How do you create effective network validation metrics?

1 Define your goals and criteria

Before you start measuring anything, you need to define what you want to achieve and how you will evaluate your success. What are the objectives and constraints of your network? What are the key performance indicators (KPIs) and service level agreements (SLAs) that you need to meet or exceed? How will you prioritize and balance different aspects of network quality, such as availability, throughput, latency, jitter, packet loss, security, and scalability? By defining your goals and criteria, you can align your network validation metrics with your network design and strategy.

2 Choose appropriate tools and methods

Network validation requires various tools and methods to collect, analyze, and report data. Depending on your network size, topology, and technology, you may need to use different types of tools, such as network analyzers, simulators, emulators, testers, monitors, or dashboards. You also need to decide how to conduct your network validation, such as using active or passive testing, synthetic or real traffic, lab or field testing, or continuous or periodic testing. You should choose the tools and methods that best suit your network characteristics, goals, and budget.

3 Establish baselines and benchmarks

To measure the effectiveness of your network validation metrics, you need to establish baselines and benchmarks. Baselines are the reference points that indicate the normal or expected behavior of your network. Benchmarks are the standards or targets that you want to achieve or compare with. By establishing baselines and benchmarks, you can track the changes and trends in your network performance, identify the gaps and issues, and evaluate the impact and value of your network improvements.

4 Validate across multiple layers and domains

Network validation is not a one-time or one-dimensional activity. It is an ongoing and comprehensive process that involves validating across multiple layers and domains of your network. For example, you may need to validate your network at the physical, data link, network, transport, and application layers, as well as at the end-to-end, segment, device, and service levels. By validating across multiple layers and domains, you can ensure that your network functions correctly and consistently at all levels and scenarios.

5 Review and refine your metrics

Network validation is not a static or fixed process. It is a dynamic and iterative process that requires constant review and refinement of your metrics. As your network evolves and changes, so do your requirements and expectations. You may need to adjust your metrics to reflect the new realities and challenges of your network. You may also need to add, remove, or modify your metrics to improve their accuracy, relevance, and usefulness. By reviewing and refining your metrics, you can keep them aligned with your network goals and needs.

6 Communicate and collaborate with stakeholders

Network validation is not a solitary or isolated activity. It is a collaborative and communicative activity that involves engaging and interacting with various stakeholders of your network. These may include your network users, customers, partners, vendors, managers, or regulators. You need to communicate and collaborate with them to understand their feedback, expectations, and requirements. You also need to share and report your network validation metrics and results with them to demonstrate your network quality and value. By communicating and collaborating with stakeholders, you can build trust and confidence in your network.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?