Taylor Wimpey paid for 2 large Huawei cabinets on a new estate near me recently. The development had been completed for over 2 years. Pressure from residents and local newspaper coverage about 1mb ADSL in brand new houses and they got their cheque book out.

which development is that ?

In reply to a post by eckiedoo:

To carry out that test, does the engineer disconnect the extended D-Side in the FTTC, so removing whatever loading and noise there may be in normal configuration?

Yes.

Ummmm.

The engineers do not have access to the FTTC cabinet. Only to the patchboard in the PCP that connects to it.

They can check what sync they get on the VDSL2 link at the PCP, but that is also carrying the phone signal (noise-filtered).

so why test at a cab

To ensure the service is working ok leaving the cab as there are many ports (thousands) that have faults due to the tie cables and the terminations in the cabinets

Interesting in that about 3 weeks back, I actually saw one open the local FTTC, literally glancing in.

My attention to his presence was first drawn by the sounds of one panel of the associated UG chamber being opened, so I headed to the window, noting it was the panel at the far end from the FTTC, where the link ducting is actually reversed to enter the main duct to the PCP across the road.

He simply glanced down in to it.

He then opened the RH side of the FTTC, where there is the back-plane and the Filter/Links.

Again a glance and closed.

He then paced the slightly convoluted path of the Link Duct to that UG chamber, reversing to follow the main duct across the road towards the PCP, still clearly pacing deliberately, probably counting his steps to get a measure of the distance.

Very shortly after disappearing in the vicinity of the PCP, I heard similar sounds as though a panel was being lifted/moved at the corresponding UG Chamber.

Don't know about the PCP itself - but seems likely.


He drove off very shortly after that, no obvious work on connections etc.

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Normally for BB upgrades, there is only one engineer.

On that immediately following Friday as we returned from shopping, there were two OR vans parked in the nearest layby;m and the two engineers were conversing.

Unfortunately having shopping to dispose of, I was unable to go back out, to find out what was happening.

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I accept that it is difficult to work out what was happening, whether the two jobs were connected etc etc; and of course I don't know if the Thursday engineer was duly authorised to open the FTTC.

On another occasion, I have seen a non-BT/OR engineer go in to the RH side of the FTTC.

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The patch board you refer to - is it physically in the PCP or is the RH side of the FTTC?

Thanks.

The patch board you refer to - is it physically in the PCP or is the RH side of the FTTC

It's in the PCP unless it's an AIO of course.
The Service Delivery people don't go into the FTTC only the NGA network engineers as a rule.

Edited by witchunt (Sat 28-Jan-17 18:33:39)

As witchunt says. The one you saw opening the FTTC cab would be a network engineer.

Obviously they have to be opened by someone from time to time, for enhancements or to fix faults, but not the engineers who routinely come to deal with faults we report.

Specifically the one the question was about where I wasn't happy with the answer.

The patchboard these engineers access is in the PCP, where the E-side/D-side connection is broken, with the two ends going to "paired pairs" on the patchboard that are hardwired to similar in the FTTC cabinet at cabinet/card installation time.

Edited by RobertoS (Sat 28-Jan-17 18:46:55)

Thanks Robertos.

Are the PCP Patchboard connections easily broken/separated, such as would be the case with the FTTC Filter-Links, where simple removal would take all D-Side loading including Links away abruptly; and also be easily restored?

Or is the analysis/monitoring equipment simply "croc-clipped" on to the PCP Patchboard, effectively as an added temporary load?

Or what?

No doubt you will be well acquainted with equipment that suddenly leaps in to life or improves when the load is removed.

Also bearing in mind the earlier answer, that the circuit is broken.

Edited by deleted (Sun 29-Jan-17 07:31:08)

No idea re the main questions. As for the "circuit" being broken when the jumpers are installed, I didn't say that. I'm not a telecoms engineeer but AIUI they can do that without breaking the phone circuit, by bridging the circuit while they do it. Again, wrt what they actually do, I've no idea. I'm talking about the final configuration, not the methods of achieving it.

Any ADSLx circuit obviously gets broken, that's the whole point of the exercise, and the phone circuit ends up diverted through the DSLAM line card where the phone and VDSL2 signals are merged.

Edited by RobertoS (Sun 29-Jan-17 09:48:10)