UMTS System Architecture and Protocol Architecture

Overview on overall system architecture UMTS network architecture and elements Mobile station High-level functions UMTS domains and strata UMTS/GPRS protocol architecture
References: Kaaranen, Ahtiainen, Laitinen, Naghian, Niemi: UMTS Networks Architecture, Mobility and Services. 2nd edition, Wiley 2005 Ch 5.1: Core Network Architecture Release 3 Ch 5.4&5.5: Core Network Architecture Release 4 and 5 Ch 6: UMTS Terminal Walke, Althoff, Seidenberg: UMTS Ein Kurs. J. Schlembach Fachverlag, 2001 3GPP TS 23.002: UMTS network architecture (CN and AN entities) and procedures 3GPP TS 23.101: General UMTS architecture 3GPP TS 23.060: GPRS, Service Description 3GPP TS 21.101/21.102/21.103: List of standards for Release 3, 4 and 5, respectively 3GPP TR 21.905: UMTS vocabulary and abbreviations
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 1

UMTS/GSM Network Architecture

Base station

Base station Base station controller

MSC GMSC

ISDN GSM Core (Circuit switched)

Base station

GSM RAN

HLR AuC EIR

node B node B Radio network controller

SGSN

Internet GPRS Core (Packet Switched)

Oct-11

node B

UTRAN

GGSN

UMTS Networks

Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

UMTS System Architecture

Mobile Station (MS): radio interface service control and user interface Radio Access Network (RAN): radio-specific functions

data networks
USIM

ISDN network mobile network Core Network (CN): radio-independent functions transport mobility management subscriber data service control
Oct-11 3

UMTS Subscriber Identity Module (USIM): subscriber-specific data support of authorized access to network
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

PSTN

Gi

Gp

Circuit switched CN

GMSC

GGSN

Packet switched CN

UMTS Network Architecture

AuC
C
PSTN PSTN

Gc Gn Gr

Basic Configuration, Release 3

HLR
D

EIR
F Gf Gs

VLR
B

VLR
B

SGSN

MSC
E

MSC CN

Source: 3GPP 23.002-3.4.0

Gb

IuCS

IuPS

GSM RAN

BSS BSC
Abis

RNS
Iur

RNC
Iub

RNC

BTS Um

BTS

Node B
cell

Node B

UTRAN
4

UMTS Networks

Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

Uu

Oct-11

Mobile-services Switching Centre (MSC)

Source: 3GPP 23.002-3.5.0

An exchange performing all the switching and signalling functions (CS only) for mobile stations MSC controls mobile-originated and mobile-terminated CS calls Functions call management mobility management (handling attach and authentication) subscriber administration maintenance of charging data (for radio network usage) CS data services (FAX, modem) supplementary call services (call forwarding, etc.) SS7-based signaling

Main difference to an exchange in a fixed network: deal with mobility (e.g. location registration, handover) Gateway MSC (GMSC) Provides interconnection between the UMTS core network and external PSTN/ISDN networks
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 5

GPRS Support Node (GSN)

Source: 3GPP 23.002-3.5.0

GSNs constitute the interface between the radio access network and the fixed networks for packet switched services (similar to MSC for CS calls) Serving GSN (SGSN) session management mobility management subscriber database management (interface with HLR) maintenance of charging data (for radio network usage) IP-based transport of user data between SGSN and the UTRAN IP- or SS7-based signaling transport

Gateway GSN (GGSN) gateway for UMTS packet service to external data networks (e.g. the Internet) IP interface towards SGSN performs user data screening and security maintenance of charging data (for external data network usage)
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 6

Home Location Register (HLR)

Source: 3GPP 23.002-3.5.0

Home (primary) data base in charge of the management of mobile subscribers Basic information: International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) CS subscription information one or more Mobile Subscriber International ISDN number(s) (MSISDN) PS subscription information zero or more Packet Data Protocol (PDP) address(es) permission for GGSN to dynamically allocate PDP addresses for a subscriber location information enabling the charging and routing of calls towards the MSC or SGSN where the MS is registered (e.g. VLR Number) Other information: teleservices and bearer services subscription information service restrictions (e.g. roaming limitation) parameters attached to supplementary services
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 7

Visitor Location Register (VLR)

Source: 3GPP 23.002-3.5.0

(Secondary) data base supporting the management of mobile subscribers currently located within its VLR area Motivation: minimize load for HLR (i.e. of the primary data base) Tasks: control MSs roaming in an MSC assigned to it exchange information with HLR to allow the proper handling of calls Information maintained by VLR (for call handling): International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) Mobile Station International ISDN number (MSISDN) Mobile Station Roaming Number (MSRN) Temporary Mobile Station Identity (TMSI), if applicable location area where the mobile station has been registered the last known location and the initial location of the MS supplementary service parameters attached to the mobile subscriber (received from the HLR)
Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 8

UMTS Networks

Authentication Centre (AuC)

Source: 3GPP 23.002-3.5.0

Stores data for each mobile subscriber to authenticate the International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) to support ciphering of the communication over the radio path The AuC transmits the data needed for authentication and ciphering via the HLR to the VLR, MSC and SGSN which need to authenticate a mobile station AuC is associated with an HLR, and stores an identity key for each mobile subscriber The AuC communicates solely with its associated HLR (H-interface)

UMTS Networks

Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

Oct-11

Equipment Identity Register (EIR)

Source: 3GPP 23.002-3.5.0

Logical entity storing the International Mobile Equipment Identities (IMEIs) Equipment is classified as white listed: serie number of equipment grey listed: equipment tracked by network black listed: barred equipment unknown to EIR

UMTS Networks

Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

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Other CN entities

Source: 3GPP 23.002-3.5.0

SMS Gateway MSC (SMS-GMSC) gateway between Short Message Service Center and PLMN deliver SMSs from service center to MS SMS Interworking MSC (SMS-IWMSC) gateway between PLMN and Short Message Service Center deliver SMSs from MS to service center Interworking Function (IWF) associated with MSC supports interworking of PLMN with fixed networks, e.g. ISDN, PSTN, PDN (protocol conversion) Border Gateway (BG) PS gateway to other PLMNs firewall functionality Charging Gateway Functionality (CGF) collects charging records from SGSNs and GGSNs
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 11 o

Radio Network System (RNS)

Provide access to the UMTS terrestrial radio interface
Radio Network Controller (RNC) (Radio) mobility management Management of radio resources
Iu RNS Iur RNC Iub Node B Iub Node B Iub Node B RNC Iub Node B

Core Network
Iu RNS

UTRAN

Base Station (Node B) Radio coverage of cells Physical layer processing

UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 12

Mobile Station (MS)

Mobile station (MS)/ User Equipment (UE) physical equipment used by a PLMN subscriber
UE

Mobile Equipment (ME) radio transmission and application Mobile Termination (MT) functions for radio transmission and management of the radio interface, e.g. the handset
Mobile Termination (MT)
T A F

ITU-T Recommendyer

Terminal Equipment (TE) support for end-to-end application functions necessary for the operation of the access protocols by the user, e.g. a laptop

Mobile Equipment (ME)

Uu

Terminal Equipment (TE)

Access Network

Cu

UMTS Subscriber Identity Module (USIM) user identity contains data and procedures to unambiguously and securely identify itself
UMTS Networks

USIM

Terminal Adaptation Functions (TAF) (service dependent) mapping of terminal requests on network capabilities flow control/rate adaptations
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Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

UMTS High-level Functions (PS Domain)

Network Access Control Provide means by which a user is connected to a telecommunication network Registration Association of Mobile ID with the user's packet data protocol(s) and address(es) within the PLMN, and with the user's access point(s) to the external PDP network Authentication and Authorisation Identification and authentication of the service requester, and the validation of the service request type Admission Control Check available network resources required to provide the quality of service (QoS) Message Screening A screening function with filtering out unauthorised or unsolicited messages (firewall) Packet Terminal Adaptation Adaptation of data packets suitable for transmission across the packet domain network Charging Data Collection Collection of data necessary to support subscription and/or traffic fees Operator Determined Barring Limitation of the service provider's financial risk with respect to new subscribers or to those who have not promptly paid their bills by restricting a particular packet-switched service

UMTS Networks

Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

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UMTS High-level Functions (PS Domain)

Packet Routing and Transfer Determining and using the route for transmission of a message within and between the PLMN(s) Relay Forwarding of data received from one node to the next node in the route Routing Selection of the transmission path for the "next hop" in the route using the destination address of the message Address Translation and Mapping Conversion of one address to another address of the same or different type, i.e. to convert an external network protocol address into an internal network address Encapsulation/Decapsulation Addition/removal of address and control information to a data unit for routing packets within and between the PLMN(s) and between the SGSN and the MS Tunneling Transfer of encapsulated data units within and between the PLMN(s) from the point of encapsulation to the point of decapsulation A tunnel is a two-way point-to-point path Compression Optimisation of radio path capacity Ciphering Preservation of the confidentiality of user data and signalling across the radio channels

Mobility Management Keep track of location of MS Radio Resource Management Management of radio resources
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UMTS Networks

Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

UMTS Functional Entities: Domains

Domain: grouping of physical entities of the system
Radio Access Network (RAN)
[Zu] Cu Uu Iu [Yu] Home Network Domain

Air Interface

Serving Network (SN) Domain

Transit Network Domain

USIM Domain

Mobile Equipment Domain

Access Network (AN) Domain

Core Network (CN) Domain

User Equipment (UE) Domain

UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

Infrastructure Domain
Source: 3GPP 23.101-4.0.0
Oct-11 16

Functions of the UMTS Domains

Infrastructure domain Access network (AN) domain: functions specific to access technique Core network (CN) domain: functions independent of access technique Access network domain physical entities managing the resources of the access network provides the user with a mechanism to access the core network domain Serving network (SN) domain part of the CN domain to which the AN domain that provides the users access is currently connected responsible for routing calls and transport user data/information from source to destination provides CN functions that are local to the users access point (i.e. SN changes when the user moves) Home network (HN) domain provides CN functions that are conducted at a permanent location regardless of the location of the users access point (i.e. does not change due to user mobility) contains user-specific data and is responsible for management of subscription information handle home-specific services, not offered by the serving network domain User Services Identity Module domain (USIM) related to the home network domain by subscription
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 17

Functional Communication between UMTS domains Protocols and functions related to the
Home Stratum USIM - HN USIM - MT MT - SN SN - HN

handling and storage of subscription data and possibly home network specific services

Serving Stratum USIM - MT MT - SN

Protocols and functions to

route and transmit data/information (user

or network generated) from source to destination

functions related to subscription data management, customer care, including billing and charging, mobility management and authentication functions to allow domains other than the home network domain to act on behalf of the home network

Transport Stratum Access Stratum MT - AN AN - SN Serving Network Domain Home Network Domain

Transport of user data and network control signalling

USIM

MT/ME

Access Network Domain

error correction and recovery encrypt data over the radio interface and in the infrastructure part adaptation of data to use the supported physical format transcoding of data to make efficient use of, e.g. the radio interface

Strata concept: grouping of functions grouping of respective protocols

UMTS Networks

Parts of infrastructure, user equipment and protocols specific to the access technique provides services related to the transmission

of data over the radio interface and the management of the radio interface

Source: 3GPP 23.101-4.0.0

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Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

ow1

Functional Communication between UMTS domains

Application Stratum Application

End-to-end protocols and

functions which make use of services provided by the home, serving and transport strata and infrastructure to support services and/or value added services. The functions and protocols within the application stratum may adhere to GSM/UMTS standards such as MExE or may be outside the scope of the UMTS standards.

Serving Stratum TE - MT MT - SN

Transport Stratum Access Stratum MT - AN TE Mobile Equipment Domain MT Access Network Domain Serving Network Domain Transit Network Domain Remote Party AN - SN

Source: 3GPP 23.101-4.0.0

UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 19 o

Folie 19 ow1 Hier ist das Serving Stratum seltsam!

Oliver Waldhorst; 17.10.2011

UMTS Protocol Architecture

We will focus on the packet switched mode here

References: Kaaranen, Ahtiainen, Laitinen, Naghian, Niemi: UMTS Networks Architecture, Mobility and Services. Wiley 2001, Ch. 5.1 Walke, et al: UMTS ein Kurs, Ch. 5 (air interface only) 3G TS 23.060: GPRS, Service Description
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 20

User Plane Bearer Services Overview

UMTS TE MT UTRAN CN Iu EDGE NODE CN Gateway TE

End-to-End Service

TE/MT Local Bearer Service

UMTS Bearer Service

External Bearer Service

Radio Access Bearer Service

CN Bearer Service

Radio Bearer Service

Iu Bearer Service

Backbone Bearer Service

UTRA FDD/TDD Service

Physical Bearer Service

UMTS Networks

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Bearer Services Analogy with Public Transportation

UMTS TE MT UTRAN CNtaxi Iu Combo ticket: bus and EDGE NODE

Taxi, bus and train combo: single ticket, single CN TE reservation, Gateway same service everywhere

End-to-End Service

TE/MT Local Bearer Service

UMTS Bearer Service

External Bearer Service

Radio Access Bearer Service

CN Bearer Service

Walk to taxi
Radio Bearer Service Iu Bearer Service Backbone Bearer Service

Train: Station station

Taxi: Flat bus stop

UTRA FDD/TDD Service

Physical Bearer Service

Bus: Bus stop railway station For each bearer: specific attributes (delay, bandwidth, guarantees, etc. specific reservation mechanism 22 Oct-11

Taxi with driver

UMTS Networks

Bus with driver

Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

MS-RNS-SGSN-GGSN User Plane

Application

E.g., IP, PPP Relay PDCP RLC MAC L1

Uu

E.g., IP, PPP Relay GTP-U UDP/IP AAL5 ATM

Iu-PS

PDCP RLC MAC L1

GTP-U UDP/IP AAL5 ATM

GTP-U UDP/IP L2 L1
Gn

GTP-U UDP/IP L2 L1
Gi

MS

UTRAN

3G-SGSN

3G-GGSN

Source: 3GPP 23.060-4.1.0

UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 23

MS-RNS-SGSN-GGSN User Plane

Application

E.g., IP, PPP Relay PDCP RLC MAC L1

Uu

E.g., IP, PPP Relay GTP-U UDP/IP AAL5 ATM

Iu-PS

PDCP RLC MAC L1

GTP-U UDP/IP AAL5 ATM

GTP-U UDP/IP L2 L1
Gn

GTP-U UDP/IP L2 L1
Gi

GTP-U (GPRS Tunneling plane): MS UTRAN Protocol for User 3G-SGSN tunneling of user data between UTRAN and the 3G-SGSN tunneling between the GSNs in the backbone network Source: 3GPP 23.060-4.1.0 encapsulation of all PDP PDUs
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11

3G-GGSN

24

MS-RNS-SGSN-GGSN User Plane

Application

E.g., IP, PPP Relay PDCP RLC MAC L1

Uu

PDCP RLC MAC L1

GTP-U UDP/IP AAL5 ATM

MS

UTRAN

PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol): E.g., IP, PPP provides protocol transparency (wrt the underlying radio-interface Relay protocols) for higher-layer protocols support forGTP-U e.g., IPv4, PPP and IPv6 GTP-U GTP-U (easy introduction of new higherlayer protocols) UDP/IP UDP/IP UDP/IP compression of control information L2 AAL5 compression) L2 (header no ATM user data L1 compression in Iu L1 mode Iu-PS (because the data compression Gn Gi 3G-GGSN 3G-SGSN efficiency depends on the type of user data)

Source: 3GPP 23.060-4.1.0

UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 25

MS-RNS-SGSN-GGSN User Plane

Application

E.g., IP, PPP Relay PDCP RLC MAC L1

Uu

E.g., IP, PPP RelayControl): RLC (Radio Link RLC GTP-U protocol GTP-U provides logical GTP-U link GTP-U control over the radio interface There may be several simultaneous UDP/IP UDP/IP UDP/IP UDP/IP RLC links per MS; each link is identified L2 AAL5 by a AAL5 Bearer Id L2 ATM UTRAN ATM L1 L1
Gi Iu-PS Gn MAC (Medium Access Control): 3G-GGSN 3G-SGSN MAC protocol controls the access signaling (request and grant) procedures for the radio channel
Oct-11 26

PDCP RLC MAC L1

MS

Source: 3GPP 23.060-4.1.0

UMTS Networks

Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

MS-RNS-SGSN-GGSN Control Plane

GMM / SM / SMS

GMM / SM / SMS

Relay RRC RLC MAC L1

Uu

RRC RLC MAC L1

RANAP SCCP
Signalling Bearer

RANAP SCCP
Signalling Bearer

GTP-C UDP IP L2 L1
Gn or Gp

GTP-C UDP IP L2 L1
GSN

AAL5 ATM
Iu-Ps

AAL5 ATM 3G SGSN

MS

RNS

GSN

UMTS Networks

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MS-RNS-SGSN Control Plane

GMM (GPRS Mobility Management): GMM supports mobility management functionality such as attach, detach, security, and routing area update SM (Session Management): SM supports PDP context activation and deactivation SMS supports short message service GTP-C (GPRS Tunneling Protocol for Control plane): establish, manage and release GTP tunnels RANAP (Radio Access Network Application Protocol): transport of higher-layer signalling handling of signalling between the 3G-SGSN and UTRAN management of the GTP connections on the Iu interface RRC (Radio Resource Control): Information Broadcast (AS and NAS) RRC connection management (setup, release, reconfiguration) Radio Bearers management (setup, release, reconfiguration) Management of radio resources for the RRC connection RRC connection mobility functions Paging/notification Source: 3GPP 23.060-4.1.0
UMTS Networks Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim Oct-11 28

UMTS Protocol Architecture: The Complete Picture (Packet Switched)

Uu

Node B

Iub

RNC

Iups

SGSN

Gn

GGSN

SM SM IP PDCP PMM MM RRC RRC RRC RRC PDCP GTP-U RANAP FP

SM MM PMM SM GTP-U RANAP GTP-C GTP-C IP Q2150.1 GTP-U

RLC codec RLC MAC MAC Phy-up Phy-up ALCAP STC.2 NBAP ALCAP NBAP FP FP PHY PHY PHY PHY SSCF-UNI SSCF SSCF SSCOP SSCOP SSCOP AAL2 AAL2 AAL5 AAL5 AAL5 ATM ATM E1/ STM-1 E1 NBAP NBAP ALCAP STC.2 ALCAP

RLC RLC MAC MAC Phy-up Phy-up

UDP

Q2150.1 UDP

UDP

SCCP SCCP MTP3-b IP

SCCP SCCP MTP3-b MTP3B SSCF-N SSCF SSCOP SSCOP

Q2150.1 MTP3BIP SSCF SSCOP L2 AAL2 L1 Iu UP

Q2150.1 MTP3BIP Q2150.1 SSCF SSCOP AAL5 L2

SSCF-UNI SSCF SSCF SSCOP SSCOP SSCOP AAL5 AAL5 AAL5

FP

FP

SSCF-N SSCF SSCOP

AAL2 AAL2 AAL2 ATM ATM STM-1 E1

AAL5 AAL5 AAL5

AAL5 AAL5 AAL5 ATM ATM STM-1 E1

L1

Control Plane

User Plane

Transport Plane

Common

UMTS Networks

Oliver Waldhorst, Jens Mckenheim

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UMTS Protocol Architecture: The Complete Picture (Circuit Switched)

Uu Iub Iucs

Node B

RNC

3G-MSC

codec

CM SM MM MM RRC RRC

CM MM MM SM RRC RRC RLC RLC MAC MAC ALCAP AA STC.2 FP NBAP ALCAP NBAP STC.2 NBAP ALCAP SSCF-UNI SSCF SSCF SSCOP SSCOP SSCOP AAL5 AAL5 AAL5 FP FP Phy-up Phy-up
Iu UP

codec RANAP ALCAP STC.1 SCCP RANAP ALCAP Iu UP SCCP STC.1 SCCP Q2150.1 Iu UP MTP3B MTP3B MTP SSCF-NNI SSCF SSCF SSCOP SSCOP AAL5 AAL2 AAL5 AAL5 AAL2 ATM ATM STM-1 E1

RLC codec RLC MAC MAC Phy-up Phy-up

MTP3-b
SSCF-NNI

SSCF-UNI SSCOP

PHY PHY

PHY AAL2 AAL5 ATM E1

SSCOP AAL2 AAL2 AAL2 ATM ATM STM-1 E1 AAL5

Control Plane

User Plane

Transport Plane

Common

UMTS Networks

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