NLAD Staging Environment

The NLAD staging environment allows service providers to test the system and processes before EBB Program enrollments are live or at any time after go-live.

Access the Staging Environment

You can access the staging environment using your production log in credentials. It is not necessary to have a dedicated test account to access the ACP workflows in NLAD at this time.

1. Log in to OnePortal, the dashboard that allows users to sign in to any USAC’s systems to which they have access.
2. Choose the National Lifeline Accountability Database Staging option.
   1. Note: Confirm that the option you choose has “Staging” in the name. There are two options for NLAD – production and staging – and for testing you must use the staging option.
3. Select the ACP Subscriber Management tab from the top navigation panel in NLAD.

Enroll Consumers in NLAD Staging Environment

ETC Administrators and ETC Analysts can practice enrolling consumers in NLAD for the ACP. All enrollments and transactions in the staging environment should use test consumer data – never submit real consumer information in the staging environment.

1. Qualify consumers: Providers may want to enroll test consumers who qualify through various methods. Action is required before testing enrollment for certain eligibility methods.
   • Qualification through the National Verifier: If you anticipate enrolling consumers who qualify after completing an application in the National Verifier, your experience in staging will be very similar to your experience in production. Before attempting the enrollment in NLAD, qualify the test consumer in the National Verifier staging environment. Be sure to use that will result in an application that is qualified.
   • Qualification through active Lifeline enrollment: If you want to test enrolling consumers who qualify because they are enrolled in Lifeline, your experience staging will be very similar to your experience in production. Before attempting the enrollment in NLAD, the consumer must be enrolled in Lifeline in the NLAD staging environment. If you are a Lifeline provider, you can check the Detail Active Subscriber Report for Lifeline to see if your company has test consumers enrolled in the staging environment for NLAD. If no subscribers are enrolled, you can qualify some in the National Verifier staging environment, then enroll them in Lifeline. This guide explains how to use the National Verifier staging environment.  Be sure to use mock consumer data that will result in an application that is qualified. If you are not a Lifeline provider, contact USAC to receive a test subscriber.
   • Qualification through an Alternative Verifier Process (AVP) or the School Lunch/Breakfast Program: If your company was approved by the FCC to qualify consumers through an AVP or if you plan to qualify consumers participating in a free or reduced-price school breakfast/lunch program, you will complete the batch template using test consumer data and the appropriate indicator in the template. There is no need to first qualify a consumer in the National Verifier.
2. Prepare a batch upload file: The NLAD Staging Environment allows new providers to attempt enrollments and subscriber management (i.e. updates, de-enrollment) transactions directly using the NLAD batch upload template.
   • You can find the batch upload template, information on how to populate it, and sample files here.
   • Populate the template with your test consumer data and save the file following the batch file naming convention.
     • The name of the file must start with the SAC of the company. If you wish to include additional information in the name, add a hyphen after the SAC name. For example, 999999-testfile20210425.
3. Upload the completed file: To enroll the qualified test consumers, please return to the NLAD Staging environment and select Upload Subscriber File under ACP Subscriber Management. Select the “Choose File” button and locate your test file, then click the “Upload” button. Review the page’s instructions for additional information on the batch upload process and how to view results.

Link Representative IDs for Testing

ETC Administrators may want to test the process of linking Representative IDs to accounts in staging. You can practice linking representatives, but you must use the test Representative ID information provided below to do so. Actual IDs from representatives who have completed the registration process will not be recognized in the staging environment.

First Name: Test

Last Name: Kay

Representative ID: AB1234567

Access Confirmation Reports

To confirm processed transactions via the batch file upload, select the “ACP Reports” option under the Tools and Resources tab. For a listing of all subscribers enrolled, use the Detail Active Subscriber Report. For a listing of all transactions processed, use the Detail Transaction Report.

Testing API Connections

All transactions can be tested using an API. The ACP API Specifications are available under the Tools and Resources section in the NLAD staging environment. All instructions in specification document apply to the NLAD staging environment, except the hostname. For staging, use the hostname “api-stg.universalservice.org”.

See above for information on how to qualify test consumers before attempting to enroll them by API.