Tektronix Consul Primary User
Consul
xx
ZZZ
System Monitor
User Manual
*P077114303*
077-1143-03
Consul System Monitor
User Manual
Supports software version 10.1.
Consul User Manual
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CONSUL
User Manual
© 2004-2017 Tektronix, Inc.
All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A.
Tektronix, Inc.
14150 SW Karl Braun Drive
P.O. Box 500
Beaverton, OR 97077
USA
Federal copyright law protects this publication. No part of this publication may be copied or distributed,
transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any human or computer language in any form
or by any means (electronic, mechanical, magnetic, manual, or otherwise); or disclosed to third parties without the
express written permission of Tektronix, Inc.
Tektronix makes no representation or warranties with respect to the contents hereof and specifically disclaim any
warranties, merchantability, or fitness for any particular purpose. Furthermore, Tektronix reserves the right to revise
this publication and to make changes from time to time in the contents hereof without obligation of Tektronix to
notify any person of such revisions or changes.
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Trademarks
Tektronix, the Tektronix logo, and Consul are trademarks of Tektronix, Inc.
Contacting Tektronix
Tektronix, Inc.
14150 SW Karl Braun Drive
P.O. Box 500
Beaverton, OR 97077
USA
For technical support:
Sentry Technical support is available on Business Days from 6:00 AM to 5:00 PM Pacific Time and 9:00
AM to 5:00 PM Indian Standard Time on the following numbers:
US/Canada toll-free 1-844-219-5329
India toll-free 1800-3000 4835
Russia toll-free 810800-22554411
United Kingdom 44 1344 39 2541
Europe* toll-free 00800-22554411
*Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland, UK
Worldwide, please email videosupport@tektronix.com
About This Document
Audience
This user manual is intended for service providers who use Tektronix Consul for monitoring, historical
reporting, and alerting from MPEG-2, H.264 AVC, MPEG-4 part 10, and VC-1 transport stre ams. We
assume that you understand the concepts and tools used in a head-end environm ent. We assume that you
are familiar with basic computer operations such as click, drag and drop, and that you are also familiar
with the operation of an internet browser.
Purpose
The Tektronix Consul User Manual introduces you to the Consul Digital Content Monitor, and describes
in detail Consul’ features.
This user manual shows you how to configure, control, and use Tektronix Consul. This user manual also
describes the Consul hardware installation.
Screen Shot Note
While all screen shot s in this document are accurate and truthful representations of the product, some may
have been edited to remove information that could pose a security risk.
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Table of Contents
Sentry Family Product Matrix ............................................................................................................... 8
Preface ............................................................................................................................................... 10
Who Should Use This Manual ................................................................................................................... 10
What is Tektronix Consul? ....................................................................................................................... 10
Getting Started .................................................................................................................................. 12
Requirements .................................................................................................................. ........................ 12
Setting up the System .............................................................................................................................. 12
Making the Connection ........................................................................................................................ 13
Front Panel Functions (2016 to present models only) ............................................................................ 14
IP address on the front panel .............................................................................................................. 14
Navigation buttons ............................................................................................................................... 15
USB ports ............................................................................................................................................ 15
Status LEDs ......................................................................................................................................... 15
Power-off procedure ............................................................................................................................ 16
Front Panel Functions (2009 to 2016 models only) ................................................................................ 17
IP address on the front panel .............................................................................................................. 17
Manual power down from front panel ............................................................................................... 17
LED Brightness ..................................................................................................................................... 17
Starting the
Status ................................................................................................................................................ 20
Program Alert Dashboard ....................................................................................................................... 20
Access Program Alert Dashboard ........................................................................................................ 20
Interface Components .......................................................................................................... ............... 20
Combined view tab .............................................................................................................................. 22
Drill down to see Alert Details ............................................................................................................. 22
By Medius view tab ............................................................................................................................. 22
Dashboard ..................................................................................................................... .......................... 23
Access Dashboard ............................................................................................................................... 23
Region Location View .......................................................................................................................... 24
Web-Browser
Interface .................................................................................................... 18
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Medius Data Retrieval Status .................................................................................................................. 25
Access Medius Data Retrieval Status .................................................................................................. 25
Configure ........................................................................................................................................... 26
Registered Medius Units ......................................................................................................................... 26
Register New Medius .......................................................................................................................... 26
Consul Users ............................................................................................................................................ 30
Access Consul Users ............................................................................................................................ 30
Add New User ...................................................................................................................................... 30
Delete a User ....................................................................................................................................... 32
Consul System Preferences ..................................................................................................... ................ 33
Consul System Settings ........................................................................................................................... 34
Access System Settings ........................................................................................................................ 34
Network Settings tab .......................................................................................................................... 35
Time Tab .............................................................................................................................................. 36
Locale Tab ........................................................................................................................................... 37
SSL Settings .............................................................................................................................. ............... 38
Consul System Diagnostics .................................................................................................................. 40
System Upgrade ...................................................................................................................................... 45
Consul System Upgrade Procedure ..................................................................................................... 45
Upgrade Errors for Consul.................................................................................................................... 48
Upload Error Patch File ........................................................................................................................ 49
History tab ........................................................................................................................................... 50
Power off ................................................................................................................................................. 51
To Power Off a unit: ............................................................................................................................. 51
Restart a unit ....................................................................................................................................... 52
Reports .............................................................................................................................................. 53
Access Alerts Analysis .......................................................................................................................... 53
Work with Existing Reports ................................................................................................................. 55
Counts Tab .......................................................................................................................................... 57
Trends tab ........................................................................................................................................... 61
Trend Details ....................................................................................................................................... 62
Distributions tab .................................................................................................................................. 63
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History tab ........................................................................................................................................... 64
Selecting Sentrys to Limit Search ........................................................................................................ 65
Choose a Program Group .................................................................................................................... 67
About ................................................................................................................................................ 69
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Sentry Family Product Matrix
This Sentry product manual contains technical information on the Sentry family of video quality
monitors. Information for the Sentry Edge products can be found in Appendix B of the Sentry Series User
Manual.
Some of the features and purchasable options described in this manual are not supported on all of the
products. For a breakdown of features and options by product, please refer to the table below.
Service Sentry Sentry Verify Sentry ABR
Comprehensive MPEG Quality of Experience (QoE) Monitoring
Video QoE real time monitoring
Video eMOS/PVQ real time monitoring Optional Optional
Audio QoE real-time monitoring
Audio loudness & AC-3 Dialnorm (ITU-R BS.1770)
monitoring
Video freeze detection
Audio Silence detection
Comprehensive MPEG Quality of Service (QoS) Monitoring
Transport Stream QoS Monitoring
IP (UDP) statistics
HTTP Statistics
Closed captioning (708, 608, SCTE-20), DVB Subtitle,
Teletext reporting
Error Seconds and Program Availability Reporting
GOP length reporting
Video and Audio PID metadata
Program/PID discontinuity
Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional
Program/PID/Transport Stream/Program Group
bandwidth graphing
PCR interval & jitter
MPEG-PSI, DVB-SI, ATSC-PSIP table detect, bit rate, cycle
time
TR 101 290 (priority 1, 2, 3) reporting
Scalable RF Monitoring (16/64/256 QAM A, B, or C) Optional Optional
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Optional
Optional
Optional
Service Sentry Sentry Verify Sentry ABR
Purchasable Software Options
QoE Monitoring
Optional
Carousel monitoring (tru2way / OCAP/MHP / DSM-CC) Optional Optional
Ad Insertion/Digital Program Insertion Optional Optional
Advanced Closed Caption Analysis Optional Optional
EBIF Monitoring Optional Optional
SA-BFS Monitoring Optional Optional
Perceptual Video Quality (eMOS) on MPEG-2, AVC/H.264,
HEVC/H.265
Audio Loudness Monitoring (includes CALM Compliance)
IDR/EBP Alignment Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional Optional
Video & Audio
Video: UHD/4K, HD, SD, MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC (H.264),
VC1, JPEG2000
Audio: Dolby AC-3, MPEG-1 Layer II, AAC, HE-AAC,
HE-AAC v2
Audio: Dolby E-AC-3 Optional Optional Optional
Interfaces
ASI Optional Optional
GigE
Dual GigE Optional Optional
10G Single-Mode or Multi-Mode LC SFP+ Optional Optional Optional
8VSB & QAM-B Optional Optional
QAM A, B, or C Optional Optional
QAM A/B/C RF Measurements: Level, EVM, MER, CNR,
Pre-RS BER, Post-FEC Erred Packets, Carrier Offset
Optional Optional
DVB-S/S2 Optional Optional
DVB-T/T2 Optional Optional
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Preface
This user manual describes Consul and its web browser-based interface. This manual introduces the
components and features of Consul, so you can begin using the device.
Who Should Use This Manual
This manual is intended for service providers who use Tektronix Consul for monitoring, reporting and
alerting from MPEG transport streams. You should understand the concepts and tools used in a headend
environment. You should also be familiar with basic computer operations such as click, drag and drop, as
well as the operation of a web browser.
What is Tektronix Consul?
The Consul is an aggregation device that provides a central location to view important alert information
for all of your Medius units.
The Consul allows you to compare like programs across multiple Medius units to correlate reports for
anomalies and view trending data for all of your services.
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Getting Started
Requirements
You will need a web connection accessible via any modern web browser. We recommend Mozilla Firefox
as the browser.
NOTE: Before installing the system in an equipment rack, make sure that:
The operating temperature is between 0 °C (32 °F) and 35 °C (95 °F).
The operating relative humidity is between 0% and 80%.
There is sufficient airflow around the unit.
The electrical circuits are not overloaded.
The equipment is properly grounded.
No objects are placed on top of the unit.
Setting up the System
To set up Consul, you need:
A 10Base-T network connection
Network parameters including address of DNS and NTP servers on your network. (Refer to the
section Configure: System Settings.)
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Making the Connection
1. On the management port, connect one end of a Cat5 Ethernet cable to the LAN2 connector on the
Consul unit and the other end to the network socket that connects to the LAN network.
2. Connect the power cord(s) to the system and plug it in to an electrical outlet.
3. Turn on the main power switch on the front of the system.
Figure 1: Making final connections
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Front Panel Functions (2016 to present models only)
The following applies only to units made in 2016 to present.
These models are able to provide the following functions:
IP address readout on LCD display
Manual Reboot option from front panel
Hard drive installation or replacement
Figure 2: Sentry front panel (2016 to present models only)
IP address on the front panel
The LCD (Local Control Display) is a 16-character, one-line display with two backlight colors:
Green. The LCD backlight is green under normal operating conditions.
Amber. If a hardware problem is detected with the server, the LCD backlight turns amber. When
the problem is cleared, the backlight returns to green.
Under normal operation, the readout will display the IP address of the Management Port in the form
“Tektronix Sentry IP: xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx.” The factory default IP address is 10.0.10.200.
Depending on the status of the instrument, you may see additional status messages such as Rebooting,
Shutdown, Stopped, etc. When errors are encountered, associated error messages may be displayed.
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Navigation buttons
Do not use the navigation buttons. The navigation buttons can be used to access and navigate an internal
menu system provided by the manufacturer of the Sentry chassis.
CAUTION: To prevent operational problems with the instrument, do not attempt to make any changes
to the menu settings.
USB ports
Use the two USB 2.0 ports to connect external USB devices to the instrument.
Status LEDs
The status LEDs indicate the following information about the state of the instrument:
Item Description
ID System ID button with LED
On/Standby button illuminates when the instrument is powered on
Illuminates when activity occurs on the Management Port (1) and on the IP Video
port (2)
Illuminates when there is drive activity
System status LED
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Power-off procedure
The preferred method for rebooting or powering off a Sentry is through the web interface.
WARNING: When moving a Sentry, it is very important to properly power off the Sentry via the web
interface.
Never unplug a Sentry without performing the Power-off procedure. Improper shutdown
may cause file corruption and failure of the Sentry.
Perform the following steps to power-off the instrument:
1. Use the Configure > Power Off menu option from the user interface to start the power-off
process.
2. In the event that you cannot access the user interface, press the front panel On/Standby button
once to power off the instrument.
NOTE: The LCD display does not indicate that the instrument has begun a Safe
Power Off process. Please wait more than 30 seconds for the instrument to
visibly start to power-off.
3. To completely remove power from the instrument after a safe power-off, disconnect both power
cords from the rear of the instrument.
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Front Panel Functions (2009 to 2016 models only)
Consul units are able to provide the following functions:
IP address display on LED
Manual Reboot option from front panel
LED Brightness control
Power button
LCD Display
Left button
Figure 3: Consul front panel (2009 to 2016 models)
Enter button
Right button
IP address on the front panel
To see a display of the IP addresses of both of the system network interfaces on the front panel LCD
display:
1. Press and hold Enter (green check mark) on the front panel.
2. The address displayed on the top line corresponds to the Management interface and the lower
line corresponds to the MPEG/IP input.
Manual power down from front panel
In addition to powering down through the Consul interface, you may also use the front panel button.
1. Start the power down of the unit by pressing the front panel power button two times quickly
within 2 seconds.
2. Within moments, the LCD display will indicate that the unit has begun the Safe Power Off
process, and several seconds following, the unit will power down completely.
LED Brightness
1. The brightness of the LCD display backlight can be changed by selecting either the left arrow or
right arrow buttons on the front panel. The left button will dim the display while the right will
brighten it.
2. Changes to the brightness level persist until the unit is rebooted or powered down.
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Starting the
1. Start your web browser.
Web-Browser
Interface
2. Enter the IP address assigned to Consul in the web browser’s URL field.
For example, if the Consul IP address is 192.168.1.1, you would enter the following:
Figure 4: IP Address Entry
NOTE: Consul is fully functional if JavaScript is disabled in your browser, however
the look and feel of the UI may differ in some areas from that presented in
this User Manual.
3. Log in with the user name and password for the account.
Figure 5: Consul Log In Screen
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4. The Consul opens to the Program Alert Dashboard view.
Figure 6: The Dashboard
NOTE: There may be a few seconds delay while the Dashboard screen collects data.
Do not stop the browser while loading is in progress
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Status
From the Main Menu, select Status then select the particular status view you want to see. All pages are
set to automatically refresh themselves making monitoring almost real time.
Program Alert Dashboard
Program Alert Dashboard gives you a quick overview of all open and recently triggered alerts by
program.
Access Program Alert Dashboard
Select Status from the main menu and then select Program Alert Dashboard.
Refresh
options
View
Figure 7: Selecting Program Alert Dashboard
Interface Components
Navigation Bar
Global Program search
Color Coded Alerts for
Individual Consul units
Login Info
Consul Status Info
Alert Filter
Figure 8: Program Alert Dashboard
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