Conversion of a permanent connection into a signaled permanent connection

A method of converting an unsignalled permanent connection into a signalled permanent connection in a connection-orientated network, wherein said permanent connection is managed by a network management em which stores a permanent connection path definition specifying existing manually configured bearer channel cross-connects made on each network node along the path of the permanent connection, said method comprising the steps of:

• a. establishing signalling links between the network nodes along said path;
• b. providing information to identify the existing bearer channel cross-connections along said path;
• c. incorporating said cross-connect identification information in a signalled permanent connection call set-up message;
• d. signalling said call set-up message over said signalling links along said path from a source network node to a destination network node;
• and
• e. employing said identified existing bearer channel cross-connection on each said node for said signalled permanent connection.

Apparatus for converting unsignalled permanent connection into a signalled permanent connection in a connection-orientated network comprising interconnected network nodes, said apparatus comprising:

• signalling means for communicating signalling messages between network nodes along a path of said permanent connection;
• a network management system, connected to said network nodes along said path, said system including means for providing information to identify an existing manually configured bearer channel cross-connection made on each network node along said path;
• and
• call processing means distributed on each said node along said path for incorporating said cross-connect identification information in a call set-up message, signalling said call set-up message along said path from a source node to a destination node, and associating the existing bearer channel cross-connection identified on each said node along said path with said signalling means to form said signalled permanent connection.

A method of converting an unsignalled permanent connection into a signalled permanent connection in a connection-orientated network, wherein said permanent connection comprises a series of bearer channels manually cross-connected on each network node along a permanent connection path, said method comprising the steps of:

• a. establishing signalling links between the network nodes in said path;
• b. providing information to identify existing manually configured cross-connections for the bearer channels along said path;
• c. incorporating said cross-connect identification information in a call set-up message;
• d. signalling said call set-up message over said signalling links along said path from a source network node to a destination network node;
• and
• e. associating the bearer channels along said path with the appropriate sigalling links without dismantling said existing cross-connections in order to form said signalled permanent connection.