Openreach FTTP re-grade (soft change) delays

Hi All

Seems like nothing changes and any build or change related to FTTP or FTTPoD either costs megabucks and/or takes eons to action!

Having completed our 12 month On Demand purgatory at the start of July, we were looking forward to transitioning to a faster native service. We have now been waiting for 2 weeks for what should have been a simple (soft) re-grade to be actioned via Cerberus.

There appears to be some ongoing issue with the provisioning system within Openreach as I understand, although the explanation I have been given from Cerberus is neither really intelligible or gives any timescales. I'm having deja vu with those infamous "updates" from the build phase...

All I have been told so far is "your order is in delay due to a data issue with Openreach" and it is "under investigation".

Still trying to get another update from Cerberus meanwhile. Anyone else having issues or can shine any more light on the matter?

Many thanks

In reply to a post by Pheasant:

Having completed our 12 month On Demand purgatory at the start of July

Only 12 months?

My regrade is due on 1st September, so I'll be able to tell you then if I have the same problem.

FTTP regrades are only taking around 24-48 hours at present

It may be FTTPoD complicating things or an issue specific to your order but OpenReach's regrading is working great.

In reply to a post by candlerb:

In reply to a post by Pheasant:

Having completed our 12 month On Demand purgatory at the start of July

Only 12 months?

My regrade is due on 1st September, so I'll be able to tell you then if I have the same problem.

Yeah 12 months is plenty of lock in thanks. given especially the ECC's forked out with our build. Happy to be off the on demand pricing / performance model asap...

Delays will be down to Cerberus because I got my 330/30 FoD line with Fluidone regraded to 330/50 within 24 hrs after my 36 months min term was completed last month.

Edited by deleted (Tue 14-Jul-20 12:16:05)

In reply to a post by j0hn83:

FTTP regrades are only taking around 24-48 hours at present

It may be FTTPoD complicating things or an issue specific to your order but OpenReach's regrading is working great.

Thanks for letting me know.

So no wider issue within OR for fibre re-grades, seems its just my order then - either the Provisioning Admin at Cerberus is being economical with the truth or is being fed a lie...

Or some orders get stuck and others don't.

In reply to a post by Highland76:

Delays will be down to Cerberus because I got my 330/30 FoD line with Fluidone regraded to 330/50 within 24 hrs after my 36 months min term was completed last month.

I've escalated now to Bob Hendy at Cerberus. Lets see what the score is...

In reply to a post by Highland76:

Delays will be down to Cerberus because I got my 330/30 FoD line with Fluidone regraded to 330/50 within 24 hrs after my 36 months min term was completed last month.

Interesting. I've a native FTTP regrade delayed due to an Openreach data issue and it's certainly nothing to do with Cerberus, Fluidone, etc.

In reply to a post by j0hn83:

FTTP regrades are only taking around 24-48 hours at present

It may be FTTPoD complicating things or an issue specific to your order but OpenReach's regrading is working great.

I've an escalated regrade, nothing to do with FoD, being delayed by Openreach data issues. While I'm sure it's going great it's not quite perfect.

Which CP are you with? I imagine some are better than others for chasing this up with Openreach if there are issues at Openreach end. A speed regrade is a relatively simple change and shouldn't take ages.

It's been pursued with Openreach. I'm aware that it should be pretty rapid.

Just one of those things. There were record and other issues previously and evidently there are some hangovers from those.

In reply to a post by CarlTSpeak:

It's been pursued with Openreach. I'm aware that it should be pretty rapid.

Just one of those things. There were record and other issues previously and evidently there are some hangovers from those.

Thanks. I did wonder what “data issue” meant in this context as it’s what I have been told too, but have had nothing further from Cerberus as to the specifics, nor any clarity whether if it’s just my order or a much wider issue in Openreach land.

I’ll keep chasing...

By way of update, I was advised today that the "data issue" (no one outside Openreach seems to know what that actually means!) had now been resolved, and my re-grade order would now be able to proceed....

So am waiting to hear back from Cerberus on when it will be completed. Fingers crossed hopefully by early next week.

Nothing happened regrade-wise on Friday...

May be a total coincidence, but I did notice that after the "data issue" was resolved, all of a sudden speed tests had gained around 120 Mbps, getting very close to my nominal headline rate 330/30 rate - especially on downloads, uploads have always maintained full speed.

I would typically get around 185 Mbps previously (through router, switch etc) which had assumed was a mix of general network attrition (on my side) rather than going in direct to the ONT and also general traffic.

But its like I've been moved to a different VLAN or something.....

Did someone say "data issue"?

Three weeks after it was supposed to happen, the regrade was completed this morning!

Day 11 for me since regrade request went in.

Apparently there are issues with the BTW system affecting multiple ISPs. They can't see my ONT to change anything!

BTW issues sorted, regrades that were stuck going through.

In reply to a post by CarlTSpeak:

They can't see my ONT to change anything!

Surely Chinese intelligence could help out with that...

Glad to hear you’re sorted.