Flow Control

WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
Feature Parameter Description
Copyright Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. 2010. All rights reserved.

No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written
consent of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
Trademarks and Permissions

and other Huawei trademarks are the property of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All other trademarks
and trade names mentioned in this document are the property of their respective holders.
Notice
The purchased products, services and features are stipulated by the commercial contract made between
Huawei and the customer. All or partial products, services and features described in this document may not be
within the purchased scope or the usage scope. Unless otherwise agreed by the contract, all statements,
information, and recommendations in this document are provided AS IS without warranties, guarantees or
representations of any kind, either express or implied.
The information in this document is subject to change without notice. Every effort has been made in the
preparation of this document to ensure accuracy of the contents, but all statements, information, and
recommendations in this document do not constitute the warranty of any kind, express or implied.
Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

Copyright Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
1 Introduction
Contents
1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................1-1
1.1 Scope ............................................................................................................................................ 1-1
1.2 Intended Audience ........................................................................................................................ 1-1
1.3 Change History.............................................................................................................................. 1-1
2 Overview .....................................................................................................................................2-1
3 Inner RNC Board Flow Control .............................................................................................3-1
3.1 Overview ....................................................................................................................................... 3-1
3.2 Flow Control Items for Boards....................................................................................................... 3-1
3.3 Detection of CPU Congestion ....................................................................................................... 3-3
3.4 Detection of Message Block Congestion ...................................................................................... 3-3
3.5 Flow Control Algorithms ................................................................................................................ 3-4
3.5.1 Switch Algorithm ................................................................................................................... 3-4
3.5.2 Linear Algorithm.................................................................................................................... 3-4
3.5.3 Hierarchical Algorithm........................................................................................................... 3-5
4 Flow Control over Interfaces .................................................................................................4-1

4.1 Flow Control over the Iu Interface ................................................................................................. 4-1
4.1.1 Overview............................................................................................................................... 4-1
4.1.2 Flow Control Based on Iu Signaling Links............................................................................ 4-1
4.1.3 Flow Control Based on the Peer SCCP Subsystem ............................................................ 4-1
4.1.4 Flow Control Based on RANAP Overload ............................................................................ 4-1
4.1.5 Flow Control Based on SCCP CC/CR.................................................................................. 4-2
4.2 Flow Control over the Iub Interface ............................................................................................... 4-2
4.3 Flow Control over the Uu Interface ............................................................................................... 4-2
4.3.1 Overview............................................................................................................................... 4-2
4.3.2 CAPS Control ....................................................................................................................... 4-3
4.3.3 RRC Shaping and Queuing.................................................................................................. 4-4
4.4 Paging Control............................................................................................................................... 4-5
5 Load Sharing in RNC ...............................................................................................................5-1

5.1 Basic Concept ............................................................................................................................... 5-1
5.2 Load Sharing on the Control Plane ............................................................................................... 5-1
5.3 Load Sharing on the User Plane ................................................................................................... 5-2
6 Parameters .................................................................................................................................6-1
7 Counters......................................................................................................................................7-1
8 Glossary ......................................................................................................................................8-1
9 Reference Documents .............................................................................................................9-1

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
1 Introduction
1 Introduction
1.1 Scope
This document describes the feature WRFD-040100 Flow Control.
Flow control is a set of mechanisms applied to the RNC to prevent the system from becoming
overloaded by regulating the input transmission rate.
1.2 Intended Audience

This document is intended for:
z
Personnel who are familiar with WCDMA basics
Personnel who need to understand flow control
Personnel who work with Huawei products
1.3 Change History

This section provides information on the changes in different document versions.
There are two types of changes, which are defined as follows:
z
Feature change: refers to the change in the flow control feature.
Editorial change: refers to the change in wording or the addition of the information that was not
described in the earlier version.
Document Issues
The document issues are as follows:
z
03 (2010-10-15)
02 (2010-06-20)
01 (2010-03-30)
Draft (2009-12-05)
03 (2010-10-15)
This is the third commercial release of RAN12.0.
Compared with the 02 (2010-06-20), this issue optimizes the description.
02 (2010-06-20)
This is the second commercial release of RAN12.0.
The CAPS control and RRC shaping and queuing functions are introduced in this issue of RAN12.0.
Descriptions of these features are added to section 4.3.2 "CAPS Control" and 4.3.3 "RRC Shaping and
Queuing."
01 (2010-03-30)
This is the first commercial release of RAN12.0.
Compared with the draft (2009-12-05), this issue optimizes the description.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

1-1
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
1 Introduction
Draft (2009-12-05)
This is the draft of the document for RAN12.0.
Compared with issue 02 (2009-06-30) of RAN11.0, this issue optimizes the description
1-2

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
2 Overview
2 Overview
Flow control is a mechanism for the RNC to prevent network and system overload. It aims to minimize
the risk of network and system overload through detection and prevention measures. When the system
is overloaded, the RNC prevents services from accessing the network and terminates low-priority
services so that the system load restores within the shortest time. This ensures system stability and
robustness. Moreover, resources are preferentially allocated to high-priority services so that high-priority
services can access the network.
Figure 2-1 shows the information exchange between RNC boards. Through information exchange
between inner RNC boards and between RNC interface boards and NodeB/MSC, flow control is
implemented on inner RNC boards, Iub interface, and Iu interface and load balance is achieved between
multiple SPU boards.
Figure 2-1 Information exchange between RNC boards
Table 2-1 describes the trigger condition, method, and flow control items on each RNC board.
Table 2-1 Flow control on each RNC board
Board/Subsystem Trigger Condition for Flow
Control
All RNC boards
MPU
Flow Control
Method
CPU congestion and message Inner RNC

block congestion
board flow
control
High CPU usage, message

Load sharing
block usage, and Call Attempts
Per Second (CAPS)
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
Flow Control Item
Log
Performance monitoring
Print
Debug
Load sharing on the control

plane
Load sharing on the user plane

2-1
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
2 Overview
SPU
Congestion on the control plane Flow control

over the Iu, Iub, or Uu interface over the Iu
interface
Interface board, Congestion on the user plane

over the Iu, Iub, or Uu interface
including UOI,
FG2, and GOU
boards
Flow control based on Iu

signaling links
Flow control based on the peer

SCCP subsystem
Flow control based on RANAP

overload
Flow control based on SCCP

CC/CR
Flow control
over the Iub
interface
Flow control on signaling links over

the Iub interface
Flow control
over the Uu
interface
CAPS control
RRC shaping and queuing
Paging control
Flow control on
the user plane
over the Iu, Iub, This document focuses on flow
or Uu interface control on the control plane. For
details on flow control on the user
plane, see the Transmission
Resource Management Feature
Parameter Description.
Each SPUa board has four subsystems and each SPUb board has eight subsystems. By default,
subsystem 0 of the main control SPUa or SPUb board in a subrack is the main control Signaling
Process Unit (SPU) subsystem, called the Main Processing Unit (MPU). The MPU maintains control
plane and user plane resources in the subrack and performs Digital Signal Processor (DSP) status
management.
Except the MPU, all subsystems in an SPU board are responsible for signaling processing. In this
document, the term SPU refers to an SPU subsystem on an SPU board.
Figure 2-2 shows the sequence of flow control items in the RNC.
2-2

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
2 Overview
Figure 2-2 Sequence of flow control items in the RNC
1. The RNC performs CAPS control on RRC connection requests. This avoids the impact of a large
amount of signaling from a single NodeB or a cell on the capability of the NodeB, cell, and RNC.
2. The MPU performs load sharing on RRC connection requests between the SPU subsystems.
3. After load sharing is complete, the RRC connection request is sent to an SPU subsystem. Then, the
SPU subsystem queues the RRC connection requests that cannot be processed in time. When CPU
usage is low, the SPU subsystem processes the queued RRC connection requests. This is the
process of RRC shaping and queuing.
4. The RNC performs flow control within RNC boards after an RRC connection is established to reduce
the load caused by tracing, print, log, and paging.
5. The RNC performs congestion-based flow control over the Iu or Iub interface.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

2-3
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
3 Inner RNC Board Flow Control

3.1 Overview
The RNC board software monitors system resources in real time, including CPU usage and message
block usage.
z
The CPU processes all data in the system, and therefore any function consumes CPU resources.
Message blocks are the primary resources for inner RNC communication.
The RNC decides whether to perform flow control, depending on system resource usage.
z
When resource usage is high, the RNC may not have enough resources to process services. In this
case, flow control disables some functions to ensure that basic functions are available.
When resource usage drops below the threshold, the functions disabled by flow control can be
restored.
Figure 3-1 shows the model of the flow control system for RNC boards.
Figure 3-1 Model of flow control system for RNC boards
3.2 Flow Control Items for Boards

The RNC board software monitors system resources in real time and determines whether to start flow control
according to the system resource load, such as CPU usage and message block usage.
Table 3-1 lists the flow control items of each RNC board. The first column in Table 3-1 lists the board
types displayed on the LMT.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

3-1
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
Table 3-1 Flow control items for RNC boards

Board Type
Flow Control Item
SCU
Printing
Debugging
Logging
Printing
Debugging
Resource auditing
Paging
Handover
Iur uplink transfer
Iur downlink transfer
CBS
Log
Cell URA update
AC
Iu
Iur-g
SPU
NOTE:
The MPU of an SPU board processes only four flow control items: printing,
debugging, performance monitoring, and logging.
DPU
AEU/PEU/AOU/UOI/FG2/GOU/POU
GCU/GCG
Printing
Debugging
Logging
Printing
Debugging
Logging
Printing
Debugging
Logging
Flow control items for the RNC boards are set through the SET FCSW command. Whether flow control
is performed for the flow control items can be set through the SET FCSW command.
3-2

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
3.3 Detection of CPU Congestion

The system periodically checks CPU usage every second. When CPU usage reaches a user-specified
threshold and the flow control switch is on, flow control is performed. Each flow control item for
CPU-usage-based flow control has two thresholds: control threshold and restore threshold.
To minimize the impact of instant fluctuations in CPU usage on the flow control decision, the average
value of CPU usage measured during the previous seconds is used. The data in the previous seconds
forms a filter window, as shown in Figure 3-2.
Figure 3-2 Filter window
When the average CPU usage in the filter window reaches or exceeds the corresponding control
threshold, flow control is started.
When the average CPU usage is lower than the corresponding restore threshold, flow control is
terminated.
To control the traffic flow when CPU usage becomes high within a short period, the system provides a
fast judgment window. That is, the system compares the average CPU usage measured in the preceding
short period with the critical threshold. If all the CPU usage values in the fast judgment window reach or
exceed the critical threshold, flow control for all the flow control items is started.
The critical threshold takes precedence over the thresholds of other flow control items. The decisions of
other flow control thresholds are effective only when CPU usage is lower than the critical threshold.
You can run the SET FCCPUTHD command to set the thresholds for CPU usage.
3.4 Detection of Message Block Congestion

A decision on message block usage is made by the system after the system allocates messages ten
times. When message block usage reaches a specified threshold and the flow control switch is on, flow
control is started. Each flow control item for message block flow control has two thresholds: control
threshold and restore threshold.
To minimize the impact of instant fluctuations in message block usage, the system provides a filter
window. That is, the system compares the average message block usage measured in the preceding
period with the control threshold.
z
When the average message block usage in the filter window reaches or exceeds the corresponding
control threshold, flow control is started.
When the average message block usage is lower than the restore threshold, flow control is terminated.
The critical threshold takes precedence over the thresholds of other flow control items. The decisions of
other flow control thresholds are effective only when message block usage is lower than the critical
threshold. The critical threshold decision does not use the filter mechanism. That is, the size of the filter
window is 1.
You can run the SET FCMSGQTHD command to set the thresholds for message block usage.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

3-3
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
3.5 Flow Control Algorithms

The RNC uses three types of flow control algorithms: the switch algorithm, linear algorithm, and
hierarchical algorithm. Different algorithms are used for different services. These algorithms, however,
cannot be set on the LMT.
3.5.1 Switch Algorithm

The principles of the switch algorithm are as follows:
z
When resource usage, such as CPU usage or message block usage, exceeds the control threshold of
a flow control item, flow control is performed.
When resource usage is lower than the restore threshold, flow control is not performed.
Figure 3-3 Switch algorithm
3.5.2 Linear Algorithm

The principles of the linear algorithm are as follows:
z
When resource usage is higher than the control threshold of a flow control item, flow control is
performed.
When resource usage is lower than the restore threshold of a flow control item, flow control is not
performed.
When resource usage is between the restore threshold and the control threshold of a flow control item,
the flow control level changes linearly with the resource usage.
3-4

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
Figure 3-4 Linear algorithm
The flow control level of the linear algorithm, that is, the probability (P) of performing flow control, is
calculated as follows:
P = (resource usage restore threshold) x 100%/(control threshold restore threshold)
3.5.3 Hierarchical Algorithm

The principles of the hierarchical algorithm are as follows:
z
When resource usage is higher than the control threshold of a flow control item, flow control is
performed.
When resource usage is lower than the restore threshold of a flow control item, flow control is not
performed.
When resource usage is between the restore threshold and the control threshold of a flow control item,
the flow control level changes hierarchically with the resource usage.
Figure 3-5 Hierarchical algorithm
The flow control level of the hierarchical algorithm is calculated as follows:

Flow control level = [(resource usage restore threshold) x total number of flow control grades for the
flow control item/(control threshold restore threshold)]
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

3-5
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
The [ ] symbol indicates an integer value.

The total flow control grades for each flow control item are specified in the system software and cannot be set on the LMT.
They vary according to the flow control items.
3-6

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
4 Flow Control over Interfaces

4.1 Flow Control over the Iu Interface
4.1.1 Overview
When a signaling link on the Iu interface, the peer SCCP subsystem or CN is congested, or the rate of
SCCP Connection Confirm messages/Connection Request messages (CC/CR) is low, the RNC rejects
services selectively based on the congestion level. Emergency calls are not rejected.
IUFCSW indicates the switch for Iu signaling flow control. IUCTHD indicates the maximum traffic ratio for
restriction in the case of congestion on the Iu interface
4.1.2 Flow Control Based on Iu Signaling Links

The RNC checks the load of Iu signaling links and takes relevant measures. If the load is heavy, the
RNC rejects access selectively. As the load increases, the RNC rejects the access of low-priority
services and then rejects the access of high-priority services. In this way, the flow control mechanism
ensures that the admitted services are effectively processed and that services beyond the load capacity
of the RNC are temporarily barred from the network to avoid continuous system overload.
The Iu SCCP determines the congestion level based on the congestion status reported from the lower
layer.
4.1.3 Flow Control Based on the Peer SCCP Subsystem

If the peer SCCP subsystem is congested, the RNC sends a CR message to the peer equipment and the
peer equipment responds with a Connection refused (CREF) message that contains a congestion
indicator. The RNC performs flow control based on the congestion indicator in the CREF message.
If the RNC received a CREF message from the peer SCCP subsystem, the RNC increases the
congestion level by one. Otherwise, the RNC decrease the congestion level by one.
When an RRC connection is set up, the RNC determines whether to start flow control according to the
congestion level and the service type of the RRC connection. If the flow control conditions are met, this
RRC connection setup request is rejected. There are three types of RRC connection services: short
message, call, and location registration. The RNC rejects service setup requests upon congestion in the
following order: short message service > call service > location registration service. All three types of
services use the linear algorithm for flow control.
4.1.4 Flow Control Based on RANAP Overload

The RNC rates traffic volume over the Iu interface in 21 levels ranging from 0 to 20. Level 20 is the
lowest traffic level. When the traffic volume level is N, the RNC discards Initial Direct Transfer messages
over the Iu interface at a 1-N/20 probability.
When a CN node is overloaded, the RNC receives the OVERLOAD message from the CN. The RNC
then reduces the traffic volume on the CN node. With Iu Flex applied, the RNC needs to select a CN
node that is not in the overloaded state when the RNC does not receive the NRI parameter from IDNNS.
The CN short-time flow control timer IgorTmr and the CN long-time flow control timer IntrTmr are
configured on the RNC side for flow control. Note that IntrTmr must be greater than IgorTmr. You can
run the SET UIUTIMERANDNUM command to set IgorTmr and IntrTmr.
The procedure is as follows:
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

4-1
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
Step 1 The overloaded CN node sends the OVERLOAD message to the RNC to initiate a flow control
procedure.
Step 2 On the RNC side, if the timer specified by IgorTmr is not running and an OVERLOAD message
or the "Signaling Point Congested" information is received, the traffic volume is reduced by one
step. It is also possible, optionally, to indicate the number of steps to reduce the traffic within the
Number of Steps IE. At the same time, timers IgorTmr and IntrTmr must be started.
Step 3 During the period specified by IgorTmr, all received OVERLOAD messages or "Signaling Point
Congested" information is ignored.
Step 4 This step-by-step reduction of the traffic volume is continued until the maximum reduction is
obtained at the last step.
Step 5 If the timer specified by IntrTmr expires, the traffic volume is increased by one step and the timer
specified by IntrTmr is restarted unless the number of steps by which the traffic volume is
reduced returns to zero.
4.1.5 Flow Control Based on SCCP (CC+CREF)/CR

The RNC performs flow control on the Iu interface according to the value of SCCP (CC+CREF)/CR.
There are twelve flow control levels. The RNC changes the flow control level every five seconds.
z
If the number of CR messages is less than the number of subsystems multiplied by 10 or is less than
100, the RNC decreases the flow control level by one.
If the value of (CC+CREF)/CR is greater than or equal to 90%, the RNC decreases the flow control
level by one.
If the value of (CC+CREF)/CR is less than 10%, the RNC increases the flow control level by one.
If the value of (CC+CREF)/CR is between 10% and 90%, the RNC adjusts the flow control level
according the trend in the value of (CC+CREF)/CR.
If
the value of (CC+CREF)/CR is increasing, the RNC needs to keep the trend of adjusting the flow
control level. That is, if the flow control level increases in the previous period, the RNC keeps
increasing the flow control level.
If
the value of (CC+CREF)/CR is decreasing, the RNC needs to reverse the trend of adjusting the
flow control level. That is, if the flow control level increases in the previous period, the RNC needs to
decrease the flow control level.
If
the value of (CC+CREF)/CR keeps stable, the RNC does not change the flow control level.
4.2 Flow Control over the Iub Interface

The RNC checks the load of Iub signaling links. When the load is heavy, the RNC rejects the RRC
connection requests of services, except of emergency call services and attach and detach services. The
Iub signaling flow control helps to relieve the congestion caused by the increase of the Network Control
Protocol (NCP) link load and enables the NCP link to recover more rapidly.
This document focuses on flow control on the control plane. For details on flow control on the user plane,
see the Transmission Resource Management Feature Parameter Description.
4.3 Flow Control over the Uu Interface

4.3.1 Overview
RRC congestion strongly affects network performance. Congestion occurs when a large number of UEs
request calling services at the same time, such as in festivals and major sport events.
4-2

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
When RRC congestion occurs, the number of Call Attempt Per Second (CAPS) becomes large. These
call attempts may exhaust network resources and result in very low throughput due to RAB setup failure.
When traffic volume is extremely large, the RNC will perform CAPS control at cell level or NodeB level
and perform RRC shaping at system (SPU) level to balance the traffic of calling services.
4.3.2 CAPS Control

The CAPS control function can be enabled at the cell level or NodeB level. The CallShockCtrlSwitch
parameter specifies whether the function is enabled.
Procedure for CAPS Control

The following figure shows the procedure for CAPS control.
Table 4-1 Procedure for CAPS control
Decision on Entering the RRC Congestion State

The decision on entering the RRC congestion state is made periodically at the cell level and NodeB level
separately, as described in the following table. The period is specified by the CallShockJudgePeriod
parameter.
Table 4-2 Conditions for entering the RRC congestion state
Level
When the following conditions are met, the cell and NodeB enter the RRC congestion state.
Cell
The number of RRC connection requests in the cell during the specified period exceeds the
threshold specified by CellTotalRrcNumThd.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

4-3
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
NodeB
The number of RRC connection requests in the NodeB during the specified period exceeds
the threshold specified by NBTotalRrcNumThd or the NodeB Control Port (NCP) is
congested.
CAPS Control Actions When the Cell or NodeB Is in the RRC Congestion State
CAPS control is performed at cell or NodeB level when the cell or NodeB is in the RRC congestion state.
Level
The following flow control actions are taken at the cell or NodeB level when the cell or NodeB
is in the RRC congestion state.
Cell
Set up an RRC connection for the UE to register on a FACH instead of a DCH.
Increase the RRC connection retry timer (RrcConnRejWaitTmr) to15 seconds.
Reject the RRC connection request for PS services.
Limit the maximum number of admitted RRC connection requests for AMR per second to
the threshold specified by CellAmrRrcNum.
Limit the maximum number of admitted RRC connection requests per second for register
and inter-RAT cell reselection to the threshold specified by CellHighPriRrcNum.
Set up an RRC connection for the UE to register on a FACH instead of a DCH.
Prolong the RRC connection retry timer (RrcConnRejWaitTmr) to 15 seconds.
Reject the RRC connection request for PS services.
Limit the maximum number of admitted RRC connection requests for AMR per second to
the threshold specified by NBAmrRrcNum.
Limit the maximum number of admitted RRC connection requests per second for register
and inter-RAT cell reselection to the threshold specified by NBHighPriRrcNum.
NodeB
To set up an RRC connection for the UE to register on a FACH instead of a DCH, turn on the switch
specified by RegByFachSwitch.
CAPS control is performed on RRC requests with high priority and for PS services.
CAPS Control is not performed on emergency calls, terminated calls, detach requests, and low-priority
RRC requests.
4.3.3 RRC Shaping and Queuing

The RRC shaping function can be enabled at the system level. The RsvdPara1 parameter is used to
determine whether to enable RRC shaping and queuing. You can set this parameter to RSVDBIT14 to
trigger RRC Shaping and Queuing function.
The process of RRC shaping and queuing is as follows:
Shaping:
z
The SPU admits RRC connection requests according to the capability of the SPU. The requests that
cannot be handled by the SPU are forwarded to other SPUs for load sharing.
Queuing:
z
Entering queues
4-4

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
After load sharing between boards and subracks is complete, if the RRC connection requests cannot
be allocated resources, the RRC connection requests are queued. If the queues are full, the requests
are discarded.
z
Discarding after expiry

The SPU periodically inspects the queues. If the duration of waiting for an RRC connection request is
longer than the duration specified by T300, the request is discarded.
Coming out of queue

The SPU periodically inspects the queues and allocates the remaining resources to the RRC
connection requests in the queues. RRC connection requests for emergency calls and terminated
conversational calls are handled prior to other RRC connection requests.
The maximum number of RRC Connection Reject messages due to SPU flow control is limited to the
threshold specified by SysRrcRejNum. Superfluous messages are discarded.
4.3.4 Paging Control

With the development of PS services, there are more and more PS paging messages. PS paging
messages may exhaust the paging resources and result in low throughput of CS services. Flow control
for paging can help improve the probability of CS paging.
Cells support transmitting paging messages for a maximum of eight UEs according to the 3GPP protocol.
When the number of UEs exceeds eight, the RNC prioritizes the paging messages in the following
sequence:
1. Paging messages for PTT services.
2. Paging messages for terminated conversational calls
3. Paging messages for non-terminated conversational calls
4. Paging messages for retransmitted terminated conversational calls
5. Paging messages for retransmitted non-terminated conversational calls
You can enable the paging control function by running the SET UDPUCFGDATA: RsvdPara10 = 1
command.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

4-5
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
5 Load Sharing in RNC

Load sharing on the control plane and user plane can be implemented based on resource sharing.
5.1 Basic Concept

Host SPU: In the RNC, the SPU that controls a NodeB is the host SPU of the NodeB.
Host subrack: The subrack that is connected to a NodeB over the Iub interface is the host subrack of
the NodeB.
5.2 Load Sharing on the Control Plane

SPU Processing or Forwarding Services
When an SPU receives a service request, the SPU determines whether to process the service request
directly or to forward it to the MPU according to the current SPU state. The SPU state is determined by
the current SPU load (CPU usage) and Call Attempts per Second (CAPS).
The SPU can be in one of the three states shown in Figure 5-1.
Figure 5-1 Load states on the control plane
Table 5-1 SPU states and actions

State
Definition
State I
The SPU has a light load. State I requires that:

z
Action
The SPU processes all

The message-block load is lower than the message-block overload received service
requests and accepts
threshold.
the service requests
The CPU load is lower than the value of CtrlPlnSharingOutThd, forwarded by the MPU.
and the CAPS is lower than the value of MaxCAPSLowLoad.
Alternatively, the CPU load is lower than the CPU overload
threshold, and the CAPS is lower than the value of
SharingOutCAPSMidLoad.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

5-1
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
State
Definition
State II
The SPU has a heavy load. State II requires that:

z
State III
Action
The SPU forwards all

The message block load is lower than the message block overload received service
requests to the MPU
threshold.
and accepts the service
The CPU load is between the CPU overload threshold and the
requests forwarded by
value of CtrlPlnSharingOutThd, and the CAPS is between the
the MPU. The SPU
value of SharingOutCAPSMidLoad and the value of
shares the load with
MaxCAPSMidLoad.
other SPUs.
The SPU is overloaded.
In state III, the SPU

forwards all received
service requests to the
MPU, and the MPU
does not forward any
service request to the
SPU.
You can run the SET UCTRLPLNSHAREPARA command to set the load sharing function among
subracks.
MPU Distributing Services

When a service request arrives, the host SPU processes the service request if the SPU is in state I, or
the host SPU forwards the service request to the MPU for further distribution if the SPU is in state II or III.
In the case of state II or III, the MPU selects a proper SPU in either the host subrack or a different
subrack to process the service request.
z
If the control plane load of the host subrack minus the value of CtrlPlnSharingOutOffset is higher
than the control plane load of any other subracks, the MPU in the host subrack forwards the service
request to the MPU with the minimum control plane load in other subracks. The target MPU then
forwards the service request to the SPU with the minimum load in the target subrack.
Otherwise, the MPU selects an SPU from its host subrack. If the load of the host SPU is equal to or
higher than the CPU overload threshold, or if the load of the host SPU minus the value of
CtrlPlnSharingOutOffset is higher than the load of any other SPUs in the host subrack, the MPU
forwards the service request to the SPU with the minimum load in the host subrack.
If no SPU can handle the service request, the service request is rejected.
You can run the SET SHARETHD command to set the CPU overload threshold and the message block
overload threshold.
5.3 Load Sharing on the User Plane

The MPU in a subrack manages and allocates the user plane resources in the subrack. When the
subrack load is heavy, the MPU forwards the resource requests to other subracks.
The MPU maintains the user plane resources in the subrack and performs DSP status management. In
addition, the MPU in the subrack exchanges user plane load information with other MPUs.
Figure 5-2 shows how the MPUs manage and allocate user plane resources.
5-2

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
Figure 5-2 User plane resource sharing
The user plane load is calculated according to the sum of the GBRs of all the services in the DPU or the
CPU usage. If the GBR is set to 0, the GBR is changed to 32 kbit/s by this function.
When a service request arrives and the service needs user-plane resources, the SPU requests the MPU
in the host subrack for the resources. The MPU proceeds as follows:
z
If the user plane CPU usage of the host subrack is lower than the threshold specified by
UserPlnCpuSharingOutThd and the user plane GBR load of the host subrack is lower than the
threshold specified by UserPlnSharingOutThd, the MPU allocates the user plane resources of the
DSP with the minimum load in the host subrack to the service.
If the user plane CPU usage of the host subrack is higher than the threshold specified by
UserPlnCpuSharingOutThd, or the user plane GBR load of the host subrack is higher than the
threshold specified by UserPlnSharingOutThd, the MPU selects the subrack with the minimum load
in the RNC and forwards the user plane resource request to the MPU in the target subrack. The target
MPU then allocates the resources of the DSP with the minimum load in the target subrack to the
service.
When the GBR load of the DPU is overloaded and the CPU usage is overloaded (larger than the
threshold specified by DSPRestrainCpuThd), the service request is rejected. Otherwise, the service
is admitted.
You can run the SET UUSERPLNSHAREPARA command to set the function of load sharing on the user
plane.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

5-3
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
6 Parameters
6 Parameters
Table 6-1 Parameter description
Parameter ID
NE
MML Command
Description
RsvdPara10
BSC6900
SET
Meaning: This parameter is saved for the coming
UDPUCFGDATA(O usage.
ptional)
GUI Value Range: 0~4294967295
Actual Value Range: 0~4294967295
Unit: None
Default Value: 0
IIUCTHD
BSC6900
SET
FCSW(Optional)
Meaning: Maximum traffic rate for restriction in the

case of congestion on the IU interface. This parameter
is valid only when "Board Class" is "XPU".
Unit: None
Default Value: 70
IUFCSW
BSC6900
SET
FCSW(Optional)
Meaning: Whether to control signaling traffic on the IU

interface
GUI Value Range: ON, OFF
Actual Value Range: ON, OFF
Unit: None
Default Value: ON
UserPlnSharin BSC6900
gOutThd
SET
Meaning: The parameter is added to trigger the load
UUSERPLNSHARE sharing when the GBR usage of the subrack exceeds
PARA(Optional)
this threshold, thus achieving load balance between
subracks.
Unit: None
Default Value: 90
T300
BSC6900
SET
Meaning: T300 is started when UE sends the RRC
UIDLEMODETIME CONNECTION REQUEST message. It is stopped
R(Optional)
when UE receives the RRC CONNECTION SETUP
message. RRC CONNECTION REQUEST will be
resent upon the expiry of the timer if V300 is lower than
or equal to N300, else enter idle mode.
GUI Value Range: D100, D200, D400, D600, D800,
D1000, D1200, D1400, D1600, D1800, D2000, D3000,
D4000, D6000, D8000
Actual Value Range: 100, 200, 400, 600, 800, 1000,
1200, 1400, 1600, 1800, 2000, 3000, 4000, 6000, 8000
Unit: ms
Default Value: D2000
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

6-1
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
6 Parameters
UserPlnCpuSh BSC6900
aringOutThd
SET
Meaning: The parameter is added to trigger the load
UUSERPLNSHARE sharing when the DSP CPU usage exceeds this
PARA(Optional)
threshold, thus achieving load balance between
subracks.
Actual Value Range: {0~100}
Unit: %
Default Value: 50
DSPRestrainC BSC6900
puThd
SET
Meaning: The parameter is added to stop CPUS from
UUSERPLNSHARE assigning users to a DSP whose CPU usage has
PARA(Optional)
exceeded this threshold.
Unit: %
Default Value: 75
CtrlPlnSharing BSC6900
OutOffset
SET
Meaning: The sharing offset should be added to the
UCTRLPLNSHARE target subrack or subsystem. This parameter is used
PARA(Optional)
for preferable selection of the homing subrack and
homing subsystem during call forwarding.
Actual Value Range: 0.01~0.1, step:0.01
Unit: %
Default Value: 5
gOutThd
SET
Meaning: Percentage of User Plane Sharing Out
UUSERPLNSHARE threshold.The range of this threshold is changed from
PARA(Optional)
{50~100} to {0~100} to facilitate load balancing
between subracks. Because when this threshold is
lower than 50, load sharing is easier to be triggered
between subracks.
Unit: None
Default Value: 90
gOutOffset
SET
Meaning: Percentage of User Plane Sharing Out
UUSERPLNSHARE Offset.
PARA(Optional)
Unit: None
Default Value: 5
6-2

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
CtrlPlnSharing BSC6900
OutThd
6 Parameters
SET
Meaning: Forwarding threshold of control plane load
UCTRLPLNSHARE sharing. When the CPU usage is between the sharing
PARA(Optional)
threshold and overload threshold, and call number in
each second reaches "Sharing out capability middle
load", new arrival call attempts will be shared out to
other SPU.
Actual Value Range: 0~1, step:0.01
Unit: %
Default Value: 50
SharingOutCA BSC6900
PSMidLoad
SET
Meaning: Numbers of incoming calls to be shared
UCTRLPLNSHARE when the load exceeds the forwarding threshold. When
PARA(Optional)
the CPU usage is between the sharing out threshold
and overload threshold, and number of incoming calls
in each second reaches the threshold, new arrival call
attempts will be shared out to other SPU.
Unit: None
Default Value: 10
MaxCAPSMidL BSC6900
oad
SET
Meaning: Maximum numbers of incoming calls in one
UCTRLPLNSHARE second when the load exceeds the forwarding
PARA(Optional)
threshold. When the CPU usage is between the
sharing out threshold and overload threshold, and call
number in one second reaches the threshold, new
arrival call attempts will be shared out to other SPU
and none will be shared in this SPU.
Unit: None
Default Value: 100
MaxCAPSLow BSC6900
Load
SET
Meaning: Maximum numbers of incoming calls in one
UCTRLPLNSHARE second when the load is lower than the forwarding
PARA(Optional)
threshold. When the CPU usage is lower than the
sharing out threshold and overload threshold, and call
numbers in each second reach the threshold, new
arrival call attempts will be shared out to other SPU
and none will be shared in this SPU.
Unit: None
Default Value: 150
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

6-3
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
6 Parameters
CallShockCtrlS BSC6900
witch
SET
Meaning: Indicating whether to control call shock
UCALLSHOCKCTR control.
L(Optional)
GUI Value Range: SYS_LEVEL(SYS_LEVEL),
NODEB_LEVEL(NODEB_LEVEL),
CELL_LEVEL(CELL_LEVEL)
Actual Value Range: SYS_LEVEL, NODEB_LEVEL,
CELL_LEVEL
Unit: None
Default Value: None
RegByFachSwi BSC6900
tch
SET
Meaning: Indicates whether register beared by fach
UCALLSHOCKCTR under call shock control. This function only applies
L(Optional)
under NodeB level or cell level call shock control.
GUI Value Range: OFF, ON
Actual Value Range: OFF, ON
Unit: None
Default Value: ON
CallShockJudg BSC6900
ePeriod
SET
Meaning: Indicating the period of call shock control
UCALLSHOCKCTR judging.
L(Optional)
Unit: s
Default Value: 3
SysRrcRejNum BSC6900
SET
Meaning: When call shock control starts, it is the max
UCALLSHOCKCTR number of RRC_REJ message.
L(Optional)
Unit: None
Default Value: 100
NBTotalRrcNu BSC6900
mThd
SET
Meaning: When the RRC REQ total number of one
UCALLSHOCKCTR NodeB reach this threshold the RRC flow control will be
L(Optional)
triggered.
Unit: None
Default Value: 60
NBAmrRrcNum BSC6900
SET
Meaning: When call shock control starts, the
UCALLSHOCKCTR AMR_RRC number can be accessed per second for
L(Optional)
NodeB.
Unit: None
Default Value: 20
6-4

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
NBHighPriRrcN BSC6900
um
6 Parameters
SET
Meaning: When call shock control starts, the register
UCALLSHOCKCTR and 3G->2G reselect number can be accessed per
L(Optional)
second for NodeB.
Unit: None
Default Value: 20
CellTotalRrcNu BSC6900
mThd
SET
Meaning: When the RRC REQ total number of one cell
UCALLSHOCKCTR reach this threshold the RRC flow control will be
L(Optional)
triggered.
Unit: None
Default Value: 45
CellAmrRrcNu BSC6900
m
SET
Meaning: When call shock control starts, the
UCALLSHOCKCTR AMR_RRC number can be accessed per second for
L(Optional)
cell.
Unit: None
Default Value: 15
CellHighPriRrc BSC6900
Num
SET
Meaning: When call shock control starts, the register
UCALLSHOCKCTR and 3G->2G reselect number can be accessed per
L(Optional)
second for cell.
Unit: None
Default Value: 15
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

6-5
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
6 Parameters
RsvdPara1
BSC6900
SET
Meaning: Reserved Parameter1.
UCACALGOSWITC
H(Optional)
GUI Value Range: RSVDBIT1(Reserved Switch 1),
RSVDBIT2(Reserved Switch 2), RSVDBIT3(Reserved
Switch 3), RSVDBIT4(Reserved Switch 4),
RSVDBIT11(Reserved Switch 11),
RSVDBIT16(Reserved Switch 16)
Actual Value Range: RSVDBIT1, RSVDBIT2,
RSVDBIT3, RSVDBIT4, RSVDBIT5, RSVDBIT6,
RSVDBIT15, RSVDBIT16
Unit: None
Default Value: None
RsvdPara1
BSC6900
SET
Meaning: Reserved parameter 1.
URRCTRLSWITCH GUI Value Range: RSVDBIT1_BIT1,
(Optional)
NAS_QOS_MOD_SWITCH, RSVDBIT1_BIT3,
RSVDBIT1_BIT4, RSVDBIT1_BIT5, RSVDBIT1_BIT6,
RSVDBIT1_BIT7, RSVDBIT1_BIT8, RSVDBIT1_BIT9,
RSVDBIT1_BIT10, RSVDBIT1_BIT11,
RSVDBIT1_BIT16, SYSHO_CSIN_PERMIT_SWITCH,
RSVDBIT1_BIT32
Actual Value Range: This parameter is set to 0 or 1
according to the related domains.
Unit: None
Default Value: None
6-6

Issue 03 (2010-10-15)
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
7 Counters
7 Counters
For details, see the BSC6900 UMTS Performance Counter Reference.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

7-1
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
8 Glossary
8 Glossary
For the acronyms, abbreviations, terms, and definitions, see the Glossary.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

8-1
WCDMA RAN
Flow Control
9 Reference Documents
9 Reference Documents
None.
Issue 03 (2010-10-15)

9-1

Flow Control

Transféré par

Informations du document

Copyright

Formats disponibles

Partager ce document

Partager ou intégrer le document

Options de partage

Avez-vous trouvé ce document utile ?

Ce contenu est-il inapproprié ?

Droits d'auteur :

Formats disponibles

Flow Control

Transféré par

Droits d'auteur :

Formats disponibles

WCDMA RAN

Copyright Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. 2010. All rights reserved.

Trademarks and Permissions

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

4 Flow Control over Interfaces .................................................................................................4-1

5 Load Sharing in RNC ...............................................................................................................5-1

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

1.2 Intended Audience

Personnel who are familiar with WCDMA basics

Personnel who need to understand flow control

Personnel who work with Huawei products

1.3 Change History

Feature change: refers to the change in the flow control feature.

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

All RNC boards

CPU congestion and message Inner RNC

High CPU usage, message

Flow Control Item

Load sharing on the control

Load sharing on the user plane

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

Congestion on the control plane Flow control

Interface board, Congestion on the user plane

Flow control based on Iu

Flow control based on the peer

Flow control based on RANAP

Flow control based on SCCP

Flow control on signaling links over

RRC shaping and queuing

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

Figure 2-2 Sequence of flow control items in the RNC

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

3 Inner RNC Board Flow Control

3 Inner RNC Board Flow Control

3.2 Flow Control Items for Boards

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

3 Inner RNC Board Flow Control

Table 3-1 Flow control items for RNC boards

Flow Control Item

Iur uplink transfer

Iur downlink transfer

Cell URA update

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

3 Inner RNC Board Flow Control

3.3 Detection of CPU Congestion

3.4 Detection of Message Block Congestion

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

3 Inner RNC Board Flow Control

3.5 Flow Control Algorithms

3.5.1 Switch Algorithm

Figure 3-3 Switch algorithm

3.5.2 Linear Algorithm

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

3 Inner RNC Board Flow Control

Figure 3-4 Linear algorithm

3.5.3 Hierarchical Algorithm

Figure 3-5 Hierarchical algorithm

The flow control level of the hierarchical algorithm is calculated as follows:

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

3 Inner RNC Board Flow Control

The [ ] symbol indicates an integer value.

Huawei Proprietary and Confidential

4 Flow Control over Interfaces