Junos' RPM Probes: Configuration and Analysis

Juniper Networks Certified Internet Specialist Enterprise Routing and Switching (JNCIS-ENT) is a certification that validates your understanding of networking technologies and related platform configuration and troubleshooting skills. One of the topics covered in this certification is Junos' Real-time Performance Monitoring (RPM) probes. In this blog post, we will delve into the configuration and analysis of RPM probes.

What are RPM Probes?

RPM is a feature in Junos OS that allows you to monitor network performance by generating synthetic traffic. This traffic is sent as probes to a target IP address, and the response is analyzed to measure network performance metrics such as delay, jitter, and packet loss.

Configuring RPM Probes

To configure RPM probes, you need to define a test, which includes the probe type, target address, probe count, and probe interval. Here is an example of how to configure an RPM probe:

user@router# set services rpm probe test1 test-type icmp-ping
user@router# set services rpm probe test1 target address 192.0.2.1
user@router# set services rpm probe test1 probe-count 5
user@router# set services rpm probe test1 probe-interval 10

In this example, test1 is the name of the test, icmp-ping is the type of probe, 192.0.2.1 is the target IP address, 5 is the number of probes to be sent, and 10 is the interval in seconds between each probe.

Analyzing RPM Probes

Once the RPM probes are configured and active, you can analyze the results using the show services rpm probe-results command. This command displays the results of the most recent probe, including the minimum, maximum, and average round-trip time (RTT), as well as the standard deviation of the RTT and the percentage of packet loss.

Here is an example of how to analyze RPM probe results:

user@router> show services rpm probe-results

The output of this command might look something like this:

Test: test1
  Probe type: icmp-ping
  Target IP address: 192.0.2.1
  Probe results:
    Probes sent: 5
    Probes received: 5
    Packet loss: 0%
    RTT (ms) min/avg/max/stddev = 1.123/1.234/1.345/0.111

In this example, all probes were received, so the packet loss is 0%. The minimum, average, maximum, and standard deviation of the RTT are also displayed.

Conclusion

RPM probes are a powerful tool for monitoring network performance in Junos OS. By configuring and analyzing RPM probes, you can gain valuable insights into the performance of your network and troubleshoot any issues that may arise. Remember, practice is key when preparing for the JNCIS-ENT certification, so be sure to get hands-on experience with RPM probes.

In the next blog post, we will cover another important topic in the JNCIS-ENT certification: Junos' firewall filters. Stay tuned!