The complexity and scope of present two way digital cable networks eclipse its analog predecessor. The demand for unimpaired service availability and network robustness has been elevated as customer acceptance and dependency has grown for services such as telephony, broadband data services, video-on-demand and extensive channel offerings, all enabled by the digital revolution in cable television. These services provide revenue sources for cable operators, but depend upon networks with high fidelity. The barrier separating error-free reception and complete loss of service is often less than a decibel in signal level.
Operators faced with the requirement for improved service, reduced downtime and twenty four hour per day network availability are also facing the need to reduce capital expenditure, service calls and personnel costs. Current solutions for extensive network monitoring are both cost prohibitive and have limited scope of information as well as limited observability, often only providing data for a node or trunk and not to each subscriber tap or customer premise equipment (CPE).
Cable network infrastructures can vary from plant-to-plant, node-to-node and trunk-to-trunk. From mode hopping lasers and noisy amplifiers to ranging cable modems, operators are challenged by a diverse set of issues that may seem impossible to troubleshoot with any one existing technology.