Patent ID: 8514730

Claim:
A telecommunications network comprising: one or more network termination devices, provision for communications addressed to the or each network termination device to be routed to a respective primary network address, data storage memory for recording network topology information, a unit responsive to initial detection of connection of the given network termination device to the network via the primary network address, so as to determine, from the primary network address and the network topology information stored in the data storage memory, a second network address to which the network termination device may be connected, a unit configured to associate the secondary network address with the primary network address, a unit configured to transmit to the given network termination device instructions to establish a routing to said second address, the or each network termination device having a respective monitoring unit configured to detect the state of connectivity between the device and the primary network address, and a unit configured to cause a given network termination device to connect with the network over a secondary routing using the secondary network address when such loss of connectivity is detected.