Frequently Asked Questions Version 2 9/5/2009
Customer Connection Costs and Process Step 1. Conduit (Pipe) Installation You must install a 32 mm conduit from the front boundary of your lot to the meter box location on the side of your house. Your builder can install this conduit, or you can arrange for Techlife, who undertake all Alamanda Customer Connections to install for $440 (GST inclusive). Techlife can be contacted on 1800 685 032. This conduit should be installed during construction of your home. Step 2. Prepare your home for optical fibre (Smart Wiring) Smart wiring of your home is optional, but highly recommended as it will enable you to take advantage of all features the Alamanda Optical Fibre Network has to offer. It is recommended that you arrange a quote to smart wire from your builder or Techlife early in your construction phase or at contract negotiation as the wiring should be done at the frame stage of construction. Smart wiring is an additional cost to the conduit and customer connection. Please read the Alamanda Home Wiring Guidelines for further specification. Step 3. Connection to the Alamanda Optical Fibre Network When you have received your certificate of occupancy call Techlife to arrange connection to the Alamanda Optical Fibre Network. The customer connection cost is $660 (GST inclusive) and includes the following services worth over $1800: - Installation of Optical Network Terminal (ONT) enclosure and Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) - no battery included. $100 value - Six months internet 25/1Mbps with 5GB download - $399 value - Six months phone line rental home owner pays call costs - $199 value - No TV antenna required $300 saving - There is no connection fee for phone and internet - $300 value - The developer will pay for the physical link of the fibre from the street to the ONT - $600 value. Note: The developer will only pay this cost for 24 months from registration of title. 2
The OptiComm network delivers capability that is far in advance of any existing network currently deployed in Australia. Being a wholly fibre based solution; it has the capability to deliver increasing functionality and capacity over time. Equally importantly, however, it delivers common services that we all use today. Being a Next Generational Network, there are many differences to the existing networks used today. This document has been created to help with answering some of the more frequently asked questions. Throughout this document we have used a number of terms relating to different entities within the commercial value chain. Retailer or Retail Service Provider - means the organisation which has the interface with the end-user and is the customer of Opticomm. End-user - means the ultimate acquirer of services from the retailer. Also known as the home or business owner living in an Opticomm Fibre connected community. General Q. What is the Network Termination Device or NTD? The Network Termination Device (NTD) is a legal definition from the Telecommunications Act 1997 for the network boundary of the carrier s network. It is equipment owned by the Opticomm which terminates the optical signals and presents standard copper based interfaces (e.g. POTS and 100baseT) to the end user. This is the point of network demarcation which typically sits on the outside of the customer s home near the meter box. Q. What is the Optical Network Terminal or ONT? The Optical Network Terminal is the technical term for the NTD. Within the OptiComm network there are three types of NTDs which may be used. The first unit is enclosed in a grey metal casing and provides an F-Type interface for FTA and Pay television; four 10/100baseT Ethernet interfaces; and two or four POTS lines. The second unit is enclosed in a white plastic casing and also provides an F-Type interface for FTA and Pay television; four 10/100baseT Ethernet interfaces; and two POTS lines. These units are frequently enclosed in either a plastic or metal enclosure which is grey in colour. This enclosure should be kept shut at all times, as this provides the waterproof protection to the equipment. Where an end-user has tampered with the outdoor RF video Optical Link Power 2 POTS Supply 10/100baseT Lines Figure 1 - NTD type 1 Figure 2 - NTD Type 2 3
enclosure and this has resulted in damage to the equipment (such as rain), the end-user may be required to pay for the cost of replacing the unit. Q. What is the Optical Network Unit or ONU? It is another term sometimes used to describe the NTD. Q. What is the Optical Line Terminal or OLT? The Optical Line Terminal is the technical term for the equipment which sits in the Opticomm building/cabinet that services a community. It is where all the fibre optic links are terminated from each home. As this building or cabinet provides more than just the OLT, we more appropriately refer to this as the Multi Service Access Node. Q. What do the LEDs on the ONT indicate? Depending on the ONT there are a number of LED status indicators. Figure 3 - Type 1 NTD LEDs Type 1 NTDs have a single LED named LINK on the far left of the unit indicating status. No light on the LED indicates a loss of power or if power is applied a faulty unit. A constant red LED indicates a faulty unit or it s in the boot up phase. A flashing red LED indicates an operational unit, but it has no optical signal indicating a likely fault upstream between the home and the OLT. A flashing green LED indicates an operational unit which is receiving an optical signal, but the unit has not been provisioned within the OLT. A constant green LED indicates an operational unit which is online and communicating with the OLT. If you come across a situation where the LINK LED is anything other than in the solid green state, you should call the Opticomm Call Centre to report a fault. Figure 4 - Type 2 NTD LEDs Type 2 NTDs have several status LEDs. A solid green PWR indicates the unit is operational using AC mains, a flashing green PWR means it operating from backup battery. The TEST 4
LED only flashes green during boot up of the unit, or when the unit has been placed into remote test mode. A solid green GPON indicates the unit is operating normally and is online and communicating with the OLT. If GPON is flashing green it indicates the unit is receiving an optical signal but is not yet provisioned. A flashing red GPON indicates a self test failure. In these last two circumstances you should call the Opticomm Call Centre and report a fault. A solid green VIDEO indicates the unit is receiving an acceptable RF signal and the RF port is enabled. If the VIDEO is off, this would indicate the unit is receiving a low optical RF signal or the RF port has been disabled and this may be affecting the quality of television reception. A solid green DATA indicates the unit has at least one Ethernet port enabled. A flashing green DATA indicates the unit is receiving and transmitting data normally. If the DATA is off, no Ethernet services are provisioned. A solid green POTS indicates a phone line is off hook or in other words in use. If POTS is off, no Voice services are provisioned. For both types of NTD each Ethernet port has a LINK and ACTIVITY light located on either side of the RJ45 connector. As with most Ethernet switches, the LINK indicates the negotiated state of the link between the ONT and a PC or router. Q. Is the end-user permitted to power off the ONT? The end-user is not permitted to interfere with the ONT under any circumstance. Only ACMA/TITAB licensed installers are permitted to touch the unit, and only for the purpose of connecting cables. The ONT should be left on at all times. If for any reason a fault condition with a service exists it may be desirable to power off the ONT for a short period of time to perform a cold start. If an end-user is requested to perform such a restart of the ONT, it should be done by switching off the power to the regulated power unit only. Internet Q. Does the end-user require a router/modem? The point on the Optical Network Terminal into which an end-user plugs their equipment is a standard Ethernet 10/100baseT interface and users could simply plug their Personal computer directly into this interface or via a standard Ethernet switch. Technically there is no requirement for a router or modem. However for avoidance of the vagaries of various operating systems and to support in home networking, Opticomm highly recommends the use of a residential gateway or router. Q. What type of routers/home gateways are supported? The Opticomm Network is completely fibre based, and most routers and modems that end-users have purchased in the past for use on ADSL based networks will be incompatible with the services provided by Opticomm. Residential gateways which are called Broadband or sometimes Cable routers will interface with the Opticomm Network. However not all routers are made equal and Opticomm has published a list of supported or recommended routers which can be found in Section 5 of our Reseller Kit or our web site. 5
Q. What Interface speeds are supported by the ONT and its Ethernet Interface? The Opticomm ONT provides four Ethernet interfaces supporting speeds of either 10 or 100Mbps with a duplex state of either half or full. The ONT is configured to support auto speed and duplex negotiation or any device should just plug in and correctly negotiate the correct settings. Q. What Ethernet port should the end-user s home network be plugged into on the ONT? It is common practice for Opticomm to provision all Internet services onto the first Ethernet port of the ONT. The end-user s home network should be plugged into this port at all times. Q. The end-user is unable to authenticate to the network. The most frequent cause of this problem is the end-user not entering in their username and password correctly. All subscribers on the Opticomm network are required to enter a username in the following format username@realm. The realm is the standard domain used by the retailer within their network (e.g. @isp.net.au). If the realm is not entered into the username field, the device will not authenticate on the network. Ensure the correct username with realm and password is entered into the device login into the network Sometimes however, the end-user is correctly entering username, realm and password. If this is the case and the retailer provider is not seeing any L2TP initiated tunnel, log an issue with the Opticomm call centre. Q. An L2TP tunnel is not being initiated for the subscriber. This could mean the backhaul link from the Multiservice Access Node or the Broadband Aggregation Node has failed. Call the Opticomm call centre immediately. Telephone Q. What is OptiComm s position regarding the Standard Telephone Service? To be competitive in the residential services sector it is our desire that Retailer Service Providers market a telephone product delivered over the Opticomm network as a Standard Telephone Service rather than a VoIP or second line telephone service. Taking a view of the typical consumer; Opticomm delivers a telephone line into their home which looks like any other telephone service they have used before. They pick up the telephone and call any number in the world. They can receive calls and use various features such as call forwarding, 3 party conference and call waiting. They also expect this phone to be able to make calls to 000 in case of an emergency. They see it no differently to any other telephone service, and as such expect to play around $25-$30 per month for line rental. From our perspective the Opticomm network enables the retailer to provide a Standard Telephone Service for which a line rental can be charged providing an added revenue stream over and above the typical broadband access fees. While we do not wish to regulate prices (nor are permitted by law), we would recommend the retailer charge a line rental between $19 and $25 per month. 6
Q. What is the Standard Telephone Service? In general VoIP service providers are considered to be a Carriage Service Provider (CSP) and therefore subject to provisions of the Telecommunications Act 1997. According to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), irrespective of technology used (e.g. VOIP) any CSP offering a Type 4 service (supporting both inbound and outbound calls) enabling customers to make calls to and receive calls from users of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)) is considered to be delivering a Standard Telephone Service as defined by section 6 of the Telecommunications (Consumer Protection and Service Standards) Act 1999. As such this places several obligations on the service including: Provision of free access to 000 emergency numbers Compliance with the Telecommunications Numbering Plan 1997 Support for the update of Integrated Public Number Database (IPND) Support for Local Number Portability (LNP) Support for Pre-Selection and Pre-Selection override Support for Calling Line Identification and its restriction Compliance with the Customer Service Guarantee Standard 2000 Access to the National Relay Service Access to Operator services Access to Directory Assistance Itemised Billing While Opticomm does not provide the switching or features of a telephone service (this is the responsibility of the retailer) we do provide access to lines which can enable delivery of a service which substantially conforms to the Standard Telephone Service. Q. Does Opticomm support the Customer Service Guarantee? Yes, but while Opticomm does not deal directly with the end-user, we do provide the retailer protection against penalties incurred under the Customer Service Guarantee. That is, if due to an action caused by Opticomm we don t deliver or repair a telephone service within the required timeframes, we will pay the retailer service provider penalties in accordance with that defined in Telecommunications (Customer Service Guarantee) Standard 2000 (No.2). This ensures the retailer can safely provide a service guaranteed compliant to the Standard Telephone Service in the knowledge we will provide the backto-back protection. Q. What type of Voice service does Opticomm provide? Technically OptiComm provides a Voice over IP access service, but we prefer to use the term, Packet Switched Voice. Older generation voice networks where previously Circuit Switched because they used 64kbps lines and switched each circuit throughout the network using time division multiplexing. We don t like to use the term VoIP because this has a connotation of a cheap, inferior grade service using compressed codecs with packets running over the Internet. This is not the Opticomm Telephone Service. We use a high quality codec over a dedicated and 7
secure virtual circuit deliver a telephone service which is as good as or better than the tradition Circuit Switched voice service. Q. What Codec and other voice quality features are supported on the SIP Agent? Being a fibre network, we have access to plenty of bandwidth to deliver a high quality voice product. Each voice circuit is given a dedicated 128Kbps of bandwidth with inbuilt Quality of Service, so the ONT is configured to only support G.711 a-law. We have also turned off other bandwidth saving features such as Voice Activity Detection, Echo Cancelation (which can affect modems and faxes) and Comfort Noise Generation. This means the voice service delivered over the Opticomm network is as good as or even better than that delivered over a standard copper line as it does not suffer from noise or interference. We have disabled the compression codecs G.729 and G.723 to ensure they are never negotiated. Q. Does the Opticomm telephone service support Faxes and EFTPOS? Yes, faxes and EFTPOS terminals have been successfully tested over the Opticomm network with several VOIP gateways and retail service providers. Support however of these devices will be entirely dependent on the capabilities of the retailer s network and the call routing mechanisms to PSTN interconnects. Q. Does the Opticomm telephone service support Security Alarm Systems? Yes, a variety of security alarm systems which use DTMF dialing and specialized signaling have been successfully tested over the Opticomm network. Alarm systems which use the older Securetel line (a Telstra fixed circuit product) are not supported. In these cases we recommend the end-user upgrades their security system to a modern IP based security. For more information contact the local Direct Alarm Supplies office in each state (http://www.das.com.au/arbitrage/pages/92). Q. Can we ping the SIP agent on the ONT? Yes. Q. What feature tones are supported on the ONT? The SIP agent on the ONT supports a number of feature tones described in the table below: Feature Description Tone Dial Tone 1 Dial Tone 2 The standard Australian dial tone indicating the line is ready to make a call The standard Australian dial A combination of three frequencies at 400, 425 and 450Hz, lasting for up to 30 seconds prior to pressing a digit on the handset. Sounds like the BRRR tone heard on a normal home phone. 8
tone indicating the line is ready to make a call, but a feature is enabled on the line Confirmation The tone which is used to Confirm the acceptance of a feature (e.g. call forward) being enabled. Ringing Busy The tone used to indicate the line called is ringing The tone which is used to indicate the number called is busy or in use. Network Busy The tone to indicate the network is congested or unavailable. Most frequently heard when an ONT has not registered with the SIP Server. Call Waiting Means there is a call waiting on the line for the user to answer. Use the Flash codes to switch between calls A single continuous tone at 425Hz. Sounds like a continuous BEEEEEEE. A repeated 425Hz tone with a sequence of ON/OFF, ON/OFF every 2 seconds. Sounds like a quick BEEP, BEEP then a delay and repeated. A repeated 400Hz tone turned on and off every 375 milliseconds. Sounds like BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, repeating. A repeated 400Hz tone turned on and off every 375 milliseconds, but with alternating 10dB attenuation every second tone. Sounds similar to the Busy tone, but you can hear the second tone is slightly softer. Two quick beeps every 5 seconds while on a call. Q. Does the ONT support Distinctive Ring? Yes, the ONT supports the all major ring tones used in Australia, including the triple ring required by many fax machines to operate on a shared line. Q. Does the Opticomm Telephone Service support in-band or out-of-band DTMF? While the ONT supports both in-band and out-of-band, Opticomm has only configured support for in-band DTMF. We do this because our SIP agent uses a high quality CODEC and the voice packets are given dedicated bandwidth which has negligible (or zero) packet loss, low latency and is jitter free. By using a high quality codec In-band DTMF is reliable and does not suffer any RFC 2833 protocol compatibility issues that may exist between the SIP agent and the retailer s Softswitch. 9
Q. Does Opticomm support Calling Line Identification? Yes, Calling Line Identification is enabled on all ONTs. It is the retailer s responsibility to turn this feature on or off via the Softswitch depending on the end-user s selected feature package. Q. What type of telephone can an end-user plug into the ONT? The ONT supports a Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) interface, so any standard telephone that is used in the home today and plugs into the existing telephone network will be compatible with the Opticomm phone service. In a typical installation Opticomm provides up to 2 telephone lines to each home, which can be enabled for use on receipt of a Service Request. In cases where additional lines are required, Opticomm will upgrade the ONT to support 4 lines. If more than 2 lines are required, this would be automatically deemed a business customer and additional charges apply in accordance with our published wholesale price list. Q. Can the end-user be on the computer while on the phone? Yes, the Opticomm voice service operates independently of any computer. The customer s telephone is plugged into their structured wiring system which in turn is connected to the POTS port on the ONT. Q. Does the computer, router or home gateway need to be on to use the telephone? No. As above, the Opticomm voice service operates independently of any computer, router or home gateway. Q. Can the end-user use a softphone? This is entirely up to the retailer and capabilities of the Softswitch and is independent of any service offered by Opticomm. Q. The end-user receives an engaged tone when they pick up the handset to make a call. This would tend to indicate the SIP agent within the ONT has not registered with the Softswitch. Check for the registration requests on the Softswitch and if the problem continues report an issue to the Opticomm Call Centre. Q. The end-user receives no dial tone when the pick up the handset to make a call. This problem would tend to indicate a fault with the internal home wiring or the ONT is no longer operational. If the broadband for television service is working, then it is more likely a home wiring problem. The retailer can check the status of the ONT, by pinging the SIP agent and if a response is received or there is an active registration in the Softswitch, then it is most likely faulty home wiring. An end-user can check the line by plugging their phone handset directly into the ONT, if there is a dial tone then it is definitely the home wiring. 10
Q. The end-user receives a stutter dial tone when the pick up the handset to make a call. The stutter dial tone indicates that a feature (such as call forwarding) has been enabled on the telephone. It is a normal tone and lasts for up to 2 seconds, during which time an end-user can still dial numbers. Q. The end-user cannot call certain numbers. The calling restriction on numbers is controlled by the features enabled on the retailer s Softswitch and has nothing to do with the Opticomm telephone service. Q. Can an end-user make calls during a power outage? The ONT is supplied with a 240-Volt regulated power supply similar to the one in the picture. An optional back-up battery can be installed in this unit to avoid interruption to the telephone service when there is a power failure. During a power failure, the end-user will not be able to receive or make any telephone calls including calls to the Emergency 000 service if the back-up battery is not installed, or installed but flat or faulty. Once the battery is fitted into the power unit the ONT will remain operational for up to 4 hours in the event of a power outage. In this case an end-user with a standard line powered telephone (i.e. not a cordless phone) will be able to make and receive calls. The installation and maintenance of the battery is the responsibility of the end-user and not that of Opticomm. It should be a sealed maintenance free lead-acid 7.2AH/12VDC battery with dimensions of 150mm (W) x 94mm (H) x 64mm (D). Q. The end-user is experiencing delays in the conversation. It is rare that any communication delays should occur during a conversation. Unlike other IP based voice networks, the Opticomm telephone service does not run over the Internet. It is a private and secure network between the retailer s Softswitch and the SIP agent within the ONT and therefore is unaffected by the vagaries of the Internet. If such delays occur, it is likely to be outside the control of either the Opticomm or the retailer s network. Q. The end-user is experiencing one way speech. This is likely to be a communication issue between the SIP agent on the ONT and the retailer s Softswitch. Check that there are no firewall rules blocking the communications or causing problems settings such as timers. Free to Air Television Q. Do I need an antenna on my roof to receive a Television signal? No, the Free to Air television channels in an Opticomm estate are delivered on the same optical fibre that provides the home phone and Internet services. In many estates the covenants prevent you from installing your own antenna, but this is not required as 11
Opticomm reticulates all the analogue and digital Free to air channels. Having a prereticulated television signal, saving you the cost of installing an antenna, is one of the advantages of living in an Opticomm fibre connected community. Q. What channels are available over the Opticomm TV? The Opticomm network is completely transparent to the end-user and all analogue and digital channels are delivered into the home free of charge. This includes the metropolitan stations of ABC, Seven, Nine, Ten, SBS and the regional stations of NBN, Seven, WIN, GWN, Prime, and Southern Cross. Q. What is the Opticomm TV channel plan? To ensure a consistent and quality television reception Opticomm has defined a channel plan which is used throughout our network. To provide a quality reception of the analogue channel free from ghosting and other interference, the analogue channels have been moved to a different position in the channel plan. In Metropolitan areas: Channel Name Type Channel Designator Tuning Frequency Channel Name Type Channel Designator Tuning Frequency Seven Nine Digital C6 177.50Mhz Digital C12 226.50Mhz ABC Analogue C41 618.25Mhz Analogue C39 604.25Mhz Digital C8 191.50Mhz Digital C29 361.50Mhz SBS Analogue C43 632.25Mhz Analogue C47 660.25Mhz Ten Digital C11 219.50Mhz Analogue C45 646.25Mhz C31 Analogue C49 674.25Mhz In Regional Areas, we use the same channel plan, but replaced the metropolitan channels with the local regional equivalent. Regional Area Original Metro Channel Replaced with Regional Equivalent Regional Area Original Metro Channel Replaced with Regional Equivalent Seven Prime Seven Regional 7 Northern NSW Nine NBN Regional QLD Nine WIN Ten Southern Cross Ten Southern Cross Seven Prime Seven Southern Cross Southern NSW Nine WIN Tasmania Nine WIN Ten Southern Cross Ten Ten Regional VIC Seven Prime Seven Southern Cross Darwin Nine WIN Nine Nine 12
Ten Southern Cross Ten Ten Seven Prime Seven GWN Mildura Nine WIN Regional WA Nine WIN Ten Southern Cross Ten - Q. Who provides support for the Free to Air Television? All support calls related to the Free to Air television are handled directly by the OptiComm call centre. End-users should call the Opticomm Call Centre on 1300 137 800 regarding any Free to Air TV problems. Q. How can a user connect their television into the network? The ONT provided by Opticomm has an F-Type RF connector which delivers all the Free to Air and PayTV channels through this single interface. This should be connected into the structured wiring system within the home using RG6 Quad Shield cable, and reticulated to the required points. This port can support the installation of a 4-way passive splitter (to support four TV points within the home) without deterioration of the quality of viewing experience. For details of how to installed structured wiring in a home refer to the Opticomm Home Wiring Guide. Q. The Free to Air TV stations do not work at any points in the house. Check the television or set-top box is correctly plugged into a 240V power supply and turned on. For analogue channels an end-user will be required to re-tune their TV in accordance with the channel plan provided above. A digital set-top box should work the same as if connected to a standard antenna, but to be sure just set the unit rescan for all the digital channels. Check that you can receive free to air television channels (this will verify internal cabling is working) at the home hub. Problems with internal wiring should be referred back to your home cabling contractor. If problems persist, then we recommend calling the Opticomm Call Centre on 1300 137 800. Q. The Free to Air TV signal is poor The signal coming from the ONT will provide the highest quality of television reception to the home, better than most antennas typically installed on a home. Poor quality television reception will tend to suggest internal home cabling is either a poor quality of installation or the fly leads from the wall plate to the television or set-top box are damaged. Check the coaxial cable connecting the television or set-top box to the wall socket is firmly connected and secured, and check coaxial wiring within the home. If you have a 13
set-top box, check the video cable connecting it to the television. You should always use high quality video cables to maintain the quality of viewing experience at all times. If you have installed a splitter ensure it is a good quality unit, and operates within acceptable range. Discuss with your home wiring contractor if necessary. Acceptable signal levels within the home should be as follows: Type of Channel Analogue Digital Measurement Recommended Values At the ONT Wall plate Signal Strength (PWR) 77dBµV 66dBµV Carrier to Noise (CNR) >48dB >45dB Signal Strength (PWR) 71dBµV 60dBµV Modulation Error Ratio (MER) >28dB >25dB Pay Television Q. Does Opticomm support any PayTV services over the network? Yes, we currently have networks deployed that support the three major PayTV providers in Australia Foxtel, Austar and SelecTV. Each deployment is certified by either Foxtel or Austar (depending on service area) and we have end-users actively using both these providers over our network. Q. Who provides the PayTV service? End-users on the Opticomm network deal directly with each of the PayTV retailers, just as with Internet or Telephony retailers. Opticomm has no arrangement or support requirement with end-users for PayTV services. Q. Do end-users have access to the current PayTV promotions? Yes, any promotion run by the PayTV retailers is available to residents living in an Opticomm fibre connected community. Q. The end-user is not receiving all of the PayTV channels requested The Opticomm Network is transparent to the PayTV signal. Missing channels, could indicate a faulty set-top box or an incorrect channel package. Check the nominated PayTV retailer for the correct channel package and if problems persist report the fault to them. Q. The PayTV service does not work at any points in the house. Check the set-top box is correctly plugged into a 240V power supply and turned on. Check that you can receive free to air television channels (this will verify internal cabling is working) and check connections in home hub to ensure signals are being sent to the correct locations in the premises. Problems with internal wiring should be referred back to your home cabling contractor. If problems persist, then we recommend calling the PayTV retailer directly. 14