bonkjmma's profile

Voyager

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2 Messages

Wednesday, August 1st, 2012 5:11 PM

Installation Blunder... INID Needed?

I was scheduled to have U-verse TV and internet installed on 7/27. I ordered the U300 package along with a wired THDVR and a wireless receive as our master bedroom didn't have any coax wired to it. I took a half day off work (unpaid) for the install. The tech showed up 2:00pm and I showed him where the wired STB would go and where I wanted the wireless receiver installed. He said it would be no problem and he went to work. About a half hour later he came in and told me he was having a sync problem on one of the lines and he would need an outside tech. He said he would put in the request and the outside tech would be there within an hour. He then went and sat in his van outside. A little over an hour later he came in to tell me that the outside tech along with another prem tech were on their way and would be there in a few minutes. He said his manager wanted him to move on to his next job but the other techs would be there in minutes to fix the line problem and complete the install.

 

Fast forward an hour and a half later, nobody showed up or called. I placed a call to AT&T and explained the scenario. The agent called the dispatch center and then told me that the outside tech would be there later in the evening or early the next morning to fix the line issue. After that, the install would have to be rescheduled. The line tech showed up later that evening and said he found a couple of simple problems at the VRAD and verified the issue was resolved. I received a call from AT&T the next morning and wanted to reschedule the install. They said they were unable to send anyone on Saturday and Monday was the soonest it could be done...

 

I took ANOTHER half day off work (still unpaid) on 7/30 to complete the install. A different prem tech showed up and said he knew about my story and apologized right away. I showed him where I wanted the wired DVR and the wireless receiver installed. Then he dropped the bomb on me that I couldn't get a wireless receiver because the work order called for an INID to be installed... At that point I was a little more than irritated. The first tech never told me that... The tech went to the existing NID on the back our house and was checking the signal. He then told me I was 2700' away from the VRAD and said I didn't need an INID with the signal he was getting. I said great, don't install it and give me a wireless receiver. He told me he had to install an INID because that's how the install order was written and it can't be changed. Starting to get red in the face, I told him that was total ****. He apologized and said he would have to install an INID per the order...

 

I was tired of taking unpaid time off to get this installed so I told him to carry on. While he was installing the monster sized INID on the back of my house, I went to work dropping a coax line into our master bedroom. That is exactly what I didn't want to do and loved the idea of the wireless receiver. After I was done dropping the coax, I found him in my computer room install a big brick of a power supply. I asked *** was that, and he told me it was the power supply for the INID. He never bothered to tell me I would have to have that boat anchor installed... He finished up the rest of the install and everything was functioning properly and has been for the last couple of days.

 

My first question is, if my signal is good enough at 2700' why can't I ditch the INID and get a wireless receiver?

 

My second question is who at AT&T can I send a carpet cleaning bill to for cleaning up the *** the second prem tech tracked into my house?

 

[word filter avoidance]

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Expert

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9.4K Messages

12 years ago

Well, a couple things:

1. At 2700', even with a clean line, getting properly working service without an iNID would be somewhat of a toss-up.  There is a high likelihood that because you now have an iNID that your service will be more trouble-free than if you didn't.

2. Wireless receivers are known to have a few bugs in them, notably the "press OK to see a list of recordings" message, which is caused by periodic disconnects to the wireless access point.  Again, the fact that you have a coax run to the bedroom in question and now have a wired receiver there probably means a more trouble-free user experience.

As far as the carpet cleaning issue, please send a private message to Alex, one of our Community Managers.  He may be able to help get this issue solved.

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ACE - Expert

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34.7K Messages

12 years ago

Actually, I believe I mispoke.  The connection between the INID and the i38HG is actually HPNA over TP, not Ethernet.  Thus I believe it can use CAT 3 (or Cat 5e as I said) for that connection.

 

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Scholar

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136 Messages

12 years ago


@JefferMC wrote:

To expound on what aviewer said:

 

The standard is to bring IPTV on coax from the INID and to bring HSI in via a single cat 5e Ethernet cable from the INID into the home.  This is connected to the i38HG, which provides a 4 port switch and a wireless access point.  Were you to attempt to connect an STB to this either via the IPTV Wireless Access Point or via ethernet cable, this would flood i38HG wireless signal (and all devices on the Ethernet segments as well) with multicast IPTV traffic (as the i38HG is not IGMP aware and cannot filter the multicast only to the legs that need it).  This is normally considered a "bad thing."

 

There are technically ways around this, but they are not officially supported by AT&T for various and sundry reasons.

 


 

 

The I38HG is actually multicast aware now since the last update (6.3.7.52 is the INID software version) but the wireless STB is still not supported because there are still issues with connecting wireless STBs that it is still not supported.  Before they were disallowed, there were issues even when they were connected to the ethernet port in the INID.  You are correct though that the I38HG runs off a twisted pair HPNA connection normally, though it can be ethernet as well.

 

 

 

 

 

I am an AT&T employee and the postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represent AT&T’s positions, strategies or opinions.

 

Voyager

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2 Messages

12 years ago

Thank you for the response and reassurance SomeJoe. I will contact Alex.

Teacher

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19 Messages

12 years ago

If the iNID gives you a better signal, Why does it NOT work with a wireless stb??

Expert

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10.1K Messages

12 years ago

HKr1 - A standard NID installation includes an RG in the dwelling with four network connections that can feed either STBs or computers. The Wireless Access Point that broadcasts the wireless TV signal to the wireless STB(s) is plugged in to one of these network connections.

With an INID the RG electronics is built in to the INID. The four network ports on the NID/RG are not there.

ACE - Expert

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34.7K Messages

12 years ago

To expound on what aviewer said:

 

The standard is to bring IPTV on coax from the INID and to bring HSI in via a single cat 5e Ethernet cable from the INID into the home.  This is connected to the i38HG, which provides a 4 port switch and a wireless access point.  Were you to attempt to connect an STB to this either via the IPTV Wireless Access Point or via ethernet cable, this would flood i38HG wireless signal (and all devices on the Ethernet segments as well) with multicast IPTV traffic (as the i38HG is not IGMP aware and cannot filter the multicast only to the legs that need it).  This is normally considered a "bad thing."

 

There are technically ways around this, but they are not officially supported by AT&T for various and sundry reasons.

 

Contributor

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1 Message

12 years ago

How do you feed the VoIP from the INID into the existing phone line?

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