Patent ID: 7369650

Claim:
A method of recording information generated by a plurality of interconnected telecommunications network elements in response to a call traversing the network elements, comprising: transmitting to an originating network element a message generated by one of the plurality of interconnected network elements; copying the transmitted message; forwarding the message to a succeeding interconnected network element; appending transaction information to the copied message having an error signal indicating whether an error was detected in the transmitted message, so that the transaction information and the copied message form an information packet; forwarding the information packet to a communications unit in communication with the originating network element; storing the forwarded information packet in a database so that a record of each call is formed; monitoring the information packet forwarded by the originating network element to detect the presence of the error signal, the error signal indicating that the call failed; determining a called number associated with the failed call; appending a prefix to the called number so that the communications unit becomes a called party instead of a party associated with the called number, the communications unit providing for answering and release of the call; redialing the prefixed called number, a test call initiated and answered by the communications unit thereby being placed; traversing by the test call of the same network elements which were traversed by the failed call; embedding a signal into the messages generated by each one of the plurality of interconnected network elements traversed by the test call, indicating to a next succeeding network element that the test call associated with the failed call is being placed; and forwarding to the communications unit by each one of the plurality of interconnected network elements traversed by the test call a representation of all generated and received messages, so that a complete set of data about each failed call used for identifying a problem which resulted in call failure is formed.