System and method for controlling message looping between network

Abstract

In the proposed Local Number Portability (LNP) telecommunications network, the traditional link between the first six digits of a ten-digit dialed number and the geographic link of a switch is broken. Some pre-LNP telephone services, however, have been implemented based on this geographic link. For the services to continue to work in an LNP environment, network databases must be simultaneously updated with information reflecting the fact that subscribers have switched from one local service provider to another. If these databases are not simultaneously updated, the possibility for looping messages between network elements arises. The present invention provides a method and system for controlling looping messages between network elements wherein a unique code for each incoming message is generated and stored along with the time the message was received. The codes for subsequently received messages are checked against the table entries to determine if the message has been previously received and, if so, how much time has passed since the message was first received. If this time is less than a threshold, the message is assumed to be looping.