Does FTTP need a cabinet?

[#1]

Does FTTP need a cabinet?
Not the FTTPoD, just FTTP
As far as I knew it bypasses the cabinet completely & is its own PON
Anyone?
I'm asking because I have been told the reason I cant get the FTTP installed (that the checker said I could order back at the end of October) is that they havent upgraded the cabinet.
GunSmoke

[#2]

FTTP bypasses the cabinet.
My cabinet has not been upgraded since the 1980s!

[#3]

Thats what I thought.
So why am I being told that Openreach need to upgrade the cabinet, when there is already fibre line all the way, past the cabinet & I can see it on the poles down the village?
Something is not right, but of course, I cant ask Openreach

[#4]

Sure you can. I even pestered the head of fibre services who eventually called me back.
Who told you about the cabinet needing fibre? What does the latest BT Wholesale check say when you enter your number?

[#5]

The cabinet needing upgrade came from Plusnet today from an update from Openreach
The wholesale checker has gone from fttp being available, to the "infinity unavailable" message.  (I can see the fibre line on the pole 20m from my house)
Someone who spoke to some engineers in another part of the exchange area said that they said everything is ready, there are just not enough of them to do installs.
I'm thinking that Openreach have just removed loads of lines from being ready, while they work on the backlog
Seems our next door exchange (who are also getting mostly FTTP) is sucking up all the engineer time, as far as I can see from their forum

[#6]

https://www.btwholesale.com/shared/document/Products/Broadband/Fibre_to_the_Premises/Fibre_product_s...
The diagram shows how FTTP works - no cabinets!
It's strange the BT Wholesale Checker has changed - but that shouldn't detract from the fact that your order was placed months ago. They should honour that order and I would start pestering people at Openreach about your problems. You could contact Gareth Robins from the Milton Keynes Broadband Action Group (http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/MKBAG/) as he will have some contacts at BT - he was influential in pushing for faster access in MK.

[#7]

So, why are Plusnet telling me that Openreach say:
"The cabinet that your line is connected to is not FTTP compatible at present and needs to be upgraded. As this work is at very high cost to BT it will take time for them to plan as a result. Surveys have now completed and its a matter of finding the management resource to approve the cost for the work."
There is already fibre line strung out down the village.  There is an agregation node, full of fibre trays, at the bottom of the pole I can see.  Along other roads off this PON, they have relaid ducts & manifolds too.
& I'm not overly happy with the follow up from Plusnet:
"FTTP does actually require the cabinet to be upgraded for fibre services so it is right I'm afraid. I appreciate the wait must be frustrating and I have questioned everything I'm queried and it is correct I'm afraid so there's not much I can add at this time."
I'm pretty sure that statment is not correct.  Certainly not, if FTTP is still planned. 
Presumably Plusnet have contacts at Openreach who might actually know what is going on for the fibre roll out at this exchange,  at the moment, it looks like incorrect information has been passed on so far.
(appologies if posting comments from my outstanding question is frowned upon)
GunSmoke

[#8]

Openreach's response would make sense if you were hoping to get FTTP on Demand, but it doesn't for normal FTTP.
What does it say on the BT Checker now for you ?
This is mine:

Quote

Telephone Number XXX on Exchange BRADWELL ABBEY is served by Cabinet 44 Available Products Downstream Line Rate(Mbps) Upstream Line Rate(Mbps) Downstream Range(Mbps) Availability Date Featured Products WBC FTTP Up to 330 Up to 30 -- Available WBC ADSL 2+ Up to 1 -- 1 to 3.5 Available ADSL Max Up to 1 -- 0.25 to 2 Available WBC Fixed Rate 0.5 -- -- Available Fixed Rate 0.5 -- -- Available Other Offerings Fibre Multicast -- -- -- Available Copper Multicast -- -- -- Available

I would see if you can get Dave from PN involved or escalated to him.

[#9]

It now says what it did before Nov '11:
"Sorry, you're not currently able to get BT Infinity. This may be because your area has not been enabled yet, or your individual line does not support super-fast broadband. Register your interest and we'll let you know if this changes. "
It has changed to this in the last few days I believe

On 30th Oct It changed to :
"BT Infinity Great news!You can get BT Infinity broadband with speeds of up to 160Mb now.
160.0Mb download
20.0Mb upload"
Applied for the trial & had a site survey on the 19th Nov.
since then, nothing other than "update due", then "all completed" then "delays" now "not going to happen anytime soon"
I'm sure Plusnet have been following their normal way of tracking things, but I think something is wrong somewhere with Openreach's replys
How do I get hold of Dave?

[#10]

Ask for your ticket to be referred to Dave Tomlinson or try to get him on here, username here is dave.
He manages the trials so hopefully should be able to get you some answers.

[#11]

Hi gunsmoke
Our FTTP is not even being served from the same exchange (EAMAD) but from a Cambridge exchange  (EACRH from memory) so not sure why cabinet comes into it.
Cambourne have had a similar problem due to backlog of orders - lines which said "available to order" now say "not available"
Out of interest I thought there were only 2 more PONs to go on our exchange - one covering Caldecote, the other the centre of Madingley itself? Seems like confusion all round! 

[#12]

Hi BCG
Is all the fibre back to the cambridge exchange then or just the FTTP?
I would have thought that at our exchange it then splits into the 2 FTTC lines & the 6 PON's

I know the fibre feed to Caxton/Cambourne came from St Neots, so its not too surprising that ours comes from Cambridge

Do you know if anyone on our exchange has actually got FTTP installed and working yet?
GunSmoke

[#13]

Not sure - certainly the FTTP, don't know enough aboout the FTTC layout.
I think you are right - was forgetting that your PON is probably counted as "live"
Not in the notorious "Cab 4" area, but there are a couple of small PON areas at the north and south ends of Caldecote and along St Neots Road (and maybe Childerley); someone got installed within a few weeks of release back in October (ish), and I think there are a couple of others