A GSM network is composed of several functional entities, whose functions and interfaces are specified.

Figure 1 shows the layout of a generic GSM network. The GSM network can be divided into three broad
parts. The Mobile Station is carried by the subscriber. The Base Station Subsystem controls the radio link
with the Mobile Station. The Network Subsystem, the main part of which is the Mobile services
Switching Center (MSC), performs the switching of calls between the mobile users, and between mobile
and fixed network users. The MSC also handles the mobility management operations. The Mobile Station
and the Base Station Subsystem communicate across the Um interface, also known as the air interface or
radio link. The Base Station Subsystem communicates with the Mobile services Switching Center across
the A interface.

1. Mobile Station
The mobile station (MS) consists of the mobile equipment (the terminal) and a smart card called
the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM). The SIM provides personal mobility, so that the user can
have access to subscribed services irrespective of a specific terminal. By inserting the SIM card
into another GSM terminal, the user is able to receive calls at that terminal, make calls from that
terminal, and receive other subscribed services.
The mobile equipment is uniquely identified by the International Mobile Equipment Identity
(IMEI). The SIM card contains the International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) used to
identify the subscriber to the system, a secret key for authentication, and other information. The
IMEI and the IMSI are independent, thereby allowing personal mobility. The SIM card may be
protected against unauthorized use by a password or personal identity number.

2. Base Station Subsystem

The Base Station Subsystem is composed of two parts, the Base Transceiver Station (BTS) and the
Base Station Controller (BSC). These communicate across the standardized Abis interface,
allowing (as in the rest of the system) operation between components made by different suppliers.
The BSS consists of the base transreceiver station (BTS), base station controller (BSC) and
transcoder sub-multiplexer (TCSM). The latter is sometimes physically located at the MSC.

Hence the BSC also has three standardized interfaces to the fixed network, namely Abis, A
and X.25
(i)BTS( Base Transceiver Station):
It houses the radio transceivers that define a cell and handles the radio-link protocols with the
Mobile Station. In a large urban area, there will potentially be a large number of BTSs deployed,
thus the requirements for a BTS are ruggedness, reliability, portability, and minimum cost.
This manages the interface between the network and the mobile station. Hence, it performs
the important function of acting as a hub for the whole of the network infrastructure.
Mobile terminals are linked to the BTS through the air-interface. Transmission and reception
at the BTS with the mobile is done via omnidirectional or directional antennas (usually
having 120-degree sectors). The major functions of the base station are transmission of signals in
the desired format, coding and decoding of the signals, countering the effects of
multi-path transmission by using equalization algorithms, encryption of the data streams,
measurements of quality and received signal power, and operation and management of the
base station equipment itself.

The main configurations of equipments inside the

BTS are:
1. Main Processor Unit
2. Clock Source
3. Interface Unit
4. Base band Unit
5. Power Supply Unit
6. RF Unit
7. Antenna
Main Processor Unit
The functions of this unit are as a brain for the BTS:
1. BTS initialization and self-testing
2. Configuration
3. O&M signaling
4. Software download
5.
Collection
and
management
of
external
and
internal
alarms
Clock Source Unit
The basic function of this unit is like a heart for the BTS: > Deliver a stable clocking
pulse
to
all
digital
equipment
inside
BTS.
Interface Unit
Interface unit have function to translate between Source data which has specific Electrical
Standard (E1, T1 or IP) to digital data and this data will deliver to other digital unit to be
next
processed
Base Band Unit

In the base band unit, the digital data will be processed and following the GSM standard,
this unit creates a data which ready to be feed to RF Unit.
Power Supply Unit
The basic function of power supply unit is like a stomach for the BTS which produce a
power for whole equipments in the BTS. With input the AC voltage like food in the
human and produce DC voltage as a power. Power consumption of 1 Macro Outdoor BTS
which
have
6
Transceivers
Unit
is
around
1500
Watt.
RF Unit
RF Unit converts the digital signal to Radio Frequency --RF-- Signal (air interface signal)
following the GSM Standard. This signal type is still as an electrical signal.
Antenna
Unit
Antenna as a traditional unit, have a function to convert electrical signal to electromagnetic
signal. This unit is very important unit for creating cell dimension. Combination of
horizontal - vertical polarization, antenna height and antenna tilting influence the radiation
pattern of cell.
(ii)Base Station Controller (BSC):
This controls the radio subsystem, especially the base stations. The major functions of the
base station controller include management of the radio resources and handover. It is also
responsible for control of the power transmitted, and it manages the O&M and its signaling,
security configurations and alarms.
The Base Station Controller manages the radio resources for one or more BTSs. It handles radiochannel setup, frequency hopping, and handovers. The BSC is the connection between the mobile
station and the Mobile service Switching Center (MSC).

3. Network Subsystem
The central component of the Network Subsystem is the Mobile services Switching Center (MSC).
It acts like a normal switching node of the PSTN or ISDN, and additionally provides all the
functionality needed to handle a mobile subscriber, such as registration, authentication, location
updating, handovers, and call routing to a roaming subscriber. The MSC provides the connection to
the fixed networks (such as the PSTN or ISDN). Signaling between functional entities in the
Network Subsystem uses Signaling System Number 7 (SS7), used for trunk signaling in ISDN and
widely used in current public networks.
The Home Location Register (HLR) and Visitor Location Register (VLR), together with the MSC,
provide the call-routing and roaming capabilities of GSM.
(i)Home Location Register (HLR):
The HLR contains the information related to each mobile subscriber, such as the type
of subscription, services that the user can use, the subscriber's current location and the
mobile equipment status. The database in the HLR remains intact and unchanged until the
termination of the subscription.
The HLR contains all the administrative information of each subscriber registered in the
corresponding GSM network, along with the current location of the mobile. The location of the
mobile is typically in the form of the signaling address of the VLR associated with the mobile
station. There is logically one HLR per GSM network, although it may be implemented as a
distributed database.

(ii)Visitor Location Register (VLR)

The VLR comes into action once the subscriber enters the coverage region. Unlike the
HLR, the VLR is dynamic in nature and interacts with the HLR when recoding the data of a
particular mobile subscriber. When the subscriber moves to another region, the database
of the subscriber is also shifted to the VLR of the new region.
The Visitor Location Register (VLR) contains selected administrative information from the HLR,
necessary for call control and provision of the subscribed services, for each mobile currently
located in the geographical area controlled by the VLR. The geographical area controlled by the
MSC corresponds to that controlled by the VLR.
Note that the MSC contains no information about particular mobile stations this information is
stored in the location registers.
The other two registers are used for authentication and security purposes.
(iii)Equipment Identity Register (EIR):
Each item of mobile equipment has its own personal identification, which is denoted by
a number - the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI). The number is installed
during the manufacture of the equipment and states its conformation to the GSM standards.
Whenever a call is made, the network checks the identity number; if this number is not
found on the approved list of authorised equipment, access is denied. The EIR contains this
list of authorised numbers and allows the IMEI to be verified.
The Equipment Identity Register (EIR) is a database that contains a list of all valid mobile
equipment on the network, where each mobile station is identified by its International Mobile
Equipment Identity (IMEI). An IMEI is marked as invalid if it has been reported stolen or is not
type approved.
(iv)Authentication Center (AuC):
The AUC (or AC) is responsible for policing actions in the network. This has all the
data required to protect the network against false subscribers and to protect the calls of
regular subscribers. There are two major keys in the GSM standards: the encryption of
communications between mobile users, and the authentication of the users. The encryption
keys are held both in the mobile equipment and the AUC and the information is protected
against unauthorised access.
The Authentication Center (AuC) is a protected database that stores a copy of the secret key stored
in each subscriber's SIM card, which is used for authentication and encryption over the radio
channel

Operation and Support Subsystem (OSS):

The OSS or operation support subsystem is an element within the overall GSM network architecture that
is connected to components of the NSS and the BSC. It is used to control and monitor the overall GSM
network and it is also used to control the traffic load of the BSS. It must be noted that as the number of
BS increases with the scaling of the subscriber population some of the maintenance tasks are transferred
to the BTS, allowing savings in the cost of ownership of the system.

The network structure is defined within the GSM standards. Additionally each interface between
the different elements of the GSM network is also defined. This facilitates the information
interchanges can take place. It also enables to a large degree that network elements from
different manufacturers can be used. However as many of these interfaces were not fully defined

until after many networks had been deployed, the level of standardization may not be quite as
high as many people might like.
1. Um interface The "air" or radio interface standard that is used for exchanges between a
mobile (ME) and a base station (BTS / BSC). For signaling, a modified version of the
ISDN LAPD, known as LAPDm is used.
2. Abis interface This is a BSS internal interface linking the BSC and a BTS, and it has not
been totally standardized. The Abis interface allows control of the radio equipment and
radio frequency allocation in the BTS.
3. A interface The A interface is used to provide communication between the BSS and the
MSC. The interface carries information to enable the channels, timeslots and the like to
be allocated to the mobile equipments being serviced by the BSSs. The messaging
required within the network to enable handover etc to be undertaken is carried over the
interface.
4. B interface The B interface exists between the MSC and the VLR . It uses a protocol
known as the MAP/B protocol. As most VLRs are collocated with an MSC, this makes
the interface purely an "internal" interface. The interface is used whenever the MSC
needs access to data regarding a MS located in its area.
5. C interface The C interface is located between the HLR and a GMSC or a SMS-G.
When a call originates from outside the network, i.e. from the PSTN or another mobile
network it ahs to pass through the gateway so that routing information required to
complete the call may be gained. The protocol used for communication is MAP/C, the
letter "C" indicating that the protocol is used for the "C" interface. In addition to this, the
MSC may optionally forward billing information to the HLR after the call is completed
and cleared down.
6. D interface The D interface is situated between the VLR and HLR. It uses the MAP/D
protocol to exchange the data related to the location of the ME and to the management of
the subscriber.
7. E interface The E interface provides communication between two MSCs. The E
interface exchanges data related to handover between the anchor and relay MSCs using
the MAP/E protocol.
8. F interface The F interface is used between an MSC and EIR. It uses the MAP/F
protocol. The communications along this interface are used to confirm the status of the
IMEI of the ME gaining access to the network.
9. G interface The G interface interconnects two VLRs of different MSCs and uses the
MAP/G protocol to transfer subscriber information, during e.g. a location update
procedure.
10. H interface The H interface exists between the MSC the SMS-G. It transfers short
messages and uses the MAP/H protocol.
11. I interface The I interface can be found between the MSC and the ME. Messages
exchanged over the I interface are relayed transparently through the BSS.
Although the interfaces for the GSM cellular system may not be as rigorously defined as many
might like, they do at least provide a large element of the definition required, enabling the
functionality of GSM network entities to be defined sufficiently.

GSM signal and GMSK modulation characteristics

The core of any radio based system is the format of the radio signal itself. The carrier is
modulated using a form of phase sift keying known as Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying
(GMSK). GMSK was used for the GSM system for a variety of reasons:
It is resilient to noise when compared to many other forms of modulation.
Radiation outside the accepted bandwidth is lower than other forms of phase shift keying.
It has a constant power level which allows higher efficiency RF power amplifiers to be
used in the handset, thereby reducing current consumption and conserving battery life.
GMSK, Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying is a form of phase modulation that is used in a
number of portable radio and wireless applications. It has advantages in terms of spectral
efficiency as well as having almost constant amplitude which allows for the use of more efficient
transmitter power amplifiers, thereby saving on current consumption, a critical issue for battery
power equipment.
The nominal bandwidth for the GSM signal using GMSK is 200 kHz, i.e. the channel bandwidth
and spacing is 200 kHz. As GMSK modulation has been used, the unwanted or spurious
emissions outside the nominal bandwidth are sufficiently low to enable adjacent channels to be
used from the same base station. Typically each base station will be allocated a number of
carriers to enable it to achieve the required capacity.
The data transported by the carrier serves up to eight different users under the basic system by
splitting the carrier into eight time slots. The basic carrier is able to support a data throughput of
approximately 270 kbps, but as some of this supports the management overhead, the data rate
allotted to each time slot is only 24.8 kbps. In addition to this error correction is required to
overcome the problems of interference, fading and general data errors that may occur. This
means that the available data rate for transporting the digitally encoded speech is 13 kbps for the
basic vocoders.

3G UMTS / WCDMA network architecture including the User Equipment - UE -, the Radio Network
Subsystem, and the Core Network.

3G UMTS / WCDMA Network Architecture

3G UMTS / WCDMA network architecture including the User Equipment - UE -, the Radio
Network Subsystem, and the Core Network.
The UMTS 3G architecture is required to provide a greater level of performance to that of the
original GSM network. However as many networks had migrated through the use of GPRS and
EDGE, they already had the ability to carry data. Accordingly many of the elements required for
the WCDMA / UMTS network architecture were seen as a migration. This considerably reduced
the cost of implementing the UMTS network as many elements were in place or needed
upgrading.
With one of the major aims of UMTS being to be able to carry data, the UMTS network
architecture was designed to enable a considerable improvement in data performance over that
provided for GSM.

3G UMTS network constituents

The UMTS network architecture can be divided into three main elements:
1. User Equipment (UE): The User Equipment or UE is the name given to what was previous
termed the mobile, or cellphone. The new name was chosen because the considerably greater
functionality that the UE could have. It could also be anything between a mobile phone used for
talking to a data terminal attached to a computer with no voice capability.

2. Radio Network Subsystem (RNS): The RNS also known as the UMTS Radio Access Network,
UTRAN, is the equivalent of the previous Base Station Subsystem or BSS in GSM. It provides and
manages the air interface fort he overall network.
3. Core Network: The core network provides all the central processing and management for the
system. It is the equivalent of the GSM Network Switching Subsystem or NSS.

The core network is then the overall entity that interfaces to external networks including the
public phone network and other cellular telecommunications networks.

UMTS Network Architecture Overview

User Equipment, UE

The USER Equipment or UE is a major element of the overall 3G UMTS network architecture. It
forms the final interface with the user. In view of the far greater number of applications and
facilities that it can perform, the decision was made to call it a user equipment rather than a
mobile. However it is essentially the handset (in the broadest terminology), although having
access to much higher speed data communications, it can be much more versatile, containing
many more applications. It consists of a variety of different elements including RF circuitry,
processing, antenna, battery, etc.
There are a number of elements within the UE that can be described separately:

UE RF circuitry: The RF areas handle all elements of the signal, both for the receiver and for the
transmitter. One of the major challenges for the RF power amplifier was to reduce the power
consumption. The form of modulation used for W-CDMA requires the use of a linear amplifier.
These inherently take more current than non linear amplifiers which can be used for the form of
modulation used on GSM. Accordingly to maintain battery life, measures were introduced into
many of the designs to ensure the optimum efficiency.
Baseband processing: The base-band signal processing consists mainly of digital circuitry. This
is considerably more complicated than that used in phones for previous generations. Again this
has been optimised to reduce the current consumption as far as possible.
Battery: While current consumption has been minimised as far as possible within the circuitry
of the phone, there has been an increase in current drain on the battery. With users expecting
the same lifetime between charging batteries as experienced on the previous generation
phones, this has necessitated the use of new and improved battery technology. Now Lithium Ion
(Li-ion) batteries are used. These phones to remain small and relatively light while still retaining
or even improving the overall life between charges.
Universal Subscriber Identity Module, USIM: The UE also contains a SIM card, although in the
case of UMTS it is termed a USIM (Universal Subscriber Identity Module). This is a more
advanced version of the SIM card used in GSM and other systems, but embodies the same types
of information. It contains the International Mobile Subscriber Identity number (IMSI) as well as
the Mobile Station International ISDN Number (MSISDN). Other information that the USIM holds
includes the preferred language to enable the correct language information to be displayed,
especially when roaming, and a list of preferred and prohibited Public Land Mobile Networks
(PLMN).

The USIM also contains a short message storage area that allows messages to stay with the user
even when the phone is changed. Similarly "phone book" numbers and call information of the
numbers of incoming and outgoing calls are stored.

The UE can take a variety of forms, although the most common format is still a version of a
"mobile phone" although having many data capabilities. Other broadband dongles are also being
widely used.

3G UMTS Radio Network Subsystem

This is the section of the 3G UMTS / WCDMA network that interfaces to both the UE and the
core network. The overall radio access network, i.e. collectively all the Radio Network
Subsystem is known as the UTRAN UMTS Radio Access Network.
The radio network subsystem is also known as the UMTS Radio Access Network or UTRAN.

3G UMTS Core Network

The 3G UMTS core network architecture is a migration of that used for GSM with further
elements overlaid to enable the additional functionality demanded by UMTS.
In view of the different ways in which data may be carried, the UMTS core network may be split
into two different areas:

Circuit switched elements: These elements are primarily based on the GSM network entities
and carry data in a circuit switched manner, i.e. a permanent channel for the duration of the
call.
Packet switched elements: These network entities are designed to carry packet data. This
enables much higher network usage as the capacity can be shared and data is carried as packets
which are routed according to their destination.

Some network elements, particularly those that are associated with registration are shared by
both domains and operate in the same way that they did with GSM.

UMTS Core Network

Circuit switched elements

The circuit switched elements of the UMTS core network architecture include the following
network entities:

Mobile switching centre (MSC): This is essentially the same as that within GSM, and it manages
the circuit switched calls under way.
Gateway MSC (GMSC): This is effectively the interface to the external networks.

Packet switched elements

The packet switched elements of the 3G UMTS core network architecture include the following
network entities:

Serving GPRS Support Node (SGSN): As the name implies, this entity was first developed when
GPRS was introduced, and its use has been carried over into the UMTS network architecture.
The SGSN provides a number of functions within the UMTS network architecture.
o Mobility management When a UE attaches to the Packet Switched domain of the
UMTS Core Network, the SGSN generates MM information based on the mobile's
current location.
o Session management: The SGSN manages the data sessions providing the required
quality of service and also managing what are termed the PDP (Packet data Protocol)
contexts, i.e. the pipes over which the data is sent.
o Interaction with other areas of the network: The SGSN is able to manage its elements
within the network only by communicating with other areas of the network, e.g. MSC
and other circuit switched areas.
o Billing: The SGSN is also responsible billing. It achieves this by monitoring the flow of
user data across the GPRS network. CDRs (Call Detail Records) are generated by the
SGSN before being transferred to the charging entities (Charging Gateway Function,
CGF).
Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN): Like the SGSN, this entity was also first introduced into
the GPRS network. The Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN) is the central element within the
UMTS packet switched network. It handles inter-working between the UMTS packet switched
network and external packet switched networks, and can be considered as a very sophisticated
router. In operation, when the GGSN receives data addressed to a specific user, it checks if the
user is active and then forwards the data to the SGSN serving the particular UE.

Shared elements
The shared elements of the 3G UMTS core network architecture include the following network
entities:

Home location register (HLR): This database contains all the administrative information about
each subscriber along with their last known location. In this way, the UMTS network is able to
route calls to the relevant RNC / Node B. When a user switches on their UE, it registers with the
network and from this it is possible to determine which Node B it communicates with so that
incoming calls can be routed appropriately. Even when the UE is not active (but switched on) it
re-registers periodically to ensure that the network (HLR) is aware of its latest position with their
current or last known location on the network.
Equipment identity register (EIR): The EIR is the entity that decides whether a given UE
equipment may be allowed onto the network. Each UE equipment has a number known as the
International Mobile Equipment Identity. This number, as mentioned above, is installed in the
equipment and is checked by the network during registration.
Authentication centre (AuC) : The AuC is a protected database that contains the secret key also
contained in the user's USIM card.