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WhatisCSFBandSRVCCinLTE?telecomHall
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What is CSFB and SRVCC in LTE?

PostedbyleopedriniWednesday,May20,20159:19:00AMCategories:CourseCSFBIMSLTESRVCCVoLTE

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RegardlessofthepaceofLTEnetworksdeploymentaroundtheworld RatethisContent
(fasterinsomeareas,slowerinothers),thenumberofuserswith4G
devicesisintensivelygrowing.

19Votes

Thanks to factors such as lower costs due to the gain of production scale, and also by encouraging
migration to 4G plans offered by operators who already have an available network, more and more
peoplehaveaccesstonewservicesandbenefitsthatthistechnologyoffers.
However,asmuchasthecurrentdataservicesareimproved,andthatprogressinthearealeadtothe
adoptionofnewservices,abasicnecessityshouldstillcontinuetoexistatleastforawhile:voicecalls!

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Course(32)
CSFB(1)
IMS(1)
LTE(5)
RFComponents(2)
SRVCC(1)
UMTS(1)
VoLTE(1)

While making a voice call may seem simple, largely depends on the scenario where the user is, and
alternativesavailableforitscompletion.Soitisnecessarytounderstandwellwhatarethepossibilities
andthemostimportantconceptsofthesekeyscenarios.
Inthefirstgenerationofcellularnetworks,thecommunicationthroughvoicecallswasthemaingoal,
andwasbasedonacircuitswitchedtopologyor'channels'(CSCircuitedSwitched).
Overtime,theneedforotherservices(data!)hasemerged.Voicecallshavecomeintoexistencewith
these new services. As demand increasead, these new services were supported by a new domain, the
IPbased packetswitched (PS Packet Switched). The following figure shows how these two domains
work.

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LTE?
WhatisCP(CyclicPrefix)in
LTE?
WhatisLCS(andLBS)?
WhatdoesOrthogonalmeans
inWirelessNetworks?
WhatisISI(InterSymbol
Interference)inLTE?
WhatisSplitterandCombiner?
AnalyzingCoveragewith
PropagationDelayPDand
TimingAdvanceTA(GSM
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WhatisRRCandRAB?
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March,2011(3)

And in LTE (4G) system we had another great change: the CS domain has been extinguished! LTE
networks are based exclusively on the PS domain, and voice services should be carried out in other
ways(asweshallsee).

February,2011(5)
January,2011(1)
December,2010(2)

Butaswementioned,regardlessofnetworktopologies,voiceservicesarestillneeded.(Ofcourse,they
slightlydecreasedcomparedtoafewyearsago,butarestillsignificant,ietheirdemandcontinues).
With the continue growth of LTE networks, let's try to understand a little more the concepts,
alternativesandsolutionsforanyusertomakeavoicecallonanLTEnetwork?
Note:AlltelecomHallarticlesareoriginallywritteninPortuguese.FollowingwetranslatetoEnglishand
Spanish. As our time is short, maybe you find some typos (sometimes we just use the automatic
translator, with only a final and 'quick' review). We apologize and we have an understanding of our
effort. If you want to contribute translating / correcting of these languages, or even creating and
publishingyourtutorials,pleasecontactus:contact.

How, when and where?

Firstofall,weneedtounderstandhow,whenandwherevoicecallscanoccur.
Inthe2Glegacynetworks,voicecallsaremadepracticallyonlyoncircuitsforeachcall(CSdomain).
In3Glegacynetworks,voiceservicescanusetheCSdomain,butcanalsobemadethroughOTT(Over
The Top) solutions, applications that encapsulate the voice and transport via an IP domain (PS), but
who lack the QoS requirements needed to ensure good communication with the Non GBR type
services (no bit rate guarantee). Example: Skype. Note: It is very unusual, but it is also possible to
makeOTTvoicecallson2Gnetworks.Infact,theremaybeOTTsolutionsinanytechnologyitcanbe
usedinlegacynetworks,andalsoinotherssuchasWiFiwhicharealreadycommonlyusedforVoIP.
AndinLTEnetworks,voicecallscanbefullyIPbased,canuseOTTsolutionsvia4G,orbetransferred
tothelegacy2G/3G.

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Aswebegintosee,therearemanyalternatives.Asusual,wewilleasilyseeeachone.
Note:Inthistutorial,wewillalwaysrefertovoicecalls(originatingand/orterminating)However,SMS
servicesarealsoincluded.

Alternative to voice calls in a generic 2G3G4G Network Topology

And the best way to understand the alternatives or possibilities of making voice calls in LTE network
(4G), it is to start from a 2G3G4G network topology very simplified considering only the main
elementsinvolved.
Aswecanseeinthefollowingfigure,theLTE(EPC)hasnodirect'link'totheCSnetworkaswehave
seen,itisdesignedtotakecareofpurelyIP(PS)calls.IthasnoMediaGatewaydirectlyconnected,so
noCScallissupportedbytheMME.

In other words, if the user or UE (User Equipment) is on a LTE network, as shown in the topology
above,wecannotmakeavoicecall.
Note:Asmentionedbeforeandaccordingtothetopologyabove,theonlywaytohavevoiceservicesin
LTEwouldbethroughOTTservicessuchasSkype.However,thissolutionisnotdiscussedtoday.
If we understand this, it is also easy to realize that in order for we to have voice services in LTE,
changesneedtobemade.Therearesomealternatives,andbelowwehavethemainones:
VoLGA(VoiceoverLTEviaGenericAccess):Uselegacy2G/3Gasagenericaccess,'packaging'voiceservices,and
deliveringviaLTE.
CSFB(CSFallBack):whenevertheUEhavetheneedtoplaceacall,makeitrevert(fallback)forlegacynetworks.

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VoLTE(VoiceoverLTE):makevoiceoverLTEitself.Inthiscase,thevoiceispureIPVoIPLTE.
SRVCC (Single Radio Voice Call Continuity): ensure that purely LTE (VoLTE) calls are transferred (via
handover)tothelegacynetworksinatransparentmanner.

Note: notice that the SRVCC is an option when the voice call has been established in LTE. Ie it is a
conditionalalternativeconsideringthatVoLTEoptionhasbeenused.
Even without knowing very well the options presented, it is easy to imagine that the 'best' solution
would carry voice over their own LTE network. But like everything in life, it also have the other side,
theprosandcons.
TodelivervoiceservicesinLTEnetworkisnecessarytohaveaninfrastructurethatsupportit.Inother
words, there needs to exist an IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem or IP Multimedia Core Network
Subsystem).IfanIMSisavailable,thenthevoiceoverLTEmaybeprovidedaslongasaminimumset
ofIMSfunctionalityandentitiesalsoarepresent.
Note: IMS is much more complete, and have more other purposes than the voice. The voice is just
another'application'ofIMS,aswe'llseesoon.
This minimum set of features and entities of the IMS (called VoLTE or One Voice) was standardized to
enable LTE operators to provide voice services without having to make very radical changes in the
network(withouthavingtoinvestinacompleteIMS,withallentitiesandfunctionality).
Inanycase,itrequiresinvestment.
And therefore the first two alternatives become attractive: based on legacy network CS infrastructure.
But if on the one hand such alternatives require less investment in LTE network, these alternatives
dependontheexisting2G/3Gnetworks.
Let'stalkalittlemoreabouteachofthesepossibilities,butalwaystryingtomaintaintheoverview,in
the simplest possible way to understand. Remember that our goal is to learn the concept, in order to
enableadeepeningonthesubject,ifdesired,moreeasily.

VoLGA
The first implementation alternative that emerged was the VoLGA (Voice over LTE via Generic Access),
or:trytousewhatarealreadyavailable,withminimalchangesrequired.
To use the infrastructure of legacy 2G/3G networks, VoLGA introduces a new network entity, the VNC
(VoLGA Network Controller), which basically functions as a 2G BSC, communicating with a GSM MSC
(Mobile Switching Center) and as one 3G RNC communicating with a UMTS MSC (Mobile Switching
Center).

Whenwehaveanewcall(beitoriginatedorterminated),itismanagedbytheMSCoflegacynetwork.
VNCiswhomediatesthevoicesignalanditsrelatedmessagesbetweentheMSCandtheLTEnetwork.
AlthoughitispossibletocarryoutthedeliveryofvoiceandSMSservicestousersLTE,theVolgawas
unsuccessful. This is because, as we have seen, exclusive investment are needed for this purpose. At

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the same time however, global efforts to VoLTE increased (eg investments in IMS), and thus this
alternativeeventuallyfalledintodisuse.

CSFB
But if in one hand operators follow seeking a complete LTE infrastructure (with full IMS) to meet
multimedia services and also purely LTE voice, this is not a topology that is available in the short and
evenmediumterm.
Whilethatrealitydoesn'tcome,wemustusethelegacynetworkwhenthereistheneedofvoiceand
SMSdeliverytoLTEusers.
AndthemostcommonalternativetothisistheCSFB(CSFallBack),aninterimsolutionuntilwehave
fullsupportforvoiceoverLTE.
At CSFB scheme, whenever there is a demand for a new voice call, the LTE user is 'backed' for a CS
legacy network, assuming that this provides an overlapping coverage. In other words, with CSFB, a
voicecallisneveractiveinLTE,butinlegacynetworks.
Attheendofthecallinthelegacynetwork,theUEcanreregistertheLTEnetwork.
It goes something like this: the UE is registered (also) in the legacy network. When it got a call, the
legacynetworktellstoLTEnetwork:'IhaveacalltotheUE,canyouaskittocomehereandmakethe
call?'
ToCSFBbepossible,usersmustbeusingdualmodedevices,ieabletooperatebothinLTEnetworkand
inthelegacynetwork.
TosupportCSFB,anewinterfaceisintroduced:theSGs,connectingtheMMEtothelegacyMSC.

As the CSFB is currently the most widely used option by several operators, let's see some basic
scenariosofit(CSFB).

CSFB Registration and Location

WhentheCSFBUEisturnedon,itregistersitselfinthetwonetworks:LTEandlegacynetwork(CS).
And to allow quick transfer to the legacy network (either 2G or 3G) when necessary, the LTE network
needstoknowthelocationoftheUE.
For this, the MME, which tracks the location of the UE in the LTE network, continuously provides
locationinformationtothelegacyMSC,usingthenewSGsinterface.
ThesetofSGsmessagesthensupportsmanagementofmobility,pagingandSMS.

CSFB Originated Call

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Wewillcontinue,andassumethattheUEisinitiallycoveredbytheLTEnetwork,andthatthereisan
activeIPconnection.
WhentheUEdecidestooriginateavoicecall,itsendsanSRM(ServiceRequestMessage)totheMME
(morespecificallytheESRExtendedServiceRequest).
The MME checks whether the UE is CSFB capable, and notifies the eNodeB to transfer the UE to the
legacynetwork.
BeforeperformingtheUEtransfer,theeNodeBcanaskittomakeRFmeasuresonneighboring2G/3G
network.TheeNodeBthendecidesthebestnetworkfortheUEandperformsthetransfer.
Once the UE camp in 2G/3G network, it starts the call procedure as usual the UE starts the call
controlproceduresinlegacynetwork.

CSFB Call + Data Connection in LTE

And what happens if I have an active data connection in the IP LTE network, and decide to make a
voicecall?
Therearetwooptions:
Thedataarealsotransferredtothelegacynetwork,or
Thedataaretemporarilysuspended,untilIreturntotheLTEnetwork.

Althoughthefirstoptionseemsthebest,wemusttakeintoaccountthatthetransmissionofIPdatais
alsotransferred:itcanoperateatmuchlowerspeeds(legacysystems).Inaddition,itmaybethatthe
legacynetworksdenytheIPsessionduetolackofresourcesorfornotbeingabletoprocessit.
The S3 interface is used to carry out the PS session handover for 3G (in this case, the DTM Dual
TransferModemustexist,butthisdetailsescapesformourthemetoday).
Thereareno4Gdatahandoversupportedto2Ginthiscase,thedataissuspended.
TheeRABs4GarereleasedwhentheUEperformstheCSFB.
AnimportantinformationisthattheS3isa'new'interfacebetweenMMEandSGSNonGTPCv2.Andto
support it, the SGSN needs to be updated (most carriers do not want to do this without a strong
justification).
And Gn interface is already on GTPCv1, which is the native GTP version for 3G networks. So in this
caseonlytheMMEneedstobeupdated,andasitisarelativelynewnode,itisprobablyeasiertodo.
NottomentionthatthenewSGSNmayhavenativesupportforS3.

CSFB Terminated Call

Finally,wehavethecaseofaterminatedcallforLTEuser.
ThecallrequestarrivesfirsttotheMSCwheretheUEwaspreviouslyregistered.
WhentheMSCthereceivescallrequest,itsendspagingmessagestotherelatedMMEviaSGsinterface.
ThismessageisforwardedtotheUE,whichisstillconnectedtotheLTEnetwork.
Iftheuseracceptsthecall,itsendsanSRM(ServiceRequestMessage)totheMME.
The then MME notifies the eNodeB to transfer the UE for the legacy network, and the eNodeB then
decidethebestnetworkfortheUEtomakethecall.

CSFB What happens after the end of the CS call?

Wehaveseenthatthe4GeRABsarereleasedwhentheUEperformstheCSFB.Butwhathappenswhen
theUEendstheCScall?
Aboutwhatshouldfollownext(iftheUEshouldreturnornottoLTEassoonendthecallCS),thereis
nospecificrule.
Anyway,themainpossibilitiesare:
Theupperlayersforcingthe'reselection'toLTEsothattheUEentersidlemodeinlegacynetwork.

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The operator send LTE 'redirection' information in RRC connection release message of legacy 3G network after the
callisfinished.ThiswillresultagaininreselectiontoLTE.
The lower layers (AS Access Stratum in this case URRC or GRR) reselect to LTE if the reselection criterion is
satisfied. In most cases, operators have their parameters set such that the reselection to LTE happen if there is a
goodLTEcoverageareaoverlappingthelegacynetwork.

VoLTE
Everythingwehaveseensofarisbasedonthemakingofvoicecallinthelegacynetwork.Butaswe
haveseentheseare'temporary'solutionsuntilthe'final'solutionVoLTEisavailable.
And the final LTE voice solution (Voice over IP, or more specifically VoLTE) uses the IMS backbone. An
exampleofnetworktopologysupportingVoLTEisshowninthefollowingfigure.

To make voice calls, LTE networks need to have an IMS. When the first LTE networks appeared, they
hadnoIMS,andwithoutIMS,itwasnotpossibletomakeanycallstoanyPSTNorCS.
WehavespokenoftheIMSbefore,butlet'sremember.

IMS
IMS is a backbone (network) at the application level, which works on top of other wireless networks
andnotjusttheLTE(as3G,2G,WiFiandothers).
Its concept is quite broad, and to understand it with all its entities, possibilities, interfaces, protocols,
andpossibilitiesisanextremelydifficulttask,evenforthemostexperiencedinthesubject.
TheIMSisnotnew:italreadyexistedbeforetheLTE(aswellasotherentities,suchastheEPCPRCF,
whichalsoisnotnew!).
Its complete specification consists of thousands and thousands of 3GPP standards. But let's try to
understandinasimplerwaythanthatfoundthere.
As its name suggests (IP Multimedia Services), IMS offers several multimedia IP services, including
VoIP(VoiceoverIP).InIMS,voiceisjust'another'service!
IMS brings together voice features such as authentication, service authorization, call control, routing,
interoperability with PSTN, billing, additional services and VAS. None of these exist in the EPC: this is
thereasonwhythepureEPCwithoutIMScannotprocessavoicecall.
In other words, for VoLTE, access is made by the SAE (eUTRAN + EPC), while voice service lies in the
IMS.
AnanalogywecandoistoconsidertheIMSbeingacar.AndtheLTEvoice,asourshuttleservice(to
gofromoneplacetoanother).
We can buy a very basic car Basic 1.0 engine, wheels, steering wheel and other minimum parts: yes, we can go
fromoneplacetoanother.

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Or we can buy a 'connected' car ultra modern, powerful, tetrafuel, with all the safety features, ABS, Air bag,
connected to the Internet, etc: we also go from one place to another ... but we can make several other things as
well!

That's more or less what happens with the IMS. It is used in conjunction with the LTE network to
support voice: both full IMS implementation and also the minimum IMS suggested implementation for
VoiceoverLTE.
But the telecommunications industry would rather not invest in a full IMS, or at least did not have
sufficient reason to do it immediately. And for the adoption of the simpler IMS voice solution, appear
the VoLTE initiative, which specifies a minimum set of features, and selects a simple choice when
multipleoptionsexistforcertainfeatures.
However,notallofthesefeaturesarerequiredfordeliveryofbasicvoiceservicesbytheLTEnetwork.
Solet'sillustratewithadiagram(extremelysimple)theimplementationofavoiceinIMS(VoLTE).
Let's assume that we will make a VoLTE call with a CS network whatsoever, for example the PSTN (Public Switch
TelephonyNetwork).
And consider in the IMS only two simple elements, one for the control plane (with signaling) and one for the user
plane(withvoice).
AndtheentrybeingtheSAE,orLTEnetwork.
InIMS,thecontrolelementwouldbeaSIPserver(soonwewilltalkaboutSIPfornowjustunderstandthatwhen
wehaveacallrequesttothisserver,itsetsupthecall.)andtheuserelementwouldbeaMediaGateway.

Incomparisonwiththelegacynetworks,theSIPServerisequivalenttotheMSCinthemobilenetwork
topology and the media gateway is equivalent to a typical Media Gateway on any network topology,
whichiscommoninvirtuallyanyvoicenetworktohandlecalls.
Theaboveconceptisvalid,butinpracticetheIMSconsistsofmuchmoreentities,asseenbelow.Note:
Notallpossible/existingentitiesandinterfacesareshowninthefigure.

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Let's(quickly)seealittleaboutthesekeyelements.
Note:Donotworryortrytounderstandeverythingnowabouttheseelements.Rememberthatourgoal
heretodayisnotthat.Anyway,it'swortharead.
The MGCF (Media Gateway Controller Function) is the control element that communicates with other
PSTNnetworks.Itissignificantbecauseithastointernetworkingfunction:canspeakSIP,canspeak
ISUP,canspeakothersignalingprotocols.
TheIMMGW(IMMediaGateway)istheelementthattakescareofvoicefunctionsforexamplemaking
protocol translation required to support the call. More specifically between the Real Time Transport
Protocol(RTP)toanalogformatorbasicPCMintheCSnetworkandviceversa.
The HSS (Home Subscriber Server) is an element that also exists in the LTE EPC (although appeared
firstinIMS),anditsfunctionsaresimilar.
The MRF (Media Resource Function) provides many services related to voice, such as conferences,
announcements, voice recognition and so on. It is always divided into two parts, the MRFP (Media
Resource Function Processor), for media streams, and the MRFC (Media Resource Function Controller)
thatfunctionsbasicallyasanRTP'mixer'.
Animportantconcept,andthat'sworthstandouthereistheProxy,forexampletomakefilters,identify
where the users come from, the cases of roaming, etc. Remember that we are talking about an IP
network.InsteadoftheuserstospeakdirectlywiththeSIPserver,theyusetheproxy.
TheCSCF(CallSessionControlFunction)hassomevariations.
OPCSCF(ProxyCSCF)amongothertasks,providesQoSinformationrelatedtotheLTEnetwork.AcccessanAFto
voiceservice,andprovidesthecontrolfunctions'policy'and'charging'tothePCRF.
OICSCF(ProxyCSCF)isaninterrogator.
AndtheSCSCF(ServingCSCF):theCSCFserveractsasacentralnode.

TheBGCF(BorderGatewayControlFunction)functionsasaroutingtable(ortableB)andactstohelp
theSCSCF.Ithasbasicallyroutingdecisions.
As we speak, the IMS voice is a 'service' the IMS is a services 'facilitator'. The IMS services are
providedthroughAS(ApplicationServers).
Onesuchapplicationisthevoice.Andtherearealsovideoservices,conference,etc.
Infact,sometimestheASarenotconsideredaspartofIMS(whenweunderstandtheIMSasaCORE).
And in IMS, the standard AS for voice is the MMTel (Multimedia Telephony Service), sometimes called
MTAS(MultimediaTelephonyApplicationServer).
The SBC (Session Border Controller) is an element of the edges of the IMS to control signaling and
oftenthemediastreamsinvolvedincalls.
The SCSCF will be responsible for call routing depending on where the other user (the other party)
are:
ASBG(SessionBorderGateway)ifthetheotherpartyisinIPdomain

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AMGC/MGWiftheotherpartyisintheCSdomain(PSTN/PLMN).

IBCF and TrGW are not shown in our figure, but are respectively the control and user plane for other
IMSnetworks,otherSIPnetworksingeneral.TheyaresimilartotheMGCF/IMMGWtherequirements
for reaching one or another type of network are different, so also have separate parts for performing
thesamefunctionsbutwithdifferentnetworks.

SIP
To support telephone signaling between the LTE network and telephone networks, the IMS uses SIP
(SessionInitiationProtocol).SIPisastandardprotocolforestablishingvoicecallsoverIPnetworks.

Thecodeisopen,andusesthe'requestresponse'modeltoallowcommunicationsessions.
Thereisasetofstandardcommandsthatcanbeusedtoinitiate,manageandterminatecallsbetween
twoSIPdevices.
TheSIPhasbeenadoptedbyIMSstandardizationastheprotocoltoallowsignalingbetweentelephone
networksandVoIPnetworks.
SIPistextbasedandwasdevelopedinthe90sinordertobesimpleandefficient,justliketheHTTP
protocol(infact,wasinspiredbyHTTPandotherprotocolssuchasSMTP).
AgoodanalogyistocomparetheSIPwithHTTP.
You probably can understand well the HTTP interaction principle, which allows audio connection, text,
video and other elements on a web page. With SIP is pretty much the same thing: it allows the
establishment, management and calls endings (or sessions) for IP multiusers without knowing the
content of the call. A session can be a simple telephone call between two users, or a multiuser
multimediaconference.
Both (SIP and HTTP) take the control of the application to the end user, regardless of the transport
protocol (SIP is a control protocol in the application layer), so there is no need for switching
centers/servers.
TheSIPhoweverisnotaresourcereservationprotocol,andhasnothingtodowithQoS.
Ashortbreak:ourtutorialtodayisalreadyquiteextensive,butwe'llkeepalittlemorewiththisissue
becausetheseconceptsareveryimportant,andyou'llbehearingalotofthem.
Totrytounderstanditbetter,let'sseeasimplifiedexampleforavoicecallestablishmentprocessusing
IMSplatformandSIPsignaling.

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Initially,theUEsendsaSIPmessagelike'Invite',containingthedescriptionofoneormoremeasuresforthevoice
session(InitialSDPSessionDescriptionProtocolOffer).
Then the PCSCF forwards this same message to the SCSCF (which has been identified during the registration
process).
All going well, the termination network will have sent a message of type 'offer response' to the SCSCF, and this
sendsthismessagetothePCSCF,authorizingtheallocationoftheresourcesnecessaryforthissession.
Finally, the PCSCF forwards the 'offer response' message back to the UE, which confirms the receipt of the 'offer
response'messageandtheresourcereservationisstarted.

Thisisaverysimplifiedexampleofhowyoucanbegetting(origination)ofavoiceservicebytheUE,
viaIMS.
Several other diagrams exist, with far more complex scenarios, but the basic idea can be seen above,
andextendedifnecessary.
Let'scompletethetutorialtoday,nowseeingthecasewhereaninitiallyestablishedcallonIMShasto
be'transferred'.

SRVCC
Finallywecometoourlastalternativelistedatthebeginningofthistutorial:SRVCC(SingleRadioVoice
CallContinuity).
The SRVCC however is not an alternative for delivery, but a rather a handover process of a voice call
previouslystartedintheLTE(whetherOneVoiceVoLTELTEorIMSFullVoice).
Itisacalltransfermethod(handover),inasimplifiedandreliablyway,whenanLTEuserhasanactive
voicesessioninIMSandismovingtoareaswithoutLTEcoverage,butwithlegacy2G/3Gcoverage.
The main advantage is that the call will not drop will only be transferred to the CS domain of the
legacynetworks.
If in the above case the UE moves out of LTE coverage area with an active call (but goes to a legacy
2G/3Gcoverage),wemustmaintainthecontinuityofthisactivevoicecall.Inthiscase,theSRVCCis
used:theprocedurewherethecontextofanactivevoicecallontheIMSistransferredtotheCSlegacy
network(e.g.IMSnodecontexttransfertotheMSC).

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ThechallengewithSRVCCistoperformthehandoverwhiletheUEisconnectedtoonlyasingleradio
atanygivenmoment.
TherearetwoversionsofSRVCC:
SRVCChandovertoGSMorUMTS,definedby3GPP
SRVCCHandoverto1xRTTnetworksdefinedbythe3GPP2.

ToallowSRVCCboththeUEandLTEnetworks,asalsothelegacy,mustsupportSRVCC.Forthis,anew
specialSVinterfaceisintroducedbetweentheMMEandtheMSC,whichrunsonGTPv2protocol.

To support SRVCC, the IMS network should also include an application server, called SCC AS (Server
CentralizationandContinuityApplicationServer).
Thisapplicationserveriswhomanagesthesignalingrequiredfortheprocess.
Let'sseeasimplifiedexampleofsomeSRVCCproceduresfromLTEtoGSM.
WhenanUEthatsupportsVoLTEisinanLTEcoveragearea,itstartsvoicesessionsviatheIMSnetwork,whichwill
hostthesessionandprovideapplicationsandsessioncontrolbasedonSIP.
WhentheUEmovesfromanLTEcoverageareaforaCS2G/3Gcoveragearea,withtheactiveIMSsession,theIMS
switchesthesessiontotheCSdomain,maintainingbothpartsawareofthehandoversession.

Example of SRVCC Handover

RealizingthatitsLTEsignallevelbeginstodecrease,theUEwithanactiveIMSvoicesessionsignalsit
totheeNodeB,initiatingtheSRVCChandover.
The eNodeB then identifies the best available network to receive the service, and sends the handover
request(specifyingthatitistheSRVCCtype)totheMME.

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The new voice call request is then sent to the IMS, using a SR STN (Session Transfer Number for
SRVCC)auniquenumberthatisgeneratedbyeachUE,andisstoredinHSS.
This unique number is sent by the MME to the HSS when the UE firts comes into contact with the
network.
Upon receiving the STN SR number, the SCC AS believes that the corresponding call should be
transferred to a different network network, and starts the redirecting process for the transfer point
(handover)tothelegacynetwork.
After resource preparation is completed, the MME confirms the handover request, previously provided
bytheeNodeB.
The eNodeB then transmits this acknowledgment to the UE, while still providing the required
informationaboutthetargetnetwork.
Inthefinalstages,theUEisdetectedinlegacynetworks,andthecallisreestablishedinit.
ThuswehavethecompletionoftheSRVCChandover.
Voice packets and also packets that are not voice can be transferred using this method, but the data
rateswillbelimitedbythecapabilitiesofthelegacynetworks.
Once the SRVCC is a procedure for interRAT handover based on IMS LTE network to the CS legacy
network 2G/3G, it is much more complex than that of handovers legacy networks 3G / 2G. The
questionishowtomaintainahandoverperformancecomparabletoorbetteracceptable.
In order to improve the performance of the SRVCC handover, one WI (Work Item) called eSRVCC
(SRVCCenhancement)wasestablishedinthe3GPPSA2inRelease10.Theanchoringsolutionisbased
ontheIMS,andintroducesnewentitiesATCF(TransferControlAccessFunction)andATGW(Transfer
AccessGateway).
Again,thedeepeningofthissubjectescapesfromourgoaltoday.
Finally,wewillenumeratesomeofthemainadvantagesanddisadvantages(orprosandcons)ofeach
alternative.

Advantages and disadvantages of each alternative

Callsetuptime:WhenoperatorsuseCSFB,oneofthebiggestproblemsfaced(andoneofthemajor
disadvantagesofCSFB)istheincreaseincallsetuptimeduetoretuningproceduresin2G/3Gradios.
An efficient CSFB solution requires the the TAC > LAC mapping is so that the fallback to an external
MSC/LACbeavoided,sincethiswillfurtherincreasethecallsetuptime.
Callquality:callqualityinLTEisbetterwhencomparedwiththesamethirdpartyapplications(OTT).
This is due to specific QoS allocated to the call IMS, which may not be present in common data
applications.
ResourcelimitationsforVoLTE:AMRNWLTErequiresmuchlessresourcesanddataratethanGSM,
andwewillhavemanymoreusersonthesamebandwidth(spectralefficiency).
Investment x Current Network: if everything is 'working well', what would be the reason for
investment,sincesurelysuchinvestmentsgenerateresistancefromcommercialandbusinessareas?
Thecomparisonthatmustbedoneis:Investmentversus(all)BenefitsofIMS/MGW/BGCF.
Future:In any way all that discussion hereafter will more significance. Currently we still have
extensivelegacynetworks,capableofsupportingthesevoicecalls.
In this case, it is no problem to continue using this available infrastructure. Resistance will only
decreasewhensuchcapacityalsodecrease.ButinanLTEnetwork,iftheIMSissupportedcanmakea
VoIPcall.SowhywouldweneedtomakeaCSvoicecall?
CSFBxSRVCC:
Itisnotnecessarytoimplementbothsolutions(CSFBandSRVCC)atthesametime,ifthenetworkhasawideLTE
coverageandacompleteIMSbackbone.
IfweimplementeCSFB,itmeanswewillnotmakethecallsetupusingexistingIMSCore,andthatcouldtake
careofthatcallinLTE.
In respect to the SRVCC: assuming the Backbone IMS is available. In this case, if the register in the IMS is
successful,theuserdonotneedtodoCSFBAvoicecallcanbesimplyinitiatedinLTEnetworkusingIMS.
CSFBisaservicehandoverprocedurewhileSRVCCisacoveragehandoverprocedure.

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Case Studies and Analogies

Withallthatwehaveseentoday,let'simaginesomescenarios.
First,imaginethatyouareinanetworkthatdoesnothaveLTEIMS.Thentheonlywaytomakeavoice
call,whetheroriginatedorterminated,isthroughusinglegacy2G/3G.
You need to be redirected/released from LTE to legacy 2G/3G network to make a voice call. Like a
'reselection'fromcellLTEtothe2G/3G.Oncethelegacynetwork,youcanmakethecallnormally,as
you'realreadyusedto.
Andso,youjustsawtheCSFBinpractice!
Now suppose you are watching a video stream on 4G network, and receive a voice call. In this case,
youneedtogotothe3Gnetwork(inidlemode),andgettheresourcesfortomakethatcallin3G.
After you end your voice call, you keep watching the video stream, but now in the 3G network (the
handoverfrom3Gto4Gisnotyetdefined).
YoujustsawtheCSFBwithanactivedatacall!
Nowlet'simaginethatyouareinanotherLTEnetwork,thistimewithIMS.Inthiscase,youcanmake
avoicecallusingIPpackets.
WehavejustseenaVoLTEcall!
Further, imagine that you are in one of these voice calls using packets in 4G. Suppose further you
reach your 4G cell coverage edge. So the only option to keep your call is to handover it to the 3G
(assuming this is the existing coverage). Your call will then continue on the 3G network, but now as
oneCSvoicecall.SRVCC!
IftheSRVCCisnotsupported,thecallisdroppedassoonasitleavestheLTEcoveragearea.
If the SRVCC is supported, a set of messages are exchanged, and the voice call is transferred
(handover)fromLTEIMStoCSdomainofthe2G/3Gnetwork.
Andso,wehavejustseenanexampleofSRVCChandover!
Andthat'sallfortoday.Wehopethatthetutorialhasmanagedtobeusefulforyouthatsomehoware
interestedvoiceinLTEnetworks.

Conclusion
We saw in this tutorial today, in a very general way, the main ways to make voice calls (and SMS) in
LTEnetworks.
The options or alternatives depend on several factors, such as available network topology and the
operator'sstrategy.
Dependingonthesituation,thecallcanbeoriginatedinLTEviadataapplications(OTTVoIP),bepurely
originatedonLTEIMS(VoLTE),senttobeperformedonothernetworksthroughmechanismsdeveloped
forthispurpose(CSFB)ortransferredviahandoverifactiveVoLTEcalltoalegacynetwork(SRVCC).
So,forauserwhoisaLTEcoveragearea,anumberofconsiderationsshouldbechecked,asthetype
of device that it uses (whether supports CSFB), if the LTE network has an IMS that allows outgoing
calls,ifthecellssupportsSRVCC,etc.
Basedontheconceptsseenheretoday,wehopeyouhaveapositiontofullyunderstandwhathappens
whenauserperformsavoicecallfromanLTEnetwork.
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Addacomment...

MarianHnatkowski
SzkoaGwnaHandlowa

AndinsectionCSFBterminatedcallsyouwrote,thatonlyifend
userwillacceptMTCcallMMEwilltransformcalltothelegacy
network.PleasecorrectmeifIamwrong,butinrealitynetwork
transformscalltolegacynetworkimmediatellyafter"CSservice
notificationmessage"ifterminalcanperformCSFB,andonly
afterthat,on2/3G"human"candecidetoacceptcallornot.
LikeReply

1May30,20167:15am

MarianHnatkowski
SzkoaGwnaHandlowa

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SzkoaGwnaHandlowa

Hi,
Ihaveaquestion,inCSFBsectionyouwrotethis:
"AnimportantinformationisthattheS3isa'new'interface
betweenMMEandSGSNonGTPCv2.Andtosupportit,the
SGSNneedstobeupdated(mostcarriersdonotwanttodothis
withoutastrongjustification).
AndGninterfaceisalreadyonGTPCv1,whichisthenativeGTP
versionfor3Gnetworks.SointhiscaseonlytheMMEneedsto
beupdated,andasitisarelativelynewnode,itisprobably
easiertodo.NottomentionthatthenewSGSNmayhavenative
supportforS3."
Youmeant,thatafterupdatingofS3wewillbeabletouse
GTPCv1protocolalsoS3intrefaceaswell?
LikeReply

1May30,20166:52am

LucasGoulart
INATEL

Ihaveaquestion.AfterHOviaSRVCC,ispossiblethatUEreturn
toLTEnetworkduringacall?OrtheUEonlywillreturntoLTE
afterreleasethecall?
Thanks1
LikeReply

1Apr27,20169:52am

RanjitAvasarala
WorksatNone

yespossible
LikeReply

1May9,20162:17pm

AnushaVenkat
WorksatAccentureUKLimited

Goodoneindeed!!
LikeReply

1Feb12,20165:46am

VishalSharma
DeputyManageratRelianceJioInfocommLimited

WhathappensiftheUEdoesnotsupportVoLTEbutthenetwork
hascompleteIMSinfrastructure.
LikeReply

1Oct13,20157:25pm

AakashNamdev
SolutionIntegratoratEricsson

ifUEisnotsupportingVoLTE,therewillbeCSFBprocess
happenforvoicecall(assumingcarrierproviderhasthe
setup)
LikeReply

3Nov5,201511:15pm

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