Operating and Maintaining SS7 Components

Introduction

This chapter presents references to a variety operations and maintenance practices specific to networks that support SS7 interconnect (optional in the Cisco ASAP Solution, required in the PSTN gateway solutions). The entity managed is the Cisco media gateway controller (MGC) node, which includes the host platforms and Cisco Signaling Link Terminals (SLTs). The Cisco MGC itself is a Sun Netra UNIX host running Cisco MGC software Release 7 or Cisco MGC software Release 9.

Tips for troubleshooting SS7 components and links are provided in "Troubleshooting SS7 Interconnect Problems: Cisco MGC Node."

Note The term media gateway controller is a generic term that applies to both the Cisco SC2200 Signaling Controller and the Cisco PGW 2200 PSTN Gateway products. Some of the documents for your telephony solution might use the terms "signaling controller" and "PSTN gateway" to refer to features that are unique to the separate products.

To provision MGC node components using the Cisco Voice Services Provisioning Tool (VSPT), see "Provisioning a Cisco MGC Node Using Cisco VSPT."

Target Platforms

The tasks in this chapter address the following components of the Cisco ASAP Solution and the PSTN gateway solutions: components of the Cisco MGC node.

References

There are different versions of the Cisco MGC software operations, maintenance, and troubleshooting guide. Release 7 applies to the Cisco ASAP Solution, and Release 9 applies to the PSTN gateway solutions.

Cisco MGC Release 7

The master reference is the Cisco MGC Software Release 7 Operations, Maintenance, and Troubleshooting Guide at the following URL:

http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/access/sc/rel7/omts/index.htm

Cisco MGC Release 9

The master reference is the Cisco MGC Software Release 9 Operations, Maintenance, and Troubleshooting Guide at the following URL:

http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/access/sc/rel9/omts/index.htm

This chapter directs you to high-level operations and maintenance procedures in both documents. Make sure you are familiar with the above guides, including their prefaces and introductions.

Operations and Maintenance Tasks

The major operations and maintenance tasks in the above-referenced guides are summarized in Table 11-1

Table 11-1: Major Sections of the Cisco MGC Software Release 7 and Release 9 Operations, Maintenance, and Troubleshooting Guides

Chapter/ Appendix	Title	Description
Chapter 1	Cisco MGC System Overview	Includes high-level descriptions of the operations, maintenance, and troubleshooting procedures contained in this guide.
Chapter 2	Cisco MGC Node Component Startup and Shutdown Procedures	Contains the recommended startup and shutdown procedures for each component of the Cisco MGC node.
Chapter 3	Cisco MGC Node Operations	Explains how to manage Cisco MGC operations, including starting and stopping the application, running the process manager, operating the switchover process, retrieving signal channel attributes, and changing signal service states.
Chapter 4	Maintenance and Troubleshooting Overview	Contains the overall maintenance strategies for the Cisco MGC node.
Chapter 5	Maintaining the Cisco MGC	Describes maintenance of the Cisco MGC hosts, including LED descriptions, shutdown and restart procedures, spare parts stocking levels, the log rotation utility, the disk monitor program, and backup procedures.
Chapter 6	Maintaining the Cisco Signaling Link Terminal	Describes maintenance of the Cisco SLT, including checking equipment status, replacing a complete signal processor, replacing hardware components, and performing other maintenance tasks.

Although the troubleshooting chapters and appendixes in the above document are also useful, see "Troubleshooting SS7 Interconnect Problems: Cisco MGC Node" for a summary overview of key tasks. The following high-level task categories are covered there: