LTE EPC Overview

Prepared by:
Samsung
Approved by:
RJIL
 Course Name: EPC Overview
Course Objective Who should attend
This module will enable participants Core, NOC & eNodeB Engineers
to understand Samsung LTE EPC Pre-Requisite
Network elements, System  Has undergone LTE technology
Overview course.
Dimensioning & Configuration,  Basic understanding of 2G/3G core
Network identities. network.

Morning Session (10:30am to 1:30pm) Afternoon Session (2:30pm to 5:30pm)

LTE System Overview Samsung EPC System
•Evolution of Cellular Networks •Samsung EPC specifications and structural
•Comparison – 2G, 3G & LTE shapes

Lunch break
•LTE Network Architecture •Samsung EPC System Configuration
•Self-Organizing Networks •Samsung MME Specifications and
Day 1 •EPS Bearer Dimensioning
•Quality of Service •Samsung MME Modules : LENA, LEMA,LESA
•State Model in MME •Samsung SAE-GW Specifications & Dimension
ing
•Samsung SGW Modules: LENA, LEMA, LEDA
•Redundancy Structure
 Good to know
Keep your mobile phone in the silent mode during the session

Need to sign attendance sheet at the start and end of each day

At the end of each training pre and post test will be conducted

Stick to break timings

Your valuable feedback will be taken at the end to enhance training experience

For logistics support contact the co-ordinator

 Agenda (1)
LTE System Overview
 Evolution of Cellular Networks
 Comparison – 2G, 3G & LTE
 LTE Network Architecture
 Self-Organizing Networks
 EPS Bearer
 Quality of Service (QoS)
 State Model in MME
 Mobility Management
 Connection Management
 Agenda (2)
Samsung EPC System
 Samsung EPC structural features and functions
 Samsung EPC specifications and structural shapes
 Samsung EPC System Configuration
 Samsung MME Specifications & Dimensioning
 Samsung MME Modules
 LENA
 LEMA
 LESA
 Samsung SAE-GW Specifications & Dimensioning
 Samsung SAE-GW Modules
 LENA
 LEMA
 LEDA
 Redundancy Structure
LTE Overview
 Evolution of Cellular Networks

Packet core
Packet switched
data
Peak data
rates
Circuit switched
voice support

1G

1980s 1990s Late 90s 2000 2003 2008 2010 onwards

 Comparison: 2G, 3G and LTE
Features GSM / GPRS / EDGE WCDMA / HSPA LTE

Multiple Access FDMA + TDMA CDMA OFDMA

Carrier Bandwidth 200 KHz 5 MHz 1.4 - 20 MHz

GSM 9.6 Kbps WCDMA 2 Mbps

LTE 100 Mbps
Peak Data Rate GPRS 144 Kbps HSPA 14 Mbps
LTE-A 1Gbps
EDGE 384 Kbps HSPA+ 42 Mbps

Transmission Time WCDMA 10 ms

EDGE 20ms 1ms
Interval (TTI) HSPA 2ms

Latency (user plane) ~120 ms ~40 ms ~<20 ms

QPSK, 16-QAM, QPSK, 16-QAM,

Modulation schemes GMSK, 8-PSK
64-QAM 64-QAM

Access Network BTS + BSC NodeB + RNC eNodeB

CS – MSC, GMSC CS – MSC, GMSC PS – MME, S-GW,

Core Network
PS – SGSN, GGSN PS – SGSN, GGSN P-GW

Voice & Video Calls CS CS PS

 Comparison: 2G, 3G and LTE Architectures
PSTN IP IP

GMSC GGSN

Core
Network
MSC SGSN
• Single-node access
network
• Completely PS network
•Separate user and control
BSC / RNC
planes

Access
Network • Controller node in access
network
• Separate CS and PS cores eNodeB
BTS / NodeB
• Combined user and
GSM / WCDMA control planes LTE
LTE Network Architecture
 LTE Architecture Philosophy
Single node e-UTRAN

Packet based while supporting real

IP Cloud time conversational traffic

Minimize number of interfaces

Minimizes single points of failure

EPC
Supports end-to-end QoS

Supports QoS differentiation

eUTRAN between control, user and O&M
traffic

Flat architecture

Supports interworking with a variety

of wireless networks
 LTE Network
External 3GPP Core
EPC Network
E-UTRAN

S3
S6a
S4
X2
S10
eNodeB S1-MME

Uu OCS
Gx Gy
S11

eNodeB
S1-U S5 / S8
Gz
OFCS
SGi
Combined into
SAE - GW PDN
eNodeB
RRM functions
 Radio Bearer Control
 Radio Admission Control
 Connection Mobility Control
 Dynamic resource allocation UL
& DL

IP header compression and

encryption of user data

Selection of MME at UE
attachment

Measurements for mobility

Scheduling and transmission of

paging and broadcast
 Samsung eNodeB: DU & RRU

RRU
CPRI

DU
UAMA Card L9CA Card
 Samsung Smart Scheduler
Uses general purpose hardware
platform – IBM BladeCenter HT
Chassis and HS23 Blade server

LSM Implemented in software by

General Purpose Processor
(GPP)
SC1

Minimizes inter-cell interference

X2
SC1 Improves cell-edge throughput

Centralized management for

multiple eNB’s

10 blades per server support

total 2880 cells
LTE/EPC Structural Features and Functions
 LTE Network Architecture
LTE EPC Entities:
 MME (Mobility Management Entity)
 S-GW (Serving Gateway)
 P-GW (Packet Gateway)

External 3GPP
E-UTRAN EPC Core Network

S3
S6a S4
S10
X2
eNodeB S1-MME OCS
Uu Gx Gy
S11
eNodeB
S1-U S5 / S8
Gz OFCS
SGi

Combined into PDN

SAE - GW
 Mobility Management Entity(MME) Functions
Control plane Network Element in EPC
S1-AP (S1 Application Protocol) and
NAS (Non Access Stratum) signalling
UE Authentication & IMEI Check
Inter CN node signaling for mobility
between 3GPP access networks (S3) S6a

Location registration and Paging for

Idle mode UE
NE selection Gx
S11
PDN GW, Serving GW selection
MME selection for handovers with MME S5 / S8
change
SGSN selection for handovers to 2G or 3G
access network
Intra MME S1 handover (X2 not available)
Roaming for interworking HSS (S6a
interface)
Interworking for Non-3GPP network
Bearer Activation during Attach
 S-GW Functions
Interfacing E-UTRAN for bearer

Local mobility anchor point: Switching

the user plane path to a new eNB in
case of Handover S6a

Mobility anchoring for inter-3GPP

mobility. This is sometimes referred to Gx
as the 3GPP Anchor function S11

S5 / S8
Idle Mode Packet Buffering and
notification to MME

Packet Routing/Forwarding between

eNB, PDN GW and SGSN

Lawful Interception support

 P-GW Functions
Mobility anchor for mobility between
3GPP access systems and non-3GPP
access systems. This is sometimes
referred to as the SAE Anchor function

IP Address Allocation for UE

S6a

Policy Enforcement (PCEF)

 PCRF interworking and Policy / Charging
control Gx
S11
Per user based L7 Packet Filtering (i.e.
S5 / S8
deep packet inspection) and Http Header
Enrichment (HHE)

Charging & Billing

Packet Routing/Forwarding between

Serving GW and external Data Network

Lawful Interception support

Packet screening (firewall functionality)

 HSS Functions
HSS (Home Subscriber Server)

The HSS is a central database that

contains user-related and subscription-
S6a
related information.

User security information generation Gx

S11

S5 / S8
The HSS is a super HLR that combined
legacy HLR, AuC and EIR functions
together for CS and PS domains.

HSS is non-SAMSUNG product in RJIL

4G project.
 R4G Network Schematic
AG-3

AG-2

AG-1
 Transport Network Hierarchy

AG3 AG3 A pair of AG3 routers per site

AG2 AG2 Up to 16 pairs of AG2 routers

Dual-homing with AG3 routers

AG1 AG1
Up to 10 AG1 rings
Up to 4 AG1 routers in a ring
AG1 AG1
eNB CSR Dual-homed ring with AG2 routers
CSR
CSR CSR Up to 4 CSR rings
eNB Up to 5 (fiber) or 4 (MW or fiber + MV)
AG2 node
eNB eNBs per ring
eNB CSR and eNB
Dual-homed with AG1 routers
 R4G Network Deployment Quantification
Mumbai Delhi
IPSM /
SMSC IMS Apps NW IVR MNP GW MNP GW NW
NPIVRGW IMS Apps IPSM / SMSC
Zones NP GW
Content
OCS Self Care OSS Content Mgmt OCS
( 2) eSMLC /
Mgmt

LIM - BE GMLC OCS eSMLC / GMLC

West (Mumbai) South (Chennai) North (Delhi) East (Kolkata)

DNS/ENU DNS/ENU DNS/ENU DNS/ENU
HSS M HSS M HSS M HSS M

DRA MGCF DRA MGCF DRA MGCF DRA MGCF

Regions
PCRF IMS Core PCRF IMS Core PCRF IMS Core PCRF IMS Core
(4)
Ld Bal. NPDB Ld Bal. NPDB Ld Bal. NPDB Ld Bal. NPDB
AAA / AAA / AAA / AAA /
TAS/OTM TAS/OTM TAS/OTM TAS/OTM
PS PS PS PS

LSM R/C eMBMS GW NIMS

EPC
( 18) SAE GW MME BMSC MCE L4/L7 DPI
NIMS
LIM FE L2 SW IBR SBC MRF WAG

Circles
MGW RAN Scheduler eNodeB
( 22)

Legend EPC IMS EPC++ Wi-Fi Supporting OSS/BSS RAN

Zonal & Regional Level Nodes will work in Active- Active (Load sharing) mode
 Summary
LTE architecture is completely IP based

Single node eUTRAN

Evolved Packet Core consists of MME, S-GW & P-GW

MME performs all control plane core functions

S-GW is the local mobility anchor. Facilitates inter-3GPP handovers

P-GW assigns IP address and applies policy and QoS

SAE GW consists of S-GW & P-GW

 Quiz
Which entity allocates IP address for UE?

• MME
• S-GW
• P-GW
• PCRF

_____ establishes a connection between the UE and EPC

• S-GW
• P-GW
• MME

UE Authentication is done by

• S-GW
• MME
• P-GW
Self-Organizing Networks
 Motivations for SON

• Reduce manual intervention

Automate Routine • Reduce scope for error
Processes • Reduce operational expenses
• e.g. Self-Configuration

• Too fast and / or too complex to be done

manually
Automate Difficult • Near real-time and accurate actions
Processes
• Improves performance and operations
• e.g. Self-Optimization
 Samsung eNodeB Self-Establishment
2) Acquire configuration
from LSM

DHCP LSM
1) Acquire eNB & LSM
IP from DHCP server

Backhaul MME
Network
eNodeB

3) Configure VLAN’s for

a) S1-C b)S1-U & X2 SAE
GW

eNodeB
Samsung eNodeB Self-Establishment (Continued)

DHCP LSM

4) Establish S1-C

Backhaul MME
Network
eNodeB

6) Establish X2 SAE
GW

5) Establish S1-U
eNodeB
EPS Bearer
 EPS Bearer Overview
EPS is a connection-oriented transmission network and, as such, it requires the
establishment of a “virtual” connection between two endpoints (e.g. a UE and
a PDN-GW)

This virtual connection is called an “EPS Bearer”

It provides a “bearer service”, i.e. a transport service with specific QoS

attributes.

MME
Internet
(PDN)
((( (( ( EPS Bearer
S-GW P-GW

eNodeB
 Types of EPS Bearers
• Established along
with a new PDN
connection and
active for the
Default lifetime of the PDN
bearer connection
• Always a non-GBR
bearer

Default Bearer

Dedicated Bearer
UE • Additional EPS
bearer that may be
Dedicated activated based on
EPC demand
bearer
• Can be GBR or non-
GBR
Quality of Service
 Quality Class Indicator (QCI) in Standard
PDB PELR
Resource
QCI Priority (Packet Del (Packet E Example Services
Type ay Budget)
rror Loss
Rate )

1 2 100 ms 10-2 Conversational Voice

2 4 150 ms 10-3 Conversational Video (Live Streaming)
3 GBR 3 50 ms 10-3 Real Time Gaming
4 5 300 ms 10-6 Non-Conversational Video (Buffered Streaming)
5 1 100 ms 10-6 IMS Signalling
Video (Buffered Streaming), TCP-based (e.g.,
6 6 300 ms 10-6 www, e-mail, chat, ftp, p2p file sharing,
progressive video, etc.)
Non-GBR Voice, Video (Live Streaming), Interactive
7 7 100 ms 10-3
Gaming
8 8 Video (Buffered Streaming), TCP-based (e.g.,
300 ms 10-6 www, e-mail, chat, ftp, p2p file sharing,
9 9 progressive video, etc.)
… … … … Operator-specified class
 QoS Levels

• Service Data Flows (SDF’s) defined

Service Level
• QoS and policy applied based on the SDF

• Access Point Name (APN) based QoS

Session Level
• Limit AMBR of all non-GBR bearers per APN

• Default (Non-GBR) and Dedicated (GBR or

Bearer Level Non-GBR) bearers defined
• Policy binds Dedicated Bearer to a QCI

• Limits to per-UE AMBR

UE Level
• Enforced by eNodeB
 Service Data Flow (SDF)
A set of IP flows corresponding
to a service

Identified using packet headers

SDF1 IP Flow 1
An SDF corresponds to a QoS /
Filtering

IP Flow 2
PDN policy treatment by the policy
IP Flow 3
function
SDF2

An EPS Bearer can carry only

one SDF Aggregate
EPC
 Summary
LTE QoS operates at service, session and bearer levels as well as on a per UE
basis

A Service Data Flow is defined to determine the policy & QoS treatment to be
applied to a service

A Quality Class Indicator is used to define different QoS types and priorities

A UE has Default and Dedicated bearers – logical connections – to the EPC

QoS uses notions of GBR and AMBR to differentiate between services

 Quiz

A PDN Connection can consist of multiple EPS bearers

• True
• False

Default bearer is always

• GBR
• Non-GBR
• AMBR

The following nodes agree upon a per APN-AMBR

• UE and eNodeB
• eNodeB and P-GW
• UE and P-GW
LTE Network Identities
UE Identities
 UE ID - IMSI
IMSI: International Mobile Subscriber Identity.

Used in SAE to uniquely identify a subscriber world-wide.

Its structure is kept in form of MCC+MNC+MSIN:

•MCC: Mobile country code
•MNC: Mobile network code
•MSIN: Mobile subscriber identification number

A subscriber can use the same IMSI for 2G, 3G and SAE access.

MME uses the IMSI to locate the HSS holding the subscribers permanent
registration data for tracking area updates and attaches.

Not more than 15 digits

5 ~ 6 digits 9 ~ 10 digits

PLMN ID MSIN

3 digits 2 ~ 3 digits

MCC MNC
 UE ID - GUTI
GUTI: Globally Unique Temporary UE Identity

GUTI has two main components:

 GUMMEI: uniquely identifies the MME which allocated the GUTI shall be constructed from
MCC, MNC and MME Identifier(MMEI)
 M-TMSI : uniquely identifies the UE within the MME that allocated the GUTI

Dynamic Identity assigned by the MME (Mobility Management Entity)

80 bits

GUTI

GUMMEI M-TMSI
48 bits 32 bits

PLMN ID MMEI

MCC MNC MMEGI MMEC

12 bits 8-12 bits 16 bits 8 bits
 UE ID - GUTI
It can be used by network and the UE to establish UE's identity during signaling
between them in EPS.

Valid as long as the UE is Registered with the EPC (Evolved Packet Core) and
attached to the MME that assigned the GUTI

Stored on the UE and the MME

Globally Unique MME Identifier (GUMMEI)

 The format and size of the GUTI is:
 GUTI = GUMMEI + M-TMSI, where
 GUMMEI = MCC + MNC + MME Identifier and
 MME Identifier = MME Group ID + MME Code
 MCC and MNC shall have the same field size as in earlier 3GPP systems.
 M-TMSI shall be of 32 bits length.
 MME Group ID shall be of 16 bits length.
 MME Code shall be of 8 bits length.
eNodeB Identities
 eNodeB ID
Identity of an eNodeB:

 eNB ID: To identify an eNB within a PLMN

 20 bits

 Global eNB ID: To identify an eNB in global (Globally Unique)

 eNB ID(20 bits) + PLMN ID(max 24 bits)
 eNB ID - ECI
ECI: E-UTRAN Cell Identifier

To identify a Cell within a PLMN

ECI (28 Bits) = eNB ID + Cell ID

28 bits

ECI

eNB ID Cell ID
20 bits 8 bits
 Tracking Area (TA)
Tracking Area is a logical concept of an area where a user can move around
without updating the MME.

While the UE is in idle state, its location is known by the LTE network at TA
level (i.e. on a TA granularity), instead of cell level.

Minimum unit : cell

Possible to make more than one cell in one eNB

The number of cell per one eNB : minimum 1, maximum 256

One TA is consisted of n cells.

An operator defines a group of neighbor eNBs as a TA. A TA can be made up of

cells or eNBs.
 Tracking Area List
TA List is allocated by MME considering current location of UE.

One TA list can be consisted of 16 TAs.

A TAC is the unique code that each operator assigns to each of their TAs

A TAI consists of a PLMN ID and a TAC.

 PLMN ID: a combination of a Mobile Country Code (MCC) and a Mobile Network
Code (MNC), is the unique code assigned to each operator in the world.
LTE EPS Management
 State Model in MME
There are two sets of states defined for the UE based on the information held
by the MME.

 EPS Mobility Management (EMM) states

 EPS Connection Management (ECM) states

EMM State EMM State

EMM- EMM- EMM- EMM-
Registered Deregistered Registered Deregistered
UE eNB MME
ECM State ECM State
ECM- ECM-
ECM-Idle ECM Connection ECM-Idle
Connected NAS NAS Connected
RRM
RRC S1 Signaling
RRC Connection RRC S1AP Connection S1AP
PDCP PDCP SCTP SCTP
RLC RLC IP IP
MAC MAC L2 L2
PHY PHY L1 L1
LTE-Uu S1-MME

RRC- RRC-
RRC-Idle RRC-Idle
Connected Connected
 EMM State Model
The EPS Mobility Management (EMM) states describe the Mobility
Management states that result from the mobility management procedures e.g.
Attach and Tracking Area Update procedures.

There are two EMM states:

 EMM-DEREGISTERED

 EMM-REGISTERED
 EMM States

MME

UE MME

Attach
EMM EMM
DEREGISTERED REGISTERED
Detach
 EMM States

• In this state the MME holds no valid location information about the UE

EMM • MME may keep some UE context when the UE moves to this state (e.g.
to avoid the need for (AKA) during every attach procedure)
Deregistered
• Successful Attach and Tracking Area Update (TAU) procedures lead to
transition to EMM-REGISTERED

• In this state the MME holds location information for the UE at least to
the accuracy of a tracking area
EMM
Registered • UE performs TAU procedures, responds to paging messages and
performs the service request procedure if there is uplink data to be
sent.
 ECM State Model
The EPS Connection Management (ECM) states describe the signaling
connectivity between the UE and the EPC.

There are two ECM states between UE and MME:

 ECM-IDLE

 ECM-CONNECTED

There are two RRC states between UE and E-UTRAN:

 RRC-IDLE

 RRC-CONNECTED
 RRC & ECM States

MME

UE E-UTRAN MME

RRC Connection
establishment RRC
RRC Idle
RRC Connection Connected
release

S1 Connection establishment ECM

ECM Idle Connected
S1 Connection release
 ECM States

• No NAS signalling connection between the UE and the

network and there is no context for the UE held in the E-
UTRAN.
ECM-IDLE • The location of the UE is known to within the accuracy of
a tracking area
• Mobility is managed by tracking area updates.

• Signalling connection between the UE and the MME

• Radio Resource Control (RRC)
ECM- • S1 connection
CONNECTED • The location of the UE is known to within the accuracy of a
cell.
• Mobility is managed by handovers.
 EMM & ECM State Transitions
Power On

Release due to
Registration (Attach) Inactivity
•Authentication • Release RRC connection
• Establish security context • Release C-RNTI
•Allocate C-RNTI, S_TMSI • Configure DRX for paging
• Allocate IP addresses
• Default Bearer Established
EMM_Deregistered EMM_Registered EMM_Registered

ECM_Idle ECM_Connected ECM_Idle

UE/Network Initiated
Deregistration (Detach) Service Request
Change PLMN
•Establish RRC Connection
• Release C-RNTI, S-TMSI •Allocate C-RNTI
• Release IP addresses

Timeout of Periodic TA
Update

• Release S-TMSI
• Release IP addresses
 EMM & ECM States Summary
EMM_Deregistered EMM_Registered EMM_Registered
ECM_Idle ECM_Connected ECM_Idle

Network Context: Network Context: Network Context:

• no context exists • all info for ongoing • security keys
transmission/reception • enable fast
IDs: transition to
• IMSI Allocated IDs: ECM_CONNECTED
• S-TMSI
• 1 or several IP
UE Position: Allocated IDs:
addresses
• unknown to • S-TMSI
• C-RNTI
network • 1or several IP
UE Position: addresses
Mobility: • known on cell level
• PLMN/cell UE Position:
selection Mobility: • known on TA level
• NW controlled (TA list)
UE Radio Activity: handover
• none Mobility:
• cell reselection
Samsung EPC Specifications and Structure
 Samsung EPC Highlights

• High capacity system

• 10M Subs / 30M Bearers (MME)
• 150Gbps without redundancy / 100Gbps with redundancy (SAE
High Capacity and GW)
Performance • High performance signaling and packet handling
• High capacity packet switch
• 80Gbps Bearer path, 10Gbps Signaling path per Slot

• Flexible network configuration with plenty of interfaces

Flexible System • Network separation, Port separation per corresponding NE
management • Flexible resource allocation between Control Plane and
Data Plane
 Samsung EPC Highlights

• Separation of Signaling path and Bearer Path

Reliability • Hot Standby Redundancy

• No impact on existing session

• Same HW for both SAE GW and MME

CAPEX and OPEX
reduction • Various types of configuration with SAE GW and MME
 High Capacity & Performance
Performance for simultaneous processing of call / packet
• MME (1 Rack)
• 10M Subscribers, 30M Bearers, 36,000 CPS including hot-standby session redundancy
• SAE GW (1 Shelf)
• 2.8M Sessions, 8.4M Bearers, 16,000 CPS, 100Gbps Throughput including hot-standby session
redundancy

No additional board for DPI

• Samsung’s each packet processing board can have its own DPI functionality
• No overhead to transfer packet data between packet processing board and DPI board

High performance on control plane using multi-core processors

• Both SAE GW and MME need more control plane performance in LTE environment
• Handles signaling for idle to active transition and charging data
 Flexible System Architecture
Hardware Reliability with Simple System Architecture
2 types of boards: Packet Processing Board, Switch & Management Board
User plane and Control plane processing on same type of board

External Interface
- 2 x 40GE
I/F module I/F module - 8 x 10GE
Packet Packet
Processing Processing
Board Board

Switch & Switch &

Management Board Management Board

Packet Packet
Processing
Board
… Processing
Board
 Flexible System Performance
32 cores per MPP (Multi-core Packet Processor)
 Each core can be allocated to control plane or data plane
Flexible allocation of Core for Performance Optimization
 Allocation according to control and data performance requirements
 System performance optimization according to traffic pattern changes (e.g. M2M,
Video streaming) in future
Processing Board
MPP #1 MPP #2
Control Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Control
Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core
Plane Plane
Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core

Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core

Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core
Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core
Data Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Data
Plane Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Plane

Optimization according to control & data plane usage

Processing Board
MPP #1 MPP #2
Control Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Control
Plane Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Plane
Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core
Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core
Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core
Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core
Data Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Data
Plane Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Core Plane
 EPC Flexible System Configuration

 Samsung EPC system uses a common hardware platform for MME, S-GW and P-GW
 1 Rack configurable with SAE GW and MME
 Flexible combination of MME, S-GW and P-GW
MME, S-GW, MME, S-GW S-GW, P-GW MME S-GW P-GW
P-GW (SAE- in one Rack in one Rack in one Rack in one Rack in one Rack
GW)
in one Rack

SAE GW S-GW SAE GW MME S-GW P-GW

MME MME SAE GW MME S-GW P-GW

 EPC Rack Configurations
Rack Description
MME Rack One MME system is configured with 1 shelf.
(1 shelf 1 system) It can be extended to 1 system with 2 shelves.

S-GW Rack One S-GW system is configured with 1 shelf.

(1 shelf 1 system) Two S-GW systems can be equipped in one rack.

P-GW Rack One P-GW system is configured with 1 shelf.

(1 shelf 1 system) Two P-GW systems can be equipped in one rack.

SAE GW SAE GW is an integrated S-GW and P-GW and processes only one tunnel (GTP
(S-GW + P-GW) tunnel between S-GW and P-GW is skipped).
Rack One SAE GW system is configured with 1 shelf.
Two SAE GW systems can be equipped in one rack.
(1 shelf 1 system)

MME + S-GW One MME system is configured with 1 shelf and one S-GW (or SAE GW)
(or SAE GW) Rack system is configured with 1 shelf.
MME system and S-GW (or SAE GW) system is equipped in one rack.
 Samsung MME Specification
Reliable High Capacity & Performance solution
Co-locatable with S-GW, P-GW

FAN

Item Specification L L L L L L L L L L L L L L
EEEEEEEEEEEEEE
S S S S S S MM S S S S S S
10M Subscribers, 30M Bearers AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Capacity/
36,000 CPS (1 CPS = 1 Attach and 1 Detach per second) FAN
Performance
16 x 1/10 GE (Configurable)

Rack
600 mm(W) x 800 mm(D) x 2,000 mm(H)
Dimension RAID

LEMA LTE EPC Management board Assembly : Switch and Management FAN

Board LENA LTE EPC Network Interface board Assembly : Network interface L L L B L L L L L L L L L L
L
EEE E EEEEEEEEE
A
SSS N NMMS S S S S S
LTE EPC Session management board Assembly : Session/Mobility N
LESA AAAKA AAAAAAAAA
management
FAN
LEMA, LENA – 1:1 (active/standby)
Redundancy
LESA – 2:1 (active/standby)
 Samsung MME Dimensioning
MME dimensioning rules for each component:

Rack (LEBR, LTE EPC Basic Rack)

 MMEs can be mounted in a rack. Rack has one Power
FAN
Distribution Panel (PDP).
L L L L L L L L L L L L L L

Shelf (LEBS, LTE EPC Basic Shelf) EEEEEEEEEEEEEE

S S S S S S MM S S S S S S

 One shelf has top and bottom fan trays and 6 fan modules are
AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

mounted in each fan tray FAN

 Shelf has one Data Processing shelf Backplane Board assembly

(DPBB).
RAID
RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disc)
 The RAID is a storage media for log saving and backup. FAN

 1 RAID is mounted per MME shelf.

L L L B L L L L L L L L L L
 Capacity of each disc is 450GB (5-12 discs are used, at least 1 EEE
L
A
EEEEEEEEEE
SSS N NMMS S S S S S
redundancy) AAAK
N
AAAAAAAAAA

FAN

Boards
LEMA, LENA, LESA
 Samsung MME Dimensioning

Unit Redundancy Name and Function Remark

LTE EPC Management board Assembly

LEMA 1:1 - Switching and Management 2 boards per shelf
(OAM&P)

LTE EPC Network interface board

LENA 1:1 Assembly 2 boards per system
- 8x10GE

720K subscribers/ active LESA

2,160K bearers / active LESA
LTE EPC Session Management board 2,600 CPS / active LESA
LESA 2:1 Assembly
- Mobility and session control Add one active LESA for every 720K
subscribers , 2,160K bearers or 2,600 CPS with
2:1 redundancy.

Add one LEBS when number of required

LEBS - LTE EPC Basic Self
active LESA is more than 6.
 MME Boards - LEMA
LEMA (LTE EPC Management Board Assembly) Functions:
FAN

Provides a console interface for EMS

(Element management System) connection L L L L L L L L L L L L L
E E E BLA E E E E E E E E E E

and operator S
A
S
A
S NK N
A A
N
A
M
A
M
A
S
A
S
A
S
A
S
A
S
A
S
A

Executes overall system operation and maintenance

Creates/Updates a routing table FAN

LEMA Configuration:

LEMA is configured in 1:1 redundancy mode

Principally mounted in the center slot of LEBS
Mounted location: Slots 6 and 7 of the shelf
Quantity: LEMA 2-board/system
 MME Boards - LENA
LENA (LTE EPC Network Interface Board Assembly) Functions:
FAN

Provides an external interface

Performs signaling distribution to the inside LESA L L L L L L L L L L L L L
E E E BLA E E E E E E E E E E

for LTE service S

A
S
A
S NK N
A A
N
A
M
A
M
A
S
A
S
A
S
A
S
A
S
A
S
A

FAN

LENA Configuration:

Supports 1:1 redundancy and it can be mounted in any slot except the center
slot of LEBS
Mounted location: Slots 4 and 5 of LEBS
Quantity: LENA 2-board/system
 MME Boards - LESA
LESA (LTE EPC Session/Mobility Management Board Assembly) Functions:
FAN

Processes signaling to provide LTE service

L L L L L L L L L L L L L
E E E BLA E E E E E E E E E E
S S S NK N N M M S S S S S S
A A A A A A A A A A A A A

LESA Configuration: FAN

Supports N:1 redundancy and it can be mounted in any slot except the center
slot of LEBS. Basically, the LESA is configured in 2:1 redundancy.
Mounted location: Slots 0, 1, 2, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 of LEBS
 Mount one standby LESA board for every 2 active LESA boards
Quantity: Minimum 2-board/system, maximum 9-board/system
 Samsung SAE GW Specification
Reliable High Capacity & Performance solution

Support policy and Charging Enforcement Function

Supports DPI & HHE functions

Item Specification
2.8M IP-CAN(connectivity access n/w) sessions / 8.4M bearers with full
redundancy
100Gbps for only data forwarding with redundancy
70Gbps including PCC with redundancy
Capacity/ 60Gbps including DPI/PCC with redundancy Simultaneous
Performance 44Gbps including HHE*/DPI/PCC with redundancy packet & call RAID

(*10% of the total incoming traffic i.e from UE to SAEGW) processing

FAN
16,000 CPS (1 CPS = 1 Attach and 1 Detach per sec)

12 x 40GE/48 x 10GE L L L L L L L L L L L L L L
EEEEEEEEEEEEEE
N N N N N NMMD D D D D D
Rack Dimension 600 mm(W) x 800 mm(D) x 2,000 mm(H) AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

LEMA LTE EPC Management board Assembly : Switch and Management

FAN
Board LENA LTE EPC Network Interface board Assembly : Network interface

LEDA LTE EPC Data Processing board Assembly : Call control

LEMA, LENA – 1:1 (active/standby)

Redundancy
LEDA – 2:1 (active/standby)
 Samsung SAE GW Specification
SAE GW dimensioning rules for each component:

Rack (LEBR, LTE EPC Basic Rack)

 MMEs can be mounted in a rack.

Shelf (LEBS, LTE EPC Basic Shelf)

 One shelf has top and bottom fan trays and 6 fan modules are
mounted in each fan tray

RAID RAID

 The RAID is a storage media for log saving and backup.

 1 RAID is mounted for MME FAN

L L L L L L L L L L L L L L
EEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Boards N N N N N NMMD D D D D D
AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

LEMA, LENA, LEDA FAN

 Samsung SAE GW Dimensioning

Unit Redundancy Name and Function Remark.

LTE EPC Management board Assembly
LEMA 1:1 - Switching and Management 2 boards per system
(OAM&P)

Min 4 boards per system

LTE EPC Network interface board Add 2 LENA boards in following condition
LENA 1:1 Assembly - required throughput is larger than 30 Gbps
- 2x40GE & 8x10/1GE or
- required performance larger than 10,667
CPS

700K IP-CAN sessions / active LEDA

2,100K bearers / active LEDA
LTE EPC Data processing board 11 Gbps / active LEDA
Assembly 4,000 CPS / active LEDA
LEDA 2:1
- Packet processing & session control
Add one active LEDA for every 700K IP-CAN
sessions, 2,100K Bearers, 11 Gbps or 4,000
CPS increment with 2:1 redundancy.
 Samsung GW Capacity Expansion Step
GW capacity can be expanded by adding LEDA, LENA board

The number of The number of IP-CAN EPS Tput

CPS Interface Note
LEDA board LENA board Session Bearers (Gbps)
4
2 Minimum
(2 active, 2 0.7M 2.1M 4,000 11 8 x 40GE, 32 x 1/10GE
(1 active, 1 standby) Configuration
standby)
4
3
(2 active, 2 1.4M 4.2M 8,000 22 8 x 40GE, 32 x 1/10GE
(2 active, 1 standby)
standby)
6
5
(3 active, 3 2.1M 6.3M 12,000 33 12 x 40GE, 48 x 1/10GE
(3 active, 2 standby)
standby)
6
6 Maximum
(3 active, 3 2.8M 8.4M 16,000 44 12 x 40GE, 48 x 1/10GE
(4 active, 2 standby) Configuration
standby)

FAN FAN FAN FAN

LLLL LLL L LLLL LLLLL LLLLLLLLLLLL L LLLLLLLLLLLLLL

EEEE EEE E EEEE EEEEE EEEEEEEEEEEE E EEEEEEEEEEEEEE
NNNN MM D D NNNN MM D D D N N N N N N MM D D D D D N N N N N N MM D D D D D D
AAAA AAA A AAAA AAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAA A AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

FAN FAN FAN FAN

0.7M session / 4K CPS 1.4M session / 8K CPS 2.1M session / 12K CPS 2.8M session / 1.6K CPS
* Min. Config. * Max. Config.
 SAE GW Boards - LEMA
LEMA (LTE EPC Management Board Assembly) Functions:
FAN

Manages Switches and OAMs.

Executes overall system operation and maintenance L L L L L L L L L L L L L L
E E E E E E E E E E E E E E

Creates/Updates a routing table N

A
N
A
N
A
N
A
N
A
N
A
M
A
M
A
D
A
D
A
D
A
D
A
D
A
D
A

Transmits data to the processing board

FAN

LEMA Configuration:

2 LEMAs are mounted in the SAE GW, which are configured in a 1:1
active/standby redundant mode.
Mounted location: Slots 6 and 7 of the shelf
Quantity: Two boards in a shelf by default
Mounting order: N/A
 SAE GW Boards - LENA
LENA (LTE EPC Network Interface Board Assembly) Functions:

Performs call distribution/protocol proxy with an FAN

external interface
Distributes the packets received from an external L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
L
E
N N N N N N M M D D D D D D
network to each LEDA A A A A A A A A A A A A A A

Processes the protocol (GTP, Diameter, or RADIUS,

etc.) to interwork with the external network FAN

LENA Configuration:

Up to 6 LENAs are mounted in the SAE GW, which are configured in a 1:1
active/standby redundant mode
Mounted location: Slots 0-5 of the shelf
 Mount 4 boards in the slot 0-3 of a shelf by default
Quantity: 4 boards are mounted by default
 Maximum 6 boards are mounted (3 active boards, 3 standby boards)
 SAE GW Boards - LEDA
LEDA (LTE EPC Data processing Board Assembly) Functions:
FAN

Performs packet processing and S-GW/P-GW

call control L L L L L L L L L L L L L L
E E E E E E E E E E E E E E
N N N N N N M M D D D D D D
A A A A A A A A A A A A A A

LEDA Configuration: FAN

Supports 2:1 active/standby redundant structure.

Mounted location: Slot 8-13 of the shelf
 Maximum 6 boards are mounted (4 active boards, 2 standby boards)
 Active LEDA slots: 8,9,11,12
 Standby LEDA Slots: 10,13
Quantity: Minimum 2-board/system, maximum 6-board/system
 Summary
Samsung MME architecture consists of Packet Processing Board and Switch/
Management Board

Samsung EPC system uses a common hardware platform for MME, S-GW and
P-GW

Samsung MME modules: LEMA, LENA, LESA

LEMA in MME & SAE-GW stands for LTE EPC Management board Assembly

LEMA is configured in 1:1 redundancy mode

LESA is configured in 2:1 redundancy mode

Up to 6 LENAs are mounted in the SAE GW, which are configured in a 1:1
active/standby redundant mode
Redundancy Structure
 Redundant Configuration
The EPC supports redundancy of the boards, processes, interface, power
supplies, and fan to enhance reliability and availability of the system.

Target Fault description Redundancy method

redundancy
Board Board power supply failure
Other devices failure N:1 redundancy

Active/standby

Interface Physical link failure Link aggregation

Physical port failure

Equal Cost Multi-Path (ECMP)

Internal path Physical link failure -
Power supply Power short circuit power supply redundancy
Fan Fan operation failure Redundant fan configuration
 Board Redundancy
Board Types and Redundancy of LEMA, LENA, LESA & LEDA.

Board Redundancy Method

LEMA Board redundancy: 1:1

LENA Board redundancy: 1:1

Interface redundancy: Active/Standby

LESA Board redundancy: 2:1

LEDA Board redundancy: 2:1

 LEMA Redundancy
LEMA is responsible for operation and maintenance of the MME/S-GW/P-GW.

1:1 active/standby redundancy.

Redundant path between the boards (Gigabit Ethernet).

L L
E E
M M
A A
(Active) (Standby)
 LENA Redundancy
The LENA for the MME provides the interoperation with the HSS, EIR, and DNS

1:1 active/standby redundancy

The LENA for the SGW/P-GW provides the load distribution for the resource
allocation

L L
E E
N N
A A
(Active) (Standby)
 LESA, LEDA Redundancy
The LESA is responsible for the MME call processing

2:1 redundancy structure

The switchover uses the non-revertive method, thus when the faulty board is
later recovered, it takes the role of the standby board

L L L
E E E
S S S
A A A
(0) (1) (2)
(Active) (Active) (Standby)
 Quiz
LESA in MME supports which redundancy option?
• 1:1
• 1:2
• 2:1
• 3:1
Which board is used for data processing in SAE Gateway?
• LEMA
• LENA
• LESA
• LEDA
Slot positions for LEMA board in MME are?
• 4&5
• 6&7
• 5&6
• 2&3
 Summary
Evolved Packet Core consists of MME, S-GW & P-GW

Samsung EPC system uses a common hardware platform for MME, S-GW and
P-GW

Samsung MME modules: LEMA, LENA, LESA

LESA switchover uses the non-revertive method

LEMA is configured in 1:1 redundancy mode

LESA is configured in 2:1 redundancy mode

Basic Call Procedure
 Attach Procedure
P-GW HSS PCRF
UE eNB
MME
MME S-GW
S-GW P-GW HSS PCRF

EMM- EMM-
Deregistered Deregistered
ECM-Idle ECM-Idle
RRC-Idle RRC-Idle

RRC Connection Request

RRC Connection Setup

RRC Connected
Attach Request (Acquire UE IMSI)

RRC- RRC-
Connected Connected

Attach Request
IMSI, UE Security Capability

RRC Connection Setup Complete

GUMMEI
Initial UE Message
ECGI, TAI
S1 Signaling Connected

ECM Connected

ECM- ECM-
Connected Connected
MME acquires IMSI
 Authentication & NAS Security Setup
MME S-GW P-GW HSS PCRF
UE eNB MME S-GW P-GW HSS PCRF

Authentication Information Request

IMSI, Service Network ID (SN ID = MCC, MNC) Generate Authentication Vectors (AVs)
AV = {RAND, AUTN, XRES, KASME}
Authentication Information Answer
Authentication and NAS Security Setup

Authentication Vectors (AV(1..n))

Authentication Request
KSIASME, RAND(i), AUTN(i)
Generate AV, and then Network authenticated if AUTNUE = AUTNHSS
Authentication Response
RES UE authenticated if RES = XRES

Authentication Complete between UE and MME

Security Mode Command MME generates NAS keys

KSIASME, Security Algorithm, NAS-MAC
UE generates NAS keys
Security Mode Complete
NAS-MAC
Ciphering and Integrity Setup Complete
for NAS message between UE and MME
S1 Release Procedure
 S1 Release
This procedure is used to release the logical S1-AP signalling connection (over
S1-MME) and all S1 bearers (in S1-U) for a UE.

After attach UE is in EMM_Registered state.

The default Bearer has been allocated (RRC_connected + ECM_connected)

even it may not transmit or receive data

If there is a longer period of inactivity by this UE, then we should free these
admission control resources (RRC_idle + ECM_idle)

The trigger for this procedure can come from eNB or from MME.
 S1 Release Procedure
MME S-GW P-GW

EMM Registered

ECM_Connected

S1 Release Request
cause Update Bearer Request

release of eNB S1u resources

Update Bearer Response

S1 Release Command
RRC Connection Release
cause
RRC Connection Release Ack

S1 Release Complete

S1 Signalling Connection Release

EMM Registered

ECM_Idle
Detach Procedures
 Detach Request Overview
UE initiated Detach
 Device Switch Off or Normal Detach

Network initiated Detach

 Cancel Location Request from HSS or Delete Bearer Request from SGW (explicit
detach).
 MME sends Detach Request to Connected UE or
 Pages Idle UE for explicit detach

 Implicit detach after non-communications with UE for a configurable period (after

Mobile Reachability Timer expires).
 MME does not send Detach Request to UE
 UE Initiated Detach
MME S-GW P-GW PCRF

EMM Registered

RRC Connected

NAS Detach Request

Delete Bearer Request
Delete Bearer Request

ECM_Connected
Delete Bearer Response
PCEF initiated IP-CAN termination

Delete Bearer Response

NAS: Detach Accepted

S1 Signalling Connection Release

EMM Deregistered

RRC Connected + ECM Idle

Note: Detach procedure initiated by UE

 MME Initiated Detach
MME S-GW P-GW PCRF

EMM Registered

RRC Connected

NAS Detach Request

Delete Bearer Request
Delete Bearer Request

ECM_Connected
Delete Bearer Response
PCEF initiated IP-CAN termination

Delete Bearer Response

NAS: Detach Accepted

S1 Signalling Connection Release

EMM Deregistered

RRC Connected + ECM Idle

Note: Detach procedure initiated by MME

Tracking Area Update Procedure
 Tracking Area Update (TAU)
• Tracking Area Identity = MCC (Mobile Country Code), MNC (Mobile Network
Code) and TAC (Tracking Area Code).

• When UE is in ECM-Idle, MME knows UE location with Tracking Area accuracy.

Tracking Area 1 Tracking Area 2

MME
 Tracking Area Update (1/2)
S-GW P-GW HSS
MME MME S-GW

new old new old PDN

MME MME Serving Serving Gateway
EMM Registered Gateway Gateway
(SGW) (SGW)
RRC Idle + ECM Idle

RRC Connected

Tracking Area Update Request

S-TMSI/IMSI,old TAI, PDN (IP) address allocation

Context Request
ECM_Connected
S-TMSI/IMSI,old TAI
Context Response
Authentication Request mobility/context data
authentication challenge

Authentication Response
Context Acknowledge
Authentication response
S-TMSI/IMSI,old TAI

Create Bearer Request

Update Bearer Request
IMSI, bearer contexts
new SGW-S5 IP/TEID

Create Bearer Response Update Bearer Response

new SGW-S1 IP/TEID PDN GW IP/TEID

 Tracking Area Update (2/2)
S-GW P-GW HSS
MME MME S-GW

new old new old PDN

MME MME Serving Serving Gateway
Gateway Gateway
Update Location (SGW) (SGW)

new MME identity, IMSI, …

Cancel Location

IMSI, cancellation type = update

Cancel Location Ack

Delete Bearer Request

TEID
Delete Bearer Response

Update Location Ack

Tracking Area Update Accept

new S-TMSI, TA/TA-list

Tracking Area Update Complete

EMM Registered

RRC Idle + ECM Idle