NBN FTTN and your old phone sockets

Those that have already cutover to Australia's newest communications network, you may have been one of the many that have found your phones in your study, bedrooms and other places have stopped working.

This is because the National Broadband Network utilising fibre to the node (FTTN) technology is a silent network. Meaning it doesn't have a dial tone or push battery down the line. Why would they do that?

Data is cheaper then a traditional voice call. How? A standard voice call needs to have 64kbs for a clear conversation. A VoIP call (like Skype) only needs 33kps to compress it to packets and uncompress it at the other end. Also instead of only having one physical dedicated copper pair between callers, you can theoretically have a call centre of phone calls operating on a single data link over that same copper pair.

But that still leaves you with one phone hooked up to your modem and you frothing at the mouth in frustration. What can you do?
Easy as counting to five.

Currently you need a license to wire telephones in Australia. For the purpose of this article we will assume you have one.
Step 1
Swap out your first socket to a double socket. Mindful of which pairs are being used.
Step 2
The Leadin cable (from the street) connects to the first socket.
Step 3
Connect the internal pair to the second socket and put it all together.
Step4
Connect the first socket via a line cord to the DSL port.
Step 5
Connect the phone port on the modem to the second socket.

Now all your old telephone sockets will work!

Issues you will face will be if it's star wired, it's a combination of star wired and daisy chained or you have faulty equipment or cabling.
If you don't have the right tool to terminate dont use a flat blade screw driver or knife
Change out the socket or buy the right tool. Communication terminations are called idc's. Insulation displacement connector. If you spread the pins it won't get a connection.
The modem generates the dial tone so if it's off, you obviously have no phones or data. Worth looking into a UPS (uninterrupted power supply) system.

If you get stuck (electricians) ask a real Comms tech :P

Good luck