How Volcano Works
The Volcano platform allows you to quickly adapt any device in the field to become a test unit, working with both commercial and custom terminals to execute test campaigns and scripts that have been developed from a central controller. The controller sends the message to a relay server which in turn sends the test instructions to the terminals and collects back the results once the tests are completed.
Components
CALDERA: the central controller & remote node status
Caldera is a controller that commands and orchestrates the Remote Nodes. It creates network traffic using a powerful and easy-to-use scripting engine, and can generate traffic sessions for Ping, Web Browsing, FTP, HTTP, iPerf, DNS, Voice and SMS. Caldera provides real-time status of the Remote Nodes, including a detailed traffic timeline, location information, radio cell information/metrics and more. It renders a running view of all tests being performed by each attached node in real-time.
DOME: server & relay
Dome is the server and relay that moves information and commands back and forth between the Caldera and the Remote Nodes. It securely retains all logs in its database and easily scales to handle large volumes of traffic.
GEYSER: remote nodes
Geyser accepts commands from the Caldera Controller relayed from the Dome Server Relay. Remote Nodes are determined based on device platform.
Android™—The Remote Node can be downloaded and launched within minutes or deployed as a SDK for background operation. It can execute many typical end-user activities such as HTTP traffic tests, web browsing, SMS and voice calls. It also supports network test tools like iPERF and enables off-the-shelf commercial-grade hardware to be remotely managed—delivering critical real-time network information that would otherwise be very costly to collect.
Apple iOS™—The iOS version of the Remote Node supports many of the Android features.
Windows™—The Windows version of the Remote Node can be run as a traditional desktop application or as a service for background operation. It can be used to command and control integrated 4G/5G modules or specialized modem types via AT commands or API connectivity.
IoT—The embedded software version of the Remote Node supports command and control over IoT devices.
SKYLIGHT: load-testing & network benchmarking
Skylight is a dedicated traffic server that can be hosted either in the cloud or on-premise. It is designed to stress-test and benchmark your network performance, relying on HTTP, iPerf3 and FTP. You can accurately measure throughputs (uplink and downlink) while also measuring packet loss and jitter. Skylight is highly scalable and can our cloud hosted instances can support up to 100Gbps on a single instance.
OBSIDIAN: interactive data visualization tool
This is Volcano’s visualization and reporting tool that helps you analyze the test you performed in an intuitive visual format. Obsidian pulls data from Dome and delivers it in a format that makes it easy for you to analyze. You can run queries on KPIs, bin geographically or by device, and manipulate data to produce a variety of results which can be exported in formats that are easy to be blended into your summary reports.
Volcano KPIs sent back in real time
These are just a small subset of the metrics that Volcano can track:
LTE: AsuLevel, CI, CQI, EARFCN, Level, MCC, MNC, PCI, RSSNR, RSRP, RSRQ, TAC, TimingAdvance
5G-NR*: Bands, MCC, MNC, NCI NRARFCN, PCI, TAC, AsuLevel, CSI RSRP, CSI RSRQ, CSI SINR, SS RSRP, SS RSRQ, SS SINR
Data/IP: Throughput (iPERF UDP/TCP, HTTP), Jitter, DNS lookup time, header transfer time, body transfer time, 0th byte transfer seconds, resolved IP addresses
UMTS: CID, LAC, MCC, MNC, PSC, UARFCN, ASU, Serving dBm, Level
CDMA/EVDO: CDMA AsuLevel, CDMA Base Station Id, CDMA ECIO, CDMA Level, EVDO ECIO, EVDO Level, EVDO SNR, Latitude3gpp2, Longitude3gpp2, Network Id, System Id
GSM: ASU, DBM, Level, Timing Advance, ARFCN, BSIC, LAC,CID, MCC, MNC
Site Info: Serving Cell, Neighbor Sites, Site Mapping
SMS: Generated count, Errors, Received count, Delivery time, Confirmation Time, Received Order
Web Browsing: DNS Lookup time, Destination page load time
Location: UE physical location
Battery: Level, Temperature
Wi-Fi: SSID, BSSID, Hidden SSID, Frequency, IP Address, Network ID, Link Speed, RX/TX Link Speed, RSSI, Supplecant State, Passpoint FQDN
Voice Call Statistics: Call origination count, Call terminated count, Call setup time, Total call duration, Call retention
* Requires the device OEM to expose values to Android API
Get Results Cost-Effectively and In Real-Time —
While Improving Accuracy
Compared to legacy processes, Volcano does more with less—faster. No need to deploy fleets of test vans or wait weeks to compile results.
