Common Causes for Access Faults

This section describes common causes for low immediate assignment success rates and low assignment
success rates.
Common Causes for Low Immediate Assignment Success Rates
Figure 1 shows common causes for low immediate assignment success rates.Figure 1 Common causes
for low immediate assignment success rates
 Um interface faults
  The BTS may mistakenly process interference on the Um interface as pseudo-random
access signals. This may lead to immediate assignment failures and standalone dedicated
control channel (SDCCH) congestion.
 In a cell configured with multiple TRXs, the combination loss of broadcast control channel
(BCCH) TRXs is different from that of non-BCCH TRXs. Therefore, their coverage areas
are also different. If an SDCCH is configured on a non-BCCH TRX, a call far away from
the serving cell may fail to access the SDCCH when the call is assigned to the non-BCCH
TRX. This leads to a call drop on the SDCCH.
 For details about how to troubleshoot this problem, see Troubleshooting Access Faults
Due to Poor Um Interface Quality.
 SDCCH congestion
 A sharp increase in the traffic volume or incorrect data configuration may lead to SDCCH
congestion, decreasing immediate assignment success rates.
 For details about how to troubleshoot this problem, see Troubleshooting Low Immediate
Assignment Success Rates Caused by SDCCH Congestion.
 TRX and transmission faults
 Hardware faults can generally lead to the return of CHAN ACTIV NACK messages. In a
cell configured with multiple TRXs, SDCCH congestion occurs if a faulty TRX is out of
service.
 Transmission faults generally lead to channel activation timeout or SDCCH congestion.
 For details about how to troubleshoot this problem, see Troubleshooting Low Immediate
Assignment Success Rates Due to Hardware or Transmission Faults.
 MS faults
 Immediate assignment success rates are low in some cells because certain problem MSs
perform location updates or initiate calls in these cells. After sending channel requests for
location updates, the problem MSs fail to set up links on SDCCHs, leading to low
immediate assignment success rates on SDCCHs.
 Low immediate assignment success rates because of location updates of problem MSs
are caused by MS faults and cannot be resolved on the BSS side. No layer 3 information is
available due to location update failures and therefore the faulty MS cannot be determined.
 For details about how to locate this problem, see Troubleshooting Low Immediate
Assignment Success Rates Due to Location Updates of Problem MSs.

Common Causes of Low Assignment Success Rates

Figure 2 shows common causes for low assignment success rates.

Figure 2 Common causes of low assignment success rates

 Um interface faults
 If there is inter-network interference and repeater interference or severe intra-network
interference occurs because of insufficient frequencies and tight frequency reuse, MSs
may fail to parse information about the assigned traffic channel (TCH) properly. As a
result, they fail to occupy the TCH, leading to low assignment success rates.
  If the signal level is low due to poor coverage, MSs may fail to parse the assigned TCH
properly. As a result, they fail to occupy the TCH, leading to low assignment success rates.
 For details about how to troubleshoot this problem, see Troubleshooting Access Faults
Due to Poor Um Interface Quality.
 TCH congestion
 When TCHs are congested and become unavailable, new access requests are rejected,
leading to low assignment success rates.
 For details about how to troubleshoot this problem, see Troubleshooting Low Assignment
Success Rates Due to TCH Congestion.
 TRX and transmission faults
 When a TRX or a combiner is faulty, some TCHs become unavailable, leading to low
assignment success rates.
 Poor link transmission quality over the Abis interface and unstable transmission links may
also lead to TCH assignment failures.
 For details about how to troubleshoot this problem, see Troubleshooting Low Assignment
Success Rates Due to Hardware or Transmission Faults.
 Incorrect BSC configuration
 If the BSC is configured incorrectly and the traffic volume is large, certain resources may
be unavailable during assignment, leading to assignment failures.
 For details about how to troubleshoot this problem, see Troubleshooting Low Assignment
Success Rates Due to Inappropriate BSC Configuration.
 Inconsistent circuit identification code (CIC) status over the A interface
If the circuit management mechanism on the A interface between the MSC and the BSC is
faulty, TCH assignment may be initiated when CICs on the A interface are not idle, leading to
assignment failures. This problem is quite complicated. Therefore, MSC engineers and BSC
engineers need to team up to troubleshoot such problems.
 MSC faults
If the MSC delivers the Clear CMD message during assignment, the assignment fails. To
troubleshoot this problem, contact MSC engineers.
Parent topic: Locating Access Faults