Abstract: Information is communicated in an Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) or other packet-based communication system using a service specific convergence layer which associates a holdover indicator with each of a number of packets generated in a voice and telephony service layer. The service specific convergence layer may be a Service Specific Convergence Sublayer (SSCS) of an ATM Adaptation Layer (AAL) Type 2 connection, and the holdover indicator may be a holdover bit in a user-to-user-indication (UUI) field of a Common Part Sublayer (CPS) header of the AAL 2 connection. The holdover indicator may specify, for example, whether a speech detector used for providing silence elimination in the transmitted information is in a holdover mode. The indicator can thus be used by a receiver to determine if a period of silence has begun in the transmitted information, so as to facilitate the generation of comfort noise. The holdover indicators can also be used to provide rate control in a CPS transmitter of an AAL 2 device.

Abstract: A cable modem termination system (CMTS) for receiving signals from, and transmitting signals toward, a High-Frequency Coax plant includes multiple normally-active CMTSs each configured to receive and transmit modem-compatible signals, multiple interface modules coupled to the normally-active CMTSs and configured to convey data toward the HFC from the normally-active CMTSs and from the HFC toward the normally-active CMTSs, and a spare CMTS configured to receive and transmit modem-compatible signals, where at least two interface modules are coupled to each other in a daisy-chain fashion to couple at least a first of the interface modules to the spare CMTS via at least a second of the interface modules to which the first interface module is daisy-chain coupled.