Benchmarking Methodology for Network Security Device Performance
draft-ietf-bmwg-ngfw-performance-13
| Document | Type | Active Internet-Draft (bmwg WG) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authors | Balamuhunthan Balarajah , Carsten Rossenhoevel , Brian Monkman | ||
| Last updated | 2022-02-03 (Latest revision 2022-01-12) | ||
| Replaces | draft-balarajah-bmwg-ngfw-performance | ||
| Stream | Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) | ||
| Intended RFC status | Informational | ||
| Formats | plain text html xml htmlized pdfized bibtex | ||
| Reviews |
GENART Telechat review
Ready with Issues
IOTDIR Telechat review
On the Right Track
TSVART Telechat review
Ready
TSVART Last Call review
(of
-12)
On the Right Track
SECDIR Early review
(of
-00)
Has Nits
TSVART Telechat Review
Incomplete, due 2022-05-31
OPSDIR Last Call Review
Incomplete, due 2021-12-29
|
||
| Stream | WG state | Submitted to IESG for Publication | |
| Document shepherd | Al Morton | ||
| Shepherd write-up | Show Last changed 2021-11-19 | ||
| IESG | IESG state | IESG Evaluation::Revised I-D Needed | |
| Action Holders |
Brian Monkman
for 104 days
Carsten Rossenhoevel
for 104 days
Balamuhunthan Balarajah
for 104 days
Warren "Ace" Kumari
for 124 days
|
||
| Consensus boilerplate | Yes | ||
| Telechat date |
(None)
Has 4 DISCUSSes. Has enough positions to pass once DISCUSS positions are resolved. |
||
| Responsible AD | Warren "Ace" Kumari | ||
| Send notices to | Al Morton <acm@research.att.com> | ||
| IANA | IANA review state | IANA OK - No Actions Needed |
draft-ietf-bmwg-ngfw-performance-13
Benchmarking Methodology Working Group B. Balarajah
Internet-Draft
Obsoletes: 3511 (if approved) C. Rossenhoevel
Intended status: Informational EANTC AG
Expires: 16 July 2022 B. Monkman
NetSecOPEN
January 2022
Benchmarking Methodology for Network Security Device Performance
draft-ietf-bmwg-ngfw-performance-13
Abstract
This document provides benchmarking terminology and methodology for
next-generation network security devices including next-generation
firewalls (NGFW), next-generation intrusion prevention systems
(NGIPS), and unified threat management (UTM) implementations. The
main areas covered in this document are test terminology, test
configuration parameters, and benchmarking methodology for NGFW and
NGIPS. This document aims to improve the applicability,
reproducibility, and transparency of benchmarks and to align the test
methodology with today's increasingly complex layer 7 security
centric network application use cases. As a result, this document
makes [RFC3511] obsolete.
Status of This Memo
This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the
provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.
Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
Task Force (IETF). Note that other groups may also distribute
working documents as Internet-Drafts. The list of current Internet-
Drafts is at https://datatracker.ietf.org/drafts/current/.
Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months
and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any
time. It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference
material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."
This Internet-Draft will expire on 5 July 2022.
Copyright Notice
Copyright (c) 2022 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
document authors. All rights reserved.
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This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
Provisions Relating to IETF Documents (https://trustee.ietf.org/
license-info) in effect on the date of publication of this document.
Please review these documents carefully, as they describe your rights
and restrictions with respect to this document. Code Components
extracted from this document must include Revised BSD License text as
described in Section 4.e of the Trust Legal Provisions and are
provided without warranty as described in the Revised BSD License.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2. Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3. Scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
4. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
4.1. Testbed Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
4.2. DUT/SUT Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
4.2.1. Security Effectiveness Configuration . . . . . . . . 12
4.3. Test Equipment Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.3.1. Client Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.3.2. Backend Server Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.3.3. Traffic Flow Definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4.3.4. Traffic Load Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5. Testbed Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
6. Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6.1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6.2. Detailed Test Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
6.3. Benchmarks and Key Performance Indicators . . . . . . . . 21
7. Benchmarking Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
7.1. Throughput Performance with Application Traffic Mix . . . 23
7.1.1. Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
7.1.2. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
7.1.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
7.1.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . 25
7.2. TCP/HTTP Connections Per Second . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
7.2.1. Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
7.2.2. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
7.2.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
7.2.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . 28
7.3. HTTP Throughput . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
7.3.1. Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
7.3.2. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
7.3.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
7.3.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . 32
7.4. HTTP Transaction Latency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
7.4.1. Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
7.4.2. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
7.4.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
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7.4.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . 35
7.5. Concurrent TCP/HTTP Connection Capacity . . . . . . . . . 36
7.5.1. Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
7.5.2. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
7.5.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
7.5.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . 38
7.6. TCP/HTTPS Connections per Second . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
7.6.1. Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
7.6.2. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
7.6.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
7.6.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . 42
7.7. HTTPS Throughput . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
7.7.1. Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
7.7.2. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
7.7.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
7.7.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . 45
7.8. HTTPS Transaction Latency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
7.8.1. Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
7.8.2. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
7.8.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
7.8.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . 48
7.9. Concurrent TCP/HTTPS Connection Capacity . . . . . . . . 49
7.9.1. Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
7.9.2. Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
7.9.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
7.9.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . 51
8. IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
9. Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
10. Contributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
11. Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
12. References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
12.1. Normative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
12.2. Informative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Appendix A. Test Methodology - Security Effectiveness
Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
A.1. Test Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
A.2. Testbed Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
A.3. Test Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
A.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters . . . . . . . . . . 55
A.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters . . . . . . . 55
A.4. Test Results Validation Criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
A.5. Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
A.6. Test Procedures and Expected Results . . . . . . . . . . 57
A.6.1. Step 1: Background Traffic . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
A.6.2. Step 2: CVE Emulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Appendix B. DUT/SUT Classification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Authors' Addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
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1. Introduction
18 years have passed since IETF recommended test methodology and
terminology for firewalls initially ([RFC3511]). The requirements
for network security element performance and effectiveness have
increased tremendously since then. In the eighteen years since
[RFC3511] was published, recommending test methodology and
terminology for firewalls, requirements and expectations for network
security elements has increased tremendously. Security function
implementations have evolved to more advanced areas and have
diversified into intrusion detection and prevention, threat
management, analysis of encrypted traffic, etc. In an industry of
growing importance, well-defined, and reproducible key performance
indicators (KPIs) are increasingly needed to enable fair and
reasonable comparison of network security functions. All these
reasons have led to the creation of a new next-generation network
security device benchmarking document, which makes [RFC3511]
obsolete.
2. Requirements
The keywords "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT",
"SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "NOT RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and
"OPTIONAL" in this document are to be interpreted as described in BCP
14 [RFC2119], [RFC8174] when, and only when, they appear in all
capitals, as shown here.
3. Scope
This document provides testing terminology and testing methodology
for modern and next-generation network security devices that are
configured in Active ("Inline", see Figure 1 and Figure 2) mode. It
covers the validation of security effectiveness configurations of
network security devices, followed by performance benchmark testing.
This document focuses on advanced, realistic, and reproducible
testing methods. Additionally, it describes testbed environments,
test tool requirements, and test result formats.
4. Test Setup
Test setup defined in this document applies to all benchmarking tests
described in Section 7. The test setup MUST be contained within an
Isolated Test Environment (see Section 3 of [RFC6815]).
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4.1. Testbed Configuration
Testbed configuration MUST ensure that any performance implications
that are discovered during the benchmark testing aren't due to the
inherent physical network limitations such as the number of physical
links and forwarding performance capabilities (throughput and
latency) of the network devices in the testbed. For this reason,
this document recommends avoiding external devices such as switches
and routers in the testbed wherever possible.
In some deployment scenarios, the network security devices (Device
Under Test/System Under Test) are connected to routers and switches,
which will reduce the number of entries in MAC or ARP tables of the
Device Under Test/System Under Test (DUT/SUT). If MAC or ARP tables
have many entries, this may impact the actual DUT/SUT performance due
to MAC and ARP/ND (Neighbor Discovery) table lookup processes. This
document also recommends using test equipment with the capability of
emulating layer 3 routing functionality instead of adding external
routers in the testbed.
The testbed setup Option 1 (Figure 1) is the RECOMMENDED testbed
setup for the benchmarking test.
+-----------------------+ +-----------------------+
| +-------------------+ | +-----------+ | +-------------------+ |
| | Emulated Router(s)| | | | | | Emulated Router(s)| |
| | (Optional) | +----- DUT/SUT +-----+ (Optional) | |
| +-------------------+ | | | | +-------------------+ |
| +-------------------+ | +-----------+ | +-------------------+ |
| | Clients | | | | Servers | |
| +-------------------+ | | +-------------------+ |
| | | |
| Test Equipment | | Test Equipment |
+-----------------------+ +-----------------------+
Figure 1: Testbed Setup - Option 1
If the test equipment used is not capable of emulating layer 3
routing functionality or if the number of used ports is mismatched
between test equipment and the DUT/SUT (need for test equipment port
aggregation), the test setup can be configured as shown in Figure 2.
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+-------------------+ +-----------+ +--------------------+
|Aggregation Switch/| | | | Aggregation Switch/|
| Router +------+ DUT/SUT +------+ Router |
| | | | | |
+----------+--------+ +-----------+ +--------+-----------+
| |
| |
+-----------+-----------+ +-----------+-----------+
| | | |
| +-------------------+ | | +-------------------+ |
| | Emulated Router(s)| | | | Emulated Router(s)| |
| | (Optional) | | | | (Optional) | |
| +-------------------+ | | +-------------------+ |
| +-------------------+ | | +-------------------+ |
| | Clients | | | | Servers | |
| +-------------------+ | | +-------------------+ |
| | | |
| Test Equipment | | Test Equipment |
+-----------------------+ +-----------------------+
Figure 2: Testbed Setup - Option 2
4.2. DUT/SUT Configuration
A unique DUT/SUT configuration MUST be used for all benchmarking
tests described in Section 7. Since each DUT/SUT will have its own
unique configuration, users SHOULD configure their device with the
same parameters and security features that would be used in the
actual deployment of the device or a typical deployment in order to
achieve maximum network security coverage. The DUT/SUT MUST be
configured in "Inline" mode so that the traffic is actively inspected
by the DUT/SUT. Also "Fail-Open" behavior MUST be disabled on the
DUT/SUT.
Table 1 and Table 2 below describe the RECOMMENDED and OPTIONAL sets
of network security feature list for NGFW and NGIPS respectively.
The selected security features SHOULD be consistently enabled on the
DUT/SUT for all benchmarking tests described in Section 7.
To improve repeatability, a summary of the DUT/SUT configuration
including a description of all enabled DUT/SUT features MUST be
published with the benchmarking results.
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+============================+=============+==========+
| DUT/SUT (NGFW) Features | RECOMMENDED | OPTIONAL |
+============================+=============+==========+
| SSL Inspection | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| IDS/IPS | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Anti-Spyware | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Anti-Virus | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Anti-Botnet | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Web Filtering | | x |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Data Loss Protection (DLP) | | x |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| DDoS | | x |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Certificate Validation | | x |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Logging and Reporting | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Application Identification | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
Table 1: NGFW Security Features
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+============================+=============+==========+
| DUT/SUT (NGIPS) Features | RECOMMENDED | OPTIONAL |
+============================+=============+==========+
| SSL Inspection | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Anti-Malware | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Anti-Spyware | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Anti-Botnet | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Logging and Reporting | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Application Identification | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Deep Packet Inspection | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
| Anti-Evasion | x | |
+----------------------------+-------------+----------+
Table 2: NGIPS Security Features
The following table provides a brief description of the security
features.
+================+================================================+
| DUT/SUT | Description |
| Features | |
+================+================================================+
| SSL Inspection | DUT/SUT intercepts and decrypts inbound HTTPS |
| | traffic between servers and clients. Once the |
| | content inspection has been completed, DUT/SUT |
| | encrypts the HTTPS traffic with ciphers and |
| | keys used by the clients and servers. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| IDS/IPS | DUT/SUT detects and blocks exploits targeting |
| | known and unknown vulnerabilities across the |
| | monitored network. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| Anti-Malware | DUT/SUT detects and prevents the transmission |
| | of malicious executable code and any |
| | associated communications across the monitored |
| | network. This includes data exfiltration as |
| | well as command and control channels. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| Anti-Spyware | Anti-Spyware is a subcategory of Anti Malware. |
| | Spyware transmits information without the |
| | user's knowledge or permission. DUT/SUT |
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| | detects and block initial infection or |
| | transmission of data. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| Anti-Botnet | DUT/SUT detects traffic to or from botnets. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| Anti-Evasion | DUT/SUT detects and mitigates attacks that |
| | have been obfuscated in some manner. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| Web Filtering | DUT/SUT detects and blocks malicious website |
| | including defined classifications of website |
| | across the monitored network. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| DLP | DUT/SUT detects and prevents data breaches and |
| | data exfiltration, or it detects and blocks |
| | the transmission of sensitive data across the |
| | monitored network. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| Certificate | DUT/SUT validates certificates used in |
| Validation | encrypted communications across the monitored |
| | network. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| Logging and | DUT/SUT logs and reports all traffic at the |
| Reporting | flow level across the monitored network. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
| Application | DUT/SUT detects known applications as defined |
| Identification | within the traffic mix selected across the |
| | monitored network. |
+----------------+------------------------------------------------+
Table 3: Security Feature Description
Below is a summary of the DUT/SUT configuration:
* DUT/SUT MUST be configured in "inline" mode.
* "Fail-Open" behavior MUST be disabled.
* All RECOMMENDED security features are enabled.
* Logging SHOULD be enabled. DUT/SUT SHOULD log all traffic at the
flow level - Logging to an external device is permissible.
* Geographical location filtering, and Application Identification
and Control SHOULD be configured to trigger based on a site or
application from the defined traffic mix.
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In addition, a realistic number of access control rules (ACL) SHOULD
be configured on the DUT/SUT where ACLs are configurable and
reasonable based on the deployment scenario. This document
determines the number of access policy rules for four different
classes of DUT/SUT: Extra Small (XS), Small (S), Medium (M), and
Large (L). A sample DUT/SUT classification is described in
Appendix B.
The Access Control Rules (ACL) defined in Figure 3 MUST be configured
from top to bottom in the correct order as shown in the table. This
is due to ACL types listed in specificity decreasing order, with
"block" first, followed by "allow", representing a typical ACL based
security policy. The ACL entries SHOULD be configured with routable
IP subnets by the DUT/SUT. (Note: There will be differences between
how security vendors implement ACL decision making.) The configured
ACL MUST NOT block the security and measurement traffic used for the
benchmarking tests.
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+---------------+
| DUT/SUT |
| Classification|
| # Rules |
+-----------+-----------+--------------------+------+---+---+---+---+
| | Match | | | | | | |
| Rules Type| Criteria | Description |Action| XS| S | M | L |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Application|Application| Any application | block| 5 | 10| 20| 50|
|layer | | not included in | | | | | |
| | | the measurement | | | | | |
| | | traffic | | | | | |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Transport |SRC IP and | Any SRC IP subnet | block| 25| 50|100|250|
|layer |TCP/UDP | used and any DST | | | | | |
| |DST ports | ports not used in | | | | | |
| | | the measurement | | | | | |
| | | traffic | | | | | |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
|IP layer |SRC/DST IP | Any SRC/DST IP | block| 25| 50|100|250|
| | | subnet not used | | | | | |
| | | in the measurement | | | | | |
| | | traffic | | | | | |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Application|Application| Half of the | allow| 10| 10| 10| 10|
|layer | | applications | | | | | |
| | | included in the | | | | | |
| | | measurement traffic| | | | | |
| | |(see the note below)| | | | | |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Transport |SRC IP and | Half of the SRC | allow| >1| >1| >1| >1|
|layer |TCP/UDP | IPs used and any | | | | | |
| |DST ports | DST ports used in | | | | | |
| | | the measurement | | | | | |
| | | traffic | | | | | |
| | | (one rule per | | | | | |
| | | subnet) | | | | | |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
|IP layer |SRC IP | The rest of the | allow| >1| >1| >1| >1|
| | | SRC IP subnet | | | | | |
| | | range used in the | | | | | |
| | | measurement | | | | | |
| | | traffic | | | | | |
| | | (one rule per | | | | | |
| | | subnet) | | | | | |
+-----------+-----------+--------------------+------+---+---+---+---+
Figure 3: DUT/SUT Access List
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Note: If half of the applications included in the measurement traffic
is less than 10, the missing number of ACL entries (dummy rules) can
be configured for any application traffic not included in the
measurement traffic.
4.2.1. Security Effectiveness Configuration
The Security features (defined in Table 1 and Table 2) of the DUT/SUT
MUST be configured effectively to detect, prevent, and report the
defined security vulnerability sets. This section defines the
selection of the security vulnerability sets from Common
vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) list for the testing. The
vulnerability set SHOULD reflect a minimum of 500 CVEs from no older
than 10 calendar years to the current year. These CVEs SHOULD be
selected with a focus on in-use software commonly found in business
applications, with a Common vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS)
Severity of High (7-10).
This document is primarily focused on performance benchmarking.
However, it is RECOMMENDED to validate the security features
configuration of the DUT/SUT by evaluating the security effectiveness
as a prerequisite for performance benchmarking tests defined in the
section 7. In case the benchmarking tests are performed without
evaluating security effectiveness, the test report MUST explain the
implications of this. The methodology for evaluating security
effectiveness is defined in Appendix A.
4.3. Test Equipment Configuration
In general, test equipment allows configuring parameters in different
protocol layers. These parameters thereby influence the traffic
flows which will be offered and impact performance measurements.
This section specifies common test equipment configuration parameters
applicable for all benchmarking tests defined in Section 7. Any
benchmarking test specific parameters are described under the test
setup section of each benchmarking test individually.
4.3.1. Client Configuration
This section specifies which parameters SHOULD be considered while
configuring clients using test equipment. Also, this section
specifies the RECOMMENDED values for certain parameters. The values
are the defaults used in most of the client operating systems
currently.
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4.3.1.1. TCP Stack Attributes
The TCP stack SHOULD use a congestion control algorithm at client and
server endpoints. The IPv4 and IPv6 Maximum Segment Size (MSS)
SHOULD be set to 1460 bytes and 1440 bytes respectively and a TX and
RX initial receive windows of 64 KByte. Client initial congestion
window SHOULD NOT exceed 10 times the MSS. Delayed ACKs are
permitted and the maximum client delayed ACK SHOULD NOT exceed 10
times the MSS before a forced ACK. Up to three retries SHOULD be
allowed before a timeout event is declared. All traffic MUST set the
TCP PSH flag to high. The source port range SHOULD be in the range
of 1024 - 65535. Internal timeout SHOULD be dynamically scalable per
RFC 793. The client SHOULD initiate and close TCP connections. The
TCP connection MUST be initiated via a TCP three-way handshake (SYN,
SYN/ACK, ACK), and it MUST be closed via either a TCP three-way close
(FIN, FIN/ACK, ACK), or a TCP four-way close (FIN, ACK, FIN, ACK).
4.3.1.2. Client IP Address Space
The sum of the client IP space SHOULD contain the following
attributes.
* The IP blocks SHOULD consist of multiple unique, discontinuous
static address blocks.
* A default gateway is permitted.
* The DSCP (differentiated services code point) marking is set to DF
(Default Forwarding) '000000' on IPv4 Type of Service (ToS) field
and IPv6 traffic class field.
The following equation can be used to define the total number of
client IP addresses that will be configured on the test equipment.
Desired total number of client IP = Target throughput [Mbit/s] /
Average throughput per IP address [Mbit/s]
As shown in the example list below, the value for "Average throughput
per IP address" can be varied depending on the deployment and use
case scenario.
(Option 1) DUT/SUT deployment scenario 1 : 6-7 Mbit/s per IP (e.g.
1,400-1,700 IPs per 10Gbit/s throughput)
(Option 2) DUT/SUT deployment scenario 2 : 0.1-0.2 Mbit/s per IP
(e.g. 50,000-100,000 IPs per 10Gbit/s throughput)
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Based on deployment and use case scenario, client IP addresses SHOULD
be distributed between IPv4 and IPv6. The following options MAY be
considered for a selection of traffic mix ratio.
(Option 1) 100 % IPv4, no IPv6
(Option 2) 80 % IPv4, 20% IPv6
(Option 3) 50 % IPv4, 50% IPv6
(Option 4) 20 % IPv4, 80% IPv6
(Option 5) no IPv4, 100% IPv6
Note: The IANA has assigned IP address range for the testing purpose
as described in Section 8. If the test scenario requires more IP
addresses or subnets than the IANA assigned, this document recommends
using non routable Private IPv4 address ranges or Unique Local
Address (ULA) IPv6 address ranges for the testing.
4.3.1.3. Emulated Web Browser Attributes
The client emulated web browser (emulated browser) contains
attributes that will materially affect how traffic is loaded. The
objective is to emulate modern, typical browser attributes to improve
realism of the result set.
For HTTP traffic emulation, the emulated browser MUST negotiate HTTP
version 1.1 or higher. Depending on test scenarios and chosen HTTP
version, the emulated browser MAY open multiple TCP connections per
Server endpoint IP at any time depending on how many sequential
transactions need to be processed. For HTTP/2 or HTTP/3, the
emulated browser MAY open multiple concurrent streams per connection
(multiplexing). HTTP/3 emulated browser uses QUIC ([RFC9000]) as
transport protocol. HTTP settings such as number of connection per
server IP, number of requests per connection, and number of streams
per connection MUST be documented. This document refers to [RFC8446]
for HTTP/2. The emulated browser SHOULD advertise a User-Agent
header. The emulated browser SHOULD enforce content length
validation. Depending on test scenarios and selected HTTP version,
HTTP header compression MAY be set to enable or disable. This
setting (compression enabled or disabled) MUST be documented in the
report.
For encrypted traffic, the following attributes SHALL define the
negotiated encryption parameters. The test clients MUST use TLS
version 1.2 or higher. TLS record size MAY be optimized for the
HTTPS response object size up to a record size of 16 KByte. If
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Server Name Indication (SNI) is required in the traffic mix profile,
the client endpoint MUST send TLS extension Server Name Indication
(SNI) information when opening a security tunnel. Each client
connection MUST perform a full handshake with server certificate and
MUST NOT use session reuse or resumption.
The following TLS 1.2 supported ciphers and keys are RECOMMENDED to
use for HTTPS based benchmarking tests defined in Section 7.
1. ECDHE-ECDSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256 with Prime256v1 (Signature Hash
Algorithm: ecdsa_secp256r1_sha256 and Supported group: secp256r1)
2. ECDHE-RSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256 with RSA 2048 (Signature Hash
Algorithm: rsa_pkcs1_sha256 and Supported group: secp256r1)
3. ECDHE-ECDSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384 with Secp521 (Signature Hash
Algorithm: ecdsa_secp384r1_sha384 and Supported group: secp521r1)
4. ECDHE-RSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384 with RSA 4096 (Signature Hash
Algorithm: rsa_pkcs1_sha384 and Supported group: secp256r1)
Note: The above ciphers and keys were those commonly used enterprise
grade encryption cipher suites for TLS 1.2. It is recognized that
these will evolve over time. Individual certification bodies SHOULD
use ciphers and keys that reflect evolving use cases. These choices
MUST be documented in the resulting test reports with detailed
information on the ciphers and keys used along with reasons for the
choices.
[RFC8446] defines the following cipher suites for use with TLS 1.3.
1. TLS_AES_128_GCM_SHA256
2. TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384
3. TLS_CHACHA20_POLY1305_SHA256
4. TLS_AES_128_CCM_SHA256
5. TLS_AES_128_CCM_8_SHA256
4.3.2. Backend Server Configuration
This section specifies which parameters should be considered while
configuring emulated backend servers using test equipment.
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4.3.2.1. TCP Stack Attributes
The TCP stack on the server side SHOULD be configured similar to the
client side configuration described in Section 4.3.1.1. In addition,
server initial congestion window MUST NOT exceed 10 times the MSS.
Delayed ACKs are permitted and the maximum server delayed ACK MUST
NOT exceed 10 times the MSS before a forced ACK.
4.3.2.2. Server Endpoint IP Addressing
The sum of the server IP space SHOULD contain the following
attributes.
* The server IP blocks SHOULD consist of unique, discontinuous
static address blocks with one IP per server Fully Qualified
Domain Name (FQDN) endpoint per test port.
* A default gateway is permitted. The DSCP (differentiated services
code point) marking is set to DF (Default Forwarding) '000000' on
IPv4 Type of Service (ToS) field and IPv6 traffic class field.
* The server IP addresses SHOULD be distributed between IPv4 and
IPv6 with a ratio identical to the clients distribution ratio.
Note: The IANA has assigned IP address range for the testing purpose
as described in Section 8. If the test scenario requires more IP
addresses or subnets than the IANA assigned, this document recommends
using non routable Private IPv4 address ranges or Unique Local
Address (ULA) IPv6 address ranges for the testing.
4.3.2.3. HTTP / HTTPS Server Pool Endpoint Attributes
The server pool for HTTP SHOULD listen on TCP port 80 and emulate the
same HTTP version (HTTP 1.1 or HTTP/2 or HTTP/3) and settings chosen
by the client (emulated web browser). The Server MUST advertise
server type in the Server response header [RFC7230]. For HTTPS
server, TLS 1.2 or higher MUST be used with a maximum record size of
16 KByte and MUST NOT use ticket resumption or session ID reuse. The
server SHOULD listen on TCP port 443 for HTTP version 1.1 and 2. For
HTTP/3 (HTTP over QUIC) the server SHOULD listen on UDP 443. The
server SHALL serve a certificate to the client. The HTTPS server
MUST check host SNI information with the FQDN if SNI is in use.
Cipher suite and key size on the server side MUST be configured
similar to the client side configuration described in
Section 4.3.1.3.
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4.3.3. Traffic Flow Definition
This section describes the traffic pattern between client and server
endpoints. At the beginning of the test, the server endpoint
initializes and will be ready to accept connection states including
initialization of the TCP stack as well as bound HTTP and HTTPS
servers. When a client endpoint is needed, it will initialize and be
given attributes such as a MAC and IP address. The behavior of the
client is to sweep through the given server IP space, generating a
recognizable service by the DUT. Sequential and pseudorandom sweep
methods are acceptable. The method used MUST be stated in the final
report. Thus, a balanced mesh between client endpoints and server
endpoints will be generated in a client IP and port to server IP and
port combination. Each client endpoint performs the same actions as
other endpoints, with the difference being the source IP of the
client endpoint and the target server IP pool. The client MUST use
the server IP address or FQDN in the host header [RFC7230].
4.3.3.1. Description of Intra-Client Behavior
Client endpoints are independent of other clients that are
concurrently executing. When a client endpoint initiates traffic,
this section describes how the client steps through different
services. Once the test is initialized, the client endpoints
randomly hold (perform no operation) for a few milliseconds for
better randomization of the start of client traffic. Each client
will either open a new TCP connection or connect to a TCP persistence
stack still open to that specific server. At any point that the
traffic profile may require encryption, a TLS encryption tunnel will
form presenting the URL or IP address request to the server. If
using SNI, the server MUST then perform an SNI name check with the
proposed FQDN compared to the domain embedded in the certificate.
Only when correct, will the server process the HTTPS response object.
The initial response object to the server is based on benchmarking
tests described in Section 7. Multiple additional sub-URLs (response
objects on the service page) MAY be requested simultaneously. This
MAY be to the same server IP as the initial URL. Each sub-object
will also use a canonical FQDN and URL path, as observed in the
traffic mix used.
4.3.4. Traffic Load Profile
The loading of traffic is described in this section. The loading of
a traffic load profile has five phases: Init, ramp up, sustain, ramp
down, and collection.
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1. Init phase: Testbed devices including the client and server
endpoints should negotiate layer 2-3 connectivity such as MAC
learning and ARP. Only after successful MAC learning or ARP/ND
resolution SHALL the test iteration move to the next phase. No
measurements are made in this phase. The minimum RECOMMENDED
time for Init phase is 5 seconds. During this phase, the
emulated clients SHOULD NOT initiate any sessions with the DUT/
SUT, in contrast, the emulated servers should be ready to accept
requests from DUT/SUT or from emulated clients.
2. Ramp up phase: The test equipment SHOULD start to generate the
test traffic. It SHOULD use a set of the approximate number of
unique client IP addresses to generate traffic. The traffic
SHOULD ramp up from zero to desired target objective. The target
objective is defined for each benchmarking test. The duration
for the ramp up phase MUST be configured long enough that the
test equipment does not overwhelm the DUT/SUTs stated performance
metrics defined in Section 6.3 namely, TCP Connections Per
Second, Inspected Throughput, Concurrent TCP Connections, and
Application Transactions Per Second. No measurements are made in
this phase.
3. Sustain phase: Starts when all required clients are active and
operating at their desired load condition. In the sustain phase,
the test equipment SHOULD continue generating traffic to constant
target value for a constant number of active clients. The
minimum RECOMMENDED time duration for sustain phase is 300
seconds. This is the phase where measurements occur. The test
equipment SHOULD measure and record statistics continuously. The
sampling interval for collecting the raw results and calculating
the statistics SHOULD be less than 2 seconds.
4. Ramp down phase: No new connections are established, and no
measurements are made. The time duration for ramp up and ramp
down phase SHOULD be the same.
5. Collection phase: The last phase is administrative and will occur
when the test equipment merges and collates the report data.
5. Testbed Considerations
This section describes steps for a reference test (pre-test) that
control the test environment including test equipment, focusing on
physical and virtualized environments and as well as test equipments.
Below are the RECOMMENDED steps for the reference test.
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1. Perform the reference test either by configuring the DUT/SUT in
the most trivial setup (fast forwarding) or without presence of
the DUT/SUT.
2. Generate traffic from traffic generator. Choose a traffic
profile used for HTTP or HTTPS throughput performance test with
smallest object size.
3. Ensure that any ancillary switching or routing functions added in
the test equipment does not limit the performance by introducing
network metrics such as packet loss and latency. This is
specifically important for virtualized components (e.g.,
vSwitches, vRouters).
4. Verify that the generated traffic (performance) of the test
equipment matches and reasonably exceeds the expected maximum
performance of the DUT/SUT.
5. Record the network performance metrics packet loss latency
introduced by the test environment (without DUT/SUT).
6. Assert that the testbed characteristics are stable during the
entire test session. Several factors might influence stability
specifically, for virtualized testbeds. For example, additional
workloads in a virtualized system, load balancing, and movement
of virtual machines during the test, or simple issues such as
additional heat created by high workloads leading to an emergency
CPU performance reduction.
The reference test SHOULD be performed before the benchmarking tests
(described in section 7) start.
6. Reporting
This section describes how the benchmarking test report should be
formatted and presented. It is RECOMMENDED to include two main
sections in the report, namely the introduction and the detailed test
results sections.
6.1. Introduction
The following attributes SHOULD be present in the introduction
section of the test report.
1. The time and date of the execution of the tests
2. Summary of testbed software and hardware details
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a. DUT/SUT hardware/virtual configuration
* This section SHOULD clearly identify the make and model of
the DUT/SUT
* The port interfaces, including speed and link information
* If the DUT/SUT is a Virtual Network Function (VNF), host
(server) hardware and software details, interface
acceleration type such as DPDK and SR-IOV, used CPU cores,
used RAM, resource sharing (e.g. Pinning details and NUMA
Node) configuration details, hypervisor version, virtual
switch version
* details of any additional hardware relevant to the DUT/SUT
such as controllers
b. DUT/SUT software
* Operating system name
* Version
* Specific configuration details (if any)
c. DUT/SUT enabled features
* Configured DUT/SUT features (see Table 1 and Table 2)
* Attributes of the above-mentioned features
* Any additional relevant information about the features
d. Test equipment hardware and software
* Test equipment vendor name
* Hardware details including model number, interface type
* Test equipment firmware and test application software
version
e. Key test parameters
* Used cipher suites and keys
* IPv4 and IPv6 traffic distribution
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* Number of configured ACL
f. Details of application traffic mix used in the benchmarking
test "Throughput Performance with Application Traffic Mix"
(Section 7.1)
* Name of applications and layer 7 protocols
* Percentage of emulated traffic for each application and
layer 7 protocols
* Percentage of encrypted traffic and used cipher suites and
keys (The RECOMMENDED ciphers and keys are defined in
Section 4.3.1.3)
* Used object sizes for each application and layer 7
protocols
3. Results Summary / Executive Summary
a. Results SHOULD resemble a pyramid in how it is reported, with
the introduction section documenting the summary of results
in a prominent, easy to read block.
6.2. Detailed Test Results
In the result section of the test report, the following attributes
SHOULD be present for each benchmarking test.
a. KPIs MUST be documented separately for each benchmarking test.
The format of the KPI metrics SHOULD be presented as described in
Section 6.3.
b. The next level of details SHOULD be graphs showing each of these
metrics over the duration (sustain phase) of the test. This
allows the user to see the measured performance stability changes
over time.
6.3. Benchmarks and Key Performance Indicators
This section lists key performance indicators (KPIs) for overall
benchmarking tests. All KPIs MUST be measured during the sustain
phase of the traffic load profile described in Section 4.3.4. All
KPIs MUST be measured from the result output of test equipment.
* Concurrent TCP Connections
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The aggregate number of simultaneous connections between hosts
across the DUT/SUT, or between hosts and the DUT/SUT (defined in
[RFC2647]).
* TCP Connections Per Second
The average number of successfully established TCP connections per
second between hosts across the DUT/SUT, or between hosts and the
DUT/SUT. The TCP connection MUST be initiated via a TCP three-way
handshake (SYN, SYN/ACK, ACK). Then the TCP session data is sent.
The TCP session MUST be closed via either a TCP three-way close
(FIN, FIN/ACK, ACK), or a TCP four-way close (FIN, ACK, FIN, ACK),
and MUST NOT by RST.
* Application Transactions Per Second
The average number of successfully completed transactions per
second. For a particular transaction to be considered successful,
all data MUST have been transferred in its entirety. In case of
HTTP(S) transactions, it MUST have a valid status code (200 OK),
and the appropriate FIN, FIN/ACK sequence MUST have been
completed.
* TLS Handshake Rate
The average number of successfully established TLS connections per
second between hosts across the DUT/SUT, or between hosts and the
DUT/SUT.
* Inspected Throughput
The number of bits per second of examined and allowed traffic a
network security device is able to transmit to the correct
destination interface(s) in response to a specified offered load.
The throughput benchmarking tests defined in Section 7 SHOULD
measure the average Layer 2 throughput value when the DUT/SUT is
"inspecting" traffic. This document recommends presenting the
inspected throughput value in Gbit/s rounded to two places of
precision with a more specific Kbit/s in parenthesis.
* Time to First Byte (TTFB)
TTFB is the elapsed time between the start of sending the TCP SYN
packet from the client and the client receiving the first packet
of application data from the server or DUT/SUT. The benchmarking
tests HTTP Transaction Latency (Section 7.4) and HTTPS Transaction
Latency (Section 7.8) measure the minimum, average and maximum
TTFB. The value SHOULD be expressed in milliseconds.
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* URL Response time / Time to Last Byte (TTLB)
URL Response time / TTLB is the elapsed time between the start of
sending the TCP SYN packet from the client and the client
receiving the last packet of application data from the server or
DUT/SUT. The benchmarking tests HTTP Transaction Latency
(Section 7.4) and HTTPS Transaction Latency (Section 7.8) measure
the minimum, average and maximum TTLB. The value SHOULD be
expressed in millisecond.
7. Benchmarking Tests
7.1. Throughput Performance with Application Traffic Mix
7.1.1. Objective
Using a relevant application traffic mix, determine the sustainable
inspected throughput supported by the DUT/SUT.
Based on the test customer's specific use case, testers can choose
the relevant application traffic mix for this test. The details
about the traffic mix MUST be documented in the report. At least the
following traffic mix details MUST be documented and reported
together with the test results:
Name of applications and layer 7 protocols
Percentage of emulated traffic for each application and layer 7
protocol
Percentage of encrypted traffic and used cipher suites and keys
(The RECOMMENDED ciphers and keys are defined in Section 4.3.1.3.)
Used object sizes for each application and layer 7 protocols
7.1.2. Test Setup
Testbed setup MUST be configured as defined in Section 4. Any
benchmarking test specific testbed configuration changes MUST be
documented.
7.1.3. Test Parameters
In this section, the benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
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7.1.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT parameters MUST conform to the requirements defined in
Section 4.2. Any configuration changes for this specific
benchmarking test MUST be documented. In case the DUT/SUT is
configured without SSL inspection, the test report MUST explain the
implications of this to the relevant application traffic mix
encrypted traffic.
7.1.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The following parameters MUST
be documented for this benchmarking test:
Client IP address range defined in Section 4.3.1.2
Server IP address range defined in Section 4.3.2.2
Traffic distribution ratio between IPv4 and IPv6 defined in
Section 4.3.1.2
Target inspected throughput: Aggregated line rate of interface(s)
used in the DUT/SUT or the value defined based on requirement for
a specific deployment scenario
Initial throughput: 10% of the "Target inspected throughput" Note:
Initial throughput is not a KPI to report. This value is
configured on the traffic generator and used to perform Step 1:
"Test Initialization and Qualification" described under the
Section 7.1.4.
One of the ciphers and keys defined in Section 4.3.1.3 are
RECOMMENDED to use for this benchmarking test.
7.1.3.3. Traffic Profile
Traffic profile: This test MUST be run with a relevant application
traffic mix profile.
7.1.3.4. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
sustain phase of the traffic load profile.
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a. Number of failed application transactions (receiving any HTTP
response code other than 200 OK) MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out
of 100,000 transactions) of total attempted transactions.
b. Number of Terminated TCP connections due to unexpected TCP RST
sent by DUT/SUT MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out of 100,000
connections) of total initiated TCP connections.
7.1.3.5. Measurement
Following KPI metrics MUST be reported for this benchmarking test:
Mandatory KPIs (benchmarks): Inspected Throughput, TTFB (minimum,
average, and maximum), TTLB (minimum, average, and maximum) and
Application Transactions Per Second
Note: TTLB MUST be reported along with the object size used in the
traffic profile.
Optional KPIs: TCP Connections Per Second and TLS Handshake Rate
7.1.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedures are designed to measure the inspected throughput
performance of the DUT/SUT at the sustaining period of traffic load
profile. The test procedure consists of three major steps: Step 1
ensures the DUT/SUT is able to reach the performance value (initial
throughput) and meets the test results validation criteria when it
was very minimally utilized. Step 2 determines the DUT/SUT is able
to reach the target performance value within the test results
validation criteria. Step 3 determines the maximum achievable
performance value within the test results validation criteria.
This test procedure MAY be repeated multiple times with different IP
types: IPv4 only, IPv6 only, and IPv4 and IPv6 mixed traffic
distribution.
7.1.4.1. Step 1: Test Initialization and Qualification
Verify the link status of all connected physical interfaces. All
interfaces are expected to be in "UP" status.
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Configure traffic load profile of the test equipment to generate test
traffic at the "Initial throughput" rate as described in
Section 7.1.3.2. The test equipment SHOULD follow the traffic load
profile definition as described in Section 4.3.4. The DUT/SUT SHOULD
reach the "Initial throughput" during the sustain phase. Measure all
KPI as defined in Section 7.1.3.5. The measured KPIs during the
sustain phase MUST meet all the test results validation criteria
defined in Section 7.1.3.4.
If the KPI metrics do not meet the test results validation criteria,
the test procedure MUST NOT be continued to step 2.
7.1.4.2. Step 2: Test Run with Target Objective
Configure test equipment to generate traffic at the "Target inspected
throughput" rate defined in Section 7.1.3.2. The test equipment
SHOULD follow the traffic load profile definition as described in
Section 4.3.4. The test equipment SHOULD start to measure and record
all specified KPIs. Continue the test until all traffic profile
phases are completed.
Within the test results validation criteria, the DUT/SUT is expected
to reach the desired value of the target objective ("Target inspected
throughput") in the sustain phase. Follow step 3, if the measured
value does not meet the target value or does not fulfill the test
results validation criteria.
7.1.4.3. Step 3: Test Iteration
Determine the achievable average inspected throughput within the test
results validation criteria. Final test iteration MUST be performed
for the test duration defined in Section 4.3.4.
7.2. TCP/HTTP Connections Per Second
7.2.1. Objective
Using HTTP traffic, determine the sustainable TCP connection
establishment rate supported by the DUT/SUT under different
throughput load conditions.
To measure connections per second, test iterations MUST use different
fixed HTTP response object sizes (the different load conditions)
defined in Section 7.2.3.2.
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7.2.2. Test Setup
Testbed setup SHOULD be configured as defined in Section 4. Any
specific testbed configuration changes (number of interfaces and
interface type, etc.) MUST be documented.
7.2.3. Test Parameters
In this section, benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
7.2.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT parameters MUST conform to the requirements defined in
Section 4.2. Any configuration changes for this specific
benchmarking test MUST be documented.
7.2.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The following parameters MUST
be documented for this benchmarking test:
Client IP address range defined in Section 4.3.1.2
Server IP address range defined in Section 4.3.2.2
Traffic distribution ratio between IPv4 and IPv6 defined in
Section 4.3.1.2
Target connections per second: Initial value from product datasheet
or the value defined based on requirement for a specific deployment
scenario
Initial connections per second: 10% of "Target connections per
second" (Note: Initial connections per second is not a KPI to report.
This value is configured on the traffic generator and used to perform
the Step1: "Test Initialization and Qualification" described under
the Section 7.2.4.
The client SHOULD negotiate HTTP and close the connection with FIN
immediately after completion of one transaction. In each test
iteration, client MUST send GET request requesting a fixed HTTP
response object size.
The RECOMMENDED response object sizes are 1, 2, 4, 16, and 64 KByte.
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7.2.3.3. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
Test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
sustain phase of the traffic load profile.
a. Number of failed application transactions (receiving any HTTP
response code other than 200 OK) MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out
of 100,000 transactions) of total attempted transactions.
b. Number of terminated TCP connections due to unexpected TCP RST
sent by DUT/SUT MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out of 100,000
connections) of total initiated TCP connections.
c. During the sustain phase, traffic SHOULD be forwarded at a
constant rate (considered as a constant rate if any deviation of
traffic forwarding rate is less than 5%).
d. Concurrent TCP connections MUST be constant during steady state
and any deviation of concurrent TCP connections SHOULD be less
than 10%. This confirms the DUT opens and closes TCP connections
at approximately the same rate.
7.2.3.4. Measurement
TCP Connections Per Second MUST be reported for each test iteration
(for each object size).
7.2.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedure is designed to measure the TCP connections per
second rate of the DUT/SUT at the sustaining period of the traffic
load profile. The test procedure consists of three major steps: Step
1 ensures the DUT/SUT is able to reach the performance value (Initial
connections per second) and meets the test results validation
criteria when it was very minimally utilized. Step 2 determines the
DUT/SUT is able to reach the target performance value within the test
results validation criteria. Step 3 determines the maximum
achievable performance value within the test results validation
criteria.
This test procedure MAY be repeated multiple times with different IP
types: IPv4 only, IPv6 only, and IPv4 and IPv6 mixed traffic
distribution.
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7.2.4.1. Step 1: Test Initialization and Qualification
Verify the link status of all connected physical interfaces. All
interfaces are expected to be in "UP" status.
Configure the traffic load profile of the test equipment to establish
"Initial connections per second" as defined in Section 7.2.3.2. The
traffic load profile SHOULD be defined as described in Section 4.3.4.
The DUT/SUT SHOULD reach the "Initial connections per second" before
the sustain phase. The measured KPIs during the sustain phase MUST
meet all the test results validation criteria defined in
Section 7.2.3.3.
If the KPI metrics do not meet the test results validation criteria,
the test procedure MUST NOT continue to "Step 2".
7.2.4.2. Step 2: Test Run with Target Objective
Configure test equipment to establish the target objective ("Target
connections per second") defined in Section 7.2.3.2. The test
equipment SHOULD follow the traffic load profile definition as
described in Section 4.3.4.
During the ramp up and sustain phase of each test iteration, other
KPIs such as inspected throughput, concurrent TCP connections and
application transactions per second MUST NOT reach the maximum value
the DUT/SUT can support. The test results for specific test
iterations SHOULD NOT be reported, if the above-mentioned KPI
(especially inspected throughput) reaches the maximum value.
(Example: If the test iteration with 64 KByte of HTTP response object
size reached the maximum inspected throughput limitation of the DUT/
SUT, the test iteration MAY be interrupted and the result for 64
KByte SHOULD NOT be reported.)
The test equipment SHOULD start to measure and record all specified
KPIs. Continue the test until all traffic profile phases are
completed.
Within the test results validation criteria, the DUT/SUT is expected
to reach the desired value of the target objective ("Target
connections per second") in the sustain phase. Follow step 3, if the
measured value does not meet the target value or does not fulfill the
test results validation criteria.
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7.2.4.3. Step 3: Test Iteration
Determine the achievable TCP connections per second within the test
results validation criteria.
7.3. HTTP Throughput
7.3.1. Objective
Determine the sustainable inspected throughput of the DUT/SUT for
HTTP transactions varying the HTTP response object size.
7.3.2. Test Setup
Testbed setup SHOULD be configured as defined in Section 4. Any
specific testbed configuration changes (number of interfaces and
interface type, etc.) MUST be documented.
7.3.3. Test Parameters
In this section, benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
7.3.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT parameters MUST conform to the requirements defined in
Section 4.2. Any configuration changes for this specific
benchmarking test MUST be documented.
7.3.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The following parameters MUST
be documented for this benchmarking test:
Client IP address range defined in Section 4.3.1.2
Server IP address range defined in Section 4.3.2.2
Traffic distribution ratio between IPv4 and IPv6 defined in
Section 4.3.1.2
Target inspected throughput: Aggregated line rate of interface(s)
used in the DUT/SUT or the value defined based on requirement for a
specific deployment scenario
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Initial throughput: 10% of "Target inspected throughput" Note:
Initial throughput is not a KPI to report. This value is configured
on the traffic generator and used to perform Step 1: "Test
Initialization and Qualification" described under Section 7.3.4.
Number of HTTP response object requests (transactions) per
connection: 10
RECOMMENDED HTTP response object size: 1, 16, 64, 256 KByte, and
mixed objects defined in Table 4.
+=====================+============================+
| Object size (KByte) | Number of requests/ Weight |
+=====================+============================+
| 0.2 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
| 6 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
| 8 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
| 9 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
| 10 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
| 25 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
| 26 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
| 35 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
| 59 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
| 347 | 1 |
+---------------------+----------------------------+
Table 4: Mixed Objects
7.3.3.3. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
sustain phase of the traffic load profile.
a. Number of failed application transactions (receiving any HTTP
response code other than 200 OK) MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out
of 100,000 transactions) of attempt transactions.
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b. Traffic SHOULD be forwarded at a constant rate (considered as a
constant rate if any deviation of traffic forwarding rate is less
than 5%).
c. Concurrent TCP connections MUST be constant during steady state
and any deviation of concurrent TCP connections SHOULD be less
than 10%. This confirms the DUT opens and closes TCP connections
at approximately the same rate.
7.3.3.4. Measurement
Inspected Throughput and HTTP Transactions per Second MUST be
reported for each object size.
7.3.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedure is designed to measure HTTP throughput of the DUT/
SUT. The test procedure consists of three major steps: Step 1
ensures the DUT/SUT is able to reach the performance value (Initial
throughput) and meets the test results validation criteria when it
was very minimal utilized. Step 2 determines the DUT/SUT is able to
reach the target performance value within the test results validation
criteria. Step 3 determines the maximum achievable performance value
within the test results validation criteria.
This test procedure MAY be repeated multiple times with different
IPv4 and IPv6 traffic distribution and HTTP response object sizes.
7.3.4.1. Step 1: Test Initialization and Qualification
Verify the link status of all connected physical interfaces. All
interfaces are expected to be in "UP" status.
Configure traffic load profile of the test equipment to establish
"Initial inspected throughput" as defined in Section 7.3.3.2.
The traffic load profile SHOULD be defined as described in
Section 4.3.4. The DUT/SUT SHOULD reach the "Initial inspected
throughput" during the sustain phase. Measure all KPI as defined in
Section 7.3.3.4.
The measured KPIs during the sustain phase MUST meet the test results
validation criteria "a" defined in Section 7.3.3.3. The test results
validation criteria "b" and "c" are OPTIONAL for step 1.
If the KPI metrics do not meet the test results validation criteria,
the test procedure MUST NOT be continued to "Step 2".
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7.3.4.2. Step 2: Test Run with Target Objective
Configure test equipment to establish the target objective ("Target
inspected throughput") defined in Section 7.3.3.2. The test
equipment SHOULD start to measure and record all specified KPIs.
Continue the test until all traffic profile phases are completed.
Within the test results validation criteria, the DUT/SUT is expected
to reach the desired value of the target objective in the sustain
phase. Follow step 3, if the measured value does not meet the target
value or does not fulfill the test results validation criteria.
7.3.4.3. Step 3: Test Iteration
Determine the achievable inspected throughput within the test results
validation criteria and measure the KPI metric Transactions per
Second. Final test iteration MUST be performed for the test duration
defined in Section 4.3.4.
7.4. HTTP Transaction Latency
7.4.1. Objective
Using HTTP traffic, determine the HTTP transaction latency when DUT
is running with sustainable HTTP transactions per second supported by
the DUT/SUT under different HTTP response object sizes.
Test iterations MUST be performed with different HTTP response object
sizes in two different scenarios. One with a single transaction and
the other with multiple transactions within a single TCP connection.
For consistency both the single and multiple transaction test MUST be
configured with the same HTTP version
Scenario 1: The client MUST negotiate HTTP and close the connection
with FIN immediately after completion of a single transaction (GET
and RESPONSE).
Scenario 2: The client MUST negotiate HTTP and close the connection
FIN immediately after completion of 10 transactions (GET and
RESPONSE) within a single TCP connection.
7.4.2. Test Setup
Testbed setup SHOULD be configured as defined in Section 4. Any
specific testbed configuration changes (number of interfaces and
interface type, etc.) MUST be documented.
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7.4.3. Test Parameters
In this section, benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
7.4.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT parameters MUST conform to the requirements defined in
Section 4.2. Any configuration changes for this specific
benchmarking test MUST be documented.
7.4.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The following parameters MUST
be documented for this benchmarking test:
Client IP address range defined in Section 4.3.1.2
Server IP address range defined in Section 4.3.2.2
Traffic distribution ratio between IPv4 and IPv6 defined in
Section 4.3.1.2
Target objective for scenario 1: 50% of the connections per second
measured in benchmarking test TCP/HTTP Connections Per Second
(Section 7.2)
Target objective for scenario 2: 50% of the inspected throughput
measured in benchmarking test HTTP Throughput (Section 7.3)
Initial objective for scenario 1: 10% of "Target objective for
scenario 1"
Initial objective for scenario 2: 10% of "Target objective for
scenario 2"
Note: The Initial objectives are not a KPI to report. These values
are configured on the traffic generator and used to perform the
Step1: "Test Initialization and Qualification" described under the
Section 7.4.4.
HTTP transaction per TCP connection: Test scenario 1 with single
transaction and test scenario 2 with 10 transactions.
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HTTP with GET request requesting a single object. The RECOMMENDED
object sizes are 1, 16, and 64 KByte. For each test iteration,
client MUST request a single HTTP response object size.
7.4.3.3. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
Test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
sustain phase of the traffic load profile.
a. Number of failed application transactions (receiving any HTTP
response code other than 200 OK) MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out
of 100,000 transactions) of attempt transactions.
b. Number of terminated TCP connections due to unexpected TCP RST
sent by DUT/SUT MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out of 100,000
connections) of total initiated TCP connections.
c. During the sustain phase, traffic SHOULD be forwarded at a
constant rate (considered as a constant rate if any deviation of
traffic forwarding rate is less than 5%).
d. Concurrent TCP connections MUST be constant during steady state
and any deviation of concurrent TCP connections SHOULD be less
than 10%. This confirms the DUT opens and closes TCP connections
at approximately the same rate.
e. After ramp up the DUT MUST achieve the "Target objective" defined
in Section 7.4.3.2 and remain in that state for the entire test
duration (sustain phase).
7.4.3.4. Measurement
TTFB (minimum, average, and maximum) and TTLB (minimum, average and
maximum) MUST be reported for each object size.
7.4.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedure is designed to measure TTFB or TTLB when the DUT/
SUT is operating close to 50% of its maximum achievable connections
per second or inspected throughput. The test procedure consists of
two major steps: Step 1 ensures the DUT/SUT is able to reach the
initial performance values and meets the test results validation
criteria when it was very minimally utilized. Step 2 measures the
latency values within the test results validation criteria.
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This test procedure MAY be repeated multiple times with different IP
types (IPv4 only, IPv6 only and IPv4 and IPv6 mixed traffic
distribution), HTTP response object sizes and single and multiple
transactions per connection scenarios.
7.4.4.1. Step 1: Test Initialization and Qualification
Verify the link status of all connected physical interfaces. All
interfaces are expected to be in "UP" status.
Configure traffic load profile of the test equipment to establish
"Initial objective" as defined in Section 7.4.3.2. The traffic load
profile SHOULD be defined as described in Section 4.3.4.
The DUT/SUT SHOULD reach the "Initial objective" before the sustain
phase. The measured KPIs during the sustain phase MUST meet all the
test results validation criteria defined in Section 7.4.3.3.
If the KPI metrics do not meet the test results validation criteria,
the test procedure MUST NOT be continued to "Step 2".
7.4.4.2. Step 2: Test Run with Target Objective
Configure test equipment to establish "Target objective" defined in
Section 7.4.3.2. The test equipment SHOULD follow the traffic load
profile definition as described in Section 4.3.4.
The test equipment SHOULD start to measure and record all specified
KPIs. Continue the test until all traffic profile phases are
completed.
Within the test results validation criteria, the DUT/SUT MUST reach
the desired value of the target objective in the sustain phase.
Measure the minimum, average, and maximum values of TTFB and TTLB.
7.5. Concurrent TCP/HTTP Connection Capacity
7.5.1. Objective
Determine the number of concurrent TCP connections that the DUT/ SUT
sustains when using HTTP traffic.
7.5.2. Test Setup
Testbed setup SHOULD be configured as defined in Section 4. Any
specific testbed configuration changes (number of interfaces and
interface type, etc.) MUST be documented.
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7.5.3. Test Parameters
In this section, benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
7.5.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT parameters MUST conform to the requirements defined in
Section 4.2. Any configuration changes for this specific
benchmarking test MUST be documented.
7.5.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The following parameters MUST
be noted for this benchmarking test:
Client IP address range defined in Section 4.3.1.2
Server IP address range defined in Section 4.3.2.2
Traffic distribution ratio between IPv4 and IPv6 defined in
Section 4.3.1.2
Target concurrent connection: Initial value from product datasheet
or the value defined based on requirement for a specific
deployment scenario.
Initial concurrent connection: 10% of "Target concurrent
connection" Note: Initial concurrent connection is not a KPI to
report. This value is configured on the traffic generator and
used to perform the Step1: "Test Initialization and Qualification"
described under the Section 7.5.4.
Maximum connections per second during ramp up phase: 50% of
maximum connections per second measured in benchmarking test TCP/
HTTP Connections per second (Section 7.2)
Ramp up time (in traffic load profile for "Target concurrent
connection"): "Target concurrent connection" / "Maximum
connections per second during ramp up phase"
Ramp up time (in traffic load profile for "Initial concurrent
connection"): "Initial concurrent connection" / "Maximum
connections per second during ramp up phase"
The client MUST negotiate HTTP and each client MAY open multiple
concurrent TCP connections per server endpoint IP.
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Each client sends 10 GET requests requesting 1 KByte HTTP response
object in the same TCP connection (10 transactions/TCP connection)
and the delay (think time) between each transaction MUST be X
seconds.
X = ("Ramp up time" + "steady state time") /10
The established connections SHOULD remain open until the ramp down
phase of the test. During the ramp down phase, all connections
SHOULD be successfully closed with FIN.
7.5.3.3. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
Test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
sustain phase of the traffic load profile.
a. Number of failed application transactions (receiving any HTTP
response code other than 200 OK) MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out
of 100,000 transaction) of total attempted transactions.
b. Number of terminated TCP connections due to unexpected TCP RST
sent by DUT/SUT MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out of 100,000
connections) of total initiated TCP connections.
c. During the sustain phase, traffic SHOULD be forwarded at a
constant rate (considered as a constant rate if any deviation of
traffic forwarding rate is less than 5%).
7.5.3.4. Measurement
Average Concurrent TCP Connections MUST be reported for this
benchmarking test.
7.5.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedure is designed to measure the concurrent TCP
connection capacity of the DUT/SUT at the sustaining period of
traffic load profile. The test procedure consists of three major
steps: Step 1 ensures the DUT/SUT is able to reach the performance
value (Initial concurrent connection) and meets the test results
validation criteria when it was very minimally utilized. Step 2
determines the DUT/SUT is able to reach the target performance value
within the test results validation criteria. Step 3 determines the
maximum achievable performance value within the test results
validation criteria.
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This test procedure MAY be repeated multiple times with different
IPv4 and IPv6 traffic distribution.
7.5.4.1. Step 1: Test Initialization and Qualification
Verify the link status of all connected physical interfaces. All
interfaces are expected to be in "UP" status.
Configure test equipment to establish "Initial concurrent TCP
connections" defined in Section 7.5.3.2. Except ramp up time, the
traffic load profile SHOULD be defined as described in Section 4.3.4.
During the sustain phase, the DUT/SUT SHOULD reach the "Initial
concurrent TCP connections". The measured KPIs during the sustain
phase MUST meet all the test results validation criteria defined in
Section 7.5.3.3.
If the KPI metrics do not meet the test results validation criteria,
the test procedure MUST NOT be continued to "Step 2".
7.5.4.2. Step 2: Test Run with Target Objective
Configure test equipment to establish the target objective ("Target
concurrent TCP connections"). The test equipment SHOULD follow the
traffic load profile definition (except ramp up time) as described in
Section 4.3.4.
During the ramp up and sustain phase, the other KPIs such as
inspected throughput, TCP connections per second, and application
transactions per second MUST NOT reach the maximum value the DUT/SUT
can support.
The test equipment SHOULD start to measure and record KPIs defined in
Section 7.5.3.4. Continue the test until all traffic profile phases
are completed.
Within the test results validation criteria, the DUT/SUT is expected
to reach the desired value of the target objective in the sustain
phase. Follow step 3, if the measured value does not meet the target
value or does not fulfill the test results validation criteria.
7.5.4.3. Step 3: Test Iteration
Determine the achievable concurrent TCP connections capacity within
the test results validation criteria.
7.6. TCP/HTTPS Connections per Second
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7.6.1. Objective
Using HTTPS traffic, determine the sustainable SSL/TLS session
establishment rate supported by the DUT/SUT under different
throughput load conditions.
Test iterations MUST include common cipher suites and key strengths
as well as forward looking stronger keys. Specific test iterations
MUST include ciphers and keys defined in Section 7.6.3.2.
For each cipher suite and key strengths, test iterations MUST use a
single HTTPS response object size defined in Section 7.6.3.2 to
measure connections per second performance under a variety of DUT/SUT
security inspection load conditions.
7.6.2. Test Setup
Testbed setup SHOULD be configured as defined in Section 4. Any
specific testbed configuration changes (number of interfaces and
interface type, etc.) MUST be documented.
7.6.3. Test Parameters
In this section, benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
7.6.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT parameters MUST conform to the requirements defined in
Section 4.2. Any configuration changes for this specific
benchmarking test MUST be documented.
7.6.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The following parameters MUST
be documented for this benchmarking test:
Client IP address range defined in Section 4.3.1.2
Server IP address range defined in Section 4.3.2.2
Traffic distribution ratio between IPv4 and IPv6 defined in
Section 4.3.1.2
Target connections per second: Initial value from product datasheet
or the value defined based on requirement for a specific deployment
scenario.
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Initial connections per second: 10% of "Target connections per
second" Note: Initial connections per second is not a KPI to report.
This value is configured on the traffic generator and used to perform
the Step1: "Test Initialization and Qualification" described under
the Section 7.6.4.
RECOMMENDED ciphers and keys defined in Section 4.3.1.3
The client MUST negotiate HTTPS and close the connection with FIN
immediately after completion of one transaction. In each test
iteration, client MUST send GET request requesting a fixed HTTPS
response object size. The RECOMMENDED object sizes are 1, 2, 4, 16,
and 64 KByte.
7.6.3.3. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
test duration.
a. Number of failed application transactions (receiving any HTTP
response code other than 200 OK) MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out
of 100,000 transactions) of attempt transactions.
b. Number of terminated TCP connections due to unexpected TCP RST
sent by DUT/SUT MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out of 100,000
connections) of total initiated TCP connections.
c. During the sustain phase, traffic SHOULD be forwarded at a
constant rate (considered as a constant rate if any deviation of
traffic forwarding rate is less than 5%).
d. Concurrent TCP connections MUST be constant during steady state
and any deviation of concurrent TCP connections SHOULD be less
than 10%. This confirms the DUT opens and closes TCP connections
at approximately the same rate.
7.6.3.4. Measurement
TCP connections per second MUST be reported for each test iteration
(for each object size).
The KPI metric TLS Handshake Rate can be measured in the test using 1
KByte object size.
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7.6.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedure is designed to measure the TCP connections per
second rate of the DUT/SUT at the sustaining period of traffic load
profile. The test procedure consists of three major steps: Step 1
ensures the DUT/SUT is able to reach the performance value (Initial
connections per second) and meets the test results validation
criteria when it was very minimally utilized. Step 2 determines the
DUT/SUT is able to reach the target performance value within the test
results validation criteria. Step 3 determines the maximum
achievable performance value within the test results validation
criteria.
This test procedure MAY be repeated multiple times with different
IPv4 and IPv6 traffic distribution.
7.6.4.1. Step 1: Test Initialization and Qualification
Verify the link status of all connected physical interfaces. All
interfaces are expected to be in "UP" status.
Configure traffic load profile of the test equipment to establish
"Initial connections per second" as defined in Section 7.6.3.2. The
traffic load profile SHOULD be defined as described in Section 4.3.4.
The DUT/SUT SHOULD reach the "Initial connections per second" before
the sustain phase. The measured KPIs during the sustain phase MUST
meet all the test results validation criteria defined in
Section 7.6.3.3.
If the KPI metrics do not meet the test results validation criteria,
the test procedure MUST NOT be continued to "Step 2".
7.6.4.2. Step 2: Test Run with Target Objective
Configure test equipment to establish "Target connections per second"
defined in Section 7.6.3.2. The test equipment SHOULD follow the
traffic load profile definition as described in Section 4.3.4.
During the ramp up and sustain phase, other KPIs such as inspected
throughput, concurrent TCP connections, and application transactions
per second MUST NOT reach the maximum value the DUT/SUT can support.
The test results for specific test iteration SHOULD NOT be reported,
if the above mentioned KPI (especially inspected throughput) reaches
the maximum value. (Example: If the test iteration with 64 KByte of
HTTPS response object size reached the maximum inspected throughput
limitation of the DUT, the test iteration MAY be interrupted and the
result for 64 KByte SHOULD NOT be reported).
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The test equipment SHOULD start to measure and record all specified
KPIs. Continue the test until all traffic profile phases are
completed.
Within the test results validation criteria, the DUT/SUT is expected
to reach the desired value of the target objective ("Target
connections per second") in the sustain phase. Follow step 3, if the
measured value does not meet the target value or does not fulfill the
test results validation criteria.
7.6.4.3. Step 3: Test Iteration
Determine the achievable connections per second within the test
results validation criteria.
7.7. HTTPS Throughput
7.7.1. Objective
Determine the sustainable inspected throughput of the DUT/SUT for
HTTPS transactions varying the HTTPS response object size.
Test iterations MUST include common cipher suites and key strengths
as well as forward looking stronger keys. Specific test iterations
MUST include the ciphers and keys defined in Section 7.7.3.2.
7.7.2. Test Setup
Testbed setup SHOULD be configured as defined in Section 4. Any
specific testbed configuration changes (number of interfaces and
interface type, etc.) MUST be documented.
7.7.3. Test Parameters
In this section, benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
7.7.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT parameters MUST conform to the requirements defined in
Section 4.2. Any configuration changes for this specific
benchmarking test MUST be documented.
7.7.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The following parameters MUST
be documented for this benchmarking test:
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Client IP address range defined in Section 4.3.1.2
Server IP address range defined in Section 4.3.2.2
Traffic distribution ratio between IPv4 and IPv6 defined in
Section 4.3.1.2
Target inspected throughput: Aggregated line rate of interface(s)
used in the DUT/SUT or the value defined based on requirement for a
specific deployment scenario.
Initial throughput: 10% of "Target inspected throughput" Note:
Initial throughput is not a KPI to report. This value is configured
on the traffic generator and used to perform the Step1: "Test
Initialization and Qualification" described under the Section 7.7.4.
Number of HTTPS response object requests (transactions) per
connection: 10
RECOMMENDED ciphers and keys defined in Section 4.3.1.3
RECOMMENDED HTTPS response object size: 1, 16, 64, 256 KByte, and
mixed objects defined in Table 4 under Section 7.3.3.2.
7.7.3.3. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
sustain phase of the traffic load profile.
a. Number of failed Application transactions (receiving any HTTP
response code other than 200 OK) MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out
of 100,000 transactions) of attempt transactions.
b. Traffic SHOULD be forwarded at a constant rate (considered as a
constant rate if any deviation of traffic forwarding rate is less
than 5%).
c. Concurrent TCP connections MUST be constant during steady state
and any deviation of concurrent TCP connections SHOULD be less
than 10%. This confirms the DUT opens and closes TCP connections
at approximately the same rate.
7.7.3.4. Measurement
Inspected Throughput and HTTP Transactions per Second MUST be
reported for each object size.
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7.7.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedure consists of three major steps: Step 1 ensures the
DUT/SUT is able to reach the performance value (Initial throughput)
and meets the test results validation criteria when it was very
minimally utilized. Step 2 determines the DUT/SUT is able to reach
the target performance value within the test results validation
criteria. Step 3 determines the maximum achievable performance value
within the test results validation criteria.
This test procedure MAY be repeated multiple times with different
IPv4 and IPv6 traffic distribution and HTTPS response object sizes.
7.7.4.1. Step 1: Test Initialization and Qualification
Verify the link status of all connected physical interfaces. All
interfaces are expected to be in "UP" status.
Configure traffic load profile of the test equipment to establish
"Initial throughput" as defined in Section 7.7.3.2.
The traffic load profile SHOULD be defined as described in
Section 4.3.4. The DUT/SUT SHOULD reach the "Initial throughput"
during the sustain phase. Measure all KPI as defined in
Section 7.7.3.4.
The measured KPIs during the sustain phase MUST meet the test results
validation criteria "a" defined in Section 7.7.3.3. The test results
validation criteria "b" and "c" are OPTIONAL for step 1.
If the KPI metrics do not meet the test results validation criteria,
the test procedure MUST NOT be continued to "Step 2".
7.7.4.2. Step 2: Test Run with Target Objective
Configure test equipment to establish the target objective ("Target
inspected throughput") defined in Section 7.7.3.2. The test
equipment SHOULD start to measure and record all specified KPIs.
Continue the test until all traffic profile phases are completed.
Within the test results validation criteria, the DUT/SUT is expected
to reach the desired value of the target objective in the sustain
phase. Follow step 3, if the measured value does not meet the target
value or does not fulfill the test results validation criteria.
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7.7.4.3. Step 3: Test Iteration
Determine the achievable average inspected throughput within the test
results validation criteria. Final test iteration MUST be performed
for the test duration defined in Section 4.3.4.
7.8. HTTPS Transaction Latency
7.8.1. Objective
Using HTTPS traffic, determine the HTTPS transaction latency when
DUT/SUT is running with sustainable HTTPS transactions per second
supported by the DUT/SUT under different HTTPS response object size.
Scenario 1: The client MUST negotiate HTTPS and close the connection
with FIN immediately after completion of a single transaction (GET
and RESPONSE).
Scenario 2: The client MUST negotiate HTTPS and close the connection
with FIN immediately after completion of 10 transactions (GET and
RESPONSE) within a single TCP connection.
7.8.2. Test Setup
Testbed setup SHOULD be configured as defined in Section 4. Any
specific testbed configuration changes (number of interfaces and
interface type, etc.) MUST be documented.
7.8.3. Test Parameters
In this section, benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
7.8.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT parameters MUST conform to the requirements defined in
Section 4.2. Any configuration changes for this specific
benchmarking test MUST be documented.
7.8.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The following parameters MUST
be documented for this benchmarking test:
Client IP address range defined in Section 4.3.1.2
Server IP address range defined in Section 4.3.2.2
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Traffic distribution ratio between IPv4 and IPv6 defined in
Section 4.3.1.2
RECOMMENDED cipher suites and key sizes defined in Section 4.3.1.3
Target objective for scenario 1: 50% of the connections per second
measured in benchmarking test TCP/HTTPS Connections per second
(Section 7.6)
Target objective for scenario 2: 50% of the inspected throughput
measured in benchmarking test HTTPS Throughput (Section 7.7)
Initial objective for scenario 1: 10% of "Target objective for
scenario 1"
Initial objective for scenario 2: 10% of "Target objective for
scenario 2"
Note: The Initial objectives are not a KPI to report. These values
are configured on the traffic generator and used to perform the
Step1: "Test Initialization and Qualification" described under the
Section 7.8.4.
HTTPS transaction per TCP connection: Test scenario 1 with single
transaction and scenario 2 with 10 transactions
HTTPS with GET request requesting a single object. The RECOMMENDED
object sizes are 1, 16, and 64 KByte. For each test iteration,
client MUST request a single HTTPS response object size.
7.8.3.3. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
Test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
sustain phase of the traffic load profile.
a. Number of failed application transactions (receiving any HTTP
response code other than 200 OK) MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out
of 100,000 transactions) of attempt transactions.
b. Number of terminated TCP connections due to unexpected TCP RST
sent by DUT/SUT MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out of 100,000
connections) of total initiated TCP connections.
c. During the sustain phase, traffic SHOULD be forwarded at a
constant rate (considered as a constant rate if any deviation of
traffic forwarding rate is less than 5%).
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d. Concurrent TCP connections MUST be constant during steady state
and any deviation of concurrent TCP connections SHOULD be less
than 10%. This confirms the DUT opens and closes TCP connections
at approximately the same rate.
e. After ramp up the DUT/SUT MUST achieve the "Target objective"
defined in the parameter Section 7.8.3.2 and remain in that state
for the entire test duration (sustain phase).
7.8.3.4. Measurement
TTFB (minimum, average, and maximum) and TTLB (minimum, average and
maximum) MUST be reported for each object size.
7.8.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedure is designed to measure TTFB or TTLB when the DUT/
SUT is operating close to 50% of its maximum achievable connections
per second or inspected throughput. The test procedure consists of
two major steps: Step 1 ensures the DUT/SUT is able to reach the
initial performance values and meets the test results validation
criteria when it was very minimally utilized. Step 2 measures the
latency values within the test results validation criteria.
This test procedure MAY be repeated multiple times with different IP
types (IPv4 only, IPv6 only and IPv4 and IPv6 mixed traffic
distribution), HTTPS response object sizes and single, and multiple
transactions per connection scenarios.
7.8.4.1. Step 1: Test Initialization and Qualification
Verify the link status of all connected physical interfaces. All
interfaces are expected to be in "UP" status.
Configure traffic load profile of the test equipment to establish
"Initial objective" as defined in the Section 7.8.3.2. The traffic
load profile SHOULD be defined as described in Section 4.3.4.
The DUT/SUT SHOULD reach the "Initial objective" before the sustain
phase. The measured KPIs during the sustain phase MUST meet all the
test results validation criteria defined in Section 7.8.3.3.
If the KPI metrics do not meet the test results validation criteria,
the test procedure MUST NOT be continued to "Step 2".
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7.8.4.2. Step 2: Test Run with Target Objective
Configure test equipment to establish "Target objective" defined in
Section 7.8.3.2. The test equipment SHOULD follow the traffic load
profile definition as described in Section 4.3.4.
The test equipment SHOULD start to measure and record all specified
KPIs. Continue the test until all traffic profile phases are
completed.
Within the test results validation criteria, the DUT/SUT MUST reach
the desired value of the target objective in the sustain phase.
Measure the minimum, average, and maximum values of TTFB and TTLB.
7.9. Concurrent TCP/HTTPS Connection Capacity
7.9.1. Objective
Determine the number of concurrent TCP connections the DUT/SUT
sustains when using HTTPS traffic.
7.9.2. Test Setup
Testbed setup SHOULD be configured as defined in Section 4. Any
specific testbed configuration changes (number of interfaces and
interface type, etc.) MUST be documented.
7.9.3. Test Parameters
In this section, benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
7.9.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT parameters MUST conform to the requirements defined in
Section 4.2. Any configuration changes for this specific
benchmarking test MUST be documented.
7.9.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The following parameters MUST
be documented for this benchmarking test:
Client IP address range defined in Section 4.3.1.2
Server IP address range defined in Section 4.3.2.2
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Traffic distribution ratio between IPv4 and IPv6 defined in
Section 4.3.1.2
RECOMMENDED cipher suites and key sizes defined in Section 4.3.1.3
Target concurrent connections: Initial value from product
datasheet or the value defined based on requirement for a specific
deployment scenario.
Initial concurrent connections: 10% of "Target concurrent
connections" Note: Initial concurrent connection is not a KPI to
report. This value is configured on the traffic generator and
used to perform the Step1: "Test Initialization and Qualification"
described under the Section 7.9.4.
Connections per second during ramp up phase: 50% of maximum
connections per second measured in benchmarking test TCP/HTTPS
Connections per second (Section 7.6)
Ramp up time (in traffic load profile for "Target concurrent
connections"): "Target concurrent connections" / "Maximum
connections per second during ramp up phase"
Ramp up time (in traffic load profile for "Initial concurrent
connections"): "Initial concurrent connections" / "Maximum
connections per second during ramp up phase"
The client MUST perform HTTPS transaction with persistence and each
client can open multiple concurrent TCP connections per server
endpoint IP.
Each client sends 10 GET requests requesting 1 KByte HTTPS response
objects in the same TCP connections (10 transactions/TCP connection)
and the delay (think time) between each transaction MUST be X
seconds.
X = ("Ramp up time" + "steady state time") /10
The established connections SHOULD remain open until the ramp down
phase of the test. During the ramp down phase, all connections
SHOULD be successfully closed with FIN.
7.9.3.3. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
Test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
sustain phase of the traffic load profile.
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a. Number of failed application transactions (receiving any HTTP
response code other than 200 OK) MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out
of 100,000 transactions) of total attempted transactions.
b. Number of terminated TCP connections due to unexpected TCP RST
sent by DUT/SUT MUST be less than 0.001% (1 out of 100,000
connections) of total initiated TCP connections.
c. During the sustain phase, traffic SHOULD be forwarded at a
constant rate (considered as a constant rate if any deviation of
traffic forwarding rate is less than 5%).
7.9.3.4. Measurement
Average Concurrent TCP Connections MUST be reported for this
benchmarking test.
7.9.4. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedure is designed to measure the concurrent TCP
connection capacity of the DUT/SUT at the sustaining period of
traffic load profile. The test procedure consists of three major
steps: Step 1 ensures the DUT/SUT is able to reach the performance
value (Initial concurrent connection) and meets the test results
validation criteria when it was very minimally utilized. Step 2
determines the DUT/SUT is able to reach the target performance value
within the test results validation criteria. Step 3 determines the
maximum achievable performance value within the test results
validation criteria.
This test procedure MAY be repeated multiple times with different
IPv4 and IPv6 traffic distribution.
7.9.4.1. Step 1: Test Initialization and Qualification
Verify the link status of all connected physical interfaces. All
interfaces are expected to be in "UP" status.
Configure test equipment to establish "Initial concurrent TCP
connections" defined in Section 7.9.3.2. Except ramp up time, the
traffic load profile SHOULD be defined as described in Section 4.3.4.
During the sustain phase, the DUT/SUT SHOULD reach the "Initial
concurrent TCP connections". The measured KPIs during the sustain
phase MUST meet the test results validation criteria "a" and "b"
defined in Section 7.9.3.3.
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If the KPI metrics do not meet the test results validation criteria,
the test procedure MUST NOT be continued to "Step 2".
7.9.4.2. Step 2: Test Run with Target Objective
Configure test equipment to establish the target objective ("Target
concurrent TCP connections"). The test equipment SHOULD follow the
traffic load profile definition (except ramp up time) as described in
Section 4.3.4.
During the ramp up and sustain phase, the other KPIs such as
inspected throughput, TCP connections per second, and application
transactions per second MUST NOT reach to the maximum value that the
DUT/SUT can support.
The test equipment SHOULD start to measure and record KPIs defined in
Section 7.9.3.4. Continue the test until all traffic profile phases
are completed.
Within the test results validation criteria, the DUT/SUT is expected
to reach the desired value of the target objective in the sustain
phase. Follow step 3, if the measured value does not meet the target
value or does not fulfill the test results validation criteria.
7.9.4.3. Step 3: Test Iteration
Determine the achievable concurrent TCP connections within the test
results validation criteria.
8. IANA Considerations
This document makes no specific request of IANA.
The IANA has assigned IPv4 and IPv6 address blocks in [RFC6890] that
have been registered for special purposes. The IPv6 address block
2001:2::/48 has been allocated for the purpose of IPv6 Benchmarking
[RFC5180] and the IPv4 address block 198.18.0.0/15 has been allocated
for the purpose of IPv4 Benchmarking [RFC2544]. This assignment was
made to minimize the chance of conflict in case a testing device were
to be accidentally connected to part of the Internet.
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9. Security Considerations
The primary goal of this document is to provide benchmarking
terminology and methodology for next-generation network security
devices for use in a laboratory isolated test environment. However,
readers should be aware that there is some overlap between
performance and security issues. Specifically, the optimal
configuration for network security device performance may not be the
most secure, and vice-versa. The cipher suites recommended in this
document are for test purpose only. The cipher suite recommendation
for a real deployment is outside the scope of this document.
10. Contributors
The following individuals contributed significantly to the creation
of this document:
Alex Samonte, Amritam Putatunda, Aria Eslambolchizadeh, Chao Guo,
Chris Brown, Cory Ford, David DeSanto, Jurrie Van Den Breekel,
Michelle Rhines, Mike Jack, Ryan Liles, Samaresh Nair, Stephen
Goudreault, Tim Carlin, and Tim Otto.
11. Acknowledgements
The authors wish to acknowledge the members of NetSecOPEN for their
participation in the creation of this document. Additionally, the
following members need to be acknowledged:
Anand Vijayan, Chris Marshall, Jay Lindenauer, Michael Shannon, Mike
Deichman, Ryan Riese, and Toulnay Orkun.
12. References
12.1. Normative References
[RFC2119] Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate
Requirement Levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119,
DOI 10.17487/RFC2119, March 1997,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc2119>.
[RFC8174] Leiba, B., "Ambiguity of Uppercase vs Lowercase in RFC
2119 Key Words", BCP 14, RFC 8174, DOI 10.17487/RFC8174,
May 2017, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8174>.
12.2. Informative References
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[RFC2544] Bradner, S. and J. McQuaid, "Benchmarking Methodology for
Network Interconnect Devices", RFC 2544,
DOI 10.17487/RFC2544, March 1999,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc2544>.
[RFC2647] Newman, D., "Benchmarking Terminology for Firewall
Performance", RFC 2647, DOI 10.17487/RFC2647, August 1999,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc2647>.
[RFC3511] Hickman, B., Newman, D., Tadjudin, S., and T. Martin,
"Benchmarking Methodology for Firewall Performance",
RFC 3511, DOI 10.17487/RFC3511, April 2003,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc3511>.
[RFC5180] Popoviciu, C., Hamza, A., Van de Velde, G., and D.
Dugatkin, "IPv6 Benchmarking Methodology for Network
Interconnect Devices", RFC 5180, DOI 10.17487/RFC5180, May
2008, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc5180>.
[RFC6815] Bradner, S., Dubray, K., McQuaid, J., and A. Morton,
"Applicability Statement for RFC 2544: Use on Production
Networks Considered Harmful", RFC 6815,
DOI 10.17487/RFC6815, November 2012,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc6815>.
[RFC6890] Cotton, M., Vegoda, L., Bonica, R., Ed., and B. Haberman,
"Special-Purpose IP Address Registries", BCP 153,
RFC 6890, DOI 10.17487/RFC6890, April 2013,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc6890>.
[RFC7230] Fielding, R., Ed. and J. Reschke, Ed., "Hypertext Transfer
Protocol (HTTP/1.1): Message Syntax and Routing",
RFC 7230, DOI 10.17487/RFC7230, June 2014,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7230>.
[RFC8446] Rescorla, E., "The Transport Layer Security (TLS) Protocol
Version 1.3", RFC 8446, DOI 10.17487/RFC8446, August 2018,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8446>.
[RFC9000] Iyengar, J., Ed. and M. Thomson, Ed., "QUIC: A UDP-Based
Multiplexed and Secure Transport", RFC 9000,
DOI 10.17487/RFC9000, May 2021,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9000>.
Appendix A. Test Methodology - Security Effectiveness Evaluation
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A.1. Test Objective
This test methodology verifies the DUT/SUT is able to detect,
prevent, and report the vulnerabilities.
In this test, background test traffic will be generated to utilize
the DUT/SUT. In parallel, the CVEs will be sent to the DUT/SUT as
encrypted and as well as clear text payload formats using a traffic
generator. The selection of the CVEs is described in Section 4.2.1.
The following KPIs are measured in this test:
* Number of blocked CVEs
* Number of bypassed (nonblocked) CVEs
* Background traffic performance (verify if the background traffic
is impacted while sending CVE toward DUT/SUT)
* Accuracy of DUT/SUT statistics in term of vulnerabilities
reporting
A.2. Testbed Setup
The same testbed MUST be used for security effectiveness test and as
well as for benchmarking test cases defined in Section 7.
A.3. Test Parameters
In this section, the benchmarking test specific parameters SHOULD be
defined.
A.3.1. DUT/SUT Configuration Parameters
DUT/SUT configuration parameters MUST conform to the requirements
defined in Section 4.2. The same DUT configuration MUST be used for
Security effectiveness test and as well as for benchmarking test
cases defined in Section 7. The DUT/SUT MUST be configured in inline
mode and all detected attack traffic MUST be dropped and the session
SHOULD be reset
A.3.2. Test Equipment Configuration Parameters
Test equipment configuration parameters MUST conform to the
requirements defined in Section 4.3. The same client and server IP
ranges MUST be configured as used in the benchmarking test cases. In
addition, the following parameters MUST be documented for this
benchmarking test:
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* Background Traffic: 45% of maximum HTTP throughput and 45% of
Maximum HTTPS throughput supported by the DUT/SUT (measured with
object size 64 KByte in the benchmarking tests "HTTP(S)
Throughput" defined in Section 7.3 and Section 7.7).
* RECOMMENDED CVE traffic transmission Rate: 10 CVEs per second
* It is RECOMMENDED to generate each CVE multiple times
(sequentially) at 10 CVEs per second
* Ciphers and keys for the encrypted CVE traffic MUST use the same
cipher configured for HTTPS traffic related benchmarking tests
(Section 7.6 - Section 7.9)
A.4. Test Results Validation Criteria
The following criteria are the test results validation criteria. The
test results validation criteria MUST be monitored during the whole
test duration.
a. Number of failed application transaction in the background
traffic MUST be less than 0.01% of attempted transactions.
b. Number of terminated TCP connections of the background traffic
(due to unexpected TCP RST sent by DUT/SUT) MUST be less than
0.01% of total initiated TCP connections in the background
traffic.
c. During the sustain phase, traffic SHOULD be forwarded at a
constant rate (considered as a constant rate if any deviation of
traffic forwarding rate is less than 5%).
d. False positive MUST NOT occur in the background traffic.
A.5. Measurement
Following KPI metrics MUST be reported for this test scenario:
Mandatory KPIs:
* Blocked CVEs: It SHOULD be represented in the following ways:
- Number of blocked CVEs out of total CVEs
- Percentage of blocked CVEs
* Unblocked CVEs: It SHOULD be represented in the following ways:
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- Number of unblocked CVEs out of total CVEs
- Percentage of unblocked CVEs
* Background traffic behavior: It SHOULD be represented one of the
followings ways:
- No impact: Considered as "no impact'" if any deviation of
traffic forwarding rate is less than or equal to 5 % (constant
rate)
- Minor impact: Considered as "minor impact" if any deviation of
traffic forwarding rate is greater than 5% and less than or
equal to10% (i.e. small spikes)
- Heavily impacted: Considered as "Heavily impacted" if any
deviation of traffic forwarding rate is greater than 10% (i.e.
large spikes) or reduced the background HTTP(S) throughput
greater than 10%
* DUT/SUT reporting accuracy: DUT/SUT MUST report all detected
vulnerabilities.
Optional KPIs:
* List of unblocked CVEs
A.6. Test Procedures and Expected Results
The test procedure is designed to measure the security effectiveness
of the DUT/SUT at the sustaining period of the traffic load profile.
The test procedure consists of two major steps. This test procedure
MAY be repeated multiple times with different IPv4 and IPv6 traffic
distribution.
A.6.1. Step 1: Background Traffic
Generate background traffic at the transmission rate defined in
Appendix A.3.2.
The DUT/SUT MUST reach the target objective (HTTP(S) throughput) in
sustain phase. The measured KPIs during the sustain phase MUST meet
all the test results validation criteria defined in Appendix A.4.
If the KPI metrics do not meet the acceptance criteria, the test
procedure MUST NOT be continued to "Step 2".
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A.6.2. Step 2: CVE Emulation
While generating background traffic (in sustain phase), send the CVE
traffic as defined in the parameter section.
The test equipment SHOULD start to measure and record all specified
KPIs. Continue the test until all CVEs are sent.
The measured KPIs MUST meet all the test results validation criteria
defined in Appendix A.4.
In addition, the DUT/SUT SHOULD report the vulnerabilities correctly.
Appendix B. DUT/SUT Classification
This document aims to classify the DUT/SUT in four different
categories based on its maximum supported firewall throughput
performance number defined in the vendor datasheet. This
classification MAY help user to determine specific configuration
scale (e.g., number of ACL entries), traffic profiles, and attack
traffic profiles, scaling those proportionally to DUT/SUT sizing
category.
The four different categories are Extra Small (XS), Small (S), Medium
(M), and Large (L). The RECOMMENDED throughput values for the
following categories are:
Extra Small (XS) - Supported throughput less than or equal to1Gbit/s
Small (S) - Supported throughput greater than 1Gbit/s and less than
or equal to 5Gbit/s
Medium (M) - Supported throughput greater than 5Gbit/s and less than
or equal to10Gbit/s
Large (L) - Supported throughput greater than 10Gbit/s
Authors' Addresses
Balamuhunthan Balarajah
Berlin
Germany
Email: bm.balarajah@gmail.com
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Carsten Rossenhoevel
EANTC AG
Salzufer 14
10587 Berlin
Germany
Email: cross@eantc.de
Brian Monkman
NetSecOPEN
417 Independence Court
Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
United States of America
Email: bmonkman@netsecopen.org
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