Eastcoast

I need some information on Distant Steering Codes. I work for a company that produces a server based product that connects to a customer PBX, hence I don't have the opportunity to "fiddle" with the PBX's directly and play with various PBX configurations. Our server supports a T1 telephony board that connects to a T1 trunk card on a customer PBX.

Our application needs to receive CALLED DIGITS from the PBX in order to enter into various call processing streams. It so happens that we have had a run of installations for the Nortel Meridian Family of switches. We have a Meridian PBX programming solution that will deliver the called numbers but it seems very "klugge" to me.

A solution involving Steering codes seems to be a more "elegant" solution.

I have seen solutions of the type I am looking for that use Distant Steering Codes but I have some residual questions about this deployment. I suspect you Nortel experts would increasingly seen requests of this type as customers start to directly connect IP telephone products directly to legacy Meridian PBXs.

The solution I want to deploy would be a DTI Nortel Card optioned as an E&M WINK TIE trunk connected directly to our server's T1 trunk interface.

The basic programming - LD 87 defines the distant steering code and points to the route list index - the RLI points to the trunk route and RDB and TN loads describe the trunk - seems straightforward but I have some additional questions that I hope you Nortel PBX experts can address.


Question 1:

the big issue for me is to be able to pick up the called number from the PBX. It is my understanding that when a PBX USER dials the Distant Steering Code [DSC] they are routed to the appropriate trunk and further that DSC is presented as the DESTINATION ADDRESS trunk routing digits.

Is this what occurs?

My understanding of the process would be:
a) USER dials the Distant Steering Code
b) The PBX routes the call towards the DTI card
c) The PBX seizes the trunk and the AB [or ABCD] signaling bits on the trunk go high to indicate an off-hook seizure
d) On seeing the off-hook our Server's telephony card will provide a WINK indication.
e) The PBX then presents the Distant Steering Code digits.

Is this what occurs - does the PBX wait for the wink from our server before sending the Distant Steering Code digits?


Question 2:
Steering codes all seem to be associated with Co-ordinated Dialing Plans. Are CDPs a standard feature on all Meridian Loads or is this capability only on certain software loads?


Question 3:

I have seen information on the type of solution I am looking for but I am not totally clear on some of the parameter settings. For example on LD 87

>ld 87
REQ new
CUST 0
FEAT CDP
TYPE DSC

DSC 1999
FLEN 0
DSP LSC
RLI 21
NPA
NXX

Most of this seems straightforward. Steering codes are applied under Co-ordinated Dialing Plans hence the Feature type in this load is CDP. The assigned Distant Steering Code is 1999 so when a USER dials 1999 they are routed out the appropriate trunk.

I am not clear on two parameter settings FLEN and DSP.

FLEN 0 //I am not sure what this Flexible Length parameter should be; how to interpret the parameter setting? Should it be 0 meaning the Distant Steering Code is a set length of four digits and will not vary or should it be 4 to match the length of the steering code?
DSP LSC //this parameter [I not sure what it signifies] is set to a Local Steering Code, I am not sure of the significance of that?

Question 4

In a similar vain as question 3, example Route Data Block coding sets
PTYP DTT //I am not sure what a DTT port type is to determine whether this is a significant setting or not. What is a DTT port type?


Thanks in Advance