User's Manual  for
PLANET ISDN Router Product

IRT-401


Chapter 13. Troubleshooting and Contacting Us

This chapter lists some problems that you may encounter while using your IRT-401 and our suggestions to solve the problem. There is also a FAQ, chapter 14, for other common questions asked. Information on how to contact Planet technical support if these suggestions do not solve the problem is given below.

Topics covered:


  1. Troubleshooting Tips

Before you call technical support for assistance, please check the following:

  1. The power supply is connected and the power LED is on.
  2. Turn the power off and on again, and observe the alarm (ALM) LED.
    During power-up self-test, the ALM LED should flash along with the B1, B2 and D channel lights.

    If the ALM LED flashes and remains on for more than 10 seconds or if the router continues to show the self-test light sequence repeatedly, there is an internal hardware / firmware failure. Notify your reseller that the ISDN router has failed the self-test, and order a replacement.

    If the ALM LED goes off after the test has been completed, the power-up self-test has been successful.
  3. Verify that the ISDN cable (RJ-45, 8 pin position) is connected to the ISDN router and make sure that it is an ISDN connection, not a plain old telephone connection. The ISDN router will not operate if connected to an analog telephone wall jack.
  4. Monitor the status of the D channel LED

    When you are connected to a live ISDN line, the D channel LED will be lighted or flashes.

    If the D channel LED remains off, it indicates that no ISDN signal is present. It is likely that there is a poor connection to the local telephone company. Make sure that the ISDN cable is in good condition, and securely plugged-in. If the LED remains off, call your local telephone company for trouble shooting assistance. The problem may be the ISDN wire, or telephone company equipment.

    If the D channel LED flashes, there is probably a mismatch between the settings of the ISDN line and the ISDN router configuration. Double check the switch type setting. If the D channel LED is still not lit after making these checks, call your reseller for line configuration and troubleshooting assistance.

    If the D channel LED remains on, it indicates a valid communication channel has been established. The D channel LED should remain on all the time until there is problem on the ISDN line or signaling.
  5. Monitor the status of the B channel LEDs

    There are two B channel LED
    's: B1 LED and B2 LED. These LED's indicate your ISDN channel activities.

    If a B channel LED is off, it indicates that the B channel is in an idle state. If the B channel LED is on, the associated B channel is in use. Either B channel may be used for data connection or voice/fax/modem connection.
  6. Monitor the status of the Ethernet LEDs.

    There is one Ethernet LED designated for each of the four Ethernet Ports.

    If an Ethernet LED is lighted, it indicates that there is an Ethernet device connected to the associated Ethernet port, transmitting a valid Ethernet signal. If the Ethernet LED is off, either no Ethernet device is connected at the remote end, or there is a problem with the Ethernet UTP cable (RJ-45) or with the Ethernet Network Interface Card (NIC).

    An Ethernet LED will blink when there are Ethernet frames being transmitted to or received from that Ethernet device. The Ethernet LEDs indicate the occurrence of Ethernet traffic, but not the intensity of the Ethernet traffic.
  7. If your are unable to communicate with the router through the console port

    The ISDN router is designed to communicate with a VT100 terminal at all times. If you are unable to communicate with the router, make sure the RS-232 cable is a 9-pin male to female straight-through cable. Please refer to Chapter 5 for more information on communicating with Console.

  8. If your are unable to communicate with the router through NMS.

    The Network Management System (NMS) communicates with the router through the Ethernet using SNMP protocol. If your NMS is unable to get an SNMP response from the router, check the following:

    Ping a known active station in the local Ethernet. If you are unable to receive the ICMP response, you may have problem with your TCP/IP installation. Check the IRT-401 Ethernet cable, NIC, and TCP/IP configuration.

    If you are able to ping other TCP/IP stations but not the ISDN router. Make sure that the ISDN router is active, and that the correct IP address it is assigned to it.
  9. Please refer to Chapter 5 for more information/trouble shooting on communicating with NMS.

  10. If your are unable to make voice call

    If you are unable to make a voice call when there is at least one B channel available, as indicated by the B channel LEDs, check the RJ-11 telephone cable and the analog device itself.
  11. If you are using a RJ-11 to RJ-XXX standard telephone adapter also check this too. You must also ensure that the model you are using has a capacitor inside as this is required for certain telephone functions to work with the router (e.g. the telephone ringer).

  12. If your are unable to make a data call

    This is a more complicated problem. It is suggested that you use NMS statistics and trace utilities to help you perform the diagnose. The NMS trace utility shows you the network activities in detail. The NMS statistics give you detailed LAN and WAN frame counts.

    If you are sending traffic towards Internet or Intranet, but the B channel LED or trace window shows no ISDN activity, you should check your IP network configuration.

If the ISDN router fails at an ISDN dialing attempt, check the telephone number you configured. The number has to be the correct one, associated with an ISDN data device at the remote end. The trace windows should provide you with precise error message.

If the ISDN call is connected briefly for a few seconds, and then disconnected, it is most likely that your PPP configuration does not match the remote end PPP configuration. Check your PPP configuration, including PPP authentication protocol and the password.

  1. Contacting Technical Support

If your troubleshooting attempts have not solved your problem, please follow the steps listed below to contact technical support.

When calling Technical Support about a specific IRT-401 problem, please ensure you have the following details (if applicable) ready, as this may help dramatically in problem solving.

The Problem!
Operating System(s) (e.g. Win95)
A Brief Network overview (e.g. A PC and Router)
IP Address/Subnet Mask Range (e.g. 192.168.0.XXX / 255.255.255.0)
Router IP Address (e.g. 192.168.0.XXX)
ISP Account details at hand (e.g. ISP, Multi/Single User, etc.)
Remote Network Details (e.g. Network IP/IPX, etc.)
ISDN Service type (e.g. ISDN2e, Business Highway)

If you can login to router with NMS and the Trace function is available/set-up, the following steps will show you with how to obtain and save a trace, which you can email to us to indicate the problem.

  1. Open the IRT-401 NMS program and login to your router.
  2. Click the Statistics tab. In the Statistics page, click the Trace tab.
  3. Click the "Clear Log" button.
  4. Reboot the router by selecting "Reboot Routerfrom the "Diagnosticmenu.
  5. Re-open the NMS program and attempt to perform the task that you are having troubles with.
  6. Click the Statistics tab. In the Statistics page, click the Trace tab.
  7. Click the "Save Log" button.
  8. Save the log in a convenient place.
  9. Prepare an email, addressed to: support@planet.com.tw
  10. In the Subject line type: IRT-401 Support
  11. In the message area, please write a detailed account of what you are attempting to do, and what kind of problem you are experiencing in trying to do it. Please include any other information that might be helpful for diagnosing your problem.
  12. Please send the copy of the Trace Log as an attachment. A reply will be returned to you within three working days.




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Copyright (C) 1999 PLANET Technlogy Corporation