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SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

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Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#31

Post by advael »

femto wrote: post #24
kurokawad wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cellular comms. are all complex, proprietary, closed standards by big telecoms companies. There are some projects trying to solve this: OpenRAN, OpenAirInterface, O-RAN Alliance. This project tries to build an open solution following O-RAN standards for RAN software. It is targeting telecom. companies for their Radio Access Network (RAN). Their infrastructure is divided into the Core Network (like a simple internet n…

Complex: yes Proprietary, Closed Standards: no Here are all the 3GPP 4G/5G standards that govern cellular phone networks: https://www.3gpp.org/specifications-technologies Also look under the "Specifications" drop down menu at the top of the page. Every release is listed. These standards being freely available is why SRS were able to write srsRAN. There is nothing stopping others from doing so either, apart from the a…

While it's technically true that the specs are public, the implementation not being public is most of the issue being solved

Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#32

Post by throw5959 »

bsder wrote: post #27
leidenfrost wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why can't I create an ad hoc 4/5g network between phones? Genuine question. It looks so closed and complex compared to more traditional comms like wifi or even ethernet.

> Why can't I create an ad hoc 4/5g network between phones? Because billing. All the complexity in cellular can be traced back to making the system secure the whole way back to SIM cards because there is actual money at stake if the system gets cracked.

What about a "public good" mobile network without any billing, only fair QoS?

Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#33

Post by friendzis »

throw5959 wrote: post #32
bsder wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Why can't I create an ad hoc 4/5g network between phones? Because billing. All the complexity in cellular can be traced back to making the system secure the whole way back to SIM cards because there is actual money at stake if the system gets cracked.

What about a "public good" mobile network without any billing, only fair QoS?

There's limited bandwidth available in the space. 5G is "fast" compared to 4G because 4G effectively saturates terrestrial bandwidth available. Public, unauthenticated network would be too easily DDoSable.

Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#34

Post by vardump »

nine_k wrote: post #23
wmf wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is the tower side (RAN) not the phone side (UE). It's not clear who the audience is. I assume it's equipment vendors since running a real carrier on USRPs seems janky.

A few applications I could think of: - Testing of various kinds. You can get deep inside an OSS base station, inspect and debug things, but likely may not even look at the proprietary innards of a commercial BS. - Emergency connectivity when the backbone is broken, or did not exist. Most people would bring mobile phones anyway. - Study / teaching, like MINIX OS or trainer aircraft which you can take apart and inspect…

> look at the proprietary innards of a commercial BS.

I was wondering a bit whether that means Base Station or perhaps something else...

Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#35

Post by [deleted] »

throw5959 wrote: post #32
bsder wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Why can't I create an ad hoc 4/5g network between phones? Because billing. All the complexity in cellular can be traced back to making the system secure the whole way back to SIM cards because there is actual money at stake if the system gets cracked.

What about a "public good" mobile network without any billing, only fair QoS?

[deleted]

Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#36

Post by mateuszbuda »

Can I use this to run my own mobile network? Is there something like a blank SIM card which I could use for it? I don't need global coverage but is it possible to create my own BTS on a PC (with some antenna connected to it) and then have my own SIM card which I can insert into regular phone/device and have it connected to my BTS and connect to the Internet?

Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#37

Post by markus-k »

mateuszbuda wrote: post #36

Can I use this to run my own mobile network? Is there something like a blank SIM card which I could use for it? I don't need global coverage but is it possible to create my own BTS on a PC (with some antenna connected to it) and then have my own SIM card which I can insert into regular phone/device and have it connected to my BTS and connect to the Internet?

Yes and yes, although in most parts of the world it won't be legal when done via antennas. You can buy blank SIM cards from vendors like Sysmocom, which are preprogrammed but "writable" SIM cards. The important part is knowing the private key that is used to authenticate end user devices.

Then you'll just need a decent SDR and it actually works fairly well for small test setups.

Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#38

Post by mytailorisrich »

bsder wrote: post #27
leidenfrost wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why can't I create an ad hoc 4/5g network between phones? Genuine question. It looks so closed and complex compared to more traditional comms like wifi or even ethernet.

> Why can't I create an ad hoc 4/5g network between phones? Because billing. All the complexity in cellular can be traced back to making the system secure the whole way back to SIM cards because there is actual money at stake if the system gets cracked.

The complexity is actually down to mobility. You can turn your phone on anywhere and it'll work. You can have a call/data session while travelling hundreds of miles and it'll work (usually).

Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#39

Post by bluGill »

mateuszbuda wrote: post #36

Can I use this to run my own mobile network? Is there something like a blank SIM card which I could use for it? I don't need global coverage but is it possible to create my own BTS on a PC (with some antenna connected to it) and then have my own SIM card which I can insert into regular phone/device and have it connected to my BTS and connect to the Internet?

The hard part will be legal. You will need permission to have a radio and that often means certification of the system along with right to use the frequencies phones use.

Re: SrsRAN: Open-Source 4G/5G

#40

Post by miki123211 »

femto wrote: post #24
kurokawad wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cellular comms. are all complex, proprietary, closed standards by big telecoms companies. There are some projects trying to solve this: OpenRAN, OpenAirInterface, O-RAN Alliance. This project tries to build an open solution following O-RAN standards for RAN software. It is targeting telecom. companies for their Radio Access Network (RAN). Their infrastructure is divided into the Core Network (like a simple internet n…

Complex: yes Proprietary, Closed Standards: no Here are all the 3GPP 4G/5G standards that govern cellular phone networks: https://www.3gpp.org/specifications-technologies Also look under the "Specifications" drop down menu at the top of the page. Every release is listed. These standards being freely available is why SRS were able to write srsRAN. There is nothing stopping others from doing so either, apart from the a…

Apart from complexity and patents, the other other barrier is licensing.

Those technologies aren't terribly useful to use in your house like WiFi is, and even if they were, you need more government paperwork to do it. That means less hobbyist interest.

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