Note: You need two ESXi hosts to perform this test. You can use CTRL+C to terminate the test at any point in time.
To test the vmkernel network performance between two hosts, Host 1 and Host 2:
- Connect to Host 1 using SSH. For more information, see Tech Support Mode for Emergency Support (1003677).
- Run this command:
# nc -v -v -l -n Port > /dev/null
Where Port is the port that is used to test the network performance. You can use any port number that is open between the two hosts.
For example:
# nc -v -v -l -n 2223 > /dev/null
- Connect to Host 2 using SSH.
- Run this command:
# time cat /dev/zero | nc -v -v -n vmkernel_ip_host1 2223 > /dev/null
If the port is open, you see output similar to this in in the Host 1 SSH session:
Connection from Host1_IP port 2223 [tcp/*] accepted
If you are do not see any output, it indicates that the port is not open.
- Open another SSH session to Host 1 or Host 2.
- Run this command:
# esxtop
- Press n to navigate to Network view.
The esxtop Network view reports bandwidth (Megabits per second) under MbTX/s or MbRX/s in real-time with approximately two seconds delay.
A sample output appears similar to:
PORT-ID USED-BY TEAM-PNIC DNAME PKTTX/s MbTX/s PKTRX/s MbRX/s %DRPTX %DRPRX
33554433 Management n/a vSwitch0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
33554434 vmnic0 - vSwitch0 30826.02 543.29 36333.90 18.30 0.00 0.00
33554436 vmk0 vmnic0 vSwitch0 30825.66 543.29 36327.18 18.30 0.00 0.00