transmitting, by a digital subscriber line access multiplexer to a communications device, a plurality of parameters each representing a different indication of a same feature of the digital subscriber line access multiplexer and correlated with one or more communications settings, wherein each parameter is transmitted as a part of a particular C-MSGS1 message;

establishing a plurality of digital subscriber line connections with the communications device, each connection corresponding with a particular one of the parameters;

selecting one of the connections as meeting a predetermined criteria;

identifying the parameter that corresponds to the selected connection; and

establishing a digital subscriber line connection with the communications device using at least one communications setting correlated with the identified parameter.