BT 2700HGV Router. Some questions and concerns.

[Jimbo]

Hi

I thought it best to start a nice new thread regarding my questions instead of messing up Lance's thread.

So I've got two concerns atm which I have just seen.

1. Noise Margin.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/j_firegod/Computer/Noise-Margin.jpg

From the above screenshot, is 20.0dB too high?   Can the Output Power be increased or is that automatic depending on your sync speed?

2. I have a "phone error"?!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/j_firegod/Computer/Check-Phone-Error.jpg

In the above screenshot, why does it say "check phone, filters and alarm".  The Router is connected to the new filtered Master Socket, along with the house phone.  Should I check anything?


Ok, now my questions, which I asked in the other thread.

I'm struggling to assign manual IP's to the x3 PC's in my house.  I've looked at the guides and .pdf's but I just can't work it out.  Could someone kindly do a quick step by step (i.e. A->B) please.  That would be awesome!

Are there many adv. options which I should know about?  The only one I've read about so far is the /tech page.  But that seems to be more for stats then additional "power" settings.


Many many many thanks in advance. And remember, I ain't a pro like most people so be easy! Lol.
James

[Jimbo]

Man do I feel like an idiot now.

I think it's just re-sync'd or something although I never noticed it?!  It's now dropped the noise margin to 7.0dB (it must of knew I was talking about it) and the error message one has changed and now says "OK".  I mean what the... ?!

Very strange.  But if anyone could answer the other questions that would be great.

Cheers all.

[Rik]

It's called the malice of inanimate objects, Jimbo. They are sent to confound us...

[Jimbo]

It's called the malice of inanimate objects, Jimbo. They are sent to confound us...

Lol cheers Rik, I think you may be right about that.

I'm going to get back on to support today as the router is now only sync'd at 704kbps and the noise margin is now 29.0dB with my attenuation at 60.0dB.  Whereas last night I was nearly sync'd at 3Mb.

The line is still all over the place. 

That suspicious error is back next to where it says "Uncancelled Echo"?! I also think the line disconnected because of ERR_LOS_LINE.  Do you happen to know what that means?  This morning's re-sync is because of ERR_SIGNAL_INTERRUPT.

Thanks Rik.

[Rik]

Hi Jimbo

It sounds like your line is flapping, to judge by the variation in sync. If you're sure your own wiring is in order it's well worth getting on to support with a view to getting BT out.

The error sounds like a Loss Of Signal, reported by most routers. That indicates that the router has lost sync with the DSLAM, which fits with the other symptoms. Uncancelled echo I have no clue about! The signal interrupt could be anything from errored seconds to loss of framing. 

[Jimbo]

Hi Jimbo

It sounds like your line is flapping, to judge by the variation in sync. If you're sure your own wiring is in order it's well worth getting on to support with a view to getting BT out.

The error sounds like a Loss Of Signal, reported by most routers. That indicates that the router has lost sync with the DSLAM, which fits with the other symptoms. Uncancelled echo I have no clue about! The signal interrupt could be anything from errored seconds to loss of framing. 

Thanks Rik.

Been back on to support today.  I have to send them 3 speed tests tomorrow.  Also, I found some information regarding the "uncancelled echo" problem.

Uncancelled Echo would report Suspicious if there was a lot of echo on your line, such as caused by bridged taps out on the phone circuit.

That was taken from here:- http://www.dslreports.com/faq/11608

So I then found out what Bridged taps are...

Bridged tap or bridge tap is a long-used method of cabling for telephone lines. One cable pair (of wires) will "appear" in several different terminal locations (poles or pedestals). This allows the telephone company to use or "assign" that pair to any subscriber near those terminal locations. Once that customer disconnects, that pair becomes usable at any of the terminals. In the days of party lines 2, 4, 6, or 8 customers were commonly connected on the same pair which appeared at several different locations.

DSL can be affected by bridged tap. It depends on where the bridged tap is located ... the farther away from the customer's location, the better.
DSL signal reflects back through the cable pair from the end of a bridged tap, much like a tennis ball against a brick wall. The deflected signal is now out of phase and mixed with the original. The modem receives both signals and gets confused. This is when you "take errors" or cannot sync. If the bridged tap is long, by the time the signal bounces back, the original signal is far ahead and more powerful. Therefore, the modem will ignore the weaker signal and shows no problems.

Almost every cable pair in the world has bridged tap on it, so it definitely isn't always a DSL killer.

Taken from here:- http://www.dslreports.com/faq/658

Is this something I should mention to support mate?

Cheers.

[Rik]

Definitely worth mentioning, Jimbo (fascinating stuff, btw ), it's possible that a sympathetic engineer could swap some pairs around for you to give a better run.

[Lance]

Hi James - sorry for being slow to reply!

To try and help your IP address situation...

Are you not able to simply change the TC/IP properties on each computer to tell it to use a manual IP, rather than obtain one from the DHCP server (the router iow)? This is done by going to "Network connections" (on the pc), right click the connection, click "internet protocol TCP/IP", click "properties" and then click "use the following IP address:". Enter the IP address and subnet mask, hit ok a few times and reboot if necessary.

If this doesn't work, you might have to disable the DHCP server. I think this can be done (but haven't tested it myself!) by going from the home page, click the "Local network" button, and then "Advanced settings". Then click "Configure manually". In the "router address" and "Subnet mask" boxes, enter the same IP's as on the right hand side (ie the current settings), but don't tick the "Enable DHCP" box.

Hopefully, this will then work!

Can I ask why you feel the need for manual IP addresses? You may not know, but the DHCP server in the router is semi-intelligent and once a new device connects and obtains an IP address, it reserves that IP address only for that device. For example, if you have two computers, each time they ask for a IP address, they will get the same on, regardless of the order they connect to the network in, or other computers that may have connected in the meantime. The reason I point this out is if you just need to be sure of the IP address of a particular machine, once you've obtained it the first time, then it won't change.

I hope this is of some use to you.

Lance

[Jimbo]

Hi Lance.

Cheers for that mate.  I think I may actually leave it on, like you say, so far it seems to be working fine.  The only reason I used to set Manual IP's is so that I could assign the mac address to the IP (added security) and also so that I knew who was what on the network.

However, saying that I am liking how it shows the names in the Router and if they are active/inactive which means I can easily see who is on and who is not.

So I think I may leave it via DHCP.... just means that's one more service running on my PC. Lol. 

Thanks again though!  Oh forgot to ask, Lance and/or Rik, within the settings for the ADSL connection should it be set to "Bridged VC-MUX" or "Routed VC-MUX"?  I currently have mine set to "ROUTED".

Cheers.

[Rik]

I'd expect routed, Jimbo, in a normal setup.

[Inactive]

However, saying that I am liking how it shows the names in the Router and if they are active/inactive which means I can easily see who is on and who is not.

Breach of copyright.. 

[Jimbo]

I'd expect routed, Jimbo, in a normal setup.

Thanks Rik! 

Breach of copyright.. 

Lol that took me awhile to figure out.