Today’s IT industry comprises various new technologies that ease organizations and individuals in completing their tasks to be more productive. The challenge for IT is intensified by the fact that the network and services offered to meet customer demands is constantly changing. Mr. Bhaskar Agastya, Country Manager-Sales, Ixia India tells more about all this:
Q: What is the need for a robust test architecture?
Ans: A new world of connected devices and Internet of Things (IoT) is infiltrating various aspects of our lives every day. These connected devices need anywhere, anytime network access, as well as the ability to run multiple complex applications on converged networks that require a combination of speed, reliability and security. This is giving rise to greater demand for networking and testing to ensure a quality customer experience.
Therefore, it is imperative to validate every component in the application delivery path, from devices to data center and cloud, across networks and security systems.
Q: Three primary reasons to invest in a robust test architecture while anticipating challenges?
Ans: Face digital disruption head on
The challenge for IT is intensified by the fact that the network and services offered to meet customer demands is constantly changing. Industry shifts and digital disruption is shaking an infrastructure to its foundations, forcing a search for innovative means to face up to it. For example:
So, what does all this mean? It means organizations need a robust testing architecture to validate their networks and services before this transition is in full swing to ensure delivery of a quality customer experience in a fast, reliable, and secure manner.
Q: Scale to meet real needs and customer expectations?
Ans: With excellence in customer service top of mind, and the complexity and sheer variety of devices, networks and applications growing, it is important determine the right strategy, tools and infrastructure. This requires investing in an architecture and testing every component in the application delivery path end-to-end – from chips and devices to network, data center, and cloud. An architecture that can simulate real-world conditions – unproven traffic and behavioral mixes these devices, networks and applications generate - across product, network and services lifecycle. A testing solution that works on all platforms and scales as needed.
Q: Save money with early discovery.
Ans: Benjamin Franklin once said that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. This holds true not only in terms of health, but to the defects in a product development and services lifecycle. It is much more cost effective and efficient to fix bugs in the early stages of development rather than closer to or in production. The cost increases exponentially as we move up the chain into deployment, and increases the possibility of negatively impacting customers. For example, if a bug is found in the design or requirements-gathering phase, the cost could be about $80-$100. If the bug is not found until the QA testing phase, then the cost could rise to $1,500. If it is not found until production, the cost could easily reach upto $10,000.Infact, the National Institute of Standards and Technology estimates that the annual cost of bugs to the US economy is approximately $60B.Fixing issues early increases the opportunities for success, saves money and enables organizations to meet or even exceed customer expectations.
Defects lead to vulnerabilities, and vulnerabilities lead to openings that enable attackers to gain access to a network. It is 90 times less expensive to resolve defects in the design phase than it is to resolve them in real time. A strong test architecture can find these bugs earlier, from development through to QA/Testing, and even monitor production for configuration faults and other deficiencies that create performance and security problems.
Q: To build the best testing solution, what are the basic information required?
Ans: 1. What needs to be tested
Once this information is determined, identify the right software based on the parameters set for functionality, performance, scalability, security, resiliency, and compliance. Then identify the hardware interfaces necessary for required network speed, and finally select the right chassis for all modules needed.
Q: What are the various benefits that Ixia offers to enterprises through testing as a service offering?
Ans: Ixia’s Testing as a Service (TaaS) delivers a fast, repeatable & accurate approach. Ixia’s professional assessments help in supplementing customer’s technical staff with Ixia test experts, minimizing project risk by performing real-world testing, offer an easily expensed service (capex vs. opex), creating an easy, “lightweight” approach and delivering actionable insight into the infrastructure. With testing as a service (TaaS), Ixia provides access to world-leading test equipment, proven & repeatable test plans and highly experienced test experts. Testing as a service improves ROI while reducing the strain on internal resources and helps keep high-profile deployments on track, ensuring end-users’ ultimate quality of experience (QoE). Along with standardized test plans that ensure efficiency and repeatability, TaaS assessments feature timely expert reporting and analysis that increases the reach and value of results.
