About traffic classification
The SteelHead application flow engine, which covers more than 1,300 individual applications and processes, uses information to understand where data is coming from, which application sent it, and what function that application is trying to accomplish. The application flow engine utilizes a variety of techniques, often in combination, such as port-based classification, application signature matching, protocol dissection, behavioral classification, and others. Path selection classifies traffic using the full assortment of packet rules including IP addresses, 5-tuple, differentiated services code point (DSCP), TCP, user datagram protocol (UDP) port numbers, and so on. In this way, you can precisely associate applications to networks based on their nature, performance requirements, and business criticality.