Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Using Mobile Metrics to Drive

Network Analysis on Android
Devices
Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Network Analysis
An important research topic as many
communicate via mobile devices
Troubleshoot network connectivity
Diagnose network performance

Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
What Kind Of Metrics Do We Have
Network metrics
Signal strength
Connection states
Latency and bandwidth

Context information
Location
Geo-coordinates
Cell tower
User Behavior
Indoor/outdoor
Still/moving

Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Signal Strength
Signal Strength
dBm (or dBmW) is an abbreviation for the power
ratio in decibels (dB) of the measured power
referenced to one milliwatt (mW)
X = 10 * log
10
P + 30 expresses an arbitrary power
P as x dBm

Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Cellular Signal Strength - GSM
GSM signal ASU (Active Set Update)
An integer value proportional to the received signal strength
In range from 0 to 30, and 99, defined in 3GPP TS 27.007 8.5
Signal[dBm] = -113 + 2 * Signal[asu]

GSM Bit Error Rate
In range from 0 to 7, and 99, defined in 3GPP TS 27.007 8.5
RXQUAL_0, BER < 0.2%
RXQUAL_1, 0.2% < BER < 0.4%
RXQUAL_2, 0.4% < BER < 0.8%
RXQUAL_3, 0.8% < BER < 1.6%
RXQUAL_4, 1.6% < BER < 3.2%
RXQUAL_5, 3.2% < BER < 6.4%
RXQUAL_6, 6.4% < BER < 12.8%
RXQUAL_7, 12.8% < BER
Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Cellular Signal Strength - CDMA
CDMA RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indication)
Value in dBm
CDMA EC/IO
Value in dB * 10
The ratio of received pilot energy, Ec, to total received energy, Io.
Ec/Io[dB] = RSSI[dBm] RSCP[dBm]

EVDO RSSI
Value in dBm
EVDO Ec/Io
Value in dB * 10
EVDO SNR (Signal to Noise Ratio)
Value in range from 0 to 8
SNR[dB] = RSSI[dBm] NOISE[dBm]
Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Cellular Network States
Call states
IDLE, RINGING, OFFHOOK
Incoming phone number

Data activity
IN, OUT, INOUT, DORMANT

Data connection states
DISCONNECTED, CONNECTING, CONNECTED,
SUSPEND

Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Wi-Fi Network States
Wi-Fi supplicant states
ASSOCIATED, ASSOCIATING, AUTHENTICATING,
COMPLETED, DISCONNECTED, DORMANT,
FOUR_WAY_HANDSHAKE, GROUP_HANDSHAKE,
INACTIVE, INTERFACE_DISABLED, INVALID, SCANNING,
UNINITIALIZED

Access Point
SSID and BSSID
link speed

Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Network Performance
Network Latency
Ping command result
Socket connection latency

Network Goodput
Ping command result
Upload/download test to/from a target server
Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Location
Geo-coordinates
Latitude and longitude
Help identify dead zone

Cell tower
Report weak signal coverage
Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
User Behavior
Accelerometer Sensor
Infer movement from 3D accelerations

Light Sensor
Day time or mid night
Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Example Troubleshoot Network
Connectivity
PHONE TYPE
SIM CARD READY
AIRPLANE MODE
DATA ENABLED
REPLACED BY WI-FI
CELLULAR SIGNAL
SUPPLICANT STATE
WI-FI SIGNAL
GSM
CDMA
YES
YES
NO
YES
NO CONNECTED
Bo Yan Department of Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Example Network Latency
LATENCY TO WEBSITE
LATENCY TO INTERNET
LATENCY TO CARRIER
ABNORMAL
ABNORMAL
PACKET DROP
CELLULAR SIGNAL
NORMAL
HEAVY