What does the engineer do at FTTC install?

[#1]

I believe my cabinet is being upgraded to FTTC as I type this.  Would be interested in trying this out when available.
As I live in a rented property, I would need to contact my landlord if the engineer needed to install any new wires, etc.  Is it simply just a case of changing the faceplace?
If I were to move out during the trial, would the faceplace need to be changed back or would the new faceplate be suitable for future occupants to use with ADSL?

[#2]

I'm also in a rented property, so I can answer the first bit.
Basically, if you have a power socket near your master socket the only thing the BT engineer will do is swap the faceplate and plug the modem into it.
If you don't have power then he will switch the faceplate and then offer to run a "data extension cable" (which is just a fancy BT term for a long wire with RJ-11 connectors on both ends)  to somewhere there is power.
In my case, I don't have power in the cupboard with the master socket, and running the extension cable through walls would have been ugly and out of the question.  However, I do handily have phone sockets in each room which are wired with standard Cat-5e cabling.  Using a long network cable and a power extension he installed and tested the modem directly plugged into the master socket and when he'd gone I rewired one of my extensions to be RJ-11 male at the master end (to plug into the data extension port) and used a standard RJ-45 socket in place of the original phone socket in the bedroom.  Easy to do and very easy to reverse (5 mins with a punchdown tool).
I don't know what will happen if I move house, but I don't really care, either (it had no phone service when I moved in and it will be disconnected when I move out).

[#3]

Thanks puffin.  There are two plugs next to the phone socket, so that should be fine.
Just need to sit patiently until BT complete the work.

[#4]

Does the BT engineer only run an extension if there isn't any power? I have an upstairs extension wired when the house was built and run my modem/router from upstairs but will they utilize the existing telephone cabling even and change the upstairs faceplate? If not then do people have a choice where they want the install even if it means BT running a new cable to your preferred location?
Looking forward to next year's Fibre offerings from all ISPs it should be an 'interesing' year! 

[#5]

They can run the extension whether the power is there or not. The extension is used if the master socket location isn't suitable (e.g. no power) or not convenient (e.g. in the basement). So you do have a choice, although the extension can be maximum of 30m. They won't re-use existing extension cabling though.

[#6]

I am not due to get FTTC until next year but this wiring thing is a bit worrying.
I have seen some of BT's idea of running an extension!  My master socket is by my front door (no power nearby) and cables go under the floorboards, up my stairs, then under the floor boards upstairs to my study where the modem and PC sit.  Can I expect BT to do this or will they do what I have seen before and just pin the cable to the top of skirting boards?
Alternatively, can I run the correct type of cable myself from my master socket to my study and just get BT to connect up each end?

[#7]

My understanding is that they can't run the cable under floorboards or carpets but can run it around a door frame or pin to a skirting board. I don't think they will connect up your extension either. In general they won't move the master socket either (unless they have to for example if it's not an NTE5).
I think the mean reason that they don't like you using your cable is because the service is installed up to modem rather than the master socket so the wiring is part of the installation and would be repaired/replaced in the event of a fault. If you've done the wiring and there's a fault then they would charge if it was the wiring causing the fault.
Probably worth hearing from what other people have done as I'm sure it's a common concern. Not everyone has a master socket that's convenient and don't want wiring running all over the house.

[#8]

as you, my 'master socket' was next to the front door (not NTE5) I had already planned what I would like done (which was the new NTE5 in the study with the PC.)
I already had an extension running up the wall, through the ceiling and into the study directly above for phone & dial up (long time ago). Therefore there was already a route for the cable.
I personally moved my study around and lifted the right floorboard before the engineer arrived. The engineer was absolutely fine with removing the previous extension (which I had originally fitted), running the new cable where the old one had been (through the ceiling and under the floorboards in the study) putting the new master socket in the study and leaving the original by the front door as a telephone socket (as an extension i'm guessing).
The engineer I had was extremly helpful, and even hammered the floorboard back down after he had installed the FTTC.    He did a very tidy job.
I guess it depends on how far it has to go, and whether you can prep the route for it? as I had the same brief of 'tacking to the skirting boards' which would have been extreme madness in my case, as it would have used at least three times more wire to go up the staircase etc.

[#9]

I think it will depend upon the mood of the engineer on the day (have tea and biscuits ready!).
Honestly, though, if you're confident in your ability to not mess up crimping 2 connectors then running the data extension cable yourself to be ready for his arrival is probably the best approach. 
You'll need RJ-11 male at the master socket end (to plug into the new socket on the top of the new faceplate, and then either RJ-11/45 female at the modem end (if you are using an embedded faceplate that you'll then plug the modem into) or just another RJ-11 male that will plug directly into the modem.

[#10]

Here's a photo of the FTTC kit which was installed at my premises last Friday. You can use the
dimensions of the faceplates to scale the bits and pieces.
In advance of BT's visit I installed a new backboard next to the BT cable point of entry in my
garage. I had heard that the new faceplate/filter was quite bulky, so I used a clip-in plasterboard
back box (bottom left) to reduce the profile of the NTE.
I had already CAT5e'd the premises, so I use a pre-existing cable to route the DSL from the
BT modem upstairs to my router. BT don't give a damn what happens after their modem,
so they cannot object if you wish to do something similar. My internal phones are on a small
PBX, so the handset on the backboard is just a cheap and cheerful method of maintaining
contact from the garage.
The upstairs kit is all protected by a UPS unit, but the current FTTC solution is vulnerable
to a mains failure. I'll most likely address that problem when the service is stable.
The blue cable is the link from the modem to the router.
Regards,
Phil

[#11]

That's a very tidy set up. 
Paul
jim:quote

[#12]

I noticed this on the openreach website:
http://www.openreach.co.uk/orpg/home/updates/downloads/archivedbriefings/sffa/Jul-Sep-2010.zip
Are Plusnet ordering the 'home wiring solution'?I would guess so because it indicates that it replaced the data extension kit. It appears much more flexible than the data extension kit was.
Quote from that page:
"
Openreach is pleased to announce a special offer on the Home Wiring Solution of £0.00 until 31/12/10.
Home wiring solution replaces the data extension kit which if authorised offers the end user, in discussion with the engineer, a choice of the following solutions:
• Internal Data Extension
• External Data Extension
• NTE Shift
• Swap of NTE with existing telephone extension
• Any combination of the above.
"
Tom.

[#13]

Yeah, it's currently free for us so we're ordering it as being authorised if required as standard on all orders at the moment. We may change this if they start to charge but hopefully the changes they can make are now more helpful for people.

[#14]

Quote from: dave

They won't re-use existing extension cabling though.

Does this include extension wiring put in place by BT when they installed my original ADSL (pre wire-free) If they won't use it will they simply tack the new cable on top of the old or remove their old cabling first?

[#15]

That's a good question, they may be able to re-use that as it's BT installed I'm not sure. I'll have to check up and find out.