diff --git a/akka-bench-jmh/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/CodecBenchmark.scala b/akka-bench-jmh/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/CodecBenchmark.scala
index 0ea81fdfb2..72bc68fd46 100644
--- a/akka-bench-jmh/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/CodecBenchmark.scala
+++ b/akka-bench-jmh/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/CodecBenchmark.scala
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ import akka.serialization.{ BaseSerializer, ByteBufferSerializer, SerializationE
 import akka.stream.ActorMaterializer
 import akka.stream.ActorMaterializerSettings
 import akka.stream.scaladsl._
-import akka.util.{ ByteString, OptionVal }
+import akka.util.OptionVal
 import com.typesafe.config.ConfigFactory
 import java.io.IOException
 import java.nio.ByteBuffer
@@ -119,21 +119,18 @@ class CodecBenchmark {
     resolvedRef = actorOnSystemA.asInstanceOf[InternalActorRef]
     recipientStringB = remoteRefB.path.toSerializationFormatWithAddress(addressB)
 
-    val metadataContainer: ByteString = if (configType == RemoteInstrument) {
-      val map = MetadataMap[ByteString]
-      val instrument = new DummyRemoteInstrument()
-      val metadata = instrument.remoteMessageSent(remoteRefB, payload, actorOnSystemA)
-      map.set(instrument.identifier, metadata)
-      new MetadataMapRendering(map).render()
+    val remoteInstruments: RemoteInstruments = if (configType == RemoteInstrument) {
+      new RemoteInstruments(system.asInstanceOf[ExtendedActorSystem], system.log, Vector(new DummyRemoteInstrument()))
     } else null
     val envelope = new EnvelopeBuffer(envelopeTemplateBuffer)
+    val outboundEnvelope = OutboundEnvelope(OptionVal.None, payload, OptionVal.None)
     headerIn setVersion 1
     headerIn setUid 42
     headerIn setSenderActorRef actorOnSystemA
     headerIn setRecipientActorRef remoteRefB
     headerIn setManifest ""
-    headerIn setMetadataContainer metadataContainer
-    MessageSerializer.serializeForArtery(SerializationExtension(system), payload, headerIn, envelope)
+    headerIn setRemoteInstruments remoteInstruments
+    MessageSerializer.serializeForArtery(SerializationExtension(system), outboundEnvelope, headerIn, envelope)
     envelope.byteBuffer.flip()
 
     // Now build up the graphs
@@ -290,23 +287,30 @@ object CodecBenchmark {
 
   // DummyRemoteInstrument that doesn't allocate unnecessary bytes during serialization/deserialization
   class DummyRemoteInstrument extends RemoteInstrument {
-    private val Metadata = ByteString("slevin".getBytes)
+    private val Metadata = "slevin".getBytes
 
     override def identifier: Byte = 7 // Lucky number slevin
 
-    override def remoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef): ByteString =
-      Metadata
+    override def remoteWriteMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit = {
+      buffer.putInt(Metadata.length)
+      buffer.put(Metadata)
+    }
 
-    override def remoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, metadata: ByteString): Unit = {
+    override def remoteReadMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit = {
       val length = Metadata.length
+      val metaLength = buffer.getInt
       @tailrec
       def compare(pos: Int): Boolean = {
         if (pos == length) true
-        else if (Metadata(pos) == metadata(pos)) compare(pos + 1)
+        else if (Metadata(pos) == buffer.get()) compare(pos + 1)
         else false
       }
-      if (metadata.length != length || !compare(0))
-        throw new IOException(s"DummyInstrument deserialization error. Expected ${Metadata.toString} got ${metadata.toString}")
+      if (metaLength != length || !compare(0))
+        throw new IOException(s"DummyInstrument deserialization error. Expected ${Metadata.toString}")
     }
+
+    override def remoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long): Unit = ()
+
+    override def remoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long): Unit = ()
   }
 }
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/MessageSerializer.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/MessageSerializer.scala
index f1422c7a1a..677df951ac 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/MessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/MessageSerializer.scala
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ package akka.remote
 import akka.remote.WireFormats._
 import akka.protobuf.ByteString
 import akka.actor.ExtendedActorSystem
-import akka.remote.artery.{ EnvelopeBuffer, HeaderBuilder }
+import akka.remote.artery.{ EnvelopeBuffer, HeaderBuilder, OutboundEnvelope }
 import akka.serialization.Serialization
 import akka.serialization.ByteBufferSerializer
 import akka.serialization.SerializationExtension
@@ -63,7 +63,8 @@ private[akka] object MessageSerializer {
     }
   }
 
-  def serializeForArtery(serialization: Serialization, message: AnyRef, headerBuilder: HeaderBuilder, envelope: EnvelopeBuffer): Unit = {
+  def serializeForArtery(serialization: Serialization, outboundEnvelope: OutboundEnvelope, headerBuilder: HeaderBuilder, envelope: EnvelopeBuffer): Unit = {
+    val message = outboundEnvelope.message
     val serializer = serialization.findSerializerFor(message)
 
     headerBuilder setSerializer serializer.identifier
@@ -76,11 +77,11 @@ private[akka] object MessageSerializer {
     serializer match {
       case ser: ByteBufferSerializer ⇒
         headerBuilder setManifest manifest
-        envelope.writeHeader(headerBuilder)
+        envelope.writeHeader(headerBuilder, outboundEnvelope)
         ser.toBinary(message, envelope.byteBuffer)
       case _ ⇒
         headerBuilder setManifest manifest
-        envelope.writeHeader(headerBuilder)
+        envelope.writeHeader(headerBuilder, outboundEnvelope)
         envelope.byteBuffer.put(serializer.toBinary(message))
     }
   }
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/ArteryTransport.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/ArteryTransport.scala
index c92684c727..21470a31eb 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/ArteryTransport.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/ArteryTransport.scala
@@ -984,11 +984,7 @@ private[remote] class ArteryTransport(_system: ExtendedActorSystem, _provider: R
       createFlightRecorderEventSink()))
 
   val messageDispatcherSink: Sink[InboundEnvelope, Future[Done]] = Sink.foreach[InboundEnvelope] { m ⇒
-    val originAddress = m.association match {
-      case OptionVal.Some(a) ⇒ OptionVal.Some(a.remoteAddress)
-      case OptionVal.None    ⇒ OptionVal.None
-    }
-    messageDispatcher.dispatch(m.recipient.get, m.message, m.sender, originAddress)
+    messageDispatcher.dispatch(m)
     m match {
       case r: ReusableInboundEnvelope ⇒ inboundEnvelopePool.release(r)
       case _                          ⇒
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/BufferPool.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/BufferPool.scala
index c2dcd094be..d59ad02c59 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/BufferPool.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/BufferPool.scala
@@ -137,9 +137,6 @@ private[remote] sealed trait HeaderBuilder {
   def setUid(u: Long): Unit
   def uid: Long
 
-  /** Metadata SPI, internally multiple metadata sections can be represented. */
-  def metadataContainer: ByteString
-
   def setSenderActorRef(ref: ActorRef): Unit
   /**
    * Retrive the compressed ActorRef by the compressionId carried by this header.
@@ -170,21 +167,19 @@ private[remote] sealed trait HeaderBuilder {
    */
   def recipientActorRefPath: OptionVal[String]
 
-  def setMetadataContainer(container: ByteString): Unit
-  def clearMetadataContainer(): Unit
-
   def setSerializer(serializer: Int): Unit
   def serializer: Int
 
   def setManifest(manifest: String): Unit
   def manifest(originUid: Long): OptionVal[String]
 
+  def setRemoteInstruments(instruments: RemoteInstruments): Unit
+
   /**
    * Reset all fields that are related to an outbound message,
    * i.e. Encoder calls this as the first thing in onPush.
    */
   def resetMessageFields(): Unit
-
 }
 
 /**
@@ -230,7 +225,7 @@ private[remote] final class HeaderBuilderImpl(
   var _manifest: String = null
   var _manifestIdx: Int = -1
 
-  var _metadataContainer: ByteString = null
+  var _remoteInstruments: OptionVal[RemoteInstruments] = OptionVal.None
 
   override def resetMessageFields(): Unit = {
     _flags = 0
@@ -242,6 +237,8 @@ private[remote] final class HeaderBuilderImpl(
     _serializer = 0
     _manifest = null
     _manifestIdx = -1
+
+    _remoteInstruments = OptionVal.None
   }
 
   override def setVersion(v: Byte) = _version = v
@@ -342,17 +339,8 @@ private[remote] final class HeaderBuilderImpl(
     }
   }
 
-  /** Make sure to prefix the data with an Int-length */
-  def setMetadataContainer(container: ByteString): Unit = {
-    setFlag(EnvelopeBuffer.MetadataPresentFlag, value = container != null)
-    _metadataContainer = container
-  }
-  /** Rendered metadata already contains int-length prefix, no need to add it manually */
-  def metadataContainer: ByteString =
-    _metadataContainer
-  def clearMetadataContainer(): Unit = {
-    setFlag(EnvelopeBuffer.MetadataPresentFlag, value = false)
-    _metadataContainer = null
+  override def setRemoteInstruments(instruments: RemoteInstruments): Unit = {
+    _remoteInstruments = OptionVal(instruments)
   }
 
   override def toString =
@@ -366,8 +354,7 @@ private[remote] final class HeaderBuilderImpl(
       "_recipientActorRefIdx:" + _recipientActorRefIdx + ", " +
       "_serializer:" + _serializer + ", " +
       "_manifest:" + _manifest + ", " +
-      "_manifestIdx:" + _manifestIdx + ", " +
-      "_metadataContainer:" + _metadataContainer + ")"
+      "_manifestIdx:" + _manifestIdx + ")"
 
 }
 
@@ -381,7 +368,9 @@ private[remote] final class EnvelopeBuffer(val byteBuffer: ByteBuffer) {
   private var literalChars = Array.ofDim[Char](64)
   private var literalBytes = Array.ofDim[Byte](64)
 
-  def writeHeader(h: HeaderBuilder): Unit = {
+  def writeHeader(h: HeaderBuilder): Unit = writeHeader(h, null)
+
+  def writeHeader(h: HeaderBuilder, oe: OutboundEnvelope): Unit = {
     val header = h.asInstanceOf[HeaderBuilderImpl]
     byteBuffer.clear()
 
@@ -395,11 +384,16 @@ private[remote] final class EnvelopeBuffer(val byteBuffer: ByteBuffer) {
     byteBuffer.put(ActorRefCompressionTableVersionOffset, header.outboundActorRefCompression.version)
     byteBuffer.put(ClassManifestCompressionTableVersionOffset, header.outboundClassManifestCompression.version)
 
+    // maybe write some metadata
+    // after metadata is written (or not), buffer is at correct position to continue writing literals
     byteBuffer.position(MetadataContainerAndLiteralSectionOffset)
-    if (header.flag(MetadataPresentFlag)) {
-      // tag if we have metadata or not, as the layout next follows different patterns depending on that
-      header.metadataContainer.copyToBuffer(byteBuffer)
-      // after metadata is written, buffer is at correct position to continue writing literals (they "moved forward")
+    if (header._remoteInstruments.isDefined) {
+      header._remoteInstruments.get.serialize(OptionVal(oe), byteBuffer)
+      if (byteBuffer.position() != MetadataContainerAndLiteralSectionOffset) {
+        // we actually wrote some metadata so update the flag field to reflect that
+        header.setFlag(MetadataPresentFlag, true)
+        byteBuffer.put(FlagsOffset, header.flags)
+      }
     }
 
     // Serialize sender
@@ -419,7 +413,6 @@ private[remote] final class EnvelopeBuffer(val byteBuffer: ByteBuffer) {
       byteBuffer.putInt(ClassManifestTagOffset, header._manifestIdx | TagTypeMask)
     else
       writeLiteral(ClassManifestTagOffset, header._manifest)
-
   }
 
   def parseHeader(h: HeaderBuilder): Unit = {
@@ -435,20 +428,11 @@ private[remote] final class EnvelopeBuffer(val byteBuffer: ByteBuffer) {
     header._inboundActorRefCompressionTableVersion = byteBuffer.get(ActorRefCompressionTableVersionOffset)
     header._inboundClassManifestCompressionTableVersion = byteBuffer.get(ClassManifestCompressionTableVersionOffset)
 
+    byteBuffer.position(MetadataContainerAndLiteralSectionOffset)
     if (header.flag(MetadataPresentFlag)) {
-      byteBuffer.position(MetadataContainerAndLiteralSectionOffset)
+      // metadata present, so we need to fast forward to the literals that start right after
       val totalMetadataLength = byteBuffer.getInt()
-
-      ensureLiteralCharsLength(totalMetadataLength)
-      val bytes = literalBytes
-
-      byteBuffer.get(bytes, 0, totalMetadataLength)
-      header._metadataContainer = ByteString(bytes).take(totalMetadataLength)
-      // the literals section starts here, right after the metadata has ended
-      // thus, no need to move position the buffer again
-    } else {
-      // No metadata present, we position the buffer on the place where literals start
-      byteBuffer.position(MetadataContainerAndLiteralSectionOffset)
+      byteBuffer.position(byteBuffer.position() + totalMetadataLength)
     }
 
     // Deserialize sender
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/Codecs.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/Codecs.scala
index 7f676796cf..e7ec13dae7 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/Codecs.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/Codecs.scala
@@ -64,9 +64,7 @@ private[remote] class Encoder(
       private val serialization = SerializationExtension(system)
       private val serializationInfo = Serialization.Information(localAddress, system)
 
-      private val instruments: Vector[RemoteInstrument] = RemoteInstruments.create(system)
-      // by being backed by an Array, this allows us to not allocate any wrapper type for the metadata (since we need its ID)
-      private val serializedMetadatas: MetadataMap[ByteString] = MetadataMap() // TODO: possibly can be optimised a more for the specific access pattern (during write)
+      private val instruments: RemoteInstruments = RemoteInstruments(system)
 
       private val changeActorRefCompressionCb = getAsyncCallback[(CompressionTable[ActorRef], Promise[Done])] {
         case (table, done) ⇒
@@ -120,8 +118,16 @@ private[remote] class Encoder(
               case OptionVal.Some(s) ⇒ headerBuilder setSenderActorRef s
             }
 
-            applyAndRenderRemoteMessageSentMetadata(instruments, outboundEnvelope, headerBuilder)
-            MessageSerializer.serializeForArtery(serialization, outboundEnvelope.message, headerBuilder, envelope)
+            val startTime: Long = if (instruments.timeSerialization) System.nanoTime else 0
+            if (instruments.nonEmpty)
+              headerBuilder.setRemoteInstruments(instruments)
+
+            MessageSerializer.serializeForArtery(serialization, outboundEnvelope, headerBuilder, envelope)
+
+            if (instruments.nonEmpty) {
+              val time = if (instruments.timeSerialization) System.nanoTime - startTime else 0
+              instruments.messageSent(outboundEnvelope, envelope.byteBuffer.position(), time)
+            }
           } finally Serialization.currentTransportInformation.value = oldValue
 
           envelope.byteBuffer.flip()
@@ -163,36 +169,6 @@ private[remote] class Encoder(
 
       override def onPull(): Unit = pull(in)
 
-      /**
-       * Renders metadata into `headerBuilder`.
-       *
-       * Replace all AnyRef's that were passed along with the [[OutboundEnvelope]] into their [[ByteString]] representations,
-       * by calling `remoteMessageSent` of each enabled instrumentation. If `context` was attached in the envelope it is passed
-       * into the instrument, otherwise it receives an OptionVal.None as context, and may still decide to attach rendered
-       * metadata by returning it.
-       */
-      private def applyAndRenderRemoteMessageSentMetadata(instruments: Vector[RemoteInstrument], envelope: OutboundEnvelope, headerBuilder: HeaderBuilder): Unit = {
-        if (instruments.nonEmpty) {
-          val n = instruments.length
-
-          var i = 0
-          while (i < n) {
-            val instrument = instruments(i)
-            val instrumentId = instrument.identifier
-
-            val metadata = instrument.remoteMessageSent(envelope.recipient.orNull, envelope.message, envelope.sender.orNull)
-            if (metadata ne null) serializedMetadatas.set(instrumentId, metadata)
-
-            i += 1
-          }
-        }
-
-        if (serializedMetadatas.nonEmpty) {
-          MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.serialize(serializedMetadatas, headerBuilder)
-          serializedMetadatas.clear()
-        }
-      }
-
       /**
        * External call from ChangeOutboundCompression materialized value
        */
@@ -511,7 +487,7 @@ private[remote] class Deserializer(
 
   override def createLogic(inheritedAttributes: Attributes): GraphStageLogic =
     new GraphStageLogic(shape) with InHandler with OutHandler with StageLogging {
-      private val instruments: Vector[RemoteInstrument] = RemoteInstruments.create(system)
+      private val instruments: RemoteInstruments = RemoteInstruments(system)
       private val serialization = SerializationExtension(system)
 
       override protected def logSource = classOf[Deserializer]
@@ -520,13 +496,18 @@ private[remote] class Deserializer(
         val envelope = grab(in)
 
         try {
+          val startTime: Long = if (instruments.timeSerialization) System.nanoTime else 0
+
           val deserializedMessage = MessageSerializer.deserializeForArtery(
             system, envelope.originUid, serialization, envelope.serializer, envelope.classManifest, envelope.envelopeBuffer)
 
           val envelopeWithMessage = envelope.withMessage(deserializedMessage)
 
-          applyIncomingInstruments(envelopeWithMessage)
-
+          if (instruments.nonEmpty) {
+            instruments.deserialize(envelopeWithMessage)
+            val time = if (instruments.timeSerialization) System.nanoTime - startTime else 0
+            instruments.messageReceived(envelopeWithMessage, envelope.envelopeBuffer.byteBuffer.limit(), time)
+          }
           push(out, envelopeWithMessage)
         } catch {
           case NonFatal(e) ⇒
@@ -543,22 +524,6 @@ private[remote] class Deserializer(
 
       override def onPull(): Unit = pull(in)
 
-      private def applyIncomingInstruments(envelope: InboundEnvelope): Unit = {
-        if (envelope.flag(EnvelopeBuffer.MetadataPresentFlag)) {
-          val length = instruments.length
-          if (length == 0) {
-            // TODO do we need to parse, or can we do a fast forward if debug logging is not enabled?
-            val metaMetadataEnvelope = MetadataMapParsing.parse(envelope)
-            if (log.isDebugEnabled)
-              log.debug("Incoming message envelope contains metadata for instruments: {}, " +
-                "however no RemoteInstrument was registered in local system!", metaMetadataEnvelope.metadataMap.keysWithValues.mkString("[", ",", "]"))
-          } else {
-            // we avoid emitting a MetadataMap and instead directly apply the instruments onto the received metadata
-            MetadataMapParsing.applyAllRemoteMessageReceived(instruments, envelope)
-          }
-        }
-      }
-
       setHandlers(in, out, this)
     }
 }
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/InboundEnvelope.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/InboundEnvelope.scala
index cf2e8b3b54..02597c8eea 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/InboundEnvelope.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/InboundEnvelope.scala
@@ -130,6 +130,11 @@ private[remote] final class ReusableInboundEnvelope extends InboundEnvelope {
     this
   }
 
+  def withEnvelopeBuffer(envelopeBuffer: EnvelopeBuffer): InboundEnvelope = {
+    _envelopeBuffer = envelopeBuffer
+    this
+  }
+
   override def toString: String =
     s"InboundEnvelope($recipient, $message, $sender, $originUid, $association)"
 }
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/MessageDispatcher.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/MessageDispatcher.scala
index 33c4fc917b..523c6bdf21 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/MessageDispatcher.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/MessageDispatcher.scala
@@ -29,15 +29,18 @@ private[remote] class MessageDispatcher(
   private val log = Logging.withMarker(system, getClass.getName)
   private val debugLogEnabled = log.isDebugEnabled
 
-  def dispatch(
-    recipient:     InternalActorRef,
-    message:       AnyRef,
-    senderOption:  OptionVal[ActorRef],
-    originAddress: OptionVal[Address]): Unit = {
-
+  def dispatch(inboundEnvelope: InboundEnvelope): Unit = {
     import provider.remoteSettings.Artery._
     import Logging.messageClassName
 
+    val recipient = inboundEnvelope.recipient.get
+    val message = inboundEnvelope.message
+    val senderOption = inboundEnvelope.sender
+    val originAddress = inboundEnvelope.association match {
+      case OptionVal.Some(a) ⇒ OptionVal.Some(a.remoteAddress)
+      case OptionVal.None    ⇒ OptionVal.None
+    }
+
     val sender: ActorRef = senderOption.getOrElse(system.deadLetters)
     val originalReceiver = recipient.path
 
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.scala
deleted file mode 100644
index 4e2be61121..0000000000
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.scala
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,173 +0,0 @@
-/*
- * Copyright (C) 2016 Lightbend Inc. <http://www.lightbend.com>
- */
-
-package akka.remote.artery
-
-import java.nio.{ ByteBuffer, ByteOrder }
-
-import akka.actor.ExtendedActorSystem
-import akka.serialization.Serialization
-import akka.util.ByteString.ByteString1C
-import akka.util.{ ByteString, ByteStringBuilder }
-
-/**
- * INTERNAL API
- */
-private[akka] object MetadataEnvelopeSerializer {
-
-  private[akka] val EmptyRendered = {
-    implicit val _ByteOrder = ByteOrder.LITTLE_ENDIAN
-
-    val bsb = new ByteStringBuilder
-    bsb.putInt(0) // 0 length
-    bsb.result
-  }
-
-  // key/length of a metadata element are encoded within a single integer:
-  // supports keys in the range of <0-31>
-  final val EntryKeyMask = Integer.parseInt("1111 1000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 000".replace(" ", ""), 2)
-  def maskEntryKey(k: Byte): Int = (k.toInt << 26) & EntryKeyMask
-  def unmaskEntryKey(kv: Int): Byte = ((kv & EntryKeyMask) >> 26).toByte
-
-  final val EntryLengthMask = ~EntryKeyMask
-
-  def maskEntryLength(k: Int): Int = k & EntryLengthMask
-  def unmaskEntryLength(kv: Int): Int = kv & EntryLengthMask
-
-  def muxEntryKeyLength(k: Byte, l: Int): Int = {
-    maskEntryKey(k) | maskEntryLength(l)
-  }
-
-  def serialize(metadatas: MetadataMap[ByteString], headerBuilder: HeaderBuilder): Unit = {
-    if (metadatas.isEmpty) headerBuilder.clearMetadataContainer()
-    else {
-      val container = new MetadataMapRendering(metadatas)
-      headerBuilder.setMetadataContainer(container.render())
-    }
-  }
-
-  def deserialize(system: ExtendedActorSystem, originUid: Long, serialization: Serialization,
-                  serializer: Int, classManifest: String, envelope: EnvelopeBuffer): AnyRef = {
-    serialization.deserializeByteBuffer(envelope.byteBuffer, serializer, classManifest)
-  }
-}
-
-/**
- * INTERNAL API
- *
- * The metadata section is stored as ByteString (prefixed with Int length field,
- * the same way as any other literal), however the internal structure of it is as follows:
- *
- * {{{
- * Metadata entry:
- *
- *   0                   1                   2                   3
- *   0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2
- *  +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
- *  |   Key     |             Metadata entry length                   |
- *  +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
- *  |                   ... metadata entry ...                        |
- *  +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
- * }}}
- *
- */
-private[akka] final class MetadataMapRendering(val metadataMap: MetadataMap[ByteString]) extends AnyVal {
-  import MetadataEnvelopeSerializer._
-
-  def render(): ByteString =
-    if (metadataMap.isEmpty) {
-      // usually no-one will want to render an empty metadata section - it should not be there at all
-      EmptyRendered
-    } else {
-      implicit val _ByteOrder = ByteOrder.LITTLE_ENDIAN
-
-      // TODO optimise this, we could just count along the way and then prefix with the length
-      val totalSize = 4 /* length int field */ + metadataMap.usedSlots * 4 /* metadata length */ + metadataMap.foldLeftValues(0)(_ + _.length)
-      val b = new ByteStringBuilder // TODO could we reuse one?
-      b.sizeHint(totalSize)
-
-      b.putInt(totalSize - 4 /* don't count itself, the length prefix */ )
-      // TODO: move through and then prepend length
-      metadataMap.foreach { (key: Byte, value: ByteString) ⇒
-        // TODO try to remove allocation? Iterator otherwise, but that's also allocation
-        val kl = muxEntryKeyLength(key, value.length)
-        b.putInt(kl)
-        value match {
-          case c: ByteString1C ⇒ c.appendToBuilder(b) // uses putByteArrayUnsafe
-          case _               ⇒ b ++= value
-        }
-      }
-      b.result()
-    }
-}
-
-/** INTERNAL API */
-private[akka] object MetadataMapParsing {
-  import MetadataEnvelopeSerializer._
-
-  /** Allocates an MetadataMap */
-  def parse(envelope: InboundEnvelope): MetadataMapRendering = {
-    val buf = envelope.envelopeBuffer.byteBuffer
-    buf.position(EnvelopeBuffer.MetadataContainerAndLiteralSectionOffset)
-    parseRaw(buf)
-  }
-
-  /**
-   * INTERNAL API, only for testing
-   * The buffer MUST be already at the right position where the Metadata container starts.
-   */
-  private[akka] def parseRaw(buf: ByteBuffer) = {
-    buf.order(ByteOrder.LITTLE_ENDIAN)
-    val metadataContainerLength = buf.getInt()
-    val endOfMetadataPos = metadataContainerLength + buf.position()
-    val map = MetadataMap[ByteString]()
-
-    while (buf.position() < endOfMetadataPos) {
-      val kl = buf.getInt()
-      val k = unmaskEntryKey(kl) // k
-      val l = unmaskEntryLength(kl) // l
-
-      val arr = Array.ofDim[Byte](l)
-      buf.get(arr)
-      val metadata = ByteString1C(arr) // avoids copying again
-      map.set(k, metadata)
-    }
-
-    new MetadataMapRendering(map)
-  }
-
-  /** Implemented in a way to avoid allocations of any envelopes or arrays */
-  def applyAllRemoteMessageReceived(instruments: Vector[RemoteInstrument], envelope: InboundEnvelope): Unit = {
-    val buf = envelope.envelopeBuffer.byteBuffer
-    buf.position(EnvelopeBuffer.MetadataContainerAndLiteralSectionOffset)
-    applyAllRemoteMessageReceivedRaw(instruments, envelope, buf)
-  }
-
-  /**
-   * INTERNAL API, only for testing
-   * The buffer MUST be already at the right position where the Metadata container starts.
-   */
-  private[akka] def applyAllRemoteMessageReceivedRaw(instruments: Vector[RemoteInstrument], envelope: InboundEnvelope, buf: ByteBuffer): Unit = {
-    buf.order(ByteOrder.LITTLE_ENDIAN)
-
-    val metadataContainerLength = buf.getInt()
-    val endOfMetadataPos = metadataContainerLength + buf.position()
-
-    while (buf.position() < endOfMetadataPos) {
-      val keyAndLength = buf.getInt()
-      val key = unmaskEntryKey(keyAndLength)
-      val length = unmaskEntryLength(keyAndLength)
-
-      val arr = Array.ofDim[Byte](length) // TODO can be optimised to re-cycle this array instead
-      buf.get(arr)
-      val data = ByteString(arr) // bytes
-
-      instruments.find(_.identifier == key) match {
-        case Some(instr) ⇒ instr.remoteMessageReceived(envelope.recipient.orNull, envelope.message, envelope.sender.orNull, data)
-        case _           ⇒ throw new Exception(s"No RemoteInstrument for id $key available!")
-
-      }
-    }
-  }
-}
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrument.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrument.scala
index 9da058947e..f7f8810659 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrument.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrument.scala
@@ -5,7 +5,11 @@
 package akka.remote.artery
 
 import akka.actor.{ ActorRef, ExtendedActorSystem }
-import akka.util.{ ByteString, OptionVal }
+import akka.event.{ Logging, LoggingAdapter }
+import akka.util.OptionVal
+import java.nio.ByteBuffer
+import scala.annotation.tailrec
+import scala.util.control.NonFatal
 
 /**
  * INTERNAL API
@@ -16,48 +20,274 @@ import akka.util.{ ByteString, OptionVal }
  * Multiple instruments are automatically handled, however they MUST NOT overlap in their idenfitiers.
  *
  * Instances of `RemoteInstrument` are created from configuration. A new instance of RemoteInstrument
- * will be created for each encoder and decoder. It's only called from the stage, so if it dosn't
+ * will be created for each encoder and decoder. It's only called from the stage, so if it doesn't
  * delegate to any shared instance it doesn't have to be thread-safe.
  */
 abstract class RemoteInstrument {
   /**
    * Instrument identifier.
    *
-   * MUST be >=0 and <32.
+   * MUST be >=1 and <32.
    *
-   * Values between 0 and 7 are reserved for Akka internal use.
+   * Values between 1 and 7 are reserved for Akka internal use.
    */
   def identifier: Byte
 
   /**
-   * Called right before putting the message onto the wire.
-   * Parameters MAY be `null` (except `message`)!
-   *
-   * @return `metadata` rendered to be serialized into the remove envelope, or `null` if no metadata should be attached
+   * Should the serialization be timed? Otherwise times are always 0.
    */
-  def remoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef): ByteString
+  def serializationTimingEnabled: Boolean = false
 
   /**
-   * Called once a message (containing a metadata field designated for this instrument) has been deserialized from the wire.
+   * Called while serializing the message.
+   * Parameters MAY be `null` (except `message` and `buffer`)!
    */
-  def remoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, metadata: ByteString): Unit
+  def remoteWriteMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit
 
+  /**
+   * Called right before putting the message onto the wire.
+   * Parameters MAY be `null` (except `message` and `buffer`)!
+   *
+   * The `size` is the total serialized size in bytes of the complete message including akka specific headers and any
+   * `RemoteInstrument` metadata.
+   * If `serializationTimingEnabled` returns true, then `time` will be the total time it took to serialize all data
+   * in the message in nanoseconds, otherwise it is 0.
+   */
+  def remoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long): Unit
+
+  /**
+   * Called while deserializing the message once a message (containing a metadata field designated for this instrument) is found.
+   */
+  def remoteReadMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit
+
+  /**
+   * Called when the message has been deserialized.
+   *
+   * The `size` is the total serialized size in bytes of the complete message including akka specific headers and any
+   * `RemoteInstrument` metadata.
+   * If `serializationTimingEnabled` returns true, then `time` will be the total time it took to deserialize all data
+   * in the message in nanoseconds, otherwise it is 0.
+   */
+  def remoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long): Unit
 }
 
-object NoopRemoteInstrument extends RemoteInstrument {
-  override def identifier: Byte =
-    -1
+/**
+ * INTERNAL API
+ *
+ * The metadata section is stored as raw bytes (prefixed with an Int length field,
+ * the same way as any other literal), however the internal structure of it is as follows:
+ *
+ * {{{
+ * Metadata entry:
+ *
+ *   0                   1                   2                   3
+ *   0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2
+ *  +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+ *  |   Key     |             Metadata entry length                   |
+ *  +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+ *  |                   ... metadata entry ...                        |
+ *  +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+ * }}}
+ *
+ */
+private[remote] final class RemoteInstruments(
+  private val system: ExtendedActorSystem,
+  private val log:    LoggingAdapter,
+  _instruments:       Vector[RemoteInstrument]) {
+  import RemoteInstruments._
 
-  override def remoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef): ByteString =
-    null
+  def this(system: ExtendedActorSystem, log: LoggingAdapter) = this(system, log, RemoteInstruments.create(system, log))
+  def this(system: ExtendedActorSystem) = this(system, Logging.getLogger(system, classOf[RemoteInstruments]))
 
-  override def remoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, metadata: ByteString): Unit =
-    ()
+  // keep the remote instruments sorted by identifier to speed up deserialization
+  private val instruments: Vector[RemoteInstrument] = _instruments.sortBy(_.identifier)
+  // does any of the instruments want serialization timing?
+  private val serializationTimingEnabled = instruments.exists(_.serializationTimingEnabled)
+
+  def serialize(outboundEnvelope: OptionVal[OutboundEnvelope], buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit = {
+    if (instruments.nonEmpty && outboundEnvelope.isDefined) {
+      val startPos = buffer.position()
+      val oe = outboundEnvelope.get
+      try {
+        buffer.putInt(0)
+        val dataPos = buffer.position()
+        var i = 0
+        while (i < instruments.length) {
+          val rewindPos = buffer.position()
+          val instrument = instruments(i)
+          try {
+            serializeInstrument(instrument, oe, buffer)
+          } catch {
+            case NonFatal(t) ⇒
+              log.debug(
+                "Skipping serialization of RemoteInstrument {} since it failed with {}",
+                instrument.identifier, t.getMessage)
+              buffer.position(rewindPos)
+          }
+          i += 1
+        }
+        val endPos = buffer.position()
+        if (endPos == dataPos) {
+          // no instruments wrote anything so we need to rewind to start
+          buffer.position(startPos)
+        } else {
+          // some instruments wrote data, so write the total length
+          buffer.putInt(startPos, endPos - dataPos)
+        }
+      } catch {
+        case NonFatal(t) ⇒
+          log.debug("Skipping serialization of all RemoteInstruments due to unhandled failure {}", t)
+          buffer.position(startPos)
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  private def serializeInstrument(instrument: RemoteInstrument, outboundEnvelope: OutboundEnvelope, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit = {
+    val startPos = buffer.position()
+    buffer.putInt(0)
+    val dataPos = buffer.position()
+    instrument.remoteWriteMetadata(outboundEnvelope.recipient.orNull, outboundEnvelope.message, outboundEnvelope.sender.orNull, buffer)
+    val endPos = buffer.position()
+    if (endPos == dataPos) {
+      // if the instrument didn't write anything, then rewind to the start
+      buffer.position(startPos)
+    } else {
+      // the instrument wrote something so we need to write the identifier and length
+      buffer.putInt(startPos, combineKeyLength(instrument.identifier, endPos - dataPos))
+    }
+  }
+
+  def deserialize(inboundEnvelope: InboundEnvelope): Unit = {
+    if (inboundEnvelope.flag(EnvelopeBuffer.MetadataPresentFlag)) {
+      inboundEnvelope.envelopeBuffer.byteBuffer.position(EnvelopeBuffer.MetadataContainerAndLiteralSectionOffset)
+      deserializeRaw(inboundEnvelope)
+    }
+  }
+
+  def deserializeRaw(inboundEnvelope: InboundEnvelope): Unit = {
+    val buffer = inboundEnvelope.envelopeBuffer.byteBuffer
+    val length = buffer.getInt
+    val endPos = buffer.position() + length
+    try {
+      if (instruments.nonEmpty) {
+        var i = 0
+        while (i < instruments.length && buffer.position() < endPos) {
+          val instrument = instruments(i)
+          val startPos = buffer.position()
+          val keyAndLength = buffer.getInt
+          val dataPos = buffer.position()
+          val key = getKey(keyAndLength)
+          val length = getLength(keyAndLength)
+          var nextPos = dataPos + length
+          val identifier = instrument.identifier
+          if (key == identifier) {
+            try {
+              deserializeInstrument(instrument, inboundEnvelope, buffer)
+            } catch {
+              case NonFatal(t) ⇒
+                log.debug(
+                  "Skipping deserialization of RemoteInstrument {} since it failed with {}",
+                  instrument.identifier, t.getMessage)
+            }
+            i += 1
+          } else if (key > identifier) {
+            // since instruments are sorted on both sides skip this local one and retry the serialized one
+            log.debug("Skipping local RemoteInstrument {} that has no matching data in the message", identifier)
+            nextPos = startPos
+            i += 1
+          } else {
+            // since instruments are sorted on both sides skip the serialized one and retry the local one
+            log.debug("Skipping serialized data in message for RemoteInstrument {} that has no local match", key)
+          }
+          buffer.position(nextPos)
+        }
+      } else {
+        if (log.isDebugEnabled) log.debug(
+          "Skipping serialized data in message for RemoteInstrument(s) {} that has no local match",
+          remoteInstrumentIdIteratorRaw(buffer, endPos).mkString("[", ", ", "]"))
+      }
+    } catch {
+      case NonFatal(t) ⇒
+        log.debug("Skipping further deserialization of remaining RemoteInstruments due to unhandled failure {}", t)
+    } finally {
+      buffer.position(endPos)
+    }
+  }
+
+  private def deserializeInstrument(instrument: RemoteInstrument, inboundEnvelope: InboundEnvelope, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit = {
+    instrument.remoteReadMetadata(inboundEnvelope.recipient.orNull, inboundEnvelope.message, inboundEnvelope.sender.orNull, buffer)
+  }
+
+  def messageSent(outboundEnvelope: OutboundEnvelope, size: Int, time: Long): Unit = {
+    @tailrec def messageSent(pos: Int): Unit = {
+      if (pos < instruments.length) {
+        val instrument = instruments(pos)
+        try {
+          messageSentInstrument(instrument, outboundEnvelope, size, time)
+        } catch {
+          case NonFatal(t) ⇒
+            log.debug("Message sent in RemoteInstrument {} failed with {}", instrument.identifier, t.getMessage)
+        }
+        messageSent(pos + 1)
+      }
+    }
+    messageSent(0)
+  }
+
+  private def messageSentInstrument(instrument: RemoteInstrument, outboundEnvelope: OutboundEnvelope, size: Int, time: Long): Unit = {
+    instrument.remoteMessageSent(outboundEnvelope.recipient.orNull, outboundEnvelope.message, outboundEnvelope.sender.orNull, size, time)
+  }
+
+  def messageReceived(inboundEnvelope: InboundEnvelope, size: Int, time: Long): Unit = {
+    @tailrec def messageRecieved(pos: Int): Unit = {
+      if (pos < instruments.length) {
+        val instrument = instruments(pos)
+        try {
+          messageReceivedInstrument(instrument, inboundEnvelope, size, time)
+        } catch {
+          case NonFatal(t) ⇒
+            log.debug("Message received in RemoteInstrument {} failed with {}", instrument.identifier, t.getMessage)
+        }
+        messageRecieved(pos + 1)
+      }
+    }
+    messageRecieved(0)
+  }
+
+  private def messageReceivedInstrument(instrument: RemoteInstrument, inboundEnvelope: InboundEnvelope, size: Int, time: Long): Unit = {
+    instrument.remoteMessageReceived(inboundEnvelope.recipient.orNull, inboundEnvelope.message, inboundEnvelope.sender.orNull, size, time)
+  }
+
+  private def remoteInstrumentIdIteratorRaw(buffer: ByteBuffer, endPos: Int): Iterator[Int] = {
+    new Iterator[Int] {
+      override def hasNext: Boolean = buffer.position() < endPos
+      override def next(): Int = {
+        val keyAndLength = buffer.getInt
+        buffer.position(buffer.position() + getLength(keyAndLength))
+        getKey(keyAndLength)
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  def isEmpty: Boolean = instruments.isEmpty
+  def nonEmpty: Boolean = instruments.nonEmpty
+  def timeSerialization = serializationTimingEnabled
 }
 
 /** INTERNAL API */
 private[remote] object RemoteInstruments {
-  def create(system: ExtendedActorSystem): Vector[RemoteInstrument] = {
+
+  def apply(system: ExtendedActorSystem): RemoteInstruments =
+    new RemoteInstruments(system)
+
+  // key/length of a metadata element are encoded within a single integer:
+  // supports keys in the range of <0-31>
+  private final val lengthMask: Int = ~(31 << 26)
+  def combineKeyLength(k: Byte, l: Int): Int = (k.toInt << 26) | (l & lengthMask)
+  def getKey(kl: Int): Byte = (kl >>> 26).toByte
+  def getLength(kl: Int): Int = kl & lengthMask
+
+  def create(system: ExtendedActorSystem, log: LoggingAdapter): Vector[RemoteInstrument] = {
     val c = system.settings.config
     val path = "akka.remote.artery.advanced.instruments"
     import scala.collection.JavaConverters._
@@ -69,124 +299,3 @@ private[remote] object RemoteInstruments {
     }(collection.breakOut)
   }
 }
-
-/**
- * INTERNAL API
- *
- * This datastructure is specialized for addressing directly into a known IDs slot.
- * It is used when deserializing/serializing metadata and we know the ID we want to reach into.
- *
- * Mutable & NOT thread-safe.
- *
- * Fixed-size: 32-slots array-backed Map-like structure.
- * Lazy: The backing array is allocated lazily only when needed, thus we pay no cost for the metadata array if
- * the system is not using metadata.
- * Life-cycle: Owned and linked to the lifecycle of an [[OutboundEnvelope]].
- * Re-cycled:  Aimed to be re-cycled to produce the least possible GC-churn, by calling `clear()` when done with it.
- *
- * Reserved keys: The keys 0–7 are reserved for Akka internal purposes and future extensions.
- */
-private[remote] final class MetadataMap[T >: Null] {
-  val capacity = 32
-
-  protected var backing: Array[T] = null // TODO re-think if a plain LinkedList wouldn't be fine here?
-
-  private var _usedSlots = 0
-
-  def usedSlots = _usedSlots
-
-  def apply(i: Int): OptionVal[T] =
-    if (backing == null) OptionVal.None
-    else OptionVal[T](backing(i))
-
-  def isEmpty = usedSlots == 0
-
-  def nonEmpty = !isEmpty
-
-  def hasValueFor(i: Int) = nonEmpty && backing(i) != null
-
-  // FIXME too specialized...
-  def foldLeftValues[A](zero: A)(f: (A, T) ⇒ A): A = {
-    var acc: A = zero
-    var hit = 0
-    var i = 0
-    while (i < capacity && hit < _usedSlots) {
-      val it = backing(i)
-      if (it != null) {
-        acc = f(acc, it)
-        hit += 1
-      }
-      i += 1
-    }
-    acc
-  }
-
-  /** Heavy operation, only used for error logging */
-  def keysWithValues: List[Int] = backing.zipWithIndex.filter({ case (t, id) ⇒ t != null }).map(_._2).toList
-
-  def foreach(f: (Byte, T) ⇒ Unit) = {
-    var i = 0
-    var hit = 0
-    while (i < capacity && hit < _usedSlots) {
-      val t = backing(i)
-      if (t != null) {
-        f(i.toByte, t)
-        hit += 1
-      }
-      i += 1
-    }
-  }
-
-  private def allocateIfNeeded(): Unit =
-    if (backing == null) backing = Array.ofDim[Object](capacity).asInstanceOf[Array[T]]
-
-  /**
-   * Set a value at given index.
-   * Setting a null value removes the entry (the slot is marked as not used).
-   */
-  def set(i: Int, t: T): Unit =
-    if (t == null) {
-      if (backing == null) ()
-      else {
-        if (backing(i) != null) _usedSlots -= 1 // we're clearing a spot
-        backing(i) = null.asInstanceOf[T]
-      }
-    } else {
-      allocateIfNeeded()
-
-      if (backing(i) == null) {
-        // was empty previously
-        _usedSlots += 1
-      } else {
-        // replacing previous value, usedSlots remains unchanged
-      }
-
-      backing(i) = t
-    }
-
-  /**
-   * If the backing array was already allocated clears it, if it wasn't does nothing (no-op).
-   * This is so in order to pay no-cost when not using metadata - clearing then is instant.
-   */
-  def clear() =
-    if (isEmpty) ()
-    else {
-      var i = 0
-      while (i < capacity) {
-        backing(i) = null.asInstanceOf[T]
-        i += 1
-      }
-      _usedSlots = 0
-    }
-
-  override def toString() =
-    if (backing == null) s"MetadataMap(<empty>)"
-    else s"MetadataMap(${backing.toList.mkString("[", ",", "]")})"
-}
-
-/**
- * INTERNAL API
- */
-private[remote] object MetadataMap {
-  def apply[T >: Null]() = new MetadataMap[T]
-}
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataCarryingSpec.scala b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataCarryingSpec.scala
index 7d953213d8..b6f7736f6f 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataCarryingSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataCarryingSpec.scala
@@ -4,30 +4,23 @@
 package akka.remote.artery
 
 import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicReference
-
-import scala.concurrent.duration._
-
-import akka.actor.ActorRef
-import akka.actor.ActorSelectionMessage
-import akka.actor.ActorSystem
-import akka.actor.ExtendedActorSystem
-import akka.actor.Extension
-import akka.actor.ExtensionId
-import akka.actor.ExtensionIdProvider
-import akka.remote.artery.MetadataCarryingSpy.{ RemoteMessageReceived, RemoteMessageSent }
+import akka.actor._
 import akka.testkit.ImplicitSender
-import akka.testkit.SocketUtil._
 import akka.testkit.TestActors
 import akka.testkit.TestProbe
 import akka.util.ByteString
+import java.nio.{ ByteBuffer, CharBuffer }
+import java.nio.charset.Charset
 
 object MetadataCarryingSpy extends ExtensionId[MetadataCarryingSpy] with ExtensionIdProvider {
   override def get(system: ActorSystem): MetadataCarryingSpy = super.get(system)
   override def lookup = MetadataCarryingSpy
   override def createExtension(system: ExtendedActorSystem): MetadataCarryingSpy = new MetadataCarryingSpy
 
-  final case class RemoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef)
-  final case class RemoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, metadata: ByteString)
+  final case class RemoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long)
+  final case class RemoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long)
+  final case class RemoteWriteMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef)
+  final case class RemoteReadMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, metadata: String)
 }
 
 class MetadataCarryingSpy extends Extension {
@@ -37,29 +30,66 @@ class MetadataCarryingSpy extends Extension {
 }
 
 class TestInstrument(system: ExtendedActorSystem) extends RemoteInstrument {
+  import akka.remote.artery.MetadataCarryingSpy._
+
+  private val charset = Charset.forName("UTF-8")
+  private val encoder = charset.newEncoder()
+  private val decoder = charset.newDecoder()
 
   override val identifier: Byte = 1
 
-  override def remoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef): ByteString =
+  override def serializationTimingEnabled: Boolean = true
+
+  override def remoteWriteMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit =
     message match {
       case _: MetadataCarryingSpec.Ping | ActorSelectionMessage(_: MetadataCarryingSpec.Ping, _, _) ⇒
-        val metadata = ByteString("!!!")
-        MetadataCarryingSpy(system).ref.foreach(_ ! RemoteMessageSent(recipient, message, sender))
-        metadata // this data will be attached to the remote message
+        val metadata = "!!!"
+        buffer.putInt(metadata.length)
+        encoder.encode(CharBuffer.wrap(metadata), buffer, true)
+        encoder.flush(buffer)
+        encoder.reset()
+        MetadataCarryingSpy(system).ref.foreach(_ ! RemoteWriteMetadata(recipient, message, sender))
       case _ ⇒
-        null
     }
 
-  override def remoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, metadata: ByteString): Unit =
+  override def remoteReadMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit =
     message match {
       case _: MetadataCarryingSpec.Ping | ActorSelectionMessage(_: MetadataCarryingSpec.Ping, _, _) ⇒
-        MetadataCarryingSpy(system).ref.foreach(_ ! RemoteMessageReceived(recipient, message, sender, metadata))
+        val size = buffer.getInt
+        val charBuffer = CharBuffer.allocate(size)
+        decoder.decode(buffer, charBuffer, false)
+        decoder.reset()
+        charBuffer.flip()
+        val metadata = charBuffer.toString
+        MetadataCarryingSpy(system).ref.foreach(_ ! RemoteReadMetadata(recipient, message, sender, metadata))
+      case _ ⇒
+    }
+
+  override def remoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long): Unit =
+    message match {
+      case _: MetadataCarryingSpec.Ping | ActorSelectionMessage(_: MetadataCarryingSpec.Ping, _, _) ⇒
+        MetadataCarryingSpy(system).ref.foreach(_ ! RemoteMessageSent(recipient, message, sender, size, time))
+      case _ ⇒
+    }
+
+  override def remoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long): Unit =
+    message match {
+      case _: MetadataCarryingSpec.Ping | ActorSelectionMessage(_: MetadataCarryingSpec.Ping, _, _) ⇒
+        MetadataCarryingSpy(system).ref.foreach(_ ! RemoteMessageReceived(recipient, message, sender, size, time))
       case _ ⇒
     }
 }
 
 object MetadataCarryingSpec {
   final case class Ping(payload: ByteString = ByteString.empty)
+
+  class ProxyActor(local: ActorRef, remotePath: ActorPath) extends Actor {
+    val remote = context.system.actorSelection(remotePath)
+    override def receive = {
+      case message if sender() == local ⇒ remote ! message
+      case message                      ⇒ local ! message
+    }
+  }
 }
 
 class MetadataCarryingSpec extends ArteryMultiNodeSpec(
@@ -72,6 +102,7 @@ class MetadataCarryingSpec extends ArteryMultiNodeSpec(
   """) with ImplicitSender {
 
   import MetadataCarryingSpec._
+  import MetadataCarryingSpy._
 
   "Metadata" should {
 
@@ -85,17 +116,30 @@ class MetadataCarryingSpec extends ArteryMultiNodeSpec(
       MetadataCarryingSpy(systemB).setProbe(instrumentProbeB.ref)
 
       systemB.actorOf(TestActors.echoActorProps, "reply")
-      systemA.actorSelection(rootActorPath(systemB) / "user" / "reply") ! Ping()
+      val proxyA = systemA.actorOf(Props(classOf[ProxyActor], testActor, rootActorPath(systemB) / "user" / "reply"))
+      proxyA ! Ping()
       expectMsgType[Ping]
 
+      val writeA = instrumentProbeA.expectMsgType[RemoteWriteMetadata]
       val sentA = instrumentProbeA.expectMsgType[RemoteMessageSent]
+      val readB = instrumentProbeB.expectMsgType[RemoteReadMetadata]
       val recvdB = instrumentProbeB.expectMsgType[RemoteMessageReceived]
-      recvdB.metadata should ===(ByteString("!!!"))
+      readB.metadata should ===("!!!")
+      sentA.size should be > 0
+      sentA.time should be > 0L
+      recvdB.size should ===(sentA.size)
+      recvdB.time should be > 0L
 
       // for the reply
+      val writeB = instrumentProbeB.expectMsgType[RemoteWriteMetadata]
       val sentB = instrumentProbeB.expectMsgType[RemoteMessageSent]
+      val readA = instrumentProbeA.expectMsgType[RemoteReadMetadata]
       val recvdA = instrumentProbeA.expectMsgType[RemoteMessageReceived]
-      recvdA.metadata should ===(ByteString("!!!"))
+      readA.metadata should ===("!!!")
+      sentB.size should be > 0
+      sentB.time should be > 0L
+      recvdA.size should ===(sentB.size)
+      recvdA.time should be > 0L
     }
   }
 
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataContainerSpec.scala b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataContainerSpec.scala
deleted file mode 100644
index a1a4907100..0000000000
--- a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataContainerSpec.scala
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,65 +0,0 @@
-/*
- * Copyright (C) 2016 Lightbend Inc. <http://www.lightbend.com>
- */
-package akka.remote.artery
-
-import akka.actor.ActorRef
-import akka.testkit.{ AkkaSpec, TestProbe }
-import akka.util.ByteString
-import scala.concurrent.duration._
-
-class MetadataContainerSpec extends AkkaSpec {
-
-  "MetadataContainer" should {
-    "parse, given empty map" in {
-      val map = new MetadataMap[ByteString]
-      val container = new MetadataMapRendering(map)
-
-      val rendered = container.render()
-      val back = MetadataMapParsing.parseRaw(rendered.asByteBuffer)
-
-      map.toString() should ===(back.metadataMap.toString())
-    }
-    "parse, given 1 allocated in map" in {
-      val map = new MetadataMap[ByteString]
-      val container = new MetadataMapRendering(map)
-      map.set(1, ByteString("!!!"))
-
-      val rendered = container.render()
-      val back = MetadataMapParsing.parseRaw(rendered.asByteBuffer)
-
-      map.toString() should ===(back.metadataMap.toString())
-    }
-
-    "apply, given 3 allocated in map" in {
-      val map = new MetadataMap[ByteString]
-      val container = new MetadataMapRendering(map)
-      map.set(1, ByteString("!!!"))
-      map.set(10, ByteString("??????"))
-      map.set(31, ByteString("........."))
-
-      val p = TestProbe()
-
-      def testInstrument(id: Int): RemoteInstrument = {
-        new RemoteInstrument {
-          override def identifier: Byte = id.toByte
-          override def remoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef): ByteString = ???
-          override def remoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, metadata: ByteString): Unit =
-            p.ref ! s"${identifier}-${metadata.utf8String}"
-        }
-      }
-      val instruments = Vector(
-        testInstrument(1), testInstrument(31), testInstrument(10)
-      )
-
-      val rendered = container.render()
-
-      val mockEnvelope = new ReusableInboundEnvelope
-      MetadataMapParsing.applyAllRemoteMessageReceivedRaw(instruments, mockEnvelope, rendered.asByteBuffer)
-
-      p.expectMsgAllOf("1-!!!", "10-??????", "31-.........")
-      p.expectNoMsg(100.millis)
-    }
-
-  }
-}
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataMapSpec.scala b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataMapSpec.scala
deleted file mode 100644
index af0b6c69f9..0000000000
--- a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetadataMapSpec.scala
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,47 +0,0 @@
-/*
- * Copyright (C) 2016 Lightbend Inc. <http://www.lightbend.com>
- */
-package akka.remote.artery
-
-import akka.util.OptionVal
-import org.scalatest.{ Matchers, WordSpec }
-
-class MetadataMapSpec extends WordSpec with Matchers {
-
-  "MetadataMap" must {
-    "hasValueFor" in {
-      val a = MetadataMap[String]()
-
-      a.hasValueFor(0) should ===(false)
-      a.set(0, "0")
-      a.hasValueFor(0) should ===(true)
-      a.hasValueFor(1) should ===(false)
-
-      a.clear()
-      a.isEmpty should ===(true)
-      a.nonEmpty should ===(false)
-      a.hasValueFor(12) should ===(false)
-      a.hasValueFor(0) should ===(false)
-      a.set(0, "0")
-      a.hasValueFor(0) should ===(true)
-    }
-    "setting values" in {
-      val a = MetadataMap[String]()
-
-      a(0) should ===(OptionVal.None)
-      a.usedSlots should ===(0)
-      a.set(0, "0")
-      a(0) should ===(OptionVal.Some("0"))
-      a.usedSlots should ===(1)
-
-      a.set(0, "1")
-      a(0) should ===(OptionVal.Some("1"))
-      a.usedSlots should ===(1)
-
-      a.set(0, null)
-      a(0) should ===(OptionVal.None)
-      a.usedSlots should ===(0)
-    }
-  }
-
-}
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrumentsSerializationSpec.scala b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrumentsSerializationSpec.scala
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..cc6db063d3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrumentsSerializationSpec.scala
@@ -0,0 +1,192 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright (C) 2016 Lightbend Inc. <http://www.lightbend.com>
+ */
+package akka.remote.artery
+
+import akka.actor.{ ActorRef, ActorSystem, ExtendedActorSystem, InternalActorRef }
+import akka.event._
+import akka.testkit.TestEvent.Mute
+import akka.testkit.{ AkkaSpec, EventFilter, TestEvent, TestProbe }
+import akka.util.OptionVal
+import java.nio.{ ByteBuffer, CharBuffer }
+import java.nio.charset.Charset
+import scala.concurrent.duration._
+
+class RemoteInstrumentsSerializationSpec extends AkkaSpec("akka.loglevel = DEBUG") {
+  import RemoteInstrumentsSerializationSpec._
+
+  def remoteInstruments(instruments: RemoteInstrument*): RemoteInstruments = {
+    val vec = Vector(instruments: _*)
+    new RemoteInstruments(system.asInstanceOf[ExtendedActorSystem], system.log, vec)
+  }
+
+  def ensureDebugLog[T](messages: String*)(f: ⇒ T): T = {
+    if (messages.isEmpty)
+      f
+    else
+      EventFilter.debug(message = messages.head, occurrences = 1) intercept {
+        ensureDebugLog(messages.tail: _*)(f)
+      }
+  }
+
+  "RemoteInstruments" should {
+    "not write anything in the buffer if not deserializing" in {
+      val buffer = ByteBuffer.allocate(1024)
+      serialize(remoteInstruments(), buffer)
+      buffer.position() should be(0)
+    }
+
+    "serialize and deserialize a single remote instrument" in {
+      val p = TestProbe()
+      val ri = remoteInstruments(testInstrument(1, "!"))
+      serializeDeserialize(ri, ri, p.ref, "foo")
+      p.expectMsgAllOf("foo-1-!")
+      p.expectNoMsg(100.millis)
+    }
+
+    "serialize and deserialize multiple remote instruments in the correct order" in {
+      val p = TestProbe()
+      val ri = remoteInstruments(testInstrument(1, "!"), testInstrument(31, "???"), testInstrument(10, ".."))
+      serializeDeserialize(ri, ri, p.ref, "bar")
+      p.expectMsgAllOf("bar-1-!", "bar-10-..", "bar-31-???")
+      p.expectNoMsg(100.millis)
+    }
+
+    "skip exitsing remote instruments not in the message" in {
+      ensureDebugLog(
+        "Skipping local RemoteInstrument 10 that has no matching data in the message") {
+          val p = TestProbe()
+          val instruments = Seq(testInstrument(7, "!"), testInstrument(10, ".."), testInstrument(21, "???"))
+          val riS = remoteInstruments(instruments(0), instruments(2))
+          val riD = remoteInstruments(instruments: _*)
+          serializeDeserialize(riS, riD, p.ref, "baz")
+          p.expectMsgAllOf("baz-7-!", "baz-21-???")
+          p.expectNoMsg(100.millis)
+        }
+    }
+
+    "skip remote instruments in the message that are not existing" in {
+      ensureDebugLog(
+        "Skipping serialized data in message for RemoteInstrument 11 that has no local match") {
+          val p = TestProbe()
+          val instruments = Seq(testInstrument(6, "!"), testInstrument(11, ".."), testInstrument(19, "???"))
+          val riS = remoteInstruments(instruments: _*)
+          val riD = remoteInstruments(instruments(0), instruments(2))
+          serializeDeserialize(riS, riD, p.ref, "buz")
+          p.expectMsgAllOf("buz-6-!", "buz-19-???")
+          p.expectNoMsg(100.millis)
+        }
+    }
+
+    "skip all remote instruments in the message if none are existing" in {
+      ensureDebugLog(
+        "Skipping serialized data in message for RemoteInstrument(s) [1, 10, 31] that has no local match") {
+          val p = TestProbe()
+          val instruments = Seq(testInstrument(1, "!"), testInstrument(10, ".."), testInstrument(31, "???"))
+          val riS = remoteInstruments(instruments: _*)
+          val riD = remoteInstruments()
+          serializeDeserialize(riS, riD, p.ref, "boz")
+          p.expectNoMsg(100.millis)
+        }
+    }
+
+    "skip serializing remote instrument that fails" in {
+      ensureDebugLog(
+        "Skipping serialization of RemoteInstrument 7 since it failed with boom",
+        "Skipping local RemoteInstrument 7 that has no matching data in the message") {
+          val p = TestProbe()
+          val instruments = Seq(
+            testInstrument(7, "!", sentThrowable = boom), testInstrument(10, ".."), testInstrument(21, "???"))
+          val ri = remoteInstruments(instruments: _*)
+          serializeDeserialize(ri, ri, p.ref, "woot")
+          p.expectMsgAllOf("woot-10-..", "woot-21-???")
+          p.expectNoMsg(100.millis)
+        }
+    }
+
+    "skip deserializing remote instrument that fails" in {
+      ensureDebugLog(
+        "Skipping deserialization of RemoteInstrument 7 since it failed with boom",
+        "Skipping deserialization of RemoteInstrument 21 since it failed with boom") {
+          val p = TestProbe()
+          val instruments = Seq(
+            testInstrument(7, "!", receiveThrowable = boom), testInstrument(10, ".."),
+            testInstrument(21, "???", receiveThrowable = boom))
+          val ri = remoteInstruments(instruments: _*)
+          serializeDeserialize(ri, ri, p.ref, "waat")
+          p.expectMsgAllOf("waat-10-..")
+          p.expectNoMsg(100.millis)
+        }
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+object RemoteInstrumentsSerializationSpec {
+
+  class Filter(settings: ActorSystem.Settings, stream: EventStream) extends LoggingFilter {
+    stream.publish(Mute(EventFilter.debug()))
+
+    override def isErrorEnabled(logClass: Class[_], logSource: String): Boolean = true
+
+    override def isWarningEnabled(logClass: Class[_], logSource: String): Boolean = true
+
+    override def isInfoEnabled(logClass: Class[_], logSource: String): Boolean = true
+
+    override def isDebugEnabled(logClass: Class[_], logSource: String): Boolean = logSource == "DebugSource"
+  }
+
+  def testInstrument(id: Int, metadata: String, sentThrowable: Throwable = null, receiveThrowable: Throwable = null): RemoteInstrument = {
+    new RemoteInstrument {
+      private val charset = Charset.forName("UTF-8")
+      private val encoder = charset.newEncoder()
+      private val decoder = charset.newDecoder()
+
+      override def identifier: Byte = id.toByte
+
+      override def remoteWriteMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit = {
+        buffer.putInt(metadata.length)
+        if (sentThrowable ne null) throw sentThrowable
+        encoder.encode(CharBuffer.wrap(metadata), buffer, true)
+        encoder.flush(buffer)
+        encoder.reset()
+      }
+
+      override def remoteReadMetadata(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit = {
+        val size = buffer.getInt
+        if (receiveThrowable ne null) throw receiveThrowable
+        val charBuffer = CharBuffer.allocate(size)
+        decoder.decode(buffer, charBuffer, false)
+        decoder.reset()
+        charBuffer.flip()
+        val string = charBuffer.toString
+        recipient ! s"$message-$identifier-$string"
+      }
+
+      override def remoteMessageSent(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long): Unit = ()
+
+      override def remoteMessageReceived(recipient: ActorRef, message: Object, sender: ActorRef, size: Int, time: Long): Unit = ()
+    }
+  }
+
+  def serialize(ri: RemoteInstruments, buffer: ByteBuffer): Unit = {
+    val mockOutbound = new ReusableOutboundEnvelope()
+    ri.serialize(OptionVal(mockOutbound), buffer)
+  }
+
+  def deserialize(ri: RemoteInstruments, buffer: ByteBuffer, recipient: ActorRef, message: AnyRef): Unit = {
+    val r = recipient.asInstanceOf[InternalActorRef]
+    val envelopeBuffer = new EnvelopeBuffer(buffer)
+    val mockInbound =
+      new ReusableInboundEnvelope().withEnvelopeBuffer(envelopeBuffer).withRecipient(r).withMessage(message)
+    ri.deserializeRaw(mockInbound)
+  }
+
+  def serializeDeserialize(riS: RemoteInstruments, riD: RemoteInstruments, recipient: ActorRef, message: AnyRef): Unit = {
+    val buffer = ByteBuffer.allocate(1024)
+    serialize(riS, buffer)
+    buffer.flip()
+    deserialize(riD, buffer, recipient, message)
+  }
+
+  val boom = new IllegalArgumentException("boom")
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetaMetadataSerializerSpec.scala b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrumentsSpec.scala
similarity index 50%
rename from akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetaMetadataSerializerSpec.scala
rename to akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrumentsSpec.scala
index 2652282994..e6ef103360 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/MetaMetadataSerializerSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/artery/RemoteInstrumentsSpec.scala
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ import org.scalacheck.{ Arbitrary, Gen }
 import org.scalatest.prop.Checkers
 import org.scalatest.{ Matchers, WordSpec }
 
-class MetaMetadataSerializerSpec extends WordSpec with Matchers with Checkers {
+class RemoteInstrumentsSpec extends WordSpec with Matchers with Checkers {
 
   case class KeyLen(k: Key, l: Len) {
     override def toString = s" key = ${k}, len = ${l}"
@@ -22,48 +22,50 @@ class MetaMetadataSerializerSpec extends WordSpec with Matchers with Checkers {
     } yield KeyLen(key, len)
   }
 
-  "MetaMetadataSerializer" must {
+  "RemoteInstruments" must {
 
-    "perform roundtrip masking/unmasking of entry key+length" in {
+    "combine and decompose single key and length" in {
       val key: Byte = 17
       val len = 812
-      val kl = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.muxEntryKeyLength(key, len)
+      val kl = RemoteInstruments.combineKeyLength(key, len)
 
-      val key2 = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.unmaskEntryKey(kl)
+      val key2 = RemoteInstruments.getKey(kl)
       key2 should ===(key)
-      val len2 = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.unmaskEntryLength(kl)
+      val len2 = RemoteInstruments.getLength(kl)
       len2 should ===(len)
     }
 
-    "perform key roundtrip using mask/unmask" in {
+    "combine and decompose key with 0 multiple times" in {
       check { (kl: KeyLen) ⇒
         val k = kl.k
 
-        val masked = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.maskEntryKey(k)
-        val uk = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.unmaskEntryKey(masked)
+        val masked = RemoteInstruments.combineKeyLength(k, 0)
+        val uk = RemoteInstruments.getKey(masked)
         uk should ===(k)
         uk == k
       }
     }
-    "perform length roundtrip using mask/unmask" in {
+
+    "combine and decompose length with 0 multiple times" in {
       check { (kl: KeyLen) ⇒
         val l = kl.l
 
-        val masked = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.maskEntryLength(l)
-        val ul = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.unmaskEntryLength(masked)
+        val masked = RemoteInstruments.combineKeyLength(0, l)
+        val ul = RemoteInstruments.getLength(masked)
         ul should ===(l)
         ul == l
       }
     }
-    "perform muxed roundtrip using mask/unmask" in {
+
+    "combine and decompose key and length multiple times" in {
       check { (kl: KeyLen) ⇒
         val k = kl.k
         val l = kl.l
 
-        val masked = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.muxEntryKeyLength(k, l)
-        val uk = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.unmaskEntryKey(masked)
+        val masked = RemoteInstruments.combineKeyLength(k, l)
+        val uk = RemoteInstruments.getKey(masked)
         uk should ===(k)
-        val ul = MetadataEnvelopeSerializer.unmaskEntryLength(masked)
+        val ul = RemoteInstruments.getLength(masked)
         ul should ===(l)
         ul == l && uk == k
       }