The Higher Institute of Industry

Postgraduate Program

The 3GPP IP Multimedia Subsystem

Chapter 4

Course Instructor
Dr. Majdi Ali Ashibani
Email: mashibani@yahoo.co.uk
 Next Generation Networks (NGN)
course agenda
 Introduction
 PSTN
 Mobile IP
 GPRS/UMTS
 4G mobile networks
 VOIP
 VOIP QoS issues
 Multimedia Control Protocols
 H323
 H324
 Session Initiation Protocol (SIP)
 Soft Switching
 Convergent Networks

 Service Delivery Platforms (SDP)

 IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS)
 OSA/Parlay
 Next Generation Billing Systems
 Ad Hoc Networks
 Ad hoc routing issues
 Ad hoc network security
 IP Multimedia Subsytem

 The IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) as defined by the 3G

Partnership Program (3GPP), the body developing standards for 3G
mobile networks, has been recognized as an architecture that will
revolutionize service delivery, not just for mobile users but across all
networks.
 The adoption of IMS will allow common applications to be delivered
to fixed and mobile endpoints and will eventually lead to single
unified infrastructures for the support of both fixed and mobile
networks.
 This Fixed to Mobile Convergence (FMC) will create a
communications environment where end devices can "roam"
between fixed and mobile networks, and where end users will be
able to access their personalized services from any device, in any
location.
 IMS Motivation
 Even though Minutes of Use (MOU) are increasing
significantly, average revenues per user (ARPUs) from
voice services continue their downward trend.
 So, operators needed a way to provide more attractive
packet-switched services to attract users to the packet-
switch domain, and build new revenue streams.
 That is, the mobile Internet needed to become more
attractive to its users.
 In this way the IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) was
born.
 IMS Motivation

By 2004 there will be more mobile subscriptions than fixed mainlines.

One year later wireless Internet users will outstrip fixed users.
What are Next Generation Services
Network convergence and Universal SDPs
 Fixed Mobile Convergence: What Is It?
 Service Convergence Is The Goal
 Focus on application layer convergence for SIP multimedia and real-time
service
 Focus on extending services across fixed and mobile access and terminal
devices

 Not a softswitch, not just a “SIP server”, but a horizontally layered

architecture designed for …
 Application flexibility: clear separation of application layer from network infrastructure
 Infrastructure stability: all-IP core network with common denominators
 SIP session control
 unified database (single sign on, single number)
 media gateway control & media gateway (network interfaces)
 Access independence: access-agnostic support of wireline and wireless technologies
 GSM, GPRS
 UMTS, W-CDMA
 WLAN
 xDSL
 HFC, …
 Fixed-Mobile Convergence
Control: Key to Unifying Access, Content & Applications
Operator services 3rd party applications
and applications and content
- Composed of all network elements providing users, radio
access to UMTS
- Push and Talk - Movies
- Instant Messaging/Chat
- TeenRAN options
 Line - 2nd line voice IP-based
- Music
- Information
- Presence Services Multimedia Subsystem
-…
- GSM EDGE RAN (GERAN) - Infotainment
-…
- Universal Terrestrial RAN (UTRAN)

UTRAN
Control
DSL

GERAN WLAN Fixed line

The IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS)
 The IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) defined by the 3rd
Generation Partnership Projects (3GPP) represents today the
global service delivery platform standard for providing multimedia
applications in Next Generation Networks (NGN).
 It defines an overlay service architecture that merges the
paradigms and technologies of the Internet with the cellular and
fixed telecommunication worlds.
 The IMS as part of the 3GPP Release 5 specification defines an
overlay architecture on top of the 3GPP Packet Switched (PS)
Core Network for the provision of real time multimedia services,
such as voice over IP and video conferencing.
The IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS)
 There are four additional key functionalities that mark the IMS as
the future technology in a comprehensive service and application
oriented network:
 The IMS provides easy and efficient ways to integrate different
services, even from third parties. Interactions between different
value added services are anticipated.
 The IMS enables the seamless integration of legacy service and
is designed for consistent interactions with circuit switched
domains.
 The IMS supports for a mechanism to negotiate Quality of
Service (QoS) for each media components in the multimedia
session.
 The IMS provides appropriate charging mechanisms. thus
different business models can be realized to charge users for
specific events using an appropriate scheme.
The IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS)

 IMS is a subsystem of the Core Network (CN) that

depends on the Packet Switch (PS) domain
IMS within the 3G Network Technologies

 IMS Core Idea:

 Define an IP multimedia overlay-network over GPRS (for session
control based on Internet protocols!)
 Data (Media) transport (as well as signaling transport) via GRPS.
 Circuit domain (GSM) becomes obsolete over time.
High Level Requirements
 The following high level requirements shall be supported
for IP multimedia applications [3GPP TS 22.228]:-
 Negotiable QoS for IP multimedia sessions both at the time of a
session establishment as well as during the session by the
operator and the user
 Support for interworking with the Internet and circuit-switched
networks.
 Support of roaming, negotiation between operators for QoS and
for Service Capabilities is required.
 Support for strong control imposed by the operator with respect to
the services delivered to the end-user.
 Support for rapid service creation without requiring
standardisation.
 Support for access independence of the IMS.
IMS Services & Architecture

 Some of the service that can be provided

over IMS are:
 voice and video telephony,
 rich telephony calls,
 presence services,
 instant messaging,
 Multipart gaming,
 chat rooms.
IMS Services & Architecture

 While possible services are numerous, they are all

based on a small set of capabilities:
 Endpoint identities, including telephony numbers and
Internet name.
 Media description capabilities, including coding formats and
data rates.
 Person-to-person real-time multimedia services, including
voice telephony.
 Machine-to-person streaming multimedia services,
including TV channels.
 Generic group management, enabling chat rooms and
messaging.
 Generic group communication, enabling voice and video
conferencing.
IMS Services & Architecture

 To maximize flexibility, the IMS organize its functionality in

three layers:
 Transport and endpoint layer
 Session control layer
 Application server layer
 Legacy
SCPs Application
Servers
CAMEL, ANSI-
41
Parlay API
INAP, TCAP
Application
Supplemental
server Non-Telephony Telephony
Services Services (TAS) IM-SSF Telephony OSA-GW
Layer Services

SIP-ISC

Session
HSS CSCF
Control
Layer

DAL, 802.11,
GPRS, CDMA

MRFC MGCF
SIP
Transport
&
Endpoint
Layer Media Media PST
Server Gateway N
IMS Services & Architecture

 Transport & Endpoint Layer

 Initiates & terminates the signaling needed to setup & control
sessions.
 Provides bearer services between the endpoints.
 Media gateways are provided to convert from/to analog/digital voice
telephony formats to/from IP packets using RTP.
 IMS signaling is based on SIP on top of IPv6
 The session control layer
 Provides functionality that allows endpoints to be registered with the
network and sessions to be setup between them.
 It also contains the functions that control the media gateways and
servers so as to provide the requested services.
 In this layer multiple transport services may be combined in a
single session.
IMS Services & Architecture
 The application server layer
 Allows sessions to interact with various AS entities.
 In this layer multiple sessions may be coordinated to provide
single application.
IMS Architecture
IMS
HSS
I-CSCF
Cx
Other IP/
I-CSCF IMS networ
Cx
Mw Mm
Control Plane S-CSCF
P-CSCF Mk
Traffic Plane
Mr Mi
MRF
Mg
Gq Go Gi BGCF
Mj
MGCF
Gi
UTRAN IMS- SGW
PDF MGW
Go Gi Mn

UE SGSN GGSN Legacy/

PSTN
PS Domain
IMS Elements

 IMS consists of the following elements:

 HSS (Home Subscriber Server), SLF (Subscriber Location
Function).
 P-CSCF (Proxy Call Session Control Function)
 I-CSCF (Interrogating CSCF)
 S-CSCF (Serving CSCF)
 AS (Application Server)
 MRFP (Multimedia Resource Function Processor)
 MRFC (Multimedia Resource Function Controller)
 SGW (Signalling Gateway)
 MGW (Media Gateway)
 MGCF (Media Gateway Control Function)
 BGCF (Breakout Gateway Control function)
The Databases: the HSS (Home Subscriber Server)
and the SLF (Subscriber Location Function).
 The HSS is the central repository for user related information.
 identification information (user’s telephone number, SIP addresses,
IMSI);
 security information (secret authentication keys);

 location information (current serving GGSN, SRNC, IP address);

 user profile information (subscribed services).

 The SLF is needed in networks with more then one HSS.

 The SLF is a simple database that maps users’ addresses to HSSs
 Both HSS and SLF implement the Diameter protocol (RFC 3588) thought
the Cx interface to communicate with the CSCFs.
P-CSCF: Proxy CSCF
 The proxy CSCF is the first point of
contact (in the signaling plane) between
IMS terminal and IMS network.
 It validates the request, forwards it to
selected destinations and processes
and forwards the response.
 It may include a Policy Decision
Function) PDF, which authorize media
plane resources and manages Quality
of Service (QoS) over the media plane.
 The P-CSCF also generates charging information toward a charging
collection node.
 --+An IMS network usually includes a number of P-CSCFs for the sake of
scalability and redundancy.--+
 The P-CSCF may be located either in the visited network or in the home
network.
I-CSCF: Interrogating CSCF
 The I-CSCF is a SIP proxy located at
the edge of an administrative domain.
 Beside, it has an interface to the SLF
and HSS (based on Diameter protocol),
to retrieves user location information
and route the SIP request to the
appropriate destination (typically an S-
CSCF).
 The I-CSCF may optionally encrypt
parts of the SIP message that contain
sensitive information about the domain
(number of servers, their DNS names,
or capacity) – THIG (Topology Hiding
Inter-network Gateway) functionality.

 The I-CSCF is usually located in the home network, although in some especial
cases (THIG), it may be located in the visited network as well.
S-CSCF: Serving CSCF
 The S-CSCF is the central node in the
signaling plane.
 Can behave as a Registrar, and as a
SIP server.
 Delivery point of services to the user.
 Performs registration and security for
the client
 Interacts with HSS to obtain subscriber
profile, authenticate, and register the
client. Protocol to HSS is AAA/Diameter
 Provides billing information

 S-CSCF is always located in the home network.

AS: Application Server
 The AS is a SIP entity that hosts and executes services.
 Three different types:
 SIP AS (Application Server): hosts and executes services based on SIP.
 OSA-SCS (Open Service Access-Service Capability Server): provides an interface to
the OSA framework Application Server.
 IM-SSF (IP Multimedia Service Switching Function): allows to reuse CAMEL services
that were developed for GSM in the IMS.
 The AS can be located either in the home network or in an external third-party
network.

OSA AS gsmSCF

SIP AS
OSA-SCS IM-SSF

S-CSCF HSS
MRF: Multimedia Resource Function
 The MRF is responsible for providing functions such as:
 mixing media for video/voice conferencing (conferencing bridge);

 providing multimedia announcements;

 processing media streams, e.g. audio transcoding.

 The MRF functionality is split into:

 a control (MRFC);

 and a media processing (MRFP) part.

 The interface between the two components is controlled using

the H.248/MEGACO protocol.
 The MRFC receives call control signaling via the SIP protocol
(e.g. to establish a Videoconference between a number of
parties).
 The MRF is always located in the home network.
PSTN Interworking Entities
 BGCF (Breakout Gateway Control Function)
 A SIP server that inclides routing functionality based on telephone numbers.
 The main functionality of the BGCF is:
 To select an appropriate network where interworking with the circuit-switched
domain is to occur.
 Or, to select an appropriate PSTN/CS gateway, if interworking is to occur in the
same network.
 SGW (Signaling Gateway function)
 Interfaces the signaling plane of the CS network.
 Performs lower layer protocol conversion.
 MGCF (Media Gateway Control Function)
 Perform interworking to the PSTN i.e. between ISUP and SIP
 Controls the MGW for media conversion
 Selects the I-CSCF for PSTN originating calls
 MGW (Media Gateway)
 Terminates media streams from a packet network
The PSTN/CS gateway interfacing a CS network

SGW ISUP/MTP
Telephone

MGCF Telephone
BGCF
PCM Switch

RTP
Telephone
IMS MGW
PSTN
Home and Visited Networks

 The IMS reused the same concept of having

a visited and home network from the GSM.
 Home network: using the infrastructure of the
network operator.
 Visited network: using the infrastructure of other
operators (roaming).
 The IMS allows two different configurations,
depending on the P-CSCF location (home or
visited network).
The P-CSCF located in the Visited
Network
 In the IMS, both the GGSN and the P-CSCF share the same
network.
 To allow the P-CSCF to control the GGSN over the Go
interface , which make its operation simpler.

P-CSCF

Go AS
HSS

SGSN
GGSN I-CSCF
S-CSCF

Visited Network Home Network

The P-CSCF located in the Home
Network
 The visited network only provide the radio bearers and the
SGSN (no need to support IMS)
 The media will rout first to the home network, then to their
destination (disadvantage).

P-CSCF
AS
Go
HSS

SGSN I-CSCF
GGSN
S-CSCF
GPRS

Visited Network Home Network

Identification in the IMS
 Public User Identities:
 an IMS user is allocated with one or more.
 give the ability to:
1. differentiate personal (private) identities (known to friends and family), from
business public user identities (known to colleagues)
2. Or for triggering a different set of services.
 are either a SIP URI (RFC 3261)
(e.g. sip:+1-212-555-0293@operator.com;user=phone)
 or a TEL URI (RFC 2806)
(e.g. tel:+1-212-555-0293)
 Are used as contact information on business cards.
 In the IMS, Public User Identities are used to route SIP signaling.
 Similar function for IMS as the MSISDN (Mobile Subscriber ISDN
Number) for GSM
 In the IMS it is possible to register several Public User Identities in one
message, saving time and bandwidth.
Identification in the IMS

 Private User Identities:

 each IMS subscriber is assigned one Private User
Identity.
 It take the format of a NAI (Network Access Identifier –
RFC 2486) username@operator.com.
 Private User Identities are exclusively used for
subscription identification and authentication purposes.
 Only visible to control nodes inside IMS
 Similar function for IMS as the IMSI (International Mobile
Subscriber Identification) for GSM
 Need not be known by the user (stored on SIM –
Subscriber Identity Module)
Relation of Private and Public User
Identities in 3GPP R5
Public User
Identity 1

Private User Public User

IMS Subscriber
Identity Identity 2
.
.
.

Public User
Identity n
Relation of Private and Public User
Identities in 3GPP R6
Public User
Identity 1
Private User
Identity 1 Public User
Identity 2
IMS Subscriber

Public User
Private User Identity 3
Identity 2 .
.
.
Public User
Identity n
Only one Private User Identity is stored in the SIM card, but users may have
different SIM cards that they insert in different IMS terminals.
 Rel-7

3GPP Release 6
IMS
phase 2
3GPP Release 5
IMS
phase 1
3GPP Release 4

3GPP R’99
scope  first drafts  release frozen  corrections  feedback from implementations

3GPP TSGs Versions of 3GPP Release 1999

Plenary Meetings
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27

Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
3GPP Releases
Release 97 (1997):
 Often called 2.5G, this release introduced GPRS for data delivery over
GSM (2G).
Release 99 (1999, UMTS R3 3GPP):
 First release of the (3G) UMTS standard, in 1999. Included W-CDMA.
Release 4 (2001):
 Separated the system into Circuit Switched and Packet Switched
domains
Release 5 (March 2003):
 First IMS Release, introduced the IMS as control structure of the Packet
Domain, based on SIP for call control and mandatory IPv6.
 Introduced End-to-end QOS and Service-Related Local Policy (SRLP).
 Purpose: to enable new applications over the GPRS/UMTS bearer.
Release 6 (December 2004 to March 2005):
 Includes some leftover IMS issues from Release 5.0, such as QOS
Improvements (SRLP Control), and decoupling of PDF and P-CSCF for
QOS Policy Control (allows non-IMS application services authorization).
 Introduces support for IMS Access Independence, Instant Messaging
and Presence Service, Push to talk over Cellular Service, WLAN
integration, MMS (Multi-media Messaging Services), plus
Enhancements to use SIP, Multicast and Broadcast Service (MBMS),
and Event-Based Charging.
Release 7:
 Just getting under way in mid 2005, and is currently expected to focus
on leftovers from Release 6, as well as defining fixed broadband access
via IMS, policy issues, voice call handover between CS, WLAN/IMS and
end-to-end QOS.

It is likely that this list will expand.

The Signaling Plane in the IMS
 IMS Complications

 One complication is that, while UMTS networks support both IPv4

and IPv6 , the IMS uses exclusively IPv4. Therefore, IPv4 to IPv6
translation gateways are needed at the edge of an IMS network to
convert between the different header formats and addresses. Note
that this is an issue for all IPv6 networks, nor only for IMS
 Another complication is that while SIP is an Internet standard, it has
been extended to better handle requirements of the IMS. As a result,
when SIP requests are received from or directed to external
networks, the S-CSCF will discover that one side does not support
the IMS specific extensions. Depending on operator’s policy, the
S-CSCF may either refuse to setup sessions with non IMS specific
SIP semantics. If media transcoding is also needed, it may
performed by MRFP under control of the MRFC.
 Challenges
 Both the GSM and the GPRS RAN were circuit switched, with data
packets temporarily using idle circuits. While the same arguments in
favour of IP can be made as for the CN, it is still debated in the mobile
industry whether to switch to an all-IP RAN or to continue providing IP
services over an existing RAN. While an all-IP RAN would simplify
interoperation with the all-IP CN, the high overhead of IP packets (such
as headers) makes many parties reluctant to use IP, at least over the
air. Since bandwidth efficiency is a critical issue, work is under way to
provide header and signalling compression for the RAN.
 For IMS to be able to replace circuit switched services, strict QoS
guarantees have to provided, therefore similar mechanisms will be
required in order to provide the required QoS. In addition, these
mechanisms will have to interoperate with the mechanisms provided by
external IP networks, so as to provide end-to-end QoS.
 Session Setup

 The various CSCF elements provide session control for subscribers

accessing services within the IMS CN
 IMS Quality of Service
 QoS architecture
 The 3GPP has adopted the layered QoS architecture.
IMS Quality of Service

 UE is decomposed into two pieces, the Terminal

Equipment (TE) and the Mobile Station (MS), where
the MS is the 3G device and the TE is a laptop, a
PDA or a mobile phone.
 While IMS sessions are setup using SIP signaling
and various CSCF entities, the session data are
exchanged directly between the UEs. Therefore, as
shown in the figure, the path from the UE goes
through the UTRAN, the SGSN and the GGSN, and
from there enters the other party’s network.
IMS Quality of Service
 An application that requires a certain QoS is mapped to an appropriate Bearer
Service that describes how a given network defines and provides QoS in its
layer.
 Each Bearer Service relies on the QoS-enabled services of the lower layers.
 The End-to-End Bearer Service is the service seen by the user, which is not
standardized as it lies partly outside the 3G network.
 Here we are concerned only with the UMTS bearer service, which is what the
3G network provides.
 The UMTS Bearer Service consists of two parts:
 the Radio Access Bearer Service for the cellular wireless network,
 the Core Network Bearer Service for the backbone network.
 3GPP networks provide four different QoS classes with different characteristics:
 The conversational class is used for real time applications such as voice and video
conferencing, and it has the most stringent delay requirements.
 The streaming class is used for applications such as video streaming, which can
accept some delay variation.
 The interactive class is used for services requiring some assured throughput in order to
provide good response time, such as web browsing.
 Everything else can use the background class, for example e-mail, which has the
lowest priority.
IMS Quality of Service
IMS Quality of Service
 Policy-based QoS control
 A UMTS network implements the policy-based architecture is outlined in Figure
 QoS handling is split between two entities:
 the Policy Control Function (PCF)
 and the Policy Enforcement Point (PEP).
 When a call request is received specifying a particular QoS profile, the PCF retrieves
the network policy rules from a Policy Repository to see whether the request can be
granted or not. If the request can be granted, the PCF translates the policy rules into
specific configuration actions for a QoS mechanism and sends them to the PEP, which
actually implements the QoS mechanisms. This procedure decouples the policies of
the network from the specific mechanisms used to achieve them.
 While both the PCF and the PEP may be separate entities, it is reasonable to
combine the PCF with the P-CSCF in each network, since the P-CSCF handles
all call setup signalling for the network and is therefore ideally suited for
resource authorization. On the other hand, the actual data follow a different path
from the signalling, always passing through the network’s GGSN where the PDP
context resides, therefore it is reasonable to put the PEP there so as to
implement the required mechanisms. The PEP and the PCF communicate via
the COPS-PR protocol, which is an extended version of the IETF COPS
protocol.
IMS Quality of Service
IMS Quality of Service
 The role of the PCF is to intercept the SIP requests from UEs as they arrive to the P-CSCF,
examine the description of the media for the call and decide whether the request should be
accepted or not based on policy rules.
 If the call is to be accepted, the PCF creates an authorization token that is sent to the UE.
 This token will be used later to persuade the PEP that the resources requested have been
approved by the PCF.
 The role of the PEP is to control resource usage in the GGSN. When the UE attempts to
create a PDP context for a new session its request is sent to the GGSN, where it will be
intercepted by the PEP.
 The PEP will use the authorization token to confirm with the PCF that the call has been
indeed approved.
 If so, the PDP context will be created and the PEP will start classifying incoming packets
and handling them based on the reserved resources. The procedure of allowing IP packets
from a session to pass through the PEP is called opening the gate, while the dropping of
unauthorized IP packets is called closing the gate.
 In order for the PCF and PEP to work, they must first establish a session between them.
The PCF starts by downloading policy configuration information to the PEP. The PEP
informs then the PCF about its capabilities. Finally, the PCF instructs the PEP which
policies it should configure. At the conclusion of this process, the PCF can start authorizing
IMS calls since it knows what can be supported at the PEP, while the PEP may start
creating PDP contexts after asking the PCF whether to accept them or not.
IMS Quality of Service

 QoS Setup
 A wireless network requires strict authorization of
UEs so that network resources are not abused.
Once authorized and approved, the network must
guarantee that these resources are made available
to the legitimate users. Therefore an IMS session
must go through the following steps during setup.
 Authorization of resources.
 Reservation of resources.
 Commitment of resources.
IMS Quality of Service