In this section:

The SBC performs Packet Capture using 'tcpdump' and allows the captured file to be downloaded. The following section describes how to capture packets and download them.

Caution

Performing a Media packet capture with no host filters, or against hosts terminating multiple calls can impact traffic and cause current or future calls to fail, or to experience other problems.

Performing a long duration capture outside of a maintenance window can adversely impact traffic, and should be avoided when possible.

For SBC 1000

Ribbon recommends that you use the SBC's ASM or insert an external USB into the SBC 1000 in order to save packet capture files; otherwise only a small capture session is permitted due to available space limitations on the internal flash.


Enabling Packet Capture

The Packet Capture feature is intended for short duration packet captures. For that reason, a maximum duration of 120 minutes (2 hours) is permitted.

The Enable Packet Capture option (available from the Packet Capture menu bar) enables the packet capture capability in the SBC.

Packet Capture applies to both SBC 1000/2000 and SBC SWe Edge; differences in the configuration fields displayed are noted below.

Functional differences include:

  • A second capture interface is supported in the SBC 1000/2000 only.
  • ASM and USB references apply to SBC 1000/2000 only.

All screen captures reflect an SBC 1000/2000.

To enable packet capture:

  1. In the WebUI, click the Diagnostics tab.

  2. In the left navigation bar, select Ribbon Service Troubleshooting > Packet Capture.

    For SBC 2000

    Ribbon recommends that you insert either an ASM or external USB into the SBC 2000 in order to save packet capture files; otherwise only a small capture session is permitted due to available space limitations on the internal flash.

  3. From the menu bar, click Enable Packet Capture.

  4. At the Warning note, click OK. 

    Because packet capture can have an impact on SBC operation with network traffic, Ribbon recommends examining the debugging logs to determine whether the information in the logs is sufficient for troubleshooting and analyzing issues. If more information is required, enable Packet Capture only under the direction of Ribbon Support.

Packet Capture is enabled. Refer to Start Packet Capture.

Starting Packet Capture

Packet Capture must be enabled before capturing packets. Refer to Enable Packet Capture.

To view Alarm/Event history logs for Packet Capture, access the Diagnostics tab and click Logs > Alarm/Event History.

To capture T.38 Fax, enable RTP Media and add the Host 1 and Host 2 IP addresses of the next hop neighbor in Media SDP.

The Start Capture option (available from the Packet Capture menu bar) enables the SBC to capture packets.

To start capturing packets:

  1. In the WebUI, click the Diagnostics tab.

  2. In the left navigation bar, select Ribbon Service Troubleshooting > Packet Capture.

  3. From the menu bar, click Start Capture.

  4. Select the network interface (including IP Version) from which the packets will be captured.
  5. Select protocol(s) from which to capture the packets.
  6. Configure any relevant information for the Other Options sections. For details, refer to Field Definitions.

  7. Click OK.

    The Packet Capture status turns to In Progress.

Interface - Field Definitions

Primary Capture Interface

Specifies the network interface from which the packets will be captured.

Secondary Capture Interface

This field applies to SBC 1000/2000 only.

Specifies a second network interface from which the packets will be captured for a media packet capture. This field displays when the Media field is set to True.

IP Version

Specifies the IP version of the interface from which the packets will be captured. Valid options: IPv4, IPv6 or Both.

Protocol - Field Definitions

Media (RTP/RTCP)


FOR SBC 1000/2000:

Specifies whether or not to capture RTP/RTCP Packets.

Valid options: True (captures RTP/RTCP packets) or False (does not capture RTP/RTCP packets). Default entry: False.

Notes:

  • When the Media field is set to True, the Secondary Capture Interface field displays.
  • When either the Media or DSP/CSME fields are set to True, the fields that relate to Active Directory (Active Directory, HTTP/HTTPS, and All Other Protocols) do not display.
  • When DSP/CSME is set to True and the Media (RTP/RTCP) field is set to False, the Primary Capture Interface field does not display.

For SBC SWe Edge: 

Specifies whether or not capture RTP/RTCP Packets. 

Valid options: True (captures RTP/RTCP packets) or False (does not capture RTP/RTCP packets). Default entry: False.

Note:  

  • When the Media field is set to True, the Session Options fields are displayed.
  • When either the Media field is set to True, the fields that relate to Active Directory (Active Directory, HTTP/HTTPS, and All Other Protocols) do not display.

Session Options

This field applies to SBC SWe Edge Only.

This field is displayed only when the Media RTP/RTCP is set to True. 

The Session Options field represents the  Layer-5 Session layer options, both Calling Number and Called Number. 

Valid options: Calling Number (calling number to be traced) and/or Called Number (called number to trace). A maximum of 5 comma-separated numbers per selection can be entered (e.g., 1000, 9030, etc). 

If both Calling Number and Called Number are specified, a match to both ends is expected for the trace to begin.

DSP/CSME

This field applies to SBC 1000/2000 only.

Specifies whether or not to capture DSP/CSME packets.

Valid options: True (captures DSP/CSME packets) or False (does not capture DSP/CSME packets). Default entry: False.

Notes:

  • When the DSP/CSME field is set to True and the Media (RTP/RTCP) field is set to False, the Primary Capture Interface field does not display.
  • When DSP/CSME is set to False, and the Media field is set to True, the Active Directory, HTTP/HTTPS and All Other Protocol fields do not display and the Secondary Capture Interface field (in the Interface section) displays

Active Directory

Specifies whether or not to capture LDAP Packets.

Valid options: True (captures LDAP packets) or False (does not capture LDAP packets). Default entry: False.

The Media (RTP/RTCP), DSP/CSME and TCP/UDP Ports fields display only when each field for Active Directory (Active Directory, HTTP/HTTPS, or All Other Protocols) is set to False.

HTTP/HTTPS

Specifies whether or not to capture HTTP/HTTPS packets.

Valid options: True (captures HTTP/HTTPS packets) or False (does not capture HTTP/HTTPS packets). Default entry: False.

The TCP/UDP Ports field displays only when each field for Active Directory (Active Directory, HTTP/HTTPS, and All Other Protocols) is set to False.

All Other Protocols

Specifies whether or not to capture all other packet types not defined above.

Valid options: True (captures all other packet types) or False (does not capture all other packet types). Default entry: False.

The TCP/UDP Ports field displays only when each field for Active Directory (Active Directory, HTTP/HTTPS, and All Other Protocols) is set to False.


Other Options - Field Definitions

For SBC Edge

For SBC 1000/2000

TCP/UDP Ports

Specifies the port or ports used to capture packets. Configure a maximum of four comma-separated port numbers.

Valid range: 1 - 665535.

The TCP/UDP Ports field displays only when each field for Active Directory (Active Directory, HTTP/HTTPS, or All Other Protocols) is set to False.

Host #1

Specifies a unique host from which to capture packets. Host is specified by IP Address or FQDN.

Valid range: 1 - 256 ASCII characters.

Host #1 Direction

Specifies the whether the captured packets are being sent to the host or received from the host, or both.

Valid options: Transmit, Receive, or Transmit and Receive. Default option: Transmit and Receive.

Note: The Host #1 Direction field is visible only when an IP address is specified for the Host #1 field.

Host #2

Specifies a unique host from which to capture packets. Host is specified by IP Address or FQDN.

Valid range: Range: 1 - 256 ASCII characters

Host #2 Direction

Specifies the whether the captured packets are being sent to the host or received from the host, or both.

Valid options: Transmit, Receive, or Transmit and Receive. Default option: Transmit and Receive.

Note: This field is visible only if an address has been entered in Host #2.  

Maximum Packet Size

Specifies the maximum size of the individual packets to be captured.

Valid range: 100 - 1600 Bytes (default: 1600).

Overwrite

Specifies whether or not the SBC overwrites capture files in round robin fashion or not when the maximum file size has been reached.

Valid options: True (SBC overwrites capture files) or False (SBC does not overwrite capture files). Default option: False.

Duration

A maximum duration of 120 minutes (2 hours) is permitted for packet capture.

Specifies the duration of the capture in minutes. The maximum value represents 2 hours.

Valid range: 1 - 120 (default: 10).

Stopping Packet Capture

The Stop Packet capture feature is optional; this option stops the packet capture early (before the packet capture reaches the time limit set in the Duration field).

To stop capturing packets:

  1. In the WebUI, click the Diagnostics tab.

  2. In the left navigation bar, select Ribbon Service Troubleshooting > Packet Capture.

  3. From the menu bar, click Stop Capture.


    The Packet Capture stops.

Restarting Packet Capture

The Restart Packet capture feature is optional; use this option to repeat or restart the last packet capture performed. 

To restart or repeat the last packet capture:

  1. In the WebUI, click the Diagnostics tab.
  2. In the left navigation bar, select Ribbon Service Troubleshooting > Packet Capture.

  3. From the menu bar, click Restart Last Capture.

  4. Click the appropriate field to change any packet capture options that need to change.

  5. Click OK.

    The Packet Capture status turns to In Progress.

Downloading Capture Files

Once the packet capture has stopped, the captured file will appear in the table List of Captured Files.

To Stop Packet Capture Early

If you need to stop the packet capture early, from the menu bar, click Stop Capture.

To download captured files:

  1. From the List of Capture Files table, next to the desired file, click Download.

  2. Select the appropriate location to save the file. Click OK.



Note

Only one packet capture can be downloaded at a time. Depending on the size of the file and network connection, a download can take several minutes.

Deleting a Packet Capture File

The List of Packet Capture Files allows you to delete packet capture files from the SBC. 

To delete packet capture files:

  1. From the List of Packet Capture Files, click the check box on the left of the filename of the packet capture file you want to delete to select it. To delete multiple files, click multiple check boxes. To delete all files, click the check box at the top of the column.

  2. Click the X at the top of the column to delete the indicated file(s). 

Moving Internal or ASM Capture Files

The Move and USB options are not supported in the SBC SWe Edge.

If the file location for the packet capture is Internal or an ASM, and the system has an external USB present and available, an additional option, Move, will appear under the Action column. The Move action relocates the packet file to the external USB, which can then be removed and taken to a PC. 


The packet capture can only be saved on the internal flash for SBC 2000.

To move captured files:

  1. From the List of Capture Files table, next to the desired file, click Move.

Packet Capture Limitations

The following lists the limitations of Packet Capture.

Size Limitations
  1. An individual Packet Capture file is limited to 350 MiB in size. After the 350 MiB limit has been reached, a new file will be created to continue the packet capture.
  2. A Packet Capture session size limit is dependent on whether or not
    1. 30 GiB is less than the available storage space minus ( - ) 30%
      Or
    2. Available storage space minus ( - ) 30% is less than 30 GiB
  3. For SBC 1000, if there is no external USB or ASM module with a mounted hard drive, the Packet Capture will not be allowed to occur because of storage limitations.


Protocol Filters Restrictions

If Protocol Filters Active Directory, HTTP/HTTPS, or All Other Protocols are set to True, the following options will be hidden and no longer configurable:

  1. Media

  2. DSP/CSME

  3. TCP/UDP Ports
TCP/UPD Ports Restrictions

If any TCP/UDP Ports are entered, the following options will be hidden and no longer configurable:

  1. Active Directory
  2. HTTP/HTTPS
  3. All Other Protocols


For SBC 2000

Ribbon recommends that you insert either an ASM or external USB into the SBC 2000 in order to save packet capture files; otherwise only a small capture session is permitted due to available space limitations on the internal flash.