GSM BSS

Communication
Flow

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 Forewo
rd
Course Purpose:
Grasp the means of interface trace and the method of analyzing it to
aid us for fault handling.
How to learn this course:
Copy the interface trace result files.
Use the maintenance consoles interface trace review function to
study,
Attention:
It is strictly forbidden to use the interface tracing function when the
system is busy or the system is under heavy duty.

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 Contents
1. Location Update Flow
2. Call Setup (Originating)
3. Intra-BSC Handover
4. Inter-BSC Handover
5. BSC Normal Release
6. BSC Local-end Release
7. Case Analysis

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 Location Update Flow

Purpose of location update:

To inform the system the LA in which the MS is
to facilitate paging
When need the MS perform location
update
Getting into a new LA
Periodical location update

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 Location Update Flow
MS BTS BSC MSC
Channel_req Channel_Required

Channel_Active

Channel_Active_Ack
SABM: Set asynchronous
IMMEDIATE ASSIGN COMMAND
balanced mode command
First SABM
Establish_IND(Location Updating Req)
initial access frame UA
CR(Complete_L3_
UA: Unnumbered information)

acknowledgement response CC

Location Updating Accepted (NOTE 1)

TMSI Reallocation Complete(NOTE 2)

(NOTE 3) Clear_CMD

Clear_CMP

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 NOTE 1: Authentication, Encryption,
Identity
After establishing the SCCP connection between BSC and MSC there
might be authentication and encryption in an intact location update flow.
For Huawei MSC, authentication and encryption are all optional. And normally
authentication is mandatory and encryption is optional in practical situation.
Huawei BSS system supports encryption algorithm A5/1 and A5/2.

Identification: The ID in Est_IND message reported by the MS is TMSI.

When VLR cannot identify the TMSI or TMSI authentication fails, MSC will
start Identification flow. That means MSC will send transparent transfer
message Identity Request to MS and MS will report Identity
Response message which involves IMSI.

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 NOTE 2
To reallocate TMSI or not during
location update is optional in
MSC.
If MSC chooses Reallocate TMSI
during location update to No,
MS will not report TMSI
Reallocation Complete message.

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 NOTE3

In this flow we have simplified the

release flow. To know more detailed
refer to the BSC Normal Release Flow.

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 Abnormal Occasion
BSC receives Location Updating
Rejected message from MSC. The
possible reason is listed below:
MSC has not configured the CGI
which has been configured in BSC.
Communication failed between MSC
and VLR.
MS has not been registered in HLR.

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 Content
s
1. Location Update Flow
2. Call Setup
(Originating)
3. Intra-BSC Handover
4. Inter-BSC Handover
5. BSC Normal Release
6. BSC Local-end Release
7. Case Analysis

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 Call Setup Flow
MS
Channel_req
BTS (Originating)
Channel_Required
Channel_Active
BSC MSC

Channel_Active_Ack
IMMEDIATE ASSIGN COMMAND
First SABM Establish_IND(CM Service Req)
UA CR(Complete_L3_information)
CC
CM Service Accepted (NOTE 1)
Setup
Call Processing
(NOTE 2) Assignment_Req
Channel_Active
Channel_Active_Ack
ASSIGNMENT COMMAND
First SABM Establish_IND
UA
ASSIGNMENT CMP Assignment_CMP
Alerting
Connect
Connect Ack
Conversation (NOTE 3)
Disconnect
Release
Release Complete
Clear_CMD
(NOTE 4) Clear_CMP

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 NOTE 1: Class Mark Update
Flow
1. Authentication, encrytion, identification are
optional. See Note 1 in Location Update Flow.
2. Class mark update flow:
For dual-band MS, after the SCCP
connection is established and before
receiving message "CM Service Accepted"
there will be a class mark update flow.
CR message reports the information of class
mark 2. And in the class mark update flow,
MS will report class mark 3 information which
is related to the dual-band capabilty.

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 NOTE 2: Assignment Method

Very Early Assignment

In IMMEDIATE ASSIGN COMMAND ,TCH is
directly assigned. When MSC sends
Assignment _Req message, BSC will not
assign new channel but perform Mode_Modify
flow. After that, MS will report Assignment
_CMP message to MSC.
Early Assignment
MSC sends Assignment_Req before Alerting.
Late Assignment
MSC sends Assignment_Req after Alerting.

Very Early Assignment

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 Abnormal
Situation
Abnormal Occasion 1: MSC has sent Assignment_Req
and BSC does not send ASSIGNMENT CMD but sends
a Assignment_Fail message. Possible reasons:
A. BSC has not available TCH.
B. The CIC assigned by the MSC is not idle in BSC.
Abnormal Occasion2: BSC has sent ASSIGNMENT CMD
message but MS sends ASSIGNMENT FAIL. Possible
reason:
Downlink bit error rate is too high.

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 Contents
1. Location Update Flow
2. Call Setup (Originating)
3. Intra-BSC Handover
4. Inter-BSC Handover
5. BSC Normal Release
6. BSC Local-end Release
7. Case Analysis

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 Intra-BSC
MS BTS1 BSC Handover
BTS2 MS MSC

Measure Report from MS

Channel_Active

Channel_Active_Ack

HANDOVER COMMAND

Handover Access
Handover_Detect
PHYINFO
(NOTE 1)
PHYINFO
First SABM
UA
Establish_IND

HANDOVER COMPLETE
Handover_Performed

(NOTE 2)

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 NOTE1:Asynchronous Handover and Synchronous
Handover

Intra-BSC asynchronous handover:

BTS1 and BTS2 do not belong to the same BTS. Thus the
target BTS shall send PHY INFO message.
Intra-BSC synchronous handover:
BTS1 and BTS2 belong to the same BTS. Actually they are
two cells of one BTS. In such occasion there will not be PHY
INFO message, After Handover Access message, MS will
send SABM directly.

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 NOTE2
After reporting Handover_Performed message
to MSC, BSC will start the local-end release flow
for the previous channel (in BTS 2).

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 Abnormal
Occasion
In case of intra-BSC asynchronous
handover, when BTS1 has sent PHY INFO
message to the maximum time but the MS
still cant access the new channel, BTS1
will send CONN FAIL IND message. Its
causing value is handover access failure.
When BSC receives this message, it will
start local-end release flow to release the
new channel in BTS1.

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 Conten
1. Location Update Flow
ts
2. Call Setup (Originating)
3. Intra-BSC Handover
4. Inter-BSC Handover
5. BSC Normal Release
6. BSC Local-end Release
7. Case Analysis

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 Inter-BSC
MS BTS1 BSC1 MSC
Handover
BSC2 BTS2 MS
(NOTE 1)
Measure Report from MS
Handover_Required Handover_Request
Channel_Active

Channel_Active_Ack
Handover_Request_Ack
Handover_CMD
HANDOVER COMMAND Handover_Detect Handover Access
Handover_Detect PHY INFO

PHY INFO
First SABM
Establish_INO UA
HANDOVER COMPLETE
Handover_Cmp
Clear_CMD
(NOTE 2) Clear_CMP

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 NOTE1: Two Different Handover Occasions of
Inter-BSC Handover

Intra-MSC inter-BSC Handover:

Two BSCs belong to the same MSC.
Inter-MSC Handover:
Two BSCs do not belong to the same MSC.
The A-interface messages are the same
for the two occasions above.

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 NOTE2

When BSC1 receives Clear_CMD message

from MSC, it will start local-end release flow
for the previously occupied channel in BTS1.

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 Conten
ts
1. Location Update Flow
2. Call Setup (Originating)
3. Intra-BSC Handover
4. Inter-BSC Handover
5. BSC Normal Release
6. BSC Local-end Release
7. Case Analysis

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 BSC Normal Release
MS BTS BSC Flow
MSC
(NOTE 1) Disconnect
Release
Release Complete
Clear_CMD
Clear_CMP
CHANNEL RELEASE
Deactive_SACCH
First DISC Release_IND
UA RF_Release_Req
RF_Release_Req_ACK

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 NOTE1 Two Occasions of Release

NSS originating release

MS originating release
In these two different occasions all the
messages are the same except the
direction of the first 3 messages.

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 Contents
1. Location Update Flow
2. Call Setup (Originating)
3. Intra-BSC Handover
4. Inter-BSC Handover
5. BSC Normal Release
6. BSC Local-end
Release
7. Case Analysis

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 Local-end Release
Flow
MS BTS BSC MSC

Deactive_SACCH

Release_Req(LOCAL END) (NOTE 1)

Release_Confirm
RF_Release_Req
RF_Release_Req_ACK

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 Content
s
1. Location Update Flow
2. Call Setup (Originating)
3. Intra-BSC Handover
4. Inter-BSC Handover
5. BSC Normal Release
6. BSC Local-end Release
7. Case Analysis

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 Case
Description
BSCs ASSIGNMENT CMD message has
been sent but the BTS sends several EST
IND messages. Later MS sends
ASSIGNMENT FAIL message and the
causing value is Protocol error
unspecified.

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 Case
Analysis
By analyzing the messages we can find that MS has
reported several EST IND messages before
ASSIGNMENT FAIL message.
When BTS receives a SABM frame it will report an EST
IND message to BSC. So we know now that the MS
must have sent many SABM frames to the BTS.
BTS can decode the SABM frame sent by MS but MS
cannot decode the UA frame sent by BTS. And this
causes that the BTS reports many EST IND messages.

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 Case
Case realize: Analysis
In the lab we can simulate. Disconnect the TX antenna
to make the downlink signal pure. Trace the A-bis
signaling we can find that BTS sends several EST IND
messages to BSC for the newly assigned TCH but cant
succeed. And then MS sends ASSIGNMENT FAIL via the
previous SDCCH and the causing value is Protocol
Conclusion:
error
In the practical field, when many ASSIGNMENT FAIL
unspecified.
messages appear, the main reason might be the pure
downlink receiving power level or receiving quality.
Connection between TRX and SCU (CDU).

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 Appendix: Power

Class
Phase 2 MS output Power Class and the exact power relations.

power GSM900 Max DCS1800 Max Tolerance(dB) Tolerance(dB)

class peak power peak power _normal _extreme

1 ------ 1W(30dBm) +/-2 +/-2.5

2 0.25W(24dBm) 2 2.5

3 5W(37dBm) 4W(36dBm) 2 2.5

4 2W(33dBm) 2 2.5

5 0.8W(29dBm) 2 2.5

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 Power Control
Level
power output Tolerance Tolerance Power output Tolerance Tolerance
control power _normal _extreme control power _normal _extreme
level (dBm) (dB) (dB) level (dBm) (dB) (dB)
0-2 39 2 2.5 29 36 2 2.5
3 37 3 4 30 34 3 4
4 35 3 4 31 32 3 4
Phase 2 MS 5 33 3 4 0 30 3 4
Power 6 31 3 4 1 28 3 4
control 7 29 3 4 2 26 3 4
level and 8 27 3 4 3 24 3 4
the exact 9 25 3 4 4 22 3 4
power 10 23 3 4 5 20 3 4
relations. 11 21 3 4 6 18 3 4
12 19 3 4 7 16 3 4
13 17 3 4 8 14 3 4
14 15 3 4 9 12 4 5
15 13 3 4 10 10 4 5
16 11 5 6 11 8 4 5
17 9 5 6 12 6 4 5
18 7 5 6 13 4 4 5
19-31 5 5 6 14 2 5 6
15-28 0 5 6

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 Thank You

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