio: If this field is non-empty, an alarm will be raised if the
display aspect ratio for the stream differs from the one
entered here.
The aspect ratio is entered on the form n:m (e.g 16:9 or
4:3).
DAR alarm timeout: The minimum number of seconds during which an alarm
remains active when the Expected display aspect ratio is
not correct.
Expected pixel aspect ratio: If this field is non-empty, an alarm will be raised if the
pixel aspect ratio for the stream differs from the one
entered here.
The aspect ratio is entered on the form n:m (e.g 1:1 or
2:1).
PAR alarm timeout: The minimum number of seconds during which an alarm
remains active when the Expected pixel aspect ratio is
not correct.
Loudness monitoring: Enables real-time loudness extraction for the stream. The
loudness data can be retrieved through the Eii.
Audio silence detection threshold: The value in LUFS/LKFS when to trigger the audio si-
lence alarm. Setting this to a value of 0 disables audio
silence detection.
Audio silence detection timeout: The number of seconds that audio has to be below the
silence detection threshold before the audio silence alarm
is triggered.
Audio peak detection threshold: The value in LUFS/LKFS when to trigger the audio too
loud alarm. Setting this to a value of 0 disables audio
peak detection.
Audio peak detection timeout: The number of seconds that audio has to be above the
peak detection threshold before the audio too loud alarm
is triggered.
Audio phase detection threshold: For two channel audio (stereo or dual mono), this defines
the threshold for when to report out of phase audio. A
value of –1 indicates audio that is completely out of phase,
whereas a value of 1 indicates audio that is completely in
phase. Setting this to a value of –1 disables audio phase
detection.
Audio phase detection timeout: The number of seconds that audio has to be above the
phase detection threshold before the audio out of phase
alarm is triggered.

186 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 VMAF scoring: OTT channels only: When enabled, the VB330-SW will
compare the different profiles and create a VMAF score
relative to the profile with the highest bitrate.
QoE scoring: Enables picture analysis and MOS scoring.
QoE alarm threshold: Set the threshold for average MOS. If QoE scoring is
enabled and this value is set to a a value above 1.0, an
alarm will be triggered if the MOS average drops below
this value. Set to 1.0 to disable the alarm.
QoE alarm window: The time (in minutes) over which to calculate the MOS
average for alarming purposes.
Extract captions: Enable extraction of closed captions from the video
stream.
Minimum SCTE 20 per service: Minimum number of SCTE 20 caption services expected
in services
Minimum CEA 608 per service: Minimum number of non-SCTE 20 CEA 608 caption
services expected in services
Minimum CEA 708 per service: Minimum number of CEA 708 caption services expected
in services
EBP PTS monitoring: When EBP PTS monitoring is enabled, the probe will
look for EBPs, and the respective PTS, in the stream. The
table in the Content — EBP tab will present the stream’s
EBP related information. This setting only applies to
the table’s Encoder Boundary Points Measurement type.
The stream is only visible in the table when EBP PTS
monitoring is enabled.
EBP PTS gap max: The upper EBP PTS gap threshold. Gaps longer than this
threshold will raise an alarm. Set this and gap min to -1
to disable the alarm.
EBP PTS gap min: The lower EBP PTS gap threshold. Gaps shorter than
this threshold will raise an alarm. Set this and gap max
to -1 to disable the alarm.
EBP group PTS skew: The absolute value of the group PTS skew allowed before
an alarm is raised. The skew is calculated based on the
group reference stream. set to -1 to disable alarm

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 187

 IDR PTS monitoring: When IDR PTS monitoring is enabled, the probe will look
for IDR frames, and the respective PTS, in the stream.
The table in the Content — EBP tab will present the
stream’s IDR frame related information. This setting
only applies to the table’s IDR frame Measurement type.
The stream is only visible in the table when IDR PTS
monitoring is enabled.
IDR PTS gap max: The upper IDR frame PTS gap threshold. Gaps longer
than this threshold will raise an alarm. Set this and gap
max to -1 to disable alarm.
IDR PTS gap min: The lower IDR frame PTS gap threshold. Gaps shorter
than this threshold will raise an alarm. Set this and gap
max to -1 to disable alarm.
IDR group PTS skew: The absolute value of the group PTS skew allowed before
an alarm is raised. The jitter is calculated based on the
group reference stream. set to -1 to disable alarm.
Alignment threshold: The maximum PTS difference allowed between an EBP
and the associated IDR frame. Set to -1 to disable alarm.
Store thumbnails: If enabled, thumbnails are stored for display in the Con-
tent — Timeline view.
Note that the Extract thumbnails checkbox in the tun-
ing setup must be checked for this to take effect.
Store captions: If enabled, closed captions are stored for display in the
Content — Timeline view.
Note that the Extract thumbnails checkbox in the tun-
ing setup must be checked for this to take effect.
Store QoE: If enabled, QoE scores are stored for display in the Con-
tent — Timeline view.
Note that the QoE scoring checkbox must be checked
for this to take effect.
Store loudness: If enabled, loudness data are stored for display in the
Content — Timeline view.
Note that the Loudness monitoring checkbox must be
checked for this to take effect.

188 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.10.5 Content — Service thresh.

Thresholds are used to determine when to actually raise an alarm upon detection of an error. The
Content — Service thresh. view makes it possible to define detailed conditions for alarm triggering
on a per-service basis. This is particularly useful to specify individual alarm handling rules for
services in a multi-program transport stream (MPTS). Note that if there is a stream and service
threshold mismatch, the service threshold will apply. This may be the case if QoE or scheduling
requirements are set differently in the stream threshold template and service threshold template
associated with a stream. There is one predefined service threshold template that cannot be edited
by the operator: Default. The Default service threshold template contains no service definitions and
will therefore not alter alarming for any service.
By associating scheduling templates to service threshold templates it is possible to disable alarming
at pre-selected time intervals. Scheduling templates are defined in the Setup — Scheduling view
and will be available from the schedule drop-down menu.
In the ‘Service Thresholds’ table, the ‘Refs’ column shows how many streams are associated with
each threshold template. Thresholds are associated with each stream in the Multicasts — Streams
— Edit view.
There are two different ways of creating user-defined thresholds. To create a new threshold template
from scratch the operator should click the Add new threshold group button. A pop-up window
will appear allowing the user to assign a name and value to the new threshold and define the alarm
conditions. Another way of creating a user-defined threshold template is by highlighting one of the
templates already defined and then click the Duplicate selected button.
Deleting a service threshold template is done by highlighting the template that should be removed
and clicking Delete selected. Note that if the deleted threshold template was assigned to a stream
being monitored, the new threshold template for that stream will default to the Default template.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 189

Please refer to chapter 5.10.4 for the specific meaning of the settings.

Edit Service Threshold

Name: A text string that identifies the service threshold group
Description: Text field that should contain a meaningful description of the threshold

Service Threshold Parameters

ID: The service ID for which the associated thresholds should apply.
For an SPTS the service ID will generally be 1; adding several list
entries with different service IDs allows different thresholds to apply
for different services within an MPTS.
Freeze-frame sensitivity: This settings overrides the Freeze-frame detection sensitivity setting
from the Content threshold, unless set to Same as stream.
Color-freeze sensitivity: This settings overrides the Color-freeze detection sensitivity setting
from the Content threshold, unless set to Same as stream.
Audio checks: If set to Specific values, this setting overrides the Audio silence
detection threshold, the Audio peak detection threshold and the
Audio phase detection threshold from the Content threshold. If set
to Same as stream, the values specified here are ignored.
Silence Threshold: This setting overrides the Audio silence detection threshold from the
Content threshold, unless Audio checks is set to Same as stream.
Peak Threshold: This setting overrides the Audio peak detection threshold from the
Content threshold, unless Audio checks is set to Same as stream.
Phase Threshold: This setting overrides the Audio phase detection threshold from the
Content threshold, unless Audio checks is set to Same as stream.
190 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0
 DAR Mode: This setting overrides the DAR alarm mode setting from the Content
threshold, unless set to Same as stream.
Expected DAR: This setting overrides the Expected display aspect ratio setting from
the Content threshold, unless DAR Mode is set to Same as stream.
PAR Mode: This setting overrides the PAR alarm mode setting from the Content
threshold, unless set to Same as stream.
Expected PAR: This setting overrides the Expected pixel aspect ratio setting from
the Content threshold, unless PAR Mode is set to Same as stream.
QoE checks: If set to Specific values, this setting overrides the QoE alarm thresh-
old and QoE alarm window settings from the Content threshold. If
set to Same as stream, the values specified here are ignored.
QoE threshold: This setting overrides the QoE alarm threshold from the Content
threshold, unless QoE checks is set to Same as stream.
QoE window: This setting overrides the QoE alarm window from the Content
threshold, unless QoE checks is set to Same as stream.
Schedule: The Schedule drop-down menu allows the user to associate a schedul-
ing scheme to a service, in effect masking alarms during selected
intervals. Scheduling templates are defined in the Setup — Schedul-
ing view. The predefined scheduling templates ‘Never’ and ‘Always’
will always be selectable, and these will result in service alarms
never and always being masked, respectively.
When Same as stream is selected, the requirement defined in the
stream threshold will apply.
Note that alarm masking only affects alarm lists and SNMP traps;
other alarm indications in the GUI will remain visible.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 191

5.10.6 Content — Setup (requires TIMELINE-OPT)

The Content — Setup view is used to configure storage and display parameters for the Timeline.
The individual streams that should be archived and made available in the Content — Timeline view
are configured using the Content — Content thresh. view.
By default, all streams available in the Timeline database are available in the selection drop-down.
If services have undergone many renames, the Shown/hidden streams view can be used to select
which streams should be available.
Use Show joined streams to move all streams that are currently joined to the Shown streams
list. Use Hide unjoined streams to move all streams that are currently not joined to the Hidden
streams list.

Timeline storage
Storage capacity warning threshold: This defines the amount of free space that should
be available on the file system holding the Timeline
database before a warning is issued.
Archiving of data types not marked as critical is sus-
pended when the free space goes below this threshold.
When you get an alarm saying the disk is getting full,
you can change the configuration to keep it for a shorter
duration, or add more disk to the server.
192 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0
Minimum storage capacity required: This value is the amount of free space that should
be available on the file system holding the Timeline
database for any data to be stored in the database.
This value is set to five percent or fifty gigabytes,
whichever is lowest.
Current free storage: This shows the currently available free space on the file
system holding the Timeline database.

Timeline durations
Duration: For each supported data type, this selects for how long data is retained in the Timeline
database.
Critical: If a data type is set as critical, it is still stored in the Timeline database if the amount
of free space drops below the warning threshold, as long as it is above the minimum
storage capacity required value.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 193

5.11 Redundancy (requires IP-SWITCH-OPT)
The IP redundancy switching feature enables the VB330-SW to function as a control unit for
an external redundancy switching device. The VB330-SW integrates easily by specifying a few
parameters. Then the VB330-SW can be configured to send switching commands based on the alarm
settings. The actual distribution and switching will be done by the external device. IP redundancy
switching is currently supported on the DMG 4000.
Each redundancy switch is coupled with two specific ETR engines. The pairs are 1 and 2, 3 and 4
etc. The number of ETR engines depends on the ETR290-OPT of the VB330-SW. More information
about the ETR290-OPT is found in section 5.9. The number of switches available will adjust
automatically to the number of ETR engines.
The multicasts must be assigned to the ETR engines using the Multicasts — Streams view. A step
by step description of how to do this can be found in section 5.11.5.
A single multicast must be monitored per engine for the switching to work as intended. Round-robin
monitoring (multiple multicasts monitored sequentially on the same ETR engine) is NOT supported
for redundancy switching.
The redundancy switch status and settings are available using the Eii. Setup changes through the Eii
is also possible. See section 5.13.4 for more information about the Eii.

5.11.1 Redundancy — Status

The Status view displays the status of the redundancy switches. The Redundancy switch list on the
left side gives an overview of all the switches.

Redundancy switch list

194 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 ETR#: The ETR engines coupled with the switch. <input A>:<input B>
Name A: Displays the name of the stream on input A (odd numbered ETR engine). To the right
of the name is a bulb showing the ETR290 alarm status.
The field also provides the following information:
• Bold text indicates that the stream is the currently selected as the output.
• Displaying “switch inactive” together with an empty Name B field means that
one or both of the ETR engines are not in use.
• “setup error” is displayed if there is a setup error. Opening the respective
switch information will give more details.

Active: The arrow indicates which input is currently selected as the output.
Name B: Displays the name of the stream on input B (even numbered ETR engine). To the left
of the name is a bulb showing the ETR290 alarm status.
The field also provides the following information:
• Bold text indicates that the stream is the currently selected as the output.
• An empty field together with Name A displaying “switch inactive” means that
one or both of the ETR engines are not in use.
• “setup error” is displayed if there is a setup error. Opening the respective
switch information will give more details.

Mode: The operation mode, described in section 5.11.4, set for the switch
A = Auto, M = Manual, S = SuperLocal

To the right of the Redundancy switch list, more detailed information about a switch is displayed.
This is information about the redundancy switch currently selected in the switch list. A switch can
be selected by clicking the respective list entry. The following information is displayed:

Switch information frames

Switch details: ETR engines: The ETR engines coupled with the switch. <input A>:<input
B>
Active input: The input selected to be output from the switch.
Mode: The operation mode, described in section 5.11.4, set for the switch
Description: A description of the switch’s current operation. After a switch,
the return delay countdown will be shown here. The switch details frame
includes a figure with a visual representation of the switch’s status.
Status of input A: The header text is followed by the name of the stream. The frame shows the
full ETR290 alarm status of the stream on input A of the selected switch.
The content of this frame is described in section 5.9.2.
Status of input B: This shows the same information as Status for input A, but for input B.
Setup: Allows for quick access to the currently selected switch's setup. The setup
parameters are described in section 5.11.2.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 195

 Manual control: Buttons in this frame are used to select which input should be the output
from the switch. These are only available in modes Manual and SuperLocal.

5.11.2 Redundancy — Switch setup

The Switch setup view shows the current setup of all the switches. Using this view is the most
effective way to edit the setups of the redundancy switches. Multi-edit functionality makes it possible
to edit several setups simultaneously. Highlight the setup list entries that should be edited and click
the Edit selected button. The link in the Edit column can be used to edit the setup on that specific
row.
Any setting can be set from the setup page regardless of current mode etc. The probe does not have
a way to read the status from the external device. The Setup view can be used to manually sync the
VB330-SW probe’s switch settings to the settings of the external device.

Switch setup list

ETR#: The ETR engines coupled with the switch. <input A>:<input B>

196 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Active input: The input selected to be the output from the switch.
Mode: The operation mode, described in section 5.11.4, set for the switch.
Return delay: The return delay specifies a time period following an automatic switch where a
new switch cannot be triggered. This only applies if the Mode is set to Auto.
Edit: Click this column to edit the switch’s setup parameters.

5.11.3 Redundancy — Integration

The Integration view is used to set the parameters needed to integrate with the external switching
device. IP redundancy switching is currently supported on the DMG 4000. The following parameters
are supported:

Integration parameters
IP address: IP address used to reach the external switching device.
Port: Port used to connect to the external device.
Access URL: Path to control API.
Username: Username used to authenticate against the external device.
Password: Password used to authenticate against the external device.

5.11.4 Redundancy switch operation modes

The redundancy switches have three different modes of operation: Auto, Manual and SuperLocal.
The mode can be set for each switch independently. The modes are described below:

Modes
Auto: Switching between the inputs is done automatically based on the user defined
alarm setup. A switch is triggered when the active stream has an active alarm
while the inactive stream is alarm free. The return delay specifies a period of time
following an automatic switch where a new automatic switch cannot be triggered.
VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 197
 Manual: An action from the user is required to switch. The switching can be performed
using the Manual control buttons in Redundancy — Status, editing the setup in
Redundancy — Switch setup or through the Eii.
SuperLocal: The redundancy switches can only be controlled through the web GUI. Control
through Eii is disabled. Use this mode to disable externally triggered switches.

5.11.5 Setup guide

Coupling multicasts to a redundancy switch
As mentioned at the start of the Redundancy section, each switch is coupled with a specific pair of
ETR engines. The number of the ETR engines coupled with a switch are two consecutive numbers
starting with the odd number (i.e. 1 and 2, 3 and 4, ...).
The multicasts are assigned to ETR engines using the Multicasts — Streams view. Figures and a
full description of this view can be found in section 5.4.8.

1. Go to the Multicasts — Streams view.

2. Open the edit popup of the multicast you want to couple with a redundancy switch.

3. Join the multicast:

In the "General" tab, check "Join stream".

4. Enable ETR monitoring:

In the "ETR" tab, check "Enable ETR".

5. Assign the multicast to the ETR engine of the switch you want it to be coupled with:
In the "ETR" tab, set "Selected ETR engine" to the number of the ETR engine. Only a single
multicast can been assigned to ETR engines used for redundancy switching.

6. If the switch will use the Auto mode, set the ETR thresholds:
In the "ETR" tab, select the ETR thresholds using the "ETR thresholds" drop-down. How to
set up the ETR thresholds for redundancy switching is described in the next section (ETR
thresholds for automatic switching).

7. The multicasts will be listed in the Redundancy — Status view’s Redundancy switch list. If
the name of the multicast is not in the list, make sure that the options mentioned in points 3–5
are set correctly. Redundancy switch list error texts are described in chapter 5.11.1.

ETR thresholds for automatic switching

Switches that operate in Auto mode will switch automatically based on the ETR alarm state of the
input streams. The ETR thresholds are used to configure which alarms that will be reported, and the
limits (i.e. thresholds) for when they will be triggered. A detailed description of the ETR thresholds

198 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

is given in section 5.9.12. When the IP-SWITCH-OPT is installed, the ETR thresholds will also
have a redundancy checkbox for each alarm. The ETR thresholds edit popup with redundancy can
be seen below.

An automatic switch can be triggered by an alarm when the alarm is enabled and has the Redundancy
checkbox checked in the ETR threshold. If an alarm should be reported, but not trigger a switch, it
should then be enabled with the drop-down menu and not have the Redundancy checkbox checked.
Setting up ETR thresholds:
1. Go to the ETR 290 — ETR thr. view.
2. Create a new threshold or open an existing one for editing.
This will open the pop-up seen above.
3. Enable the alarms that should be reported for the stream:
Select "Alarm" in the Setting column of the alarms.
4. Allow automatic switching on alarms:
Check the checkbox in the "Redundancy" column of the alarms.
5. To assign the ETR thresholds to multicasts, follow the steps describing how to couple multi-
casts to redundancy switches in the previous section.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 199

5.12 Setup
5.12.1 Setup — Params

The Setup — Params view is used to configure basic parameters for the Software Probe. This page
is displayed by default when accessing the web interface, until the configuration has been saved by
clicking the Apply changes button.

Various
Probe name: Each probe can be assigned a user defined name. It is part of the probe’s
MIB. The name is shown in the Main — Summary view, which is the
probe default page, as well as in the browser’s title line.
The name is also used for identifying the system when activating the
license on-line, see G Appendix: On-line License Activation for more
details.
Organization: The name of the organization (usually the company name) that is running
the probe. This name is only used for identifying the system when
activating the license on-line.
Probe contact: The probe contact is part of the probe’s MIB, and this parameter is relevant
for SNMP use only. It is used to identify the contact person responsible
for this probe.
Probe location: The probe location is part of the probe’s MIB. It is used to identify the
physical location of the probe. The probe location is also shown in the
Main — Summary view and in the browser’s title line.
This name is also used for identifying the system when activating the
license on-line.

200 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Enable thumbnails: Enable or disable thumbnail generation globally. Thumbnails are only
decoded automatically if the Extract thumbnails option has been enabled
in the associated OTT or multicast setup, or if freeze-frame or color-freeze
alarming (Content Extraction and Alarming option) has been enabled in
the Content threshold template.
For high bitrates (above 700 Mbit/sec) the probe may feel more responsive
if thumbnail picture generation is switched off. This does not affect the
accuracy of the measurements.
EBU mode: Selects the unit to use for loudness monitoring. In EBU mode, LUFS is
used, otherwise LKFS is used.
Date format: The date format used in the user interface can be changed here. Dates
exported through machine-readable interfaces are not affected by this
setting.

Alarms
Freeze log when full: When enabled the alarm list will freeze when full (an event
will show that it is full). When the list is full new alarms are
ignored until Clear alarms is pressed.
This can sometimes be useful if a unit is placed unattended.
Treat Ethernet events as alarms: When enabled each event is treated as an alarm that is active
for ten seconds. This may be useful when reporting to
external systems that do not support events but only active
or cleared alarms. This setting affects the local alarm list
and SNMP traps.

Network settings
Enable SAP discovery: When enabled, the Software Probe makes streams announced
using the Session Announcement Protocol available through
the Multicasts — SAP view.
Enable IGMPv3 support: Required for probe to support the IGMP v3 protocol. Should
always be enabled in networks that support IGMP v3.
Gap between joins (millisecs): When monitoring a lot of multicasts, sending join requests
for all of them at the same time may overload the network
infrastructure. This setting specifies the minimum time, in
milliseconds, between join requests.

Time zone

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 201

 Time zone: By setting the time zone the Software Probe time can be offset from the reference
NTP time. Please note that this changes the global time zone on the system running
the Software Probe.

SNMP
Community string: The probe SNMP community string can be changed.
Trap destination 1–3: SNMP traps will be sent to the specified destinations. Set to 0.0.0.0 to
disable SNMP trap transmission.
Year in trap time If enabled, dates in SNMP traps include the year number.

5.12.2 Setup — Pages

The Setup — Pages view allows names to be associated with different pages. Individual multicasts
can be assigned to different pages in the Multicasts — Streams view, to facilitate easier navigation
in the different Multicasts views.
The page names for OTT channels are configured using the OTT — Settings view.

202 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.12.3 Setup — Colors

The Setup — Colors view allows the user to define colors that should be recognized if a color-freeze
condition should occur. A mono-colored freeze frame condition may in some cases indicate what
equipment is failing, resulting in the color-freeze.
A freeze color is defined by clicking the Add new color button and assigning an RGB value to a
name. A maximum of four colors may be defined. An existing color may be modified by clicking
the associated Edit link.

Edit color
Name: The color name. This name will be part of a color alarm description and the
associated SNMP trap.
Description: A description of the color or an error indication.
Color: The RGB color on the format #XX(Red)XX(Green)XX(Blue) where XX repre-
sents a hexadecimal figure spanning 0-255 in decimal notation. If supported by
the browser, clicking the color should pop up a color selection dialog.

5.12.4 Setup — Ethernet

This legacy view is provided to make it easier to access the Cockpit administrative interface, which
is where the network parameters are configured.
Please refer to D Appendix: Network configuration for more details.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 203

5.12.5 Setup — VBC

The VideoBRIDGE Controller can automatically detect the Software Probe and add it to the VBC
equipment list, provided that the auto-detect functionality is enabled and the VBC server address is
known to the VB330-SW. Note that the network must be transparent to traffic between the VBC
server and Software Probes for auto-detection to work.
The VBC server’s host name may be typed in the VBC server address field. The IP address associated
with the DNS name will be displayed. If host name lookup fails, it is necessary to type the VBC
server’s IP address. Host name lookup is only performed if auto-detect is enabled.
When changes have been made in the Setup — VBC view, click the Apply button for changes to
take effect.

5.12.6 Setup — Login

By default, there is no access control and all users have access to all features. When access control is
activated, anyone with access to the VB330-SW will first be presented with the login view, requiring
the user to log in before being able to access the user interface.

204 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Only the admin user can change the access control settings. If access control is disabled, you need
to log in using this view before accessing any of the settings in Setup — Security.
To restrict access, the Setup — Security — Authentication view can be used to set up log-in that
restricts all access to the user interface.
Use system firewall to allow or deny certain addresses, please refer to the Security Guide4 for more
details.

Log-in is performed by providing the correct username and password. The default user name and
password to is admin and elvis. The operator may define a new password that should be easy to
remember. The password for the “admin” user is configured in the Setup — Security — Password
view.
Note that when logged in from the VBC, the VBC user’s access rights apply.
4 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/security_guide/

sec-using_firewalls

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 205

5.12.7 Setup — ETR

The Setup — ETR view allows the user to select miscellaneous ETR handling modes.

Parsing rules for private descriptors

Probe recognition of a number of selected private descriptors may be defined by the user:

129 (0x81): ‘Disabled’ or ‘AC-3 audio stream descriptor’

131 (0x83): ‘Disabled’ or ‘logical channel descriptor v1’
134 (0x86): ‘Disabled’ or ‘caption service descriptor’
135 (0x87): ‘Disabled’, ‘logical channel descriptor v2’ or ‘content advisory descriptor’
161 (0xa1): ‘Disabled’, ‘service location descriptor’ or ‘etv_bif_platform_descriptor’
162 (0xa2): ‘Disabled’ or ‘etv_integrated_signaling_descriptor’
231 (0xe7): ‘Disabled’ or ‘private cable delivery system descriptor’
233 (0xe9): ‘Disabled’ or ‘ip_delivery_system_descriptor’

206 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

The default value for private descriptors is ‘Disabled’. To change this value, select a new descriptor
interpretation from the drop-down menu and click the Apply changes button.

ETR 290 tuning control

By default authorized users will be allowed to lock the ETR 290 analysis to one stream for an infinite
length of time and unauthorized users will not be allowed to lock the analysis. The Setup — ETR
view makes it possible to time limit the locking for authorized users and unauthorized users can be
granted permission to lock to a stream for a selectable time period.

If the locking mechanism works in a time limited mode a clock icon (see image above) is superim-
posed on the regular lock icon in the different ETR 290 subviews. When the specified lock time is
out the round-robin cycling will resume. When ETR tuning control parameters have been changed,
click the Apply button for changes to take effect.

ETR details
The user selects if service names should be displayed in the ETR 290 — ETR Details view. Note
that a large screen size is required for proper service name displaying.

EIT table IDs

The user defines which DVB EIT table IDs should be analyzed by the probe. By default only table
ID 78 (EIT p/f actual) is analyzed.

It is possible to extend EIT analysis to include EIT schedule, however this is not recommended
except for ad-hoc troubleshooting, as analysis of EIT schedule can be extremely demanding
on probe processing resources. If full-time monitoring of all EIT information is required,
dedicated probes should be used for this task.

Table IDs are specified as a comma separated list, or alternatively an ID range can be defined, e.g.
78, 80–95.

EIT table IDs:

78 P/F for Actual TS
79 P/F for Other TS
80–95 Schedule for Actual TS
96–111 Schedule for Other TS

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 207

 Inactive inputs
It is possible to hide disabled inputs from the ETR 290 views. This is convenient when one ore more
inputs are never used, and therefore have been disabled. Check the Hide inactive inputs checkbox
to hide disabled inputs.

SCTE 35
The Log time_descriptor messages setting determines whether the SCTE35 messages containing
nothing else than a time_descriptor should be included in the log of SCTE35 messages. In some
systems there are a lot of these messages (they can be used as keep alive messages to ensure that there
always is some traffic on the SCTE35 PID). If the SCTE35 log is filled up with the time_descriptor
messages disable logging of these messages.

5.12.8 Setup — VBC thresh.

The VBC error second thresholds are used by the VideoBRIDGE Controller to issue VBC specific
alarms. The VBC will raise an alarm when the number of error seconds exceeds the error seconds
threshold. The VBC thresholds are only relevant when a VideoBRIDGE Controller is part of the
monitoring system.
The reason for using error second thresholds is to avoid alarms that toggle on and off, which for a
large monitoring system might otherwise lead to an unintelligible user interface. The VBC thresholds
will allow masking of minor error incidences thus resulting in a control system GUI that presents
persistent alarms only.
The VBC error second thresholds are specified as the number of seconds affected by an error
situation. These thresholds refer to a monitoring window of one hour, meaning that if the number of
error seconds summed over any one-hour period exceeds the associated error second threshold an
alarm will be raised by the VBC.

208 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

If a monitoring window different from one hour is selected by the VBC user, the threshold values
will be automatically recalculated to proportional values.
In the ‘VBC threshold presets’ table the ‘Refs’ column shows how many streams are associated with
each VBC threshold template.
By clicking the Add new threshold button the user will enter a VBC thresholds edit view enabling
definition of a new threshold template. It is possible to copy or delete an existing threshold template
by clicking the Duplicate selected or Delete selected button respectively. To edit a highlighted
threshold template, the Edit selected button should be clicked.
Multi-edit functionality allows editing several VBC thresholds simultaneously. Highlight the list
entries that should be edited and click the Edit selected button.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 209

 VBC thresholds
Name: The name of the VBC threshold template
No signal: Number of seconds with ‘No signal’
RTP error: Number of seconds with RTP packet drops. This measurement will be
zero unless the stream is encapsulated in RTP headers

210 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 MLR error: Number of seconds with packet drops in the TS layer (seconds when
media loss rate is non-zero). This is equal to the number of error
seconds with CC errors.
IAT error: Number of seconds when the inter-packet arrival time exceeds the
threshold
Max bitrate error: Number of seconds the bitrate can exceed the error-threshold before a
VBC alarm is generated
Min bitrate error: Number of seconds the bitrate can fall below the error-threshold before
a VBC alarm is generated
ETR Pri 1 errors: Number of seconds with ETSI TR 101 290 Priority 1 alarms before a
VBC alarm is generated
ETR Pri 2 errors: Number of seconds with ETSI TR 101 290 Priority 2 alarms before a
VBC alarm is generated
ETR Pri 3 errors: Number of seconds with ETSI TR 101 290 Priority 3 alarms before a
VBC alarm is generated
ETR other errors: Number of seconds with ETR ‘other’ alarms before a VBC alarm is
generated
ETR interface errors: ETR error seconds are not relevant for the VB330-SW Software Probe
OTT transport errors: Number of seconds with OTT transport related alarms
OTT HTTP errors: Number of seconds with OTT HTTP related alarms
OTT XML errors: Number of seconds with OTT XML related alarms
QoE video: Number of seconds with QoE video-related alarms, such as freeze-
frame and MOS below average
QoE audio: Number of seconds with QoE audio-related alarms, such as audio
silence or out of phase
Captions availability: Number of seconds with captions availability alarms
Captions quality: Number of seconds with captions quality alarms

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 211

5.12.9 Setup — Scheduling

The Setup — Scheduling view enables definition of scheduling templates which are associated
with PIDs or services using the PID threshold or service threshold template system. For content
alarms, they can also be associated with multicasts or services using the stream content monitoring
configuration. This way it is possible to mask alarms during selected time intervals, e.g. due to
maintenance.
In the Schedule list table the ‘Refs’ column shows how many references exist for each scheduling
template. References to scheduling templates may be found in PID, service and content service
threshold templates, and in the stream content monitoring setup.
The search field in the upper right corner of the view allows the user to type a text string and the
schedule list is updated to display only scheduling templates matching the specified text.
The predefined scheduling templates Never and Always result in alarms being masked never or
always, respectively. A new scheduling template is created by clicking the Add new schedule
button. It is also possible to copy an existing scheduling template by highlighting a schedule template
and clicking the Duplicate selected button. The alarm masking intervals are defined for individual
week days or for all week days. Intervals are specified on the form hhmm–hhmm, for instance
the interval 1200–1400 means that alarm masking should start at noon and finish at 2 pm. Several
alarm masking intervals may be specified for each day using comma separation. To edit an existing
scheduling template, highlight it and click the Edit selected button. To delete a template, highlight
it and click the Delete selected button.
When a scheduling template has been modified, click the Apply changes button. Defined scheduling
templates become available as selections in the Multicasts — Streams — Edit — Content, ETR
290 — PID thresh. — Edit, ETR 290 — Service thresh. — Edit and Content — Service thresh.
— Edit views.

212 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.12.10Setup — Routing

The Setup — Routing view allows users to override the default interface for out-going probe traffic.
To override the default interface for one or more types of traffic select the interface from the
drop-down menu and click the Apply changes button.
Note: When monitoring both multicast (UDP) and OTT (TCP) traffic, we recommend using different
network interfaces. Mixing the two traffic types on the same network can have unwanted impact on
the monitored signals.

Routing setup
Default This setting determines the default interface.
IP monitoring Defines the interface to use for the multicasts specified in the Multicasts —
Streams view. The available interfaces depend on the probe license.
OTT Interface to use for OTT channels specified in the OTT — Channels view.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 213

 SNMP Interface to use for SNMP traps.
VBC auto-detect Interface to use for VBC auto-detect, as specified in the Setup — VBC view.

License activation proxy

Proxy URL When using on-line activation, the Software Probe needs to be able to connect to
the license activation server. If the Software Probe is not connected directly to
the Internet, you can add the URL to a proxy server that it can use here. If not
configured, the Software Probe will try to use the proxy installed on the VBC
host, as configured in the Setup — VBC view; see G Appendix: On-line License
Activation for more details

Note that routing for Full Service Monitoring (FSM) is selected in the Ethernet — FSM — Setup
— Edit view.

5.12.11Setup — Security
The Setup — Security view is a restricted section where only the administrator should have
access, making it possible to disable selected communication protocols to increase safety against
unauthorized access to the Software Probe.
To access this view, you have to be logged in. If probe access control has been disabled, you will
need to visit Setup — Login first. The default user name and password to enter this view is admin
and elvis. The password is changed in the Setup — Security — Password sub-view.
To change the parameters in this view, you need to access the VB330-SW user interface directly,
they are not available when logged in through the VBC.

5.12.11.1 Setup — Security — Ports

214 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 To disable a protocol deselect it by removing the associated check-mark and click the Apply changes
button. Available security parameters are:

Security parameters
Enable SNMP: If SNMP is disabled, no MIB is available on port 161. However SNMP traps
are sent as usual on port 162.
Defaults to on.

5.12.11.2 Setup — Security — Authentication

The Setup — Security — Authentication view makes it possible to restrict access to the VB330-
SW user interface by requiring the user to log in first.

Authentication method
Disabled VB330-SW authentication is disabled, and no login is required when accessing
the VB330-SW from a web browser. The Software Probe is seamlessly accessible
from the VideoBRIDGE Controller.
This is the default setting.
Tacacs+ VB330-SW authentication is enabled.
When accessing the VB330-SW with a web browser, users needs to authenticate
themselves with a username and password. These need to match the pre-defined
admin user, a user available on the Tacacs+ server configured through the Setup —
Security — Tacacs+ view, or any of the users configured in the Setup — Security
— Local users view.
Local users VB330-SW authentication is enabled.
When accessing the VB330-SW with a web browser, users needs to authenticate
themselves with a username and password. These need to match either the pre-
defined admin user, or any of the users configured in the Setup — Security —
Local users view.

If authentication has been enabled when accessing the VB330-SW through the VideoBRIDGE

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 215

 Controller, the local VB330-SW user will be “admin”, but with restrictions imposed by the user
account. If the password has been changed from the default, the same password needs to be
configured in the Edit device popup in the VBC Equipment view.

5.12.11.3 Setup — Security — Tacacs+

This view is used to configure a Tacacs+ server for user authentication. For this to be used, Tacacs+
authentication must be selected in the Setup — Security — Authentication view.
To use Tacacs+ authentication, the IP address of the Tacacs+ server must be specified, along with
the secret key used to encrypt the communication between the Tacacs+ server and the VB330-SW
server. The same key must also be specified as part of the Tacacs+ server configuration.
We recommend using HTTPS when using authentication, as this combines authentication with
encryption. Using authentication with HTTP is not considered very secure since it is possible to
sniff the un-encrypted communication and possible reverse engineer the scrambling of login details.

Tacacs+ parameters
Server IP address IP address of the Tacacs+ server used for authentication.
Secret Configures a fixed string used to encrypt the communication with the server.
Default local user Defines the local user ID that should be used on successful Tacacs+ authen-
tication.
Auth-key Defines which key in the Tacacs+ authentication response to use to determine
the user access level. The value of this key is compared to the Access level
below.
Access level 1–3 Up to three different Tacacs+ access levels can be configured to map to
different local user accounts, allowing different authenticated users to have
different access levels.
The value configured here is matched with the value of the Auth-key con-
figured above.

216 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.12.11.4 Setup — Security — Local users

This view is used to configure local users that are allowed to access the VB330-SW user interface.
For these to be used, Local users authentication must be selected in the Setup — Security —
Authentication view. The VB330-SW supports up to 30 local users.
In addition to the users defined here, the predefined “admin” user can also log in. The password
for the “admin” user is configured in the Setup — Security — Password view. Note that the login
requirements towards the Security tab is independent of the general authentication and always
requires the login of the admin user.
It is not possible to see which user is actually logged in to the VB330-SW, as this information is not
kept or used by the probe.

Edit user
Enabled If this is checked, the user is allowed to log in.
Name User-name of the account used to log in.
Password Password of the account used to log in.
Read-only If this is checked, the user only has read-only access to the user interface.
When read-only access is activated a READ-ONLY access message is displayed
under the alarm list. To change any parameters, the user needs to log out and then
log in as another user.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 217

5.12.11.5 Setup — Security — Password

The Setup — Security — Password view is used to change the password used to access all
of the Setup — Security section. The password is changed by entering a new password and
clicking the Apply changes button. If authentication has been enabled in the Setup — Security —
Authentication view, the password defined here can be used with the special username “admin”.

The password defined here controls access to the VB330-SW user interface. The administrative
interface uses the system accounts, please refer to chapter 3.5 for details.

5.13 Data
5.13.1 Data — Configuration

218 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Full and partial configuration of the Software Probe can be exported as XML documents. This is
achieved by clicking one of the links inside the Export XML frame. A new browser window pops
up containing the selected XML document. The browser will allow the contents of the page to be
saved to file.
Restoring the Software Probe configuration, multicast stream list or OTT channel list is just as
simple. Just click the Browse button and select the file that contains the XML document. Then
click the Go! button and the information in the XML document will be applied. The configuration,
stream list and thresholds exports can all be imported.
Configuration files generated by a probe can be imported by the VB330-SW. Multicast stream
lists, OTT channel lists and scheduling information can also be exported to and imported from the
VB7880 Advanced Content Extractor.
You can also import and export license and software maintenance keys in XML format from this
page.
To import documents that have been manually edited the CRC attribute at the very top of the
document must be deleted (i.e. delete crc="..." from the file). This will bypass the checksum
verification mechanism.
Please refer to the document Eii External Integration Interface for detailed information about
XML import and export.
Note that the probe name and location are not part of the XML document. Hence exporting the full
configuration of one Software Probe and restoring it on another will make the two Software Probes
identical except for the network settings.
Clicking the Debug data export option will generate a document containing debug information that
may be useful if Software Probe misbehavior is reported. This file should be sent along with a
description of the misbehavior.

5.13.2 Data — Software

The software section allows the Software Probe to be upgraded to a newer software version. Select
the .tea file from the local PC and click Go! to copy the software to the VB330-SW. When the
upload is complete, clicking the Update software button will begin the upgrade procedure.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 219

A more detailed description on the software update procedure can be found in I Appendix: Software
Upload

Upgrading to a new major release requires a valid software maintenance license, please refer to
H Appendix: Software Maintenance for more details. If the current software maintenance license
does not cover the uploaded software version, the upgrade will be aborted and the current version is
kept.

220 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.13.3 Data — Table Descriptors

It is possible to upload parser files to the probe adding support for private descriptors. Private
descriptors should be enabled (in the Setup — ETR view).
Contact Sencore for more information about private descriptors.

5.13.4 Data — Eii

The External integration interface (Eii) allows inclusion of Sencore VideoBRIDGE equipment
into 3rd party NMS systems. In order to facilitate integration the Data — Eii view allows export
of XML files containing the data typically being requested by an NMS system via the regular Eii
interface.
Please refer to the document Eii External Integration Interface for detailed information about
Eii.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 221

5.13.5 Data — Storage (FLASH option)

The FLASH option allows the internal hard drive to be used for storing recordings. RDP recordings
made from the RDP — Control view are automatically stored and can be retrieved from here.
PCAP recordings made from the Ethernet — PCAP view can also be stored for later retrieval.
When a PCAP recording is available, clicking the Transfer files button copies it to the persistent
storage area.
The probe will generate system information messages when the storage has less than 10 % free
memory. When the storage is full, a system error is generated. These are configured in the Alarms
— Alarm setup view.

222 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.14 About
5.14.1 About — Release info

This view shows the software version, the software build date and the version of the underlying
operating system for the Software Probe.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 223

5.14.2 About — License

The License view displays the currently active license. The license includes the available Software
Probe options and software maintenance details. By clicking the blue information icon associated
with each option it is possible to view option details.
The Software Probe supports two different licensing schemes, on-line licenses and classic licenses.
When using a classic license, product and software maintenance license keys are tied to the hardware
key, which is the shorter of the two keys presented, in a non-transferable manner. The license is
installed once, and can also be exported in XML format from this page. The classic keys can be
imported using the Data — Configuration view.
When using an on-line license, the key is activated periodically towards a license server. The key is
transferable between systems running the same software, but only as long as on-line activation is
supported. The longer system identifier is used to identify the system. The Current license field
will display information on when the license key was last activated. Click the Renew button to
immediately renew the license with the license server.

224 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Click the Release button to remove the current license, making it available to another host.
Please make sure you have the license key available before you do this, as you must enter it
again on the system you wish to transfer the license to. If you have lost the license key, contact
your dealer to retrieve it. Make sure you include all details from this page in your request.

Please refer to G Appendix: On-line License Activation for more information on how to use on-line
licenses. This appendix also describes how to renew the license when the Software Probe cannot
connect to the Internet.
Please refer to H Appendix: Software Maintenance for more details on software maintenance
licenses.
Click the Manage server link to access the Cockpit administrative interface, see chapter 3.5 for
more information.
To disable the Software Probe, uncheck the Activate software checkbox and click the Change
button. You cannot do this if it has been set as the default software through the administrative
interface (which is done by default the first time you activate the software), you will need to remove
it as the default before disabling Software Probe. See chapter 3.11 for more details.

Demo license
Entering a demo license key pair will start a trial period during which the features defined in the
demo license are available. Once the trial period ends, the VB330-SW will revert back to the
previous license. The time remaining is indicated in the License details page.
To end a trial period manually, enter a valid permanent license key.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 225

5.14.3 About — Technologies

The Technologies view lists some of the technologies available in the Sencore VideoBRIDGE
product family.

226 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

5.14.4 About — Credits

This view shows information about the software included with the Software Probe.

5.14.5 About — System

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 227

The System view displays a snapshot of the current status of the system, to ensure correct Software
Probe operation.
The Probe services overview displays the VB330-SW services that are required. All the VB330-SW
services listed should have status Running. The current CPU and memory usage is also displayed.
Disk status displays free disk space to give the user some overview of disk resources available. It
will additionally display the status of the RAID system, if supported.
Server response time is determined upon entering the System view. When the Redo button is
clicked, a new request is sent to the web server.
Clicking the Debug. . . link allows the user to generate a document containing debug information
that may be useful if VB330-SW misbehavior is reported. This file should be sent along with a
description of the misbehavior.
Clicking the System status (XML). . . link generates an XML document with a short description of
the system status.

228 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

A Appendix: VB330-SW Versus VBC Alarms
The VB330-SW Software Probe alarms are independent of the VideoBRIDGE Controller alarms. The
Software Probe has been designed to yield instantaneous alarms based on the current measurements.
This typically results in lots of short-lived alarms that would be “too much” for the VBC to report,
as the VBC may control a large number of Software Probes. The VBC therefore generates alarms
based on error-second statistics gathered from Software Probes during a selectable time period
(default 60 minutes – sliding window).
Some the VBC alarms map to only one probe alarm type. Other the VBC alarms map to several
probe or VB7880 Advanced Content Extractor alarms. As an example, the VBC alarm ETR pri one
error does alarming for the following probe alarms:

• TS sync

• Sync byte

• PAT

• Continuity

• PMT

• Missing PID

The VBC GUI has functionality for searching for all Software Probe alarms that have corresponding
VBC alarms. This makes it easier to find the cause of an VBC alarm.
Ethernet measurement data are sent from the VB330-SW Software Probe together with Ethernet
error-second threshold values (as set in the VB330-SW Software Probe Setup — VBC thresh.
view). The VBC monitors the error seconds for each parameter and will raise an alarm provided that
the error-seconds figure exceeds the threshold value, as monitored during the windowing period.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 229

 VBC
Alarms

VBC
Alarm
Settings

VBC

ETH Multicast VBC

ETH Measurements Thresholds

Probe

Figure A.1: VBC alarming based on Software Probe measurements

230 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

B Appendix: Monitoring Practices
This Appendix summarizes a few useful monitoring practices.

B.1 RTP Monitoring

When running video inside an RTP wrapper it is possible to exactly deduce the number of dropped
IP frames due to network issues. This is possible as a result of the 16-bit sequence counter inside
the RTP header. When the protocol mapping is nTS/RTP the RTP parameters RTPdrop, RTPdup,
RTPooo and RTPlag will be updated and the corresponding alarms Packet drops:N, Duplicate
packets:N and Out of order packets(lag:N) are fired (if not switched off).
Note that the probe will perform out-of-order corrections before RTP packet loss analysis is per-
formed.
Example of RTP sequences and their effects on monitoring:

Sequence Effect
. . . , 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, . . . Monitoring page: RTPdrop:+2
2 dropped packets (15-16) Alarms & events: RTP Packet drop: 2
. . . , 10, 12, 13, 16, 17, 18, 19, . . . Monitoring page: RTPdrop:+3
1 and 2 dropped packets (11, 14-15) Alarms & events: RTP Packet drop: 3
Monitoring page: RTPdrop:+2
. . . , 10, 11, 15, 12, 14, 16, 18, 19, . . . Monitoring page: RTPooo:+1
2 dropped packets (13, 17) Monitoring page: RTPlag: 3 (at least)
1 out of order packets of order 3 (15 → 12) Alarms & events: RTP Packet drops: 2
Alarms & events: RTP out of order packets (lag:3)

B.2 Default Multicast Monitoring

When the protocol mapping is nTS/UDP, meaning there is no RTP information in the multicast
stream, there is no easy way to isolate and register network-induced errors. Assumptions can be
done by performing continuity counter analysis for the content of each received UDP-frame on the
fly. The probe will note CC-errors (CCerr) and generate corresponding alarms (CC skips:N).
Imagine the following MPEG-2 Transport Stream being generated by an encoder. The TS contains
two PIDs (50 and 51) and the Continuity Counter (CC) values are continuous for each PID since
there are no packets missing.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 231

 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51
... CC: 12 CC: 1 CC: 13 CC: 2 CC: 14 CC: 3 CC: 15 CC: 4 CC: 0 CC: 5

PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51
CC: 1 CC: 6 CC: 2 CC: 7 CC: 3 CC: 8 CC: 4 CC: 9 CC: 5 CC: 10

PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51
CC: 6 CC: 11 CC: 7 CC: 12 CC: 8 CC: 13 CC: 9 CC: 14 CC: 10 CC: 15 ...

When the Transport Stream reaches our imaginary head-end some packets (those with red frame)
have been lost (maybe due to a bad satellite connection). Our IP-Streamer packs 7 and 7 MPEG-2
TS packets into each UDP-frame (mapping is 7TS/UDP) and the resulting frames may look like:

PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 51 PID: 51 PID: 51

CC: 12 CC: 1 CC: 13 CC: 2 CC: 4 CC: 5 CC: 8

PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50 PID: 51 PID: 50

CC: 4 CC: 9 CC: 5 CC: 10 CC: 6 CC: 11 CC: 7

...

The probe’s response to this multicast is summarized in the following table:

Sequence Effect
UDP packet #1 (7 MPEG2 TS packets):
PID 50: 12, 13, 14, 15
PID 51: 1, 2, 4, 5, 8 Monitoring page: CCerr:+2
PID 51 has 2 CC discontinuities of 2 (2 → 4)
and 3 (5 → 8)
UDP packet #2 (7 MPEG2 TS packets):
PID 50: 4, 5, 6, 7
Monitoring page: CCerr:+1
PID 51: 9, 10, 11
PID 50 has 1 CC discontinuity of 6 (13 → 4)
Alarms & events:
CC skips:9 discontinuities:3
If no more CC-errors for at least 1 second
Depending on the thresholds you may also get: MLR
>= warning-threshold (9 >= 1)

There were 9 TS packets missing (with red frame) and the alarm reflects this.

B.3 Strategy for MediaWindow Analysis

This section provides further insight into MediaWindow analysis and suggests how the Ethernet
threshold settings can be configured to maximize the usefulness of the MediaWindow graphs and
alarms.

232 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

The MLR value is always calculated using the continuity counter inside the transport stream packets.
Since the continuity counter is expected to increase by one for each packet of the same PID it is
possible to detect missing TS packets by noting gaps in the continuity counters. Knowing that there
are usually 7 transport stream packets inside one UDP packet you expect a continuity counter error
of 7 if one UDP packet goes missing. This corresponds to an MLR value of 7. The range of the
continuity counter is 4 bits meaning that if you are unlucky and lose exactly 16 packets for the same
PID you will not be able to detect the packet loss at all. Losing 16 or more packets of the same PID
is very rare and will only happen in networks with plenty of obvious problems.
Not all PIDs carry continuity counters. The null packets (PID 8191) and PIDs carrying PCR
(program clock reference) do not carry continuity counters. This is the reason why losing one UDP
packet does not necessarily result in an MLR of 7 but maybe 6 or even 5 (assuming the mapping is
7TS/UDP).
Systems typically do not mix the mappings among their streams so there is seldom a need to
remember the mapping for streams in order to interpret the exact impact of MLR values.
The range of the MediaWindow graphs can be configured by the user. Even when the graph is updated
in “real-time” each bar in the graph will represent a large number of elementary measurements. For
a 5Mbit/s stream there will be approximately 500 elementary measurements per second, assuming a
mapping of 7 TS packets into each UDP-frame (i.e. there are approximately 500 UDP packets per
second). An elementary measurement is generated for each interval between two neighboring UDP
frames.
Within each update-interval only the extreme IAT and MLR values are displayed in the graph. For
IAT the peak inter-arrival time over the measurement period represents the IAT for that period. For
MLR the highest loss ratio within any second represents the MLR for that period.
When the range of the graph is set to larger intervals, even more elementary measurements are
merged for each bar-interval.
The rest of this discussion assumes the MediaWindow graph range is set to “running” since that
lowers the probability that more packet losses occurred inside the same bar-interval.
The following figure shows how a large number of elementary measurements are represented by one
bar in the graph.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 233

B.3.1 IAT Before and After Router
Packet-loss that occurs before or inside a router will usually not be visible since the queuing
mechanism at the outgoing interface of the router will send out packets in an orderly fashion. If
however the packet-loss did occur after the router (due to line noise for example) thus affect the
timing between two neighboring packets – effectively doubling it – the packet loss will always affect
the IAT component for CBR streams. For VBR streams, that are jittery by default, the extra time gap
may have no effect since there may already be other larger gaps within the MediaWindow interval.

If a UDP packet goes missing after it has left the router it will visually affect both the IAT and MLR
for CBR streams. The pink line represents one elementary measurement.

For VBR streams a similar packet-loss will not necessarily affect the IAT graph even if the time
between two neighboring packets doubles. The pink line represents the IAT and MLR value measured
for the missing packet.

B.3.2 Identifying UDP Packet Loss

This discussion does not apply to streams with TS/RTP mapping since in that case identifying UDP
packet loss is straight forward.
There is no fail-safe way to distinguish packet loss caused by dropping UDP packets from packet
loss caused by dropping packets inside the TS layer. IP based networks will generally not introduce
new errors in the TS layer. As soon as the TS layer is wrapped inside UDP packets all further
processing operates on the UDP packets.

234 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 The pink line indicates a packet loss of 1-4 with no jitter component.
As a rule of thumb, the co-existence of small MLR readings (1-4) and no IAT readings can be
assumed to have been caused by packet loss in the original TS data.

The pink line indicates a packet loss of 6 or 7 and a doubling of the jitter component.
A UDP packet-drop will usually show up in the MLR value as a multiple of the mapping value; for a
mapping value of 7 TS packets into each UDP packet, the MLR component will be equal to 7, 14,
21 etc.
Slightly lower values such as 6, 13, and 20 can be expected if a missing UDP packet did contain one
TS packet without continuity counter (i.e. a PCR packet with no payload).
As we have seen, there is no sure way to distinguish between UDP packet-loss and loss in the
underlying TS packets. One way to deal with the situation is to have a probe doing zero readings
close to the signal source before the network can introduce UDP packet loss.

B.4 Multicast Thresholds

It is useful to configure individual threshold settings for IAT for each stream unless they are fixed at
the same bit-rate. Streams that are being monitored by several probes should have equal Ethernet
thresholds configured on each probe to make it easy to compare measurements for a stream across
several probes.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 235

 As a rule of thumb the IAT warning threshold could be set to 50% above the max IAT value observed
over a considerable period of time, the last 24h or so. The IAT error threshold could be set a little
below the maximum jitter the system can tolerate – usually limited by the STB jitter tolerance. STB
manufacturers should be able to provide information about how much jitter they can handle. Setting
the Ethernet warning-threshold too high results in a graph where almost all plots are close to the
x-axis and it becomes less useful to visually compare MediaWindow graphs.
For streams with TS/UDP mapping the default MLR threshold is set so that errors are reported if the
number of CC errors exceeds the number of TS packets in one UDP frame (assumed to be 7).

B.5 Dedicated interface for OTT

As a rule of thumb, you should never have OTT traffic on the same network as multicasts. This
means that you should either use one Software Probe for multicast and one for OTT, or you should
use different and dedicated interfaces for each.
The interface used for OTT traffic is controlled using the Setup — Routing view.

B.6 OTT descrambling with Verimatrix

If you are using a Verimatrix VCAS 3.7 server to encrypt your OTT stream, you can get the Software
Probe to descramble the chunks. It will uses the same API to descramble the chunks, as the encoder
or segmenter uses to encrypt the chunks. To achieve this, the Software Probe need to be able to
reach the VCAS server’s private encoder interface.
Since the Software Probe only uses a single interface for OTT, your network needs to be configured
such as the Software Probe can reach both the VCAS server and your origin server on the same
interface.

B.7 OTT Bandwidth requirements

The recommended available bandwidth for full coverage OTT monitoring is equal to the sum of the
profile bitrates monitored plus an estimated overhead of 20 % for manifests and IP, TCP and HTTP
headers.
Note: The OTT engines will be using all available bandwidth on the interface in spikes while
downloading the chunks, this is the main reason why it is not a good idea to mix multicasts on the
same interface, as it can cause packet drops which multicasts cannot handle.

236 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

C Appendix: OTT Profile Health
C.1 OTT Profile Health Bar

The profile health bar displayed at channel level shows an overview of current status for individual
channel profiles. Different colors indicate status:

• Green: OK

• Yellow: Warning

• Orange: Error

• Red: Major

• Black: Fatal

All enabled alarms may affect the profile health bar, and alarm severities can be assigned to each
alarm in the Alarms — Alarm setup view.

C.2 OTT Profile Health Timeline

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 237

The OTT profile health timeline shows information about channel bitrate and channel alarm status
for the last two hours, with a time resolution of one minute. Green parts of the timeline indicate
profile download time versus chunk length. The graph is scaled so that 100% indicates a chunk
download time identical to chunk length (in seconds), chunk length being signaled in the profile
manifest. Quick chunk download times therefore result in a ‘low’ green graph, as seen in the left
hand part of the graph above. When download times exceed the user defined profile bitrate warning
and error thresholds the graph is colored yellow and orange respectively.
In addition to profile bitrate indication the graph displays profile status information related to non-
bitrate alarms. Active profile alarms are represented in the graph as 100% bars, the color reflecting
the severity of the alarm. If several alarms are active within a one minute period the graph color will
reflect the most severe alarm. Historical alarms can be examined in more detail by viewing the OTT
alarm list.

238 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

D Appendix: Network configuration
D.1 Web-based configuration
The system ships with a web-based network configuration module. If you are unable to access the
system using the web interface, you will need to use the system console. Please see section D.2 for
details on how to use the command-line based configuration tool from the console.
To access the web-based configuration module, open the Cockpit administrative interface, as
described in section 3.5. The Cockpit administrative interface uses the same log-in credentials as the
system accounts.
Click on the Network heading to open the network configuration.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 239

 For more information on how use Cockpit, please refer to Getting Started With Cockpit1 .
If you make changes here that causes you to lose web access to the server, you may need to use the
command-line tools as described below.

D.2 Command-line based configuration

Changes to network configuration, adding new interface devices and VLANs can be done with the
nmtui tool. Simply type nmtui whilst logged into the server command shell as root2 . Navigate the
nmtui menus using the cursor (arrow) keys and Enter to select. More documentation on using nmtui
can be found in the Networking Guide3 .

Editing Network interface configuration

To edit a connection first select Edit a connection from the nmtui menu:

Select the interface to be edited and then select Edit. . . from the menu.
1 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/getting_

started_with_cockpit/
2 If
the nmtui tool is not available on your system, you can install it by issuing the command yum install
NetworkManager-tui
3 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-US/Red_Hat_Enterprise_Linux/7/html/Networking_

Guide/sec-Networking_Config_Using_nmtui.html

240 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Make the necessary changes to IPv4 and IPv6 configuration.

Selecting Automatically connect will ensure the interface is connected next time the system boots.
Sometimes it is desirable to select Never use this interface for default route, particularly if
additional interfaces are only used for monitoring multicast traffic or when setting up a native
interface for adding VLANs.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 241

After making changes select OK to return the previous menu. Generally, network configuration
changes will take effect the next time the interface is activated. This can be done by deactivating
and reactivating the interface from the Activate a connection menu in nmtui or with the command
line ifdown ifname followed by ifup ifname.

Adding new and VLAN interfaces

To add a new interface, in the nmtui main menu select Edit a connection followed by Add and
select the interface type from the menu. Typically this is Ethernet but may also be used to create
VLAN interfaces. Advanced configurations such as Bond and Bridge may be selected if they are
required.
To find the system assigned name for a newly added hardware device use the command line ifconfig
or search in the output of the dmesg tool. It can be helpful to keep the nmtui Profile name for the
device the same as the device name itself, for example:

To add a VLAN interface from nmtui main menu select Edit a connection followed by Add. Scroll
to the bottom of the list and select VLAN:

242 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Edit the settings for the VLAN interface. The Device field should contain the name of the physical
interface to be used for this VLAN and the VLAN number, for example ens8.1040 means VLAN
1040 on interface ens8. The parent and VLAN ID fields should correspond to the values in the name
field. In our example ens8 is the parent and 1040 is the VLAN. Other settings are the same as for
normal IPv4/6 interfaces.

After entering the configuration for the VLAN interface select OK to return the previous menu, then
select Back and finally Activate a connection to activate the newly created VLAN interface.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 243

E Appendix: Using HTTPS with Apache
By default, all web communication to and from the host running the Software Probe supports both
using un-encrypted HTTP as well as encrypted HTTPS communication. The web server creates
a self-signed SSL certificate and uses this when clients access the user interface via HTTPS (port
443). Since the certificate is not signed by a certificate authority, the web browser will display an
error message saying that the connection may not be secure.
The certificate is used to encrypt the communication between the client (usually a web browser) and
the VB330-SW . Choosing the HTTPS protocol over HTTP will cause a small and, in almost all
cases, insignificant additional load on the probe since the communication must be encrypted by the
web server.
If the HTTPS has not been enabled, please follow the guide on the CentOS Wiki1 .
If the system is available on a publicly visible host name, you can use EFF’s Certbot to deploy a
Let’s Encrypt certificate. Please follow the Certbot guide2 for information on how to do that.

Installing packages requires an active Internet connection. If you are using Red Hat Enterprise
Linux, you will need an active subscription to install packages.

Disabling HTTP access

To configure the server to redirect any access arriving over HTTP to the HTTPS server, the simplest
way is to create the file /etc/httpd/conf.d/001-http-to-https.conf3 :

cat <<'EOM' > /etc/httpd/conf.d/001-http-to-https.conf

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTPS} !=on
RewriteRule ^/?(.*) https://%{SERVER_NAME}/$1 [R,L,NE]
EOM

After creating the file, restart Apache by issuing the command

systemctl restart httpd

1 https://wiki.centos.org/HowTos/Https
2 https://certbot.eff.org/lets-encrypt/centosrhel7-apache
3 https://wiki.apache.org/httpd/RewriteHTTPToHTTPS

244 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

If this does not work, please consult the Apache documentation or the Apache Wiki4 . It is also
possible to completely disable the HTTP port, if it is not needed.

4 https://wiki.apache.org/httpd/RedirectSSL

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 245

F Appendix: Enabling NTP time synchroniza-
tion
It is strongly recommended that the server running the Software Probe be synchronized against an
external NTP server.
If not set up correctly, alarms may be displayed with incorrect timestamps and out out alignment
with other monitoring devices in the system.
NTP synchronization against public servers on the Internet is usually enabled automatically if
they were detected during the operating system installation. It is possible to change the servers
to use, for instance to set it to use a local NTP server, by changing the configuration in the file
/etc/chrony.conf manually.

Setting the VBC IP address in the Setup — VBC view will automatically add it as a time synchro-
nization source.
For more details on configuring the date and time settings, please refer to the System Administrator’s
Guide, chapters Configuring the Date and Time1 and Using chrony2 .

1 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-US/Red_Hat_Enterprise_Linux/7/html/System_

Administrators_Guide/chap-Configuring_the_Date_and_Time.html
2 https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/system_

administrators_guide/ch-configuring_ntp_using_the_chrony_suite

246 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

G Appendix: On-line License Activation
G.1 Introduction
The Software Probe uses licenses which are activated and updated periodically over the Internet,
without the need for human intervention. The license is only tied to the VB330-SW when it is
used and is periodically renewed. To transfer the software to a new host, the license can simply be
released from the software and applied to an instance running on a different server.

Please make sure you have the license key available before you release the license, as you must
enter it again on the system you wish to transfer the license to. The license key is not displayed
in the VB330-SW user interface.
If you have lost the license key, contact your dealer to retrieve it. Make sure you include all
details from the About — License view in your request.

When the Software Probe sends the on-license activation over the Internet, it includes some basic
information to verify the Software Probe. This includes a basic hardware footprint, as well as parts
of the SNMP identification data configured in the Setup — Params view.

G.2 Requirements
The VB330-SW needs to be able to contact the license server either directly or via a proxy server,
as described below. If proxy connectivity also is not available, an off-line activation procedure is
available as well.
The VB330-SW must also be configured with a correct date and time. Please refer to F Appendix:
Enabling NTP time synchronization for more information on configuring time synchronization.

Direct access to activation server

To activate the license automatically, the VB330-SW needs to be configured with a valid DNS server
address (see D Appendix: Network configuration) which is able to look up the host name license.
microanalytics.org. The VB330-SW needs to be able to contact the host this name resolves to
using HTTPS on port 443.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 247

Using the VBC server as a proxy
When installing the VBC software to a server, an instance of the Tinyproxy1 software is automatically
installed and configured to allow its connected blades to connect to (and only to) the licensing
system as described in the previous section.
When the VB330-SW has been configured with the address to the VBC server in the Setup — VBC
view, the VB330-SW will automatically attempt to use this proxy if a direct connection fails.

Using an arbitrary proxy server

The Software Probe can be configured to use an arbitrary proxy server to connect to the licensing
server. By adding the URL to a proxy server in the Setup — Routing view, the VB330-SW will
automatically attempt to use this proxy if a direct connection fails.

Off-line activation procedure

If the VB330-SW network is completely disconnected from the Internet, it is still possible to activate
the license using the off-line activation procedure. When using this, the license will be tied to the
system and will not be transferable to another server. Click the Renew license off-line button to
start the off-line activation procedure. This procedure has to be repeated yearly.

Follow the steps described in the dialog to renew or activate the license. To abort the procedure,
click the License details button to return to the previous screen.a
First, download the license request document from the Software Probe to the computer you are
browsing from. Once the file has been downloaded, connect the computer to the Internet if not
already connected, and open the link to the off-line license manager2 .
1 https://tinyproxy.github.io/
2 https://license.microanalytics.org/offline

248 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

Select the .bin file that was downloaded in the first step, and optionally add a license key if the
system you are activating did not already have a license attached. Once done, click the Request
license button and save the license document file to the computer.
If needed, re-connect to the VB330-SW network, return to the Renew license off-line view, select
the .pem file that was generated by the license manager and press Go!
The license should now be added to the system. If this is a new or different license, the software will
restart. Use the License details view to verify that the license was applied correctly.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 249

H Appendix: Software Maintenance
Purchasing yearly software maintenance enables future feature protection and guarantees access to
the latest software for the Software Probe.
The software maintenance can be purchased for a two or four year period, typically initially purchased
together with the system itself, during which new major releases can be installed.
The current software maintenance period is displayed in the About — License view, see chapter
5.14.2 for more details. For an overview of software maintenance periods for multiple units, please
refer to the Equipment view on the VideoBRIDGE Controller server.
Use the Data — Software view to update the VB330-SW software, please refer to chapter 5.13.2.

250 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

I Appendix: Software Upload
The process of performing a software upload to the probe involves the following steps:

1. Obtain the software image.

2. Export and save the probe configuration.

3. Transfer the image to the probe using the software upload functionality in the Data —
Software view or by using ssh, and save the new software image on the system.

4. Wait while the software is being saved.

5. Verify the new image.

I.1 Obtain the software image

The image will have a .tea extension and is distributed in a compressed ZIP archive together with
the readme file detailing changes for this patch release.
Please study the readme file to be aware of any important information related to your current
software patch. Subsequent patch details may indicate that significant bugs were identified and
resolved after your current version and indicate where special care is recommended.
You can find the current version number under About — Release.
When upgrading to a new major version, please also study the release notes and readme files for all
versions between your currently installed major version and the one you are upgrading to, as there
might be important changes that you need to be aware of.
If you require any assistance understanding the release notes or readme files please contact your first
line support service.
If you would rather re-install the system from scratch instead of using the upgrade procedure, please
refer to chapter 3.

I.2 Export and save the probe configuration

Software upgrade should not alter the probe configuration, however for safety is is a good idea to
export the probe configuration (from the Data — Configuration view) and save it to a file. Please
refer to chapter 5.13.1.

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 251

I.3 Transfer the image to the probe and save
Using the software upload functionality in the Data view
From the Data — Software view select the software image file to be uploaded and click the Go!
button. When the software has been successfully transferred to the probe click the Update software
button and confirm.

Progress bars are displayed to show the software update status.

Note that the probe will restart when the new software has been installed, and the probe’s user
interface will be unresponsive until restart has completed.

252 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0

 Using scp/sftp and ssh
Using a Secure Shell (ssh) client, such as PuTTY1 , first transfer (scp/sftp) the software image to the
system.
Next, log in to the system as the root user to get a command prompt. If you copied the file as the
root user, the file should be in the directory you just logged in to. If not, navigate to the directory
you uploaded to using the cd command.
Copy the downloaded file to the /var/opt/btech/probe directory and issue the command /opt/
btech/probe/bin/vprobe_upgrade to begin the upgrade procedure.

cd /path/to/download
cp filename.tea /var/opt/btech/probe
/opt/btech/probe/bin/vprobe_upgrade

I.4 Wait while the software is being saved

This will take a few minutes. The probe software will then restart automatically. The probe should
state that the software image has been saved successfully.
When using the alternate method do not disconnect the ssh session before the software upgrade is
completed.

I.5 Verify the new image

Connect a browser towards the probe and verify the version and build time in the About — Release
info view.

I.6 Software upload troubleshooting

If the upgrade is rejected, verify that the software version you are trying to upload is covered by
software maintenance. Refer to H Appendix: Software Maintenance for more details.
If the web interface does not appear to work correctly straight after upgrading the probe it may be
because the web browser is using files that are cached. Files may be cached for up to one hour in the
web browser. To fix the issue, clear the cache manually:

Google Chrome: Settings — Advanced — Clear browsing data — Cached images and files
Mozilla Firefox: Options — Privacy & Security — Cached Web Content — Clear Now
Microsoft Edge: Settings — Clear browsing data — Choose what to clear — Cached data and files
1 https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/

VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0 253

Note that the probe configuration may be lost when downgrading to an older software version. In
this case the saved configuration file may be useful.
A log file from the last upgrade process is included in the debug data, which can be downloaded
from the Data — Configuration view. If you are unable to access the GUI after the upgrade, you
can inspect the log file manually by logging in to the system and opening the file /opt/btech/
probe/log/upgrade.log manually.

254 VB330-SW 10G Software Probe User’s Manual version 6.0