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LTEQoS:SDFandEPSBearerQoS|NETMANIAS
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LTEQoS:SDFandEPSBearerQoS
September11,2013|ByNetmanias(tech@netmanias.com)
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SUMMARY
ThisdocumentwilldescribeLTEQoSatservicelevelandatbearerlevel.First,theconceptofService
Data Flow (SDF) and EPS bearer, traffic flows at these two levels, will be explained, followed by a
description of their relationship. Then, it will explain the concept of QoS at each level, and cover
different types and characteristics of SDF QoS parameters and EPS bearer QoS parameters. Finally,
explanation on how QoS parameters are provisioned to Evolved Packet System (EPS) entities and
appliedtousertraffic,andhowtheyworkinULandDLtrafficwillbegiven.

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TableofContents
I.Introduction
II.SDFandEPSBearer
III.QoSParametersofSDFandEPSBearer

IV.QoSProvisioningandEnforcement
V.AnExampleforSDFandEPSBearerQoS
VI.Closing
References

I.Introduction

AnLTEserviceprovidershouldbeabletomakeserviceswithdifferentQoSrequirementsavailabletoits
userswithdifferentsubscriptionlevels.So,theserviceproviderneedstobeawareofsubscriptionlevels
ofeachuser(e.g.premium,besteffort,etc.)andrequestedservicetypes(e.g.Internet,voice,etc.)in
ordertoassignradioandnetworkresourcestothetrafficofeachuserandmanagethemproperly.

Forthisreason,theLTEnetworkfirstclassifiesusertraffic(IPflows)intodifferentSDFshavingdifferent
QoSclassesbasedonthetypeoftheservicethatisbeingprovidedthroughtheSDFs,andthenapplies
differentQoSrulestoeachSDF.SinceSDFsaredeliveredthroughEPSbearersintheLTEnetwork,EPS
bearerQoShastobecontrolledinawaythatSDFQoSismaintained.

Inthisdocument,QoSmechanismsforSDFsandEPSbearersareexplainedasQoSmechanismsinLTE,
andexamplesshowinghowtheyworkareprovided.Thisdocumentisorganizedasfollows:ChapterII
definesanSDFandEPSbearerandChapterIIIdescribesQoSparametersforSDFsandEPSbearers.
ChapterIVcoversQoSprovisioningandQoSenforcement,describingbywhichentityQoSparameters
areprovisionedandwheretheyareenforced.InChapterV,someexamplesshowinghowtheLTEQoS
worksareprovidedandexplainedbasedontheconceptofQoSdiscussedinChaptersIIandIII.

II.SDFandEPSBearer

Figure1illustratesSDFsandEPSbearers,andtheirrelationship.InanLTEnetwork,usertraffic(IPflows
orIPpackets)isclassifiedintoSDFtraffic(hereinafterreferredtoasSDF)andEPSbearertraffic
(hereinafterreferredtoasEPSbearer).AnSDFreferstoagroupofIPflowsassociatedwithaservice

ViewAll(116)
Architecture(3) Attach(1)
Backbone(2) Backhaul (3) CMIP

thatauserisusing,whileanEPSbearerreferstoIPflowsofaggregatedSDFsthathavethesameQoS

(1) CarrierEthernet (3) Charging

class.

(1) DHCP (4) Detach(1) ECM(1)

EMM(14) EPS(1) Google(1)

HLS(1) HTTPAdaptive

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Streaming(3) Handover(5)
IGMP(1) Identification (3)
Identifier(2) InitialAttach(1)
Interworking(1) Korea(1)

LTE

(27) LTEA(1) MPLS(2) MobileIP

(1) Mobility(1) Multicast(2)

NAT

(7) Netflix(1) OTT(1) PCC(1) PIM

(1) PMIP(1) ProgressiveDownload(1)

QoS(2) SDF(1) SKTelecom(1) STUN

(2) Security (3) TPS(1) Topology(1)

Figure1.SDFsandEPSBearers

TheSDFandEPSbeareraredetectedbymatchingtheIPflowsagainstthepacketfilters(SDFtemplates
forSDFsortrafficflowtemplates(TFTs)forEPSbearers).Thesepacketfiltersarepreconfiguredby

TransparentCache(1) WiFi(1)
YouTube(2)
LTESubscribersGrowthinKorea

networkoperatorsinaccordancewiththeirpolicy,andeachofthemtypicallyconsistsof5tuple(Source
IPaddress,DestinationIPaddress,Sourceportnumber,Destinationportnumber,andProtocolID).
Inotherwords,intheLTEnetwork,IPflowswiththesameservicecharacteristicsthatmatchthepacket
filtersofaSDFtemplatearedesignatedaSDF.SDFsthatmatchthepacketfiltersofaTFTaremapped
toanEPSbearer,tobefinallydeliveredtoaUE.SDFswiththesameQoSclassaredelivered,as
aggregated,throughanEPSbearer,whereasoneswithdifferentQoSclassaredeliveredthrough
differentEPSbearers.

SDF
Usertrafficusingdifferentservices(orapplications)hasdifferentQoSclass.ASDFisanIPfloworan
aggregationofIPflowsofusertrafficclassifiedbythetypeoftheserviceinuse.DifferentSDFshave
differentQoSclassandhenceanSDFservesasaunitbywhichQoSrules1areappliedinaccordance
withPolicyandCharging(PCC)procedureintheLTEnetwork(SeeLTEPCCtechnicaldocumentfor
detailedPCCprocedure).InFigure1,IPflowsheadingtoaUEareclassifiedintodifferentSDFsaccording
totheirservicetypebyusingtheSDFtemplate.Then,appropriateQoSpolicies(e.g.priority,bandwidth
control,etc.)areappliedtotheseSDFsbeforetheyaredeliveredtotheUE.AsQoSisprovidedbyEPS
bearerswhentheSDFsaredeliveredovertheLTEnetwork,eachSDFismappedbythePGWtoanEPS

>>viewallstatisticsdiagrams

bearerthatsatisfiesitsQoSrequirement,andthendeliveredtotheUE.

EPSBearer
TherearetwotypesofEPSbearers:defaultanddedicated(See[1]).WhenaUEattachestotheLTE
network,anIPaddresstobeusedinaPDN(PacketDataNetwork)isassigned,connectingtoaPDN2,
andadefaultEPSbearerisestablishedallatthesametime.Whenauserwhohasbeenusingaservice
throughadefaultbearer(e.g.Internet)attemptstouseaservicewhichrequireshigherQoSthatthe
currentdefaultbearercannotprovide(e.g.VoD),adedicatedbearerisestablishedondemand3.Thus,
thededicatedbearerisestablishedwithQoSdifferentfromtheonealreadysentintheexistingbearer.A
UEcanbeconnectedtomorethanonePDN,whichhasonemandatorydefaultEPSbearerandnoneto
manyoptionalEPSbearers.ThenumberofEPSbearersaUEcanhavecannotexceed11(See[1]).

OncethedefaultbearerisestablishedattheinitialattachofaUEtothenetwork,theestablishmentlasts
evenwhilenoserviceisbeingusedanduntiltheUEdetachesfromthenetwork.Thedefaultbeareris
establishedonepereachPDN.WhenaUEinitiallyattachestothenetwork,thenetwork(MME)needs
informationabouthowtoestablishadefaultbearer,suchaswhichQoStouseandtowhichPDNto
connect.ThisinformationisalreadyprovisionedtoanHSSassubscriptioninformation.So,theMMEcan
simplydownloadthesubscriptioninformation(defaultAPN,EPSsubscribedQoSprofile,etc.),selectaP
GWtoconnectaPDNfrombasedontheAPN,andactivateadefaultbearerassociatedtothePDNbased
onthesubscribedQoSprofile.

SDFsandEPSBearersinFigure1
Figure1showsEPSbearersandSDFswhendownlinkIPflowsaredeliveredtoaUEthroughEPS.TheIP
flowsarrivingataPGWthroughaPDNarefilteredtoSDFsbyusingSDFtemplates(kindofpacket
filters).Inthefigure,IPflows1,2and3arefilteredtoSDFs1,2and3,respectivelywhileIPflows4
and5arefilteredtoSDF4.DifferentQoSpoliciesareappliedtoeachSDFandthentheSDFsare
mappedtoEPSbearersasclassifiedbyusingTrafficFlowTemplate(TFT).SDFs1and2aremappedto
thedefaultbearerandSDFs3and4aremappedtothededicatedbearer,alldestinedtotheUE.Upon
arrivalattheUE,theIPflowsareallsenttotheirdestinationapplications.

TermsrelatingtoEPSbearersandSDFsshowninFigure1arelistedinTable1.OutoftheIP
ConnectivityAccessNetworks(IPCANs)coveredin3GPPstandards,thisdocumentdiscussesEPSonly.
So,allIPCANsarereferredtoasEPSherein(e.g.IPCANBearer=EPSBearer).

RelatedContents
LTEPolicyandCharging
Control(PCC)
EMMProcedure10&11.
MovetoAnotherCityand
Attach
EMMProcedure8&9.
HandoverandCellReselection
withTAU
EMMProcedure7.Cell
ReselectionwithoutTAU
EMMProcedure6.Handover
withoutTAUPart3.S1
Handover
EMMProcedure6.Handover
withoutTAUPart2.X2
Handover
EMMProcedure6.Handover
withoutTAUPart1.
OverviewofLTEHandover
EMMProcedure5.Periodic
TAU

EMMProcedure4.Service
Request

Table1.TermsrelatingtoSDFsandEPSBearers

EMMProcedure3.S1Release
EMMProcedure2.Detach

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EMMProcedure1.Initial
AttachPart2.CallFlowof
InitialAttach
EMMProcedure1.Initial
AttachPart1.CasesofInitial
Attach
ElevenEMMCasesinanEMM
Scenario
LTEEMMandECMStates
LTEIdentificationIII:EPS
Session/BearerIdentifiers
LTEIdentificationII:NEand
LocationIdentifiers
LTEIdentificationI:UEandME
Identifiers
NetworkArchitectureforLTE
andWiFiInterworking
LTESecurityII:NASandAS
Security
LTESecurityI:Conceptand
Authentication
LTENetworkArchitecture:
Basic

III.QoSParametersforSDFandEPSBearer

InChapterII,wehavelearnedthatusertrafficisclassifiedbyusingpacketfiltersintoeitherSDFsor
EPSbearers,andSDFQoSandEPSbearerQoSarerespectivelyappliedtotheSDFsandtheEPS
bearers.InChapterIII,wewillstudyQoSparametersforSDFsandforEPSbearersandexplaintheir
relationship.

InanLTEnetwork,QoSparametersaredefinedatservicelevelandatbearerlevel.SDFQoS
parametersareservicelevelQoSparameterswhileEPSbearerQoSparametersarebearerlevelQoS
parameters.ServicelevelandbearerlevelarealsocalledasSDFlevelandSDFaggregatelevel.AnSDF
aggregatereferstoagroupofSDFswhichhavethesameQCI(QoSClassIdentifier)andARP(Allocation
andRetentionPriority)valuesandbelongtooneEPSsession.BothQCIandARParethebasicQoS
parametersappliedtoallSDFsandEPSbearers.TheQCIisparticularlyimportantbecauseitservesasa
referencethatindicatestheperformancecharacteristicsofSDFsandEPSbearers.Inadditiontothese
twobasicparameters,thereareotherQoSparameters,suchasGBR,MBRandAMBRthatspecifythe
bandwidth(orbitrate)characteristicsofSDFsandEPSbearers.SDFandEPSbearerQoSparametersare
asfollows:
SDFQoSparameters:QCI,ARP,GBRandMBR
EPSbearerQoSparameters:QCI,ARP,GBR,MBR,APNAMBRandUEAMBR

SDFQoSParameters
QCIandARPareappliedtoallSDFs.TheQCI,inanintegerfrom1to9,indicatesninedifferentQoS
performancecharacteristicsofeachIPpacket,suchasresourcetype(GBRorNonGBR),priority(1~
9),packetdelaybudget(50ms~300ms),andpacketerrorlossrate(102~106)[2].
MaximumBitRate(MBR)andGuaranteedBitRate(GBR)arealsotheSDFQoSparameters,andthey
indicatethebandwidths(orbitrates)ofSDFs.MBRspecifiesthemaximumbitrateofanSDF.Ifthe
networktrafficisnotcongested,usertraffictravellingasSDFcanbedeliveredatmostatthespecified
MBR.However,GBRistheguaranteedbitrateofanSDF.ThismeanstheSDFisguaranteedwitha
specifiedGBRnomatterwhat.So,evenwhenthenetworktrafficiscongested,usertraffictravellingas
SDFisdeliveredatleastattheguaranteedGBR.

TherearetwotypesofSDFs:GBRSDFandnonGBRSDF.IncaseofaGBRSDF,dedicatednetwork
resourcesareassignedaccordingtotheresourcetypespecifiedbyitsQCI.However,incaseofanon
GBRSDF,dedicatednetworkresourcesarenotassigned(SeeTable3forcomparisonbetweenGBRand
nonGBRtypes).AGBRSDFisassignedaGBRandanMBR,whereasanonGBRSDFisassignedanMBR
only.QoSparametersforthesetwoSDFsareasfollows:
GBRSDFQoSparameters:QCI,ARP,GBR(UL/DL)andMBR(UL/DL)
NonGBRSDFQoSparameters:QCI,ARPandMBR(UL/DL)
ASDFthatmatchesthepacketsfiltersofaTFT(DLTFT)ismappedtoanEPSbearerinaPGW,and

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deliveredtoaUEthroughitsmappedEPSbearer.AnaggregateofSDFswiththesameQCIandARPis
mappedtooneEPSbearer.

EPSBearerQoSParameters
QCIandARPareappliedtoallEPSbearers.AnEPSbearerisclassifiedasaGBRbeareroranonGBR
bearerdependingontheresourcetypespecifiedbyitsQCI(SeeTable3forcomparisonbetweenGBR
andnonGBRtypes).AdefaultbearermustbenonGBRwhileadedicatedbearercanbeeitherGBRor
nonGBR.
OtherthanQCIandARP,thereareotherQoSparametersforEPSbearers:MBRandGBRindicatingthe
bandwidth(orbitrate)ofanEPSbearer,andAMBR(AggregatedMaximumBitRate)indicatingthetotal
bandwidthofmultipleEPSbearers.MBRandGBRarethemaximumandtheguaranteedbandwidthsofan
EPSbearerrespectively,andAMBRisthemaximumtotalbandwidthofmultipleEPSbearers.

AGBREPSbearerisassignedaGBRandanMBR,whichmeansdedicatednetworkresourcesare
allocated(i.e.abandwidthinanamountofthespecifiedGBRisguaranteedandabandwidthinan
amountofthespecifiedMBRisavailable)tothebearer.However,anonGBREPSbearerisassignedan
AMBR,whichmeansdedicatednetworkresourcesarenotallocatedtothebearer,butamaximum
bandwidthtosharewithothernonGBRbearersisallocated.TherearetwotypesofAMBR:APNAMBR,
themaximumbandwidththatcanbesharedbyallnonGBRbearersinaPDN,andUEAMBR,the
maximumbandwidththatcanbesharedinaUE.AUEcanbeconnectedtomorethanonePDN,inwhich
casethetotalAPNAMBRofallPDNscannotexceedtheUEAMBR.QoSparametersforthetwotypesof
EPSbearersareasfollows:
GBRbearerQoSparameters:QCI,ARP,GBR(UL/DL)andMBR(UL/DL)
NonGBRbearerQoSparameters:QCI,ARP,APNAMBR(UL/DL)andUEAMBR(UL/DL)

SDFandEPSBearerQoSParameters
Figure2illustratesQoSparametersappliedtoSDFsandEPSbearers.

Figure2.QoSParametersforSDFandEPSBearer

InFigure2,theUEisconnectedtotwoPDNs.TheUEhastwoIPaddresses:IPaddress1assignedbyP
GW1foruseinPDN1,andIPaddress2assignedbyPGW2foruseinPDN2.Andithasonedefault
bearerandtwodedicatedbearersestablishedforeachPDN.UsertrafficIPflowsarefilteredintoSDFsin
thePGWbyusingSDFtemplates.TherearetwogroupsofSDFs1~5eachreceivedfromPDN1andPDN
2.FortheseSDFs,networkresourcesareallocatedandpacketforwardingistreatedaccordingtothe
QoSrulessetinthePGW.AndtheSDFsarethenmappedtoEPSbearersbasedontheirspecifiedQCI
andARP.IncaseofPDN1inthefigure,SDFs1and2aremappedtothedefaultbearer,SDFs3and4
aremappedtothenonGBRdedicatedbearer,andSDF5ismappedtotheGBRdedicatedbearer,all
headingtotheUE,theirfinaldestination.SuchtrafficmappedfromSDFtoEPSbearerisdefinedby
usingTrafficFilterTemplate(TFT).AlltheusertrafficissubjecttotheEPSbearerQoSwhilebeing
deliveredthroughtheEPSbearers.

AllnonGBRbearersassociatedwithaPDNarecontrolledbythemaximumAPNAMBRtheysharewhile
theonesassociatedwithaUEarecontrolledbythemaximumUEAMBRtheyshare.

Table2.QoSParametersforSDFandEPSBearer

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Table3.GBRvs.NonGBR

IV.QoSProvisioningandEnforcement

Section4.1discussesQoSprovisioningthatdecidesbywhichentitytheQoSparametervaluessetinEPS
entitiesareprovided.AndSection4.2coversQoSenforcementthatdeterminestowhichEPSentitiesthe
SDFandEPSbearerQoSparametersdefinedinChapterIIIaresetandtowhichusertrafficthe
parametersareapplied.

4.1QoSProvisioning

Figure3showsbywhichentitytheQoSparameterssetinEPSentitiesareprovided.

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Figure3.QoSProvisioning

SDFQoSProvisioning
AlltheQoSparametersforSDFsareprovisionedbyPolicyandChargingRulesFunction(PCRF).

EPSBearerQoSProvisioning
QoSparametersappliedtoadefaultbearerareprovisionedtoanHSSassubscriptioninformationbya
networkoperator.Andthen,whenthedefaultbearerisactivated,anMMEdownloadstheQoSprofilefor
thebearerfromtheHSSandsendsittoEPSentitiesappropriately.QoSparametersforthedefault
bearerprovidedbytheHSScanbemodifiedwhenQoSrulesareauthorizedbyPDRFuponcreationofan
EPSsession.UEAMBRcontrolledbyaneNBisprovidedbytheHSS,butcanbemodifiedbytheMME.In
suchcase,theMMEcanreplacetheexistingUEAMBRwiththeaggregatedAPNAMBRofallactivePDNs,
totheextentthatthenewvaluedoesnotexceedthevalueprovidedbytheHSS,UEAMBRHSS.

QoSparametersappliedtoadedicatedbearerareprovisionedbyPCRF.ThePCRFdeterminesQoS
parametersforthebearerbasedonthesubscriptioninformationitreceivedfromSubscriberProfile
Repository(SPR)whenthebearerisactivated.

4.2QoSEnforcement

DuringQoSenforcement,detectionofusertraffic(IPflowsi.e.,SDFandEPSbearer)isperformedand
thenQoSrulesareappliedtoeachofthedetectedSDFsandEPSbearersaccordingly.
Figure4isanillustrationshowingtowhichEPSentitiestheSDFandEPSbearerQoSparametersareset
andenforced.EPSbearerQoSparametersenforcedtoanSGWaresameasinaPGWexceptforAPN
AMBR.However,onlyQCIsaredisplayedinthisfigureforillustrativepurposes.

Figure4.QoSEnforcement

SDFQoSEnforcement
SDFQoSparameters(i.e.QCI,ARP,MBRandGBR)areinstalledinaPGW.Table4showstowhichEPS
entitytheSDFQoSparametersareenforced.IPflowsarrivingataPGWarefilteredintodifferentSDFs
byusingSDFtemplates,thentheseSDFsarecontrolledbySDFQoSparametersinstalledinthePGW.

Table4.SDFQoSEnforcement

EPSBearerQoSEnforcement
QoSparametersforEPSbearersareenforcedinEPSentities(UE,eNB,SGWandPGW)thatdeliver
usertrafficbetweenUEandPGW.Table5illustratestowhichEPSentityeachoftheQoSparametersis

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enforced.
APNAMBRisappliedtoallthenonGBREPSbearersactivatedinaPDN,byUEandPGW,thetwo
endpointsofthebearers.TheAPNAMBRisappliedonlyforULtrafficinaUE,butforbothULandDL
trafficinaPGW.WhereasUEAMBRisappliedtoallthenonGBREPSbearersactivatedinaUE,byeNB
fromwhichallPDNtrafficissent.Thatis,APNAMBRisappliedonlytothePDNidentifiedbyits
associatedAPN,whileUEAMBRisappliedtoaUE,andthustoallPDNsassociatedwiththeUE.
MBRisappliedonlytoGBRbearers,andonlyforULtrafficinaUEandaneNB,butonlyforDLtrafficin
anSGwandaPGW.GBRisalsoappliedonlytoGBREPSbearersandforULandDLtrafficinall
entitiesexceptforaUE.

Table5.EPSBearerQoSEnforcement

V.AnExampleforSDFandEPSBearerQoS

InChapterV,LTEQoSexamplesareprovidedbasedontheconceptoftheSDFandEPSbearerQoS
discussedinChaptersIIandIII.Throughtheexamples,adescriptionofhowtheSDFQoSandEPSbearer
QoSmechanismsworkandwhattheydoineachEPSentitywillbegiven.Thescenariousedforthe
purposesofthischapterisasfollows:
UEconnectedtoonePDN(Internet)
UEcommunicatingwiththeInternetthroughthreebearers,i.e.onedefaultbearer,onenonGBR
dedicatedbearer,andoneGBRdedicatedbearer.
TheirbearerIDs(EPSbearerID(EBI))are5,8and10,respectively.

5.1QoSOperationinDownlink

Figure5showsanexampleofLTEQoSoperationinDL.Theiroperationineachentity,mainlyinUE,eNB
andPGW,isdescribedindetailsbelow.Thetrafficcontrolapplicablehereinincludestrafficpolicingand
shaping.Figure5andFigure6showexamplesofapplyingtrafficpolicing.

Figure5.AnExampleforLTEQoS(Downlink)

[PGW]DLIPFlowsArrival
IPflowsarrivedataPGW.Theflows1~5arevoicedata(RTP),videostreaming,voicesignaling

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(SIP),twowaygame,andbestefforttypeInternettraffic,respectively.

[PGW]IPPacketFiltering(SDFTemplates)
UponarrivalatthePGW,theIPflowsarefilteredthroughIPpacketfilters(SDFtemplates)into
differentSDFs.Here,5tuple(SourceIPaddress,DestinationIPaddress,Sourceportnumber,
Destinationportnumber,ProtocolID)valuesareusedasfilteringrulesforthispurpose.IPflow1
isclassifiedasGBRSDF1,IPflow2isclassifiedasGBRSDF2,IPflows3and4areclassifiedas
nonGBRSDF3,andIPflow5isclassifiedasnonGBRSDF4.

[PGW]SDFQoSEnforcement:MBRRatePolicing
MBRratepolicingisperformedagainsteachSDF,andanytrafficexceedingthespecifiedDLMBRis
discarded.

[PGW]SDFEPSBearerMapping:IPPacketFiltering(TrafficFlowTemplatesTFT)
SDFsarefilteredbyusingIPpacketfilters(TFT)intodifferentEPSbearers.SDF1andSDF2are
mappedtotheGBRdedicatedbearer(EBI=10),SDF3ismappedtothenonGBRdedicatedbearer
(EBI=8),andfinallySDF4ismappedtothenonGBRdefaultbearer(EBI=5).

[PGW]EPSBearerQoSEnforcement:MBR/APNAMBRRatePolicing
EPSbearerQoSisappliedtoeachbearer.ForGBRbearers,MBRratepolicingisperformedusing
DLMBRvalue,andanyIPpacketsexceedingthespecifiedDLMBRarediscarded.FornonGBR
bearers,APNAMBRratepolicingisperformed.Thatis,foralltheIPflowsheadingtoEBI8andEBI
5,ratepolicingwithisperformedandanyIPpacketsexceedingthespecifiedDLAPNAMBRare
discarded.

[eNB]EPSBearerQoSEnforcement:UEAMBRScheduling
TheeNBperformsUEAMBRratepolicingagainstthenonGBRbearersandalsoschedulingover
radiolink.Thatis,foralltheIPflowsheadingtoEBI8andEBI5,DLUEAMBRratepolicingis
performed.InFigure5,becausethereisonePDN,DLUEAMBRhasthesamevalueasDLAPN
AMBR.

5.2QoSOperationinUplink

Figure6showsanexampleofLTEQoSoperationinUL.UnlikeinDL,controllingofMBRandAPNAMBR
isperformedbothintheUEandthePGW.

Figure6.AnExampleforLTEQoS(Uplink)

[UE]ULIPFlowsArrival
IPflowsfromuserapplicationsarriveataUE.Here,theapplicationsarethesameasinDL.

[UE]IPPacketFiltering(TFT)
IPflowsinULarefilteredbyusingIPpacketfilters(TFT)intoEPSbearersappropriately.A5tuple
inIPandTCP/UDPheadersisusedasthefilteringruleforthispurpose.IPflows1and2are
mappedtotheGBRdedicatedbearer(EBI=10),IPflows3and4aremappedtothenonGBR
dedicatedbearer(EBI=8),andfinallyIPflow5ismappedtothedefaultbearer(EBI=5).

[UE]EPSBearerQoSEnforcement:MBR/APNAMBRRatePolicing
EPSbearerQoSisappliedtoeachEPSbearer.FortheIPflowstotheGBRdedicatedbearer
(EBI=10),ratepolicingisperformedusingULMBR,andforalltheIPflowstothenonGBR
dedicatedbearers(EBI=8andEBI=5),ratepolicingisperformedusingULAPNAMBR.

[eNB]EPSBearerQoSEnforcement:MBR/UEAMBRRatePolicing

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TheeNBperformsratepolicing/schedulingusingULMBRfortheGBRbearer(EBI=10),andrate
policing/schedulingusingULUEAMBRfornonGBRbearers(EBI=8andEBI=5).Becausethereis
onePDN,ULUEAMBRhasthesamevalueasULAPNAMBR.

[PGW]BearerTrafficArrival
BearertrafficarrivesataPGWthroughaSGW.

[PGW]EPSBearerQoSEnforcement:APNAMBRRatePolicing
APNAMBRratepolicingisperformedagainstallIPflowsreceivedthroughnonGBRbearers(EBI=8
andEBI=5),andanyIPpacketsexceedingthespecifiedULAPNAMBRarediscarded.

[PGW]IPPacketFiltering(SDFTemplates)
EPSbearersarefilteredthroughIPpacketfilters(SDFtemplates)intodifferentSDFs.IPflows1
and2fromtheGBRdedicatedbearer(EBI=10)aremappedtoSDFs1and2,IPflows3and4from
nonGBRdedicatedbearer(EBI=8)aremappedtoSDFs3and4,andfinallyIPflows5fromthe
defaultbearer(EBI=5)ismappedtoSDF5.

[PGW]SDFQoSEnforcement:MBRRatePolicing
MBRratepolicingisperformedagainsteachSDF),andanyIPpacketsexceedingthespecifiedUL
MBRarediscarded.

VI.Closing

WehavestudiedLTEQoSmechanismsatservicelevelandatbearerlevel.WehavelearnedthatuserIP
trafficflowsatservicelevelareclassifiedintoSDFs,towhichdifferentQoSclassesaredefined,andthat
userIPtrafficflowsatbearerlevelareclassifiedintoEPSbearers,eachofwhichisanaggregationof
SDFswiththesameQoSclass(QCIandARP).WediscussedtherelationshipbetweenSDFsandEPS
bearersandthewaytheyaremappedtoeachother.
MAClayerinaneNBassignsradioresourcestoUEsandperformspacketschedulingbasedontheirEPS
bearerQoSparameters.eNBpacketschedulingwasnotcoveredinthisdocument.Detailedprocedureof
decidingandauthorizingQoSparametervalueswillbelaterdescribedintheLTEPCCtechnical
document.

References

[1]NetmaniasTechnicalDocument,LTEIdentificationIII:EPSSession/BearerIdentifiers,August2013.
[2]3GPPTS23.203,Policyandchargingcontrolarchitecture.
[3]NMCConsultingGroupConfidentialInternalReport,E2ELTENetworkDesign,August2010.

Footnotes

1QoSrulesarebasedonthepolicyofoperators.
2APDNconnectionisalsocalledanEPSsession.
3Adedicatedbearercanbeactivatedwhenadefaultbearerisactivated.
4QoSrulemeansasetofinformationenablingthedetectionofaservicedataflowanddefiningits
associatedQoSparameters.

VassiliosStefanidis04/14/201420:19:19

Hello,
InoticedamisspellinginchapterEPSBearerQoSParametersatp.6ofthePDFdocument:inthefirstparagraph(neartheend)
theMRBshouldbeMBR.
BR
Vassilis

Netmanias04/15/201417:09:13

Thetypowasmodified.Thankyouforyourkindnoticing.

kimfeng04/25/201421:01:56

AdefaultbearermustbenonGBRwhileadedicatedbearercanbeeitherGBRornonGBR.So,inwhatkindofcondition,a
dedicatedbearerwillbeallocatedfornonGBRservice?

Netmanias04/27/201412:34:08

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Hikimfeng,
3GPPdefinesservicecharacteristicsintermsofprioritypacketdelaybudgetandpacketerrorlossrate.
Thenaccordingtothecharacteristics,itmapsstandardizedQCIvaluestostandardizedcharacteristicsandclassifiesGBRtype
andnonGBRtypeservices.(pleaseseeTable6.1.7of3GPPTS23.203)
ThoughassigningaQCItoaservicedependsonoperators'policy,QCI9istypicallyusedasadefaultbearerandQCIsfrom5
to8areusedasanonGBRtypededicatedbearer.
Forexample,adedicatedbearerwithaQCIvalueof5isusedforIMSsignalingwhenoperatorsprovideVoLTEservices.

ramakrishna05/02/201400:00:19

Goodpresentationthanks

sharmapeeyush84006/06/201414:00:34

Hi,

IhaveadoubtaboutQoSperSDF.Itriedreading23.203asmentionedinyourreference.HoweverIcouldnotfindany
informationwhichsaysthereshouldbeaspecificMBRvalueassociatedwithaSDFincaseofNonGBRSDF.Ifpossible
kindlyguidemetoaparticularsectionfromwhereIcandrawthisconclusion.

Regards,
PeeyushSharma

Netmanias06/17/201407:33:09

HiPeeyush,

APCCruledefinesthepolicycontrolinformationforaservicedataflow.
Table6.3listsPCCruleinformation(RuleID,SDFdetection,Charging,Policycontrol,..).UL/DLmaximumbitrateandUL/DL
guaranteedbitratearebeingdefinedas(partof)Policycontrolinformation.FornonGBRSDFs,UL/DLMBRisconditional,but
canbeusedforratepolicing.
Thankyou.(andsorryforlatereplyduetobusinesstrip..)

VimalTewari06/23/201400:58:55

FirstofallThankyouforsuchwonderfulpresentations.
Basedonwhatiswritteninthisdocumentandintherelevant3GPPspecifications,Ihavedevelopedanunderstandingwhya
distinctionneedstobemaintainedbetweenEPSBearerFlowandSDF.The3GPPspecificationsdefineEPSBeareras"AnEPS
beareruniquelyidentifiestrafficflowsthatreceiveacommonQoStreatmentbetweenaUEandaPDNGW".AlltheLTE/EPC
nodesworkwithanEPSBearerandoneEPSBearercanhavemultipleservicesmappedtoit.Aguidelineformappingthe
differentservicestodifferentQoSclassesisalsoprovidedbythespecifications.Howeverthespecificationsdonottalkaboutthe
bitratevaluesforindividualservicesandassignmentofbitrateislefttotheindividualoperators.IntheabsenceofSDF,this
notionofworkingonlywithEPSbearercanleadto2problems:
1. Thedifferentnodes(UE,eNB,SGW)mapusertraffictoEPSBearerandaccordinglyenforcetheQoSrules.However
thesenodesdonothaveanyunderstandingoftheindividualservicesthatthisusertrafficbelongsto.Twoservices(e.g.
emailandftp)mighthavethesameQCIcharacteristicsbuttheirQoSrequirementscanbedifferent(theymaydifferin
theirbitraterequirement).TheQCIbeingsame,theseserviceswillbemappedtosamebearerandthedifferentnodes
willenforcethecombinedbitrate(Bitrate(email)+Bitrate(ftp))onthisEPSBearer.Itmayhappenthatthecombined
bitratefortheEPSBearerwillbeachievedbutindividualservicesendupnotgettingthecorrectbitrate.
2. Thesecondandmorecriticalreasonisrelatedtobilling.TwoservicesmighthavesameQCIcharacteristicsandeven
sameQoSrequirements,buttheoperatormaydecidetochargethetwoservicesdifferently.Thiscannotbeachievedif
wecannotdistinguishbetweenthedifferentserviceswithinanEPSBearer.
HavingthenotionofSDFcaneffectivelyaddressboththeaboveproblems.IfPGWcansegregatetheIPflowsintodifferent
ServiceDataFlows,itcan
1. EnforcethecorrectdatarateonthatparticularSDF.Soanyerrorinachievingthecorrectbitrateatothernodescanbe
correctedatPGW.
2. ThePGWcannowapplycorrectbillingpolicyontheSDFandchargeaccordingly.
Requestyoutokindlyconfirmifthisunderstandingiscorrect.

Netmanias07/16/201413:03:56

HelloVimal,

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Thanksforsharingyourunderstanding!Weareinagreementwithyourcomments.

Peeyoosh10/03/201418:12:11

ThanksNetManiasforsharingsuchaniceinformationandthanksVimalforsharingdetailedunderstanding,ithelpedmeto
understandthesenseofSDFs.

Regards,
PeeyooshS

MichaelTopouzas07/01/201421:08:45

Hello,

Verynicepresentation.
Justasmalltypoerror:ServiceDateFlowshouldbeServiceDataFlow

Netmanias07/11/201417:48:30

HiMichael,

Wehavecorrectedthetypo.Thankyoufornoticing.

Shafali07/08/201420:35:04

Hi,

Thanksfortheusefulinformation&nicepresentation.CananyonepleasetelltheexactdifferencebetweenSDFTemplateand
TFT?

Thanks!!

SaurabhThukral09/18/201420:38:29

PleasereferTable5.DescriptionforMBR.
ItiswronglymentionedthatthisQoSparameterappliesfornonGBRbearers.

raghu(GESL)12/22/201415:04:32

SDF(servicedataflow)areusedtomappacketstotheTFT(trafficflowtemplate)basedon5tuplesandTFTisresponsiblefor
mapingpackettotherespectivebearerwhichmatchestheQOSofbearerandthepacket.
Isitcorrect?

Netmanias02/07/201517:57:56

SDFtemplatevs.TFT

AnSDFtemplateconsistsofIPpacketfilters,andeachIPpacketfilterhasasetoffilterrules(5tupleconsistingofSourceIP,
DestinationIP,SourcePortnumber,DestinationPortnumber,andProtocolID).IPflowsarrivingatPGWareidentifiedby
matchingthesepacketfilters(SDFtemplate),onebyone,andthosethatmatchthesamefilterrulearegroupedtogetherand
classifiedasanSDF.

PGWkeepstrafficmappinginformation(TFTfilters)thatindicateswhichEPSbearercansupport(QoSof)whichSDFs,i.e.
QoStheLTEnetworkcansupportforUE.

EachSDFhasasetofQoSparameters(e.g.QCI,ARP,MBR,GBR)andsodoeseachEPSbearer(e.g.QCI,ARP,MBR,GBR,
UEAMBR,APNAMBR).AnEPSbearerhasthesamevarietyofQoSparametersthatmappedSDF(s)have,exceptithasaccess
systemdependentparametersaswell.
SDFs(orSDFaggregate)withthesameQCIandARPcanbedeliveredthroughthesameEPSbearer.IfanSDFcannotbe
servedatanyofthecurrentlyavailableEPSbearers(e.g.ifanewSDF,SDF5(GBR=500Kbps),arriveswhenSDF3
(GBR=1Mbps)andSDF4(GBR=1Mbps)havealreadybeendeliveredthroughEPSbearer5(GBR=2Mbps)),anotherEPSbearer
canbecreatedtoservethenewSDF.

ThankyouforvisitingNetmanias!Pleaseleaveyourcommentifyouhaveaquestionorsuggestion.

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