GSM

ARCHITECTURE

GSM Architecture

Objectiv
Upon
es completion of this module the student should be able

to:

s Name the three subsystems of the GSM

s List diferent network elements (generic architecture) and
name at least one task per element
s Name diferences between the generic GSM network
architecture and the
Nokia implementation.
s Name advantages of the DX 200 platform's modularity and
distributed processing
s List diferent types of Nokia BTSs

Mobile subscriber

s fihere is the
subscriber
s fiho is the subscriber
s fihat does the
subscriber want
Information
about
the
subscribe
r

GSM PLMN Organisation

M
S

Network Switching
Subsystem
Switching
Mobility Management
Connection
Management
Charging

Ai
r

BS
S

NS
S

Base tation ubsystem

Radio Resource Management
Radio Link Management

NM
S

O&
M
etwork

anagement
ystem
Fault Management
Configuration
Management
Performance

Network Switching Subsystem

MSC
GMSC
VLR
HLR
EIR
AC

AC
EIR

HLR

Mobile services Switching Centre

Gateway MSC
Visitor Location Register
Home Location Register
Equipment Identity Register
Authentication Centre

HLR

VLR

GMSC

MSC
5

Mobile services Switching Centre (MSC)

MSC
Call control
Mobility management
Initiation of paging
Collection of changing information
Often associated with the VLR

GMSC
Call control
Interrogation of HLR
Collection of changing information
Often used for interworking with
external networks

Registers in the NSS

VLR

HLR

Identification numbers of subscribers Subscriber Profile

Routing Information
Security information
Services that the subscriber can use

EIR
Lists for Mobile Equipment (ME)
checks

AC
Data for
Authenticating (SIM) and
Ciphering

Base Station Subsystem

BSC
TC

BSC

BTS

TC

BTS

BTS

Elements:

Base Station Controller (BSC), Base Transceiver Station

(BTS), and Transcoder and Rate Adaptation Unit (TRAU,
TC)
Functions:
Radio path control, BTS and TC control, synchronisation
with MSC
Air and A interface signalling, connection establishment
MS-NSS
Mobility management, speech transcoding
Collection of statistical data
8

Base Station Controller (BSC)

BSC

Connection establishment between the MS and

the NSS
Mobility management
Statistical raw data collection
Air- and A-interface signalling support
BTS and TRAU Control

Base Transceiver Station (BTS)

Air interface signalling

Ciphering
Speech processing (channel coding, interleaving, and burst

formatting)
Generation of alarms and statistics
Baseband/Radio freQuency transformation

10

Speech Flow in BSS

Speech,
64
kbps
MSC

13kbit/s
compression

TRAU

TRAU
BTS

Channel
Coding
=
redunda
ncy
22.8kbit/s
Interleaving
and ciphering

Air
Interface

22.8kbit/s
GMSK
modulation

33.8kbit/s
TDMA
burst
formatting

11

Omnidirctional and Sectorised Cells

f1,f2, f3
BTS
BTS
f1
Omnidirectional BTS

f5, f6

f1, f2

BTS
f2

2 sectorised BTS

BTS
BTS
BTS
f3, f4
3 sectorised BTS
f = carrier frequency band

12

Position of the Transcoder

BSC

Transcoder and
Submultiplexer (TCSM)

MSC
TC
TC
SM2M

TC
TC

A ter Interface
A ter Interface

A Interface

13

Net

rk Management Subsystem (NMS/2000)

NMS/
2000

BT
S

D ata C
DN
2

icati
t

s
rk

BTS
BS
C

HR
C
IR
S
C
V R

BT
S

BT
S

SMS
C

14

Functions of NMS (1)

Fault management

Collects alarm reports from network elements.

Provides one point for managing all fault
situations.

15

Functions of NMS (2)

Configuration management

Manages radio network configuration.

Maintains up to date information on the network
elements

status.

16

Functions of NMS (3)

Performance management

Collects measurement data from network

elements.
Produces performance result from raw data.

Interfaces
VLR

BSS

NSS

D
VLR
VLR

Um
m

Abis
Abis

BT
S

EIR

B
B

BSC
BSC

Ater

TC
TC

EIR

HLR
AC

AC

F
C

Ater

BT

HLR

BT
S
BT
S

(G)MSC

(G)MSC
E

(G)MSC
18

GSM network architecture

Base Station Subsystem

Network Management Subsystem

Mobile Stations
Base Station
Controller

Data
Communication
Network

Base
Transceiver
Stations

Network
Planning

Database Server

System

Workstations Network
Measurement
System

Communications
Server

Network Switching Subsystem

Home Location Registerl
Authentication Centrel
Equipment Identity
Register
TCPlIP
Data Communications
Server

Digital Cross
Connect
Transcoder
Submultiplexer
Voice
mail

A-Interface

Air Interface

Mobile Switching Centrel

Visitor Location
Register

PSTNlISDN

IN Service Control Point

Short Message
Service
Centre
Abis Interface
X.25 Interface

19

Generic GSM architecture

BSS - Base Station

Subsystem
BTS

OMC

VLR
MSC

HLR

IWF

BSC BTS

EIR
AC

BTS
PSTN
ISDN
PSPDN

BSC BTS
BTS

SC

MS
Air

NSS Network
Subsystem

Abis

Transcoder

NMS Network
Management
System

20

Nokia Implementation of GSM architecture

BSS - Base Station

Subsystem

DX 200
MSClVLR

BTS
BTS

DX 200
TCSM

BTS

NSS Network
Subsystem
PSTN
NSS Site

BTS
BTS

Air

DX 200
HLRlAClEIR

DX 200
BSC

Abis

ISDN
PSPDN

NMS l 2000
Network
Management
System

SMSC

21

Centralised CPU concept

Signalling towards subscribers

Collecting dialled numbers
Collecting charging data
Hunting for a free circuit
Making speech path
connections
Signalling towards other exchanges
Analysing and subscriber data
Supervising the running processes
Collecting statistical data

22

Distributed structure of the Nokia DX platform

Exchange
Signalling
towards
subscribers

Signalling
towards
other
exchange
s

Collecting
dialled
numbers

Collecting
statistical data

Collecting
charging
data

Supervising the
processes
running

Making speech
path
connections

Hunting for a
free circuit

Computer units
Message bus

23

Review Questions to
GSM Architecture

8/1/2010
Co

mpany Confidential
24

Review

1. The three subsystems of GSM/DCS are:

a)
b)
c)
d)

NMS, PSTN, MS
NMS, BSS, MS
NSS, BSS, MS
NSS, BSS, NMS .

2. f hich of the two following network elements belong to

the NSS?

a)
b)
c)
d)

Home Location Register

Base Station Controller
Mobile services Switching Centre
Transcoder (Transcoder and Rate Adaptation Unit)
25

Review

3.f hich of the following is not a task of the Network Switching

Subsystem (NSS)?

a) Identifying the calling subscriber

b)Starting the location update procedure
c)Sending charging data to the Billing Centre
d) Paging a subscriber for mobile terminated
calls
4.f hich combination of the following best describes the
Base Station Subsystem?

a) Base Station Controller, Transcoder, Base Transceiver

Station
b) Mobile Station, Base Station Controller, Base Transceiver
Station
c) Transcoder, Submultiplexer, Base Transceiver Station
d) Base Station Controller, Base Transceiver Station, Mobile
Equipment

26

Review

5. The Base Station Subsystem (BSS):

a) Is responsible for radio network control

b) Is located between air- and A-interfaces
c) Receives its synchronisation signal from the MSC
d) All of the above
6. Base Transceiver Station takes
care of:

a) Transcoding
b)
c) Sub-multiplexing
Speech coding
d) Authentication

Review

. Please name the three main Network Management

Subsystem
function
categories

a) Performance management
b) Configuration management
c) Fault management

8. In the Nokia Implementation of the GSM

network:

a) The transcoder is included as part of the

MSC
b) The EIR is included as part of the MSC
c) The VLR is included as part of the MSC
d) The HLR is included as part of the MSC
28

Review

9. The following subsystem is entirely built on the Nokia

DX 200
switching platform:

a) Network Switching Subsystem (NSS)

b) Network Management Subsystem (NMS)
c) Base Station Subsystem (BSS)
d) None of the above
10. The Authentication Centre is implemented as
part of the:

a) Billing Centre
b) Visitor Location Register
c) Short Message Service Centre
d) Home Location Register

29

Review

11. f hich of the following is a feature of the DX 200 platform?

a) Distributed processing
b) The ability to start with a minimum number of
units and add on more later if and when
c) required
and
redundancies
d) 2N
All of
theN+1
above
12. Distributed processing in the DX 200 platform means:
a) Sharing tasks between different network elements like the MSC,
the HLR and the BSC
b) Sharing tasks between different functional units within one
network element such as the BSC
c) Using parallel processing techniques within one computer
unit
d) Using the DX 200 platform
30