Network administrators need multifaceted visibility into the network and application to help ensure consistent and cost-effective delivery of service to end users. Understanding who is using the network, knowing what applications are running on the network, assessing how the applications are performing, characterizing how traffic over the network is being used are the foundation for managing and improving the delivery of your business-critical applications. It is the foundation for establishing and verifying quality of service (QoS) policies, undertaking WAN-optimization projects, and rolling out voice over IP (VoIP). It is also the foundation for recognizing when a configuration change has unintentionally degraded application performance or for providing proof points that it is the application and not the network that is causing one of your business planning systems to perform poorly so that the appropriate actions can then be taken.
Product Overview
The Cisco® Catalyst® 6500 Series Network Analysis Module (NAM-3) provides unparalleled network and application visibility to simplify operational manageability of network resources in multi-Gigabit Ethernet enterprise campus, data center, and WAN deployments. It empowers you to optimize network resources and deliver consistent application performance to help ensure that the network performs to the rigorous demands of the business. And, when there's a problem, the Cisco NAM-3 can help you find it fast, reducing the time it takes to resolve it from days to just minutes.
Figure 1. Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Network Analysis Module (NAM-3)
Integrated with Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Switches, this next-generation service module (Figure 1) helps enable high performance traffic monitoring, deep insightful packet captures, and accurate performance analytics at 10 Gigabit traffic speeds. It allows you to:
• Lower total cost of ownership with reduced network footprint and savings in operational expenses
• Enhance operational efficiency with prepackaged dashboards, interactive reports, and intuitive workflows
• Accelerate problem resolution with advanced hardware and software filters, intelligent packet captures, and historical data analysis
• Improve end-user service levels with accurate characterization of application performance and assessment of impact due to control and optimization techniques
• Preserve investments in your existing network switching infrastructure and management assets
The Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Network Analysis Module (NAM-3) offers a unique design that takes advantage of the latest hardware innovations to deliver high performance targeted data collection, best-in-class performance analytics combined with remotely accessible, web-based management and reporting console. It supports Cisco Prime™ Network Analysis Module Software that implements a snappy graphical user interface (GUI) with prepackaged dashboards (Figure 2) to give you an immediate view of network performance and workflows to streamline your troubleshooting and optimization decisions.
Figure 2. Cisco NAM Traffic Summary Dashboard
The Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series NAM-3 can be deployed wherever your Cisco Catalyst 6500s are deployed, for example, in the campus, data center, WAN edge, and other multi-Gigabit Ethernet environments. The Cisco NAM is the glue binding your Cisco borderless network deployments, providing application visibility between and within disparate places in the network. Deployed within your Cisco data center, they help drive application delivery consistency and efficiency in both physical and virtual environments.
Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series NAM-3 Features and Benefits
The Cisco NAM-3 offers an extensive set of features (Table 1) that provide a multilayer view of network performance to help you successfully navigate the labyrinth of application delivery challenges in today's hyperconnected world. Detailed description of software features and benefits can be obtained from Cisco Prime NAM Software Datasheet.
Table 1. Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series NAM-3 Features and Benefits
Feature
Benefit
Infrastructure integration
Deployed in the Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Switch, the Cisco NAM-3 takes advantages of backplane integration. It provides greater investment protection, lower total cost of ownership, and a reduced footprint, saving premium rack space. Backplane integration allows collection of packets right from the source, helping to ensure high reliability and precision analytics.
Application performance intelligence
Characterize the end-user experience for TCP-based applications and isolate application response time problems to the network, server, or the application, minimizing any triage process.
IEEE1588 hardware time-stamping
Packet capture from the backplane combined with a precise hardware time stamp results in accurate performance measurements with metrics such as application response time and Jitter. The IEEE 1588 hardware time stamps also facilitate accurate packet capture analysis.
Comprehensive voice quality monitoring and real-time troubleshooting
Gather real-time reports on Mean Opinion Score (MOS) and other key performance indicators (KPIs) such as jitter and packet loss to understand and improve how the end user experiences the delivery of voice services. MOS is computed based on ITU-T Recommendations G.107, offering accurate characterization of voice quality. Combine monitoring with real-time troubleshooting using prepackaged dashboards to improve end-user service levels.
WAN-optimized networks visibility
Obtain end-to-end proof points demonstrating how Cisco Wide Area Application Services (WAAS) has improved application delivery (for example, decreased application transaction times, improved WAN bandwidth utilization). Accelerate the return on investment (ROI) by assessing the best site and application candidates for optimization as part of the phased rollout plan.
Detailed traffic analytics
View short- and long-term performance data on hosts, conversations, and applications that use critical network resources.
Historical analysis
Look back to the past with the embedded Performance Database to understand what happened when an event that affects network performance occurred to accelerate root-cause analysis and prevent any reoccurrence. Use historical analysis for advancing optimization and capacity decisions.
Deep, insightful packet captures
Solve complex performance issues with trigger-based captures, filters, decodes, and Packet Capture Error Scan features. Packet captures can be triggered based on performance thresholds, allowing you to focus on specific performance issues. In addition, utilize external storage to collect extensive packet captures for offline analysis
Advanced hardware and software filters
Reduce the time to get to the critical data to accelerate troubleshooting and analysis of network traffic behavior.
Monitor Virtual Switching System (VSS) deployments
Monitor both virtual switches in VSS environments, reducing management overhead while improving operational efficiency.
Cisco Nexus® 1000V deployment visibility
Simplify the operational management of Cisco Nexus 1000V switch environments by gaining visibility into the virtual machine (VM) network including interactions across virtual machines and virtual interfaces. Monitor the VMs uninterrupted by vMotion operations.
Site-based monitoring
View network and application performance by logical groups or sites that you can create to mirror your network topology. For example, you can create sites by geographic locations, departments, or even managed customer networks. The feature facilitates tracking site-specific service-level objectives, resolving performance issues, or enforcing optimization policies.
Cisco Performance Agent Reporting
Extend performance visibility across Cisco Borderless Networks utilizing the Cisco Performance Agent (PA) deployed at the remote sites. PA is a licensed feature of Cisco IOS Software introduced with version 15.1(4)M and is supported on Cisco ISR G2, 880, and 890 platforms.
Pre- and post-deployment metrics
Glean valuable before and after traffic analytics to help plan for and verify changes in network resources, such as introducing new applications, establishing QoS policies, consolidating servers, and deploying VoIP.
Open interface
Ease NAM configuration and export of computed NAM data using standards-based APIs (XML/REST for configuration, NetFlow Version 9 for data export).
Anytime, anywhere access
Access the web interface from any desktop, eliminating the need to send personnel to remote sites or haul large amounts of data over WAN links to the central site.
Product Specifications
Table 2 lists the product specifications.
Table 2. Product Specifications
Feature
Description
NAM-3 architecture
• Two high-performance CPUs with hardware-based packet acceleration offering greater than 10 Gigabit Ethernet monitoring performance, 24 GB RAM, 600 GB SATA hard disk drive, mini SAS, and 10 Gigabit Ethernet external storage interface, and 1 Gigabit Ethernet management interface
• 20 gigabit interface to backplane for Switched Port Analyzer (SPAN)/VLAN access control list (VACL) capture data sources, NetFlow, encapsulated remote SPAN (ERSPAN), Cisco WAAS, and Cisco Performance Agent (PA) data sources
Supported platforms
• NAM-3 can be deployed in a slot in Cisco Catalyst 6500-E Switches with Supervisor 720 (Supported Part Numbers: WS-SUP720-3B, WS-SUP720-3BXL, VS-S720-10G-3C, VS-S720-10G-3CXL)
• Supported with Cisco IOS® Software 12.2(33)SXJ1(minimum)
• WAN: NetFlow (versions 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) from local and remote devices, VACL-based captures for FlexWAN/Optical Service Module (OSM), and Shared Port Adapter (SPA) interfaces, and WAAS Flow Agent
Supported interfaces
• HTTP/HTTPS with embedded web-based Cisco NAM Traffic Analyzer
• Simple Network Management Protocol Version 1 (SNMPv1) and Version 2c, with standards-based applications
Cisco Prime Network Analysis Module Software
• Cisco Prime NAM Software 5.1(2)
• Web-based: Requires Microsoft Internet Explorer 8.0+ or Firefox 3.6+; supports both English and Japanese versions
• Supports Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) security with up to 256-bit encryption
• Role-based user authorization and authentication locally or using TACACS+
• Supported with Cisco IOS Software Release 12.2(33)SXJ1 (minimum). Refer to the Cisco Prime NAM 5.1(2) Release Notes for more details regarding supported system software
MIBs
The Cisco NAMs are standards compliant and support the following major MIB groups:
• MIB-II (RFC 1213) - All groups except Exterior Gateway Protocol (EGP) and transmission
• RMON (RFC 2819) - Alarm and Event groups only
• RMON2 (RFC 2021) - trapDestTable only
• Cisco Discovery Protocol
• EntityMIB (RFC 2737)
Protocols
Cisco NAM identifies hundreds of unique protocols and automatically detects unknown protocols. The NAM also allows customization of the protocol engine by defining protocols on a single port or on a range of ports. Protocols supported include (this list is not all-inclusive):
• TCP and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) over IP including IPv6
• HTTP and HTTPS
• VoIP including Skinny Client Control Protocol (SCCP), Real-Time Protocol/Real-Time Control Protocol (RTP/RTCP), Media Gateway Control Protocol (MGCP), and Session Initiation Protocol (SIP)
• SigTran protocols
• Mobile IP protocols including General Radio Packet Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocol (GTP)
• Storage area network protocols
• Database protocols
• Peer-to-peer protocols
• Switch and router protocols
• Cisco proprietary protocols
• Unknown protocols by TCP/UDP ports, Remote Procedure Call (RPC) program numbers
Physical dimensions
Dimensions (H x W x D): 1.2 x 14.4 x 16 inches (3.0 x 35.6 x 40.6 centimeters); occupies one slot in the chassis
Operating environment
• Operating temperature: 32 to 104 degrees F (0 to 40 degrees C)
• Nonoperating and storage temperature: -40 to 158 degrees F (-40 to 70 degrees C)
• Operating relative humidity: 10% to 90% (noncondensing)
• Nonoperating relative humidity: 5% to 95% (noncondensing)
• Operating and nonoperating altitude: Sea level to 10,000 feet (3050 meters)
For new Cisco NAM customers, please select Cisco Prime NAM Software 5.1(2), part number SC-SVC-NAM3-5.1-K9, as the software option when ordering your Cisco NAM and it'll be delivered to you preloaded on your NAM hardware. For current Cisco NAM customers, Cisco Prime NAM Software 5.1(2) can be downloaded from the Cisco.com Software Center at no charge using your Cisco SMARTnet® contract access privileges.
Table 3. Ordering Information
Product Information
Part Number
Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Network Analysis Module (NAM-3) (Spare)
WS-SVC-NAM3-6G-K9(=)
Cisco Prime NAM Software 5.1(2)
SC-SVC-NAM3-5.1-K9
Services from Cisco and Our Partners
Realize the full business value of your technology investments with smart, personalized services from Cisco and our partners. Backed by deep networking expertise and a broad ecosystem of partners, Cisco Services enable you to successfully plan, build, and run your network as a powerful business platform. Whether you are looking to quickly seize new opportunities to meet rising customer expectations, improve operational efficiency to lower costs, mitigate risk, or accelerate growth, we have a service that can help you. For information about Cisco Services, go to http://www.cisco.com/go/services. Table 4 shows the technical support service recommended for NAM-3.
Table 4. Cisco Technical Services
Technical Services
Cisco SMARTnet Service
• Around-the-clock, global access to the Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC)
• Unrestricted access to the extensive Cisco.com resources, communities, and tools
• Next-business-day, 8x5x4, 24x7x4, and 24x7x2 advance hardware replacement1 and onsite parts replacement and installation available
• Ongoing operating system software updates within the licensed feature set2
• Proactive diagnostics and real-time alerts on Smart Call Home enabled devices
1Cisco operating system updates include the following: maintenance releases, minor updates, and major updates within the licensed feature set.
2Advance hardware replacement is available in various service-level combinations. For example, 8x5xNBD indicates that shipment will be initiated during the standard 8-hour business day, 5 days a week (the generally accepted business days within the relevant region), with next business day (NBD) delivery. Where NBD is not available, same day ship is provided. Restrictions apply; please review the appropriate service descriptions for details.
For More Information
For more information about Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series NAM-3, visit http://www.cisco.com/go/nam, contact your local account representative, or email the Cisco NAM product marketing group at nam-info@cisco.com.
