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This paper examines challenges and requirements for monitoring LTE networks.
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Tekelec has more than 20 office worldwide serving customers in more than 100 countries. Addresses, phone and fax numbers are listed on the Tekelec website at www.tekelec.com/offices. This document is for informational purposes only, and Tekelec reserves the right to change any aspect of the products, features or functionality described in this document without notice. Please contact Tekelec for additional information and updates. solutions and examples are provided for illustration only. Actual implementation of these solutions may vary based on individual needs and circumstances. 2010 Tekelec. All rights reserved. The EAgLE and Tekelec logos are registered trademarks of Tekelec. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. TkLC-WP-027-nA-01-2010
Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................4 Whats Driving the growth? ........................................................................4 The Downside of success ............................................................................6 Evolving 3g networks .................................................................................6 What is LTE? ...............................................................................................7 Evolved Terrestrial Radio Access network (E-UTRAn) ...................................7 Multiple-Input Multiple-output (MIMo) ......................................................8 Evolved Packet Core (EPC)...........................................................................8 new LTE Interfaces ......................................................................................10 Implementing LTE and High-Bandwidth Applications: The Challenges..........11 LTE Monitoring system Requirements ..........................................................13 About Tekelecs Performance Intellgence Center..........................................16 summary ....................................................................................................17 About Tekelec .............................................................................................17 Appendix: Acronyms Used in This Document ..............................................18
Introduction
Mobile data traffic is skyrocketing, fueled by the dramatic uptake of advanced applications like e-mail, Web browsing, video, multimedia messaging and content downloads. A look at industry statistics tells the story. There were 61.9 million mobile broadband subscribers in the Us in 2008 a 70 percent increase over 2007 (Informa Telecoms and Media). Latin America has seen international Internet traffic to and from the region grow by 120 percent more than twice the global average (JCn network, 4/2009). Central and Eastern European operators will see the proportion of revenue generated by data services increase by more than half from 19.4 percent in 2008 to 30.4 percent by 2013 (Informa). And, there is no slowdown in sight. Informa predicts a staggering growth rate in mobile data traffic of 1,000 percent between 2007 and 2012.
Informa predicts a staggering growth rate in mobile data traffic of 1,000 percent between 2007 and 2012.
increases. Unfettered from complex billing and worries about tracking how many bytes they have consumed, subscribers can freely roam the Internet or download music and videos from their handsets.
Smarter Devices:
A new wave of devices iPhones, BlackBerries, Android (google) phones, netbooks, 3g UsB dongles and 3.5g data cards are redefining how users communicate and access the mobile Internet. By 2011, mobile Internet users are expected to outnumber fixed Internet subscribers (Infonetics, 2008). The digital measurement company, Com score, says that from January 2008 to January 2009, consumers use of mobile devices for accessing news and information from the Internet more than doubled. smartphones, and in particular the iPhone, have revolutionized mobile telecommunications by giving users a single device for communication and entertainment. These all-in-one voice and data portals are one of the fastest growing segments in the device market, and their sales are expected to eventually overtake that of personal computers. According to ABI Research, more than 171 million smartphones were shipped in 2008, and the devices will represent 31 percent of the global handset market by 2012. The new generation of mobile devices is driving a surge in data traffic. one highend phone like the iPhone or BlackBerry produces more data traffic than 30 basicfeature mobile phones, and a laptop air card can generate more data traffic than 450 basic-feature mobile phones (Mobile Marketer, 2/2009). orange Uk reported that mobile data users downloaded 386,000 gigabytes (gB) in 2008. The carrier saw data consumption by dongles surge by 4,125 percent during that same period, and mobile data usage via handsets increased by 108 percent.
By 2011, mobile Internet users are expected to outnumber fixed Internet subscribers (Infonetics, 2008).
year, orange Uk reported that an average of 380,988 full tracks were downloaded each month from the orange Music store; mobile video grew 38 percent quarter over quarter with a total of 2.33 million videos downloaded between December 2008 and February 2009.
Pyramid Research anticipates the number of LTE subscriptions worldwide will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAgR) of 404 percent from 2010 to 2014 and reach 136 million by the end of 2014.
Voice Dominant
Traffic
Time
Voice Dominated
Data Dominated
Time
Figure 1. Traffic and Revenue Challenge (Source: UMTS Forum MBB LTE White Paper, February-2009)
Evolving 3G Networks
To meet this challenge, global operators are looking for an upgrade path for their current universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTs) 3g networks one that will enable the delivery of more bandwidth and services at a lower cost. Recent deployment figures indicate that many operators are choosing long term evolution (LTE) as their course for network evolution. According to a gsA report in April 2009, 31 network operators have now committed to deploy 3gPP LTE systems. Pyramid Research anticipates the number of LTE subscriptions worldwide will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAgR) of 404 percent from 2010 to 2014 and reach 136 million by the end of 2014.
What is LTE?
LTE, defined by the 3rd generation Partnership Project (3gPP) in Release 8 standards, is an evolution of UMTs mobile technology. It is designed to increase bandwidth, lower network operation costs and improve network performance for time-sensitive services such as mobile TV, web browsing, IP voice, and video (Figure 2).
Cost/MB
Peak Throughput
Latency
50% >>50%
Fa or ct of
10
-3 2
3G
3.5G
LTE
3.5G
LTE
3.5G
LTE
LTE introduces a new radio access technology evolved terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAn) and a flat, Internet protocol (IP)-based architecture evolved packet core (EPC). The following sections provide a technical perspective on LTE networks.
2008
HSPA DL: 14.4 Mbps UL: 5.76 Mbps In 5 MHz
2009
Rel 7 HSPA+ DL: 28 Mbps UL: 11.5 Mbps In 5 MHz
2010
Rel 8 HSPA+ DL: 42 Mbps UL: 11.5 Mbps In 5 MHz LTE DL: 326 Mbps UL: 86 Mbps In 20 MHz
2011
2012
2013
HSPA
LTE (Rel 9)
LTE
The E-UTRAn contains a single network element, the evolved node B (enode B). Reducing the number of nodes involved in a connection improves scalability, performance, and cost efficiency. The enode B handles the functions performed by the node B and radio network controller (RnC) in UMTs networks, including encryption and header compression for the user plane.
Performs bearer management control functions to set up and deactivate the bearer path used by the UE; Manages mobility states to support roaming, tracking and paging; Provides the control plane function to enable seamless mobility between LTE and 2g/3g access networks; and, supports lawful signaling interception. Serving Gateway (SGW): The sgW acts as the termination point between the radio access network (E-UTRAn) and the core network. Forwards and routes data packets to and from enode B and the packet data network gateway; Performs accounting and monitoring of user data; serves as a local mobility anchor point for inter-enode B handovers and roaming between two 3gPP networks; and, Replicates user traffic in the case of lawful interception. Packet Data Network Gateway (PDN-GW): The PDn-gW serves as the point of entry and exit for UE data traffic. serves as the interface between the LTE network and packet data networks such as the Internet or session initiation protocol (sIP)-based Internet protocol multimedia subsystem (IMs) fixed and mobile networks; Performs policy enforcement by applying operator-defined rules for resource allocation and usage; Manages allocation of IP addresses; supports packet filtering for each user; Provides charging support; and, Acts as the mobility anchor between 3gPP and non-3gPP technology access systems. Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF): Allows/rejects media requests; Creates and updates packet data protocol (PDP) context; Controls resource allocation; and, Provides charging rules based on service data flow to the PDn-gW for flow-based charging.
S6a (Diameter)
S1-MME
MME
PCRF
Gx Rx
Control Plane
S11
User/Data Plane
eNodeB
X2
eNodeB
X2
S1-U
Serving Gateway
S5
PDN Gateway
SGi
PDN/Internet
eNodeB
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will eventually move to all-IP networks like LTE, the reality is that multi-technology, hybrid networks will coexist well into the foreseeable future.
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The shift from delivering low-bandwidth voice services to advanced data applications dramatically heightens the complexity of network management. The task of determining which subscribers are using the network and what services they are accessing is infinitely more complicated than in the circuit-switched world. IP customers have many more device choices with which they can initiate a session and a plethora of service options. Creating a seamless, multimedia experience requires the interworking of a staggering array of personal devices, access technologies and network resources. With LTE, operators have to change their approach when it comes to service assurance and Qos. They must monitor and manage the end-to-end network, a host of applications and all of the associated resources. That approach requires new metrics and collection methods.
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Real-time Troubleshooting:
Troubleshooting in real time is essential to supervising transactions between domains and monitoring protocols as they traverse and convert across gateways. It enables operators to test and assure interoperability as new services and network elements are deployed. A real-time system provides the ability to identify failures between gateways, trace registrations in the IP domain and track authentication. solutions with real-time tracing capability enable operators to determine why subscribers cannot access e-mail, identify the cause of download failures, and isolate problems with traditional intelligent network (In) services like calling name and number portability.
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before customer complaints arise and revenue is lost. They can trace transactions, verify service delivery and identify the source of failed transactions. Real-time statistics for each subscriber are critical to understanding service efficiency and the customer experience. This service usage data also permits providers to identify the most popular services, enabling the creation of new, targeted marketing programs that increase revenue.
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Feature
single-system solution
Benefits
Holistic view of the customer experience and Qos Consistently uniform data, regardless of the network element or vendor network-wide, control-plane and user-plane data and accurate performance indicators network-wide view of control-plane and user-plane messages, corresponding to a subscriber call or session supervises transactions between domains and monitors protocols as they traverse and convert across gateways Proactively detects any network performance problem Detects service degradation before it affects the customer Data critical to understanding subscriber QoE Tracks service availability, integrity and retainability to maintain customer satisfaction Critical usage data with which providers can identify the most popular services and create new, targeted marketing programs that increase revenue Allows operators to customize network performance and QoE indicators to match their unique network and services requirements Captures 100 percent of the control-plane traffic and provides configurable options for collecting user-plane data Enables operators to choose the type and quantity of userplane data they collect so they can focus on higher-value traffic and scale their monitoring system incrementally
Configurable, signaling-Based kPIs and QoE kPIs Related to IP-Based services Intelligent Data Management (IDM)
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operations, planning, etc.) within the service provider. PIC includes a comprehensive array of performance management and kPI-based service management capabilities that provide reliable real-time or historical information based on network, service and application traffic. PIC can be deployed with probes or without probes when integrated with Tekelecs industry-leading EAgLE signaling platform providing operators with significant cost savings, more efficient operations and a reduced footprint. Initially developed to support the monitoring of ss7-based protocols, PIC has evolved into a multi-protocol, multi-technology monitoring solution, with current and planned support for VoIP, IMs, IPTV, quadruple play, LTE and WiMAX networks and services. PIC has already been deployed by more than 175 operators to support at least one network type; in many cases it is being used to monitor two or three different networks for a single carrier.
Summary
As operators deploy LTE networks, monitoring and performance management will have a direct impact on competitiveness and profitability. network-wide visibility is essential to protect revenues and ensure application interaction, service delivery and quality of experience. A real-time network view enables operators to understand and track performance and subscriber behavior. The ability to trace a single transaction, call or session end-to-end across different domains is fundamental to understanding and troubleshooting the interaction of network elements. As data traffic increases, operators need the capability to choose the type and quantity of data they collect so they can scale their monitoring systems and data collection incrementally. Legacy monitoring systems are not designed with the flexibility and scalability to provide a complete network view with the data, reports and alarms required to proactively manage multi-technology, multi-protocol networks. LTE networks require a configurable, network-wide monitoring solution that can provide a holistic view of the entire network one that supports both existing as well emerging technologies and protocols.
About Tekelec
Tekelec enables billions of people and devices to talk, text and access the Web. our portfolio delivers a unique layer of intelligence allowing service providers to both manage and monetize the exponential growth in data traffic and applications. Tekelec has more than 25 offices around the world serving customers in more than 100 countries. For more information, please visit www.tekelec.com.
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E-UTRAn Evolved Terrestrial Radio Access network FTP gB gPRs HsDPA HsPA HsUPA Hss IDM IMs IP IPDR kPI LTE MBPs MHZ MIMo MME MMs oFDM PCRF File Transfer Protocol gigabytes general Packet Radio service High-speed Downlink Packet Access High-speed Packet Access High-speed Uplink Packet Access Home subscriber server Intelligent Data Management Internet Protocol Multimedia subsystem Internet Protocol IP Detail Record key Performance Indicator Long Term Evolution Megabits Per second Megahertz Multiple-Input Multiple-output Mobility Management Entity Multimedia Messaging service orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing Policy and Charging Rules Function
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P-CsCF PDn PDn-gW PDP PIC QoE Qos RADIUs RAn RnC sgW sIgTRAn sIP sLA sMPP sMs ss7 TDM TDR UE UMTs VoIP
Proxy Call session Control Function Packet Data network Packet Data network gateway Packet Data Protocol Performance Intelligence Center Quality of Experience Quality of service Remote Authentication Dial In User service Radio Access network Radio network Controller serving gateway ss7 over IP session Initiation Protocol service Level Agreement short Message Peer-to-Peer short Message service signaling system 7 Time Division Multiplexing Transaction Detail Record User Equipment Universal Mobile Telecommunications system Voice over IP
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