What Are The Optimization Tools You Use?

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1. What are the optimization tools you use?

Drive test, analysis, others?

2. Are System Information Blocks (SIB) transmitted all the time?

No, system information block is multiplexed with synchronization channel.


Synchronization channel occupies the first time slot (TS) and SIB occupies the other
9 time slots.

3. How does UE camp (synchronize) to a NodeB?

1. UE uses the primary synchronization channel (P-SCH) for slot alignment (TS
synchronization).

2. After aligning to NodeB time slot, UE then uses secondary synchronization


channel (S-SCH) to obtain frame synchronization and scrambling code group
identification.

3. UE then uses scrambling code ID to obtain CPICH, thus camping to a NodeB.

4. What could be the cause of soft handover failure?

 UE issue.

 Resource unavailable at target NodeB.

 Inadequate SHO threshold defined.

o Etc.

5. What are the three sets in handover?

The 3 sets in handover are:

 Active set – the list of cells which are in soft handover with UE.
 Monitored set – the list of cells not in active set but RNC has told UE to
monitor.

o Detected set – list of cells detected by the UE but not


configured in the neighbor list.

6. What are the major differences between GSM and UMTS handover
decision?

GSM:

 Time-based mobile measures of RxLev and RxQual – mobile sends


measurement report every SACH period (480ms).

o BSC instructs mobile to handover based on these reports.

UMTS:

 Event-triggered reporting – UE sends a measurement report only on


certain event “triggers”.

o UE plays more part in the handover decision.

7. What are the events 1a, 1b, 1c, etc.?

 e1a – a Primary CPICH enters the reporting range, i.e. add a cell to
active set.

 e1b – a primary CPICH leaves the reporting range, i.e. removed a cell
from active set.

 e1c – a non-active primary CPICH becomes better than an active


primary CPICH, i.e. replace a cell.

 e1d: change of best cell.

 e1e: a Primary CPICH becomes better than an absolute threshold.


o e1f: a Primary CPICH becomes worse than an absolute
threshold.

8. What are event 2a-2d and 3a-3d?

Events 2a-2d are for inter-frequency handover measurements and events 3a-3d are
for IRAT handover measurements.

 e3a: the UMTS cell quality has moved below a threshold and a GSM
cell quality had moved above a threshold.

 e3b: the GSM cell quality has moved below a threshold.

 e3c: the GSM cell quality has moved above a threshold.

 e3d: there was a change in the order of best GSM cell list.

9. What may happen when there’s a missing neighbor or an incorrect


neighbor?

 Access failure and handover failure: may attempt to access to a wrong


scrambling code.

 Dropped call: UE not aware of a strong scrambling code, strong


interference.

 Poor data throughput.

 Poor voice quality.

 Etc.

10. What can we try to improve when access failure is high?

When access failure is high we can try the following to improve RACH performance:

 Increase maximum UE transmit power allowed:


Max_allowed_UL_TX_Power.
 Increase power quickly: power_Offset_P0.

 Increase number of preambles sent in a given preamble cycle:


preamble_Retrans_Max.

 Increase the number of preamble cycles: max_Preamble_Cycle.

 Increase number of RRC Connection Request retries: N300.

11. What are the conditions you typically set to trigger IRAT handover?

RSCP and Ec/Io are used to trigger IRAT handover:

 RSCP ≤ -100dBm.

 Ec/Io ≤ -16dBm.

12. What are the typical KPIs you use to measure a network and what
criteria?

 Access failure rate (≤ 2%).

 Call setup time (CS: over 95% of the time < 6-second for mobile-to-
PSTN, 9-second for mobile-mobile. PS: over 95% of the time < 5-second).

 Dropped call rate (≤ 2%).

 BLER: over 95% of the blocks ≤ 2%.

 Average DL/UL throughput for PSD: 210kbps for loaded, 240kbps for
unloaded.

13. What is the typical UE transmit power?

Varies – most of the time below 0dBm.

14. Have your used Ericsson TEMS? If so:

 Do you know how to create command sequence?


 What are the call sequences you typically have? CS long call, CS short
call, PSD call, etc.

 What are the typical commands you have for CS and PS call?

 Do you regularly stop and restart a new log file? Why and when to
stop and start a new file?

 How do you stop a log file? Stop command sequence first, wait and
make sure all equipment are in idle mode before stop logging.

15. Did you work on neighbor prioritization?

16. What is the typical event sequence of IRAT Handover from 3G to 2G

 Event 2d – entering into compressed mode – measurement of 2G


candidates – Event 3a – Verification of 2G resources – Handover from UTRAN
Command from 3G RNC to UE

17. What are the possible causes for an IRAT Failure?

 Missing 2G relations

 Non availability of 2G Resources

 Poor 2G Coverage

 Missing 3G Relations

18. What is Paging Success Ratio? What is the typical PSR that you have
seen in a UMTS network?

 PSR – Paging Responses to the Paging Attempts

 About 90%

19. What are the possible causes for a lower PSR?


 Non-continuous RF Coverage – UE going in and out of coverage area
frequently

 Very High ‘Periodic Location Update Timer’ – Keeping UEs in VLR long
time after it moved out of coverage

 Lower Paging Channel Power

 Access Channel Parameter Issues

 Delayed Location Update when crossing the LA / CN Boundaries

20. What are the possible causes for a Drop Call on a UMTS network?

 Poor Coverage (DL / UL)

 Pilot Pollution / Pilot Spillover

 Missing Neighbor

 SC Collisions

 Delayed Handovers

 No resource availability (Congestion) for Hand in

 Loss of Synchronization

 Fast Fading

 Delayed IRAT Triggers

 Hardware Issues

 External Interference

21. A UE is served by 2 or 3 SC in AS. It is identifying a SC from 3rd tier,


Stronger and meets the criteria for Event1a or Event1c. But SHO did not
happen because of missing neighbor relations? How do you optimize this
issue?

 Study the Pilot spillover from the 3rd Tier SC and control its coverage

 Even after controlling the coverage, if the spillover is there, Add the
neighbor.

22. A UE is served by 2 SC in AS, a SC is coming in to Monitored Set and


Event1a is triggered. But UE is not receiving Active Set Update from NodeB
and the call drops. What could be possible causes for this drop?

 Delayed Handover

 Loss of Synchronization

 Fast Fading

 Pilot Pollution / Spillover issues

23. What is Hard Handover in UMTS? When will it happen?

 Hard Handover in UMTS is a break before make type Handover

 It can happen in the inter RNC boundaries where there is no Iur link.

24. What is the typical Call Setup Time for a 3G UE to 3G UE Call? What are
the possible RF related causes for a delayed CST in this type of call?

 6 to 9 seconds

 Multiple RRC Attempts (UE is on poor coverage – need more than


Access Attempt)

 Delayed Page Responses

 High Load on Paging and/or Access Channel

 Paging / Access Parameters


25. What is Soft Handover Overhead? What is the typical value in UMTS
network?

 Soft Handover Overhead is calculated in two ways. 1) Average Active


Set Size – Total Traffic / Primary Traffic. 2) Secondary / Total Traffic

 Typical Values are like 1.7 (Avg Active Set Size) or 35% (Secondary /
Total )

26. What will happen to the Soft Handover Overhead when you apply OCNS
on the network? And Why?

 With OCNS, the interference (load) increases. This leads to reduction


in Ec/Io of a Pilot, which reduces the pilot spillovers. Reduction in Pilot
Spillover will reduce the Soft Handover Overhead.

27. What are the possible causes for an Access Failure in UMTS?

 Missing Neighbors

 Poor Coverage

 Pilot Pollution / Spillover

 Poor Cell Reselection

 Core Network Issues

 Non – availability of resources. Admission Control denies

 Hardware Issues

 Improper RACH Parameters

 External Interference

28. (FOR ERICSSON EXPERIENCED) What is RTWP? What is the significance


of it?
 Received Total Wide-band Power

 It gives the Total Uplink Power (Interference) level received at NodeB

29. (FOR ERICSSON EXPERIENCED) What is the System Reference Point at


which all the Power Levels are measured in Ericsson NodeB?

 System Ref Point for E/// NodeB is at the output of TMA (Between TMA
and Antenna)

30. What are the typical values for ‘reportingrange1a’ and


‘reportingrange1b’?

 3 dB and 5 dB respectively.

31. What will be the impact when you change ‘reportingrange1a’ from 3 to 4
dB and ‘timetotrigger1a’ 100 to 320 ms, without changing any other
parameters?

 Reduction in number of Event1a

 Delayed Event1a trigger

 Reduction in Average Active Set Size

 Delay in Event1a could increase DL interference, which could lead to a


drop call or increase in Average Power Per User (reduction in cell capacity)

32. What is Admission Control?

 Admission Control is an algorithm which controls the Resource


Allocation for a new call and additional resource allocation for an existing call.
Incase, if a cell is heavily a loaded and enough resources in terms of power,
codes or CEs are not available, admission control denies permission for the
additional resource requirement.

33. What is Congestion Control?


 Congestion Control monitors the dynamic utilization of specific cell
resources and insures that overload conditions do not occur. If overload
conditions do occur, Congestion Control will immediately restrict Admission
Control from granting additional resources. In addition, Congestion Control
will attempt to resolve the congestion by either down switching, or
terminating existing users. Once the congestion is corrected, the congestion
resolution actions will cease, and Admission Control will be enabled.

Related Articles

Drop Analysis in GSM.

1. Radio Link Time-Out

Every time a SACCH message can not be decoded the radio link time-out counter is
decreased by 1. If the message can be decoded the counter is incremented by 2.
However, the value can not exceed the initial value. The initial value is set by the
parameter RLINKT for radio link time-out in the mobile station and by RLINKUP for
timeout in the BSC. If the mobile moves out of coverage and no measurement
reports are received in the BSC, there will be a radio link time-out and the message
Channel Release (cause: abnormal release, unspecified) is sent to the mobile station
and the SACCH is deactivated in the BTS. A Clear Request message is sent to the
MSC. To be sure that the mobile has stopped transmitting, the BSC now waits
RLINKT SACCH periods before the timeslot is released and a new call can be
established on the channel.
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2. Layer 2 Time-Out
If the BTS never get an acknowledge on a Layer 2 message after the time
T200XN200, the BTS will send Error Indication (cause: T200 expired) to the BSC,
which will send Channel Release (cause: abnormal release, timer expired) to the
mobile station and a Clear Request to the MSC. The SACCH is deactivated and the
BSC waits RLINKT SACCH periods before the timeslot is released and a new call can
use the channel. This is only valid if the call is in steady state, i.e. not during
handover or assignment.
3. Release Indication
When the BTS received a layer 2 DISC frame from the mobile it replies with a Layer
2 UA frame to the mobile station and a Release Indication to the BSC. The system
does only react on Release Indication if it is received during a normal disconnection
situation. If such a message is received unexpectedly this will usually cause radio
link time-out or timer T200 expiration as the mobile station stops the transmitting of
measurement reports. It is also possible that the release will be normal depending
on when the Release Indication is received.
4. MSC Time-Out
Normal Release:
If the MSC never received a response on a message (e.g. Identity Request) and
there is no radio link time-out or layer 2 time-out, the MSC will send a Clear
Command to the BSC. The time-out is depending on the message. When receiving
Clear Command, the BSC will send a Channel Release (cause: normal release) and
then deactivates the SACCH.
Reject (only SDCCH):
If the MSC never receives a response on the first message after Establish Indication,
the MSC will send a reject message. If the connection was a Location Update it will
be a Location Update Reject (cause: network failure) and if the connection was a
mobile originating call (CM Service Request) a CM Service Reject (cause: network
failure) will be sent. The MSC will then send a Clear Command to the BSC and the
call is cleared by Channel Release (cause: normal release).

5. Assignment to TCH
Before sending an Assignment Command from the BSC at TCH assignment, the
following two criterion have to be fulfilled:
a. There must be a TCH channel available, i.e. no congestion
b. The locating algorithm must have received at least one valid measurement report.
If either of the criterion is not fulfilled, Assignment Command will not be sent and a
Channel Release (cause: abnormal release, unspecified) will be sent to the mobile
station and a Clear Request to the MSC.
TCH Drop reason (1)
The classification of TCH Drop Reasons are arranged in the order of priority:
1.Excessive Timing Advance
2.Low Signal Strength
3.Bad Quality
4.Sudden Loss of Connection
5.Other Reasons

Excessive Timing Advance


The TCH Drop counters due to Excessive Timing Advance will pegged when the
during the time of disconnection, the last Timing Advance value recorded was higher
than the TALIM Parameter. This drop reason is commonly apparent to isolated or
island sites with a wide coverage area.
Action:
Check if the cell parameter TALIM is < "63"
Solution:
Set TALIM to a value close to 63.
Tilt antenna/reduce antenna height/output power, etc. for co-channel cells.

TCH Drop Reasons (2)


Low Signal Strength on Down or Uplink or Both Links
The drops counters due to Low Signal Strength will be pegged when the Signal
Strength during the last Measurement Report before the call dropped is below the
LOWSSDL and/or LOWSSUL Thresholds. LOWSSDL and LOWSSUL are BSC Exchange
Property parameters which is used only for statistics purposes and does not affect
the behavior of calls. If both UL and DL Signal Strength are below the thresholds,
only Drop due to Low SS BL will pegged. Normally a call is dropped at the border of
large rural cell with insufficient coverage. Bad tunnel coverage cause many dropped
calls as well as so called coverage holes. Bad indoor coverage will result in dropped
calls. Building shadowing could be another reason.
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Action:
Check coverage plots.
Check output power.
Check power balance and link budget.
Check if Omni site.
Check antenna configuration & type.
Check antenna installation.
Perform drive tests & site survey.
Check TRX/TS with high CONERRCNT.

Solution:
Add a repeater to increase coverage in for example a tunnel.
Change to a better antenna (with higher gain) for the base station.
Add a new base station if there are large coverage holes.
Block/Deblock TRX

TCH Drop Reasons (3)


Poor Quality on Down or Uplink or Both Links
The drops counters due to Bad Quality will be pegged when the Signal Strength
during the last Measurement Report before the call dropped is above the BADQDL
and/or BADQUL Thresholds. BADQDL and BADQUL (expressed in DTQU) are BSC
Exchange Property parameters which is used only for statistics purposes and does
not affect the behavior of calls. If both UL and DL Quality are above the thresholds,
only Drop due to BAD Quality BL will pegged.
Problem on Bad Quality is usually associated with Co-channel Interference on BCCH
or TCH. Faulty MAIO assignment can cause frequency collisions on co-sited cells
especially on 1x1 Reuse. External interference is also one possible cause of problem
on quality.
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Action:
Check C/I and C/A plots.
Check Frequency Plan (Co-BCCH or Co-BSIC Problem).
Check MAIO, HOP, HSN parameters.
Check FHOP if correctly configured (BB or SY).
Check for External Interference.
Perform drive tests.

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Solution:
Change BCCH frequency.
Change BSIC.
Change MAIO, HOP, HSN.
Change FHOP.
Record RIR or on-site Frequency Scanning to identify source of interference.
Use available radio features.

TCH Drop Reasons (4)


Sudden Loss of Connection
Drops due to Sudden Loss are drops that have not been registered as low signal
strength, excessive timing advance, bad quality or hardware (other) reasons, and
the locating procedure indicates missing measurement results from the MS.
There are some common scenarios that could lead to Sudden Loss of connections
such as very sudden and severe drops in signal strength, such as when subscribers
enter into buildings, elevators, parking garages, etc., very sudden and severe
occurrence of interference, MS runs out of battery during conversation, Handover
Lost, BTS HW faults, Synchronization or A-bis link fault (transmission faults), and
MS Faults.

Action:
Check BTS Error Logs, Alarms and Fault Codes.
Check CONERRCNT per TRX and TS.
Check Transmission Link (A-bis).
Check for DIP Slips.
Check LAPD Congestion.
Correlate Handover Lost to Drops due to Sudden Loss

Solution:
Fix Hardware Faults and Alarms.
Reset TRX with high CONERRCNT.
Ensure that Synchronization and A-bis Link are stable.
Change RBLT with high DIP Slips.
Change CONFACT or increase Transmission Capacity
Investigate HO Lost Problem
TCH Drop Reasons (5)
TCH Drops due to Other Reasons
TCH drops due to Other Reasons are computed by subtracting the sum of drops due
to Excessive TA, Low SS, Bad Quality and Sudden Loss from the Total TCH Drop
Counts. Drops due to Other Reasons are generally associated with hardware
problems, transmission link problems on A-bis, Ater or Ainterfaces, and sometimes
Handover Lost.

Action:
Check BTS Error Logs.
Check Alarms and Fault Codes.
Check CONERRCNT per TRX and TS.
Check Transmission Link (A-bis).
Check for DIP Slips.
Correlate Handover Lost to Drops due to Other Reasons

Solution:
Fix Hardware Faults and Alarms.
Reset TRX with high CONERRCNT.
Ensure that Synchronization and A-bis Link are stable.
Change RBLT with high DIP Slips.
Investigate HO Lost Problem

Problem reason of drop in SDCCH

Low Signal Strength on Down or Uplink


The reason for poor coverage could be too few sites, wrong output power,
shadowing, no indoor coverage or network equipment failure.
Action: Check coverage plots.Check output power. Perform drive tests. Check BTS
error log
Solution: Add new sites. Increase output power. Repair faulty equipment.

Poor Quality on Down or Uplink


Action: Check C/I and C/A plots. Check frequency plan. Perform drive tests.
Solution: Change frequency. Use available radio features.

Too High Timing Advance


Action: Check if the cell parameter TALIM is < style="font-weight: bold;">Solution:
Set TALIM to a value close to 63. Tilt antenna/reduce antenna height/output power,
etc. for cochannel cells.

Mobile Error
Some old mobiles may cause dropped calls if certain radio network features are
used. Another reason is that the MS is damaged and not working properly.
Action: Check MS fleet.
Solution: Inform operator.

Subscriber Behavior
Poorly educated subscribers could use their handsets incorrectly by not raising
antennas, choosing illadvised locations to attempt calls, etc.
Action: Check customer complaints and their MS.

Battery Flaw
When a subscriber runs out of battery during a conversation, the call will be
registered as dropped call due to low signal strength or others.
Action: Check if MS power regulation is used. Check if DTX uplink is used.

Congestion on TCH
The SDCCH is dropped when congestion on TCH.
Action: Check TCH congestion
Solution: Increase capacity on TCH or using features like Assignment to another
cell, Cell Load Sharing, HCS, Dynamic Half-Rate Allocation and FR-HR Mode
Adaptation etc

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hsdpa-2590745

RTWP : Receive Total Wideband Power, reflects the total noise level within the UMTS
frequency band of one single cell.
Phenomenon Description : In project V in country B, when a single site is tested, the
HSUPA throughput in many cells cannot reach the required value (more than 500 kbps).
Alarm Information : The alarm RRU Rx Branch RTWP Difference Too High is
raised in some cells.
Cause Analysis : We suspected the RTWP was improper. The analysis is as follows:
HSUPA scheduling is based on the RTWP. The baseline value is –105.9 dBm, and no
interference exists by default. If any interference or other cause leads to the improper
RTWP, the HSUPA throughput is affected.
Handling Process :
1. We checked the RTWP in the cell with an improper HSUPA throughput on the RNC
LMT or NodeB LMT. The main branch and diversity branch are displayed on the NodeB
LMT, and the combination of the main branch and diversity branch is displayed on the
RNC LMT.
2. If the RTWP is greater than –100 dBm, we can basically determine the RWTP causes
the improper HSUPA throughput. If the RTWP is proper, we can, according to the related
guide, find other causes such as parameter configuration, cell state, and transmission
configuration.
3. When the RTWP is greater than –100 dBm, the HSUPA throughput is improper. The
cause is analyzed as follows: According to the current baseline configuration, the
maximum uplink target load is 75%, that is, a rise of 6 dB is allowed for the
background noise. The current baseline of the background noise is 61, the corresponding
RTWP is –105.9 dBm (–112 + 61/10).
Considering a rise of 6 dB, the RTWP is –99.9 dBm. That is, the RTWP reaches the
maximum threshold when no UE is accessed. The LST CELLCAC command can be used
to view the BackgroundNoise value.
4. After confirming the improper RTWP causes a low HUSPA throughput, we enabled the
automatic update switch for background noise with the command: MOD CELLCAC:
CellId=11111, BGNSwitch=ON; This function can automatically update the background
noise in a period every day, for example, 1:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. (default value). If the
RTWP is proper before, the automatic update switch for background noise can be enabled
to solve the problem.
5. If the problem is not solved after the automatic update switch for background noise is
enabled, to avoid affecting the project progress or acceptance, the following temporary
solution can be used to ensure that the acceptance of a single site is passed. The
fundamental cause for the problem is that the actual background noise differs from the
configured one. Therefore, it is necessary to manually set them to the same value.
The procedure is as follows:
1) Track the RTWP in the current cell at the RNC to obtain the current RTWP, for
example, CurrentRTWP.
Modify the background noise in the current cell with the following command:
MOD CELLCAC: CellId=11111, BackgroundNoise=(CurrentRTWP+112)*10;
Disable the automatic update switch for background noise.
2) After modification, test the HUSPA throughput at the place near to the cell. Generally,
the problem can be solved.
3) After testing, modify the background noise to the baseline value and enable the
automatic update switch for background noise.
The purpose of the temporary solution is to ensure that the acceptance of a single site can
be passed. The solution for an improper RTWP is the most fundamental, but it usually
takes a very long time.
Suggestions and Summary : After the preceding solution is applied to project V, the
HSUPA throughput is proper.
In practice, some causes may lead to an improper RTWP that affects the HSUPA
throughput. The preceding solution is applicable to such problem.

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