VIAVI Calnex Timing and Synchronization Test Solutions

Overview

The VIAVI timing and synchronization test portfolio consists of Calnex instruments for verifying packet-based and physical-layer timing in Ethernet networks and network equipment. The range covers lab conformance testers for network equipment manufacturers as well as portable and rack-mounted instruments for field measurement and continuous monitoring.

Lab conformance testing

Calnex Paragon neo and Paragon neo-A (PAM4) provide PTP and SyncE testing at rates up to 100GbE and 400GbE respectively, aimed at devices developed against ITU-T G.8273.2 boundary clock requirements and O-RAN O-DU and O-RU conformance. Calnex Paragon neo-S extends synchronization testing to 800GbE using PAM4 112G interfaces. Calnex Paragon-X tests SyncE, PTP, NTP, E1/T1 sync interfaces and Ethernet OAM up to 10GbE and adds Ethernet network emulation with capture and replay of real network traffic.

Field measurement and monitoring

Calnex Sentinel is a portable synchronization tester for verifying phase, time and frequency synchronization in mobile, data center, financial and power networks, with an internal Rubidium clock, built-in GNSS receiver, optional over-the-air (OTA) Time Error measurement for 4G and 5G and optional battery operation. Calnex Sentry is a rack-mounted synchronization monitor for data centers that measures up to 34 PTP or NTP streams and up to 5 clock signals continuously, with results available over a web-based GUI or an API.

Analysis software

All instruments work with the Calnex Analysis Tool (CAT), which evaluates metrics such as Time Error, MTIE and TDEV against ITU-T and O-RAN masks, and with the PTP Field Verifier (PFV) for checking captured PTP messages against standards-based or user-defined rules.

Models in this series

Model	Description
Calnex Paragon neo	Calnex Paragon neo PTP and SyncE Timing Test Platform up to 100GbE PTP and SyncE timing test platform with sub-nanosecond Time Error accuracy and NRZ optical interfaces up to 100GbE.	Details →
Calnex Paragon neo-A	Calnex Paragon neo-A (PAM4) PTP and SyncE Timing Test Platform up to 400GbE PTP and SyncE timing test platform adding PAM4 56G interfaces for synchronization testing up to 400GbE.	Details →
Calnex Paragon neo-S	Calnex Paragon neo-S Synchronization Test Platform up to 800GbE Synchronization test platform for PTP and SyncE with NRZ and PAM4 112G interfaces up to 800GbE.	Details →
Calnex Paragon-X	Calnex Paragon-X Ethernet Synchronization Tester and Network Emulator up to 10GbE One-box tester for PTP, SyncE, NTP, CES and Ethernet OAM with network emulation at rates up to 10GbE.	Details →
Calnex Sentinel	Calnex Sentinel Portable Synchronization Tester with Rubidium Clock and GNSS Portable synchronization tester for PTP, NTP, SyncE, TDM and 4G/5G OTA with built-in Rubidium clock and GNSS receiver.	Details →
Calnex Sentry	Calnex Sentry Data Center Synchronization Monitor Rack-mounted synchronization monitor for continuous measurement of up to 34 PTP/NTP streams and up to 5 clock signals.	Details →

Key Features

PTP and SyncE testing at rates up to 100GbE (Paragon neo), 400GbE (Paragon neo-A) and 800GbE (Paragon neo-S)
Sub-nanosecond accuracy for the entire test system on Paragon neo and Paragon neo-S
Conformance Test Application configures standards-defined test sequences in two clicks
PTP timeTransmitter and timeReceiver emulation with standards-defined Time Error impairments
SyncE wander generation and measurement to ITU-T G.8262.1/G.8262 with ESMC control to ITU-T G.8264
PTP Field Verifier (PFV) with automatic pass/fail indication and report generation
Paragon-X tests PTP, SyncE, NTP, CES and Ethernet OAM up to 10GbE with network emulation
Paragon-X impairs eight CoS/QoS levels simultaneously at up to 10GbE
Sentinel portable tester with built-in Rubidium clock and GNSS receiver
Sentinel over-the-air Time Error measurement for 4G LTE-A and 5G NR
Sentinel battery-powered operation option for transport mode, UPS and field measurements
Sentry monitors up to 34 PTP or NTP streams and up to 5 clock signals
Sentry API for remote configuration and measurement download
Sentry hardware watchdog and redundant hot-swappable power supplies
Calnex Analysis Tool (CAT) evaluates MTIE and TDEV against ITU-T and O-RAN masks

Specifications

Calnex Paragon neo and Paragon neo-A

Optical interfaces (NRZ) Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	100MbE SFP, 1GbE SFP, 10GbE SFP+, 25GbE SFP28, 40GbE QSFP+, 50GbE QSFP28, 100GbE QSFP28, 100GbE QSFP28 DCO All optical interfaces optional
Optical interfaces (PAM4 56G) Calnex Paragon neo-A	50GbE SFP56, 100GbE SFP-DD, 200GbE QSFP-DD, 400GbE QSFP-DD Paragon neo-A only
Electrical interfaces Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	1000/100 BASE-T: RJ45
External reference inputs Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	2.048 MHz, 10 MHz, T1 BITS clock (1.544 Mb/s), E1 MTS (2.048 Mb/s)
Internal reference frequency stability over temperature Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	better than ±1 x 10-9
Internal reference short term phase stability Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	better than 500 ps
Clock reference output ports Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	2 x 10 MHz/2.048 MHz Reference Outputs (BNC)
PTP Time Error measurement accuracy Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	Better than 1 ns for NRZ optical interfaces; Better than 5 ns for PAM4 optical and electrical interfaces Except 100 MbE: 5 ns; except 1 GbE (15 ns)
Supported PTP profiles Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	IEEE 1588V2 and ITU-T G.8275.1, G.8275.2, G.8265.1
Remote control Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	Scripting via TCL, Perl and Python
Phase wander measurement resolution Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	250 ps
Dimensions (w x h x d) Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	45 x 17 x 40 cm
Weight Calnex Paragon neo, Calnex Paragon neo-A	13 kg

Calnex Paragon neo-S

Optical interfaces (NRZ) Calnex Paragon neo-S	100MbE SFP, 1GbE SFP, 10GbE SFP+, 25GbE SFP28, 40GbE QSFP+, 50GbE QSFP28, 100GbE QSFP28, 100GbE QSFP28 DCO All optical interfaces optional
Optical interfaces (PAM4 112G) Calnex Paragon neo-S	200GbE QSFP112, 400GbE QSFP112, 800GbE OSFP112, 800GbE QSFP112-DD All optical interfaces optional
Clock reference output port Calnex Paragon neo-S	10 MHz/2.048 MHz Reference Output (BNC)
PTP Time Error measurement accuracy Calnex Paragon neo-S	Better than 1 ns for NRZ optical interfaces / Better than 5 ns for PAM4 optical and electrical interfaces Except 100 MbE: 5 ns; except 1 GbE (15 ns)
Jitter/Wander measurement Calnex Paragon neo-S	ITU-T G.8262.1, G.8262, O.174 Jitter generation/tolerance measurement on NRZ lines only
Phase wander measurement resolution Calnex Paragon neo-S	250 ps
Dimensions (w x h x d) Calnex Paragon neo-S	44.2 x 22.2 x 53.7 cm
Weight Calnex Paragon neo-S	20.5kg

Calnex Paragon-X

PTP measurement accuracy Calnex Paragon-X	5 ns
SyncE measurement accuracy Calnex Paragon-X	1 ns
Physical interfaces (Ethernet) Calnex Paragon-X	100 M Electrical (RJ45), 100 M Optical – SGMII; 1 G Electrical (RJ45), 1 G Optical – SFP; 10 G Optical (if option 111 fitted) – XFP or SFP+ (LAN-PHY) 100 M Optical SGMII for PTP PDV, NTP, CES, Services
External reference inputs Calnex Paragon-X	64 kHz, 2.048 MHz, 10 MHz; T1 BITS clock; E1 MTS, SyncE
Internal reference Calnex Paragon-X	Stratum-3, ±4.6 ppm
Maximum delay Calnex Paragon-X	8 seconds at 1 G (100 M: 80 s, 10 G: 0.8 s) Network emulation (options 708, 709, 710)
Fixed delay Calnex Paragon-X	6 μs to 10 s
Memory Calnex Paragon-X	Internal (2 Gb) or External (via USB)
Voltage Calnex Paragon-X	85 - 246 VAC, 100 - 240 VAC (Nominal) @ 50/60 Hz
GPS antenna, receiver and Rb reference Calnex Paragon-X	PRS/Stratum 1 (GPS-locked): typical 1x10-12; Outputs: 10 MHz, 1 pps Option 132

Calnex Sentinel

1 pps constant TE measurement accuracy Calnex Sentinel	±75 ns With reference to GNSS
Relative Time Error Calnex Sentinel	±5 ns Accuracy of phase difference measurement between any two clock inputs
User-defined clock types Calnex Sentinel	From 0.5 Hz to 200 MHz in 0.5 Hz steps Symmetrical, unipolar clock signals
Ethernet connectors Calnex Sentinel	RJ45 for 100/1000 Base-T, SFP/SFP+ for 100M/1G/10G Optical, QSFP28 for 100G Optical, SFP28 for 25G Optical Maximum of 2 ports; QSFP28 to SFP28 adapter supplied; optical transceivers not supplied
PTP/NTP constant TE measurement accuracy Calnex Sentinel	±75 ns With reference to GNSS
OTA measurement accuracy Calnex Sentinel	±100 ns
OTA maximum input power Calnex Sentinel	–20 dBm
OTA operating frequencies Calnex Sentinel	Up to 6 GHz NR and LTE bands, TDD and FDD
Display Calnex Sentinel	Color TFT, 8.4”, 800 x 600 pixels, resistive touchscreen
GNSS time accuracy Calnex Sentinel	±15 ns at 1σ after 24 hours lock
Operating temperature Calnex Sentinel	0°C to 40°C 30°C when charging Rb backup-battery
Power supply Calnex Sentinel	100 to 240 Vrms ±10%, 50 Hz to 60 Hz, <100 W
Dimensions (w x h x d) Calnex Sentinel	320 x 388 x 126 mm (12.6” x 15.3” x 5”)
Weight Calnex Sentinel	Net <7 kg (15 lb); Shipping with transport case <16 kg (35 lb) Approximations based on varying configurations

Calnex Sentry

PTP/NTP constant TE measurement accuracy Calnex Sentry	±75 ns With reference to GNSS
Ethernet connectors Calnex Sentry	RJ45 for 100/1000 Base-T; SFP/SFP+ for 100M/1G/10G Optical; QSFP28 for 100G Optical; SFP28 for 25G Optical Maximum of two channels; optical transceivers not supplied
Packet rate Calnex Sentry	128 packets/sec if only two Main Channels are used decreasing to 1 packet/sec if two Main and 32 Virtual Channels are active
Relative Time Error Calnex Sentry	rTE ≤ 5ns
GNSS time accuracy Calnex Sentry	±15 ns at 1σ after 24 hours lock
Operating temperature Calnex Sentry	0°C to 40°C
Power supplies Calnex Sentry	100 to 240 Vac ± 10%, 50 to 60 Hz ± 3 Hz Instrument power consumption <100 W
Dimensions Calnex Sentry	3U cabinet designed for 19” rack. Depth 17.3” (439 mm)
Weight Calnex Sentry	8.4 kg (max.)

Applications

5G and O-RAN timing conformance testing
ITU-T G.8273.2 boundary clock testing
Transparent clock testing
PRTC and timeTransmitter clock testing
O-DU and O-RU testing
SyncE EEC/eEEC testing
Data center PTP and NTP synchronization
Financial and power network timing
Mobile network synchronization monitoring
Ethernet OAM verification
Network emulation of video and VoIP services
Small cell over-the-air synchronization testing

Options & Accessories

Option	Description
Option 610	Clock module 1 pps/E1/T1 — Sentinel and Sentry: 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) — Sentinel and Sentry (PTP/NTP on Sentry); maximum two Opt. 615 and/or Opt. 616 per instrument
Option 616	100M/1G/10G packet port (PTP/NTP/SyncE) — Sentinel and Sentry (PTP/NTP on Sentry); maximum two Opt. 615 and/or Opt. 616 per instrument
Option 618	100G interface — Sentinel and Sentry: ordered at same time as mainframe or software upgrade enabling second 100G port
Option 622	25G interface — Sentinel and Sentry: ordered at same time as mainframe or software upgrade enabling second 25G port
Option 620	PTP and NTP PDV measurement software — Sentinel and Sentry: one license per instrument
Option 621	32 additional virtual NTP/PTP measurements — Sentry
Option 705	Over-the-Air (OTA) Time Error measurement module — Sentinel: maximum one 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 — Sentinel: transport mode to maintain Rb accuracy in holdover, uninterruptible power supply, and measurements under battery power
Option 812	One year extension of product warranty — Sentinel and Sentry
Option 813	Two years extension of product warranty — Sentinel and Sentry
Option 75	120 Ω balanced RJ45 to 75 Ω unbalanced BNC impedance converter (balun) — Sentinel optional accessory
Option 133	External 1 pps/ToD/Frequency Converter accessory — Sentinel optional accessory
Option 511	Carry-on bag — Sentinel optional accessory
Option 301	Ethernet OAM — Paragon-X
Option 404	NTP — Paragon-X
Option 202	CES — Paragon-X
Option 230	Advanced Time of Day — Paragon-X
Option 205	Wander Measurement on Other Frequencies — Paragon-X: E1/T1/2 MHz wander measurement including TIE/MTIE/TDEV and ITU-T masks
Option 206	Phase and Time Measurement — Paragon-X: 1 pps Time Error measurement relative to 1 pps reference
Option 111	10 G Optical interface — Paragon-X: XFP or SFP+ (LAN-PHY)
Option 132	GPS Antenna, Receiver and Rb Ref. — Paragon-X
Options 708, 709, 710	Network Emulation — Paragon-X