Xgig Analyzer 8.0.0 Release Notes
Build: 8.0.0.173829   Date: August 4, 2016

Overview

This Readme details information regarding the latest features provided in this release with known issues and other helpful information. Please review the Feature Enhancements and Defect Fixes as well as the Known Issues sections for more details.

For full instructions on using Xgig Analyzer, please refer to the Xgig Analyzer User's Guide and other documents included on the product's released USB thumbdrive.


Feature Enhancements and Defect Fixes

Feature Enhancements:

    Version 8.0.0 includes the followings:

  1. Introducing 100G Ethernet and 128G Fibre Channel support on the Xgig1000 25G/32G/100G/128G chassis:
  2. NOTE: Please see the Constraints section for any limitations.
    1. 8-stage Advanced Triggering.
    2. 128GB of capture memory per port for protocols and data rates which use the QSFP ports.
    3. Quad Analog Pass Through adapter unit allows analog pass through traffic for 100G Etherenet and 128G Fibre Channel.

  3. Support of PCIe's interposer for SFF 8644 interface.
  4. Improved Trace View GUI with new data event grid.
  5. Note:
    1. TC API's ClientTransport.dll file is renamed to Transport.dll .
    2. PerfMon SW application is no longer available. TraceControl SW application already has most of its functions.

Decode and other Improvements

  1. For a complete list of decode improvements, please read the "CurrentProtocolVersions.txt" file. This file is located in the following folder: Xgig Analyzer install location \Viavi\XgigAnalyzer\CurrentProtocols\. Highlighted for this release include:

    • 25G Auto-Negotiation Page:
      Schedule_3_25G-50G Specification_r1-6.pdf

  2. Minor improvements were done for various areas and they are documented in the User's Guide.

Defect Fixes:

This release include some minor fixes in various areas. The following issues have also been corrected

  1. Error starting a capture using Trace Control on PC using Chinese language time format.

  2. Issue with starting a capture of PCIe traffic using app kit 10.5.0.172358.

  3. Capture triggered on CLQREQ signal when the TTL-In check box is unchecked.

  4. Convert the decode hint field to 64-bits to allow for the extra SW-ILS command code bytes for VA_Port ILS requests.

  5. For Fibre Channel - Trigger on any SCSI Status other than "00" (good).

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System Requirements

Listed below are the basics and recommended system configurations for Xgig Analyzer to achieve optimal performance.

Basic Requirements:

OS (32-bit and 64-bit) Windows 7 Professional and Enterprise with Service Pack 1
Windows 8.1 Professional or Enterprise
Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise
* Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard or Enterprise with Service Pack 1
* Windows Server 2012 R2 Update Standard or Essentials
Network Interface Card Suitable for communication with remote chassis
Ethernet 100 Mbps on the host network (1000 Mbps recommended)
Xgig Chassis supports 10, 100, and 1000 Mbps data rates.
Subnet All chassis within a sync group must be in the same subnet
and use the same TCP port number.
Browser Internet Explorer v6.0+
Firefox v1.5+
Media USB 2.0 port
Other 1024x768 SVGA
Serial data port (not mandatory)
Standard type A to type B USB cable for Xgig applications using USB functions
USB-RS232 adapter for using the floating license serial dongle with Xgig1000 and Xgig5000 chassis
Pre-requisite Software for
Xgig Analyzer client
(included on product's released USB thumbdrive)
Microsoft Windows Installer 3.1
Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5
Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable 2012
* Only 64-bit versions

The following is the recommendation of client PC for best performance

CPU Core i5 class CPU
Memory At least 8GB RAM with a 64-bit version of Windows.
If the Xgig blades have the (optional) larger memory modules installed, additional RAM helps optimize trace processing.
When Traffic Summary View and Exchange View processing are employed in standard work flow, we recommend at least 16GB of RAM installed.
Hard Drive At least 256GB SATA3 SSD
Future trace files to be saved will require more disk space depending on the size of the captures.
Monitor 1600x1200 SVGA
Multi-Monitor is highly recommended

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Previous Releases

Click here to view the history of previous releases.

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Constraints

Following are setup, configuration, and software constraints for Xgig 8.0.0
  • This release of the Xgig1000 100Gbps Ethernet and 128Gbps Fibre Channel chassis has a few limitations :
    • Separate license is required for each of the protocols and data rates mentioned above.
    • The above mentioned protocols and data rates are only supported via the QSFP ports . These ports do not support lower data rates.
    • Quad Analog Pass Through (QAPT) unit is required if Digital Retime of the signal is not desired.
    • Filtering and triggering of Unframed data is not fully functional for 100Gbps Ethernet yet.

  • The followings apply to all ports, i.e. SFP and QSFP for 25G/32G/100G/128G, on this chassis
    • The 25GE ports also support 10GE data rate and require separate license for it.
    • TraceView TrafficSummaryView (TSV) is not available.
    • Forward Error Correction (FEC) counters are not yet supported.
    • Starting time sync with other chassis has not yet been calibrated - and is expected to change.
    • The ports as are forced to the Digital-Retime (DR) setting without the Analog Pass-Through (APT) module.
    • The ports are forced to the Analog Pass-Through setting while the APT module is installed.

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Known Issues


The following issues will be addressed in the near future:
  1. There maybe problem using the chassis in the slave mode. The workaround is to use the chassis as the master chassis in a sync group.
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Compatibility & Interoperability

Software Compatibility

The following is a list of released clients and their compatible application kits. The Operating System versions are also shown for reference.

NOTE: This is not an exhaustive list and we recommend that you use the last listed pair of versions of the client and the server software.

Client Version
Application Kit
OS Version
Notes
Older Xgig-A Clients Previous released App Kits Legacy Xgig OS Systems Refer to the Previous Releases document.
Xgig-A 5.0.0.98660 App Kit 8.2.0.98582 System 5.0.0 EA release - SAS/SATA Advanced Triggering and FC Traffic Summary View.
Xgig-A 5.0.0.102410 App Kit 8.3.0.102430 System 5.0.0 EA Release - SATA Auto speed-negotiation for 6G/3G and 3G/1.5G data rates.
Xgig-A 5.0.0.108610 App Kit 8.4.0.1009039 System 5.0.2 RTM Release - Exchange View for SAS/SATA.
Xgig-A 5.1.0.110728 App Kit 8.5.0.110887 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.7 Introducing new Xgig5000 chassis and 8-port 10G Ethernet IO blade. Early Adopter release
Xgig-A 5.1.0.111275 App Kit 8.5.1.111289 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.7 Introducing 2-port 16G rev A SERDES Fibre Channel IO blade. Early Adopter release
Xgig-A 5.1.0.113377 App Kit 8.6.0.113417 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.9 RTM release for Analyzer 5.1.0 and Patch release for Maestro 6.1.1
Xgig-A 5.1.0.113417 App Kit 8.6.1.113417 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.9 Patch release for Analyzer and Maestro, partial blade licensing
Xgig-A 5.1.2.116691 App Kit 8.7.0.116899 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.9 Introducing 16G FC 4-port rev B SERDES for Analyzer and Maestro's Jammer and LoadTester applications.
Xgig-A 5.1.3.118147 App Kit 8.8.1.118328 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.9 Patch release for Analyzer and Maestro
Xgig-A 5.1.4.119438 App Kit 8.8.2.119804 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.9 Patch release for Analyzer and Maestro
Xgig-A 5.2.0.117141 App Kit 8.8.0.117172 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.9 EA1 release for 12G Analyzer
Xgig-A 5.2.2.120877 App Kit 8.8.3.120877 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.9 EA3 release for 12G Analyzer
Xgig-A 5.3.0.123070 App Kit 8.9.0.122978 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.9 Major feature release for Analyzer
Xgig-A 5.3.1.124168 App Kit 8.10.0.124098 System 5.0.2 / System 5000.0.9 Patch release for Analyzer T1/T2 feature.
Xgig-A 5.4.0.126474 App Kit 8.10.0.126474 System 5.0.2 / System 1000.0.5 / System 5000.0.9 Introducing new Xgig1000 chassis with 12G SAS protocol board as Early Adopter release.
Xgig-A 6.0.0.126905 App Kit 9.0.0.126905 System 5.0.2 / System 1000.0.7 / System 5000.0.9 Introducing new Xgig1000 chassis with 12G SAS protocol board and new 40G Ethernet as Early Adopter release
Features release including 12G SAS and 16G FC enhancements.
Xgig-A 6.1.0.130664 App Kit 9.1.0.130935 System 5.0.2 / System 1000.0.7 / System 5000.0.9 Features release - 12G SAS Auto-Speed Negotiation
16G FC Training Events support and bug fixes.
Xgig-A 6.2.0.135803 App Kit 9.2.0.135803 System 5.1.2 / System 1000.0.19 / System 5000.0.25 Features release -
Chassis admin via LCD display and control
Save to chassis USB attached disk
Timed and Floating licensing via the external dongles
10G Ethernet FEC support - Xgig blade only,
12G SAS 64-bit Sliding Pattern Search,
16G FC Training Events compression, 66-bit block non-error data display, Advanced Triggering, Traffic Summary View,
and bug fixes.
Xgig-A 6.2.0.135803 App Kit 9.3.0.136241 System 5.1.2 / System 1000.0.19 / System 5000.0.25 This is Xgig-A version 6.3.0 release which was released with 16G FC Generator release - old client but new app kit SW.
Xgig-A 6.3.1.137327 App Kit 9.3.1.137327 System 5.1.4 / System 1000.0.21 / System 5000.0.27 Patch release for Analyzer and Maestro.
Xgig-A 6.3.2.138194 App Kit 9.3.2.138150 System 5.1.4 / System 1000.0.21 / System 5000.0.27 Patch release for Analyzer - CLE config #0 available for 12G blade.
Xgig-A 6.5.0.139847 App Kit 9.5.0.139872 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 Introducing 10G Ethernet and 16G FC on Xgig1000 platform.
Xgig-A 6.5.0.139847 App Kit 9.5.1.140112 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 Add 4-port version of 10G Ethernet and 16G FC on Xgig1000 platform.
Xgig-A 6.5.2.140131 App Kit 9.5.2.140207 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 Patch release for API support of FRunner script conversion.
Xgig-A 6.5.3.141043 App Kit 9.5.3.141043 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 EE2 release for various 16G FC bug fixes.
Xgig-A 6.5.3.141346 App Kit 9.5.3.141346 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 EE3 release for various 12G SAS bug fixes.
Xgig-A 6.5.3.141958 App Kit 9.5.3.141994 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 EE5 release for auto-tuning.
Xgig-A 6.5.3.143225 App Kit 9.5.3.143263 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 Official patch release for 12G SAS auto-tuning and power management, and 16G FC dual-personality of the 4-port FPGA.
Xgig-A 6.6.0.145982 App Kit 9.6.0.145982 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 Xgig1000 platform supports: 40G with QSFP+, 10GE/16G FC dual-personality of the 4-port FPGA, 10GE channels from QSFP ports,
and port-pair licensing, 12G SAS Optical support and Tx Training display.
Xgig-A 6.6.1.146637 App Kit 9.6.1.146637 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 Patch release to fix issues with Auto-Tuning and Tx Training Summary events using the 12G SAS protocol board.
Xgig-A 6.7.0.147997 App Kit 9.7.0.148138 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 Features release which includes 10GE AJ and TC API Python.
Xgig-A 6.7.1.150162 App Kit 9.7.1.150235 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.23 / System 5000.0.29 New CLE configurations for X1K 12G SAS: “J,J,J,J”, “A-J-J-A”, “G-A, G-A” and “J-A,J-A”.
Xgig-A 6.8.0.150381 App Kit 9.8.0.150417 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.29 / System 5000.0.29 New revision of the motherboard of the Xgig 1000 chassis.
Xgig-A 6.8.1.153211 App Kit 9.8.1.153224 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.31 / System 5000.0.29 Patch release with bug fixes.
Xgig-A 7.0.0.152368 App Kit 10.0.0.152368 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.29 / System 5000.0.29 Introducing PCIe 3.0 X8 on Xgig1000 platform with NVMe support.
Xgig-A 7.0.1.153504 App Kit 10.0.1.153504 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.31 / System 5000.0.29 Patch release with enhancements for PCIe/NVMe support.
Xgig-A 7.0.2.154180 App Kit 10.0.2.154180 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.31 / System 5000.0.29 Patch release with enhancements for PCIe/NVMe support.
Xgig-A 7.0.3.155448 App Kit 10.0.3.155273 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.31 / System 5000.0.29 Patch release for bug fixes and enhancements for PCIe/NVMe support.
Xgig-A 7.0.4.156991 App Kit 10.0.4.156991 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.31 / System 5000.0.29 Patch release with bug fixes and enhancements for ASPM and PCIe x4 licensing option.
Xgig-A 7.0.5.158012 App Kit 10.0.5.158012 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.31 / System 5000.0.29 Patch release with bug fixes for Expert and memory diagnostic tool.
Xgig-A 7.1.0.159520 App Kit 10.1.0.159477 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.31 / System 5000.0.29 12G SAS HW supports for 6G SATA & Power Management,
8GB/port buffer size for 10G/16G, 12G, and 16GB/port buffer size for 40G.
Many improvement related to PCIe such as
Decodes for NVMe, AHCI, and SOP. Support LTSSM, ASPM,
and new inteproser for SFF-8639 connector type.
Xgig-A 7.1.1.162078 App Kit 10.1.1.161785 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.43 / System 5000.0.41 USB Direct Connect
Save buffer to a sub-directory.
Bug fixes.
Xgig-A 7.2.0.162787 App Kit 10.3.0.162969 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.0.43 / System 5000.0.41 Support PCIe Jammer (Maestro) release.
Xgig-A 7.3.0.168685 App Kit 10.4.0.168685 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.1.3 / System 5000.0.41 PCIe's TS1/TS2 Compression, CLKREQ#/PERST# capture, L1 substates.
Expert skips optional FC/Ethernet headers.
Decode Improvements. Bug fixes.
Xgig-A 7.3.1.169226 App Kit 10.4.1.169175 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.1.3 / System 5000.0.41 Firmware upgrade for 25GE and 32G FC protocol board.
Xgig-A 7.3.2.170651 App Kit 10.4.2.170651 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.1.3 / System 5000.0.41 Introducing M.2 interposer and improved PCIe tuning wizard.
Xgig-A 7.3.3.171411 App Kit 10.4.3.171411 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.1.3 / System 5000.0.41 Bug fixes.
Xgig-A 7.5.0.172366 App Kit 10.5.0.172358 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.1.3 / System 5000.0.41 Introducing 32G FC and 25G Ethernet support
on the Xgig1000 platform.
Xgig-A 8.0.0.173829 App Kit 11.0.0.173838 System 5.1.6 / System 1000.1.3 / System 5000.0.41 Introducing 100GE and 128G FC support on the
same Xgig1000 platform with the 25GE and 32G FC. The two QSFP ports are used for this data rates and they are capable of 128GB capture per port.
Support of PCIe's SFF8644.


Hardware Compatibility

  • New hardware blades require matching server and client version.

  • Supports all existing Xgig Multi-Function blades.

  • Supports all existing wide blades (8-port) and narrow blades (4-port and 2-port) Xgig blades.

  • All Xgig Multi-Funcion blades are supported in Xgig5000 chassis using the adapter trays.

Platforms Tested

Various makes and models of laptops and desktop PCs with the following Operating Systems were used to test the software. The client software can also be installed and used on 64-bit machines and Windows OS. However, it is operated as 32-bit software. All pre-requisites must be installed prior to installing the software.

  • Windows 7 - Professional and Enterprise with SP1 editions

  • Windows 8 - Professional and Enterprise editions

  • Windows 10 - Pro and Enterprise editions

  • Windows Server 2008 R2 with SP1 - Standard and Enterprise editions

  • Windows Server 2012 R2 Update - Standard and Essentials editions

Bus Doctor and I-Tech:

In addition to Xgig file formats and other well known Ethernet capture file formats, the Xgig Analyzer supports SAS/SATA, Fibre Channel, and Ethernet with Bus Doctor and I-Tech trace file formats. However, they cannot work directly with Bus Doctor or I-Tech hardware. They only work with saved trace files.
Xgig Expert and Xgig TraceView now support SAS v1.1 - Serial Attached SCSI captures taken from the Bus Doctor RX-108, RX-252 and I-Tech PowerFrame analyzer platforms. Xgig Expert provides full SAS Link Layer (SL), Serial SCSI Protocol (SSP), Serial ATA (Native and STP) experts and metrics for both single transmit/receive links as well as wide links of up to the number of physical capture lanes available on the analyzer (8 lanes/4 links on the RX-252 and 32 lanes/16 links on the PowerFrame).
It is recommended to use JDSU Bus Doctor Plus v3.2 or higher versions of the software for trace capture from the Bus Doctor Platform.
It is recommended to use I-Tech Satellite Software v2.10.1 for trace capture from either the PowerFrame or the legacy platforms.
To convert a trace, simply open the trace with either Xgig Expert or Xgig TraceView:

  1. Select File/Open from the Xgig application.

  2. Change the Files Of Type selector to "Bus Doctor (*.trace)". For I-Tech traces, select "I-Tech (*.SAT)".

  3. Navigate to the directory where the trace is stored. NOTE: This will vary somewhat for Bus Doctor and Bus Doctor Plus. Bus Doctor files are typically a single .trace file with a name of mytrace.trace. Bus Doctor Plus files are comprised of several files stored within a directory named mytrace.trc\, which contains the file _data.trace along with some other supporting files.

  4. Double-click on the saved file which you want to convert.

  5. If the trace has been previously converted, you will be prompted to overwrite the trace.

  6. Once the trace file has been converted, the files can be reopened by simply opening the .TGP file in the same directory that the original trace file was converted from. In the example above, this would be C:\traces\mytrace.trc\mytrace.tgp. This file can be opened with Xgig Expert via the File/Open menu or in Xgig TraceView by simply double-clicking on the TGP file in explorer or using File/Open.

  7. The trace will then be converted to Xgig trace format and automatically opened once the conversion is completed.

    NOTE: Xgig TraceView and Xgig Expert will not work directly with the Bus Doctor or I-Tech hardware platforms. Refer to the Xgig Analyzer User's Guide for more details.

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Upgrading the chassis

Use one of the following methods to upgrade the Xgig chassis:

NOTE: After finishing the app kit upgrading process, the Xgig5000 and Xgig1000 might go through the firmware upgrading for the blades installed and the chassis. Please pay attention to the following details.

  • Status LED lights of the blades are blinking GREEN or alternating RED and PURPLE - Firmware upgrading or recovering is in progress. Please do not disturb! The Status page of the chassis web interface will display the orange banner indicating that firmware upgrading is in progress as well.
  • Status LED lights of the blades are blinking RED - Firmware upgrading is complete and it requires that the chassis to be power cycled. Please turn the chassis OFF and wait for 10 seconds before applying power to the chassis to turn it ON. Un-predictable behavior might result if the chassis is not properly power cycled.
  • Downgrading an Xgig5000 or Xgig1000 chassis from app kit version 9.1.0 to any earlier versions requires the chassis to be power cycled for the downgrade process to complete. However, the Status LED lights of the blades will not blink RED to indicate this requirement. Monitor the Status LED lights of the blades as the firmware downgrade process proceeds. The LEDs will blink GREEN for several minutes (approximately 10 minutes per blade). Once all the Blade Status LEDs turn steady BLUE and all ports LEDs are off in the case of Xgig1000 chassis, power cycle the chassis before using it. When the chassis boots, the Blade Status LEDs will return to steady BLUE, this time indicating that the chassis is ready for use.

Upgrading the chassis from client software applications:

  1. Install the Xgig Analyzer 8.0.0 client software on your PC by following the instructions in the Xgig Analyzer Installation Guide.

  2. Launch the Xgig TraceControl or Xgig Performance Monitor application.

  3. Click the "Create Domain" button in Xgig TraceControl or the "Select Sync Group" button in Xgig Performance Monitor.

  4. In the "Select Ports for …" window, select the Sync Group containing the chassis you need to upgrade.

    1. If the sync group has a compatible Appkit software, all chassis in the sync group will appear. Right-click on the space under the "Viavi Xgig" label of one of the chassis and select "Upgrade Sync Group with latest System/Appkit..." option from the context menu to start the chassis software upgrade. Either the System or Appkit or both will be upgraded depending on the status of each chassis in the sync group.

    2. If the sync group has old and incompatible Appkit software, an "Upgrade" button is available under the message informing of its incompatibility with the installed client software. Press the "Upgrade" button to start the chassis software upgrade. Alternately, you can click on the hyperlink of the master chassis of the sync group (i.e. http://Chassis_IP_Address) and use the Xgig Web Utility upgrade method shown below to upgrade the sync group.

  5. If the chassis selected for upgrade is part of a Sync Group that includes multiple chassis, all chassis in the Sync Group will be upgraded.

  6. You will receive a message confirming the upgrade versions. Press "Yes" to confirm.

  7. The "Upgrade Chassis" window appears showing the upgrade status of each chassis in the sync group.

  8. If both the System and Appkit software are to be upgraded, the Appkit software will be upgraded first then the chassis is rebooted. After two minutes delay, the System software will be upgraded. It would take a little longer for a chassis to reboot after a System software upgrade.

  9. An "Upgrade Complete" dialog appears to notify the completion of the upgrade process.

    1. Press "OK" to close the "Upgrade Complete" dialog.

    2. Press "Close" to close the "Upgrade Chassis" window.

    3. Press "Cancel" to close the "Select Ports …" window.

  10. Once the sync group is rebooted, it is ready to be used.

NOTE:

  • The upgrade process above will launch its own FTP server to upgrade the chassis. Make sure your PC is not running any FTP server software. You will receive a warning message when this happens. Just close your running FTP server then proceed with upgrading the chassis.
  • If the upgrade of the chassis from the client application fails for any reason, use the Web Utility upgrading procedure shown below to upgrade the chassis.

Upgrading via Xgig Web Utility (requires an FTP server):

  1. Install the Xgig Analyzer 8.0.0 client software on your PC by following the instructions in the Xgig Analyzer Installation Guide.

  2. Copy the contents of the .../Xgig Analyzer/Chassis folder in the Xgig Analyzer installation directory on your PC to the FTP server root or default login folder.

  3. Proceed to the section "Upgrading the Xgig System Image and Application Image Software" in the "XgigFamilyHardware.pdf" to perform an upgrade using the Xgig Web Utility.

  4. Once the sync group is rebooted, it is ready to be used.

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Support

Online Support

A trial version of software release is available on the Viavi’s web site as a free download. This software provides a convenient way to share traces with multiple users that are not required to have the Xgig hardware.

Click here to download the trial software version: www.viavisolutions.com/XgigAnalyzerTrialSoftware

Technical Support

If you require technical assistance
Voice : +1 844 GO VIAVI (1-844-468-4284)
E-Mail: techsupport-snt@viavisolutions.com

For the latest TAC information, go to www.viavisolutions.com/TechnicalAssistanceInfo.