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Reserve Your Seat TodayHow a regional telco in Wyoming cut emergency site visits to zero
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Industry | Telecom / Broadband Provider |
| Company Type | Regional telephone and broadband company |
| Geography/Coverage | Eastern Idaho and Northwestern Wyoming |
| Primary Challenge | No remote device access during LAN outages |
| Solution Deployed | NetGuardian 832A serial terminal server |
| Key Result | Eliminated 90-minute round-trip truck rolls |
| Products Used | NetGuardian 832A, T/Mon master station with ASCII processor |
Silver Star Communications has served Star Valley, Wyoming for over 60 years. What started as a family telephone company has grown into a full-scale technology provider, delivering communications and broadband services across Eastern Idaho and Northwestern Wyoming.
When the LAN went down at a remote site, Silver Star's technicians had no way to access network equipment remotely. The only option was to drive out. With an average round-trip of 90 minutes per site, every LAN failure meant pulling a technician away from other work for the better part of two hours.
"Before we had the NetGuardians, we didn't have connectivity to our devices when LAN failed. We had to drive out to the site." - Jim Eddins, Central Office Technician, Silver Star Communications
Silver Star deployed NetGuardian 832A units as a redundant serial access path at approximately 12 remote sites. The NetGuardian's built-in serial terminal server gives technicians a secondary route into network equipment when the primary LAN connection is unavailable. This backup access runs through the serial ports on the back of each unit.
Connected equipment includes Calix C7, AdTran 2820 muxes, Cisco ONS 15454, SONET gear, door alarms, generators, and temperature sensors. All of it is accessible through the serial pass-through when LAN fails.
With NetGuardian 832A units in place, Silver Star's technicians can reach critical network equipment remotely even when LAN is down. What used to require a 90-minute round-trip drive is now handled from the office, saving time and keeping technicians available for other work across the network.
| Metric | Result |
|---|---|
| Truck Rolls Eliminated | Remote LAN-failure access at approximately 12 sites |
| Time Saved Per Incident | Up to 90 minutes of drive time avoided |
| Sites Monitored Remotely | Approximately 12 remote hut locations |
"If our LAN disappears, we can get into our equipment through the terminal server serial ports on the back of the NetGuardian. It's a back door for us to get in there, and we use that quite a bit." - Jim Eddins, Central Office Technician, Silver Star Communications
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| LAN-Failure Access | The serial terminal server provides a backup path into equipment whenever LAN goes down. |
| Fewer Truck Rolls | Remote troubleshooting replaces 90-minute round trips to the site. |
| Broader Site Coverage | Approximately 12 remote locations are now monitored and accessible from the office. |
| Tuition-Free Training | Factory Training at DPS helped Silver Star expand use of ASCII and SNMP tools. |
| Product | Description |
|---|---|
| NetGuardian 832A | Versatile RTU with built-in serial terminal server for backup site access during LAN failures. |
| T/Mon Master Station | Multi-protocol alarm master that processes TL1 and ASCII alarm data from remote sites. |
Without a backup access path, a LAN failure at a remote site means technicians can't reach equipment remotely. The only option is a physical site visit. DPS NetGuardian RTUs solve this with a built-in serial terminal server. When LAN fails, technicians can still connect to equipment via the serial ports on the NetGuardian, accessing devices like muxes, SONET gear, and routers without leaving the office.
A serial terminal server provides a separate communication path by connecting physical serial ports on your network equipment to an IP network. The NetGuardian 832A includes this capability built in. When LAN is unavailable, technicians use NetGuardian's serial pass-through to establish a session with connected devices. The LAN path and serial path operate independently, so a failure in one doesn't affect the other.
Any equipment with a serial port can be accessed this way. At Silver Star, this includes DLCs like the Calix C7, AdTran 2820 muxes, Cisco ONS 15454 SONET gear, HDSL equipment, door alarms, generators, and temperature sensors. Essentially any device that supports serial communication can be monitored and accessed through NetGuardian's terminal server ports.
Yes. DPS offers multi-day Factory Training seminars at its Fresno, California headquarters. Sessions cover alarm management fundamentals, ASCII processing, SNMP, and hands-on configuration of T/Mon and NetGuardian equipment. Silver Star's technicians attended training specifically to learn the ASCII module and explore newer T/Mon platform features. Training is included with your purchase.
If LAN failures are sending your technicians on unnecessary site visits, we can help. Talk to a DPS engineer about adding backup serial access to your remote sites.
