What happens when changing ISP? What does the ISP do?

Troytempest

I read it that the OP is interested in the whole process including at the exchange??

Ant555

Troytempest said:

I read it that the OP is interested in the whole process including at the exchange??

I dont know but I always wondered if someone took a long ethernet cable from a port on one piece of equipment 'link to your house' and ran it to the piece equipment the ISP has installed in the exchange- thus making a connection between your house and their network.

So if several ISP's had equipment at one exchange and you changed ISP's then they might just move a cable from a port on ISP 1 equipment to a port on ISP 2 equipment.

Im guessing it may be a bit more sophisticated nowadays though.

shiraz99

Troytempest said:

I read it that the OP is interested in the whole process including at the exchange??

That's how I read it too.

Chino

RumRat said:

Posts you a new router and starts charging you...😉
Other than that the OP's questions have been answered.

No, all that's happened is that people have answered questions they know the answer to. No one has answered the OP's question:

Spir4 said:

Always wondered what happened when you change to a different ISP regarding the ISP side.

Troytempest

I am fairly certain that in the BT Exchange, other non BT ISP's have equipment and it relies on someone unplugging from the old ISP and re plugging to the new ISP - probably done all digitally in the modern world.

Heedtheadvice

RumRat said:

Heedtheadvice said:

RumRat said:

AHeedtheadvice said:

Nobody know the info that the OP asked, what does the ISP do.....?

Posts you a new router and starts charging you...😉
Other than that the OP's questions have been answered.

So what you are saying in effect is that the router holds the ISP's server IP address and they do not need to set up access to the server.............

So anybody can connect if they know the address and pick the ISP of your choice......and carry on ...?

I don't think I said that....🤔

Quite. As mentioned by others (and I was being a bit sarcastic/tongue in cheek prod and not just pointed at you) we have not answered the OP's question but by implication wrote that it is just a router change which it will most certainly not be.

I do not know the answer to the question and would like to know, too, just out of interest.

I would doubt there is any switching at the exchange ( though there might be) and a pure guess would be the use of a different ISP IP address, ISP server database updates,  Openreach and ISP admin changes.

Anybody provide the answer?

Spir4

Thanks for the multiple replies! Yeah I know the basics about the router, but I'm very interested in what the ISP does on their side to make it work (besides sending you a router and start charging you  )

debitcardmayhem

The answer lies in the cloud….not. If you have adsl then I don’t know, if you have fttc then I don’t know, if you have fttp I still don’t know. Logic though says if you have adsl/adsl2 then it will be a switch and swap at the exchange assuming that either of the isps have their own kit in the exchange. If neither it’s probably a no hardware change. However if it entails fibre then who knows? Of course it will always entail a switch either s/w or hardware swap. I still don’t know but I am bored and needed to do something 

tripled

I have a fairly rudimentary understanding. It very much depends on the infrastructure in your area, and the providers and technologies you are switching between.

If your house is connected to "traditional" Openreach (ex-BT) infrastructure, Openreach own the cabling from the master socket in your house, through the cabinet in your street, to your local telephone exchange. Inside the exchange, Openreach have equipment that enables your broadband service and connects to a "backhaul" cable that will carry your internet data between the exchange and their central network. Your traffic is then forwarded on to your ISP's own data network. This service is made available on a wholesale basis only to ISPs (you cannot take out a contract directly with Openreach) and the wholesale charges are regulated. 

If you are changing between broadband suppliers that use Openreach's equipment, it is basically a set of configuration changes. Your ISP will notify Openreach of the transfer, set up your billing account and access credentials on their systems, and provide you with the router settings. Whenever your router connects, it will be allocated an IP address (the internet equivalent of a phone number) belonging to your chosen ISP and the traffic will be routed across the correct networks. Your new ISP will pay charges to Openreach, while your old supplier stops paying Openreach and closes your account.

It may be slightly different if your exchange is "unbundled" - this means that other providers (such as Sky) have put their own equipment in the exchanges alongside Openreach's, although Openreach still own the cable between the exchange and your house. If you switch between these providers, then someone may have to come out to the exchange or cabinet and physically swap your connection over to the new provider's equipment.

debitcardmayhem

Openreach is not ex-BT …