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Cisco RAN Management System Overview

This chapter provides a functional overview of the Small Cell Solution (SCS), Cisco RAN ManagementSystem (RMS), and explains how to use it to manage your network.

• Cisco RMS Solution Overview, page 1

• Femtocell Access Point Process Flow , page 6

• Cisco RMS High-Level Provisioning Flow , page 6

• Cisco RMS Interfaces, page 7

• Cisco RMS Software Architecture, page 10

• Cisco RMS Physical and Virtual Architecture, page 13

Cisco RMS Solution OverviewThe Cisco RAN Management System provides different workflows and services to support enhancedprovisioning andmanaging capabilities for both, 3G and LTE Femtocells. These services include provisioningand management functions such as, device configuration, status monitoring, firmware upgrade, data retrieval,and troubleshooting.

The following are a few key functionalists of the Cisco RMS solution:

• Device activation and configuration

• Software upgrade and status monitoring of devices

• Performance monitoring through Key Performance Indicator (KPI) data uploaded by devices

• Enhanced access to the device alarm data

• Troubleshooting of devices

• Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS) for device authorization on Home NodeBGateway (HNB-GW) including per device whitelist support

• Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) service for allocating IPSec addresses

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The Small Cell RMS solution integrates with the Cisco Broadband Access Center (BAC) for Telecom andWireless, as well as the Cisco ASR 5000 Gateway that plays the HNB-GW and Security Gateway (SeGW)roles.

Cisco RMS Solution ComponentsThe Cisco RMS solution comprises of the following components that provide end-to-support in provisioning,managing, and maintaining the Femtocell access points (FAPs or APs, used interchangeably in this guide):

Provisioning Management GatewayThe Provisioning Management Gateway (PMG) provides a programmatic integration interface, Northboundinterface (NBI) API, to the service provider Operating Support Systems (OSS) or Business Support Systems(BSS) for provisioning and managing access points (APs).

The PMG supports the following functions:

• Integration of API with OSS / BSS to enable:

◦Subscriber portal to communicate with the PMG to perform a device registration, update thewhitelist, and so on.

◦Mobile systems to compute and configure SAI, e911 location data on the FAP.

◦Care interface to access live data. For example, admin status, operator status, and so on.

• Provision of XML/HTTP API for requests and notifications

• Generation of KPIs (which PMG generates) in CSV (format) for PM files

• Installation on Cisco UCS x86 hardware with RedHat Linux OS

• Implementation of critical algorithm that automatically assigns...

◦AP

◦Regional SeGW, HNB-GW

◦Unique SAI

◦Unique Cell ID (so that Femtocell can be optimized or work efficiently)

◦RF & Management Groups

• Facilitation ofWhitelist management: it interfaces with the HNBGW like RADIUS interface apart frominteracting with the BAC so that it can directly update the IMSI to the HNB GW.

• Facilitation of Plan-Activate Flow; this enables the operator to register the AP separately, activateseparately, or group the registration and activation.

PMG provides the following interfaces for provisioning and CSR requests, and notifications:

• Provisioning Requests

◦Register

◦Activate / Deactivate

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Cisco RAN Management System OverviewCisco RMS Solution Components

◦Update

◦Update IMSI

◦Block / Unblock

◦Shutdown

◦Delete

• CSR Requests

◦Get Stored Data

◦Get Live Data

◦Reboot

◦Reset to Defaults

• Notifications (from PMG to the SP OSS or subscriber)

◦Assigned Data

◦Location Status

◦Service Operational

◦Service Error

The PMG workflow facilitates zero-touch activation flows by integrating with the Femtocell RAN Manager(FRM) and Broadband Access Center (BAC). On Femtocell registration, PMG communicates with FRM inorder to assign unique RF parameters. For example, FRM can assign a unique SAI for the Femtocell and PMGcan set this data on the Femtocell via BAC as well as notify the SP OSS about the assignment.

PMG utilizes FRM to select the appropriate provisioning, SeGW, and HNB-GW nodes for the Femtocell anddetermine location-specific RF scan configuration for the Femtocell. This location-groups data is providedto the BAC, which instructs the Femtocell to perform a radio scan on specific bands and frequencies that arerelevant in the area. After completing the radio scan and location check, BAC can notify PMG, which can,in turn, notify SP OSS.

The PMG is usually co-located with BAC on the same HW node.

Broadband Access CenterThe Broadband Access Center (BAC) is a versatile TR-069 (support TR-169, v1 and v2) management systemthat provides all essential Femtocell management functions whether it is AP configuration, firmware, dataretrieval (like get parameter value), troubleshooting (logs), and so on.

BAC supports the following functions:

• Maintenance of AP inventory in the RDU

• Implementation of policy-based configuration and firmware (FW) for APs—When the AP is contactingthe BAC for the first time, BAC pushes a specific configuration. When the AP contacts the BACsubsequently, it pushes specific parameters, when the device is sending NWL scan.

• Implementation of TR-069 standards. BAC also implements download service.



• Implementation of Femtocell activation logic, which is on the DPE. PMG does not play any role on theFemtocell activation logic, although PMG provides the configuration values as part of the registrationto the BAC. Therefore it is BAC that pushes all the information to the FAP as part of the provisioningflow.

• Implementation of Oracle Berkeley database to store all the AP database information.

• Installation on Cisco UCS x86 hardware with Red Hat Linux OS.

Cisco RMS uses BAC as the TR-069 Auto Configuration Server (ACS), which contains the Regional DataUnit (RDU) and Device Provisioning Engine (DPE). The RDU is a central database of registration and RFdata. The DPE provides TLS secured TR-069 services and HTTPS download service for firmware and otherfiles (e.g. AGPS). The TR-069 extensions in DPE perform small cell activation flows including locationverification.

In a small deployment, RDU and DPE servers can be deployed on same hardware node.

For more information about the DPE, see Device Provisioning Engine, on page 4.

For more information about the RDU, see Regional Data Unit, on page 4.

Device Provisioning EngineThe DPE is part of Cisco Broadband Access Center. It acts as a Auto Configuration Server. It provides essentialfunctionality for remote management of 3G APs, such as discovery, registration, activation, configuration,live operations (get live data, factory reset, etc), service shutdown, and HTTPs Download support.

There are two kinds of DPEs: start-up DPE and home DPE. The ACS URL of the start-up DPEs is stored inthe 3G AP by the CloudBase. When it comes up for the first time, the 3G AP contacts the start-up DPE. ThisDPE then redirects the 3G AP to the home DPE based on geographical location of the 3G AP. On subsequentreboot, the 3G AP directly contacts the home DPE. The home DPE pushes new software/firmware,configuration, and performs location check.

Regional Data UnitThe RDU is also part of Cisco Broadband Access Center. It is the central part of the RMS and has a persistentdatabase. It stores the information related to 3G AP parameters such as: expected software/firmware image,expected location, network listen status, PLMN, LAC, SAC, Cell, CSG, RNC ID, SeGW, and HNB GW IPaddress, and network listen information.

The RDU receives all this data from the DCC UI, Ops Tools, and IT portal via the PMG (Provisioning andManagement Gateway). The RDU provides this data to the startup and home DPEs, on request. The DPE andRDU are distributed in the network.

Device Command and ControlThe Device Command and Control (DCC) provides the following UI and CLI tool that can be used to manageCisco RMS and devices for device activation, administration, and troubleshooting.

DCC UI

The DCC UI provides the framework within which all the user interface applications reside. The followingapplication solutions are provided within the DCC UI:



• Enhanced Groups & IDs Management—Provides the ability to manage, edit, import, and export grouptypes and instances and ID pool types and instances.

• Device Manager—Provides device management capabilities based on user permissions (Read only /Read & Write / Read & Write Advanced).

Ops Tools

The Ops Tools are a set of CLIs that enables the following functions:

• Bulk device management (e.g. connection requests, reboots)

• Device searches (based on group, etc)

• Device data retrieval

• Device property setting

• Re-balance of group and ID assignments

• BFST

• GPS Data Export

• Factory restore

In addition, the Ops Tools can be used in a workflow to perform group operations such as upgrades or movingdevices from default provisioning groups.

Prime Access RegistrarThe Prime Access Registrar (PAR) is used for AAA authentication. It provides AP authentication on theHNB-GW and delivers AP whitelists to HNB-GW via RADIUS.

Prime Network RegistrarThe Prime Network Registrar (PNR), also called the DHCP server, is used to allocate IPSec addresses forSeGW via DHCP. The lease database can then be queried to discover the current IP address of an AP.

Upload ServerThe Upload Server provides a high scale service for receiving and processing file uploads from the Femtocells.All the logs from the FAP are uploaded to the Upload Server.

The Upload Server supports the following functionality:

• Supports only HTTPS

• Uploads AP system logs, PM file uploads, and performance data

• Bundles files for distribution to the SP OSS

• Exposes the HTTP and SFTP interface towards the SP OSS

• Purges old files.



• Provides detailed KPIs in the CSV PM files

• Runs on UCS x86 on the Red Hat Linux

Femtocell Access Point Process FlowThe following describes the life cycle of an AP life cycle from procurement to service commissioning:

Procedure

Step 1 When an AP is manufactured, there are two processes that occur:

• The AP manufacturing information gets fed in to the production system (server). Like the serial numberof AP, basic certificate, and so on.

• The AP is dispatched to the Central Warehouse (factory) along with the AP manufacturing informationthat was fed into the production server.

Step 2 The information from the production system is fed into the Cloudbase Activation Server (CAS), which isspecific to the Ubiquisys AP. The information would include the serial number of the AP, basic certificate,service provider information, and so on.

Step 3 Now a subscriber requests for the AP service through a retailer, customer care, or via a web interface. Thesubscriber provides all the information like, location, authorized user list, and other subscription details.

Step 4 The subscription details are fed into the OSS system. OSS internally calls the Cisco RMS component tobasically register the device.

Step 5 On completion of the subscription details, a small cell (AP) is delivered to the subscriber from the CentralWarehouse.

Step 6 After the AP gets delivered, the subscriber connects the device and powers it up.Step 7 When the AP powers up for the first time, it goes to the CAS and downloads the appropriate image (when

the information is fed into the CAS, the service provider mapping, which is the serial number meant for aspecific service provider to identify the appropriate firmware to be downloaded).The AP activation occurs after the particular FW gets pushed to the AP.

Step 8 RMS provisioning follows next. This is final automated, zero-touch plug and play activation that occurs.(from step 7 to 10)

Step 9 All auto-configurations, like different parameters for RAN, RF parameter, and so on, get configured.Step 10 After the auto-configuration is complete, that is administration, radio access network, and operations services

are up, the service is provided to the subscriber.

Cisco RMS High-Level Provisioning FlowA high-level workflow of the Cisco RMS and the various components is described as follows:


Cisco RAN Management System OverviewFemtocell Access Point Process Flow

Procedure

Step 1 To register an AP, the SP OSS calls the register message from the PMG for the parameters like, EID (entityID or serial number of the device). The operator can provide the whitelist (if it is a closed mode support) andlocation information (for example, some service providers provide latitude and longitude, while others serviceproviders may not provide the location) or associate the device with the area group based on which area itbelongs to.

Step 2 When the register message comes to the PMG, the PMG goes to the BAC and adds that device entry andupdates the whitelist.

Step 3 Next, when the FAP comes up for the first time, it sends a BootStrap to the BAC. Then a HTTP establishmentoccurs between the BAC and FAP, certificate based authentication occurs, and at the end, the Inform Response.

Step 4 After the Inform Response is done, BAC pushes the baseline configuration to the FAP. Part of the baselineconfiguration is the baseline parameters like NWL scan, HNB GW IP add, and scan on boot=true.

Step 5 The FAP performs the NWL scan, and it sends that information by indicating whether the scan is completedor not.

Step 6 When the NWL scan is completed, BAC gets the NWL data from the FAP. The NWL data is the TR-069 datamodel attribute that the BAC fetches from the FAP.

Step 7 After receiving the NWL data, the BAC performs a location verification; after location verification is passed,the BAC sends the location verification status to the PMG and the SP OSS. If the OSS operator wants toactivate the FAP, the operator will activate the device.Cisco RMS provides the following activation support:

• At the registration stage, the operator can set the AP to activate at the end of the registration

• Activation can be performed explicitly. That is, whenever the activation happens, the operator canperform an Admin Up to the FAP, then the FAP starts IPSec tunnel establishment with the HNB GW,authentication takes place, FAP gets the IPSec address from the CNR, then it goes basically for the HNBGW registration request; in the HNB GW Registration request, the RADIUS Access Request comes tothe CAR, the CAR verifies whether i is a valid FAP or not. The CAR checks if it has the EID of theFAP, whether the proper IP address is configured, and validates it. After all checks are complete andauthenticated, the FAP comes to the operational state.

Cisco RMS InterfacesThe following figure illustrates the various Cisco RMS interfaces and interactions.


Cisco RAN Management System OverviewCisco RMS Interfaces

Cisco RMS interacts with the various interfaces as follows:

Service Provider OSSCisco RMS exposes programmatic APIs, which use XML over HTTP, to interact with the SP OSS. CiscoRMS exposes a kind of XSD schema that the OSS uses to communicate to RMS.

There are several APIs that are used for signatures, AP registration and activation that the SP OSS uses tocommunicate with the Cisco RMS.

Provisioning Management GatewayPMG is a generic provisioning and management application that provides the necessary workflow componentbetween the Service Provider (SP) IT/OSS applications (for example, service management and customer care)and the Cisco provisioning system, Broadband Access Center (BAC). It exposes the NBI API, which is XMLover HTTP, to enable the SP OSS to communicate with the PMG. The PMG in turn sends a set of notifications


Cisco RAN Management System OverviewService Provider OSS

to the SP OSS. For example, PMG assigns the LAC and Cell ID for a particular registered device. Thisinformation is passed back to the SP OSS.

Provisioning and Management Gateway DBProvisioning andManagement Gateway (PMG)DB provides a geo-spatial lookup service for PMG (read-only).It takes a location, defined by latitude and longitude, and returns the name of a group (for example, polygon).PMG then uses this group for automatic assignments. PMGDB operates on Oracle and is shipped as installationscripts, schema files, and stored procedures. It is expected that the operator provides the Oracle license andmaintenance.

Broadband Access CenterCisco RMS and FAP-related alarm are logged on the BAC. All component-related alarms, for example, alarmsthat PMG raises and so on, are sent directly to the Prime Suite, which is the Network Management System(NMS) interface.

Cisco RMS has three categories of alarms:

• Device or AP Alarms—A set of alarms that is received from the AP. For example, unable to connect tothe HNB GW, or some sector has gone down, or radio status is not up. All these alarms come to theBAC and from BAC, it goes to the Prime Suite (Network Management System [NMS]). Therefore thealarm is converted to TR-069 to the SNMP and the alarm is sent to the Prime Suite. This is called thedevice alarm or AP alarm.

• Component-specific Alarm—All component specific alarms are sent to the BAC. For example, PMGis not able to get some resource, does not have enough memory. Those specific alarms raised by thecomponent are sent directly to the NMS or Element Management System (EMS).

• System-specific Resource Alarm—Cisco RMS does not participate in resource-specific alarms like CPU,I/O, disk, memory, and so on. The Prime Suite and VMware vCenter that are running on the Cisco UCShardware, monitor and track the utilization and convert the alarms and sends them back to the PrimeSuite.

Access PointThe Remote management module (RMM) is the TR69 client interface between the Cisco RMS and the APthat uses the TR-69 data model or TR-196 data model to manage object and perform actions like get parametervalue, set parameter value, and so on.

The Ubiquisys FAP supports a concept called Cloudbase Server (not supported on IPA FAP).

Whenever an AP comes up, it contacts the CAS. The CAS has information about what firmware to push tothe AP, Cisco RMS IP address, and SeGW IP address. This information comes from the CAS and the AP getsbooted with that particular image which it has got fm the CAS. Now the AP knows the Cisco RMS IP addressor the fully qualified domain names (FQDNs) and the SeGW FQDN so the AP starts communicating withthe RAN server.

Therefore, when the AP comes up, it contacts the Cisco RMS, which in turn configures a set of parametersback to the AP. Then the AP contacts the SeGW and HNB GW via the luCS and luPS on the RAN server and


Cisco RAN Management System OverviewProvisioning and Management Gateway DB

the proceeds to contact the Cisco RMS to get the AAA. When the authentication is complete, the AP goes tothe SP MSC or SP GGSN, etc.

Cisco Radio Access NetworkThe Cisco Radio Access Network (RAN) interacts and interfaces with the Cisco RMS. Though RAN is nota Cisco RMS component, the Prime Access Registrar component of the Cisco RMS interacts with the RANfor authentication whenever an AP contacts the Cisco RMS.

The Cisco RMS interacts with the RAN to configure the AAA/RADIUS whitelist on the HNB GW to get thesystem up and running.

The Prime Network Registrar, which is the DHCP server interacts with the RAN because it is responsible forassigning the IP address to a given AP.

Cisco RMS Software ArchitectureThe following figure illustrates the Cisco RMS software architecture.

Cisco RMS architecture is divided into three logical components:

Central RMS NodeIn the Central RMS node, the DCC UI, PMG, and BAC RDU components of the Cisco RMS are installed ona separate node.


Cisco RAN Management System OverviewCisco Radio Access Network

The Central node can be paired with any number of serving nodes.

Figure 1: Central RMS Node

In any of the Cisco RMS deployments, it is mandatory to have at least one Central node.

To deploy the Central node, it is mandatory to procure and install VMware with one VMware vCenter perdeployment. For more information, see the Cisco RAN Management Systems Installation Guide, Release 4.0.

Serving RMS NodeIn the Serving RMS node, the BAC DPE, PNR, and PAR components of the Cisco RMS are provided on aseparate node.


Cisco RAN Management System OverviewServing RMS Node

The Serving node must be combined with the Central node. To add additional Serving nodes, the propertiesof the additional Serving nodes must be configured on the Central node.

Figure 2: Serving RMS Node

The Serving node can be scaled horizontally, which means that there can be multiple Serving nodes with oneCentral node depending on how many APs need to be supported.

The AP (HNB) always interacts with the Serving node. APs use the Serving node IP address to reach theCisco RMS. The IP address or FQDN of the Cisco RMS that is configured on the AP is part of the Servingnode and not the Central node, which is hidden from the AP.

For example, if a customer has around 1 million devices up and running, and they have 16 different Servingnodes, each of the devices will be configured to interact with specific Serving nodes. That is how a Servingnode can be scaled horizontally.

Upload RMS NodeIn the Upload RMS node, the Upload Sever is provided on a separate node.


Cisco RAN Management System OverviewUpload RMS Node

The Upload RMS node must be combined with the Serving node.

Figure 3: Upload RMS Node

For more information about the Upload Server, see Upload Server , on page 5.

Cisco RMS Physical and Virtual ArchitectureThis section lists the physical and virtual architecture of the Cisco RMS.

The Cisco RMS can be deployed in one of these modes:

All-in-One RMS NodeIn the All-in-One RMS node, all the components of the Cisco RMS solution is provided on a single host.


Cisco RAN Management System OverviewCisco RMS Physical and Virtual Architecture

The physical hardware has one virtual machine running a central node and one serving node.

Figure 4: All-in-One RMS Node

In an All-In-One RMS node, the Serving Node comprises of the Upload Sever VM and the VM combiningthe BAC DPE, PNR, and PAR components; the Central Node comprises of the VM combining the DCC UI,PMG, and BAC RDU VM components.

To deploy the All-in-One node, it is mandatory to procure and install VMware with one VMware vCenterper deployment. For more information, see the Cisco RAN Management Systems Installation Guide, Release4.0.

Distributed RMS NodeIn a Distributed RMS deployment mode, the following nodes are deployed:

• Central RMS Node, on page 10

• Serving RMS Node, on page 11

• Upload RMS Node, on page 12

In a Distributed deployment mode, up to 10,000 APs are supported.


Cisco RAN Management System OverviewDistributed RMS Node

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