Provider Connectivity Assurance Sensor F25 Release Notes 24.08

Overview

Cisco is pleased to announce the 24.08 release of Provider Connectivity Assurance Sensor F25 (formerly Accedian Skylight Flex 25). This software runs on the 25G platform.

Organization

The following topics are covered in this article:

• Tested Components

  Lists firmware versions, tested components and compatibility

• Supported Features
  Covers Assurance Sensor F25’s supported features

• Support in Release 24.08
  Details the support for scalability and transceivers

• New Features
  Learn about Assurance Sensor F25’s new features

• Corrected Issues
  Lists all corrected issues in this release

• Operational Considerations
  Lists the operational considerations in this release

• Release 24.08 Lifecycle
  Details the life cycle for this release

For more information, such as the initial configuration guidelines and upgrade procedure, see Getting Started.

Tested Components

The following components have been tested:

• uBoot version 217

• CPLD version 115

• Orchestrator 23.12

• RR Stand Alone version 0.551.5

• RR Connected version 0.551.4

• Provider Connectivity Assurance version 24.05 deployer 14.166.85

Supported Features

The following features are supported by Assurance Sensor F25 in release 24.08:

Device Infrastructure and Management Features

• SNMP (v2c, v3) agent and MIB support

• NETCONF support

• Configuration Save and Restore

• CLI (Console, SSH)

• DHCP client - IPv4

• DNS client - IPv4

• Syslog client and relay agent – IPv4

• Configuration upgrade through TFTP or SFTP file transfer – IPv4 and IPv6

• IP authorized managers – IPv4

• Management RJ45 port 10M, 100M and 1G

• Auxiliary port 1G and 10G

• Traffic port 100G

• Jumbo frame support

• Auto-negotiation of speed and duplex modes

• Zero Touch Provisioning

• PM Telemetry

• Platform Monitor

Basic Layer 2 Ethernet Connectivity Features

• 802.3x flow control

• CPU rate limitation for storm protection

• Rate limiting

• Port mirroring

• 802.1Q Customer VLAN bridging functionality

• LLDP

  • Chassis ID subtype is (1) Chassis Component

  • The Management Address TLV is enabled by default in all traffic Ethernet Interfaces after factory reset and reflects the Management IP address of the Flex platform.

  • The Management Address TLV is updated without user intervention if an address change occurs in the system.

  • The System Name TLV is enabled by default in all traffic Ethernet Interfaces after factory reset.

• RMONv1 – statistics, history, alarm, event

• ACLs (Access Control Lists) – L2 (Ethernet header) for traffic filtering

• Link Aggregation (802.3ad)

Advanced Layer 2 Ethernet Switching Features

• 802.1Q Provider Bridge Functionality

• Ethernet CFM 802.1ag, Y.1731

• Basic E-LINE Ethernet Services creation

• VLAN translation support

• MEF 10.2 and 10.3 bandwidth regulator

• Layer 2 Flow Filtering based on multiple VLAN headers

• VLAN Header Re-marking in double tagged scenario

• E-LINE Ethernet Services – 2 TAG support

• Active Standby Link Protection using LAG (LACP)

• E-SAT – Y.1564

  • Simple CIR Test

  • Step Load CIR Test

  • EIR Configuration Test

  • Traffic Policing Test

  • Frame Transfer Delay (FTD) values in microsecond precision for both SAC configuration and report

  • Frame Delay Variations (FDV) values in microsecond precision for both SAC configuration and report

  • Frame Loss Ratio (FLR) configuration in the SAC profile is extended to support fractional values, with precision up to two decimal places (example: 0.01%).

  • Layer 1 and Layer 2 Flow configuration support

  • Layer 2 standard frame format support, providing interoperability with third party loopback applications

  • Maximum SLA session creation has been extended to 100 with ID ranges from 1 to 100; the maximum number of active/concurrent SAT sessions running in the system is 10.

• L2CP frame transparency mode support

• Facility Loopback for default Accedian LBM SAT testing

• ETH-SLM and ETH-DMM

• ETH-CSF

Support in Release 24.08

Scalability Support

The following table contains the details of scalability tested in this release:

TWAMP Sender/Reflector Session Scalability

The number of TWAMP sessions that can run simultaneously, whether for TWAMP generation (Sender) or TWAMP reflection (Reflector), depends on the configuration of the padding size and the period interval. When the padding size is set to its minimum, it is possible to have up to 6000 TWAMP sessions, regardless of the period interval.

Otherwise, if the padding size is increased beyond the minimum, the maximum number of TWAMP sessions that can run will vary between 600 and 6000, depending on the specific padding size and period interval configuration. See table below for more information.

Note: TWAMP Sender (generating session) can be configured to operate as a TWAMP Reflector (reflecting session). A TWAMP Reflector can equally be configured to operate as a TWAMP Sender.

Supported Transceivers

The following table details the supported transceivers for this release:

Note: RS-FEC is not currently supported on Flex. Refer to the QSFP28 (F100) and SFP28 (F25) manufacturers datasheets for the maximum reach without RS-FEC.

New Features

Assurance Sensor F25 release 24.08 introduces the following new features and enhancements.

Cisco Branding

Skylight Flex units have been rebranded in alignment with Cisco branding and the product name has changed to Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance Sensors. This includes:

• Assurance Sensor F100

• Assurance Sensor F25

Two-Way Active Management Protocol Implementation

The Two-Way Active Management Protocol (TWAMP) defines an open protocol for measuring two-way and round-trip metrics with greater accuracy.

Meant to provide service-level agreement (SLA) related metrics, release 24.08 implements TWAMP as a Session-Sender and as a Session-Reflector.

TWAMP test sessions are defined by the following parameters:

Session-Sender TWAMP Test Session

• Session-Sender IP Address (IPv4 or IPv6)

• Session-Reflector IP Address (IPv4 or IPv6)

• Session-Sender (source) UDP Port

• Session-Reflector (destination) UDP Port

Session-Reflector TWAMP Test Session

• Session-Reflector IP Address (IPv4 or IPv6)

• Session-Sender IP Address (IPv4 or IPv6)

• Session-Reflector (source) UDP Port

• Session-Sender (destination) UDP Port

Note: TWAMP support for Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance (formally Accedian Skylight performance analytics) will be available in Provider Connectivity Assurance release 24.08.

For more information, see TWAMP Overview.

Alarm Manager

An updated alarm management system, Alarm Manager, has been added to release 24.08. Alarms serve as specialized notifications related to fault detection or any other irregularities.

See Alarm Manager.

Audit Log

The Audit Log, a chronological record of system activities, has been added to this release. Configurations performed on the system can be logged, allowing security personnel to remain informed—they can track ongoing incidents, identify the culprits, pinpoint the location, and note the timing of any security breaches.

See the Audit Logging Commands.

User Privilege Level

Release 24.08 introduces user privilege levels, allowing you to determine the role of the user and dictate what actions can be performed on the system while finely controlling and restricting access to the command-line interface.

Users have access to limited commands at lower privilege levels as opposed to higher privilege levels. These levels, ranging from 1 to 15, are set when the user is created.

See Unit Management Commands.

CLI Command Update

Unsupported CLI command have been removed. See the CLI Command Guide for the list of supported commands.

Service Activation Test Enhancements

Y.1564 test reports incorporate:

• The EMIX pattern used for test execution

• The User-defined packet size value used in EMIX pattern

Corrected Issues

This section lists issues resolved in Assurance Sensor F25 Release 24.08.

port-channelY.1564 Configuration Fails when Port Channel Added

When configuring Y.1564 traffic profiles on a port-channel configuration, the test passes under certain conditions but fails when the source interface of the port channel is added.

This issue has been fixed.

CFM MEP Goes Down when Running Y.1564 test on port-channel

When running a Y.1564 test on a port-channel, although the CFM MEP should remain up, it goes down and does not recover unless the links are rebooted or reconnected.

This issue has been fixed.

CFM Remains Down in port-channel Scenario when Port Member Goes Down

In a port-channel scenario when a port member goes down and then comes back up, CFM (Connectivity Fault Management) remains down.

This issue has been fixed.

MTU is Lower than Physical Port when Configuring port-channel

When configuring unit port channel, MTU is lower than physical port.

This issue has been fixed.

Y.1564 Test with Loopback Configuration Failing

Y.1564 test with loopback configuration leads to incorrect reporting; results suggest test has passed when it has in fact failed.

This issue has been fixed.

Unable to Change SAT test-frame-format and flow-bytes if Y.1564 Not Configured

User is unable to change the SAT test-frame-format and flow-bytes even though the system is expected to allow modifications when Y.1564 is not configured and no test is running.

This issue has been fixed.

Frame Loss Ratio Reporting Incorrect Values

When Frame Loss Ratio (FLR) is configured with a value lower than two decimal places (e.g., 0.001), the report incorrectly shows 0.00 instead of the actual value.

This issue has been fixed; FLR configuration in the SAC profile supports up to two decimal places (example: 0.01%).

L2CP Traffic Causing Reboot with Buffer Allocation and Segment Fault Errors

The unit is experiencing reboots while handling L2CP traffic, with error messages related to buffer allocation failures and segmentation faults.

This issue has been fixed.

Unit Unable to Execute the Reload or Configuration Commands without Failing

The unit encounters a failure where it cannot execute the reload command or configuration commands, displaying an error message instead.

This issue has been fixed.

ECFM Not Functioning Properly Causing Problem to Delete Telemetry Parameters

Ethernet Connectivity Fault Management (ECFM) must be functioning properly before configuring telemetry parameters. Otherwise, it is not possible to delete the telemetry parameters that have been configured.

This issue has been fixed.

Memory Leak in SNMP after Upgrading to Release 23.09

The unit reboots daily after upgrading to release 23.09. The root cause is a memory leak in SNMP walk for the OID SysObjectID flow.

This issue has been fixed.

Command uplinkAccessPort Not Supported

The bridge port-type command parameter uplinkAccessPort is not supported.

This issue has been fixed.

SLM and DMM Telemetry Timestamps not Corresponding with Unit Time (Factory Reset)

SLM and DMM telemetry statistics timestamps do not correspond with unit time if factory reset is performed before configuring.

Note: When initially configuring and activating NTP, you must also perform a reload to resynchronize the NTP configuration with the FPGA.

This issue has been fixed.

mgmt-address Not Visible on LLDP Peer and Activating Error Message

Mgmt-address is not visible on LLDP peer. Chassis ID in the command show lldp peer displays the unit MAC address rather than displaying the Hardware serial number. While configuring LLDP on the unit, the command for setting the management address activates an error message.

This issue has been fixed.

Hardware Time Synchronization Not Implanted

Hardware time synchronization is not currently implanted. As a result, the One-Way Delay Valid column in the generated CSV files returns as False and invalid values are displayed.

This issue has been fixed.

UTC Offset Issue with PM Telemetry Report

The UTC Offset will remain 00:00 for PM Telemetry reports.

This issue has been fixed.

sget Retrieve Alarm Issue

[NETCONF] sget retrieve Alarm leaf requires more time than expected when creating over 1000 MEPs; this is because NETCONF operation involves XML data conversion when retrieving data.

This issue has been fixed.

Unable to Delete CFM Parameters

Unable to delete CFM parameters if ethernet CFM is not working correctly prior to configuring telemetry parameters.

This issue has been fixed.

Unable to Configure LAG when Max Port set to 1 in NETCONF

While using NETCONF, you cannot configure LAG when max number of ports is set to 1. CLI and SNMP are unaffected by this issue.

This issue has been fixed.

Only MEF Envelope ID 0 or 1 can be Used in NETCONF

While using NETCONF, only MEF Envelope ID 0 or 1 can be used. CLI and SNMP are unaffected by this issue.

This issue has been fixed.

Interface Counter Resets to 0 when Executing the shut/no shut Command

When executing the shut / no shut command, which is required to shut down the interface, the interface counter resets to 0.

This issue has been fixed.

DNS Server IP Address Not Displayed

[NETCONF] When configuring the DNS domain name server and executing sget command  to validate the configuration, DNS Server IP address is not displayed.

This issue has been fixed.

get-config Command Displays Configuration Information Numerous Times

[NETCONF] When executing get-config command to display the running configuration, the configuration information of certain features, although accurate, is duplicated numerous times.

This issue has been fixed.

Prolonged Downgrade Firmware Time Using TFTP Server via In-band Management

Downgrading Assurance Sensor F25 firmware using TFTP server via In-band Management is successful but download time is prolonged.

This issue has been fixed.

Operational Considerations

This section documents the operational considerations related to Assurance Sensor F25 24.08.

Access Control List Considerations

The order of operation/matching of ACL rules is based on the order of the ACL configuration; a separate field/configuration to specify priority of the ACL is not supported.

ACLs associated with the port, when requiring modification, will have to be deleted and reconfigured with updated field value.

Release 24.08 Lifecycle

This section lists the planned lifecycle dates of this software release. See the table below outlining the following milestones: