Upstream power cutback

1. A method for reducing a power level of a communications signal in a communication system comprising a first transceiver configured to receive the communications signal transmitted from a second transceiver, comprising:

determining a received power of the communications signal as received at the first transceiver;

computing a reduced gain value for the second transceiver based on the received power;

computing an estimated signal to noise ratio, expected to result from a reduced power level of the communications signal, based on the reduced gain value;

modifying a bit and gain table using the estimated signal to noise ratio; and

reducing a transmit power of the second transceiver in accordance with one or more entries of the bit and gain table,

wherein computing the estimated signal to noise ratio comprises distinguishing between first category noise sources including noise sources whose power scales with the input signal received by the first transceiver and second category noise sources including noise sources that remain constant with received signal power changes, and

wherein computing the estimated signal to noise ratio comprises calculating the estimated signal to noise ratio based on an equation S′/N′=aS/(aNp+Nc), where S′=aS represents the reduced power level of the communications signal expected to result from the reduced gain level, N′ represents an estimated noise level predicted to be present at the reduced power level, Np represents a noise level from the first category noise sources present, and Nc represents a noise level from the second category noise sources present.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the modifying comprises lowering at least one gain in the bit and gain table.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

selecting a maximum received power constraint for the first transceiver.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the computing the estimated signal to noise ratio is performed before modifying the bit and gain table.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining a maximum bits per carrier based on the estimated signal to noise ratio.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first and second transceivers operate in accordance with an ADSL1 standard.

7. A system for reducing a power level of a communications signal in a communication system comprising a first transceiver configured to receive the communications signal transmitted from a second transceiver, comprising:

a system parameter processor configured to determine a received power of the communications signal as received at the first transceiver and compute a reduced gain value for the second transceiver based on the received power;

a signal to noise ratio estimation component configured to compute an estimated signal to noise ratio, expected to result from a reduced transmitted power of the communications signal, based on the reduced gain value; and

a bit and gain table modifier configured to modify a bit and gain table using the estimated signal to noise ratio to reduce a transmit power of the second transceiver,

wherein the signal to noise ratio estimation component is further configured to distinguish between first noise category sources including noise sources whose power scales with the input signal received by the first transceiver and second category noise sources including noise sources that remain constant with received signal power changes, and

wherein the signal to noise ratio estimation component is further configured to calculate the estimated signal to noise ratio based on an equation S′/N′=aS/(aNp+Nc), where S′=aS represents the reduced power level of the communications signal expected to result from the reduced gain level, N′ represents an estimated noise level predicted to be present at the reduced signal level, Np=a noise level from the first category noise sources present, and Nc represents a noise from the second category noise sources present.

8. The system of claim 7 , wherein at least one gain in the bit and gain table is lowered.

9. The system of claim 7 , wherein the system parameter processor is further configured to compute the reduced gain value by comparing a maximum received power constraint for the first transceiver to the received signal power as measured at the first transceiver and to determine a power back off parameter for the second transceiver.

10. The system of claim 7 , wherein the signal to noise ratio estimation component determines a signal to noise ratio (SNR) loss resulting from a decrease in the upstream signal power level.

11. The system of claim 7 , wherein the first and second transceivers operate in accordance with an ADSL1 standard.

12. A method for reducing a power level of a communications signal in a communication system comprising a first transceiver configured to receive the communications signal transmitted from a second transceiver, comprising:

selecting a maximum received power configuration parameter for the first transceiver;

measuring at the first transceiver a received power of the communications signal;

computing a reduced gain value for the second transceiver based on the received power and the maximum received power configuration parameter;

computing an estimated signal to noise ratio, expected to result from a reduced power level of the communications signal, based on reduced gain value; and

determining a bit and gain table using the estimated signal to noise ratio to reduce a transmit power of the second transceiver,

wherein the computing the estimated signal to noise ratio comprises distinguishing between first category noise sources including noise sources whose power scales with the input signal received by the first transceiver and second category noise sources that remain constant with received signal power changes, and

wherein the computing the estimated signal to noise ratio further comprises calculating the estimated signal to noise ratio based on an equation S′/N′=aS/(aNp+Nc), where S′=aS represents the reduced power level of the communications signal expect to result from the reduced gain level, N′ represents an estimated noise predicted to be present at the reduced power level, Np represents a noise level from the first category noise sources present, and Nc represents a noise level from the second category noise sources present.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the first and second transceivers operate in accordance with an ADSL1 standard.

14. The method of claim 12 , further comprising determining a maximum bits per carrier based on the estimated signal to noise ratio.