BSS Network Audit

RN 2002
EGPRS EXPLAIN: Chapter 2
BSS Network Audit

1 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 1
BSS Network Audit

Legal Notice

Intellectual Property Rights

All copyrights and intellectual property rights for Nokia Siemens Networks training documentation, product documentation and
slide presentation material, all of which are forthwith known as Nokia Siemens Networks training material, are the exclusive
property of Nokia Siemens Networks . Nokia Siemens Networks owns the rights to copying, modification, translation, adaptation
or derivatives including any improvements or developments. Nokia Siemens Networks has the sole right to copy, distribute,
amend, modify, develop, license, sublicense, sell, transfer and assign the Nokia Siemens Networks training material.

Individuals can use the Nokia Siemens Networks training material for their own personal self-development only, those same
individuals cannot subsequently pass on that same Intellectual Property to others without the prior written agreement of Nokia
Siemens Networks .

The Nokia Siemens Networks training material cannot be used outside of an agreed Nokia Siemens Networks training session
for development of groups without the prior written agreement of Nokia Siemens Networks.

2 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 2
BSS Network Audit

Module objectives

After completing this learning element, the participant will be able to:

Theory:

• Realize the difference between GPRS CSs and EGPRS MCSs

• Explain the air interface principles such as modulation and link adaptation
• Describe the EDAP functionality
• Explain how the Nokia Siemens Network Territory method works
• Know capacity relevant parameters in the BSS
• Explain how mobility is handled in GPRS networks
• Explain Network controlled Cell Reselection and Network Assisted Cell Reselection
• Depict the PCU functionality
• List PCU variants in the Nokia Siemens Network solution
• Describe the Gb interface main structure
• Know Gb enhancing features like Multipoint Gb or PCU pooling

3 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 3
BSS Network Audit

BSS - Content

Air interface - Modulation and Link Adaptation

• GPRS Coding Schemes (CS)
• EGPRS Modulation and Coding Schemes (MCS)
• GMSK and 8PSK
• EGPRS Link Adaptation and incremental Redundancy (IR)

(E)GPRS Resource Allocation

• Territory Method
• Cell selection and re-selection

• EDAP and PCU

• Gb

4 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 4
BSS Network Audit

GPRS Coding Schemes- Link Adaptation

GPRS provides four coding schemes: Coding Scheme (CS) 1 to 4.

• EDGE TRXs and PCU 2 are required for CS-3/4.
• PCU1 gives support for CS-1 and CS-2 only.
• Talk family only supports CS-1 and CS-2.
Link Adaptation (LA) allows the PCU to select the most suitable CS for one TBF.
In PCU1 the LA algorithm is based on detecting the occurred RLC block errors and
calculating the block error rate (BLER). The operator can define by parameters, whether a
TBF uses either a fixed coding scheme (CS-1 or 2) or Link Adaptation (LA) based on Block
Error Rate (BLER). The Link Adaptation (LA) algorithm selects the optimum channel coding
scheme (CS-1/CS-2) for a particular RLC connection to provide the highest throughput and
lowest delay available.

• A new LA algorithm is employed with PCU-2 based on Bit Error Probability values (see
EGPRS)

In GPRS RLC acknowledged mode RLC data blocks which are not correctly received have to
be retransmitted with the same Coding Scheme (CS).

5 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 5
BSS Network Audit

GPRS Coding Schemes

Coding Payload (bits) Data Rate

Scheme per RLC block (kbps)*

Data

Correction
Error
GPRS CS1 181 9.05 / 8
PCU1+2 CS2 268 13.4 / 12
GPRS CS3 312 15.6 / 14.4
PCU2 CS4 428 21.4 / 20

• CS1 & CS2 – Implemented in all BTS types without HW change More Data
=
• CS3 & CS4 – not for Talk family BTS Less Error
Correction

*first value includes the RLC header, the MAC header (excluding the USF), the spare bits and RLC information.
Second value only RLC information (no headers)

6 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 6
BSS Network Audit

GPRS Coding Schemes

CS-1 CS-2 CS-3

RLC/MAC Block Size: 181 268 312

MAC
Block Check Sequence: 40 16 16
USF BCS
Precoded USF: 3 6 6
rate 1/2 convolutional coding
Code Rate: 1/2 ~2/3 ~3/4

Number of bits: 456 588 676

puncturing
Punctured bits: 0 132 220

Data rate (kbps): 9.05 13.4 15.6

MAC
For CS 4 no
CS-4
USF BCS coding or
RLC/MAC Block Size: 428 puncturing
BCS Size: 16 is done
20 ms
except for
Precoded USF: 12
interleaving USF
456 bits Data rate (kbps): 21.4
57 57 57 57 57 57 57 57

7 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 7
BSS Network Audit

EGPRS Modulation and Coding Schemes

kbps
Simulation of
60 Frequency Hopping
MCS-1 Network EGPRS has nine Modulation and
MCS-2 Coding Schemes, MCS-1...9.
MCS-3 In general, a higher coding scheme has
50
MCS-4 higher coding rate, and consequently
MCS-5 higher peak throughput, but it also
MCS-6 tolerates less noise or interference.
40
MCS-7 The figure shows throughput vs. C/I of
MCS-8 EGPRS coding schemes in TU50 FH,
MCS-9 without incremental redundancy (IR).
30
The basic unit of transmission is one
radio block (= 4 bursts = 20 ms on
20 average), which contains one or in case
of MCS 7, 8 and 9 two RLC blocks.

10

0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 C/I

8 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 8
BSS Network Audit

EGPRS Modulation and Coding Schemes 1

Ref: 3GPP TS 43.064

RLC
blocks
Raw Data
Header per Data rate
Scheme Code rate Modulation within one
Code rate Radio kbps
Radio Block
Block
(20ms)

MCS-9 1.0 0.36 2 2x592 59.2

MCS-8 0.92 0.36 2 2x544 54.4

MCS-7 0.76 0.36 8PSK 2 2x448 44.8

592 29.6
MCS-6 0.49 1/3 1
48+544 27.2
MCS-5 0.37 1/3 1 448 22.4

MCS-4 1.0 0.53 1 352 17,6

296 14,8
MCS-3 0.85 0.53 1
GMSK 48+248 and 296 13,6
MCS-2 0.66 0.53 1 224 11,2

MCS-1 0.53 0.53 1 176 8,8

NOTE: The italic captions indicate the 6 octets (48) of padding when retransmitting an MCS-8 block with
MCS-3 or MCS-6. For MCS-3, the 6 octets of padding are sent every second block (see 3GPP TS 44.060).

9 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 9
BSS Network Audit

EGPRS Modulation and Coding Schemes 2

In wireless networks the quality of the connection can
8.8 kbps MCS-1 RLC/MAC block change from very good to very poor in short time
22 (radio block)
EGPRS has nine different Modulation and Coding
11.2 kbps MCS-2 Schemes (MCS-1 – MCS-9) in order to optimize the
28 performance in different radio conditions. All coding
schemes have different amount of robustness and error
14.8 kbps MCS-3 redundancy from
channel coding correction.
37
RLC data block,
• When user bit rate is low, robustness is high (e.g.
17.6 kbps MCS-4 number of bytes MCS-1)
44
• When user bit rate is high, robustness is low (e.g.
MCS-5 MCS-9)
22.4 kbps
56 Two modulations are used:
MCS-6 • GMSK (Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying) for MCS-1 –
29.6 kbps
74 MCS-4
• 8-PSK (8-Phase Shift Keying) for MCS-5 – MCS-9
44.8 kbps MCS-7
56 56 The MCS that offers the best performance in current radio
environment should be selected
54.4 kbps MCS-8 Automatic selection of most suitable MCS is called link
68 68 adaptation (LA). The selection is based on link quality
MCS-9
measurements
59.6 kbps
74 74

10 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 10
BSS Network Audit

GMSK & 8-PSK - Phase State Vectors

Envelope (amplitude)
GMSK

Time

8PSK (0,1,0)
Envelope (amplitude)
(0,0,0)
(0,1,1)
(0,0,1) (1,1,1) Time

(1,0,1) (1,1,0)
22,5° offset
(1,0,0)
to avoid zero crossing

11 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 11
BSS Network Audit

Phase state vector

Q0 • 8-PSK (Phase Shift Keying) has
Minimum Amplitude -15 dB been selected as the new
modulation added in EGPRS
• 3 bits per symbol
‚usefull‘ Amplitude 0 dB • 22.5° offset to avoid origin
crossing (called 3Π/8-8-PSK)
• Symbol rate and burst length
maximum Amplitude +4 dB (for MS) identical to those of GMSK
• Non-constant envelope ⇒ high
requirements for linearity of the
power amplifier
• Because of amplifier non-
linearities, a 2-4 dB power
I0
decrease back-off (BO) is
typically needed, NSN
guarantees a BO of 2 DB for
BTS

12 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 12
BSS Network Audit

Burst Structure

- Burst structure is similar with current GMSK burst, but term 'bit' is replaced by 'symbol‘
- One symbol has 3 bits when using 8-PSK
- Training sequence has lower envelope variations
- it is possible to use 8-PSK and GMSK on adjacent timeslots (not for MS!)
- In case of max output power only, back-off applied to 8-PSK (there is no DL power
control)

TSL0 TSL1 TSL2 TSL3 TSL4 TSL5 TSL6 TSL7

BCCH TCH TCH TCH TCH PDTCH PDTCH PDTCH
GMSK GMSK GMSK GMSK GMSK 8-PSK 8-PSK 8-PSK

P
(dBm)
)

t (us)

13 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 13
BSS Network Audit

8-PSK Modulation – Back-off Value

Since the amplitude is changing in 8-PSK the transmitter non-linearities can be seen in the
transmitted signal.
These non-linearities will cause e.g. errors in reception and bandwidth spreading.
In practice it is not possible to transmit 8-PSK signal with the same power as in GMSK due to
the signal must remain in the linear part of the power amplifier.

The back-off value is taken into account in link

Pout
budget separately for UL / DL and bands:
900/850, 1800/1900) Compression point
Too high initial MCS (8PSK) can lead to
unsuccessful TBF establishment, if the MS is
on cell border with low signal level (so the
back-off is taken into account) and / or low C/I Pin
Back Off for MS (4dB) is higher than for BTS Back Off= 4 dB
(2dB)
Peak to Average of about 3,2 dB

14 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 14
BSS Network Audit

EGPRS Data Treatment Principle in RF Layer

Adding redundancy

Puncturing of the
coded info

User data

"Additional info" that does not require extra protection

Header part, robust coding for secure transmission

15 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 15
BSS Network Audit

EGPRS Channel Coding (MCS-9)

FBI+E BCS tail
USF header
EGPRS channel coding is done separately
data 2
for data and header, as shown in the figure
1/3 convolutional coding for MCS-9 downlink.
Coding of data part:
mother code
• Data part includes user data, two
block coding puncturing information from RLC header, BCS
(block check sequence) and tail bits.
encoded protected
header P1 P2 P3
USF • Coded using 1/3 convolutional code.
• Punctured with a selectable
puncturing scheme (P1, P2 or P3).
4 TDMA
bursts = 20 ms
1st 2nd 3rd 4th • Two separate RLC blocks for MCS 7,
burst burst burst burst 8 and 9.
Header part:
• Includes RLC/MAC header
puncturing P1 P2 P3 information including information on
the coding of the data part (like used
puncturing puncturing scheme).
mother code • Convolutional coding + puncturing.
1/3 convolutional coding

data 1

FBI+E BCS tail

16 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 16
BSS Network Audit

EGPRS MCS Families

MCS-3 The MCSs are divided into different families A, B and C
37 octets 37 octets 37 octets 37 octets
Each family has a different basic unit of payload: 37 (and
Family A
34), 28 and 22 octets respectively.
MCS-6
Different code rates within a family are achieved by
MCS-9 transmitting a different number of payload units within one
MCS-3 Radio Block.
34+3 octets 34+3 octets
For families A and B, 1 or 2 or 4 payload units are
Family A transmitted, for family C, only 1 or 2 payload units are
padding MCS-6 transmitted
34 octets 34 octets 34 octets 34 octets When 4 payload units are transmitted (MCS 7, MSC-8 and
MCS-9), these are splited into two separate RLC blocks
MCS-8 (with separate sequence BSN numbers and BCS, (Block
Check Sequences)
MCS-2
• The blocks are interleaved over two bursts only, for
Family B 28 octets 28 octets 28 octets 28 octets MCS-8 and MCS-9.
MCS-5 • For MCS-7 the blocks are interleaved over four bursts
MCS-7

MCS-1

Family C 22 octets 22 octets

MCS-4

17 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 17
BSS Network Audit

EGPRS Link Adaptation

kbps Link Adaptation (LA)
Simulation of
60 Frequency Hopping The task of the LA algorithm is to select the
MCS-1 Network optimal MCS for each radio condition to
MCS-2 maximize RLC/MAC data rate, so the LA
MCS-3 algorithm is used to adapt to situations where
50
MCS-4 signal strength and or C/I level is low and
MCS-5 changing slowly with time. Ideal LA would follow
MCS-6 the envelope of the throughput of different
40 MCSs.
MCS-7
MCS-8 - The PCU selects the data block and
additionally selects the MCS depending on radio
MCS-9
30 link quality and amount of available dynamic
Abis channels
- LA is done independently for each UL and DL
TBF on RLC/MAC block level, but the LA
20 algorithm is same for uplink and downlink
- The MCS selection is not the same in case of
initial transmission and retransmission
10 - LA algorithm works differently for RLC
acknowledged mode and unacknowledged mode
- RLC control blocks are transmitted with MCS-1
0 coding
0 5 10 15 20 25 30

C/I
18 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 18
BSS Network Audit

EGPRS Incremental Redundancy

Data Incremental Redundancy (IR)
block
Transmitter IR is a combination of two techniques sometimes called
One MCS
ARQ type II:
P1 P2 P3 • Automatic Repeat reQuest (ARQ)
• Forward Error Correction (FEC)
P1 P2 P3 In the ARQ method the receiver detects the errors in a
1st re-transmission 2nd re-transmission
received RLC block and requests and receives a re-
1. transmission
upon reception upon reception transmission of the same RLC block from the transmitter.
failure failure
The FEC method adds redundant information to the re-
P1
transmitted information at the transmitter and the receiver
No data uses the information to correct errors caused by
Protection level 1 recovered disturbances in the radio channel
Receiver IR needs no information about link quality in order to
P1 P2
protect the transmitted data but can increase the
throughput due to automatic adaptation to varying
No data
Combination: Protection level x 2 recovered channel conditions and reduced sensitivity to link quality
measurements
P1 P2 P3 For each MCS there are 2 or 3 Puncturing Schemes (PS)
Stored Stored
defined

Combination: Protection level x 3

19 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 19
BSS Network Audit

EGPRS Link Adaptation & Incremental Redundancy

Link Adapatation is ‘slow’ process and is enabled to adapt to
• path loss
• shadowing

Incremental Redundancy is better suited to compensate fast fading

Incremental Redundancy works only for RLC acknowledged mode, the

retransmission process is based on IR in UL and DL.
• Support of IR for MS is mandatory
• Support of IR for BTS it is optional and implemented in all NSN BTS types
supporting EGPRS.

LA must take into account

• if IR combining is performed at the receiver
• the effect of finite IR memory (in case of full memory buffers it may be
necessary to switch to lower MCSs in order to allow the buffers especially in
MS to get empty.

20 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 20
BSS Network Audit

Modulation and Coding Schemes - MCS Selection

The PCU selects the used MCS. This selection can be divided in four classes:
• Initial MCS to be used when entering packet transfer mode (set by parameters)
• Modulation selection
• MCS selection for initial transmissions of each RLC block (Link Adaptation, LA)
• MCS to be used for re-transmissions (must be the same family, only for ACK mode )
Link Adaptation algorithm depends if RLC protocol works in acknowledged or unacknowledged mode. In
acknowledged mode, LA algorithm is designed to optimize channel throughput in different radio conditions. In
unacknowledged mode, the algorithm tries to keep the TBF below a specified Block Error Rate (BLER) limit.
The Link Adaptation (LA) algorithm for EGPRS is the same for PCU 1 and 2. It can be disabled by
parameter. After the start of the TBF LA starts to work based on Bit Error Probability (BEP) measurements
performed at the MS (downlink TBF) and the BTS (uplink TBF).
In DL case the MCS selection is based on EGPRS Channel Quality Report received in EGPRS PACKET
DOWNLINK ACK/NACK message sent from the MS to network using PACCH to indicate the status of the
downlink RLC data blocks received.
The MCS selection is based on using the BEP (Bit Error Probability) measurement data which contains the
current averaged BEP value as well as the variation of this value (CV-Coefficient of Variation).
In UL case the MCS selection is based on the respective BEP measurement values which are measured by
the BTS and given to PCU in the UL PCU frames.

21 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 21
BSS Network Audit

Modulation and Coding Schemes - MCS Selection

poor
Value ranges are the same for 8-PSK and GMSK!

MEAN_BEP Range of big variations

log10(actual BEP)

MEAN_BEP_0 > -0.60 CV_BEP_0 2.00 >CV_BEP >1.75

MEAN_BEP_1 -0.64 - -0.60
CV_BEP_1 1.75 >CV_BEP >1.50
MEAN_BEP_2 -0.68 - -0.64
MEAN_BEP_3 -0.72 - -0.68 CV_BEP_2 1.50 >CV_BEP >1.25
MEAN_BEP_4 -0.76 - -0.72 CV_BEP_3 1.25 >CV_BEP > 1.00
…..

…..
CV_BEP_4 1.00 > CV_BEP > 0.75
CV_BEP_5 0.75 > CV_BEP > 0.50
MEAN_BEP_25 -2.80 - -2.64
CV_BEP_6 0.50 > CV_BEP > 0.25
MEAN_BEP_26 -2.96 - -2.80
MEAN_BEP_27 -3.12 - -2.96 CV_BEP_7 0.25 > CV_BEP > 0.00

MEAN_BEP_28 -3.28 - -3.12

MEAN_BEP_29 -3.4 - -3.28 stable
MEAN_BEP_30 -3.60 - -3.44 BEP as well as CV_BEP values
are measured and reported
MEAN_BEP_31 < -3.60 by MS (DL) and BTS (UL) to PCU
More details 3GPP 46.008
good
22 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 22
BSS Network Audit

• Air interface - Modulation and Link Adaptation

• GPRS Coding Schemes (CS)
• EGPRS Modulation and Coding Schemes (MCS)
• GMSK and 8PSK
• EGPRS Link Adaptation and incremental Redundancy (IR)

• (E)GPRS Resource Allocation

• Territory Method
• Cell selection and re-selection

• EDAP and PCU

• Gb

23 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 23
BSS Network Audit

Territory Method - Principle

The Territory method is used to divide the resources (timeslots) between CS and PS
users. Timeslots within a cell are used for CS or PS users. The Territory border can
change dynamically based on CS/PS load and parameters increasing or reducing the
number of resources for (E)GPRS users.
The system is able to adapt to different load levels and traffic proportions, offering an
optimized performance under a variety of load conditions. The Territory is configured
by the system at the end of one TRX. The operator can chose if BCCH or non BCCH
TRX.

SD
TRX 1 BCCH TS TS TS TS TS TS It is the choice of
CCH the operator if
territory is
configured to the
BCCH TRX or on
TRX 2 TCH TRXs
TS TS TS TS TS TS TS TS

TS = Timeslot in CSW Territory

Territory border

= Signaling TS = Timeslot in (E)GPRS Territory

24 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 24
BSS Network Audit

Territory Method - Load examples

Case 1: TRX 1
- Many (E)GPRS users
- Low CS traffic TRX 2

Case 2: TRX 1
- High CS traffic
- (E)GPRS user have TRX 2
to take the ‘rest’ Dedicated capacity

Case 3:
TRX 1
- No (E)GPRS user
- Zero CS traffic
TRX 2 Default capacity

= CSW Territory = (E)GPRS Territory

25 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 25
BSS Network Audit

Territory Method – Parameters 1

The (E)GPRS territory can contain dedicated, default and additional capacity of course only on
TRXs where GPRS is enabled. GPRS support is prerequisite for EGPRS support.
• Dedicated capacity: Number of timeslots are allocated to (E)GPRS on a permanent basis.
They are always configured for (E)GPRS and cannot be used by the circuit switched traffic.
This ensures that the (E)GPRS capacity is always available in a cell. It is defined by parameter
(Dedicated GPRS Capacity, CDED). It can be equal to zero.
• Default capacity: It is the area that always is included in the instantaneous (E)GPRS territory,
provided that the current CS traffic permits this. The Dedicated capacity is part of the Default
capacity. It is defined by parameter (Default GPRS Capacity, CDEF, CDEF has to be bigger or
equal to CDED, minimum 1 percent).
• Additional (E)GPRS capacity: It means the extra time slots beyond the default capacity
which are assigned due to many (E)GPRS users. It can be restricted by parameter (MAX
GPRS Capacity, CMAX, CMAX has to be bigger or equal than CDEF).

TRX 1

TRX 2

Additional Capacity Dedicated Capacity

(only with high PS load) Default Capacity
26 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 26
BSS Network Audit

Territory setting parameters - example

The values of the territory parameters are given in percentage per BTS. Each TRX can be
disabled for EGPRS and GPRS traffic (GTRX = N).
Table below provides example how same parameter setting can result in different territory
sizes with different GTRX/TRX configurations:
Values are possible examples, not the default and not recommended settings

# of TRXs (GTRX=Y) 1 2 3 4
# of signaling RTSL (GTRX =Y) 1 2 2 3
CDED = 1% 1 RTSL 1 RTSL 1 RTSL 1 RTSL
CDEF = 30% 2 RTSL 4 RTSL 6 RTSL 8 RTSL
CMAX = 80% 5 RTSL 11 RTSL 17 RTSL 23 RTSL

Any setting 1…20% of CDEF with 1 TRX configuration (GTRX=1) will result in 1 TSL Default
territory.
20 % x 7 = 1,4 = 1 RTSL
1 % x 7 = 0.07 = 1 RTSL (every result bigger than 0 and below 2 is rounded to one)
0 % x 7 = 0 = 0 RTSL (This is the default value for CDED)

27 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 27
BSS Network Audit

Territory Method – Parameters 2

For Load considerations one has to consider that the system tries to keep the Timeslots at the
(E)GPRS Territory border (within the CS Territory) idle. How many timeslots depends on
- Parameters and amount of TRXs. (CSD and CSU parameter-see next picture)
- Whether an Territory upgrade or downgrade took place
Of course there will be no free timeslots inside the CS territory when the CS territory has taken
all available Timeslots!
Tip!: If mixed configurations of Dual Rate and Full Rates Timeslots are required it is
recommended to keep the Dual Rate Timeslots away from the territory border!!!

TRX 1

TRX 2

= Free TSL for CSW, part of CS territory

28 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 28
BSS Network Audit

Territory Method – Parameters 3

Example how to determine the Idle Timeslots: With default settings and 2 TRXs 1 Timeslot
after CS downgrade and 2 Timeslots after CS upgrade are kept free (as well by intra cell
handovers). So in the dimensioning, it can be assumed that on average there are 1.5 free
timeslots kept free (the same amount of upgrades as downgrades takes place).

TSL number after CS downgrade

TRX number 1 2 3 4 5
70 0 0 0 1 1
free TSL for CS downgrade (%)
95 1 1 1 2 2
(CSD)
99 1 1 2 2 3

TSL number after CS upgrade

Default
TRX number 1 2 3 4 5
1 0 1 1 1 2
free TSL for CS upgrade (sec) 4 1 2 2 3 4
(CSU) 7 1 2 3 4 5
10 2 3 4 5 6

29 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 29
BSS Network Audit

Territory Method – Dual carrier

Downlink Dual Carrier (DLDC) requires the territory to span at least 2TRXs. There is no
special requirement for deploying DLDC (PCU2 is required) but

- BTS level resources

- Abis resources
- Gb resources have to be dimensioned accordingly!

TRX 1

TRX 2

= CSW Territory = (E)GPRS Territory

30 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 30
BSS Network Audit

Extended Cell for GPRS/EDGE

S13.1

BCCH N-TRX
f1 f1 f1 f1 f1 f1 f1 f1 -Dynamic Territory
upgrades and downgrades
apply only for standard
BCCH/ Not TCH TCH TCH TCH TCH TCH
RACH/ i n use
cells.
SDCCH E-RACH E-TRX - In the case of extended
f1 f2 f2 f2 f2 f2 f2 f2 (up to 70 KM cell radius) or
super-extended (up to 105
KM cell radius) no dynamic
E-RACH SDCCH TCH TCH TCH TCH EGTCH EGTCH up- and down-grades of
(E)GPRS territories apply.
E-RACH S-TRX
- EGTCH (Extended
f1 f3 f3 f3 f3 f3 f3 f3 (E)GPRS Traffic Channel)
timeslots are not available
for CS and so similar to
E-RACH SDCCH TCH TCH TCH TCH EGTCH EGTCH
dedicated capacity

31 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 31
BSS Network Audit

Mobility for (E)GPRS

Cell selection and Reselection
In the GMM state READY the MS has to indicate cell changes towards the SGSN.
Unlike in GSM dedicated mode, there is no handover for (E)GPRS networks. Existing
idle mode criteria are used to select the best suitable cell. In case of cell change the
MS has to initiate a cell update to SGSN (the TBF in the old cell simply drops)
When in GSM the LA changes during a call the LA update is initiated by the MS when
the call ends. In (E)GPRS there is no handover and the MS has to do first the RA/LA
update, before the data transfer can be continued on LA/RA border.
In all cases (as well without RA border) there is a longer interruption time called ‘cell
outage’ in the data transfer. Most non-real time applications manage to recover.
For an MS in DTM mode the cell update happens after the handover.

SGSN-1

BSC-1

RA-1

Old cell New cell

32 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 32
BSS Network Audit

Cell Selection / Re-selection

The network may request measurement reports from the MS and control its cell re-
selection
Depending on the NC (Network Control) mode set by the network, the MS shall behave
as follows:
• NC0: Normal MS control; the MS shall perform autonomous cell re-selection
• NC1: MS control with measurement reports; the MS shall send measurement reports to
the network and shall perform autonomous cell re-selection
– NC1 is not supported
• NC2: Network control; the MS shall send measurement reports to the network with
Network Controlled Cell Reselection (NCCR). The feature is not applicable for DTM
capable devices in dedicated or DTM mode.

SGSN-1

BSC-1
PCU

With NC0 the MS decides

With NC2 the PCU tells to when to change and to
the MS when to change which cell to change
and to which cell to change
Old cell New cell
33 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 33
BSS Network Audit

Cell Selection / Re-selection NC0

Standard implementation with NC0: MS cell selection/re-selection is controlled by the

following criteria
-Path loss criterion (C1) or if defined:
-Cell reselection criteria (C2)
These criteria are used for the cell reselection during GMM ready in the same way as in
GMM standby state.

SGSN-1 MS decides about the serving cell

BSC-1

RA-1

Old cell New cell

34 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 34
BSS Network Audit

Cell Selection / Re-selection – NC2

NC2: Network control is deployed with Network Controlled Cell Reselection (NCCR).
The MS has to send measurement reports and the PCU will make the decision to
reselect a certain cell based on C31/C32 criteria.
• C31: Signal Strength threshold criterion
• C32: Cell ranking
NC2 is only apply in GMM (GPRS Mobility Management) Ready state. In GMM Standby
state, the MS will always use NC0 mode!

MeasurementReports
Measurement Reportswith
withNC2
NC2

TBF TBF Ready timer

Ready timer

RR Packet Transfer Mode RR Packet Idle Mode Time

35 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 35
BSS Network Audit

Cell Selection / Re-selection – C31/32

C31 Signal Strength threshold criterion and C32 Cell ranking criteria have been initially
designed to be broadcast on the Packet Broadcast Channel (PBCCH). With NCCR the PCU makes
use out of the independent set of cell (re)selection parameters internally, without PBCCH.
C31/C32 offers the same set of functions as C1 and C2 but independent parameters are now
possible. That means for MS in GMM Ready the cells can be bigger or smaller compared to Idle
mode cell sizes.
With C31/C32 it is additionally possible to define priorities for each neighbor cell, what enables to
prefer some cells not because of level, but because of priorities. Cell selection criteria are defined in
3GPP 45.008.
• MS is commanded with NCCR to select the cell with the highest C32 value from those having the
highest priority class and fulfilling the C31 criterion (if none fulfills C31, then only C32 is applied)
• The priority classes may correspond to different Hierarchical Cell Structures (HCS) layers

Usage of Priorities
900 Macro can lead to ping
900 Macro
pong behavior!
2nd priority 2nd priority and needs careful
planning
900 Micro 900 Micro
900 Micro 900 Micro
Highest
Priority Highest
Priority

1800 1800
1800 1800
36 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 36
BSS Network Audit

Cell Selection / Re-selection - NCCR (NC2)

NCCR (Network Controlled Cell Re-selection)

• Enables the network to order a cell re-selection instead of the autonomous selection
done by the mobile station based on the measurement reports.
• The PCU can command the MS to change cells and decides about the target cell
• Besides the C31 /C32 criteria NCCR can be based on the following criteria:
– Power budget (PBGT) pushes EGPRS capable MSs to EGPRS cells and non-
EGPRS capable MSs to non-EGPRS capable cells
– Quality control (QC) triggers NCCR when the quality of the serving cell
transmission drops even if the serving cell signal level is good or the throughput
gets low (in case of timeslot sharing for example).
– Cell attractiveness can be defined on neighbor basis depended on the capabilities
of each neighbor cell (e.g. if CS-3/CS-4 or EGPRS support is given there or not)

IS-NCCR (Inter System - Network Controlled Cell Re-selection)

• Service-based IS-NCCR selects 3G network according to SGSN Service UTRAN CCO
(Cell Change Order) BSSGP procedure even if the serving cell signal level is good.
• Coverage-based IS-NCCR selects 3G network as soon as it is available or when GSM
coverage ends, depending on operator choice.

37 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 37
BSS Network Audit

Cell Selection / Re-selection - NACC

NACC (Network Assisted Cell Change)

• The feature reduces service outage time for a NACC capable MS (optionally supported
by 3GPP Rel 4 or later capable MSs) during cell changes
• Improves both autonomous (NC0) and Network Controlled Cell Reselection
(NCCR) (NC2)
• Can be seen as prerequisite for RT PS traffic support
• NACC is applicable only for intra BSC cell reselections.

Measured example: (Cell Reselection Delays, One-phase access, Intra-RA, Intra-PCU)

3
Nokia 5140
2.5
Time (s)

2 Application Outage

1.5 Data Outage

30-50% drop in Cell Outage
1
outage times
0.5
0
NC0 NC0 + NACC

38 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 38
BSS Network Audit

• Air interface - Modulation and Link Adaptation

• GPRS Coding Schemes (CS)
• EGPRS Modulation and Coding Schemes (MCS)
• GMSK and 8PSK
• EGPRS Link Adaptation and incremental Redundancy (IR)

• (E)GPRS Resource Allocation

• Territory Method
• Cell selection and re-selection

• EDAP and PCU

• Gb

39 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 39
BSS Network Audit

Abis Basic Concepts – PCM frame (E1) BTS

Abis

0 MCB/LCB BSC
One 64 kbps (8 bits) channel in PCM frame is called 1
2
timeslot (TSL) 3
One 16 kbps (2bits) channel timeslot is called Sub-TSL 4
5
One PCM frame has 32 (E1) or 26 (T1) TSLs 6
7
8
9
10
One Radio timeslot corresponds to one 16 kbps 11
Sub-TSL and one TRX takes two TSLs from Abis 12
13
14
15
One TRX has dedicated TRXsig of 16, 32 or 64 16
kbps 17
18 TCH 0 TCH 1 TCH 2 TCH 3
19 TCH 4 TCH 5 TCH 6 TCH 7 TRX1
One BCF has dedicated BCFsig (16 or 64 kbps) 20
for O&M 21
22
23
24
Q1-management needed if TRS management 25 TRXsig
under BSC 26
27 BCFsig
28
29
MCB/LCB bits required if loop topology is used 30
31 Q1-management

40 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 40
BSS Network Audit

(E)GPRS Dynamic Abis Pool – EDAP Introduction

The resources for signaling and voice are fixed. 0

1
Dynamic Abis pool (DAP) for data 2
3
• Predefined size 1-12 PCM TSL per DAP (24 4 TCH 0 TCH 1 TCH 2 TCH 3
with FlexiEDGE BTS possible), Typically used 5 TCH 4 TCH 5 TCH 6 TCH 7 TRX1
6 TCH 0 TCH 1 TCH 2 TCH 3
range from 4 to 8 TSL. 7 TCH 4 TCH 5 TCH 6 TCH 7 TRX2
8 TCH 0 TCH 1 TCH 2 TCH 3
• DAP can be shared by several TRXs in the 9 TCH 4 TCH 5 TCH 6 TCH 7
TRX3
same BCF (and same E1/T1) 10
11
• Max 20 TRXs per DAP 12
13
• Max 1600 DAPs per BSC3i 2000 (100 active 14
15 EDAP EDAP EDAP EDAP
PCUs and 16 DAPs per PCU) 16 EDAP EDAP EDAP EDAP
17 EDAP EDAP EDAP EDAP
• DAP + TRXsig + TCHs have to be in same 18 EDAP EDAP EDAP EDAP EGPRS
PCM 19 EDAP EDAP EDAP EDAP
20 EDAP EDAP EDAP EDAP pool
• UL and DL EDAP is used independently 21 EDAP EDAP EDAP EDAP
22 EDAP EDAP EDAP EDAP
• DAP schedule rounds for each active Radio 23
24
Block (20 ms) 25 TRXsig1 TRXsig2
• Different users/RTSLs can use same EDAP 26 TRXsig3
27 BCFsig
Sub-TSL 28
29
30
31
41 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 41
BSS Network Audit

EDGE and GPRS – Master / Slave Channel Usage

Coding scheme Bit rate (kbps) Abis PCM allocation (fixed + pool/slave)
CS-1 8,0
GPRS CS-2 12,0
CS-3 14,4
CS-4 20,0 - Higher data rates don’t fit in 16
MCS-1 8,8 kbit/s channels
MCS-2 11,2 - GPRS CS-2 requires 2 subslots
when EDGE activated (TRX/BTS)
MCS-3 14,8
- 16, 32, 48, 64 or 80 kbit/s Abis
MCS-4 17,6 links per RTSL needed
MCS-5 22,4
EDGE
MCS-6 29,6
MCS-7 44,8
MCS-8 54,4
MCS-9 59,2
Retrans.

42 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 42
BSS Network Audit

Dynamic Abis Dimensioning - with EGPRS Data

Traffic
There is a fixed master sub-TSL in Abis for all Radio 0
1 TCH 0 TCH 1 TCH 2 TCH 3
TSL (normally used for 1 FR or 2 HR users) 2 TCH 4 TCH 5 TCH 6 TCH 7 TRX 1
• Slave TSL’s (X x16 k) in EDAP pool 3 TCH 0 TCH 1 TCH 2 TCH 3
TRX 2
4 TCH 4 TCH 5 TCH 6 TCH 7
• TRX and for OMU signaling fixed 5 TCH 0 TCH 1 TCH 2 TCH 3
TRX 3
• TSL 0 and 31 typically used for signaling 6
7
TCH 4
TCH 0
TCH 5
TCH 1
TCH 6
TCH 2
TCH 7
TCH 3
TRX 4
8 TCH 4 TCH 5 TCH 6 TCH 7
9 TCH 0 TCH 1 TCH 2 TCH 3
EDAP pool dimensioning considerations: 10 TCH 4 TCH 5 TCH 6 TCH 7
TRX 5
11 TCH 0 TCH 1 TCH 2 TCH 3
TRX 6
12 TCH 4 TCH 5 TCH 6 TCH 7
• Planned throughput in radio interface 13 TRXsig 1 TRXsig 2
¾ RTSL territory size 14 TRXsig 3 TRXsig 4
15 TRXsig 5 TRXsig 6
¾ MS multiclasses 16 BCFsig
• Number of TRXs/BTSs connected to DAP 17
18
• Total number of PCU Abis Sub-TSLs 19 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
• Gb link size 20 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
21 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
• GPRS/EDGE traffic ratio 22 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
23 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
Example shows one MCS 8 or 9 24 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EGPRS DAP
25 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
user on TRX 6 TCH 7, 26 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
27 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
which will take the Master 28 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
29 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
plus 4 subslots from pool for 20 ms 30 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1 EDAP1
31 signalling

43 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 43
BSS Network Audit

Packet Control Unit (PCU) - Introduction

The PCU is the BSC plug-in unit that controls the (E)GPRS radio resources, receives and transmits PCU
frames to the BTSs and Frame Relay (or IP packets) to the SGSN
It handles both the Gb interface and RLC/MAC protocols in the BSS and acts as the key unit in the
following procedures:
• (E)GPRS radio resource allocation and management
• (E)GPRS radio connection establishment and management
• Data transfer
• (Modulation and) Coding scheme selection
• PCU statistics
The first generation PCUs (PCU or PCU1) are optimized to meet (E)GPRS requirements, i.e. non real
time solutions (QoS classes "Background" and "Interactive“). EGPRS, NCCR, NACC are supported by
both PCUs.
The second generation PCU (PCU2) is a high capacity embedded plug-in unit that provides additional
(E)GPRS processing power and extended functionality from BSS11.5 onwards. Second Generation
PCUs have a new architecture.

There are 3 PCU2 plug-in unit variants for the different NSN GSM/EDGE BSC variants:
• PCU2-U: BSCi and BSC2i
• PCU2-D: BSC3i 660, BSC3i 1000 and BSC3i 2000
• PCU2-E for BSC3i versions including the Flexi BSC

44 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 44
BSS Network Audit

PCU and BSC

Each BCSU (Base Control Signalling Unit) can be equipped with
• 1-2 PCU for BSCi, BSC2i and BSC3i 660*
• 1-5 PCU for BSC3i 1000/2000* and Flexi BSC
BSC plug-in units according to the functionality and packet switched traffic handling capacity
• Mixed configurations with PCU1s are supported** -> flexibility to add PCU2s according to
need
Following Application SW (ASW) features require PCU2 as a mandatory HW requirement:
• CS 3 and 4 support
• Dual Transfer Mode (DTM)
• Extended Dynamic Allocation (EDA)
• High Multislot Classes (HMC)
• Multipoint Gb Interface
• Packet Control Unit (PCU2) Pooling
• Downlink Dual Carrier
• Inter System Network Controlled Cell Reselection (IS-NCCR)
Furthermore PCU 2 has other benefits, for example USF granularity 4, better performance,
better statistics,…..

* Restrictions apply for the PCU-2E -see next pages

45 © Nokia Siemens Networks ** Restrictions apply, not all mixes are possible.
RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 45
BSS Network Audit

Packet Control Unit (PCU) - Variants and S14

Connectivity Limits
PCU types and capacity limits
The relations between PCU and BSC types as well as the connectivity limits of BTSs, TRXs,
TSLs, Abis and Gb TSLs are shown in the table:
PCU type BSCi type #logical PCU #Abis/BTS/TRX/RTSL/Gb CPU/memory
per PIU per logical PCU

PCU BSCi, BSC2i 1 256 / 064 / 128 / 128 / 32* 166MHz / 128MB

PCU-S BSCi, BSC2i 1 256 / 064 / 128 / 128 / 32* 200MHz / 128MB

PCU-T BSCi, BSC2i 1 256 / 064 / 128 / 256 / 32* 300MHz / 256MB

PCU-B BSC3i 2 256 / 064 / 128 / 256 / 32* 300MHz / 256MB

PCU2-U BSC2i 1 256 / 128 / 256 / 256 / 32* 450MHz / 256MB

PCU2-D BSC3i 2 256 / 128 / 256 / 256 / 32* 450MHz / 256MB

PCU2-E** BSC3i 1 1024 / 384 / 1024 / 1024 / 128* 1.33GHz / 1GB

* Maximum capacity of one FR link is 31 PCM TSL (31 x 64 kbps) in case of Gb over IP value gives
the maximum processing capacity of one logical PCU (example 32 means 32 x 64kbps = 2048 kbps)
** Number of PCU2-E per BCSU and capacity depends on the BSC version (BSC3i 660, 1000/2000
or 3000 the Flexi BSC). The indicated values are only valid for the Flexi BSC-see next page

46 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 46
BSS Network Audit

Configuration of PCU2-E S14

• PCU2-E can be installed in any BSC3i but certain additional limitations exist

BSC3i type max #PCU2-E #Abis channels #active BCSU per BSC / Abis bw controllable
per BCSU per PCU2-E #logical PCU per BSC (Abis bw in max conf.)

BSC3i 660 1 (not 2) 512 (not 1024) 6/6 ~ 49 Mbps (~ 98 Mbps)

BSC3i 1000 3 (not 5) 512 (not 1024) 5 / 15 ~ 122 Mbps (~204 Mbps)

BSC3i 2000 3 (not 5) 512 (not 1024) 10 / 30 ~ 245 Mbps (~ 409 Mbps)

BSC3i 3000 5 1024 6 / 30 ~ 491 Mbps (~491 Mbps)

/ Flexi BSC

• PCU2-E can be installed neither in BSCi nor in BSC2i

• there are 2 constraints that avoids reaching max PCU2-E capacity beyond BSC3i 3000
– all PCU slots in BCSU can not host PCU2-E due to limitations of power supply and cooling systems
– 1024 Abis channels can not be reached due to connectivity and switching capacity limitations
• PCU2-E in BSC3i 660/1000/2000
– usage of PCU2-E beyond BSC3i 3000 results in PS data capacity reduction compared with PCU2-D
(values in brackets)
– nevertheless for configurations with smaller volume of PS data traffic it is recommended to use PCU2-
E (instead of prior PCU versions) due to expected cost savings

47 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 47
BSS Network Audit

PCU-Pooling feature S13

PCU Pool = PSE PCU2 Pooling feature introduces the

Packet Service Entity (PSE) concept.
PCU PCU PCU PSE is a logical concept, which covers
several PCU PIUs in BSC. All PCUs in
one PSE are serving the same NSE
(Network Service Entitiy or PCU)
DAP/cell DAPs and Segments are attached to
DAP/cell DAP/cell PSE instead of PCU! The distribution of
DAP/cell
the DAPs and Cells towards the
individual PCUs is done by the BSC
DAP/cell DAP/cell DAP/cell itself - not by the planners.
With Packet Control Unit (PCU2)
DAP/cell DAP/cell DAP/cell Pooling, the minimum size of a PSE is
two PCUs; the maximum is 50 PCUs.
The feature can only be used with
PCU2s and when Gb over IP is used.

DAP/cell Refers to Subslots per pool (DAP resources and Territory, all BTS level resources)

48 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 48
BSS Network Audit

• Air interface - Modulation and Link Adaptation

• GPRS Coding Schemes (CS)
• EGPRS Modulation and Coding Schemes (MCS)
• GMSK and 8PSK
• EGPRS Link Adaptation and incremental Redundancy (IR)

• (E)GPRS Resource Allocation

• Territory Method
• Cell selection and re-selection

• EDAP and PCU

• Gb

49 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 49
BSS Network Audit

Gb Interface - Introduction
The Gb interface is the interface between the BSS and the Serving GPRS Support Node
(SGSN)
It allows the exchange of signaling information and user data between one
• Packet Control Unit (PCU) or PSE (Packet Service Entity) at the BSS side and one
• Packet Processing Unit (PAPU) at the SGSN side
Each PCU/PSE has its own separate Gb interface to the SGSN. Many users share the same
physical resource. Resources are given to a user upon activity (sending/receiving)
Signaling and user data are sent in the same transmission plane and no dedicated physical
resources are required to be allocated for signaling purposes (no SS7)
Access rates per user may vary without restriction from zero data to the maximum possible line
rate.
One Gb interface can be implemented using the Frame Relay or IP.
Gb

BSC SGSN

PCU / PAPU
PSE

BSS PS Core
50 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 50
BSS Network Audit

Gb Interface - Protocols

The protocol stack consists of three layers

• Physical layer (L1)
• Network Service (NS) layer
• Base Station System GPRS Protocol (BSSGP)
Network Service (NS) layer is divided into sub-network service (Frame Relay or IP network)
and network service control

Um Gb Gn Gi

APP APP
TCP/UDP USER TCP/UDP
IP Relay PAYLOAD
IP
SNDCP SNDCP GTP GTP L2
LLC LLC UDP UDP L1
RLC RLC BSSGP BSSGP IP IP
MAC MAC NS NS L2 L2
GSM RF GSM RF L1bis L1bis L1 L1

MS BSS SGSN GGSN FIXED HOST

51 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 51
BSS Network Audit

Gb Interface - FR

The Frame Relay (FR) link can configured as:

• Point-to-point (PCU–SGSN)
• Frame relay network between the BSC and SGSN

The Gb based on FR can be implemented in different ways:

• Gb over A, Voice and data on one PCM MSC

BSC
– Voice and data separated in the transcoder or
TC
– Voice and data separated in MSC

• Dedicated 2 Mbit/s E1 PCM links Gb Gb

SGSN
– Each PCM can carry several Gbs

52 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 52
BSS Network Audit

Gb Interface - IP
Internet Protocol (IP) as transmission network is besides FR an alternative way to configure the
sub-network of the Gb interface. IP meets the increased demand for transmission cost
efficiency :
• The sub-network is IP-based and the physical layer can be Ethernet or WAN (Wide Area
Network)
• The introduction of IP makes it possible to build an efficient transport network for the IP
based multimedia services of the future
• Both, IPv6 and IPv4 protocol versions are supported
• IP transport can be used in parallel with FR under the same BSC and BCSU
• Within one BCSU, separate PCUs can use different transmission media (but one PCU only
IP or FR)
• Gb over IP requires support from both BSC and SGSN.

IP
BTS
BSC SGSN

FR
BTS

Gb
53 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 53
BSS Network Audit

Gb Interface - IP
Gb configuration common for Gb over IP or FR (values are examples)
• The NSEI (Network Service Element Identifier) must be identical and unique at BSS and SGSN
side.
• One PCU / PSE is equivalent to one NSE (Network Service Entity)*
• One NSE is connected with one ore more permanent virtual connections called NS-VC (Network
Service Virtual Connection)
• A cell can be identified by one BVCI (BSSGP Virtual Connection Identifier) which has an end-to-
end significance. One NS-VCI supports several BVCs
• BVCI = 0 is reserved for signalling purposes inside one NSE.
•Gb configuration only for Gb over IP (values are examples):
• Each PAPU and PCU/PSE has its own IP address..
• When the NS-VC is created the remote IP address and local and remote UDP port numbers
should be specified.
• The BC (Bearer Channel), DLCI (Data Link Connection Identifier) and CIR (committed
Information Rate) parameter are NOT present in the Gb over IP

In the BSC, the capacity of one PCU remains the same, regardless of whether IP or FR is used
as the transport technology.
*This statement is not true anymore with multipoint Gb
54 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 54
BSS Network Audit

Gb over IP
BSS1
PCU1
SGSN
NSEI_1
PAPU1 UDP33301 BVCI_0
NS-VCI_7
NSEI_1
NS-VCI_7 UDP33302 BVCI_3
BVCI_0 UDP50001 NS-VCI_2

NS-VCI_2 IP:10.2.77.82 LA
BVCI_3 UDP50002
RA 1
PCU2
NSEI_2 BTS_3
NSEI_2 NS-VCI_5
NS-VCI_5 UDP33303
UDP50003 BVCI_0 BTS_6
BVCI_0
NS-VCI_8 UDP33304
UDP50004 NS-VCI_8 BVCI_6
BVCI_6
IP NS-VCI_3
UDP33305 RA 2
UDP50005 NS-VCI_3 BTS_8
IP:10.2.77.83
Network BTS_2
IP:10.2.10.10
PCU3
PAPU2 NSEI_3
NSEI_3 NS-VCI_4 UDP33306
BVCI_8
NS-VCI_4
UDP50006
BVCI_8
NS-VCI_1 UDP33307
BVCI_22
UDP50007 NS-VCI_1
BVCI_0 UDP33308
NS-VCI_11 BVCI_0
NS-VCI_11
BVCI_22 UDP50008

IP:10.2.77.84
IP:10.2.10.11
BSSGP Data
NS Signalling
UDP Data & Signalling
55 © Nokia Siemens Networks IP
RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 55
BSS Network Audit

Gb over IP physical implementation

When Gb over IP is used, the data from all PCUs or PSEs and the data from the
elements that use IP traffic in other BSCs can be combined with switches or routers into
one or two trunk lines.
The theoretical maximum Gb traffic is 2Mbps (8Mbps for PCU2_E) x the number of
logical PCUs.
The minimum practical WAN (Wide Area Network) capacity for Gb is 2 x E1/T1 to
support redundancy. It is rare to have peak PS traffic on all PCUs at the same time and
thus the practical estimate for required WAN capacity for Gb traffic is 10% to 40% of the
theoretical maximum, however, at least the 2 x E1/T1.
In case if the WAN carries besides Gb other IP traffic, this has to be considered.

WAN with
BSC Minimum 2 E1
PCU / PSE 1
IP
PCU / PSE 2
Network
PCU / PSE …

56 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 56
BSS Network Audit
Multipoint Gb S13
With the multipoint Gb functionality a PCU or PSE can be connected to several
SGSNs. This provides the system with enhanced resilience and the possibility of
equalising the traffic load of the different SGSNs. Different users in the same cell can be
connected to different SGSNs, according to the SGSN load conditions. The feature is
only applicable for Gb over IP.

Area 1 PCU Area 3 Area 5 PCU PCU Area 7

PCU

Area 2 PCU Area 4 Area 6 PCU Area 8

PCU PCU

SGSN pool SGSN 2

SGSN 1

57 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 57
BSS Network Audit
Multipoint Gb
With multipoint Gb several SGSNs (PAPUs) are connected to one PCU/PSE.
- One PCU/PSE still serves its cells (one MS in a certain cell will be served by one
PCU/PSE).
- With 2 SGSN on average 50 % of the traffic of one PCU/PSE is handled by SGSN 1,
the other SGSN 2 handles the rest.
- If resiliency is target (remaining Gb and SGSN(S) should be enabled to handle all traffic
in case of the failure of one SGSN). This should be considered in the dimensioning
process.
- Multipoint Gb requires Gb over IP
- Amount of NSEs per PCU is restricted to 8 (maximum 8 SGSN can be connected)

Gbxxx ????
Area 2 PCU/PSE Gb3 ????
SGSN 3
Gb1 Gb2

SGSN pool SGSN 2

SGSN 1

58 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 58
BSS Network Audit
Gb overhead
In dependency of the used transport the Gb protocols require some overhead. The
overhead depends on the packet size. Unless otherwise specified average packet size is
assumed to be 512 bytes, including the user data IP header.
(Values assume no compression of the SNDCP protocol)

Configuration Layers Min Max User data Min % Max % Avg %

headers headers (Bytes)
(bytes) (bytes)

Frame Relay SNDCP+LLC+BSSGP 3+6+12+4 4+40+63 512 6.0% 22.8% 14.4%

Rel'4+NS+FR +6 +4+6

Gb over IPV4 SNDC +LLC +BSSGP 3+6+12+4 4+40+63 512 10.4% 27.1% 18.8%
Rel'4+NS +UDP+IP +8+20 +4+8+20

Gb over IPV6 SNDC +LLC +BSSGP 3+6+12+4 4+40+63 512 14.3% 31.1% 22.7
Rel'4+NS +UDP+IP +8+40 +4+8+40

59 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 59
BSS Network Audit

SGSN capacity

The SGSN capacity is very much dependant of the used Software and Hardware version.
Additionally the packet processing capacity depends on various factors, such as the packet
length, ciphering, use of data compression, and the selected LLC mode. Therefore the actual
SGSN data rate may vary depending on the factors mentioned above. A more detailed analyses
is part of the PS core-network dimensioning process!

Example of SGSN limits (SG5):

• 1024 PCUs can be connected to SGSN (with 16 PAPU)

• 64 PCUs can be connected to one PAPU
• 3072 Gb links can be connected to SGSN (with 16 PAPU)
• 192 Gb links can be connected to PAPU
• 120 E1s can be connected to SGSN (with 16 PAPU)

60 © Nokia Siemens Networks RN20022EN14GLN1

RN20022EN14GLN1 60