Calnex Sentinel Portable Synchronization Tester for PTP, NTP, SyncE, 1PPS and 4G/5G OTA

Portable sync analyzer that verifies phase, time and frequency synchronization over PTP, NTP, SyncE, 1PPS and 4G/5G Over-The-Air at up to 100G.

Test modes: Masks or test limits can be applied to TE, 2wayTE, pktSelected 2wayTE, 2wayTEL, 2wayTEH, TIE, MTIE, and TDEV graphs
PRC/SSU/SEC masks: Masks for G.811/G.812/G.813-clocks (ETSI 300 462-3)
Network masks: According to G.823/G.824/G.8261/G.8261.1/G.8271.1/G.8271.2
SyncE masks: According to G.8261, G.8262

Datasheet

Overview

The Calnex Sentinel is a dedicated synchronization tester for verifying phase, time and frequency synchronization. It is used to monitor performance and diagnose synchronization issues on 3G/4G/5G mobile, data center, financial, power and other telecoms networks. Sentinel captures all data simultaneously, so timing performance can be correlated at different points in the network, even between different timing architectures.

Measurements

The instrument measures PTP, NTP and SyncE (IPv4/IPv6) on packet ports from 100M to 100G, as well as 1PPS and clock signals. It can operate as a pseudo T-TSC to measure upstream network synchronization or as a network monitor measuring live network PDV and time error. Metrics include Time Error, TIE, MTIE, TDEV, 2wayTE, packet-selected 2wayTE, PDV, Floor Packet Percentage, frequency error, SyncE wander and ESMC quality levels, assessed against ITU-T masks and limits.

Over-The-Air testing

An optional OTA module measures time error between 4G eNodeBs or 5G gNodeBs and UTC without a physical connection to the network, which is useful where small cells lack a 1PPS output. It supports FDD and TDD and absolute and relative virtual 1PPS measurements. With the battery option, OTA measurements can be made in the field without external power.

Reference and holdover

Sentinel includes a built-in GNSS receiver and a rubidium reference clock. Once disciplined, the Rb clock provides holdover so that accurate measurements can be made away from a GNSS or 1PPS reference, for example when moving around a data center.

Analysis

Live metrics and real-time graphs are shown during measurement. Built-in packet capture and the PTP Field Verifier (PFV) check protocol conformance, the Calnex Analysis Tool (CAT) provides detailed metric analysis and PDF reporting, and captured PDV data can be replayed on Calnex Paragon instruments.

Key Features

Verifies phase, time and frequency synchronization
PTP, NTP and SyncE (IPv4/IPv6) measurements
1PPS and clock signal measurements
Over-The-Air (OTA) time error measurement for 4G and 5G, FDD or TDD
Absolute and relative virtual 1PPS OTA measurements
Multiple clock and packet measurements simultaneously
G.8265.1/G.8275.1/G.8275.2 testing with profiles and metrics
PTP Pseudo Subordinate PDV/2wayTE to ITU-T specifications
NTP Pseudo Client PDV/2wayTE performance
SyncE wander and ESMC measurements
PTP protocol check and built-in packet capture
25/100G interfaces
Battery operation for OTA measurements
Long-term PTP TE measurements at 1G/10G/25G/100G with or without GNSS
Embedded GNSS receiver and high-stability rubidium (Rb) clock
Live metrics calculated and displayed in real time
Detailed measurement report in PDF
PTP Field Verification (PFV) to check conformance
Calnex Analysis Tool (CAT) for full suite of metrics
Auto discovery of signals
Built-in industry-standard masks and PTP profiles
Remote operation via VNC or API
Captured PDV data can be replayed on Calnex Paragon

Specifications

Metrics and Masks

Test modes	Masks or test limits can be applied to TE, 2wayTE, pktSelected 2wayTE, 2wayTEL, 2wayTEH, TIE, MTIE, and TDEV graphs
PRC/SSU/SEC masks	Masks for G.811/G.812/G.813-clocks (ETSI 300 462-3)
Network masks	According to G.823/G.824/G.8261/G.8261.1/G.8271.1/G.8271.2
SyncE masks	According to G.8261, G.8262
ANSI-standard masks	DS1 and OC-N masks
Display modes	TE, 2wayTE, pktSelected 2wayTE, TIE, MTIE, TDEV, Path Delay, PDV, 2wayTEL, 2wayTEH, Distribution of PDV Selected PDV, Floor Packet Percentage, Maximum Average Frequency Error
Number of graphs	Up to 6 graphs of the same type can be over-laid on screen. Color coded.
Masks on screen	Up to 6 MTIE and TDEV masks according to selected test mode Pass/Fail result available for each mask

Clock Module

Pre-defined signal/clock Option 610	1PPS (PTP Subordinate recovered clock); 8 kHz (frame clock); 64 kHz/64 kb/s (E0/DS0); 1.544 MHz/1.544 Mb/s (T1/DS1 clock/data); 2.048 MHz/2.048 Mb/s (E1 clock/data); 5 MHz/10 MHz (frequency reference); 25 MHz/125 MHz/156.25 MHz (SyncE clock rate); 34 Mb/s (E3), 45 Mb/s (DS3); 155.52 MHz/155 Mb/s (STM-1/STS-3 clock/data)
User-defined clock types Option 610	From 0.5 Hz to 200 MHz in 0.5 Hz steps Symmetrical, unipolar clock signals
Number of ports Option 610	2 per module
Connector Option 610	BNC
Impedance Option 610	75 Ω, VSWR <2:1 or 1 MΩ
Voltage range Option 610	±5.00 V
Sensitivity Option 610	min input voltage 60 mVpp Signal Check voltages are for indication only
Signal type Option 610	Symmetrical pulse (clock signal); Unsymmetrical repetitive pulse (clock signal); HDB3-coded data (data signal); AMI B8ZS, B3ZS (data signal)
Frequency measurement Option 610	TIE accuracy 1 ns
1PPS constant TE measurement accuracy Option 610	±75 ns With reference to GNSS
Relative time error	±5 ns Accuracy with which Sentinel measures the phase difference between any two clock inputs

Ethernet

Synchronous Ethernet	SyncE clock measurement; Conformance to G.8261 masks (MTIE/TDEV); Extract and graph ESMC message (SSM); Generate and change ESMC
PTP (1588) and NTP measurements	Network 2-way TE, Forward (Sync) PDV, Reverse (DelReq) PDV and Network Delay; Raw PDV (vs time and distribution graphs); Selected Packet PDV (vs time and distribution graphs); Cluster/band packet selection
Operating modes	Pseudo-Subordinate Clock Mode or Monitor Mode
Timestamp resolution	1 ns resolution timestamp
PDV replay	Captured PDVs can be replayed on Calnex Paragon-X for troubleshooting
PTP (1588) transport	Layer 2 Multicast and Layer 3 (UDP/IPv4, UDP/IPv6) Multicast/Unicast
NTP transport	Layer 3 (UDP/IPv4/IPv6) Unicast
Number of ports	Maximum of 2
Connectors	RJ45 for 100/1000 Base-T, SFP/SFP+ for 100M/1G/10G Optical, QSFP28 for 100G Optical, SFP28 for 25G Optical QSFP28 to SFP28 adapter supplied; optical transceivers not supplied
PTP/NTP constant TE measurement accuracy	±75 ns With reference to GNSS

OTA Module

Measurement accuracy Option 705	±100 ns
Maximum input power Option 705	–20 dBm
Operating frequencies Option 705	Up to 6 GHz
NR and LTE bands Option 705	TDD and FDD

Platform

Reference clock	Built-in Rubidium reference or external reference input 1 MHz, 5 MHz or 10 MHz
Internal data storage	Up to 32G
External data storage	USB memory stick
Start/Stop	Via START/STOP key
Signal check parameters	Signal type (Clock, Data or Unknown); Frequency (for clock signals); Pulse width (for data signals)
Display	Color TFT, 8.4", 800 x 600 pixels, resistive touchscreen

Internal Rb Clock and GNSS

Output frequency accuracy	1 x 10-9 7 mins to warmup
Ageing (1 day)	<1 x 10-12
Ageing (1 year)	<5 x 10-10
Built-in GNSS module	12 channels, GPS L1, Galileo E1, GLONASS G1 and BeiDou B1 bands Not compatible with B1C
Time accuracy	±15 ns at 1σ after 24 hours lock GNSS-disciplined
Frequency accuracy	2 x 10-12 averaged over 24 hours GNSS-disciplined
GNSS disciplining modes	Always disciplining, always in holdover, disciplining only between measurements Requires 6 hours disciplining if disconnected from GNSS for <1 week; 12 hours if >1 week. Requires 1 hour disciplining if using Cs quality 1PPS (from any state).

Reference Inputs and Outputs

Frequency reference input (std)	Input Frequency: 10 MHz, 5 MHz. Voltage Range: 0.1 Vrms to 5 Vrms. Impedance: Approx. 50 Ω.
External 1PPS timing input	Voltage Range: 0 V to 0.8 V (Low), 2 V to 3.3 V (High) into 50 Ω. Required Accuracy: ±100 ns to UTC
GNSS timing reference	Antenna Input: N-type connector. DC-feed: +5 V on center pin to active GNSS antenna.
Reference frequency output	Reference Frequency: 10 MHz sine-wave. Output Levels: 1 Vrms in 50 Ω. Impedance: Approx. 50 Ω.
1PPS output	Voltage Range: 0 V to 0.8 V (Low), 2 V to 3.3 V (High) into 50 Ω. Source: Internal Rubidium oscillator
E1/T1 output	Output Logic Levels: TTL levels in 50 Ω. Connector: Clock: BNC, Data: Isolated BNC. Frequency: 2.048/1.544 MHz, 2.048/1.544 Mb/s. Output Level: Accurate to G.703 ±1.2 V ±10% in 75 Ω

Interfaces

USB device port	Connector: Std USB type B. USB Version: 2.0
USB host port	Connector: Std USB type A. Maximum Supply Current: 400 mA. USB Version: 2.0
USB charging port Option 631	Connector USB type C. Supports 20 V, 5 A profile. Input port only for charging Opt. 631 internal battery
LAN/management port	Communication Port: RJ45, 10/100 Base-T. Protocol: DHCP, FTP, web-based GUI (http/https) with authentication if required, WebDav. Supports VLAN
Remote operation	Remote operation via web-based GUI
Event log	On screen log of measurement start/stop, duration, alarms, loss of data, loss of communication link, etc. Log can be saved as text file.
Report generation	Printable, custom-designed measurement report in pdf format
Security	Password secured access

Environmental and Power

Operating temperature	0°C to 40°C 30°C when charging Rb backup-battery
Storage	Temperature from 0 to 50°C and Humidity up to 90% non-condensing
Safety	EN 61010-1: 2010
EMC	EN 61326: 2013
Power supply	Line Voltage: 100 to 240 Vrms ±10%, 50 Hz to 60 Hz, <100 W

Mechanical

Construction	Fold-out stand. Ruggedized casing.
Dimensions (w x h x d)	320 x 388 x 126 mm (12.6" x 15.3" x 5")
Weight	Net <7 kg (15 lb); Shipping with transport case <16 kg (35 lb) Weights are approximations based on varying configurations

Specifications are taken from the manufacturer's documentation. See the datasheet for complete and current values.

Applications

3G/4G/5G mobile network synchronization
Small cell deployment testing
O-RAN synchronization conformance
Data center PTP and NTP synchronization
Financial network timing
Power network timing
Telecom network synchronization monitoring
Network deployment, troubleshooting and maintenance

Included

Calnex Analysis Tool (CAT)
GNSS antenna
Antenna cable (20 m)
Hard transport case
User manual on USB
Line power cord
1-year warranty and support
QSFP28 to SFP28 adapter

Options & Accessories

Option	Description
Option 610	Clock module 1PPS/E1/T1 — Any clock from 0.5 Hz up to 200 MHz with 0.5 Hz step (maximum two per instrument)
Option 615	100M/1G packet port (PTP/NTP/SyncE) — Includes SyncE/ESMC analysis for 100M/1G optical and electrical rates. Maximum two Option 615 and/or Option 616 per instrument.
Option 616	100M/1G/10G packet port (PTP/NTP/SyncE) — Includes SyncE/ESMC analysis for 100M/1G/10G optical and electrical rates. Maximum two Option 615 and/or Option 616 per instrument.
Option 618	100G interface — Ordered at same time as Sentinel mainframe or software upgrade enabling second 100G port
Option 622	25G interface — Ordered at same time as Sentinel mainframe or software upgrade enabling second 25G port
Option 705	Over-the-Air (OTA) Time Error measurement module — Maximum one per instrument
Option 620	PTP and NTP PDV measurement software — One license per instrument
Option 623	Return to factory upgrade of Sentinel with serial no. beginning 400 — Required when upgrading Sentinel with 25G and/or 100G interfaces. Options 618 and/or 622 must be ordered at the same time.
Option 631	Battery Powered Operation — Transport Mode to maintain Rb accuracy in holdover during transportation; uninterruptible power supply maintains operation if external power is interrupted; full operation under battery power without external supply.
Option 812	One year extension of product warranty
Option 813	Two years extension of product warranty
Option 133	External 1PPS/ToD/Frequency Converter accessory
Option 511	Carry-on bag