Understanding of Alarms

Asia Pacific Knowledge
Transfer Program
OM4000 Series Alarms
13/06/02
Finbar Mc Grath
Global Network Product Support Engineer
Impact: duration of upgrade increases

Contents
Introduction
Alarm Overview
Alarm Reporting
Alarm Naming
Alarm Filtering
Consequent Actions
Alarm Types
External Alarms
Questions
Appendixes
2 Knowledge Transfer Program - OM4000 Series Alarms - Finbar Mc Grath

Asia 2
Introduction to Alarms
•Why do we need alarms?
To efficiently locate and identify the problem source on the network
•What do alarms do?
They identify the source of a fault without the need for difficult on-site
maintenance
•Where can the faults be viewed?
Faults can be located on the NE (OM4100 & OM4200), INM, EC-1, CAT
terminal.
The OM4000 series NE also has failure indicator lamps on the hardware.
There is also the rack alarm unit (RAU) indicators
•Alarm reporting
Alarms are also logged into reports which can be viewed on both the NE and
the EC-1

Asia 3
Alarm Overview
Œ Ž 1. RS
2. MS
3. HP
 4. AU
5. TU
 6. LP
7. PPI
 V1 V5 ‘
V2 ’
Asia 4
The SDH Frame
VC-4 POH
A1 A1 A1 A2 A2 A2 J0
RSOH
B1 E1 F1 J1
Lower order VC-n P
D1 D2 D3 B3
AU H1 H1 H1 H2 H2 H2 H3 H3 H3 C2
Pointer
B2 B2 B2 K1 K2 G1 VC-11 VC-12 VC-2
D4 D5 D6 F2 V5 V5 V5
MSOH
D7 D8 D9 H4 25 34 106
D10 D11 D12 F3 N2 N2 N2
S1 Z1 Z1 Z2 Z2 M1 E2 K3 25 34 106
N1 K4 K4 K4
25 34 106

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RSOH [Regenerator Section Overhead]
A1, A2 RS-LOF Provides a frame alignment pattern [A1 =11110110, A2 = 00101000]. The frame
alignment word of an STM-n frame is 3 X n A1 bytes followed by 3 X n A2 bytes.
J0 RS-TIM Regenerator section trace. [16 byte frame including CRC7 (1st byte.) Supports continuity
testing between transmitting and receiving device on each regenerator section.
Z0 Spare. Reserved for future international standardisation.
B1 RS-EXC Provides regenerator section monitoring. The regenerator section BIP-8 provides end-to-
RS-DEG end error performance monitoring across an individual regenerator section and is
calculated over all bits of the previous STM-n frame after scrambling. Computed value is
placed in B1 byte before scrambling
E1 Provides local orderwire channel for voice communications between regenerators, hubs
and remote terminal locations.
F1 Allocated to user’s purpose [e.g. temporary data/voice channel connection for special
maintenance applications]
D1-D3 COMMS 192 kb/s message based data communications channel providing administration, monitor,
alarm and maintenance functions between regenerator section termination equipment

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MSOH [Multiplex Section Overhead]
B2 MS-EXC Provides multiplex section error monitoring. The BIP-n X 24, of an STM-n frame,
MS-DEG provides end-to-end error performance monitoring across an individual multiplex
section and is calculated over all bits of the previous STM-n frame except for the first
three rows of SOH. Computed value is placed in B2 byte before scrambling.
K1, K2 MS-AIS MS-Two bytes allocated for APS signalling for multiplex section protection.
RDI K2 [b6-b8] contains MS-RDI and MS-AIS status information.
D4-D12 COMMS Provides 576 kb/s data communication channel between multiplex section
termination equipment. Used to carry network administration and maintenance
information.
S1 Synchronisation status messages. S1 [b5-b8] indicates which of the four levels of
synchronisation is being used at the transmit end of a multiplex section.
M1 MS-REI Multiplex section remote error indication [MS-REI]. Conveys the number of B2
errors detected by downstream equipment.
E2 Provides express orderwire channel for voice communications between multiplex

section terminating equipment
H1-H3 AU-AIS TU-AU pointer bytes are associated with, but not part of, the MSOH. The pointer
AIS [TU-3] AU-contained in H1 and H2 points to the location where the VC-n begins. The last ten
LOP TU- bits [b7-b16] of H1, H2 carry the pointer value [0 to 782]. The H3 bytes are ‘pointer
action’ bytes and carry ‘live’ information from a VC4, during the STM-n frame in
LOP [TU-3] which negative pointer adjustment occurs
Asia 7
HO-POH [Higher order path Overhead]
J1 HP-TIM [VC-4] The first byte in the virtual container. Its location is indicated by the AU pointer
LP-TIM [VC-3] [H1,H2 bytes]. Provides a higher order trail trace identifier [64-byte free format
string or 16-byte frame including CRC7. Supports end-to-end monitoring of a
higher order path.
B3 HP-EXC Provides higher order path error monitoring. The BIP-8 is calculated over all
HP-DEG bits of previous VC-n. Computed value is placed in B3 byte before scrambling.
LP-EXC+DEG [VC-3]
C2 HP-AIS High order signal label. Indicates composition or the maintenance status of the
LP-AIS [VC-3] associated container.
HP-UNEQ+PLM
LP-UNEQ+PLM
[VC-3]
G1 HP-REI + RDI Higher order path status. Send status and performance monitoring information
LP-REI + RDI [VC-3] from receiving path terminating equipment to originating equipment. Allows
status and performance of two-way path to be monitored at either end. G1 REI
[b1-b4] RDI [b5]
F2 Higher order path user channel. Allocated for network operator

communications between path terminations.
H4 HP-LOM Position indicator. Multiframe phase indication for TU structured payloads. H4
[b7-b8]
F3 Higher order path user channel. Allocated for network operator
communications between 8 path
Asia terminations
Knowledge Transfer Program - OM4000 Series Alarms - Finbar Mc Grath 8
K3 Higher order path automatic protection switching [b1-b4]. The rest of the bits
LO-POH [Lower order path Overhead]
V5 [VC-12] Provides BIP-2 error checking, signal label and path status information.
LP-AIS [b5-b7]
LP-REI
[b3] LP-RDI
[b8] LP-EXC
[b1b2] LP-
UNEQ [b5b7] LP-
PLM [b5b7]
J2 LP-TIM [VC-12] Lower order trail trace identifier [16 byte frame including CRC7].
Supports end-to-end monitoring of a lower order path
N2 Lower order tandem connection monitoring. Contains BIP-2 error
checking, AIS, tandem connection REI [TC-REI], outgoing error
indication [OEI] and a 76-byte multiframe containing a tandem
connection access point identifier [TC-APid].
K4 Lower order path automatic protection switching [b1-b4] and enhanced
remote defect indication [b5-b7].

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What happens inside a regenerator?
• The regenerator section overhead is terminated.
• The multiplex section overhead + payload continue.
• A new regenerator section overhead is generated.
Regenerator
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What happens inside a multiplexer?
• A multiplexer also fulfils the functions of a regenerator.

• The Regenerator and Multiplex section overhead is terminated.
• The payload continues (in this STM-1 example).
• A new multiplex and regenerator section overhead is generated.
Multiplexer
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Termination of a VC4 and associated
‘Functional Blocks’
STM frame encasing high order VC
Functional Blocks
RST [Regenerator Section Termination]
RST (RSOH MST [Multiplex Section Termination]

terminated giving
RS alarms) MSA [Multiplex Section Adaptation]
HPT [High order Path Termination]
MST (MSOH
terminated giving
MS alarms)
MSA (Pointer
processing giving
AU alarms)

Asia 12
HPT (HO POH terminated
giving HP alarms)
Alarms Reporting ETSI Model
xN x1
STM-N AUG AU-4 VC-4
1. SPI 2. MSP 5. MSA 6. HSS (7 HUG, 8. HPOM)

3. RST 9. HPT
4. MST
x3 x7 x3
2 Mbit/s
TUG-3 TUG-2 TU-12 VC-12 C-12
Multiplexing 10. HPA-12/4 11. LPC-12 13. LPA-12

12. LPT
Aligning
14. PPI

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Anomalies, defects & alarms
• Anomaly – a single occurrence of a condition e.g. bit error. This should not
interrupt the the NE to perform a required function. Used to monitor the
performance of the traffic on the NE (P.M.’s)
• Defect – repeated occurrence or persistence of an anomaly. Interrupts the
ability of the NE to perform a required function
• Alarm – reports to the user the nature of the defect and the severity of the
fault
An anomaly can lead to a defect which in turn can lead to an alarm

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Bit error detection
• Normal operation - BER of 10-10

– Like a clock losing 1 second every 320 years
– Like listing the forename and surname of every living person and only
getting one forename or one surname wrong
• Degraded operation (DEG alarm) - BER of 10-9
– Like a clock losing 1 second every 32 years
– Like knowing the circumference of the Earth to 4cm
• Excessively errored (EXC alarm) – BER of 10-4
– Like a clock losing 8 seconds per day

Asia 15
DEG/EXC/LOF/LOS - all related to bit errors
• As the signal is deteriorating and gets weaker, noise gets more

significant. You pass first through DEG, then EXC, then LOF and finally
LOS.
DE
G
LO
LO S
EX F
C

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Bit error interactions
ANOMALY DEFECT ALARM

(single bit error) (threshold (report of a
number of bit DEFECT)
errors)
Performance
monitoring
Protection AIS & RDI
switching injection

Asia 17
Behaviours driven by the bit errors
• Traffic alarms
– RS-EXC, MS-EXC, MS-DEG, HP-EXC, HPOM-EXC, HP-DEG, LP-EXC
(VC-3 & VC-12), LPOM-EXC (VC-3 & VC-12), LP-DEG (VC-3 & VC-12),
MS-REI, HP-REI, LP-REI, MS-RDI, HP-RDI, LP-RDI (VC-3 & VC-12), ES-
CMI, PPI-EXC, PPI-DEG, ES-CV
• Protection switching (MSP, PPS & Card Protection)
• Traffic consequent actions
– Alarm indication signal (AIS insertion), remote defect indication (RDI
insertion)
• Performance monitoring parameters & associated alarms
– PM parameters: BBE, ES, SES, UAT
– PM alarms: PPI-CV, RS QOSV, MS QOSV, HP QOSV, HP-FE QOSV, LP
QOSV, LP-FE QOSV, PPI-CV QOSV – (Far end + Near end)

Asia 18
Defect Naming
Example 1
• A defect type e.g. LP-EXC has two parts (1) function point – Low order Path
Termination point & (2) alarm category – EXCessive bit errors
• The function point refers to the point where the defect is detected and not the traffic rate
Points to remember
• Defects derived from path overheads begin LP, HP, LPOM, HPOM
• Defects derived from section overheads begin RS or MS
• Defects related to conditions affecting a whole VC and its pointer begin with either AU
(AU-4’s) or TU (TU-3, TU-2, TU-12)
• The distinction between LP and LPOM is that the LP function point terminates traffic
(removes the path overhead) and the LPOM simply looks at the overhead. The same for
HP and HPOM.

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DEFECT Naming
• DEFECT name = Function point + DEFECT category

– e.g. RS + TIM = RS-TIM
– e.g. RS + LOF = RS-LOF
– e.g. RS + EXC = RS-EXC
• Function point = point where DEFECT is detected
Description G.783 functional block Function point Example
PDH Rx port PPI (Pleisiochronous Physical Interface) PPI PPI-EXC
Section OH termination RST (Regenerator Section termination) RS RS-EXC
MST (Multiplex Section termination MS MS-EXC
Path OH termination HPT (High order path termination) HP HP-EXC
LPT (Low order path termination) LP LP-EXC
Path OH monitoring HPOM (High order path overhead monitor) HPOM HPOM-EXC
LPOM (Low order path overhead monitor) LPOM LPOM-EXC
Pointer processing MSA (Multiplex section adaptation) AU AU-LOP
HPA (High order path adaptation) TU TU-LOP

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Filtering
Each defect signal is filtered to prevent transient signals causing multiple

alarm indications being raised. This filtering is achieved by using two
persistence timers during which a change to the state of the defect signal
does not effect the alarm indication
• The Present Persistence Time is the time that the defect signal must be
present before an alarm is raised. This time is set to zero and cannot be
changed by the user, therefore there is no delay between the appearance of a
defect signal and the raising of the associated alarm
• The Clear Persistence Time is the time during which the defect signal must
be continuously clear before the alarm indication is dropped. This time is set
to 15 seconds and cannot be changed by the user

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Defect Processing
After filtering and correlation (masking) an alarm may exist in one of three
states:
• Present – when an alarm is active for longer than the ‘present’ filtering (the
alarm is constant)
• Clear – an alarm that has cleared for longer than the clear persistence time
(set at 15 seconds)
• Masked – as the ‘Present’ state but is not reported due to the presence of a
higher priority alarm

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Correlation (Masking)
• When a defect occurs and is recognised by the NE alarm handling hardware

and software, often more than one alarm will be potentially reported. More
then one alarm
• Masking reduces the quantity of related alarms which are reported to the user
by presenting only the alarm closest to the source of the fault. Reduces
quantity
• The correlation process examines each alarm in the Present state to establish
if it belongs to a cause and effect chain for the fault. Correlation process
• If another alarm is present, correlation of the alarms occurs. The alarm lower
in the chain is masked (not reported). Masked alarms cannot be displayed.
Masking begins
• For any card in a slot, equipment or card alarms will mask any other alarms
raised within that card Masking hierarchy

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Masking Masking cuts down on the number
of alarms generated throughout
the network
• RS
Rationale: There is also a
masks
hierarchy within each layer
• MS e.g. RS-LOS masks RS-LOF
as if there is no signal you will
masks not find the frame!
• HP
N.B. When alarms clear on CLUI – it might
masks not mean that the alarm has actually cleared
• LP but more that the alarm has been masked!!!!

Asia 24
Defect Reporting
UNIQUE
• Definition NUMBER FOR
– ALARM = Report to the user of a DEFECT EC/INM
DATE
– e.g.
– 911,RS-LOS,S2-2,Present,C,P,1849,STM1o,,07/03/2000,10:08:08
TIME
INSTANCE
DEFECT TYPE
USER LABEL
SEVERITY
RAU INSTANCE (OPTIONAL)
(C=Critical)
Category TYPE
(P=Prompt)

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Alarm Reporting & C.A.’s
Alarm Defect Filter Alarm C.A.
Reporting
Mode
Off NO NO NO NO
Monitor YES NO YES YES
On YES YES YES YES
N.B. If alarm reporting mode is off, then no matter what

CA’s are configured, they will be Masked. You do not
want anything happening that you do not know anything
about.
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Alarm Severity
*Filtering/Masking is used on OM4000 series to cut down on the quantity

of alarms reported
Critical alarm
• A failure which disables or decreases the quality of services provided by the
network. Optical failures and service affecting card failures are examples of
critical alarms
Major alarm
• A failure which decreases the quality of services provided by the network, but
not to the same degree as a Critical failure. RS-TIM is an example of a major
alarm
Minor alarm
• A failure that does not decrease the quality of the service provided by the
network. AIS and protected card failures are examples of this

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Monitor/on/off
• Definition
– Monitor = report DEFECT irrespective of reporting exceptions and
correlation and enact consequent actions
– Off = do not report DEFECT, do not enact consequent actions
– On = report DEFECT and enact consequent actions (if they are configured
“on” for the DEFECT type and instance)
Reporting Mode Defect Filter Alarm

Off Ignored No Alarm
Monitor Seen Alarm
maybe
On Seen Applied Alarm
Filter would include AIS/PLM (if protected connection), masking

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Monitor mode
LP on terminating NE
LPOM on thru-connects
LP LPOM LPOM LPOM LPOM LP

2m 2m
LPOM will not be reported on any of the

NE’s above unless there is a protected
connection and the NE will therefore need
to declare it

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Consequent actions
C.A.’s are events which occur as a result of a traffic or BER alarm to indicate
the condition of the received signal. There are three main C.A.’s
1. AIS indication (internal to the multiplexer)
2. RDI or REI inserted on the return path overhead
3. Path protection switch
The operator can configure C.A.’s on or off for the complete NE or for each
alarm type. For a C.A. to be enabled all the following conditions must be true.
• The feature is enabled (e.g. Path Trace)
• Alarm report set to ON or Monitor
• C.A.’s are enabled on the NE
• The C.A. is enabled for the alarm type

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Consequent Actions
MS-RDI MS-EXC AU-AIS
Poor optical connection
AIS
STM-4o NE B STM-4o NE C
NE A
MS-RDI
AIS
LP-RDI
STM-1o
NE D
TU-AIS

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Consequent Actions (cont.)
• The multiplex section is terminated at NE B. An MS-EXC alarm is raised due to the
excessive errors on the signal.
• The MS-EXC alarm causes the following C.A.s.

a) MS-RDI is inserted on the return path overhead
b) AIS is inserted on the path overhead of unterminated (through) connections
c) AIS is inserted on terminated (add-drop) connections.
• The MS-RDI consequent action causes the MS-RDI alarm to be raised at NE A.
• AIS on the path overhead causes the AU-AIS or TU-AIS alarms. HP-RDI is inserted
in the overhead of the return path.

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AIS
• AIS is not understood very well. When it is seen it is an implication that

something is wrong upstream. It does not indicate that the failure is on that
NE!
• You therefore need to work upstream to find the source of the problem.
• Need to distinguish between AIS signal (Signal of all 1’s) and the AIS alarm
where AIS is raised.
• Purpose of AIS is to reduce the number of alarms in the network. (Standards)
• For example if an RS-TIM was raised on an NE, the alarm would be reported
on all NE’s downstream potentially. However AIS passes downstream and the
NE’s do not report it except on the NE’s which have protected connections.

Asia 33
Trace Identifier Mismatch (TIM)
• Important when provisioning or changing a network setup

• In SONET TIM needs to be detected for 30 mins for this reason
• Only likely to be seen when connecting fibers and setting up
connections. NOT AFTER unless the network is being reconfigured
• Purpose TIM- a message is put in the header to identify the VC. It will
travel with the VC throughout the network until the path is terminated.
If the J0 byte is reported incorrectly over a sequence of 16 frames, the
alarm is raised.
• Default values:
TX-unallocated Therefore the alarm will be raised and it
urges the user to set up the Trace Identifier
RX-unallocated
NOTE: It can be used to detect LOS alarm on Single Fibre
Working due to the reflection of the laser – Energis)
Asia 34
Payload Mismatch (PLM)
• PLM - Located in the V5 byte

• PLM purpose - is to report that the payload received is not what the NE was
expecting
• Low Order VC-12 – Payload = 2
• Low Order VC-3 – Payload = 4
• High Order VC-4 – Payload = 2
• The alarm is not that useful as the start and end of the path automatically
configure themselves.
• The trib card that creates the VC will configure the label
• Possible that something else might be reported I.e. from a vendors equipment.
If the C2 byte = 0, then there is no payload and is unequipped with a payload
and the UNEQUIP alarm is raised.

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Remote Monitoring
• Remote Monitoring allows the original sender of the data to observe that the
quality of the data has been sent correctly.
• Used mainly when data is travelling across various vendors equipment
• How is this done? - G1 byte
• The G1 byte in the overhead in the return VC-4 will have “110” in it – which
means RDI
• If HP-EXC arrives at Deutsch Telecom terminating NE – expect REI – but
actually both are sent back. However RDI masks REI.
• RDI – EXC alarm & REI - DEG alarm – different thresholds

Asia 36
RDI (Remote Defect Indication)
– Used to communicate back to sender how well their signal is
being received
– Example application
Deutsch
Telecom
BT
HP-TIM
HP-RDI
– RDI is an consequent action of

• e.g. EXC
Signal originates in network A.
OperatorA wants to know if signal is • e.g. TIM
arriving safely. But A has no jurisdiction • e.g. PLM
over B - won’t see DEFECTs detected
in B. Solution = remote monitoring -
RDI and REI.
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Alarm Classification
All alarms in the OM4000 series are divided into five classes; Traffic, Bit Error,
Card, Equipment, and External.
• Traffic alarms relate to the quality of the external signal path.
• Bit error alarms are related to the quality of the received signal.
• Card alarms are raised when there is a mismatch between the equipped
aggregates and the slot provisioning.
• Equipment alarms relate to the physical circuits processing the signals.
• External alarms correspond to external customer inputs such as door open or
fire alarms

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Traffic alarms
• Traffic alarms provide information about the quality of the receive signal path
and are subject to filtering and correlation.
• The Consequent actions for most traffic alarms are user configurable.
• The user can can also configure the C.A.s for the whole NE
• Instance types include STM-16, STM-4, STM-1, 140Mbit/s, 34Mbit/s & 2Mbits
• Traffic alarms are required by the G783 specification

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Traffic defects family tree
Do you have a signal? Can you locate the PDH/SDH Is your signal an How correct is the signal?
structures within the signal – alarm indication
i.e. the frame, multiframe or signal?
PPI-LOS, RS-LOS Does it have bit errors?
pointers?
PPI-AIS, MS-AIS,
PPI-LOF, RS-LOF, PPI-LOM PPI-EXC, PPI-DEG, ES-CMI,
TU-AIS, INT-TU-AIS
HP-LOM, AU-LOP, TU-LOP, RS-EXC, RS-DEG, MS-EXC,
INT-TU-LOP HP-EXC, HP-DEG, HPOM-EXC
Do you have an HPOM-DEG, LP-EXC, LP-DEG,
unexpected signal? LPOM-EXC, LPOM-DEG
PPI-Uneq-Signal
RS-Uneq-Signal Is it the signal you expected?
RS-TIM, HP-TIM, HPOM-TIM

LP-TIM, LPOM-TIM
How well did your
neighbour/far-end see your
signal?
Is it equipped for a payload?
How many bit errors did HP-UNEQ, HPOM-UNEQ,

it have? LP-UNEQ, LPOM-UNEQ
MS-REI, HP-REI, HPOM-REI,

LP-REI, LPOM-REI Is it the payload type you
expected?
Was it defective? HP-PLM, HPOM-PLM, LP-

PLM, LPOM-PLM
MS-RDI, HP-RDI, HPOM-RDI,
LP-RDI, LPOM-RDI
Asia 40
PDH Traffic Defect Correlation
A
PPI LOS PPI UNEXP SGNL
= ‘A masks B’
PPI EXC
B
PPI DEG PPI AIS INT LP IP BUFFER INT HP IP BUFFER
PPI LOF
PPI LOM
Asia 41
SDH traffic DEFECT correlation
RS LOS RS UNEXPECTED SIGNAL
A
ES CMI
= ‘A masks B’
B
RS LOF
A
QECC COMMS FAIL RS TIM MS RDI

= ‘A masks B,
dependent on AIS
MS AIS MS RDI consequent action
configuration of A’
B
MS EXC
MS DEG AU LOP
AU AIS
HPOM EXC

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HPOM TIM HPOM PLM HPOM UNEQ
Traffic alarms
• LOS – loss of the received signal- faulty fibre, near end or far end card
• LOF – loss of frame alignment - faulty fibre, near end or far end card
• EXC – error rate exceeds configured threshhold on B1 byte – as above
• TIM – Received J0 byte not what was expected- hardware & connections
• RDI – Far end NE detected fault in signal- hardware or AIS present
• AIS – indicates a failure in a far end NE.
• REI – bit errors received at far end exceed the threshhold – hardware/EXC
• DEG – BER of the BIP-24 error check exceeds threshhold- fibre/hardware
• LOP – The pointer value in AU pointer is invalid
• UNEQ – No connection made yet incoming signal – incorrect connection setup
• SF – raised if both paths of the connection fail – incorrect connection/faulty card
• IN-BUFFER – input buffer for PDH mapper overflows- sync/faulty trib card
• OUT-BUFFER - Output buffer for desynchronizer overflows- sync/faulty trib card

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Traffic alarms AIS sent downstream 0
S15
RS-LOS
Slot 8 b6
Slot
RDI
Protected Path
NE B
Fibre break
Working Path
Slot 6
AIS raised Slot 8

MS-RDI
Protection Switch to Slot 8 NE C
NE A
Slot 8 Slot 6
Protected Path
2M
2M
Working Path
NE D
Slot 6 Slot 8

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Feature alarms - sync
• SETG fail- problem with Sync selection circuit on card- faulty card
• UNEXP-SIG – ESI receiving signal but it isn’t in hierarchy- add to hierarchy
• SOURCE not primary – currently not using primary source-(if SSM active or a
forced override used, this alarm is not raised)- investigate hierarchy
• HOLDOVER – all external sources rejected and running off historical values –
faulty sync sources
• LOS – ESI input has failed-source failed/faulty EOS card
• OUT OF LIMITS – port has a gross frequency offset – faulty sync source or
SETS in the aggregate card
• LOCK FAIL – the SETG or ESO PLL reports out of lock condition- as above

Asia 45
External
Slot 15b-1
Sync alarms
clock drifts
out of spec
Hierarchy
0
S15 Slot 15b-1
Sync-Lock-Fail & Sync-
Source-Out of limits
alarms raised
Slot 8 b6
Slot
NE B
Slot 6
Hierarchy
Slot 8 Hierarchy
Slot 6-1
NE C Slot 6-1
NE A
Slot 8 Slot 6 Sync-Lock-Fail & Sync-Source-

Out of limits alarms raised
Source-Out of limits
alarms raised
Possible intermittent LOP alarms against Aggregates,

Buffer alarms raised against the PDH tribs
NE D STM4o, STM1o & STM1e trib cards
Slot 6 Slot 8
Hierarchy
Slot 6-1 Source-Out of limits alarms
raised

Asia 46
Sync alarms
• Sync-Lock-Fail & Sync-Source-Out-of Limits alarms will be raised on the NE where the
failure has taken place.
• Sync-SETG-Fail alarm indicates a hardware fault on the SETS of the Agg card
• The same alarms will then be raised on other NE’s on the network.
• An NE will only go into ‘Holdover’ if all sync sources are bad.
• HP,LP,AU & TU alarms do not cause a switch. It is only monitored from MS level up
• Alarms that will cause a sync switch are:
- RS-LOS
- RS-LOF
- MS-AIS
- MS-EXC

Asia 47
Card Alarms
• CARD-OUT – Card removed without unequipping – card removed, incorrect
config or faulty aggregate
• UNEXP-CARD – Card present in slot which is unequipped – card in wrong
slot, incorrect config or faulty aggregate
• CARD-FAIL – agg card detects fault or fails to communicate with card – faulty
indicated or agg card
• CARD-FAULT – self diagnosis by the NE indicates that the card has a fault-
faulty indicated card
• WRONG-CARD – card inserted into slot designated for another type of card –
wrong card in slot/faulty config
• MINOR MISMATCH – card configured with wrong sub-release

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Miscellaneous alarms
• Qecc Comms Fail – NE cannot communicate with neighbouring NE over the fibre when
it has been configured – loopback, faulty card, unequipped card
• EA-EXT inp <1-8> - alarm detected on one of the external alarm outputs
• INT NE Config Corrupt – config data in config bank is corrupt and NE in Detached mode
– check configuration data
• NE-Unexp LAN – LAN present but service set to Standby (unexpected)
• INT NE-Config mismatch – NE in Detached mode - serial no. on agg doesn’t match that
of SIMM- aggregate may have been replaced and need to Impose Config
• Ps-power fail – power supply to either EOS card has failed – replace
• NE Date time unknown – real time clock in NE has no knowledge – set
• Unexp SW version – SW on card does not match that in software store - upgrade

Asia 49
Configuration alarms
• INT Config corrupt – config data in active bank is corrupt – Restore the config
bank
• INT Config SW mismatch – software on card and that in config bank are
different – either DW software or perform a consolidate
• INT Config Audit Mismatch – config data in RAM different to that on cards –
update config if necessary and perform Impose Config

Asia 50
Card Protection alarms
• Prot Equip Fail – raised when 1+1 prot I/O card fails – replace
• Prot Equip Out – raised when both the trib cards detect no connection to the
I/O card – check cable connection
• Prot Unexp Equip – Connection set up but trib card not configured for 1+1 -
create card association
• Prot Cable Error – indicated cable fault between trib and I/O card – faulty
cable or has been connected to the wrong port
• Prot Wrong Equip – raised when there is a mismatch between trib card and
1+1 I/O card – replace the wrong card

Asia 51
MSP alarms
• FOP PAM – raised when equipment at either end are using different
architectures – reconfigure equipment
• FOP SCM – difference exists in the transmitted channel of the K1 byte and the
received K2 byte – incorrect fibre connection
• FOP INV – indicates that the received K1 byte is invalid – faulty card or else
clean fibres
• FOP TMOUT – indicates that the K1 byte has not been received within the
specified 50ms – either the configuration is using different architectures or
there is incorrect fibre connection made

Asia 52
Alarm Indications
Card LEDs
All cards include several light-emitting (LEDs) on the faceplates.
Traffic card LEDs

Red - the Fail LED indicates a card fail, power fail or watchdog timer fail
Green - the Active LED indicates that the card is in service. Do not remove
the card while this LED is on.
Yellow - the LOS LED indicates a loss of signal

Asia 53
Alarm Indications
EOS card LEDs

• The two colour Fail LED on the EOS cards indicates:
• Red, a firmware, LAN or low voltage failure has occured
• Yellow, a fail on the -48 V supply has occured
• The network element includes a lamp test facility which lights most of the
visual indicators on the multiplexer. The test time is 20 seconds.

Asia 54
Alarm Indications
Fan tray alarm and LEDs

• The fan tray has two LEDs installed on the faceplate and three internal LEDs.
• Red: (Tray Fail) indicates an internal power supply 2 fail, fan fail or
temperature high.
• Green: (Power good) when off, this LED indicates a fail on either of the
48 V battery feeds or an internal power supply 1 fail.
• Yellow: (fan fail LEDs) indicate the failed fan. The location of these LEDs is
inside the fan tray.
• The fan tray uses relays to generate two fail alarm signals. These signals are
available at the Alarms connector on the front panel.

Asia 55
External alarms (Output)
• The OM4000 subrack provides 5 External alarm output signals.

• They each activate when the related alarm or alarms are present.
• The alarm output connector is on the lower EOS.
• More then one alarm type can activate an external alarm signal.
• One alarm type cannot activate more than one external alarm.

Asia 56
External alarms (Input)
• The OM4000 subrack can monitor 8 external alarm input connections.
• They indicate to the NE by the use of relay contacts on the external
equipment.
• External alarms filter and report to the user interface in the same way as
internal alarms.
• The alarm input connector is on the Upper EOS

Asia 57
Rack Alarm Unit
Power Indicator
PWR
ON Prompt Alarm Indicator
Deferred Alarm Indicator
ALM
P/D
REC
ATT Receive Attention Indicator
ALM
IS/CL In-Station Alarm Indicator
Alarm Clear Indicator
LAMP
TEST
Lamp Test Button
Note - Panel layout may

vary.
• What is a Rack Alarm Unit?

• An RAU is an external unit which provides information on the state of the
Multiplexer to which it is connected. It s normally located at the top of a
rack, and displays the status of any Muxes within that rack.
Asia 58
Rack Alarm Unit
Rack Alarm Unit - Front Panel - illustrates the indicators and buttons on the front
panel of the RAU.
PWR ON - The indicates that RAU is turned on and operational.
REC ATT- This indicates that the rack is currently in ‘Receive Attention’ mode.
This means that an alarm has occurred but is currently being investigated.
ALM P/D
This may indicate one of two things - Either a Prompt alarm has
occurred or a Deferred alarm has occurred. This light is
illuminated when the corresponding alarm first becomes present,
and will stay illuminated until the Receive Attention button is
pressed. (The Receive Attention button is located on the Mux.)

Asia 59
Rack Alarm Unit
ALM IS/CL
This may also indicate one of two things - Either an In-Station alarm
has occurred or an alarm which was previously present has now
gone clear (Fault Clear). It will be illuminated when an In-Station
alarm first becomes present or when an alarm which was present
first goes clear. It will stay on until the Receive Attention button is
pressed.
LAMP TEST
This button provides a mechanism for testing that each of the
indicators are working correctly. Upon pressing this button, each
of the four indicators should illuminate until the button is
released.

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Rack Alarm Unit
Example 1
• This example will follow the state diagram for the case:
- A prompt alarm is raised
- The receive attention button is pressed
- The prompt alarm clears
• The starting state is all alarm indicators off, and both status LEDs off:-
PWR
ON ALM
P/D
REC
Sta tu s Lig ht s on Mu x ATT ALM
Re d Green LAM P
IS/CL
TEST

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Rack Alarm Unit
• A prompt alarm now occurs. Therefore, the prompt indicator should

illuminate, along with the Red status LED:-
PWR
ON ALM
P/D
REC
Sta tus Light s on Mux ATT ALM
Red Green LAMP
IS/CL
TEST

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Rack Alarm Unit
• The operator now presses the receive attention button, therefore the
prompt light will extinguish and the receive attention indicator will
illuminate. The red status LED will turn off and the green LED will
illuminate:
PWR
ON ALM
P/D
REC
Sta tu s Lig ht s on Mu x ATT ALM
Re d Green LAM P
IS/CL
TEST

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Rack Alarm Unit
• When the prompt alarm clears, the fault clear light will illuminate, as
will both the red and green status LEDs
PWR
ON ALM
P/D
REC
Red Green LAM P
IS/CL
TEST

Asia 64
Rack Alarm Unit
• If no further alarms occur and the operator presses the receive

attention button again, the state machine will return to the starting
state:
PWR
ON ALM
P/D
REC
Red Green LAMP
IS/CL
TEST

Asia 65
Master question
• Mark the LPT

B C • Mark HPTs
• Mark active LPOMs on
working path
• Mark a fibre break between A
&F
• Mark the RST on the Rx of F
• Mark where RS-LOS is
2M 2M detected
A D • Mark the links which will
carry AIS
• Will E raise AU-AIS? No
• Will D raise TU-AIS? Yes
• Will D protection switch? Yes

• Draw the return fibre from F
to A (which is unbroken)
E • Mark the link where RDI will
F be injected upstream
• Mark where MS-RDI will be
reported
• Will LP-RDI be reported? Yes
Asia 66
Questions
1. Explain the difference in what happens to the overhead inside a
Regenerator compared to a Multiplexor.
2. What factors contribute to the naming of an individual defect?
3. Would an MS-EXC alarm mask an RS-LOF alarm?
4. What is the difference between an LP alarm and a LPOM alarm?
5. Name three types of Consequent actions.
6. Why would the HP-SF alarm be raised?
7. Why would an NE go into ‘Holdover’?
8. If you seen the Qecc-Comms-Fail alarm, what would you check?
9. What do the different coloured LED’s on a traffic card mean?
10. What does the Lamp Test function do?

Asia 67
Answers
1. In a Regenerator, the RSOH is terminated and the MSOH and payload

continue. A new RSOH is generated and added. In a Multiplexor, both
the RSOH and the MSOH are terminated and the payload continues.
New RSOH and MSOH are generated and added.
2. The Function Point – LP (Low order Path Termination point) and the
alarm category – EXC (Excessive bit errors) = LP-EXC
3. No. RS alarms mask all other alarms. For example if you have an RS-
LOS, you are not worried if there are Excessive Bit Errors!
4. The LP function point terminates traffic (removes the path overhead)
and the LPOM simply looks at the overhead. The same for HP and
HPOM.
5. Protection switch; AIS raised and passed through the network; RDI or
REI alarms raised.

Asia 68
Answers (cont)
6. The alarm is raised if both paths of the connection fail. This could be
due to incorrect connection configuration or a faulty card
7. An NE would go into ‘Holdover’ if all external sources were rejected as
they were ‘bad’ sources and the NE is then running off historical
values
8. The NE cannot communicate with a neighbouring NE over the fibre
when it has been configured to do so. The reason for this could be
either a loopback, a faulty card, an unequipped card or faulty fibre’s.
9. Red indicates a card fail, power fail or watchdog timer fail
Green indicates that the card is in service
Yellow indicates a loss of signal on the card
10. It tests that each of the indicators are working correctly. Upon
pressing this button, each of the four indicators should illuminate
until the button is released.

Asia 69
Appendix 1
Regenerator Section Multiplex Section Higher Order Path Lower Order Path
LOS
A1/A2
AIS
J0 LOF
B1 Error count sent upstream
K2
RS-TIM Alarm indicator sent upstream
B2
Error/alarm detection
M1 AIS
RS-BIP
K2
AIS
MS-AIS
MS-BIP
MS-REI
MS-RDI
C2 AIS
J1
B3
G1 AIS
G1
AU-AIS
AIS
AU-LOP
H4 HP-UNEQ
C2 HP-TIM
V5 HP-BIP
J2 HP-REI
V5 70 Knowledge Transfer Program - OM4000 Series Alarms - Finbar Mc Grath
Asia
HP-RDI
70 AIS
V5
Appendix 2 Emergency procedures
Traffic
• Check alarms – Known Issue
• Clear NE alarms – below could be all symptoms of NE alarms
• Clear High Order alarms
• Clear Low Order alarms
• Check Individual circuits – backdoor/trace AIS

Asia 71

Understanding of Alarms

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Asia Pacific Knowledge

Impact: duration of upgrade increases

2 Knowledge Transfer Program - OM4000 Series Alarms - Finbar Mc Grath

3 Knowledge Transfer Program - OM4000 Series Alarms - Finbar Mc Grath

D10 D11 D12 F3 N2 N2 N2

5 Knowledge Transfer Program - OM4000 Series Alarms - Finbar Mc Grath

Z0 Spare. Reserved for future international standardisation.

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E2 Provides express orderwire channel for voice communications between multiplex

F2 Higher order path user channel. Allocated for network operator

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• A multiplexer also fulfils the functions of a regenerator.

STM frame encasing high order VC

RST (RSOH MST [Multiplex Section Termination]

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STM-N AUG AU-4 VC-4

1. SPI 2. MSP 5. MSA 6. HSS (7 HUG, 8. HPOM)

Multiplexing 10. HPA-12/4 11. LPC-12 13. LPA-12

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An anomaly can lead to a defect which in turn can lead to an alarm

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• Normal operation - BER of 10-10

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• As the signal is deteriorating and gets weaker, noise gets more

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ANOMALY DEFECT ALARM

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• DEFECT name = Function point + DEFECT category

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Each defect signal is filtered to prevent transient signals causing multiple

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• When a defect occurs and is recognised by the NE alarm handling hardware

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Monitor YES NO YES YES

On YES YES YES YES

N.B. If alarm reporting mode is off, then no matter what

*Filtering/Masking is used on OM4000 series to cut down on the quantity

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Reporting Mode Defect Filter Alarm

Filter would include AIS/PLM (if protected connection), masking

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LP LPOM LPOM LPOM LPOM LP

LPOM will not be reported on any of the

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MS-RDI MS-EXC AU-AIS

Poor optical connection

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• The MS-EXC alarm causes the following C.A.s.

• The MS-RDI consequent action causes the MS-RDI alarm to be raised at NE A.

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• AIS is not understood very well. When it is seen it is an implication that

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• Important when provisioning or changing a network setup

• PLM - Located in the V5 byte

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– RDI is an consequent action of