Explore the Top 5 IT Infrastructure Performance Issues that include routers, switches, virtual servers, unified communication, connectivity, and more.

1. Top 5 IT Infrastructure
Performance Issues

2. Our Analysis
• The data provided in this presentation was gathered from over
4,000 network engagements
• We compile the data from physical network components, virtual
infrastructure, unified communications and Cloud IaaS
environments
• We provide benchmarks using our data to help companies
establish their own benchmark and identify issues to help in
troubleshooting and planning for change

3. True Top 5 Performance issues
• Hidden Network Oversubscription
• Clear Network Overutilization
• VMware Storage Latency
• VMware Memory Oversubscription
• Critical Interface Packet Loss

4. Hidden Network Oversubscription
What is Network Oversubscription?
Switch
Backplane
1 Gbps
4Gbps
Ports

5. Are You Suffering from Network
Oversubscription?
• 32% of Organizations have Oversubscribed Line Cards
• 130 – The average number of interfaces that drop packets due
to the oversubscription (Per Organization!)
Total Oversubscribed Ports
14%
WS-X4548-GB-RJ45V
Oversubscribed 8:1
WS-X4648-RJ45V+E
Oversubscribed 2:1
15%
56%
15%
WS-X4548-GB-RJ45
Oversubscribed 8:1
WS-X6148-GE-TX
Oversubscribed 8:1

6. Look for Known Offenders
1200
1000
800
600
400
500
373
200
0
WS-X6748-GE-TX
WS-X6148A-GE-45AF
WS-X6348-RJ-45
WS-X6724-SFP
WS-X6148-GE-TX
WS-X6148A-GE-TX
WS-X6548-GE-TX
33 % of Cisco 6500
Ports are on
Oversubscribed Line
Cards
985
304
247
223
188
“It is important to note that the 6148A-GE and the 6548-GE are both engineered with 8:1 oversubscription ratios and, as such,
while suitable at the access layer, these linecards would not be recommended to deploy as uplinks or within the distribution and
core layers – Cisco QoS Design Guide (Telepresence) “http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/solutions/Enterprise/Video/tpqoscampus.html

7. Network Overutilization
68 % of organizations suffer from Overutilization
Out of this 68% only an average of....
0.66% of the organizations interfaces are Overutilized
Of these interfaces only….
49% are LAN interfaces

8. Network Overutilization
This bandwidth chart was calculating using a 30 second load intervals
It experienced 9,766,038 packets dropped due to overutilization in the ~11 day period

9. VMware Storage Latency
How many people monitor their storage latency for servers?
67 % of VMware deployments have severe storage latency
Average storage latency on these devices was 278ms.
278ms!!

10. VMware Memory Oversubscription
Memory oversubscription is exactly as it sounds….
you’ve provisioned and used more memory than you have.
The metrics you look at are • Average Swap Wait Time – delay that occurs with memory swap - Goal: 0ms
• Read / Write Latency – Latency to disk - Goal: <20ms

11. Critical Interface Packet Loss
Q: What is considered Critical interface packet loss?
A: Errors or discards on aggregation links including:
1) Infrastructure uplinks
2) Layer 3 interfaces
3) Server egress ports
4) Layer 2 forwarding 5+ hosts (ex. Unknown or unmanaged segments)
Types of packet loss
Errors
What is it?: CRC, malformed frame, collision
What can be the issue?: Layer1/layer2 issue
Clocking or duplex mismatch
Half duplex technology
Cost to fix / time to fix Low / Low-moderate
Discards
Implicit discard of a packet
Overutilization
Oversubscription
Queuing or policing mechanism
Misconfiguration
Moderate / High

12. Critical Interface Packet Loss
89.7% of organizations have resolvable packet loss on critical interfaces
Average Number of Interfaces with Pack Loss
68
70
60
50
42
38
40
27
30
19
20
12
10
3
10
0
Critical
Uplinks with
Discards
Critical
Uplinks with
Errors
Router
Interfaces
with
Discards
Router
Interfaces
with Errors
Server Links Server Links
Shared
with
with Errors Uplinks with
Discards
Discards
Shared
Uplinks with
Errors

13. Contact RISC Networks
(866) 808-1227
1 Rankin Ave, 2nd Floor
Asheville, NC 28801
info@riscnetworks.com