Vodacom Outage

[vodacom3g]

Thanks for a good laugh. So since when is a HLR MSC not a NE?

Semantics, I guess....

Sounds like it was only certain number ranges, thus the "small %".

Really don't see a PR disaster here. (and I should know, with pre-paid data bundles and all ) Something broke and got fixed. Not nice and no-one wanted this to happen, but sometimes technical systems break, especially when you fiddle with them, as during an upgrade.

"conspiracy theorists" is better, tx!

 

[allyoucaneat]

Semantics?! Remember that the people here are professionals. Crazy stuff like that is not going to fly. Let's qualify "small percentage": If there are 20 HLRs, that will be about 5%. 5% x 20,000,000 = 1,000,000. That is one million subscribers affected.

 

[Mr Anderson]

Well...instead of saying "HAHAHA see MTN is the best" I'll rather say..."IT HAPPENS" MTN has had failures like this in the past and it's bound to happen sometime. I'm glad they got it sorted and a big thumbs up to their support personell who handled the fault, I have first hand experience on what it's like to handle a fault like this...it's NOT fun.

 

[jarr]

well, to bring some balance to this thread, i had no problems with vodacom today, other than my mailbox acting all weird. actually, i wouldn't have minded the quiet that some downtime would have brought

 

[Dovi]

I had problems which were driving me mad, needed cell this morning but then just manually selected VodaCom as my network and that fixed it

 

[supersunbird]

"Vodacom has also informed MyADSL that the problem is of a technical nature and definitely not network related."

I still say it is network related (at the software layer) and that there is untruth 3G...

If I put the wrong IP adress on a computer and it cant see the network, it is network related.

Sure, I know, networks give problems and its hell to fix them sometimes, but Vodacom didn't have to befuddle the view of the situation with useless words.

Why are they eager to specify that it is not a network issue?

 

[Mr Anderson]

"Vodacom has also informed MyADSL that the problem is of a technical nature and definitely not network related."

I still say it is network related (at the software layer) and that there is your untruth 3G...

If I put the wrong IP adress on a computer and it cant see the network, it is network related.

Sure, I know, networks give problems and its hell to fix them sometimes, but Vodacom didn't have to befuddle the view of the situation with useless words.

Why are they eager to specify that it is not a network issue?

Because they're so image conscious it's hillarious.

 

[vodacom3g]

I'll post one last response for those not so fast on the uptake....

It WAS a Vodacom fault, and Vodacom admitted to it, immediately, so no 'image' problem here.

In Vodacom speak, it was not a 'network' problem but at the service layer. Purely a definition and no attempt to hide the fact, why else put out a statement to say it's broken? Internally when we talk about the 'network' it typically refers to the radio network.

If your PC or server breaks down, do you call it a network problem?

I agree that a large number of subs were affected, but it still was a small %. Should have been 0%, no question.

See number of posts on myADSL of users who were not affected.

 

[Prometheus]

As posted earlier in this thread, a HLR upgrade did not go as planned and had to be rolled back. Some number ranges were affected and others not.

Translation: a techie screwed up

 

[MrG]

Who is this techie, I want to thank him personally.

 

[allyoucaneat]

If your PC or server breaks down, do you call it a network problem?

You can't equate an Home Location Register (HLR) to a computer. In your analogy of a computer network it would be the router and switch.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GSM_core_network#Home_Location_Register_.28HLR.29 (EDIT: better link)

... If the HLR fails, then the mobile network is effectively disabled as it is the HLR which manages the Location Updates as mobile phones roam around.

 

[The_Unbeliever]

Happened to me - one moment signal, the other moment, no signal.

Wasn't fun at all...

Both my wife and I was affected, from around 08:15 to 08:45 in the Pretoria, Menlyn Park area.

But thanks goes to the techies who rushed out to fix the problem so quickly.

 

[MrG]

What upgrade was being installed that had to be rolled back?

 

[Windmill]

new 3g

new fast 3g implementation is obviously having a "small" problem

 

[vodacom3g]

new fast 3g implementation is obviously having a "small" problem

Not quite. This specific problem was not related to the rollout of the HSDPA network. As a matter of fact, the HSDPA rollout is complete.

The problem came in with something called a HLR (Home Location Register). Basically this device knows where you are in the network and if it looses track of you, you can't make or receive calls.

By turning your phone off and then back on again, you force a 'location update' and all's fine again.

 

[MrG]

Thanks Vodacom3G, but I knew what the issue was, you said it occured when they were doing a upgrade on the voice network, what was that upgrade...

----- HLR
Home Location Register

The main database of permanent subscriber information for a mobile network.
The HLR is an integral component of CDMA (code division multiple access), TDMA (time division multiple access), and GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) networks.
Maintained by the subscriber's home carrier (or the network operator where the user initiated the call), the HLR contains pertinent user information, including address, account status, and preferences. The HLR interacts with the Mobile Switching Center (MSC), which is a switch used for call control and processing. The MSC also serves as a point-of-access to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN - the fixed network). The third integral element is the Visiting Location Register (VLR), which maintains temporary user information (such as current location) to manage requests from subscribers who are out of the area covered by their home system.

When a user initiates a call, the switching equipment determines whether or not the call is coming from the device's home area. If the user is out of the home area, the area VLR sends out a request for information required to process the call. An MSC queries the HLR identified by the call for information, which it relays to the appropriate MSC, which in turn relays it to the VLR. The VLR sends routing information back to the MSC which allows it to find the station where the call originated, and, finally, the mobile device to connect. Communications between the elements are based on Signaling System (SS7) protocols and signaling.