Ingress Mitigation How to Defeat Ingress

1. Ingress MitigationHow to Defeat Ingress March - 2016

2. Defeating Ingress for Vital Services Cable operators today are activating the reverse path to launch: • Video-On-Demand (VOD) • High-Speed Data (HSD) • Voice Over IP (VoIP) • Security Systems (ZigBee)

3. Methods for Defeating Ingress Proactive solutions for defeating ingress problems exist. Accurately Monitors Leakage in All Digital Systems or Mixed Digital and Analog Systems • Perform lockdown procedures • Suppressing ingress • 24 hour monitoring • Sweeping and certifying the network • Testing bit error rates

4. Perform Lockdown Procedures Methods for Defeating Ingress 80+%

5. Perform Lockdown Procedures Methods for Defeating Ingress • Visit every Drop • Tighten Housings • Tighten F-Connectors • Reseal Ground Block • Audit Taps • Terminate Ports • Verify Drop Integrity

6. Perform Lockdown Procedures Methods for Defeating Ingress • Lockdown is a simple tightening up of the plant/drop system. • This must be a collective effort from all technicians at all levels. • The integrity of the plant is up to ALL of us to ensure MAXIMUM customer satisfaction.

7. Suppress Ingress Methods for Defeating Ingress

8. Suppress Ingress Technique 1: Trial and Error Methods for Defeating Ingress • A 9581 SST at the hub or headend • Coordinate with the field to isolate the point of ingress • At each leg, a technician pulls pads and disconnects the return path from each splitter point • OR they use a probe such as the I-Stop • If there’s no impact on the ingress, they move on Headend

9. Suppress Ingress Technique 2: Headend Monitoring & Field Compare Methods for Defeating Ingress Headend

10. Suppress Ingress Leakage Detection Methods for Defeating Ingress • Suppressing ingress via leakage detection is critical • Ingress vs FM vs LTE • Pressurization of the home/mdu can show the most minor of ingress points that can cause major upstream issues, along with LTE problems

11. Suppress Ingress Methods for Defeating Ingress • High-Speed Spectrum Analyzer • Allows you to find and track ingress • Traffic Control Plus • Allows you to see ingress directly underneath the upstream carriers • Upstream Linear Distortions • Allows the technician to find micro-reflections / impedance mismatches • FDR • Allows the user to locate opens/shorts via a Frequency pulse

12. 24 Hour Ingress Monitoring Methods for Defeating Ingress

13. 24 Hour Ingress Monitoring Methods for Defeating Ingress • Addition of VoIP service requires a higher level of integrity • Constant monitoring means an automated system is essential • SNMP trap management with controllable limits, alarms and selective notification is commonly used to create work orders and jobs for maintenance techs • Alarm Notification is critical for upstream maintenance

14. 24 Hour Ingress Monitoring Monitoring Operation Methods for Defeating Ingress • Most monitoring systems use frequency scanning for return band analysis • limits set to detect ingress and noise problems • When limit is crossed, “trap” or alarm is triggered • Limits are configurable, and alarm is scalable, to gauge response urgency

15. 24 Hour Ingress Monitoring The Value of Monitoring Methods for Defeating Ingress • Useful before and after initiating service • Used to prepare the node for certification • Then to actually certify the node • Then to maintain the node and as an aid to locate problems before they impact the subscriber • Goal: >40dB “carrier-to-crud” ratio

16. 24 Hour Ingress Monitoring Catching the Transients Methods for Defeating Ingress • Impulse noise, and intermittent ingress can be difficult to catch with conventional analysis schemes • Looking at one node when ingress occurs at another • Looking at one frequency, when ingress occurs at another

17. 24 Hour Ingress Monitoring Selecting a Monitoring Solution Methods for Defeating Ingress • Seeing all forms of ingress is primary concern • relatively stable forms of CPD and ingress • very transient ingress and impulse noise • Monitoring analyzer must be very fast (DSP) • Must be able to discern interfering signals within band of legitimate system carriers (Traffic Control)

18. 24 Hour Ingress Monitoring The DSP Advantage Methods for Defeating Ingress • Catches transients that other methods miss • 120 Spectrum “snapshots” a second • “Sees” entire spectrum at once, digitizes it, and converts it to the frequency domain using fast Fourier transform. • There is not a faster method for capturing ingress.

19. 24 Hour Ingress Monitoring DSP Examples Methods for Defeating Ingress Time Domain Frequency Domain

20. Return Sweep Methods for Defeating Ingress

21. Return Sweep Methods for Defeating Ingress • One person operates a sweep generator that injects a return sweep signal • A receiver in the headend monitors the injected return sweep • The headend unit digitizes the frequency response "seen" in the headend, then sends it down stream • The technician’s field unit then displays the return frequency response as it appears in the headend

22. Return Sweep Methods for Defeating Ingress

23. Return Sweep Methods for Defeating Ingress • Hand held tester • Verifies return path loss • Generates return path test signal • Ranges to determine appropriate launch level • Compares with limit for pass / fail result • Tests return band noise/ingress • Finds bad cable • Terminators • Impedance mismatches • Improperly setup amps • Bad Transmitters • Bad passives and actives

24. Testing MER & BER Methods for Defeating Ingress • Testing MER gives us the ability to see SNR / C/N on a digital channel • Testing BER allows us to know how well the bit stream is performing at the specified location

25. Testing Bit Error Rate Methods for Defeating Ingress Phase Noise Coherent Interference

26. Defeating Ingress Summary • Maintaining the entire spectrum is mission critical • Stopping ingress in it’s tracks can provide an extremely high QOS for end users • Helps reduce repeat trouble calls, therefore keeping customers happy • Ingress and poor customer service are the leading reasons for not retaining your customer base • It is the job of all employees to make sure the system is locked down and tight, therefore minimizing potential ingress in both the upstream and downstream • Having the right test equipment that has the abilities to trouble shoot these critical aspects of the network can lead to reduced troubleshooting times, allowing the network to go online quicker, therefore making happier customers!

27. Questions?