Installing DSL

By Ron Nutter
Network World, 06/05/00

My company is getting ready to connect several warehouses around the country to our corporate network. It appears the best bang for the buck will be to use xDSL wherever it is available. I haven't dealt with ordering or troubleshooting DSL as yet. Any suggestions?

Via the Internet

Ordering DSL service for your warehouses is almost as simple as setting up phone service. First, you have to place the order for DSL service. Contact the business office of the telco where your warehouse is located. Before accepting the order, the telco will do several tests to see if the line "qualifies" for DSL service.

The first test involves putting the equivalent of a time domain reflectometer (TDR) on the line to see if the location is less than 18,000 feet from the central office that provides service to that location. If that test comes back successful, the telco will run a series of tests to see what levels of service can be provided (i.e. how fast DSL will be able to run). Once the order is placed, you are looking at as little as five days to almost 60 days before service will be installed. The distance limitation I mention here is specific to asynchronous DSL (ADSL). Check with alternative carriers in to see if they offer Synchronous DSL, which can be run over greater distances than its ADSL counterpart.

The next step is physically getting the service installed. Methods for this seem to vary between telcos. GTE will send someone out to install the electronic splitter on the line for you. U.S. West ships you the DSL modem and line splitter. Once you are notified that the line DSL service will be on has been converted to a digital line, you can complete the install (connect your DSL modem and phone) yourself.

At the time you order DSL service, you will be asked to choose an Internet service provider. When I have had to do this in the past, I usually go with the ISP associated with the telco providing the DSL service. I chose this option because the telco would have more incentive to keep the service up and running than if I chose a competitive ISP.

Most DSL ISPs use DHCP to assign computer IP addresses, default gateways and the like. When I start having connectivity problems, I usually check the DSL modem first to make sure that all the lights on the modem are on solid (this may depend on the DSL modem your telco provides - find out what is normal and what indicates a problem when the service is installed).

If everything apppears OK, I usually bring up winipcfg (on Windows 9x) or ipconfig (on Windows NT) and do a renewal of the IP lease.

If there is a problem talking to the ISP, an error will appear. If you can renew the lease but are having other connectivity problems and have made sure that your cables are OK, try rebooting the PC.

If this still doesn't fix the problem, try turning the DSL modem off and then back on and give it a few minutes to reacquire the DSL line. If none of this works, call the ISP to see if it is having a problem (I recently suffered through a multiple day outage with GTE due to a router failure in Chicago that disrupted service in five states). If the service provider doesn't show a problem, then call the telco and have them run a line test. Several times when I have had problems that couldn't be resolved any other way, the line test from the telco fixed the problem. Always remember to get a case or ticket number when talking to your providers about a DSL problem. Also get the name of the person you talked to and their direct phone number. This helps you when you need to escalate your problem to telco management.