Upon reset of a control node (261) of a radio access network (24) which
controls connections with user equipment units (30) in a connected mode,
a message (102) indicative of the reset is sent between nodes of the
radio access network. The message results from occurrence of a reset
procedure (104) affecting the control node. The message includes an
element which collectively indicates that a subset of the connections
(i.e., not all of the connections) controlled by the control node are to
be released. Inclusion in the message of the element, also known as the
subset reset element, facilitates return to an idle mode of the user
equipment units involved in the subset of the connections. By virtue of
inclusion of the subset reset element, the message need not go to one
extreme of listing individually each of the connections affected by the
reset, nor to another extreme of specifying all connections controlled by
the control node.