[citation needed] ITU-T Y.1564 defines an out-of-service test methodology to assess the proper configuration and performance of an Ethernet service prior to customer notification and delivery.
The test methodology applies to point-to-point and point-to-multipoint connectivity in the Ethernet layer and to the network portions that provide, or contribute to, the provisioning of such services.
[citation needed] Test Flows are traffic streams with specific attributes identified by different classifiers such as 802.1q VLAN, 802.1ad, DSCP and class of service (CoS) profiles.
[citation needed] The ITU Y.1564 defines three key test rates based on the MEF service attributes for Ethernet virtual connection (EVC) and user-to-network interface (UNI) bandwidth profiles.
The time frame to complete this section of the test is recommended to follow ITU-T M.2110 which mentions intervals of 15min, 2hour or 24hour allowing network availability to be determined.