Introduction

The impressive growth in cellular mobile teleph-

ony and the number of Internet users promises
an exciting potential market for services that
combine both cellular and wireless data services.
Within the next few years there will be extensive
demand for wireless data services, especially
high-performance wireless Internet access.
Current cellular data services do not fulfill the
needs of users and providers. Data rates are too
slow and connection setup is too complicated
and takes too long.
Moreover, the service is too expensive for most
users. Technically, all of these drawbacks result
from the use of circuit switched radio transmis-
sion in current wireless data services.
The General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) is
a new bearer service for GSM that greatly
improves and simplifies wireless access to packet
data networks like the Internet-Intranets.
GPRS uses the packet radio principle to transfer
user data packets efficiently between GSM
mobile stations and external packet data net-
works. Packets can be directly routed from
GPRS mobile stations to packet switched net-
works. IP (for example, the global Internet or
private corporate Intranets) and X.25 networks
are supported in the current version of GPRS.
Users of GPRS benefit from shorter access times
and higher data rates. In conventional GSM, con-
nection setup takes several seconds and data
transmission rates are restricted to 9600 bps.
Application Notes
GPRS
Analysis Suite
January 2003
GPRS offers session establishment times below
one second and ISDN-like data rates.
In addition, GPRS packet transmission offers
billing that is more user-friendly than that offered
by circuit switched services. In circuit switched
services, billing is based on the duration of the
connection.
In contrast, with packet switched services, billing
can be based on the amount of transmitted data.
Sunrise Telecom has developed a comprehensive
set of application suites to monitor and analyze
the protocols and parts involved in GPRS net-
works.
Other suites are available for GSM, CDMA, and
UMTS. These suites can run onver different
Sunrise Telecom test platforms with variuos lev-
els of performance.
The following platforms now supporting the
GPRS analysis suite:
- Ghepardo S, RSR, and RLR
- 3GMaster 100 and 300
This is the application note for the GPRS Monitor
and Analysis suite. Some of the features
described here may be available only on specific
platforms.
SUNRISE TELECOM
GPRS Analysis Suite
The GPRS Analysis suite has been designed to cover all
the Protocol Interfaces in the GPRS network. It provides
a complete monitoring solution and, in conjunction with
the GSM suite, provides full coverage for GSM phase 2+
systems.
The GPRS architecture presents new challenges to
Service Providers, because they must not only guarantee
a correct flow of signaling traffic among a variety of
Network Elements, but must also guarantee Quality of
Service for user traffic such as TCP/IP.
The GPRS Analysis suite allows complete troubleshoot-
ing of both the signaling and user data protocols while
simultaneously supporting decoding of all the main GPRS
interfaces along with the TCP/IP protocols.
Trace features like filtering make it easy to investigate
problems involving Network Elements or User Traffic.
Extensive statistical reports have been designed to pro-
vide real-time information about network performance
and loading.
The Call Detail Records (CDR) feature allows central
collection of all data about user traffic so that users can
generate statistics about network usage and can trou-
bleshoot problems that recur over time.
Features of the GPRS Analysis suite cover all aspects of
GPRS network management
- Performance analysis
- Troubleshooting of both signaling and data (TCP/IP)
protocols
- Network Surveillance for immediate reaction upon
detection of anomalies
- Network planning for control of traffic loading among
Network Elements
- Service reporting to generate off-line statistics on net-
work usage
Protocols Supported
The protocols supported by the GPRS Analysis suite are
the following:
- Gb Interface:
o Frame Relay (GSM 08.14)
o Network Service (GSM 08.16)
o BSSGP (GSM 08.18)
o LLC (GSM 04.64)
o SNDCP (GSM 04.65)
o GMM/SM (GSM 04.08)
o IP/TCP/UDP User Traffic
- Gs Interface:
o MTP
o SCCP
o BSSAP+ (GSM 03.60 and GSM 09.18)
- Gr, Gc, Gd and Gf Interfaces:
o MTP
o SCCP
o TCAP
o MAP (GSM 09.02)
- Gn/Gp Interfaces:
o IP and UDP
o GTP (GSM 09.60)
o IP/TCP/UDP User Traffic
- Gi Interface:
o TCP/IP v.4 and v.6 over Frame Relay, PPP, or
Ethernet MAC
o RADIUS
o DNS
- Ga Interface (Q1-2003):
o GTP
o ASN.1 Decode for CDR
- A-bis Interface:
o LAPD (GSM 08.56)
o BSC-BTS Layer 3 (GSM 08.58)
o CC/MM/RR/SM (GSM 04.08)
o Nokia O&M
o Nortel O&M
o Ericsson O&M
o Nokia GPRS PCU
o Nortel GPRS PCU
o Ericsson GPRS PCU
GPRS Analysis Results
The GPRS Analysis suite provides a unique set of results
in real time, including:
- Protocol Trace with full message decode and presen-
tation in compact, expanded, and user-designed for-
mats
- Upper layer PDU reassembly
- Filtering system based on a tree view of all major fields
in the protocols, allowing easy and intuitive analysis
- Call Tracing over the Gb interface, based upon IP
address (PDP Context Call Tracing), IMSI or P-TMSI
- Full protocol statistics counters in tabular and graphic
formats, including:
o on Gb Interface: statistics per single DLCI, BVCI,
Base Station System GPRS Protocol (BSSGP),
addresses, and user Traffic per Service, listed by
detected IP. GPRS Tunneling Protocol (GTP) statis-
tics.
o on Gi Interface: statistics on all the TCP/IP and
UDP messages like for the Gn and Gp Interfaces,
plus the statistics for Radius, Dns, Frame Relay or
Point-to-Point Protocol
- Call Details Records (CDR) for each call detected.
CDR are generated over the different GPRS inter-
faces supported by the suite
- Correlation between CDR and Trace for the messages
that make up each call
- CDR forwarding to Centralized Server for post-analy-
sis service reporting
- TCP/IP side:
o Integrated TCP/IP monitor package for the Gb and
Gn/Gp interfaces
o Decoding of the IP/UDP/TCP layers
o Message filtering by port, or by destination or
source IP addresses
- Proprietary protocols support over A-bis interface.
Logical Link Control (LLC), Session Manager (SM),
GPRS Mobile Management (GMM), Sub-Network
Dependent Convergent Protocol (SNDCP),
Network Service Control (NSC), SM and MM
Cause Codes, Calls completion and Cell Calls
analysis.
o on Gs Interface: statistics for Message Transfer
Part 2 and 3 (MTP2-MTP3), Signalling Connection
Control Protocol (SCCP), Base Station System
Application Part +(BSSAP+), Gs Interface Cause
Codes, Location Update Reject Causes.
o on Gr, Gc, Gd, and Gf Interfaces: statistics for
MTP2, MTP3, SCCP, Transfer Control Application
Part (TCAP) including Sessions and Abort Causes,
Mobile Application Part (MAP) including Error
Messages, Short Messages Service (SMS) counters
and traffic distribution.
o on Gn and Gp Interfaces: statistics for IP and
UDP Protocols including ICMP counters, TCP
connections, Services repartition, Total amount
and percentage of User Traffic listed by detected IP
Sunrise Telecom Pro.Tel Division S.r.l.
Via J. Peri, 41, 41100 Modena ITALY
Tel: +39 059 403711 Fax: +39 059 403715
E-mail: info@sunrisetelecom.it
Website: http://www.sunrisetelecom.it/
Sunrise Telecom Incorporated (Headquarters)
302 Enzo Drive, San Jose CA 95138 USA
Tel: +1 408 363 8000 Fax: +1 408 363 8313
E-mail: info@sunrisetelecom.com
Website: http://www.sunrisetelecom.com/
All product and company names are trademarks of their respective corporations.
Specifications subject to change without notice.
Sunrise Telecom Incorporated, 2000-2003.
All rights reserved.
Ordering Information
For GHEPARDO Platform:
GP-GP-Gb Monitor package for the Gb interface
GP-GP-CDR-Gb Adds CDR generation to GP-GPRS-Gb
GP-GP-Gs Monitor package for the Gs interface
GP-GP-Gr Monitor and Statistics for GPRS over Gr, Gc, Gd and
Gf Interfaces (MAP)
GP-GP-CDR-Gr Adds CDR generation to GP-GPRS-Gr
GP-GP-Gn Monitor and Statistics for GPRS and TCP/IP over
Gn/Gp Interface
GP-GP-CDR-Gn Adds CDR generation to GP-GPRS-Gn (GTP con-
nections)
GP-FR-MON Adds Frame Relay Monitor (for Gi)
GP-PPP-MON Adds PPP Monitor (for Gi)
GP-IP-MON Adds IP v.4 Monitor (for Gi)
GP-IPV6-MON Adds IP v.6 Monitor (for Gi)
GP-GSM Monitor and Statistics for GSM A and A-bis inter-
faces
GP-GSM-CDR Adds CDR generation to GP-GSM
GP-O&M-NK Adds Nokia O&M Protocol (1)
GP-O&M-NT Adds Nortel O&M Protocol (1)
GP-O&M-ER Adds Ericsson O&M Protocol (1)
GP-GP-NK Adds Nokia PCU (2)
GP-GP-NT Adds Nortel PCU (2)
GP-GP-ER Adds Ericsson PCU (2)
For 3GMaster Platform:
3GM-GPRS GPRS suite including all the supported Gx Interfaces,
CDR, SS#7-MAP, and IP v.4 support.
3GM-GSM GSM suite including A interface, SS#7 MAP, ISUP,
and CDR
3GM-A-bis-MON Add the monitoring of A-bis interface to 3GM-
GPRS-MON or 3GM-GSM-MON.
3GM-O&M-NK Adds Nokia O&M Protocol (3)
3GM-O&M-NT Adds Nortel O&M Protocol (3)
3GM-O&M-ER Adds Ericsson O&M Protocol (3)
3GM-GP-NK Adds Nokia PCU (3)
3GM-GP-NT Adds Nortel PCU (3)
3GM-GP-ER Adds Ericsson PCU (3)
(1) It requires GP-GSM
(2) It requires GP-GSM and STB-HS
(3) It requires 3GM-A-bis-MON and PAE-E1 or PAE-T1 with STB-HS