Challenge
The Port of Felixstowe is no stranger to network monitoring and analysis tools, and has worked with PTC Networking, an independent supplier of network analysis and management systems, through three generations of technology to implement state-of-the-art systems that support delivery of optimal network services.
In working with the Port of Felixstowe, PTC recognises the unique nature of the Port. It is strategically important to the economy of the UK. Countless businesses depend upon the Port every day. If the network was to fail, lorries and containers could not be processed, activity would stop; billions of pounds worth of trade could be affected.
Given its strategic importance, network optimisation, quality of service and availability are subject to constant attention and refinement, in an organisation where the CEO assumes board-level responsibility for IT.
Solution
The Port of Felixstowe embarked upon a review of state-of-the-art monitoring solutions in 2003, to ensure that it was using the best tools available. A range of options were considered, including Fluke Network Analysers, Network General’s Sniffer, Wildpackets’ Etherpeek and Observer Suite from Network Instruments.
 Accepting a zero downtime target, PTC had no reservation in recommending that Observer should replace TeVista. The system’s intuitive user interface has the strength and depth of integrated modules necessary to allow the Port to manage its entire network from a single point. The VoIP module has been used extensively and the portable Wireless LAN probe has proved useful as an extension to the Port’s fixed wireless management facilities. The network modelling facilities have also been put to good use for planning purposes.
Observer’s distributed probes (supporting all network media) provide real-time monitoring of the entire network infrastructure, raising alerts as necessary, thus enabling problems to be addressed before user services are affected.
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The key to pre-empting network issues rests with establishing baselines for normal operation against which thresholds can be set. Observer, with its long-term data acquisition and logging facilities, is ideal for setting, measuring and refining those baselines.
When Observer raises alerts, the same integrated solution is used to quickly resolve both problems and issues. For example, when a rogue device was found to be the cause of a broadcast storm at the Port that was saturating bandwidth, the tool was used to establish which protocol was at fault. It then immediately ran a packet capture for that protocol and, from the trace file, isolated the problem device, thereby averting a potential network failure. This is just one instance of many, where the investment in Observer was justified many times over.
More than simply trouble-shooting…
Observer is a one-stop integrated suite of tools.
Its enterprise-wide monitoring is supported by a comprehensive industry standard SN, which enables the Port to interact with the management facilities onboard network-attached devices to monitor systems activity at a port level. Significantly, the SNMP module was developed in-house by Network Instruments, rather than sourced as a third party add-on, which is the case with competitor products - an important consideration for many organisations.
Using Observer, the Port of Felixstowe is now able to assess the necessary metrics to justify improvements and upgrades to the network that improve business performance and guard against network failure. Without such a tool, other businesses are vulnerable.
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About Port of Felixstowe |
The Port of Felixstowe is owned by Hutchison Ports (UK) Limited, the UK subsidiary of the Hutchison Port Holdings Group, the world's leadingport operator, developer and investor, with interests in 23 countries. The UK's largest container port, handling 50% of the country's freight containers and employing 3,000 personnel, operates around the clock, seven days a week, which means that it relies heavily — indeed, depends — upon its IT and network infrastructure, without which it simply could not function.
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