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Test Traffic Measurement service

The Test Traffic Measurement Service (TTM) was shut down on 1 July 2014. This information is available for historical reference.

The Test Traffic Measurement (TTM) service comprehensively measures key parameters regarding the connectivity of the host’s site to other parts of the Internet.

Using dedicated measurement devices consisting of a PC and GPS antenna, the TTM service continuously monitors the connectivity between the host and the rest of the Internet.

The test boxes constantly generate connectivity data, which can be used for a variety of purposes, such as:

  • Monitoring the quality of the connection between the host and the rest of the Internet
  • Diagnosing problems that involve other networks
  • Revealing long-term trends in external connectivity
  • Verification of the performance of the host network or those of upstream providers
  • Identifying current and potential network bottlenecks

Benefits of the TTM service

There is a strong demand for TTM information in the Asia Pacific region, where network connectivity statistics have not been investigated as much as in other regions.

APNIC’s sponsorship of 12 TTM nodes will go a long way towards addressing this disparity and provide the necessary data for connectivity providers and decision makers in this region to make the best long-term plans for future network development.

This is especially useful for poorer regions that may be experiencing substandard connectivity to develop the cheapest and most effective plans for improvement, as well as reducing their reliance on foreign assistance.

TTM data can also be used to enhance the efficient and cost-effective use of local Internet resources by reducing the unnecessary flow of network traffic offshore.

This is a significant injection of research capacity to the Asia Pacific, the effects of which will be seen over the next decade and into the future.

What does the TTM service measure?

Continuously-updated measurements of the following parameters, including customizable statistical analyses, are available on demand via a secure server:

  • Delay measurements
  • Packet loss rates
  • Delay variations (jitter)
  • Bandwidth

In addition, the TTM service includes useful features for the local hosts:

  • Access to a routing information database
  • Notification of unexpected changes in the network via email or syslog, giving advance warning before customers complain
  • Trend analysis of the data, allowing problems to be averted preemptively and predictions to be made of future demands for network connectivity
  • Access to the raw data for in-depth technical analysis

The TTM service only generates a very small amount of network traffic. The service does not interact with existing network traffic, so there are no privacy concerns.

Unique features of the TTM service

  • Unlike echoing probes such as ‘ping’, the TTM devices can analyze asymmetric effects using one-way measurements
  • The measurements are performed on the network level, so there is no computational overhead for the local host
  • TTM metrics and methodologies comply with current standards in RFCs 2330 and 2678 through 2681, published by the IETF IP Performance Metrics Workgroup
  • The TTM test boxes can also be used as reference clocks. They are stratum-l Network Time Protocol (NTP) servers, providing time stamps with an accuracy in the order of 10 µs.

The operation of the TTM test boxes is carried out by the RIPE NCC, a completely impartial organization, so the results are in no way colored by commercial interests.

Find out more…

For more information about TTM, including information about applying for the service, please see: RIPE NCC’s Test Traffic Measurements Service.