Broadcast Control Channel (BCCH)

Frequencies used in the particular cell and neighboring cells

Channel combination. As we mentioned previously, there are a
total of twelve logical channels. All the logical channels except
Traffic Channels are mapped into Timeslot 0 or Timeslot 1 of the
broadcasting TRX.
Paging groups . Normally in one cell there is more than one
paging channel (describer later). To prevent a mobile from
listening to all the paging channels for a paging message, the
paging channels are divided in such a way that only a group of
mobile stations listen to a particular paging channel. These are
referred to as paging groups. only one TRX which can carry Common Channels

Synchronization Channel (SCH)

contains the Base Station Identity Code (BSIC)
Frame number

Physical Channels
Associated with frequency bands, time slots, codes
Physical channels transfer bits from one network element to another
Logical Channels
Distinguished by the nature of carried information and the way to
assemble bits into data units
Three types
one-to-one: traffic channels between a BTS and a MS
one-to-many: sync signals from BTS to MSs in a cell
many-to-one: from MSs to the same BTS

EFR coding gives better

speech quality at the same bit rate than
normal full rate i.e. 13Kbps

for the implementation of call

origination and call paging
functions.

Dedicated to a user

Signaling

Downlink
Both ways
Frequency Correction Channel (FCCH)
TS0 only
consist of all "0"s
The MS scans for this signal after it has
Downlink
Uplink
been switched on since it has no
information as to which frequency to use
Paging Channel (PCH)
The PCH is a downlink channel which is broadcast by all the BTSs of a
Location Area in the case of a mobile terminated call.
Random Access Channel (RACH)
mobile station in order to initiate a transaction, or as a response to a PCH.

Downlink
Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel (SDCCH)
system signaling: call set-up, authentication, location update,
assignment of traffic channels and transmission of short
messages.
Slow Associated Control Channel (SACCH)
An SACCH is associated with each SDCCH and Traffic Channel (TCH). It transmits
measurement reports and is also used for power control, time alignment and
in some cases to transmit short messages.

Access Grant Channel (AGCH)

The AGCH is the answer to the RACH. It is used to assign a mobile a Stand-alone Fast Associated Control Channel (FACCH)
The FACCH is used when a handover is required. It is mapped onto a TCH, and it
Dedicated Control Channel (SDCCH)
replaces 20 ms of speech and therefore it is said to work in "stealing" mode.
information in the AGCH is the frequency hopping sequence.

Location update

1) The AUTHENTICATION REQUEST message contains a RAND (Random Number) and a CKSN.
There are total 128 bits in the RAND.
2) The AUTHENTICATION RESPONSE message contains a response number (SRES), which is
obtained based on calculation of RAND and Ki through the A3 algorithm.
The network compares the SRES stored in itself with the one contained in the AUTHENTICATION
RESPONSE message. If the two are consistent, authentication shall be passed, and the subsequent subprocedures (such as the encryption procedure) shall be entered.

Procedure explanation
1) MS sends Measurement Report to BTS1 on SACCH on interface Um, and
BTS1
will transfer the message to BSC.
2) BSC receives the Measurement Report. If it judges that the MS should be
handed over to another cell, it will send CHANNEL ACTIVATION to BTS2 of
the
target cell to activate the channel.
3) BTS2 receives the CHANNEL ACTIVATION. If the channel type is correct,
it will
turn on the power amplifier on the specified channel to receive information in
the
uplink direction and send CHANNEL ACTIVATION ACKNOWLEDGE to BSC.
4) BSC receives the CHANNEL ACTIVATION ACKNOWLEDGE from BTS2
and
sends HANDOVER COMMAND to BTS1, which will transfer the command to
MS.
The message is sent on FACCH on the Um interface.
5) MS receives the HANDOVER COMMAND and sends HANDOVER ACCESS on FACCH to BTS2 for access attempt.
6) BTS2 receives the HANDOVER ACCESS from MS and sends HANDOVER DETECT to BSC notifying that the HANDOVER ACCESS message bas been
received.
7) In case of asynchronous handover, i.e., when BTS1 and BTS2 are located in different BTSs, BTS2 will send PHY INFO on FACCH to MS while sending
HANDOVER DETECT to BSC. The PHY INFO includes such contents as the synchronous information for correct access of MS. In case of synchronous
handover, i.e., when BTS1 and BTS2 are located in the same BTS, the PHY INFO message will not be delivered.
8) For the asynchronous handover, MS receives the PHY INFO, and sends SABM on FACCH to BTS2. While for the synchronous handover, MS will send
SABM soon after sending HANDOVER ACCESS.
9) BTS2 receives the first SABM, and sends EST IND to BSC, notifying it that the radio link has been established.
10) At the same time, BTS2 sends UA frames on FACCH to MS, notifying that the radio link layer has been established.
11) Then, MS sends HANDOVER COMPLETE on FACCH to BTS2, which transfers the command to BSC notifying handover completion.
12) BSC sends HANDOVER PERFORMED to MSC, notifying that the handover has been completed. At the same time, BSC initiates a local release
procedure to BTS1 to release the old channel occupied.

To discuss the authentication process we will assume that the VLR has all the
information required to perform that authentication process (Kc, SRES and
RAND). If
this information is unavailable, then the VLR would request it from the
HLR/AUC.
1. Triples (Kc, SRES and RAND) are stored at the VLR.
2. The VLR sends RAND via the MSC and BSS, to the MS (unencrypted).
3. The MS, using the A3 and A8 algorithms and the parameter Ki stored on the
MS
SIM card, together with the received RAND from the VLR, calculates the
values of
SRES and Kc.
4. The MS sends SRES unencrypted to the VLR
5. Within the VLR the value of SRES is compared with the SRES received
from the
mobile. If the two values match, then the authentication is successful.
6. If cyphering is to be used, Kc from the assigned triple is passed to the BTS.
7. The mobile calculates Kc from the RAND and A8 and Ki on the SIM.
8. Using Kc, A5 and the GSM hyperframe number, encryption between the MS
and
the BSS can now occur over the air interface.
Note: The triples are generated at the AUC by:
RAND = Randomly generated number.
SRES = Derived from A3 (RAND, Ki).
Kc = Derived from A8 (RAND, Ki).
A3 = From 1 of 16 possible algorithms defined on allocation of IMSI and
creation of SIM card.
A8 = From 1 of 16 possible algorithms defined on allocation of IMSI and
creation of SIM card.
Ki = Authentication key, assigned at random together with the versions of
A3 and A8.
The first time a subscriber attempts to make a call, the full authentication
process takes
place.
However, for subsequent calls attempted within a given system control time
period, or
within a single system providers network, authentication may not be
necessary, as the
data generated during the first authentication will still be available.