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Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

nozzer
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Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

I saw this service announcement on 11th Jan.. On that date I was connected to a gateway which wasn't enabled for the new service, and after BT dropped a few zillion connections just after the announcement was made I was reconnected to another non-new gateway and suffered from quite a few out-of-balance issues. I am normally connected on a steady sync of 12Mbps with a profile of around 10Mbps, but downloading yesterday was varying between 1.5Mbps and 4Mbps all day, and was getting particularly bad at around 5pm even though the system was supposed to have been rebalanced. So I thinks to meself, in view of the fact that my realm is @plus.net, I shall force a gateway change to the new IP Stream Connect gateway by disconnecting the PPP. I reconnected to ptn-ag03 as promised and the difference was instantly remarkable!! This was at about 5.15pm and download speeds went from 4Mbps to 9.4Mbps. and were totally constant.
Question....  I didn't resync, just did a gateway change, so how on earth can that improve the stability and speed characteristic so much? Does it show that the existing PN gateways are in need of refurbishment?  Smiley
21 REPLIES 21
jelv
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

I'd suggest it just proved that the system was badly out of balance and that the gateway you were on was heavily overloaded. I'd think that if you hadn't had the IPSC option a reconnect to another gateway on the old centrals might have seen the same improvement.
The other possibility was that it was BT's 20CN network that was clogged, IPSC runs over the 21CN network.
jelv (a.k.a Spoon Whittler)
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nozzer
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

@ someone from PN.... 
.......just done a router fw upgrade and reconnected ok, except that I can't now reach either of the two dedicated gateways for the IP Stream Connect service (pcl-ag08 or ptn-ag03). Has the new system been abandoned?Huh
jelv
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

I'm guessing they've linked the new network up to more gateways.
jelv (a.k.a Spoon Whittler)
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bobpullen
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

@nozzer, I suspect it's one of two things...
1. ptn-ag03 isn't used exclusively for the 10Gbps host links so there's a possibility that your traffic was still being routed across the 1Gbps host links even though you were connected to ptn-ag03.
2. On 20CN, we're moving customers from IPStream/622 Centrals to IPStream Connect/10Gbps host links. The way we do this is to get BT Wholesale to re-point the 'realm' (bit after the '@' sign) of a customer's username from the 622's to the new host links. At the moment this forces the customer onto one of two gateways each time they connect (ptn-ag03 or pcl-ag08). As you're aware, we've already re-pointed customers using the '@plus.net' realm. With 21CN this works slightly differently as we're not migrating based on 'realm'. Neither do 21CN customers use the 622's (they're on our 1GBps host links instead). What we've been doing with 21CN is setting aside predetermined time slots where we 'steer' 21CN traffic from the 1Gbps host links to the 10Gbps host links. We may have been doing this when you disconnected/reconnected on the 12th. Now I'd need to get clarification from the guys doing the work, but I'm pretty sure a subsequent disconnect/reconnect when the steering isn't in place would have put you back on the 1Gbps host links.
21CN customers won't be consistently pointed to the new 10Gbps host links until we move the three sites we have in London across in there entirety (probably February some time).
If I'm wrong with any of that lot then I'll come back and correct myself once I've had clarification...

Bob Pullen
Plusnet Product Team
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nozzer
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

Thank you jelv & Bob. Very enlightening!  Smiley
Luzern
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

How will Plusnetters be able to tell the change has been made in general use, if at all?
No one has to agree with my opinion, but in the time I have left a miracle would be nice.
jelv
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

@nozzer
I don't think Bob read all your initial post!
Quote from: nozzer
in view of the fact that my realm is @plus.net
jelv (a.k.a Spoon Whittler)
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bobpullen
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

Not following you jelv? Huh
I still stand by what I said in my original reply. It makes no odds whether or not @nozzer is on the @plus.net realm. 21CN customers are not being migrated based on realm (or am I missing the point you're trying to make?)

Bob Pullen
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jelv
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

I think perhaps the wording of your announcement was misleading, I had interpreted it as apply to all users on those realms (my highlight):
[quote=http://usertools.plus.net/status/archive/1294761369.htm]Planned RADIUS server maintenance - Tuesday 11th January 4.00pm-5.00pm
Broadband
Posted on: Tuesday 11 January 2011, 15:56
When's this work happening?
This afternoon, 11th January.
What does it affect?
Broadband Connectivity.
How long will it take?
About fifteen minutes.
What does the work involve?
We're moving a small number of customers from our 'IP Stream' broadband network to our 'IP Stream Connect' broadband network.
Am I likely to notice the work?
It's unlikely but you might. Broadband customers with connection usernames that end '@plus.net' or '@aihpipe.co.uk' will be moved across to the alternative network the next time they disconnect/reconnect. After a disconnect/reconnect these customers will always connect to the Internet via the gateways known as pcl-ag08 or ptn-ag03 (subject to change). Whilst this won't have any noticeable impact on the performance of customers' connections, some of the more observant/technically minded may notice it.
Is there anything else I need to know?
Further detail about these changes can be found in the blog post here - http://community.plus.net/blog/2010/12/17/new-plusnet-broadband-network/
Kind Regards,
Bob Pullen
Customer Support
Should it have said "some broadband customers..."?
jelv (a.k.a Spoon Whittler)
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Oldjim
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

From the linked blog post
Quote
Over the next 6 weeks we will be trialling the new network by moving a small number of customers to it. 20CN customers will be moved dependent on the realm they connect with;  the realm is the part of the username after the @ symbol.  Most of our customers use the plusdsl.net realm which will be moved in a couple of months time.
The first realms to be moved were plusdsl2.net and metro2.net, this happened successfully yesterday. The migration of all our 20CN customers is expected to take around 4 months including the initial trial period.
21CN customers don’t need to be moved using their connection realms. Instead we will periodically move customers over when they start a new connection over the next 6 weeks. Our first batch of 21CN customers connected on the new network on Wednesday. Once the trial period has ended we will move all customers across to the new network.
nozzer
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

And also....
"After a disconnect/reconnect these customers will always connect to the Internet via the gateways known as pcl-ag08 or ptn-ag03"
I realise that the "subject to change" bit is there, but I interpret that to mean that at some point in the future the actual gateways configured by PN might be different, but not to mean that every time you change gateways you might get on the new network or you might not!!
My realm is @plus.net and at the moment I'm on ptn-ag04 so summats adrift!
nozzer
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

Bob, could this be connected with the problem?

Service: Broadband
Posted: Mon, Jan 17 2011 at 12:17:38
Subject: Planned Router Maintenance - Tuesday 18th January 6.00am-8.00am

When's this work happening?
Tomorrow, Tuesday 18th January.

What does it affect?
Broadband connectivity.

How long will it take?
About twenty minutes.

What does the work involve?
We need to carry out some diagnostics to help identify the cause of a recently identified problem.

Am I likely to notice the work?
Possibly. Customers connected to the gateway known as ptn-ag03 may find that they are briefly disconnected from the Internet. Should this happen, customers should be able to get back online almost immediately

Is there anything else I need to know?
If you're having difficulty getting back online following the maintenance, then please try switching off your modem/router for twenty minutes or so before powering it back up and trying again.

Kind Regards,

Bob Pullen.

bobpullen
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

Quote from: nozzer
Bob, could this be connected with the problem?

If you're talking about your throughput speed then no, it's unlikely to be related to your problem.

Bob Pullen
Plusnet Product Team
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jelv
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Re: Moving customers from 'IP Stream' broadband network to 'IP Stream Connect'

Bob,
You haven't clarified whether the switch over is by individual users or by realm. I understood from conversations in the past with Dave Tomlinson that it the change was implemented by BT pointing the realm to a different route and that the BT systems had no knowledge of the Plusnet user names.
jelv (a.k.a Spoon Whittler)
   Why I have left Plusnet (warning: long post!)   
Broadband: Andrews & Arnold Home::1 (FTTC 80/20)
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