Engineering Journal 3.2.3:  Traffic Measurement 

Depending on the traffic type, you should use one of the following four techniques to analyze and measure traffic:

  • Network management software-For some types of traffic, you can use network management software to analyze traffic statistics.
  • Existing measurements-You can place network analysis equipment on servers, and analyze packet flows from router statistics for existing network segments.
  • The estimation process-Where existing measurements cannot be attained (for example, the application does not yet exist), you can use an estimation process. You should work with the application developers and the network administrator to estimate transaction rates, lengths, and flows to derive traffic statistics.
  • Comparative sources-You can find a known source that is likely to have similar characteristics and adjust the traffic statistics accordingly.