Problem: Remaining Data on Expired Pre-Paid Data Bundle preventing new PPDB Purchase

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Syndyre

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Seem to be having a strange problem, my PPDB expired yesterday but when I tried to load a new one now I got a message saying I have a current data bundle and can only purchase a new one once the existing one is depleted or expired etc. It definitely has expired though because I got an sms to say it had expired and am also being charged OOB rates even though I had about 60MB left when it expired.

Tried calling 155 and the guy said it shows I still have a data bundle loaded etc. but I don't have much faith after he told me I had "80 kilobits a second of data left on my bundle" :confused::rolleyes:

Anybody have any idea what the problem could be? Tried loading a bundle both via the *111# menu and by smsing 100.
 
Syndyre said:
Seem to be having a strange problem, my PPDB expired yesterday but when I tried to load a new one now I got a message saying I have a current data bundle and can only purchase a new one once the existing one is depleted or expired etc. It definitely has expired though because I got an sms to say it had expired and am also being charged OOB rates even though I had about 60MB left when it expired.

Tried calling 155 and the guy said it shows I still have a data bundle loaded etc. but I don't have much faith after he told me I had "80 kilobits a second of data left on my bundle" :confused::rolleyes:

Anybody have any idea what the problem could be? Tried loading a bundle both via the *111# menu and by smsing 100.
Click to expand...

If you don't have any money in it, you could always try and connect and see what happened.

Maybe try and buy a different size bundle. I recall a problem where 4me still has the previous bundle ticked and then won't allow you to buy the same bundle again.

Otherwise call 155 till you find someone knowledgeable.
 
vodacom3g said:
If you don't have any money in it, you could always try and connect and see what happened.

Maybe try and buy a different size bundle. I recall a problem where 4me still has the previous bundle ticked and then won't allow you to buy the same bundle again.

Otherwise call 155 till you find someone knowledgeable.
Click to expand...

Already loaded the airtime to buy a bundle, when I try and connect it does work but charges me OOB rates so clearly the bundle is depleted/expired. Was actually trying to buy a different size bundle anyway so I guess I'm stuck calling 155, hopefully I'll have better luck the next time.
 
Called 155 again and apparently I should wait a few more hours so the system can clear the data bundle status, then it should work, so I suppose I'll have to leave it for a while, may try again tomorrow sometime.
 
I've just experienced this/a similar problem. Bumping this thread.

My bundle expired last night - got the SMS at 2007-09-20 00:06:14 "Your Data Bundles expired."

Today, I tried to purchase a bundle. (No problem with the bundles list - 500MB, 1GB, 2GB all there.) But when I click BUY NOW I get the message syndyre mentioned:
"You have a current data bundle. You may only purchase a data bundle once your existing data bundle has been depleted or expired."

Oddly, *111# - 1 - 7 and the vodacom4me page say
"You have 2.03 MB available to use.Your databundle will expire on 0."
(on vodacom4me "Data Bundle Expiry Date" is blank).
I would say this is a pretty definitive indicator of this problem.

Phoned 082155. (They answered quickly, but we had a bad connection and it disconnected ... they phoned me back at once, even to my MTN handset. That's service! :D )

She confirmed the system sees a bundle still loaded, and put me on hold to investigate (while I listened to Mambo No. 5 - :mad::mad:). She had a thought that Autopage would have to get involved since I bought the prepaid SIM through them, but (after some more on-hold music) said they (Vodacom) would clear the bundle - "the longest it will take is 24 hours".

She also said "this is a known problem with prepaid bundles". The limitation on not being able to top-up an existing bundle is bad enough, but when the system goes wrong, it's a real pain.

Maybe the solution is two SIMs? Like the solution to MTN's constraint of a fixed 30-day window.
 
SecretCode said:
I've just experienced this/a similar problem. Bumping this thread.

My bundle expired last night - got the SMS at 2007-09-20 00:06:14 "Your Data Bundles expired."

Today, I tried to purchase a bundle. (No problem with the bundles list - 500MB, 1GB, 2GB all there.) But when I click BUY NOW I get the message syndyre mentioned:
"You have a current data bundle. You may only purchase a data bundle once your existing data bundle has been depleted or expired."

Oddly, *111# - 1 - 7 and the vodacom4me page say
"You have 2.03 MB available to use.Your databundle will expire on 0."
(on vodacom4me "Data Bundle Expiry Date" is blank).
I would say this is a pretty definitive indicator of this problem.

Phoned 082155. (They answered quickly, but we had a bad connection and it disconnected ... they phoned me back at once, even to my MTN handset. That's service! :D )

She confirmed the system sees a bundle still loaded, and put me on hold to investigate (while I listened to Mambo No. 5 - :mad::mad:). She had a thought that Autopage would have to get involved since I bought the prepaid SIM through them, but (after some more on-hold music) said they (Vodacom) would clear the bundle - "the longest it will take is 24 hours".

She also said "this is a known problem with prepaid bundles". The limitation on not being able to top-up an existing bundle is bad enough, but when the system goes wrong, it's a real pain.

Maybe the solution is two SIMs? Like the solution to MTN's constraint of a fixed 30-day window.
Click to expand...

I think what you saw here is the reservation system on pre-paid.

As you know the system reserves slightly ahead of your actual usage. At some point the system sees zero and you get the bundle kaput SMS. You disconnect and the system releases the reserve and suddenly you have 2MB left, the reserved data.

Could you not just re-connect and use up the 2MB?
 
SecretCode posted that the PPDB expired last night i.e. 2007-09-19T23:59:59.99, and received the SMS notification that the PPDB had expired at 2007-09-20T00:06:14.
 
ic said:
SecretCode posted that the PPDB expired last night i.e. 2007-09-19T23:59:59.99, and received the SMS notification that the PPDB had expired at 2007-09-20T00:06:14.
Click to expand...

Ah, the plot thickens.....

Sorry missed that bit, suffered from premature posting. Happens as you get older :rolleyes:....will pick it up.
 
I don't think that's the case, v3g. Admittedly I didn't check the data balance when disconnected and have a specific message that I had 0 bytes remaining, but my bundle definitely expired. And as I showed the expiry date is blank.

However - the more I think about it the less I'm sure. It's certainly something that might be involved in some logic that deletes the bundle (failing if the reserved 2MB comes back). Bad logic, but still possible. It's only software after all.

Originally I couldn't connect, but I got in on a repeat attempt. The thing that deters me from depleting the 2.03MB (now 2.01MB) is that I would have to go below 0 to be certain of depleting the bundle ... and then I'd be at OOB rates ... and I wouldn't be able to purcahse a bundle anyway because I recharged with exactly R189.

I'll try ...
 
SecretCode said:
I don't think that's the case, v3g. Admittedly I didn't check the data balance when disconnected and have a specific message that I had 0 bytes remaining, but my bundle definitely expired. And as I showed the expiry date is blank.

However - the more I think about it the less I'm sure. It's certainly something that might be involved in some logic that deletes the bundle (failing if the reserved 2MB comes back). Bad logic, but still possible. It's only software after all.

Originally I couldn't connect, but I got in on a repeat attempt. The thing that deters me from depleting the 2.03MB (now 2.01MB) is that I would have to go below 0 to be certain of depleting the bundle ... and then I'd be at OOB rates ... and I wouldn't be able to purcahse a bundle anyway because I recharged with exactly R189.

I'll try ...
Click to expand...


I think you and ic are right. I missed the expiry date bit, so lets first look into it.
 
ic said:
:D

Maybe an expired_ppdbs batch job failed to run in the early hours of this morning?
Click to expand...

Maybe it went like this:
if (bundle expired)
{
send the sms;
if (data remaining) { reduce data balance to zero };
/* data balance of zero is what is treated as no bundle */
}

Then I disconnected and it reapplied the "reserved" 2MB.
Data balance now > 0 so some logic somewhere thinks this is a valid data bundle (and hey, I can connect).

If I'd thought about this (and why wouldn't I) I'd have made more attempts to connect and deplete it before recharging.
 
v3g, do you have access to the incident log that 082155 keep (using the ref # I mailed you)? I'm assuming that they log tasks and updates to their service desk tool.

Just so you have a full picture and avoid duplicating work.
 
Considering that it is now after midnight [albeit now >24hrs later], maybe whatever needed to run to expire SecretCode's PPDB, has now run again - maybe successfully this time...

@SecretCode, does v4me etc still show an active PPDB with a weird expiry date?
 
I got a call from someone at the 155 desk this afternoon (asking if I had problems connecting ... I had to set him straight on my actual problem, but then he was helpful). He said my account now shows a zero data balance, and I've just checked on vodacom4me, and that agrees.

It seems like they need to route a task to the billing department to cancel the remaining data credit when this (known) problem occurs. In his words "if you even have 5 bytes remaining you won't be able to buy a new bundle".

However I won't need 3G service today or over the long weekend (unless ... tempting fate ... my Telkom ADSL line dies). So I'll try purchasing the bundle on Tuesday.
 
Vodacom Data Bundle Rollover

My prepaid data bundle expiry date was the 21st, but when I try to purchase another I am told that there still is an active date bundle (all data on previous one not used). I have also been able to connect and use the service as usual.

Have noticed quite a few new data bundles that can be bought on Vodacom prepaid.

This wouldn't happen to be a review of the data bundles and rollover introduction? Or am I overly optimistic :-).
Cheers
Pagel
 
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