GSM ARCHITECTURE

INTRODUCTION
A GSM system is basically designed as a combination of th ee ma!o s"bsystems# the net$o % s"bsystem& the adio s"bsystem& and the o'e ation s"''o t s"bsystem( In o de to ens" e that net$o % o'e ato s $ill ha)e se)e al so" ces of cell"la inf ast "ct" e e*"i'ment& GSM decided to s'ecify not only the ai inte face& b"t also the main inte faces that identify diffe ent 'a ts( The e a e th ee dominant inte faces& namely& an inte face bet$een MSC and the base T anscei)e Station +,TS-& and an Um inte face bet$een the ,TS and MS( GSM NET.OR/ STRUCTURE E)e y tele'hone net$o % needs a $ell0designed st "ct" e in o de to o"te incoming called to the co ect e1change and finally to the called s"bsc ibe ( In a mobile net$o %& this st "ct" e is of g eat im'o tance beca"se of the mobility of all its s"bsc ibe s 23045( In the GSM system& the net$o % is di)ided into the follo$ing 'a titioned a eas( GSM se )ice a ea6 78MN se )ice a ea6 MSC se )ice a ea6 8ocation a ea6 Cells(

The GSM se )ice is the total a ea se )ed by the combination of all membe co"nt ies $he e a mobile can be se )iced( The ne1t le)el is the 78MN se )ice a ea( The e can be se)e al $ithin a co"nt y& based on its si9e( The lin%s bet$een a GSM:78MN net$o % and othe 7STN& ISDN& o 78MN net$o % $ill be on the le)el of inte national o national t ansit e1change( All incoming calls fo a GSM:78MN net$o % $ill be o"ted to a gate$ay MSC( A gate$ay MSC $o %s as an incoming t ansit e1change fo the GSM:78MN( In a GSM:78MN net$o %& all mobile0te minated calls $ill be o"ted to a gate$ay MSC( Call connections bet$een 78MNs& o to fi1ed net$o %s& m"st be o"ted th o"gh ce tain designated MSCs called a gate$ay MSC( The gate$ay MSC contains the inte $o %ing f"nctions to ma%e these connections( They also o"te incoming calls to the ' o'e MSC $ithin the net$o %( The ne1t le)el of di)ision is the MSC:;8R se )ice a ea( In one 78MN the e can be se)e al MSC:;8R se )ice a ea( MSC:;8R is a ole cont olle of calls $ithin its !" isdiction( In o de to o"te a call to a mobile s"bsc ibe & the 'ath th o"gh lin%s to the MSC in the MSC a ea $he e the s"bsc ibe is c" ently located( The mobile location can be "ni*"ely identified since the MS is egiste ed in a ;8R& $hich is gene ally associated $ith an MSC(

The ne1t di)ision le)el is that of the 8A<s $ithin a MSC:;8R combination( The e a e se)e al 8A<s $ithin one MSc:;8R combination( A 8A is a 'a t of the MSC:;8R se )ice a ea in $hich a MS may mo)e f eely $itho"t "'dating location info mation to the MSC:;8R e1change that cont ol the 8A( .ithin a 8A a 'aging message is b oadcast in o de to find the called mobile s"bsc ibe ( The 8A can be identified by the system "sing the 8ocation A ea Identity +8AI-( The 8A is "sed by the GSM system to sea ch fo a s"bsc ibe in a acti)e state( 8astly& a 8A is di)ided into many cells( A cell is an identity se )ed by one ,TS( The MS disting"ishes bet$een cells "sing the ,ase Station Identification code +,SIC- that the cell site b oadcast o)e the ai ( MO,I8E STATION The MS incl"des adio e*"i'ment and the man machine inte face +MMI- that a s"bsc ibe needs in o de to access the se )ices ' o)ided by the GSM 78MN( MS can be installed in ;ehicles o can be 'o table o handheld stations( The MS may incl"de ' o)isions fo data comm"nication as $ell as )oice( A mobile t ansmits and ecei)es message to and f om the GSM system o)e the ai inte face to establish and contin"e connections th o"gh the system ( Diffe ent ty'e of MSs can ' o)ide diffe ent ty'e of data inte faces( To ' o)ide a common model fo desc ibing these diffe ent MS config" ation& = efe ence config" ation= fo MS& simila to those defined fo ISDN land stations& has been defined( Each MS is identified by an IMEI that is 'e manently sto ed in the mobile "nit( U'on e*"est& the MS sends this n"mbe o)e the signaling channel to the MSC( The IMEI can be "sed to identify mobile "nits that a e e'o ted stolen o o'e ating inco ectly( >"st as the IMEI identities the mobile e*"i'ment& othe n"mbe s a e "sed to identity the mobile s"bsc ibe ( Diffe ent s"bsc ibe identities a e "sed in diffe ent 'hases of call set"'( The Mobile S"bsc ibe ISDN N"mbe +MSISDN- is the n"mbe that the calling 'a ty dials in o de to each the s"bsc ibe ( It is "sed by the land net$o % to o"te calls to$a d an a'' o' iate MSC( The inte national mobile s"bsc ibe identity +IMSI- is the ' ima y f"nction of the s"bsc ibe $ithin the mobile net$o % and is 'e manently assigned to him( The GSM system can also assign a Tem'o a y Mobile S"bsc ibe Identity +TMSI- to identity a mobile( This n"mbe can be 'e iodically changed by the system and ' otect the s"bsc ibe f om being identified by those attem'ting to monito the adio channel( ?"nctions of MS The ' ima y f"nctions of MS a e to t ansmit and ecei)e )oice and data o)e the ai inte face of the GSM system( MS 'e fo ms the signal ' ocessing f"nction of digiti9ing& encoding& e o ' otecting& enc y'ting& and mod"lating 2

the t ansmitted signals( It also 'e fo ms the in)e se f"nctions on the ecei)ed signals f om the ,S( In o de to t ansmit )oice and data signals& the mobile m"st be in synch oni9ation $ith the system so that the messages a e the t ansmitted and ecei)ed by the mobile at the co ect instant( To achie)e this& the MS a"tomatically t"nes and synch oni9es to the f e*"ency and TDMA timeslot s'ecified by the ,SC( This message is ecei)ed o)e a dedicated timeslot se)e al times $ithin a m"ltif ame 'e iod of @3 f ames( .e shall disc"ss the details of this in the ne1t cha'te ( The e1act synch oni9ation $ill also incl"de ad!"sting the timing ad)ance to com'ensate fo )a ying distance of the mobile f om the ,TS( The MS monito s the 'o$e le)el and signal *"ality& dete mined by the ,ER fo %no$n ecei)e bit se*"ences +synch oni9ation se*"ence-& f om both its c" ent ,TS and "' to si1 s" o"nding ,TSs( This data is ecei)ed on the do$nlin% b oadcast cont ol channel( The MS dete mines and send to the c" ent ,TS a list of the si1 best0 ecei)ed ,TS signals( The meas" ement es"lts f om MS on do$nlin% *"ality and s" o"nding ,TS signal le)els a e sent to ,SC and ' ocessed $ithin the ,SC( The system then "ses this list fo best cell hando)e decisions( MS %ee's the GSM net$o % info med of its location d" ing both national and inte national oaming& e)en $hen it is inacti)e( This enables the System to 'age in its ' esent 8A( The MS incl"des an e*"ali9e that com'ensates fo m"lti0'ath disto tion on the ecei)ed signal( This ed"ces inte 0symbol inte face that $o"ld othe $ise deg ade the ,ER( ?inally& the MS can sto e and dis'lay sho t ecei)ed al'han"me ic messages on the li*"id c ystal dis'lay +8CD- that is "sed to sho$ call dialing and stat"s info mation( These messages a e limited to 3AB cha acte s in length( 7o$e 8e)els These a e fi)e diffe ent catego ies of mobile tele'hone "nits s'ecified by the E" o'ean GSM system# CB.& D.& @.& C.& and B(D.( These co es'ond to 4E0d,m& EF0d,m& EG0d,m& EE0d,m& and CF0d,m 'o$e le)els( The CB0. and D0. "nits +'ea% 'o$e - a e eithe fo )ehicle0 mo"nted o 'o table station "se( The MS do$n to CBm. f om the ,TS& t ansmitte to t ansmission( 'o$e is ad!"stable in C0d, ste's f om its nominal )al"e +3E d,m-( This is done a"tomatically "nde emote cont ol $hich monito s the ecei)ed 'o$e and ad!"sts the MS the minim"m 'o$e setting necessa y fo eliable 3

SIM Ca d As desc ibed in the fi st cha'te & GSM s"bsc ibe s a e ' o)ided $ith a SIM ca d $ith its "ni*"e identification at the )e y beginning of the se )ice( ,y di)o cing the s"bsc ibe ID f om the e*"i'ment ID& the s"bsc ibe may ne)e o$n the GSM mobile e*"i'ment set( The s"bsc ibe is identified in the system $hen he inse ts the SIM ca d in the mobile e*"i'ment( This ' o)ides an eno mo"s amo"nt of fle1ibility to the s"bsc ibe s since they can no$ "se any GSM0s'ecified mobile e*"i'ment( Th"s $ith a SIM ca d the idea of H7e sonali9e= the e*"i'ment c" ently in "se and the es'ecti)e info mation "sed by the net$o % +location info mation- needs to be "'dated( The sma t ca d SIM is 'o table bet$een Mobile E*"i'ment +ME"nits( The "se only needs to ta%e his sma t ca d on a t i'( He can then ent a ME "nit at the destination& e)en in anothe co"nt y& and inse t his o$n SIM( Any calls he ma%es $ill be cha ged to his home GSM acco"nt( Also& the GSM system $ill be able to each him at the ME "nit he is c" ently "sing(

The SIM is a emo)able SC& the si9e of a c edit ca d& and contains an integ ated ci c"it chi' $ith a mic o' ocesso & andom access memo y +RAM-& and ead only memo y +ROM-( It is inse ted in the MS "nit by the s"bsc ibe $hen he o she $ants to "se the MS to ma%e o ecei)e a call( As stated& a SIM also comes in a mod"la f om that can be mo"nted in the s"bsc ibe <s e*"i'ment( .hen a mobile s"bsc ibe $ants to "se the system& he o she mo"nts thei SIM ca d and ' o)ide thei 7e sonal Identification N"mbe +7IN-& $hich is com'a ed $ith a 7IN sto ed $ithin the SIM( If the "se ente s th ee inco ect 7IN codes& the SIM is disabled( The 7IN can also be 'e manently by'assed by the se )ice ' o)ide if e*"ested by the s"bsc ibe ( Disabling the 7IN code sim'lifies the call set"' b"t ed"ces the ' otection of the "se <s acco"nt in the e)ent of a stolen SIM( Inte national Mobile S"bsc ibe Identity( An IMSI is assigned to each a"tho i9ed GSM "se ( It consists of a mobile co"nt y code +MSC-& mobile net$o % code +MNC-& and a 78MN "ni*"e mobile s"bsc ibe identification n"mbe +MSIN-( The IMSI is not ha d$a e0s'ecific( Instead& it is maintained on a SC by an a"tho i9ed s"bsc ibe and is the only absol"te identity that a s"bsc ibe has $ithin the GSM system( The IMSI consists of the MCC follo$ed by the NMSI and shall not e1ceed 3@ digits( Tem'o a y Mobile S"bsc ibe Identity A TMSI is a MSC0;8R s'ecific alias that is designed to maintain "se confidentiality( It is assigned only afte s"ccessf"l s"bsc ibe a"thentication( The 4

co elation of a TMSI to an IMSI only occ" s d" ing a mobile s"bsc ibe <s initial t ansaction $ith an MSC +fo e1am'le& location "'dating-( Unde ce tain condition +s"ch as t affic system dis "'tion and malf"nctioning of the system-& the MSC can di ect indi)id"al TMSIs to ' o)ide the MSC $ith thei IMSI( Mobile Station ISDN N"mbe The MS inte national n"mbe m"st be dialed afte the inte national ' efi1 in o de to obtain a mobile s"bsc ibe in anothe co"nt y( The MSISDN n"mbe s is com'osed of the co"nt y code +CC- follo$ed by the National Significant N"mbe +N+S-N-& $hich shall not e1ceed 3@ digits( The Mobile Station Roaming N"mbe +MSRNThe MSRN is allocated on tem'o a y basis $hen the MS oams into anothe n"mbe ing a ea( The MSRN n"mbe is "sed by the H8R fo e o"ting calls to the MS( It is assigned "'on demand by the H8R on a 'e 0call basis( The MSRN fo 7STN:ISDN o"ting shall ha)e the same st "ct" e as inte national ISDN n"mbe s in the a ea in $hich the MSRN is allocated( The H8R %no$s in $hat MSC:;8R se )ice a ea the s"bsc ibe is located( At the ece'tion of the MSRN& H8R sends it to the GMSC& $hich can no$ o"te the call to the MSC:;8R e1change $he e the called s"bsc ibe is c" ently egiste ed( Inte national Mobile E*"i'ment Identity The IMEI is the "ni*"e identity of the e*"i'ment "sed by a s"bsc ibe by each 78MN and is "sed to dete mine a"tho i9ed +$hite-& "na"tho i9ed +blac%-& and malf"nctioning +g ay- GSM ha d$a e( In con!"nction $ith the IMSI& it is "sed to ens" e that only a"tho i9ed "se a a e g anted access to the system( An IMEI is ne)e sent in ci'he mode by MS( ,ASE STATION SISTEM The ,SS is a set of ,S e*"i'ment +s"ch as t anscei)e s and cont olle s- that is in )ie$ by the MSC th o"gh a single A inte face as being the entity es'onsible fo comm"nicating $ith MSs in a ce tain a ea( The adio e*"i'ment of a ,SS may be com'osed of one o mo e cells( A ,SS may consist of one o mo e ,S( The inte face bet$een ,SC and ,TS is designed as an A0bis inte face( The ,SS incl"des t$o ty'es of machines# the ,TS in contact $ith the MSs th o"gh the adio inte face and the ,SC& the latte being in contact $ith the MSC( The f"nction s'lit is basically bet$een t ansmission e*"i'ment& the ,TS& and managing e*"i'ment at the ,SC( A ,TS com'a es adio t ansmission and ece'tion de)ices& "' to and incl"ding the antennas& and also all the signal ' ocessing s'ecific to the adio inte face( A single t anscei)e $ithin ,TS s"''o ts eight basic adio channels of the same TDM f ame( A ,SC is a net$o % com'onent in the 78MN that f"nction fo cont ol of one o mo e ,TS( It is a f"nctional entity that handles common cont ol f"nctions $ithin a ,TS( 5

A ,TS is a net$o % com'onent that se )es one cell and is cont olled by a ,SC( ,TS is ty'ically able to handle th ee to fi)e adio ca ies& ca ying bet$een C4 and 4B sim"ltaneo"s comm"nication( Red"cing the ,TS )ol"me is im'o tant to %ee'ing do$n the cost of the cell sites( An im'o tant com'onent of the ,SS that is conside ed in the GSM a chitect" e as a 'a t of the ,TS is the T anscode :Rate Ada'te Unit +TRAU-( The TRAU is the e*"i'ment in $hich coding and decoding is ca ied o"t as $ell as ate ado'tion in case of data( Altho"gh the s'ecifications conside the TRAU as a s"b'a t of the ,TS& it can be sited a$ay f om the ,TS +at MSC-& and e)en bet$een the ,SC and the MSC( The inte face bet$een the MSC and the ,SS is a standa di9ed SSG inte face +A0inte face- that& as stated befo e& is f"lly defined in the GSM ecommendations( This allo$s the system o'e ato to '" chase s$itching e*"i'ment f om one s"''lie and adio e*"i'ment and the cont olle f om anothe ( The inte face bet$een the ,SC and a emote ,TS li%e$ise is a standa d the A0bis( In s'litting the ,SS f"nctions bet$een ,TS and ,SC& the main ' inci'le $as that only s"ch f"nctions that had to eside close to the adio t ansmitte s: ecei)e s sho"ld be 'laced in ,TS( This $ill also hel' ed"ce the com'le1ity of the ,TS( ?"nctions of ,TS As stated& the ' ima y es'onsibility of the ,TS is to t ansmit and ecei)e adio signals f om a mobile "nit o)e an ai inte face( To 'e fo m this f"nction com'letely& the signals a e encoded& enc y'ted& m"lti'le1ed& mod"lated& and then fed to the antenna system at the cell site( T ans0coding to b ing 3E0%b's s'eech to a standa d data ate of 3A %b's and then combining fo" of these signals to A4 %b's is essentially a 'a t of ,TS& tho"gh& it can be done at ,SC o at MSC( The )oice comm"nication can be eithe at a f"ll o half ate o)e logical s'eech channel( In o de to %ee' the mobile synch oni9ed& ,TS t ansmits f e*"ency and time synch oni9ation signals o)e f e*"ency co ection channel +?CCH and ,CCH logical channels( The ecei)ed signal f om the mobile is decoded& dec y'ted& and e*"ali9ed fo channel im'ai ments( Random access detection is made by ,TS& $hich then sends the message to ,SC( The channel s"bse*"ent assignment is made by ,SC( Timing ad)ance is dete mined by ,TS( ,TS signals the mobile fo ' o'e timing ad!"stment( U'lin% adio channel meas" ement co es'onding to the do$nlin% meas" ements made by MS has to be made by ,TS( ,TS0,SC Config" ations The e a e se)e al ,TS0,SC config" ations# single site6 single cell6 single site6 m"lticell6 and m"ltisite& m"lticell( These config" ations a e chosen based on the 6

"la o " ban a''lication( These config" ations ma%e the GSM system economical since the o'e ation has o'tions to ada't the best layo"t based on the t affic e*"i ement( Th"s& in some sense& system o'timi9ation is 'ossible by the ' o'e choice of the config" ation( These incl"de omni di ectional " al config" ation $he e the ,SC and ,TS a e on the same site6 chain and m"ltid o' loo' config" ation in $hich se)e al ,TSs a e cont olled by a single emote ,SC $ith a chain o ing connection to'ology6 " al sta config" ation in $hich se)e al ,TSs a e connected by indi)id"al lines to the same ,SC6 and secto i9ed " ban config" ation in $hich th ee ,TSs sha e the same site amd a e cont olled by eithe a collocated o emote ,SC( In " al a eas& most ,Ss a e installed to ' o)ide ma1im"m co)e age athe then ma1im"m ca'acity( T anscode De'ending on the elati)e costs of a t ansmission 'lant fo a 'a tic"la cell"la o'e ato & the e may be some benefit& fo la ge cells and ce tain net$o % to'ologies& in ha)ing the t anscode eithe at the ,TS& ,SC o MSC location( If the t ascode is located at MSC& they a e still conside ed f"nctionally a 'a t of the ,SS( This a'' oach allo$s fo the ma1im"m of fle1ibility and inno)ation in o'timi9ing the t ansmission bet$een MSC and ,TS( The t anscode is the de)ice that ta%es 3E0/b's s'eech o E(A:A:3C0/b's data m"lti'le1es and fo" of them to con)e t into standa d A40/b's data( ?i st& the 3E /b's o the data at E(A:A:3C /b's a e b o"ght "' to the le)el of 3A /'bs by inse ting additional synch oni9ing data to ma%e "' the diffe ence bet$een a 3E0/b's s'eech o lo$e ate data& and then fo" of them a e combined in the t anscode to ' o)ide A4 /'bs channel $ithin the ,SS( ?o" t affic channel can then be m"lti'le1ed on one A40/'bs ci c"it( Th"s& the TRAU o"t'"t data ate is A4 /'bs( Then& "' to EB s"ch A40/'bs channels a e m"lti'le1ed onto a C(B4D M'bs if a CE7T3 channel is ' o)ided on the A0bis inte face( This channel can ca y "' to 3CB0+3A1 3CB- t affic and cont ol signals( Since the data ate to the 7STN is no mally at C Mb's& $hich is the es"lt of combining EB0/b's by A40 /b'h channels& o 3CB0 /b's by 3A0/'bs channels(

,SC The ,SC& as disc"ssed& is connected to the MSC on one side and to the ,TS on the othe ( The ,SC 'e fo ms the Radio Reso" ce +RR- management fo the cells "nde its cont ol( It assigns and elease f e*"encies and timeslots fo all MSs in its o$n a ea( The ,SC 'e fo ms the inte cell hando)e fo MSs mo)ing bet$een ,TS in its cont ol( It also eallocates f e*"encies to the ,TSs in its a ea to meet locally hea)y demands d" ing 'ea% ho" s o on s'ecial e)ents( The ,SC cont ols the 'o$e t ansmission of both ,SSs and MSs in its a ea( The minim"m 'o$e le)el fo a mobile "nit is b oadcast o)e the ,CCH( The ,SC ' o)ides the time 7

and f e*"ency synch oni9ation efe ence signals b oadcast by its ,TSs( The ,SC also meas" es the time delay of ecei)ed MS signals elati)e to the ,TS cloc%( If the ecei)ed MS signal is not cente ed in its assigned timeslot at the ,TS& The ,SC can di ect the ,TS to notify the MS to ad)ance the timing s"ch that ' o'e synch oni9ation ta%es 'lace( The f"nctions of ,SC a e as follo$s( The ,SC may also 'e fo m t affic concent ation to ed"ce the n"mbe of t ansmission lines f om the ,SC to its ,TSs& as disc"ssed in the last section( S.ITCHING SU,SISTEMS# MO,I8E S.ITCHING CENTER AND GATE.AI S.ITCHING CENTER The net$o % and the s$itching s"bsystem togethe incl"de the main s$itching f"nctions of GSM as $ell as the databases needed fo s"bsc ibe data and mobility management +;8R-( The main ole of the MSC is to manage the comm"nications bet$een the GSM "se s and othe telecomm"nication net$o % "se s( The basic s$itching f"nction of 'e fo med by the MSC& $hose main f"nction is to coo dinate setting "' calls to and f om GSM "se s( The MSC has inte face $ith the ,SS on one side +th o"gh $hich MSC ;8R is in contact $ith GSM "se s- and the e1te nal net$o %s on the othe +ISDN:7STN:7S7DN-( The main diffe ence bet$een a MSC and an e1change in a fi1ed net$o % is that the MSC has to ta%e into acco"nt the im'act of the allocation of RRs and the mobile nat" e of the s"bsc ibe s and has to 'e fo m& in addition& at least& acti)ities e*"i ed fo the location egist ation and hando)e ( The MSC is a tele'hony s$itch that 'e fo ms all the s$itching f"nctions fo MSs located in a geog a'hical a ea as the MSC a ea( The MSC m"st also handle diffe ent ty'es of n"mbe s and identities elated to the same MS and contained in diffe ent egiste s# IMSI& TMSI&ISDN n"mbe & and MSRN( In gene al identities a e "sed in the inte face bet$een the MSC and the MS& $hile n"mbe s a e "sed in the fi1ed 'a t of the net$o %& s"ch as& fo o"ting( ?"nctions of MSC As stated& the main f"nction of the MSC is to coo dinate the set "' of calls bet$een GSM mobile and 7STN "se s( S'ecifically& it 'e fo ms f"nctions s"ch as 'aging& eso" ce allocation& location egist ation& and enc y'tion( S'ecifically& the call0handling f"nction of 'aging is cont olled by MSC( MSC coo dinates the set "' of call to and f om all GSM s"bsc ibe s o'e ating in its a eas( The dynamics allocation of access eso" ces is done in coo dination $ith the ,SS( Mo e s'ecifically& the MSC decides $hen and $hich ty'es of channels sho"ld be assigned to $hich MS( The channel identity and elated adio 'a amete s a e the es'onsibility of the ,SS& The MSC ' o)ides the cont ol of inte $o %ing $ith diffe ent net$o %s( It is t ans'a ent fo the s"bsc ibe a"thentication ' oced" e( The MSC s"'e )ises the connection t ansfe bet$een diffe ent ,SSs fo MSs& $ith an acti)e call& mo)ing f om one call to anothe ( This is ens" ed if the t$o ,SSs a e connected to the same MSC b"t also $hen they 8

a e not ( In this latte case the ' oced" e is mo e com'le1& since mo e then one MSC in in)ol)ed( The MSC 'e fo ms billing on calls fo all s"bsc ibe s based in its a eas( .hen the s"bsc ibe is oaming else$he e& the MSC obtains data fo the call billing f om the )isited MSC( Enc y'tion 'a amete s t ansfe s f om ;8R to ,SS to facilitate ci'he ing on the adio inte face a e done by MSC( The e1change of signaling info mation on the )a io"s inte face to$a d the othe net$o % elements and the management of the inte face themsel)es a e all cont olled by the MSC( ?inally& the MSC se )es as a SMS gate$ay to fo $a d SMS messages f om Sho t Message Se )ice Cente s +SMSC- to the s"bsc ibe s and f om the s"bsc ibe s to the SMSCs( It th"s acts as a message mailbo1 and deli)e y system( ;8R The ;8R is collocated $ith an MSC( A MS oaming in an MSC a ea is cont olled by the ;8R es'onsible fo that a ea( .hen a MS a''ea s in a 8A& it sta ts a egist ation ' oced" e( The MSC fo that a ea notices this egist ation and t ansfe s to the ;8R the identify of the 8A $he e the MS is sit"ated( A ;8R may be in cha ge of one o se)e al MSC 8A<s( The ;8R constit"tes the databases that s"''o t the MSC in the sto age and et ie)al of the data of s"bsc ibe s ' esent in its a ea( .hen an MS ente s the MSC a ea bo de s& it signals its a i)al to the MSC that sto es its identify in the ;8R( The info mation necessa y to manage the MS is contained in the H8R and is t ansfe ed to the ;8R so that they can be easily et ie)ed if so e*"i ed( Data Sto ed in ;8R The data contained in the ;8R and in the H8R a e mo e o less the same( Ne)e theless the data a e ' esent in the ;8R only as long as the MS is egiste ed in the a ea elated to that ;8R( Data associated $ith the mo)ement of mobile a e IMSI& MSISDN& MSRN& and TMSI( The te ms 'e manent and tem'o a y& in this case& a e meaningf"l only d" ing that time inte )al( Some data a e mandato y& othe s a e o'tional(

HOME 8OCATION REGISTER The H8R is a database that 'e manently sto es data elated to a gi)en set of s"bsc ibe s( The H8R is the efe ence database fo s"bsc ibe 'a amete s( ;a io"s identification n"mbe s and add esses as $ell as a"thentication 'a amete s& se )ices s"bsc ibed& and s'ecial o"ting info mation a e sto ed( C" ent s"bsc ibe stat"s incl"ding a s"bsc ibe <s tem'o a y oaming n"mbe and associated ;8R if the mobile is oaming& a e maintained( The H8R ' o)ides data needed to o"te calls to all MS0SIMs home based in its MSC a ea& e)en $hen they a e oaming o"t of a ea o in othe GSM net$o %s( The H8R ' o)ides the c" ent location data needed to s"''o t 9

sea ching fo and 'aging the MS0SIM fo incoming calls& $he e)e the MS0SIM may be( The H8R is es'onsible fo sto age and ' o)ision of SIM a"thentication and enc y'tion 'a amete s needed by the MSC $he e the MS0SIM is o'e ating( It obtains these 'a amete s f om the AUC( The H8R maintains eco d of $hich s"''lementa y se )ice each "se has s"bsc ibed to and ' o)ides 'e mission cont ol in g anting se )ices( The H8R sto es the identification of SMS gate$ays that ha)e messages fo the s"bsc ibe "nde the SMS "ntil they can be t ansmitted to the s"bsc ibe and ecei't is %no$ledge( Some data a e mandato y& othe data a e o'tional( ,oth the H8R and the ;8R can be im'lemented in the same e*"i'ment in an MSC +collocated-( A 78MN may contain one o se)e al H8Rs( AUTHENTICATION CENTER The AUC sto es info mation that is necessa y to ' otect comm"nication th o"gh the ai inte face against int "sions& to $hich the mobile is )"lne able( The legitimacy of the s"bsc ibe is established th o"gh a"thentication and ci'he ing& $hich ' otects the "se info mation against "n$anted disclos" e( A"thentication info mation and ci'he ing %eys a e sto ed in a database $ithin the AUC& $hich ' otects the "se info mation against "n$anted disclos" e and access( In the a"thentication ' oced" e& the %ey /i is ne)e t ansmitted to the mobile o)e the ai 'ath& only a andom n"mbe is sent( In o de to gain access to the system& the mobile m"st ' o)ide the co ect Signed Res'onse +SRES- in ans$e to a andom n"mbe +RAND- gene ated by AUC( Also& /i and the ci'he %ey /c a e ne)e t ansmitted ac oss the ai inte face bet$een the ,TS and the MS( Only the andom challenge and the calc"lated es'onse a e t ansmitted( Th"s& the )al"e of /i and /c a e %e't sec" e( The ci'he %ey& on the othe hand& is t ansmitted on the SSG lin% bet$een the home H8R:AUC and the )isited MSC& $hich is a 'oint of 'otential )"lne ability( On the othe hand& the andom n"mbe and ci'he %ey is s"''osed to change $ith each 'hone call& so finding them on one call $ill not benefit "sing them on the ne1t call( The H8R is also es'onsible fo the Ha"thentication= of the s"bsc ibe each time he ma%es o ecei)es a call( The AUC& $hich act"ally 'e fo ms this f"nction& is a se'a ate GSM entity that $ill often be 'hysically incl"ded $ith the H8R( ,eing se'a ate& it $ill "se se'a ate ' ocessing e*"i'ment fo the AUC database f"nctions( EJUI7MENT IDENTI?I REGISTER EIR is a database that sto es the IMEI n"mbe s fo all egiste ed ME "nits( The IMEI "ni*"ely identifies all egiste ed ME( The e is gene ally one EIR 'e 78MN( It inte faces to the )a io"s H8R in the 78MN( The EIR %ee's t ac% of all ME "nits in the 78MN( It maintains )a io"s lists of message( The database sto es the ME identification and has nothing do $ith s"bsc ibe $ho is ecei)ing o o iginating 10

call( The e a e th ee classes of ME that a e sto ed in the database& and each g o"' has diffe ent cha acte istics( .hite 8ist# contains those IMEIs that a e %no$n to ha)e been assigned to )alid MS<s( This is the catego y of gen"ine e*"i'ment( ,lac% 8ist# contains IMEIs of mobiles that ha)e been e'o ted stolen( G ay 8ist# contains IMEIs of mobiles that ha)e ' oblems +fo e1am'le& fa"lty soft$a e& $ ong ma%e of the e*"i'ment-( This list contains all MEs $ith fa"lts not im'o tant eno"gh fo ba ing(

INTER.OR/ING ?UNCTION GSM ' o)ided a $ide ange of data se )ices to its s"bsc ibe s( The GSM system inte face $ith the )a io"s fo ms of '"blic and ' i)ate data net$o %s c" ently a)ailable( It is the !ob of the I.? to ' o)ide this inte facing ca'ability(

The I.?& $hich in essence is a 'a t of MSC& ' o)ides the s"bsc ibe $ith access to data ate and ' otocol con)e sion facilities so that data can be t ansmitted bet$een GSM Data Te minal E*"i'ment +DTE- and a land0line DTE( ECHO CANCE8ER EC is "sed on the 7STN side of the MSC fo all )oice ci c"its( The EC is e*"i ed at the MSC 7STN inte face to ed"ce the effect of GSM delay $hen the mobile is connected to the 7STN ci c"it( The total o"nd0t i' delay int od"ced by the GSM system& $hich is the es"lt of s'eech encoding& decoding and signal ' ocessing& is of the o de of 3DB ms( No mally this delay $o"ld not be an annoying facto to the mobile& e1ce't $hen comm"nicating to 7STN as it e*"i es a t$o0$i e to fo" 0$i e hyb id t ansfo me in the ci c"it( This hyb id is e*"i ed at the local s$itching office beca"se the standa d local loo' is a t$o0$i e ci c"it( D"e to the ' esence of this hyb id& some of the ene gy at its fo" 0$i e ecei)e side f om the mobile is co"'led to the fo" 0$i e t ansmit side and th"s et ansmitted to the mobile( This ca"ses the echo& $hich does not effect the land s"bsc ibe b"t is an annoying facto to the mobile( The standa d EC cancels abo"t GB ms of delay( D" ing a no mal 7STN +land0to0land call-& no echo is a''a ent beca"se the delay is too sho t and the land "se is "nable to disting"ish bet$een the echo and the no mal tele'hone Hside tones= Ho$e)e & $ith the GSM o"nd0 t i' delay added and $itho"t the EC& the effect $o"ld be i itating to the MS s"bsc ibe ( O7ERATION AND MAINTENANCE CENTER The OMC ' o)ides ala m0handling f"nctions to e'o t and log ala ms gene ated by the othe net$o % entities( The maintenance 'e sonnel at the OMC can define 11

that c iticality of the ala m( Maintenance co)e both technical and administ ati)e actions to maintain and co ect the system o'e ation& o to esto e no mal o'e ations afte a b ea%do$n& in the sho test 'ossible time( The fa"lt management f"nctions of the OMC allo$ net$o % de)ices to be man"ally o a"tomatically emo)ed f om o esto ed to se )ice( The stat"s of net$o % de)ices can be chec%ed& and tests and diagnostics on )a io"s de)ices can be in)o%ed( ?o e1am'le& diagnostics may be initiated emotely by the OMC( A mobile call t ace facility can also be in)o%ed( The 'e fo mance management f"nctions incl"ded collecting t affic statistics f om the GSM net$o % entities and a chi)ing them in dis% files o dis'laying them fo analysis( ,eca"se a 'otential to collect la ge amo"nts of data e1ists& maintenance 'e sonal can select $hich of the detailed statistics to be collected based on 'e sonal inte ests and 'ast e1'e ience( As a es"lt of 'e fo mance analysis& if necessa y& an ala m can be set emotely( The OMC ' o)ides system change cont ol fo the soft$a e e)isions and config" ation data bases in the net$o % entities o "'loaded to the OMC( The OMC also %ee's t ac% of the diffe ent soft$a e )e sions "nning on diffe ent s"bsystem of the GSM( Refe ences# 235 The GSM system fo mobile comm"nication0Michel Ma ie0 ,e nadette 7a"tet( Mo"ly K

2C5 GSM system Enginee ing0Asha Meh ot a +A tech Ho"se 7"blishe -( 2E5 ha"g& T(&=De)elo'ing GSM standa d&= 'an0E" o'ean Cell"la Radio Conf(& Nice& ? ance& 3FF3( Digital

245 Mo"ly& M(& and 'a"tet Ma ie0,e nadette&=C" ent E)ol"tion of the GSM system&= IEEE 7e sonal Comm"nications& Octobe 3FF@& 77(F03F( 2@5 ,eddoes& E& .(& HGSM Net$o % A chitect" e&= GSm ,"da'est& Octobe 3FFB& Session C(3( Semina &

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