Recently, I read many discussions around 5G SA mainly really on mmWave spectrum which is Unique to 5G technology, as mmWave or millimeter Wave is the most capacity spectrum band so far among all available mobile spectrums. Yes, 5G high bands (mmWave, also referred to as FR2) are found in the range of 24GHz to […]

5G Release 15 was the first release of 5G and its specification was completed in June 2018. Release 16/17 specifications were drafted as extensions to 5G Release 15 with its RAN technology NR or New Radio. Rel-17 provided support for even higher frequency bands and Non-Terrestrial Network NTN systems and added a low-cost NR device […]

SMS stands for Short Message Service and is used both for end-user messages and between the network and the device without any human interaction. There are two options for SMS when the mobile is attached to a 5G network without the need to fallback to a 4G network: • SMS over IP. • SMS over NAS […]

Wi-Fi 7 (IEEE 802.11be), the successor to Wi-Fi 6, introduces the 6GHz frequency band, doubling the maximum frequency bandwidth from 160MHz to 320MHz. It allows the 16×16 MIMO configuration and supports 4096QAM modulation technology, which offers significant improvements in data rates, capacity, and spectral efficiency, ultimately enhancing the performance and user experience in wireless communication […]

As you may know, there are two main components to RIC or RAN Intelligent Controllers (RICs) as below: Closed-loop control running at time scales of 10ms to 1s (Near-Real-Time, or Near-RT, RIC with xApps) Closed-loop control runs at time scales of 1s or more (non-RT RIC with rApps). What about the real-time control loops operating […]

When going to the Roaming topic, sometimes you hear words like Wholesale Charge and Retail Charge. So What is the difference between them? The Wholesale Charge determines how much roaming costs a mobile operator. Here, mobile operators negotiate roaming agreements with their counterparts in other countries. Under these agreements, a mobile operator pays the foreign operator […]

5G standalone (SA) operation, using a new core network, is foundational to mobile operators seeking to offer advanced 5G services with a low cost of production. 5G Service-based architecture (SBA) In a SBA framework, the individual elements are defined as Network Functions (NFs) instead of Network entities. Through Service Based Interface (SBI) each of the […]

As per the Mobile Data Moves Indoors report, 80% of Mobile Traffic comes from Indoor locations. This means that good coverage and QoS in the building/indoors are a MUST.  Let’s focus on the primary service in the wireless industry which is Voice Call.  Voice Communication Methods Support voice communication between two parties, in many ways, […]

5G NR modulation and waveforms have some commonalities with LTE but aim to have much higher spectral efficiency. NR supports QPSK, 16 QAM, and 256 QAM with the same constellation mapping as LTE. An OFDM-based waveform is supported. Some parts of the numerology are flexible, like the SCS, while others are fixed. The subframe duration […]

First, let’s understand an overview of eSIM Technology. eSIM(embedded SIM): The embedded SIM (also called eSIM or eUICC) is a new secure element designed to remotely manage multiple mobile network operator subscriptions and be compliant with GSMA specifications. As defined by GSMA, the term eSIM refers to the explicit functionality of the operating system to […]

Let’s check the main highlights if you don’t know about this big project. The main focus of this project is creating an End-to-end Open RAN compliant, UK-developed 5G SA network. It’s a complete Open RAN 5G SA network. A compact modular radio base station supporting all bands in 5G NR Frequency Range 1. The Portfolio […]

RedCap 5G NR = Reduced Capability 5G NR. As per Ericsson, It’s estimated that the number of connected IoT devices will reach nearly 39 billion by 2029, a significant increase over the number of expected smartphones at 7.7 billion. To help support the expected IoT device expansion, 3GPP introduced RedCap 5G NR, a significant addition […]

An interesting report from Omdia regarding ” Market Landscape: RAN Vendors 2024 “ The report is only for RAN Hardware and Software for macro base stations and small cells. Open RAN and vRAN are considered under the portfolio dimension, but they have no impact on the business performance dimension. Omdia does not suggest that open […]

When I searched for the impact of 4G and 5G frequency spectrum on health/medical sector/hospitals, I found good Japanese research by NTT Docomo about this topic and here I concluded the main points of the study and results.  Research Area Electromagnetic interference with medical devices is caused by radio waves emitted from mobile phones and […]

📃In 2G and 3G, voice and text were the main services based on SS7 signaling. In these networks service availability was the priority. The Signal Transfer Point (STP) was the node that routed signaling messages. 📃In 4G, networks became data and media-centric and needed signaling to support smartphones and Apps. Signaling volume grew to support […]

In 2021, I wrote this article about 5G and Wifi 6 convergence, and then in 2023, I addressed this big question: Are 5G and WiFi6E Friends or Competitors?  Conclusion of these articles if you don’t have time to read them as below: 📗The integration of 5G and Wi-Fi is poised to become more ubiquitous. Using […]

Generally speaking, I see many use the same word for different meanings, sometimes they need to refer to O-RAN and write OpenRAN and vice versa. So let’s understand the main difference between them as below: Why Do We Need O-RAN? The strong push for Future RANs to be built on a foundation of virtualized network […]

Virtualization is a journey that the telecoms industry has been on for several years to transform network functions into virtual network functions (VNFs). The VNF software is then decoupled from the purpose-built hardware and run on standardized, common off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware. The interfaces between each component in such a setup may still be closed or proprietary. […]

First, we need to understand the definition of Fronthaul. Fronthaul is the transmission connection between the Radio Frequency (RF) module and the baseband processing Unit (BBU) in the mobile wireless network.  In the traditional distributed RAN or D-RAN, the fronthaul distance is short as the RF module and BBU are directly connected via optical fibers. […]

5G needs to move from CPRI to eCPRI because eCPRI uses standards-based Ethernet for fronthaul, replacing proprietary CPRI connectivity. This shift enables higher precision timing capabilities essential for vRAN and openRAN deployments on general-purpose server hardware, making the network more flexible and cost-effective. Why 5G needs moving from CPRI to eCPRI? eCPRI enhances 5G networks […]

Before starting to talk about IMSI Catcher, we need to understand what is the IMSI, its importance, and its structure. Based on this, we will discuss the IMSI catcher. So let’s GO 🙂  What is IMSI? IMSI, International Mobile Subscriber Identity, is a unique static identity allocated to each subscriber in a mobile wireless system. […]

If you look at how security was addressed in the 4G core (EPC), you had perimeter devices, whether it’s firewalls, security devices that protect from denial of service attacks, or just security gateways at the periphery, and you had fewer vendors addressing the core infrastructure. So, if you have a single core vendor, the risk […]

The biggest challenge in transitioning from traditional RAN to Open RAN is the integration of Open RAN components. Guess why! absolutely due to RAN itself getting disaggregated into smaller pieces coming from different vendors (multi-interoperability) in different layers (Horizontal and Vertical) from Control, User to Management. Below is the conclusion, I quoted from Tietoevry’s white paper about […]

3GPP defined the functional splits in 38.801 to formalize potential protocol split options. Functional splits are intended to allow functions to run in a central location ( ex. Data Center ) Vs. distributed in the radio heads ( ex Site Location). There are 4 factors to be taken into consideration when choosing the right functional […]

An Open RAN (O-RAN) is a nonproprietary implementation of a RAN that allows interoperability between cellular network equipment provided by different vendors. Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) are virtualizing the RAN to achieve cloud-like agility and economics. As per statistics, The virtualization of the RAN network is expected to grow at a 19% CAGR (compound annual […]

Going from expectations to reality means Open RAN is on the right road to go from reality to expectations. It’ll take some time and needs more cooperation between MNOs and OpenRAN vendors.  Open RAN is about choosing the optimal product from a variety of products that meet specifications for each function -> Meaning avoiding Vendor […]

In this article, I summarize the top 10 most-read articles in 2023 on my website as below: What are C/U/M/S Fronthaul (FH) Planes in ORAN? https://lnkd.in/d4Ts_kfJ  Why 7.2x split is the Best Split Option? https://lnkd.in/dKECHY9W  What is The Difference between MORAN and MOCN? https://lnkd.in/gFVqF8hM  Everything You Have To Know About PTP or Precision Time Protocol? […]

vRAN and OpenRAN are not new generations like 4G, 5G, or even 6G. It’s a new way of implementing of access domain in a new way helping at the end to improve the flexibility, cost, and agility in the RAN domain. Some points should be considered below: Selecting the right vendor that has a good solution that […]

Home Subscriber Server (HSS) is the main subscriber database used within the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) which provides details of the subscribers to other entities within the network. 

Open RAN by disaggregation involves CU (Centralized Unit) and DU (Distributed Unit) virtualization. By decoupling hardware and software, Open RAN makes it possible to select different vendors and solutions for hardware and software and to manage their lifecycles separately. More specifically, this makes it possible to use COTS (Commercial off-the-shelf) general-purpose hardware in the RAN and avoid […]