Using AFT for Specific Service Providers

ALI Formatting Tool for Bell Canada

The following topics describe how to use AFT for Bell Canada.

Transaction Code Modifications

When using the AFT with Bell Canada as your service provider, ensure that the Transaction Code for Bell Canada is either A or D. Otherwise, Bell Canada rejects the record and returns it in an Error Return file with an error message.

The following table shows the values displayed in the Function Field in NENA records and the corresponding values for the Transaction Code in Bell Canada records.

Table 1. NENA and Bell Canada Function/Transaction Fields

NENA Function Code Field

Bell Canada Transaction Code Field

I for Insert a new record.

A for Add a new record.

C for Change a record.

A for Change a record.

Note

 

The NENA Function Code C is mapped to Bell Canada's Transaction Code A.

D for Delete a record.

D for Delete a record.

Bell Canada Data

The following table describes the remaining Bell Canada-specific fields. Some fields require data to generate ALI files in the format specified in Bell Canada's ALI data support documentation; other fields can remain blank.

If there is an error in these fields, Bell Canada rejects the record and sends back an Error Return file with an error code.


Note

You do not configure the Language Indicator field using AFT; AFT sets the field to E for English.

Table 2. Modifying Bell Canada-Specific Fields

Field

Description

Format

Notes

Service Class

Type of telephone service of the customer's Terminal Number.

3 alphanumeric characters

Required field.

Postal Code

Postal code of the customer's service address.

6 alphanumeric characters

Required field. The first character must be alphabetic.

Municipality Code

Unique code assigned to each municipality.

3 alphanumeric characters

Required field.

Class of Service

Code that identifies the grade, class, and type of service.

5 alphanumeric characters

Required field.

System Source

Identifies the source database of the Transaction Record.

1 alphabetic character

Required field.

Location Type

Type of location within a building (for example, apartment).

15 alphanumeric characters

Optional field.

Location Number

Number of the location identified in the Location Type field (for example, apartment 2, floor 2).

6 alphanumeric characters

Optional field.

Service Municipality

City, town, village, borough, or locality.

35 alphanumeric characters

Required field.

LSP ID

Unique code provided to the PS ALI customer by Bell Canada that denotes the provider of local telephone service.

5 alphanumeric characters

Required field.

Must be the valid LSP Identifier provided to the PS ALI customer by Bell Canada.

ALI Formatting Tool for SBC Ameritech

SBC Ameritech (Ameritech) does not have any service provider-specific fields that you must modify using the AFT. However, when using AFT to format records for Ameritech, you may need to modify the Function Code.

Cisco Emergency Responder (Emergency Responder) sets the Function Code to one of the following:

  • I for Inserting a new ALI record (the default)

  • C for Updating an ALI record, such as changing a street name

  • D for Deleting an ALI record

If you make changes to an ALI record in Emergency Responder to correct errors reported by Ameritech, you may need to use AFT to change the Function Code for ELIN records.

For example, Emergency Responder initially generates ALI records with a function code of I for Insert. After you format a file and export it to Ameritech using AFT, Ameritech may reject the file because of an error, such as the street suffix is incorrect. You cannot change the street suffix in AFT because this field is disabled. Instead, you must change the ALI record using Emergency Responder.

When Emergency Responder generates the ALI record the second time after you make the change, it sets the Function Code to C because it assumes that the first file was accepted. Use AFT to change the Function Code for ELIN records from C to I. Then, generate the format using AFT and send the reformatted file to Ameritech.

ALI Formatting Tool for SBC-PacBell

The following sections describe how to use the AFT for SBC-PacBell.

Call Back for ELIN Enablement

Emergency Responder displays the ELIN at the PSAP. If the emergency call is cut off for any reason, or if the PSAP needs to talk to the caller again, the PSAP can then dial to reconnect to the emergency caller.

The call back for this ELIN option allows you to specify a direct inward dial (DID) number that can be used by the PSAP when a call from a fictitious number is made to 911.

The call back for this ELIN option performs two important functions:

  • It alerts the PSAP that the phone they are calling back may not have generated the 911 call.

  • It enables the PSAP to call back to a phone that is located near the fictitious telephone number that did place the call.

We recommend that you always enable this option by checking the call back for this ELIN field. (The default is to leave the field blank, which defaults to No.)

Function Code Modifications

Emergency Responder sets the function code to one of the following:

  • I for Inserting a new ALI record (the default)

  • C for Updating an ALI record, such as changing a street name

  • D for Deleting an ALI record

If you make changes to an ALI record in Emergency Responder to correct errors reported by your service provider, you may need to use AFT to change the function code for ELIN records.

For example, Emergency Responder initially generates ALI records with a function code of I for Insert. After you format a file and export it to SBC Pacific Bell (PacBell) using AFT, PacBell may reject the file. The error may be that the street suffix is incorrect, for example. You cannot change the street suffix in AFT because this field is disabled. You must change the ALI record using Emergency Responder.

When Emergency Responder generates the ALI record the second time after you make the change, it sets the function code to C because it assumes that the first file was accepted. Use AFT to change the Function Code for ELIN records from C to I. Then, generate the format using AFT and send the reformatted file to PacBell.

ALI Formatting Tool for SBC-Southwestern Bell

The following sections describe how to use the AFT for SBC-Southwestern Bell.

PS Code for SBC-Southwestern Bell

To make the ELIN records readable by Southwestern Bell, you may need to use AFT to update the PS Code field; this field is specific to Southwestern Bell. The PS Code is a four-digit code that the Southwestern Bell system assigns whenever the system configures a new PS site. This code is associated with the PS user's login and source.

The PS Code is a feature that allows only records with the correct PS Code to be processed into tables for the PS Site. If the PS Code does not match the configured Source Name that is assigned to the PS Site, the record will not process. Before you generate a formatted file using AFT, make sure that PS Code and the Source Name match. For more information, see the Southwestern Bell documentation.

Function Code Modifications

Emergency Responder sets the function code to one of the following:

  • I for Inserting a new ALI record (the default)

  • C for Updating an ALI record, such as changing a street name

  • D for Deleting an ALI record

If you make changes to an ALI record in Emergency Responder to correct errors reported by your service provider, you may need to use AFT to change the function code for ELIN records.

For example, Emergency Responder initially generates ALI records with a function code of I for Insert. After you format a file and export it to Southwestern Bell using AFT, Southwestern Bell may reject the file. The error may be that the street suffix is incorrect, for example. You cannot change the street suffix in AFT because this field is disabled. You must change the ALI record using Emergency Responder.

When Emergency Responder generates the ALI record the second time after you make the change, it sets the function code to C because it assumes that the first file was accepted. Use AFT to change the function code for ELIN records from C to I. Then, generate the format using AFT and send the reformatted file to Southwestern Bell.

ALI Formatting Tool for Qwest

Qwest does not have any service provider-specific fields that you must modify using the AFT. However, when using AFT to format records for Qwest, you may need to modify the function code.

Cisco Emergency Responder (Emergency Responder) sets the function code to one of the following:

  • I for Inserting a new ALI record (the default)

  • C for Updating an ALI record, such as changing a street name

  • D for Deleting an ALI record

If you make changes to an ALI record in Emergency Responder to correct errors reported by Qwest, you may need to use AFT to change the function code for ELIN records.

For example, Emergency Responder initially generates ALI records with a function code of I for Insert. After you format a file and export it to Qwest using AFT, Qwest may reject the file because of an error. The error may be that the street suffix is incorrect, for example. You cannot change the street suffix in AFT because this field is disabled. You must change the ALI record using Emergency Responder.

When Emergency Responder generates the ALI record the second time after you make the change, it sets the function code to C because it assumes that the first file was accepted. Use AFT to change the function code for ELIN records from C to I. Then, generate the format using AFT and send the reformatted file to Qwest

ALI Formatting Tool for Verizon

The following sections describe how to use the AFT for Verizon.

Function Code Modifications

Verizon does not have any service provider-specific fields that you must modify using the AFT. However, when using AFT to format records for Verizon, you may need to modify the function code.

Emergency Responder sets the function code to one of the following:

  • I—Inserting a new ALI record (the default)

  • C—Updating an ALI record, such as changing a street name

  • D—Deleting an ALI record

  • U—Unlocking an ALI Record (included to support Local Number Portability)

  • M—Migrating an ALI Record (included to support Local Number Portability)

If you make changes to an ALI record in Emergency Responder to correct errors reported by Verizon, you may need to use AFT to change the function code for ELIN records.

For example, Emergency Responder initially generates ALI records with a function code of I for Insert. After you format a file and export it to Verizon using AFT, Verizon may reject the file because of an error. The error may be that the street suffix is incorrect, for example. You cannot change the street suffix in AFT because this field is disabled. You must change the ALI record using Emergency Responder.

When Emergency Responder generates the ALI record the second time after you make the change, it sets the function code to C because it assumes that the first file was accepted. Use AFT to change the function code for ELIN records from C to I. Then, generate the format using AFT and send the reformatted file to Verizon.

Verizon New England State Disability Indicator Modifications

To make the ELIN records readable by Verizon's New England states (MA, ME, NH, RI, VT), you may need to use AFT to update the Disability Indicator field; this field is specific to Verizon. The Disability Indicator is a reserved 20-character field that the carrier can use to enter disability information.

The following table shows the Disability Indicator designations that you can use to populate the location field of an ALI record.

Table 3. Disability Indicator Descriptions

Disability Indicator

Description

LSS

Life Support System

MI

Mobility Impaired

B

Blind

DHH

Deaf and Hard of Hearing

TTY

Teletypewriter

SI

Speech Impaired

DD

Developmentally Disabled

AFT intelligently identifies the New England states (from the state field of the ALI record) and allows you to update the Disability Indicator field individually (by selecting an New England ELIN record from the tree) or in bulk (through the Bulk Update feature).

Customer Name for Verizon West State Modifications

The Verizon West states (CA, HI, ID, IL, IN, MI, NC, OH, OR, SC, TX, WA, WI) read the Customer Name field in the following format which uses a comma followed by a space between the last name and the first name. For example, Last Name, First Name.

This format prevents display errors at the PSAP. You can use AFT to update the field so that it follows the format that is used by Verizon West states.

AFT intelligently identifies the Verizon West states (from the state field of the ALI record) and allows you to update the Customer Name field individually (by selecting a Verizon West ELIN record from the tree) or in bulk (through the Bulk Update feature).

When you use AFT to make updates, it creates two different entries for the Customer Name field—one in the Emergency Responder database and one in the Service Provider's database. To avoid future discrepancies, you should also make the same update in the Customer Name field in the Emergency Responder GUI.

New Jersey Location Modifications

Verizon's New Jersey (NJ) system is a keyword-driven system that is based on a state requirement that location data be uniformly displayed at all PSAPs. Data is extracted from the location field only when one or more keywords, associated data, and delimiters are present in exact prescribed format. The NJ system location has four separate and distinct location type fields which can be simultaneously displayed at the PSAP. The location type fields are as follows:

  • Unit Type (APT, BOX, LOT, PIER, RM, ROOM, RU, SUIT, SUITE, UNIT, WING)

  • Floor Number (FLR)

  • Building Description (BLDG)

  • Coin Location Description (DES)

AFT intelligently identifies the NJ system-specific requirement for Location (from the state field of the ALI record) and allows you to update the location individually (by selecting a New Jersey ELIN) as well as in bulk (through the Bulk Update feature).

When you use AFT to make updates, it creates two different entries for the Customer Name field—one in the Emergency Responder database and one in the Service Provider's database. To avoid future discrepancies, you should also make the exact update in the Location field in Emergency Responder GUI.