Patent ID: 8660045

Claim:
A pool proxy, for a communication network, the pool proxy comprising a processing circuit and being configured to: route signaling traffic between a radio access network node and one of a set of pooled core network nodes; operate in one of an active state and a passive state towards the radio access network node; when in the active state, to send a heartbeat signal to at least one of the pooled second core network nodes for relaying to a peer pool proxy; and when in the passive state, to receive a heartbeat signal from a peer pool proxy relayed via at least one of the pooled core network nodes; wherein, when the pool proxy is in the passive state, in the event that no heartbeat signal is received or the received heartbeat signal does not satisfy some minimum criterion, the pool proxy is configured to activate itself as pool proxy towards the radio access network node; wherein the radio access network node comprises one of a Base Station Controller and a Radio Network Controller; and wherein the set of pooled core networked nodes comprises one of a set of pooled Mobile Switching Centre (MSC) Servers (MSC-Ss) and a set of pooled Servicing General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Support Nodes (SGSNs).