Manual Chapter : Using SSL Orchestrator Analytics

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F5 SSL Orchestrator

  • 13.0.0
Manual Chapter

Overview: About SSL Orchestrator analytics

F5® SSL Orchestrator™ analytics provide a customizable view into your SSL orchestration statistics, and enable you to flexibly choose the information you want to view based on specified ranges of time that you can select and easily adjust. By leveraging the multiple options available, you can analyze dimensions individually, compare groups of dimensions and their statistics, and sort the charts and tables as you diagnose the performance and health of your system’s SSL orchestration.

When you initially launch the analytics dashboard by clicking SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics, data that has been collected over the last hour is displayed in five line charts:
  • Hit Count
  • Client Bytes In
  • Server Bytes In
  • Client Bytes Out
  • Server Bytes Out
This initial display of data is unfiltered and includes statistics generated for the following dimensions in tables:
  • Client Cipher Names
  • Client Cipher Versions
  • Server Cipher Names
  • Server Cipher Versions
  • Virtual Servers
  • Servers (the final destination)
  • Actions

You can also use the SSL Orchestrator analytics Scheduled Reports to set up an automatic reporting schedule and later view any stored scheduled statistical records.

About analytics dashboard capabilities

The F5® SSL Orchestrator™ analytics dashboard has customizable options so that you can view statistics for your orchestration’s top virtual servers, top sites bypassed, top sites decrypted, the most used client ciphers and protocols, and determine where the top server ciphers and protocols are used.

By customizing the timeline, charts, and tables, you can also:

  • Adjust the timeline for the statistics displayed in the charts and tables to customize statics captured across a wide range of time, spanning between just a minute up to an entire year.
  • Create comparison charts for two or more members of a dimension.
  • Filter data across one or more dimensions.
  • Sort table-based statistics for any dimension.

Timeline capabilities

The customizable timeline capabilities give you the ability to produce a statistical analysis based on a specified range of time. When you first open the analytics dashboard, the default refresh time is set at 5 minutes. You can change the refresh rate to several different settings by selecting from the 5 min. list at the top of the screen.
  • 1 min., 5 min., or 10 min. options reset the refresh time in minutes.
  • Off freezes the data refresh collection.

You can also update the statistics on demand by selecting Refresh above the timeline.

Customizing timeline capabilities

You can customize the range of time in which you would like to view data, in both the charts and tables. When you first launch the analytics dashboard, the default range of time is set at the Last hour. You can change the range of time that appears on the timeline to several different settings.

  1. Click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics .
  2. Above the timeline, click the Last hour list.
  3. Select the range of time you would like to view statistics across.
    • Last hour
    • Last 4 hours
    • Last day
    • Last week
    • Last month
    • Last year
    • Year to date
    • All
    The range of time you specified appears above the timeline bar.
  4. Use the timeline sliders at each end of the timeline, to manually scroll back and forth, further narrowing in on ranges of time that are critical to the ongoing performance and health of your system's SSL orchestration.
    Once the sliders have been manipulated, you can also click and drag the bar above the timeline based on the newly specified timeline.

Chart capabilities

You can reorder the customizable line charts by dragging them up or down to a different place in the chart stack. You can also minimize them so to hide their information.

Customizing chart capabilities

Within each line chart, you can identify a specific day and time within the time range selected. You can also select a block of time to be further analyzed. By leveraging the multiple options available, you can analyze dimensions individually, compare groups of dimensions and their statistics, and sort the charts as you diagnose the performance and health of your system’s SSL orchestration.

  1. Click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics .
  2. On the title bar of the line chart, place your cursor anywhere, click and hold to drag the chart up or down the chart stack.
  3. On the right side of the title bar, select the minus sign (-) to minimize the chart.
  4. Select the plus sign (+) to again maximize the chart.

Table capabilities

The customizable dimension tables can be reordered and expanded and minimized just like the line charts. By using the tab at the top of the table’s pane on the dashboard, you can expand the tables toward the center of the dashboard so that you can view all the table columns collecting statistics.

Customizing table capabilities

You can select each column within a table individually, and sort it to view the data in ascending or descending order.

  1. Click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics .
  2. On the title bar of the table, place your cursor at the beginning of the table's title and click the three lines.
  3. Select Sort By.
  4. Choose one of the table columns to highlight:
    • Hit Count Per Second
    • Client Bytes Out Per Second
    • Duration
    • Server Bytes In
    • Server Bytes In Per Second
    • Hit Count
    • Server Bytes Out Per Second
    • Client Bytes In
    • Client Bytes In Per Second
    • Client Bytes Out
    • Server Bytes Out
    You can also individually select each row within a table to update the statistics within each available chart. You can also launch a comparison chart based on the table and the column of data that you selected to sort by.
  5. To highlight a table member, within the table, select that row.
  6. Right-click the highlighted row and select Sort By.
  7. Choose one of the table columns you would like to create a chart from, and right-click the highlighted row.
  8. Select Add Comparison Chart.
    A comparison chart appears indicating the dimension, row member, and statistical column that you chose.
    Note: You can add more comparison charts as needed, reorder new charts added to the chart stack, and minimize them as necessary.
  9. To remove the comparison chart, click the X in the far-right corner of the chart's title bar.
  10. To reset the table without any member of the table highlighted, right-click the highlighted row within the table and select Clear Selection.

Charting bytes in, bytes out, and hit count over time

To see bytes in and out for your clients and servers, as well as viewing the hit count over a determined range of time.

  1. On the Main tab, click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics .

    The dashboard’s default line charts, showing data collected over the last hour, is displayed.

  2. To decrease the time range that is being analyzed, adjust the sliders on the timeline at the top of the screen.
    The data found in the charts and tables will adjust based on the new time range specified.
  3. To increase the time range that is being analyzed, click Last Hour and select a time range from the list.
  4. To focus on specific members of a dimension, click the name of a dimension, on the right, to expand its details and select the members that interest you.
    For example, you might click Servers and select one or more servers from the table that displays.

Comparing statistics on the top virtual servers

Compare SSL Orchestrator statistics across virtual servers.
  1. On the Main tab, click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics .
    The screen displays charts on the left and dimensions, such as Client Cipher Names, Virtual Servers, and Actions, on the right.
  2. On the right, expand the Virtual Servers dimension.
    By default, the virtual servers are sorted with the busiest at the top.
  3. Select two or more virtual servers, then right-click and select Add Comparison Chart.
    A new chart displays above the default charts. By default, Hit Count is charted for the selected virtual servers.
  4. To compare another statistic, in the chart legend click Hit Count and select a statistic.
    For example, select Duration or Hit Count Per Second.
    A line graph displays for the statistic you selected. The comparison chart remains available on your screen as long as you keep your browser open.
  5. To remove the comparison chart from the screen, click the X in the upper right corner of the chart.

Viewing the top sites bypassed

You want to see the sites for which SSL Orchestrator has bypassed the most requests, performing no decryption.
  1. On the Main tab, click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics .
    The screen displays charts on the left and dimensions, such as Client Cipher Names, Virtual Servers, and Actions, on the right.
  2. On the right, expand the Actions and Servers dimensions.
    Data for the dimensions display in tables. By default, those with the greatest hit count display at the top.
  3. Rearrange the screen to display more columns of data in the tables:
    • To switch to a table-only view, click the icon.
    • To change the widths of the tables and the charts across the display, drag and drop the icon.
  4. In Actions, select Bypassed.
  5. In Servers, the servers on which SSL bypass has occurred the most frequently are at the top of the list.

Viewing the top sites decrypted

You can see the servers for which SSL Orchestrator decrypted the most requests.
  1. On the Main tab, click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics .
    The screen displays charts on the left and dimensions, such as Client Cipher Names, Virtual Servers, and Actions, on the right.
  2. On the right, expand the Actions and Servers dimensions.
    Data for the dimensions display in tables. By default, those with the greatest hit count display at the top.
  3. Rearrange the screen to display more columns of data in the tables:
    • To switch to a table-only view, click the icon.
    • To change the widths of the tables and the charts across the display, drag and drop the icon.
  4. In Actions, select Intercepted.
  5. In Servers, the servers on which decryption has occurred the most frequently are at the top of the table.

Viewing the most used client ciphers and protocols

You want to see which client ciphers and protocols are most used.
  1. On the Main tab, click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics .
    The screen displays charts on the left and dimensions, such as Client Cipher Names, Virtual Servers, and Actions, on the right.
  2. On the right, expand Client Cipher Names and Client Cipher Versions.
    Data for the dimensions display in tables. By default, those with the greatest hit count display at the top.
  3. To view data for the top cipher, from Client Cipher Names, select the top record.
    Charts update to display data for the selected cipher only. Client Cipher Versions displays only the protocols used by the selected cipher.
  4. To view data for the top ten ciphers, from Client Cipher Names select the top ten records.

Finding where the top server ciphers and protocols are used

You want to see which server ciphers and protocols are most used and where they are used.
  1. On the Main tab, click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Statistics .
    The screen displays charts on the left and dimensions, such as Client Cipher Names, Virtual Servers, and Actions, on the right.
  2. On the right, expand the Server Cipher Names and Server Cipher Versions dimensions.
    Data for the dimensions display in tables. By default, those with the greatest hit count display at the top.
  3. To view data for the top cipher, from Server Cipher Names, select the top record.
    Charts update to display data for the selected cipher only. Server Cipher Versions displays only the protocols used by the selected cipher.
  4. To view data for the top ten ciphers, from Server Cipher Names select the top ten records.
  5. To view the servers and virtual servers involved in the transactions, on the right expand Servers and Virtual Servers.
    The tables display only the servers and virtual servers where the cipher and protocol were used.

Scheduling reports

With the F5®SSL Orchestrator™ analytics Scheduled Reports feature you can set up an automatic reporting schedule and later view any stored scheduled statistical records.

To set up your SSL Orchestrator scheduled reports, click SSL Orchestrator > SSL Orchestrator > Scheduled Reports and click the + icon.

The Chart Schedule Properties screen opens where you can set up the reporting details and the frequency of automatically generated reports sent to a specified email address.

To view your scheduled reports, click SSL Orchestrator > Analytics > Scheduled Reports. The Scheduled Reports screen opens displaying any generated records and the following information:

  • Module
  • Name
  • Send To
  • Report
  • SMTP Server
  • Frequency
  • Send Time
  • Status