Calix SMx - Multicast Video Configuration
Overview
This article describes what needs to be configured for IP-TV multicast traffic in SMx. This guide is based off XIT Communication's configuration in SMx. All of the configurations can be done via SMx and the CLI can be used along with SMx to confirm that multicast is working.
Prerequisites
- You will need to acquire an IP address from the client. This has been referenced as an 'igmp proxy address' in a Calix EXA environment. *In SMx this IP address is referred to as a 'restricted IP host'. In this example the IP address is out of the subnet used for the Unicast VLAN. The expectation is that this IP address is outside of the scope of IPs that the STB's would pull for DHCP. It is also expected that this IP is not configured anywhere else on the network.
- Confirm with the client the setup for video. You will see a setup where multicast and unicast traffic are on the same VLAN. The other setup is where two VLANs are used. One for multicast and the other for unicast traffic. This example demonstrates a setup where two VLANs are used.
- Multicast range that the client uses for their video streams.
- MAC addresses for the STBs that are used.
- Stream requirements (How many streams is the STB expected to pull at any given time)
Configuration
In SMx under the 'Profiles' tab you will configure the following items.
- Class Map
- IGMP Profile
- Multicast Profile
- MVR Profile
- Policy Map
- Restricted IP Host
OUI Match List Profile - This would only be configured when the E7 is configured in a way that it is handling L3 traffic. In this example the topology is only L2 from the UNI port back into the network, so it is NOT configured.
Class Map Configuration
Create a new class map. For this example, we are configuring a class map that is going to match OUI's (Organization Unique Identifier) for the STB's that they are using. The OUI identifies the owner of the hardware based of the MAC address of the STBs. Here we are looking for the first three octets of the MAC address.
- Provide a name for the class map.
- Add a Flow -> Index 1
- For the description it would be best practice to put the vendor's name of the STB i.e., Amino
- The match type will be 'Oui"
- The OUI will be the first three octets of the MAC i.e., c0:e7:bf
It should look similar to the following.
IGMP Profile
Select IGMP and create a new IGMP profile. The default one can be used as a lot of the parameters will use the default value unless the client indicates otherwise. It is important that the 'IGMP Version' be set to auto or be configured for the correct version that they are running. In this example we have set it from 'Auto' to 'V2'.
MVR Profile
The MVR profile defines the range of multicast traffic that is expected to be used for video services. You can use the default range of 224.0.0.0-239.255.255.255 which is the entire multicast range or be more specific. *If a multicast IP is used that is not within the range configured it will not work. Also define the multicast VLAN.
Multicast
This profile defines the maximum number of streams that can pulled by a STB and the bandwidth allowed if any. Create a new multicast profile and define the Max allowed streams and select the MVR profile that has been created.
Policy Map
Create a new policy map and provide a name for it. The 'Type' field needs to be set to ethernet and reference the class map that was created earlier. The other fields can be left at the default values. The one additional setting that we need to set is the 'Set Stag PCP' field. We are setting it to a value of 4. This option sets the priority field on the traffic so that QoS can be applied if needed.
Restricted IP Host
This option is configured on the E7 node itself and is not in the global configuration in SMx. You can select a node that has the uplink to the router and find the 'Restricted IP Host' option.
Create a new entry and provide the multicast VLAN and the IP address. *When configuring the IP address you will need to configure the subnet mask in CIDR notation.
Service Template Configuration
This configuration configures a service template so that it can be used to provision the service on the ONT. Create a new service template for video service. This is where the unicast VLAN will be used. Reference the policy map that was created previously and the multicast profile that was previously configured.
This will be all that is needed for video services to work to a STB. You can provision an ONT port which should be a UNIT port. The following example uses vlan 37 for Unicast and references the policy map for Video and the multicast profile.
Additional Resources
Once the ONT port is configured a STB can be plugged in and tested to confirm its working. At a minimum the STB should pull an IP address from the Unicast VLAN. Assuming that it boots up you should see output on the multicast join section when reviewing the status for the ethernet port of the ONT that video is provisioned on. This means that the STB did request a stream and the E7 has 'proxied' the request to the multicast VLAN.
Commands that can be
used in the CLI to view multicast information.
Show igmp multicast
summary
Show igmp multicast
group summary
Show igmp multicast
group ip x.x.x.x
The following will
enable notification on an AXOS CLI session.
These will only persist for the length of the particular CLI session
where they were enabled. A logout or timeout for the session will set the
notification back to default and they will have to be re-enabled.
Session notification
set-category all
Session notification
severity all
Another tool that can be used with AXOS is the VCA tool built into the software. It is a 'Video Channel Analyzer'. It simulates an IGMP join request for a stream. You have to know what a multicast stream and through the CLI on the E7 node you can request a stream and confirm operation via the CLI. Documentation for this tool can be found in the Calix portal or TAC TV.
Check out this TAC TV video for a demo of the VCA utility
Problem Scenario
With the above configuration in place the video service for XIT would still not work. The STB would pull a DHCP address and complete the boot up sequence, but they were not getting any audio or video. Everything on the E7 node and in SMx indicated that video should be working.
During the initial deployment for XIT the test ONT that was used was not upgraded to the latest ONT software and there was an alarm that indicated a problem with the optic that was plugged into the PON port. The alarm was for an 'OIM mismatch'. A re-seat of the optic did not clear this issue and a reboot of the E7 node was performed. After the reboot the alarm cleared for the optic issue. Calix believes that the alarm became present due to an order of operations when the optic was installed. The following outlines 'best practices' for optic installation on a PON port.
- Shutdown the PON port
- Configure the transport type i.e. gpon
- Re-enable the PON port
We also upgraded the ONT to the latest version software release. Once this was done the video and audio was working for the client.
Reference Calix Case # 03089756