NextIO / Visual service design

Build services from any input to any output.

Turn sources, processing functions, and destinations into a connected service. NextIO brings visual design, verification, deployment, and runtime inspection into the 01Layer operating environment.

Explore the workflow Open the editor guide

A NextIO service connects an input-port group to a load balancer and four output paths.

Make the service visible

See how traffic enters, which functions process it, and where the results go.

Build on a known pattern

Start from a template or an existing design, then configure it for your environment.

Keep operations connected

Move from the design to service state, traffic, counters, logs, and workflow history.

From intent to a working service

Connect the functions. Define the behavior.

A NextIO diagram is a service definition stored in a .nio file. Open it from File Explorer or NextIO Services to work with the component palette, canvas, properties, and runtime controls in one editor.

01Layer NextIO Diagram Editor showing the LB to Ports service, a component palette, and an input-port group connected to a load balancer. — NextIO Diagram Editor: the documented `agg-lb-example.nio` service. View full-size screenshot.

Select the building blocks
Search or browse the component palette. Add input and output ports, groups, and processing functions supported by the target product.
Connect the service path
Wire component outputs to the next function. In the example, an input-port group feeds a load balancer that branches toward multiple output paths.
Configure the details
Select a component to review its ports and attributes. Use Properties for individual settings or Edit Components for a structured view of the design.
Verify before runtime
Save the design, run Verify, and resolve reported property or wiring issues before starting or applying the service.

A connected component library

Build beyond a single function.

Combine I/O with the functions your service needs: traffic delivery, conditioning, capture, message transport, or validation. Live interfaces, virtual interfaces, and recorded traffic use the same visual design method.

Sources and destinations

Connect physical ports and port groups, bonded links, virtual ports, OS interfaces, PCAP readers and writers, and TAP workflows.

Explore I/O components

Traffic delivery

Filter, aggregate, replicate, and load balance traffic to the required tools and output paths. FlowDirector adds port groups, LB Groups, egress filtering, and SPAN components.

Explore NPB functions

Traffic conditioning

Prepare traffic for downstream analysis with deduplication, microburst shaping, detunneling, and True IP address restoration.

Explore advanced functions

Capture and metadata

Use Packet Capture, Packet Writer, and Metadata components to retain traffic and produce records for investigation and analysis.

Explore capture services

Messages and flow records

Receive and send Kafka, syslog, and IPFIX messages. Add NetFlow services or Data Diode sender and receiver components for the required transport path.

Explore message brokers

Testing and validation

Build test workflows with traffic generation, application simulation, RFC-2544, bit error rate testing, replay, and WAN emulation components.

Explore testing tools

The component palette and settings depend on the product family and release. See the FlowDirector and FlowMagic references for component connectivity, configuration fields, and initial values.

Reuse, review, deploy

Start with a pattern. Make it your service.

The NextIO Service Template Browser provides a starting point for visibility, inline, and visibility script applications. Create a design, review its configuration, and move through explicit verification and runtime actions.

A repeatable starting point

Open Create Service from NextIO Services, the Start Menu, or File Explorer. Search by template name or description, browse categories, and review Details or a preview when available.

See the template workflow

Choose the service type, file name, and save location.
Select a template and create the new .nio file. The design opens in the Diagram Editor.
Review source and destination ports, function settings, and connections for the intended deployment.
Save and verify the design, then use Start for a stopped service or Apply for a running service.

From the saved design to the running service
Action	What it does
Save / Save As	Write the design to its existing file or save a separate copy for another service or a variation.
Verify	Check the diagram before runtime use. Review the output and correct invalid settings or connections.
Start	Start a stopped service from its saved design.
Apply	Apply saved design changes to a service that is already running.
Stop	Stop the service when it is no longer required to carry traffic.

Saving and applying are separate actions. Saving updates the design file; it does not by itself update a running service. If Start or Apply fails, review the operation in Activity Monitor > Workflows.

NextIO command-line reference

The service in operation

Keep the design and its runtime in view.

NextIO Services brings service state and operational context together. Search by service name, design file, owner, or port, then filter for running, warning, error, or stopped services.

NextIO Services gallery with service search, status filters, runtime actions, and service cards with data-path diagrams. — NextIO Services gallery from the 01Layer Web UI manual. View full-size screenshot.

Find the right service

Cards summarize state, design file, owner, uptime, and available traffic or diagram previews. Open the design or use the runtime actions directly from the service.

Inspect traffic and rules

Open Details to review ingress and egress throughput, errors, drops, and counted rules. Select a one-hour, six-hour, 24-hour, seven-day, or custom time window.

View service details screenshot

Trace an operation

Use service logs and the service record for troubleshooting. Runtime actions open workflows; Activity Monitor provides the trace when an operation needs investigation.

Read the service operations guide

Where NextIO fits

One design method. Different operational needs.

Deliver traffic to tool groups

Bring multiple sources into an input group, apply the required filtering, and distribute traffic through a load balancer to the selected output paths.

See the load-balancing example

Capture and investigate

Connect live or recorded sources with capture and metadata functions. Use recorded traffic in replay and validation workflows as investigations develop.

Explore PCAP workflows

Move data across a boundary

Build a message path from application brokers through Data Diode transport to destination-side publishing, with the sender and receiver configured for the approved boundary.

Explore Data-Diode

Go deeper

From the first design to the component details.

Explore the 01Layer platform and the guides behind the NextIO design and operating workflows.

01Layer platform overview NextIO Diagram Editor Service Template Browser NextIO Services and operations FlowDirector component reference FlowMagic component reference

Bring your next service into view.

Work with our team to map your sources, processing requirements, and destinations to a NextIO service and the right deployment platform.

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