Good day everyones,
Like my title said, I'm completly brand new on Docsis network distribution. I was a wISP, DSL, security guy, I'm CCNA, CSSA, Redline RCSP, future DCAP and I've more than 15 years experience in networking, but only 1 week on Docsis network distribution.
I need you help to find the correct documentation cause I begin to read but I need more essentials infos. To be honnest, I was "dumped" with an already configured system using Incognito as management, Motorola CMTS and Arris Modem. I need infos to understand who all of this work with 802.1Q, 802.1P, SIP and the encapsulation of the RF frames to understand each layer of this protocol.
If you have any online doc to propose I'm openned to any suggestions but I need to open the heart of our network to find and fix somes lateing issue so I need to understand it.
Best regards
Martin
Cablelabs has some specs for the transport. If you do a google search for "docsis frame" you'll probably see a handful of training docs and slideshows that might help. For the most part, you won't ever be tearing apart actual docsis frames, but a good deal of your time will be spent understanding impairments and troubleshooting congestion or RF noise issues in the plant. Telemetry is really important -- collecting and keeping power levels from your modems and noise stats from the CMTS. Most of the answers for docsis problems can be teased out of that information. I wish I had some better answers for you but I'm sending this from the road; nothing comes to mind at the moment.
The best way to learn is with a lab set up. You don't need provisioning software, thats just to make the interface easy to use for day-to-day use. If you are learning how things work, skip the provisioning software. You only need your CMTS, Modem, and a DHCP/TFTP server (I recommend using ubuntu or whatever flavor of linux you're most comfortable with), and of course, your gateway router to make sure you're IP's are routed where they can see the appropriate places and/or the internet.
Download the manual for your CMTS, and the docs for your modem (arris docs are realllly good, lots of info - particularly for their emta's). Unfortunately, Motorola CMTS's are notoriously bad/cranky cmts's, (Theres a reason Cisco and Arris have a good grip on the cmts market).
You can find it on the internet, but I recently posted here a copy of the modem initialization wallchart pdf, that'll help alot too.
Good pointers but maybe personal opinions regarding product brands should be left out. My personal experience with Motorola contradicts Capm's statement!
Its an opinion yes, and he can take it or leave it. You may have had good experience with your Motorola CMTS, and while I've never dealt with one myself, other people I've talked to and read about over the years have given me a negative view of their CMTS's. And IMO, any company that would buy out a superior product (Terayon) and then bury it in favor of their own, less than stellar equipment, has got problems. The real problem with Motorola is they could decide tomorrow that they're not going to do CMTS's and sell the thing off leaving people high and dry. (They've done that kind of thing before) As a company, I can't say I like Motorola. Now don't get me wrong, they make some good stuff, on the video side, and their modems are pretty good, but if I had a choice between a Motorola CMTS and any other CMTS, I wouldn't likely choose the Motorola. Thats just my opinion, you don't have to agree ;)