Question 13/XI - Signalling System No. 7 - Operation Maintenance and
Administration Part (OMAP)

Considering

(a) that experience with Signalling System No. 7, Operation
Administration and Maintenance (OAM) procedures and protocols is
evolving;

(b) that a signalling network can serve to transfer information relating
to OAM of its own resources;

(c) that a signalling network can serve as a transfer system for OAM
information associated with resources of other telecommunications
networks;

(d) that increased quantities and diverse traffic characteristics of
information carried by the signalling network will require control and
management procedures;

(e) that OAM functions may be located in specialized centres external to
the signalling network(s), or in signalling points within the signalling
network;

(f) that OAM functions may be centralized in specific elements or
distributed among several elements;

(g) that some users of Signalling System No. 7 also utilize other CCITT
Recommendations (e.g., X-Series Recommendations) for services and
transfer of information;

(h) that evolving applications, control and management systems may
require services Signalling System No. 7 can provide (and vice-versa);

(i) that such an evolving management system is the Telecommunications
Management Network (TMN) that is under study in the CCITT and that close
coordination is required;

and considering that further study is required to enhance the existing
Recommendations of measurements (Q.791) and the operations, maintenance,
administration part (Q.795 OMAP) for such items as:

1. the basic measurements and the functions, procedures and protocols
needed for the operations, maintenance and administration of the
signalling network and signalling points including the various
application and user parts which may be present in a signalling point;

2. the functions, procedures and protocols of the operation, maintenance
and administration part needed to provide services to the ISDN and other
Signalling System No. 7 Users e.g., TMN;

3. the services required by the operations, maintenance administration
part from the lower layers of Signalling System No. 7;

4. the technical arrangements for the transfer of information associated
with the operation maintenance and administration of telecommunications
networks using Signalling System No. 7;

5. any technical arrangements necessary to perform accounting functions
(e.g., for use of STPs);

6. the relationship among Signalling System No. 7 protocols, tests and
traffic characteristics of transferred signalling information;

7. the relationship of signalling traffic to signalling point(s)
processor(s) capacity;

8. the measurements, procedures and protocol for assessment of
signalling network performance, e.g., network delays;

9. the technical arrangements for execution of distributed procedures
e.g., time of day synchronization among network elements, update of
routing tables etc.;

10. additional tests and the initiation and management of individual
tests, classes of tests and sequences of tests;

11. the technical arrangements for working OAM procedures across network
boundaries,

What enhancements are necessary to measurements and OAM functions,
procedures and protocols?