Sychronizing the Time 3

[DKHM]

In our call center, we use several additional and 3rd party server based applications to dissect our call data such as Symposium and Blue Pumpkin.

I've been resetting the time on our PBX manually about once every 3 months when it gets more than 1 minute out of synch with the Windows 2000 network.

Two things seem odd to me about this:

1. Why so often? Even a $10 Timex keeps better time.
2. Can't I tell the PBX to sync to the same time service the Windows Network uses?

Hmm..

 

[pbxn]

What could do, is keep track of the indescrepancy, and in LD 2 set your time adjusters. It will automatically adjust time in your switch.
go to LD2
.TDTA (this will pront the current time adjustment)
to set
>SDTA X y
x=0 (negative incremant)1=positive
y=0-60second adjustment

 

[RS528]

I have a Procomm script for it. If you are using Procomm for terminal emulation and you are automatically update your PC time with an atomic clock this script is very handy.

 

[ArchTelecom]

This always bothers me.

I know I've said it before, but....How come, when I spend the money that I do for Nortel PBX's, can they not keep time. DKHM is correct, a $10 Timex does better. Nortel's answer is the Rube Goldberg time adjust in LD 2. Good switches, bad time keepers.

 

[srmega41]

I certainly agree, although I have had one Nortel engineer tell me it has more to do with the fact timing and clocking do not always go hand in hand.

His explanation was the PBX works based on the VXWork OS and using external sources to keep communicating, connected systems in syncronization with each other. This does not always mean the same number of cycles equates to a specific number of seconds. (I sort of got lost there, but I digress)

He went on to say the Stratum 1 clocks in the PBX (I get my numbers confused, so this may be done backwards in regards to clock assignments) were not meant to keep an accurate time, just in sync with itself. You add a Stratum 2 clock as a clock controller card to communicate with the CO switch, which usually has a Stratum 3 clock. (I belive these numbers relate to the level of accuracy. My guess is a Timex must be a Stratum 5?, (I digressed again))

All the clock controllers help keep everything in sync, and the PBX time is simply a service, and not an overly reliable one. His final comment is that "you don't use a clock as a phone system, so don't use a phone system as a clock."

I always thought this was a poor answer, considering the number of people who rely on the time the PBX displays. We rely on the PBX time in my call center, and it has to always be in sync, so we use a UNIX script to make the adjustments daily.

Not an answer by any stretch, but I thought I would share my experience when I asked the same questions.

Scott M.

 

[johnpoole]

better then the excuse i got from nortel, if you want a good clock buy a 6 dollar timex, if you want a good switch, buy a nortel.. i'll see if i have my script to sync time via procom, i have posted it here several times.. i have it run every 4 hours, does a sync to the micro second from the pc it is running on.

john poole
bellsouth business
columbia,sc

 

[johnpoole]

this is not my script, but it works, and does a sync once a day,

;Procomm Script to SET TIME LD 2)
;===============================================================
;
#define Name "Logi^M"   ;if you use Name login change to "LOGI YOUR_Name_Here^M"
#define Pswd "12345^M"  ; Put your password here

;Waituntil "9:26:00" "1/27/05"

proc main
 integer iDay, iMonth, iYear, iMin, iHour, iSec
   string sSend
   ltimeints $LTIME iYear iMonth iDay iHour iMin iSec
   strfmt sSend "STAD %02d %02d %d %02d %02d %02d" iDay iMonth iYear iHour iMin iSec
  
   set txpace 75
   Transmit "****^M"
   pause 1
   Transmit "LOGO^M"
   pause 1
   Transmit Name
   Transmit Pswd
   waitfor ">"
   transmit "ld 2^M"
   waitfor "."
   transmit "TTAD^M"
   waitfor "."
   transmit sSend
   transmit "^M"
   waitfor "."
   pause 2
   transmit "TTAD^M"
   waitfor "."
   pause 2
   transmit "****"
   transmit "LOGO^M"
endproc

john poole
bellsouth business
columbia,sc

 

[dixiedogger]

What Nortel needs to do is step up to the plate and start supporting N etwork T ime P rotocol like every other modern peice of network equipment but why go to all that trouble in software development when everyone already hes these nice procom scrips but oh yea now you have to make sure the PC running your procomm scrip does not get turned off, nobody resets the time on it, etc. Just another fine example of how Nortel is being out done by Cisco ,which does support NTP on all their boxes.

 

[johnpoole]

i agree with that, here's the script i use at work, it has a hard logi code, so i sync the time each time i use that script to log in

proc main


   set txpace 30	
   transmit "****^M"
   waitfor ">"
   transmit "john^M"
   
   transmit "****^M"
   waitfor ">"
   transmit "logi xxxxx^M"
   waitfor "PASS?"
   transmit "xxxxxx^M"
   call myproc
   waitfor ">"
endproc
proc myproc   
integer iDay, iMonth, iYear, iMin, iHour, iSec
string sSend
  
   ltimeints $LTIME iYear iMonth iDay iHour iMin iSec
   
   strfmt sSend "STAD %02d %02d %d %02d %02d %02d" iDay iMonth iYear iHour iMin iSec
   set txpace 30
   transmit "****^M"
   waitfor ">"
   
   transmit "ld 2^M"
   waitfor "."
   
   transmit "TTAD^M"
   waitfor "."
   transmit sSend
   transmit "^M"
   waitfor "."
   
   pause 2
   transmit "TTAD^M"
   waitfor "."
   pause 2
   transmit "****^M"
 
   
   
   endproc

just edit to include your login name and password, or delete those line to login and run the script as a stand alone. this one works for me, being in the switchroom all day, logging in a dozen times and not having the schedule a time sync

john poole
bellsouth business
columbia,sc

 

[RS528]

I have also a script for adjusting the time. With this script you can also change the correction of time between reading from PC and changing the time in the PABX.

I run this script ones a month.
___________________________________________________________
#define Loginname "LOGI XXXX^M" ; Enter the login name or if there is no login name put the ^M after the LOGI like LOGI^M"
#define Password "XXXX^M" ; Enter your password on the xxxx
string szDate = $DATE
String Times
String Hours
String Min
String Sec
String Dates
String Day
String Month
String Year
String Total
String Empty
Integer Correction ;( This is the correction of time between reading from PC and changing the time in the PABX)


proc main
strdelete Total 0 20
Empty=" "
Times=$time24
substr Hours Times 0 2 ; Extract hypothetical three digit
substr Min Times 3 2 ; Extract hypothetical three digit
substr Sec Times 6 2 ; Extract hypothetical three digit



Dates=$date
substr Day Dates 0 2 ; Extract hypothetical three digit
substr Month Dates 3 2 ; Extract hypothetical three digit
substr Year Dates 6 4 ; Extract hypothetical three digit

Atoi Sec Correction
Correction = Correction + 2 ;Time correction
Itoa Correction Sec

strinsert Total Day 0
strinsert Total Empty 2
strinsert Total Month 3
strinsert Total Empty 5
strinsert Total Year 6
strinsert Total Empty 10
strinsert Total Hours 11
strinsert Total Empty 13
strinsert Total Min 14
strinsert Total Empty 16
strinsert Total Sec 17

strtoclip Total

Transmit "****^M"
mspause 500
Transmit "LOGO^M"
mspause 500
Transmit loginname
pause 1
Transmit Password
waitfor ">"
transmit "ld 2^M"
waitfor "."
transmit "STAD "
transmit total
transmit "^M"
waitfor "."
pause 2
transmit "TTAD^M"
waitfor "."
transmit "****"
transmit "LOGO^M"

endproc

 

[brewerdude]

I agree that scripts are very cool, but how do you get one to run automatically? Would I have to dedicate a PC connected to the PBX via procomm? I can do that easily in my main office, but not my remote sites...

And all you think the Nortel is bad at keeping time, just try messing with a Merlin...

 

[johnpoole]

the best way to auto run a script is with scheduler, another procomm feature. i would write a script that dialed into my remotes, ran the time script, logo and dial the next. not a hard script, i did one years back that dialed 30, switches and captured the err tables. when i got to work i had a hard copy of all my trouble on the printer. those were not nortel switches, but the script will work. if your using a pc for just time, run the script using a loop and pause so that it runs once a day.

john poole
bellsouth business
columbia,sc

 

[srmega41]

For your other sites, use the Nortel Time Syncronization feature. This is a very simple process that allows connected PBX's syncronize time with a main PBX using D-Channel communications. We have an 81C and 80 Option 11C's, all time sync'ed using this feature. All you need is a DN within your dialing plan. There are six commands to set this up, all in LD 2.

See code:

. SLDN xxxx <-- This is the DN you will use for Time Sync

. STSS (STDA), MAST, SLAV <-- This sets which will be master and slave (You only should have one master in your network)  STDA is for Stand alone, not sure how this would be helpful.  All non-master sites must be set to SLAV in order to communicate

. STSC (0), x <-- Customer number in charge of Time Sync

. SMDN xxxx <-- If the system is a slave, this is where you input the master DN

. SMOD (BKGD), DSVC <-- This sets whether the service runs in the background or at midnight.

. SDEL (sign) (hr) (min) <-- This is where you set the difference between the local switch and the master location.  (sign = 0 or 1, 0=master is behind local time, 1=master is ahead of local time) (hr = number of hours difference) (min=Number of minutes difference)

Once this is set, you can replace the leading S with a T to print your input. Keep in mind the DN structure of the Master DN MUST BE the same as your diaing scheme, and the numbers must all be included in your dialing plan. You can also print the DN in LD 20, and it will show a type as TIME. You should also remember that this will use a DN at every location, so if you are running out of DN's in your dialing plan, this could be tricky. It is also possible to use just a group of non DID numbers and build the routing for them in your CDP.

This option is available as long as ISDN is available in your system. The process uses no B-Channels, only through the D-Channel do the systems communicate.

I recommend leaving the process run in the background, that way if a T1 drops or a system reloads, time sync will happen as soon as the T1 is re-established. The documentation for this feature is buried in the ISDN Features Guide.

Hope this helps. If anyone thinks this is good stuff, I can post as a tip.

Scott M.

 

[johnpoole]

might want to post that as a tip, i have used it, but didn't remember that feature. most of the switches we maintain are not networked. belonging to unique customers

john poole
bellsouth business
columbia,sc

 

[brewerdude]

Very cool, unfortunately not all of our PBX's are networked.

 

[johnpoole]

then use the dial up to sync the time.

john poole
bellsouth business
columbia,sc

 

[srmega41]

In that case your only option is the procomm script, or some other scipt, for each location. We use a UNIX script via RLOGIN for the main PBX, so if you are using an IP based TTY interface, you could replicate the script for each system.

I would have no idea how to go about this in a dial-up environment that would be helpful. Others??

Scott M.

BTW, I will post the NTS code in the Tips section, unless it is already there.

 

[johnpoole]

scripts to chain dial a list of switches and perform routine commands are very simple. i use the atdt commands, but you can also use call on entries from the connection dir.

john poole
bellsouth business
columbia,sc