System Check for TestNav

Transcription

1 Copyright 2014, Pearson Education, Inc. Published August 22, 2014

2 1.0 Document Revisions System Check Overview Who Should Use This Guide Getting Help TestNav Configuration Running the Computer Configuration Network User Capacity Assessing Network User Capacity Adding Proctor Caching Computers Editing a Proctor Caching Computer Deleting a Proctor Caching Computer Testing Volume Calculator Scenarios Generating a Testing Volume Calculator Testing Parameters

3 1.0 Document Revisions Date Change August 22, 2014 Removed customer-specific screen capture. Updated the Network Environment Parameters section. April 9, 2013 Combined TestNav 6 System Check and TestNav 7 System Check into a single document. TestNav is a trademark of Pearson Education, Inc. or its affiliate(s). All rights reserved. 3

4 2.0 System Check Overview System Check for TestNav is designed to help district and local technology personnel to better assess the overall readiness for online testing. High-stakes assessments that are delivered online can present networks with an uncommon use case as students begin testing at the same time. In districts with multiple campuses, schools, and buildings, hundreds or thousands of devices need to access data streams within minutes of each other. System Check for TestNav addresses two primary components of local technology readiness: client-side readiness and network infrastructure readiness. Client-side readiness is addressed in the TestNav tab, which includes tools to verify that all components meet the requirements for running TestNav. Network readiness is addressed in the Network User Capacity tab and Testing Volume Calculator tab, which include tools to help you prepare for the volume of data traffic during testing. This can help you prevent data congestion within your network infrastructure. For most effective use, district and school staff should employ both of these tabs and make sure that any significant discrepancies between current throughput and expected throughput speeds can be accounted for by known or planned differences in network activity on the date of testing. System Check for TestNav works on Windows, Macintosh, and Linux platforms. 2.1 Who Should Use This Guide This document is designed to provide a combination of real world testing configurations and can also be used for capacity planning. The audience is primarily network or IT personnel who are responsible for setting up and configuring a school s test delivery environment prior to online testing. 2.2 Getting Help For assistance, contact the Pearson Support Center. 4

5 3.0 TestNav Configuration The TestNav tab checks to make sure the computer meets the minimum software requirements to deliver tests online. 3.1 Running the Computer Configuration Select the TestNav tab. Click Start to begin the check. If the computer passes the check, a green check mark displays next to All Checks Passed. If the computer fails the check, a red X displays next to the area that failed. To print the results in PDF, click Print Friendly. Scroll down and follow the steps provided to verify that TestNav is working correctly on this machine. 5

6 4.0 Network User Capacity Network User Capacity does a speed check in real-time. If proctor caching is used, it checks connectivity to the proctor-caching computer. You can add multiple proctor caching computers or delete a proctor-caching computer that is not being used. The Network User Capacity tab provides a data throughput check that gives an assessment of the data transfer speeds that would occur as well as an estimated number of concurrent testers that could be supported at the time the throughput check is performed. However, this result may not accurately represent the actual transfer speeds during student testing, especially if network conditions will be significantly different. When you add multiple proctor caching computers through the procedure in the Adding Proctor Caching Computers section, the results from multiple proctor caching computers are not combined. The tool assumes that all of the proctor caching machines will use the same Internet connection. For example, if you have three proctor caching machines, the fastest of the three results is used. This information is then used on the Testing Volume Calculator tab. The general purpose of this tab is to measure how many testing computers your proctor-caching machine can handle. The proctor-caching computer must be installed and running before you can check the connection speed. 4.1 Assessing Network User Capacity Go to the Network User Capacity tab. Click Start and review the results for connectivity issues. The Student Testing Capacity is calculated using the download/upload speeds and the average test size for the test administration displayed in the dropdown menu. Note that the Test Administration drop-down appears after you click Start and the download/upload speeds have been assessed. Changing the test administration changes the student testing capacity, but the download and upload speed stay the same. Click Start when you add or delete proctor-caching machines in order to recalculate the results. Click Print Friendly at any time after the test has completed to print the results. You can print a report of any page when the Print Friendly button shows Adding Proctor Caching Computers You can add a proctor-caching computer to provide the students better performance on testing day. Go to the Network User Capacity tab. 6

7 Click Add Caching Computer. Enter the Display Name, Host, and Port fields. Click Save. The display name appears as the computer name on the Network User Capacity screen, the host is generally the IP address of the proctor-caching machine, and the port is the port on which the caching computer is running. Click Start. Select a test administration to collect the results for the new computer. If the connection is good, a green check mark displays next to Completed. If the connection fails, a red X displays next to Connection Error. An information icon ( ) displays next to the problem result. Click the icon for more information. The Pearson Support Center can help you resolve the issue when you give them this information. Click Start after you make changes in order to recalculate the results Editing a Proctor Caching Computer Click the computer you want to change. Edit the host name or port, and then click Save Deleting a Proctor Caching Computer Select the check box next to the computer you want to delete. Click Delete Caching Computer, and then click Continue. 7

8 5.0 Testing Volume Calculator The Testing Volume Calculator allows you run planned scenarios by adjusting network speed, network capacity, and the number of students testing concurrently to find the optimal testing performance. If you haven t selected a proctor-caching computer on the Network User Capacity screen, then network capacity is based on the connection speed from the workstation to the Pearson site. If you have selected more than one proctor-caching computer on the Network User Capacity screen, the Testing Volume Calculator uses the one with the fastest download speed. The Testing Volume Calculator tab provides a tool for calculating the needed bandwidth required for the planned student testing volumes for the scheduled date of testing. Since the calculation is based on projected utilization, this is a theoretical calculation. The Testing Volume Calculator uses a combination of calculated results from the Network User Capacity tab and planned results from the Testing Volume Calculator tab to derive the performance interpretation for online testing. Note that you may see incomplete results if you have not generated calculated results via the network user capacity estimate. 5.1 Scenarios Various uses for the Testing Volume Calculator include estimates related to these real-life examples: Scenario 1: School is not using proctor caching. Calculation: Adjust Available link speed to reflect the speed of the lowest network segment between the student and the school ISP. Adjust the Average network utilization control to reflect the NON-testing network utilization on that same segment. Scenario 2: School is using proctor caching at the lab, school or district level. Calculation: Adjust Available link speed between workstation and Proctor Caching workstation to reflect the speed of the lowest network segment between the student and the proctor caching computer. Adjust Average network utilization to reflect the NON-testing network utilization on that same segment. Scenario 3: School will be performing wireless testing and would like to determine the theoretical maximum number of students that can be tested on a wireless network. Calculation: Adjust Available link speed between workstation and Proctor Caching workstation to reflect the speed of the wireless access point to be used during online testing. Adjust Average network utilization to reflect the NONtesting wireless utilization on that same wireless access point. 8

9 5.2 Generating a Testing Volume Calculator Select a test administration from the drop-down menu. Enter the number of students testing concurrently. Adjust the green slider bar to identify a link speed. As the link speed slider is adjusted, note the changes under blue headings on the screen, as the data in each adjusts accordingly to provide an assessment of testing conditions based on the selections. Adjust the second green slider to identify an average network utilization rate. As the average network utilization slider is adjusted, data is adjusted under the headings on the screen. The network speeds go from 0.1 Mb/s to 1000 Mb/s. Be aware of the output range on the left because it changes as you adjust the sliders. Review the information under the Interpretation heading as you made each change. 9

10 5.3 Testing Parameters This section describes the testing parameters and the interpretation results that are displayed on the Testing Volume Calculator tab. Testing Parameters section You can adjust fields and sliders to simulate different scenarios for the day the students take the online test. The goal is to find the optimum conditions for online testing. Test Administration Number of students testing concurrently Select a test administration from the drop-down to check performance based on an average test size for that test administration. Increase or decrease the number of students testing concurrently to check performance using more or fewer students. The default is the number of students testing concurrently for the listed test administration. Network Environment Parameters section Are you using Proctor Caching? Select whether or not you are using Proctor Caching. Available link speed between work stations and Proctor Caching work stations Average network utilization for the network between work stations and Proctor Caching work stations Common Network Speeds section This indicates the available link speed to the maximum network speed your location uses. This indicates the average network utilization to the percent of bandwidth used for non-testing purposes. Displays the available link speed between workstations and proctor caching computers if they know what network line their school uses. Average available network throughput for buffering The green bar represents the network speed. The chart remains white as long as the computer can support the network speed, and will change to yellow, then red as the network speed increases to an unsustainable network link speed. 10

11 Outputs section Displays the available link speed between workstations and proctor caching computers if they know what network line their school uses. The blue bar indicates the data transfer rate during buffering. The more students that are testing concurrently, the higher this bar goes. When the computer can no longer support the number of students testing concurrently, the bar raises and the color of the chart turns yellow, then red. Interpretation section Displays the planned and calculated results based upon the settings you specify. This section also displays how your settings impact testing performance. The goal is to find the right combination of link speed and students testing that results in a normal performance during testing. Icons One of the following icons will display depending on your status: Indicates students should experience normal performance during testing. Indicates students may experience slow or poor performance during testing as determined by the planned conditions, But the calculated network speed indicates that the students should experience normal performance. This icon also shows if an admin has not been selected or if the user has not completed the network user capacity test. Indicates students may experience slow or poor performance during testing unless the user resets some parameters. 11

12 Maximum Concurrent TestNav Users The first number represents the maximum number of students testing concurrently and the second number is the download network speed. Calculated results - based on data obtained in the Network User Capacity screen. They reflect the general size of the test administration selected. Planned results - are based on your selections in this Testing Volume Calculator screen. Set the number of students testing concurrently to the number you anticipate will be testing on testing day. Set the available link speed to the maximum network speed your location uses. Set the average network utilization to the percent of bandwidth used for non-testing purposes. 12