Re: Test Lab Best Practices

[Tom Beecher <beecher () beecher cc>]

Appliance virtualization is perfectly acceptable for a lot of things. But
there are large sets of problems that you will never catch that way.

To the OP :

With respect to 'strategies' :

1. Test something to make sure it works.
2. Then test it to see where and how it breaks.

Lots of people do #1. Not enough do #2. (Looking at you, equipment vendors.
)



On Thu, Sep 28, 2023 at 12:04 PM Nickolas Stevermer via NANOG <
nanog () nanog org> wrote:

> If you're able to virtualize some of these appliances, almost any
> virtualization platform can be setup to connect nodes together. However I
> really enjoy using Eve-ng <https://www.eve-ng.net/>. It's a network
> virtualization web app that can be deployed on bare metal or in a VM. It
> lets you diagram, connect and configure setups and do testing with
> different network nodes. What is pretty nice with this is you can then just
> click on any of the connected links and wireshark pops up and you're
> viewing packet captures instantly. It kind of reminds me of Cisco's VIRL,
> but with maybe less overhead?  It has enabled me to run and connect several
> vendor appliances and build up configuration prior to acquiring the
> physical hardware for deployment.
>
> - Nick Stevermer
>
>
> On Thu, Sep 28, 2023 at 10:46 AM Mel Beckman <mel () beckman org> wrote:
>
> > In any lab,I find concurrent access to serial ports is still an essential
> > diagnostic tool. In a pinch you can get a used Cisco 2811 for $100, but
> > there are multiport devices from lots of vendors. These let you SSH into
> > the server and then connect to any serial port, giving you separate serial
> > port windows all on the same screen. I’ve become fond of the WiFi-capable
> > multiport modules from get-console.com. The ability to record logs from
> > these serial ports in real-time helps a lot for documenting regression
> > tests.
> >
> >  -mel beckman
> >
> > > On Sep 28, 2023, at 7:25 AM, Kenneth Vedder <kvedder () amplex net> wrote:
> > >
> > > 
> > > Hello NANOG,
> > >
> > > We have been struggling with firmware bugs from a specific router
> > vendor. I am looking to set up a test lab of our core network and a few
> > remote site routers.  Protocols would include SR-MPLS, ISIS, EVPN MPLS and
> > L3VPN with a little OSPF sprinkled in. I'd be grateful for any tips or
> > resources anyone has that might cover testing strategies and/or best
> > practices.
> > > Thanks,
> > > Ken
>
>
> --
> *Nick Stevermer*
> Network Engineer
> Technology Department
> Duluth Public Schools
> 713 Portia Johnson Dr.
> Duluth, MN 55811
> Phone: 218-336-8754 ext 1227
>
>
>
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