5G NR Radio Network Handover Optimization Guide

5G NR Radio Network Handover Optimization Guide
5G NR Radio Network
Handover Optimization Guide
R1.1
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Revision History
Product Version Document Version Serial Number Reason for Revision

R1.0 First published
R1.1 Update for NR2.0
Author
Date Document Version Prepared by Reviewed by Approved by

2018-08-30 R1.0 Yang Xiaofang Hui Longhua
Yang Xiaofang, and
2019-02-27 R1.1 Hui Longhua
Gu Jian
Intended audience: 5G NR network optimization personnel
ZTE Confidential & Proprietary. © 2019 ZTE CORPORATION. All rights reserved. IV
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 Overview ......................................................................................................... 1
2 NR Handover Principles ................................................................................. 1

2.1 Intra-LTE Mobility ............................................................................................. 2
2.2 Intra-NR Mobility ............................................................................................... 2
2.2.1 UE Moving Within the NR Service Area ............................................................ 2
2.2.2 UE Moving to the Edge of the NR Service Area ................................................ 6
2.3 NR Handover Measurement Mechanism .......................................................... 7
2.4 NR Handover Policy ......................................................................................... 8
3 NR Handover Signaling .................................................................................. 9

3.1 SA Handover Signaling ..................................................................................... 9
3.1.1 Standard Signaling ........................................................................................... 9
3.1.2 Air-Interface Signaling During Foreground Test .............................................. 10
3.1.3 Key Signaling.................................................................................................. 11
3.2 NSA Handover Signaling ................................................................................ 14
3.2.1 Standard Signaling ......................................................................................... 14
3.2.2 Foreground Air Interface Signaling ................................................................. 17
3.2.3 Key Signaling.................................................................................................. 19
3.3 NSA Handover Delay...................................................................................... 22
4 NR Handover Optimization Principle........................................................... 23

4.1 Overall Policy for SA Handover Optimization .................................................. 23
4.1.1 Stage 1 ........................................................................................................... 24
4.1.2 Stage 2 ........................................................................................................... 26
4.1.3 Stage 3 ........................................................................................................... 27
4.2 Overall Policy for NSA Handover Optimization ............................................... 27
4.3 Common NSA Handover Problems ................................................................ 28
ZTE Confidential & Proprietary. © 2019 ZTE CORPORATION. All rights reserved. V
5 NR Handover Optimization Parameters ...................................................... 30
6 NR Handover Optimization Cases ............................................................... 35

6.1 Commercial UE Failing to Access the NSA network ....................................... 35
6.2 ZTE V8 Commercial Mobile Phones Failing to Access the NSA Network ....... 36
6.3 The SN Failing to be Added ............................................................................ 39
6.4 Optimized Handover Relations ....................................................................... 40
ZTE Confidential & Proprietary. © 2019 ZTE CORPORATION. All rights reserved. VI
FIGURES
Figure 2-1 UE Measurement Mechanism ............................................................................. 7

Figure 3-1 Access at the 4G Side....................................................................................... 18
Figure 3-2 Dual-Connection Establishment ........................................................................ 18
Figure 3-3 Handover at the 4G Side, MN and SN Release ................................................. 18
Figure 3-4 SN Addition of the Target Cell ........................................................................... 19
Figure 3-5 Corresponding to SN Addition of the 4G Source Cell ........................................ 19
Figure 3-6 Corresponding to SN Addition of the Target Cell ............................................... 19
Figure 3-7 SN Release ....................................................................................................... 21
Figure 3-8 Information About the Target Cell for 4G Handover .......................................... 21
Figure 6-1 Unnecessary Handover 1 .................................................................................. 40
Figure 6-2 Unnecessary Handover 2 .................................................................................. 40
ZTE Confidential & Proprietary. © 2019 ZTE CORPORATION. All rights reserved. VII
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1 Overview
This document mainly describes the solution for handover optimization in a 5G NR
network.
At present, there are two 5G NR networking modes: SA and NSA. The SA adopts the
Option2 architecture and the NSA adopts the Option3x architecture.
The handover principles of the SA are similar to those of the 4G, but the handover
principles of the NSA are different from those of the 4G because the SN is introduced.
This document will elaborate on 5G NR handover optimization.
2 NR Handover Principles
Since the handover principles of the SA are similar to those of the 4G, this chapter mainly
describes the handover principles of the NSA
The following figure shows the mobility management involved in the NSA networking
mode, which falls into two categories — intra-LTE and intra-NR.
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2.1 Intra-LTE Mobility

The handovers in this scenario include SN addition and SN release.
The UE has set up LTE/NR dual connectivity in the coverage area of eNB1 and gNB.
When the UE moves to eNB2, an MN handover is triggered from eNB1 to eNB2. In this
scenario, the source MN initiates the SN release procedure before the handover to release
the SN. After the handover is performed successfully, the SN addition procedure is
triggered to add the SN to the target MN.
2.2 Intra-NR Mobility

Reporting of the A3 measurement report can be triggered only when the NR is configured
with an intra-frequency neighbor cell, and then the PSCell or SN change procedure is
triggered. If no intra-frequency neighbor cell is configured, the A2 measurement will be
delivered to release the SN.
2.2.1 UE Moving Within the NR Service Area
When a UE moves within the NR service area, if the UE detects a neighbor cell with better
signal quality due to the coverage, PSCell handover will occur. If the target PSCell is within
the local gNB, the PSCell handover is called a PSCell change; if the target PSCell is in
another gNB, the PSCell handover is called an SN change. The overall procedure is as
follows:
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1. Upon receiving the A3 measurement report from the UE, the SN selects the gNB
corresponding to the PSCell with the best signal quality from the candidate PSCell
list, and ranks the PSCells of this cell according to the signal quality.
2. The gNB judges whether this gNB is a local gNB. If yes, go to Step 3; if not, skip to
Step 4.
3. The gNB judges whether there is any NR cell in the candidate PSCell list whose
neighbor cell configuration is #@EnDCFunction.asPSCellSwch@#. If there is, the
gNB and the UE execute the PSCell change procedure.
4. The gNB and the UE execute the SN change procedure.
2.2.1.1 PSCell Change
One UE has accessed eNB1 Cell1 and gNB Cell1 through dual connectivity. When the
UE moves towards the coverage area of Cell2 and the A3 measurement threshold
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(#@RptCfgPSCellChangeIntraF.A3offset@#) is reached, the A3 event measurement

report will be triggered. After receiving the measurement report, the gNB selects the
candidate cell of the best signal quality, that is, Cell2 in the site, and initiates the PSCell
change procedure.
An SN change or PSCell change may occur when the UE moves to gNB2 within the NR
service area. When the SN performs the PSCell change, it reconfigures the UE through
its own SRB3.
The corresponding signaling flow is as shown in the following figure.
1. The UE sends an A3 measurement report to the source SN through the UL RRC

MESSAGE TRANSFER message.
2. According to the measurement report, the SN makes a PSCell change decision, sets
up resources of the target cell, and then sends an RRC CONNECTION
RECONFIGURATION message to reconfigure the air interface.
3. Upon receiving the RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION message, the UE

deletes the configuration of the source cell, sets up configuration of the target cell,
and replies to the SN with an RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION
COMPLETE message.
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4. Upon receiving the RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION COMPLETE

message, the SN deletes the configuration of the source cell, and the configuration
of the target cell takes effect.
2.2.1.2 SN Change
One UE has accessed eNB1 and gNB1 through dual connectivity. When it moves towards
gNB2 and the A3 measurement threshold (parameter
#@RptCfgPSCellChangeIntraF.A3offset@#) is reached, the A3 event measurement
report will be triggered. After receiving the measurement report from the UE, according to
the signal strength, the gNB1 selects the cell of the best signal from the neighbor cell list
in the measurement report, that is, the cell within gNB2, and initiates the SN change
procedure.
The corresponding signaling flow is as shown in the following figure.
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1. The UE sends an A3 measurement report to the source SN through the UL RRC

MESSAGE TRANSFER message.
2. According to the measurement report, the source SN makes an SN change decision,

and sends an SN CHANGE REQUIRED message to the MN via the X2 interface to
initiate the SN change procedure.
3. Upon receiving the SN CHANGE REQUIRED message, the MN sends an SN

ADDITION REQUEST message to the target SN to initiate the SN addition procedure.
4. After the target SN completes the preparation, it replies to the MN with an SN

ADDITION REQUEST ACKNOWLEDGE message.
5. Upon receiving SN ADDITION REQUEST ACKNOWLEDGE, the MN sends an SN

CHANGE CONFIRM message to the source SN to confirm the change.
6. The MN sends an RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION message to the UE

and reconfigures the air interface.
7. Upon receiving the RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION message, the UE

deletes the configuration of the source SN, sets up configuration of the target SN,
and replies with an RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION COMPLETE
message.
8. The UE performs non-contention-based random access at the target SN side and

synchronizes with the target SN.
9. The MN sends an SN RECONFIGURATION COMPLETE message to the target SN,

and the configuration of the target SN takes effect.
10. The MN sends a UE CONTEXT RELEASE message to the source SN to release the
resources of the source SN.
2.2.2 UE Moving to the Edge of the NR Service Area
The UE is within the coverage of LTE and NR base stations, and it has set up LTE/NR
dual connectivity. When the UE moves towards the edge of the coverage of the NR base
station, the signal becomes worse. When the A2 measurement threshold
(#@RptCfgDcRelPSCellA2.A2ThresholdRsrp@#) is reached, the UE reports A2
measurement and triggers the SN release procedure.
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2.3 NR Handover Measurement Mechanism

Like 4G, the 5G NR handover also includes three steps: measurement, decision and
execution.
1. Measurement: The RRCConnectionReconfiguration message carries this relevant

information for measuring the NR SSB and the EUTRAN CSI-RS.
2. Decision: When a UE reports an MR (the MR can be periodic or event-triggered), the

gNodeB determines whether the relevant threshold is reached.
3. Execution: The gNodeB sends the target cell of the handover to the UE.
Figure 2-1 UE Measurement Mechanism
⚫ When the UE keeps meeting the condition of A3 event (Mn+Ofn+Ocn-

Hys>Ms+Ofs+Ocs+Off) for a period (Time to Trigger), the measurement report will
be reported.
⚫ When the UE meet the condition of Mn+Ofn+Ocn+Hys<Ms+Ofs+Ocs+Off, the A3

measurement stops.
− Mn: Measured value of the neighbor cell
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− Ofn: Frequency offset of the neighbor cell
− Ocn: Offset of the neighbor cell
− Hys: Hysteresis
− MS: Measurement value of the serving cell
− Ofs: Frequency offset of the serving cell
− Ocs: Offset of the serving cell
− Off: Offset
2.4 NR Handover Policy

The following handover events can be used by the NR.
Event Definition
A1 The signal strength of the serving cell is higher than an absolute

threshold.
A2 The signal strength of the serving cell is lower than an absolute

threshold.
A3 The signal strength of the neighbor cell minus the signal strength of
the serving cell is higher than a relative threshold.
A4 The signal strength of the neighbor cell is higher than an absolute

threshold.
A5 The signal strength of the neighbor cell is higher than an absolute

threshold and the signal strength of the serving cell is lower than an
absolute threshold.
A6 In carrier aggregation (CA), when the RSRP/RSRQ/SINR difference

between the secondary carrier and the local cell is larger than the dB
value of the A6 threshold, a measurement report including the
RSRP/RSRQ/SINR value will be triggered.
B1 The signal strength of the inter-RAT neighbor cell is higher than an

absolute threshold.
B2 The signal strength of the serving cell is lower than an absolute

threshold and the signal strength of the inter-RAT neighbor cell is
higher than an absolute threshold.
The following table lists the recommended handover policies.
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Function Event
Coverage-based intra-frequency measurement A3, and A5
Release of the SN cell A2
Change of an SN cell A3
Addition of Scell measurement for CA A4
Deletion of Scell Measurement for CA A2
Coverage-based inter-frequency measurement A3, and A5
Enabling inter-frequency measurement for handover A2
Disabling inter-frequency measurement for handover A1
3 NR Handover Signaling
3.1 SA Handover Signaling
3.1.1 Standard Signaling
When there is a handover problem, it is necessary to analyze the background signaling,

and then locate the fault according to the following standard signaling flow.
When the source gNodeB receives the measurement report from the UE and decides that
the UE should perform handover to the target gNodeB, it will directly request resources
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from the target gNodeB through the X2 interface and complete the resource preparation
of the target cell. Then it notifies the UE to perform handover to the target cell through the
reconfiguration message on the air interface. After the handover is performed successfully,
the target gNodeB notifies the source gNodeB to release the radio resources of the source
cell. In addition, the data not sent by the source gNodeB should be forwarded to the target
gNodeB, and the node relationship between the user plane and the control plane should
be updated.
3.1.2 Air-Interface Signaling During Foreground Test
The following figure shows the initial access signaling and handover signaling (marked in
red) in the foreground test. The foreground test and analysis personnel can preliminarily
locate the fault according to it.
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Measurement and control message: Signaling messages No. 31 and 32. The base
station tells the UE which cells are to be tested and how.
Measurement report: Signaling message No. 33. The UE reports the measured best cell
to the base station.
Handover command: Signaling messages No. 34, 35, and 36. The base station notifies
the UE of the access information about the target cell.
Non-contention-based access MSG1/MSG2: Signaling messages No. 38 and 39. The

UE accesses the target cell successfully, indicating successful handover.
New measurement control message sent from the target cell: Signaling message No.
40. It is for the next handover.
Note:
The UE will send a reconfiguration complete message in advance. Successful handover

is indicated by the successful access of the UE to the target cell, that is, that the handover
is considered successful only when MSG2 is seen in the foreground.
3.1.3 Key Signaling
⚫ Measurement Control Message (RRCReConfiguration)
It tells the UE which cells are to be tested, that is, the neighbor cells configured on
the background.
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It tells the UE the A3 event used for handover and the related threshold configuration.
⚫ Measurement Report
The UE reports the measurement results of the serving cell and target cell.
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The measurement report reported by the UE may not involve the neighbor cell
delivered in the neighbor cell configuration. Currently, the network does not support
neighbor cell self-optimization. Therefore, the values of the measurement report and
the neighbor cell information in measurement control can be used to judge whether
a neighbor cell that should be configured is not configured actually.
⚫ Handover Execution (RRCReconfiguration)
It tells the UE the access information of the target cell, so that the UE can access the
target cell through non-contention-based access.
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3.2 NSA Handover Signaling
3.2.1 Standard Signaling
⚫ Signaling of Sn Addition in the NSA Networking Mode
1. The MeNB establishes an X2 connection with the SgNB.
2. The UE is attached to the network of the MeNB (primary node) and the EPC of the CN
and sets up a service bearer.
3. The MeNB delivers NR measurement configuration (B1 event threshold) to the UE.
4. If the B1 event threshold is reached, the UE sends a B1 measurement report. Through

RRM, the MeNB determines to add an SgNB and sends an Sn Addition Request message
to the SN. This Sn Addition Request message mainly carries the E-RABs-ToBeAdded-
List information element (IE) and the MeNBtoSeNBContainer IE. And the
MeNBtoSeNBContainer IE carries the SCG-ConfigInfo IE (for details, see 3GPP TS
38.331).
5. After receiving the SgNB Addition Request message, the SgNB selects the Pscell
candidate cell and controls the admission. If the admission is successful, the SgNB replies
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to the MeNB with an SgNB Addition Request Acknowledge message. If the admission
fails, the SgNB replies to the MeNB with an SgNB Addition Request Reject message.
6. After receiving the SgNB Addition Request Acknowledge message from the SgNB, the
MeNB sends an RRC Connection Reconfiguration message to the UE via the air interface,
carrying the SCG configuration of the SgNB side.
7/8/9. a) After receiving the RRC Connection Reconfiguration message, the UE completes
the SCG configuration and replies to the MeNB with an RRC Connection Reconfiguration
Complete message.
The UE detects the PSCell downlink signals, captures the system broadcast MIB
information, and parses the ServingCellConfigCommon IE contained in the RRC
Connection Reconfiguration message to obtain the related system broadcast SIB1
parameters.
b) The UE accesses the SgNB cell through contention-based or non-contention-based

access.
10. After receiving the RRC Connection Reconfiguration Complete message from the UE,
the MeNB sends an Sn Reconfiguration Complete message to the SgNB, indicating that
the SN has completed reconfiguring the air interface of the UE. Upon receiving this
message, the SgNB activates the configuration and adds the SgNB.
11/12. This only happens in the cross-PCE scenario: The MeNB replies to the SgNB with
an SN Status Transfer message, and the data are transferred back from the MeNB to the
SgNB to avoid service interruption during the dual-connectivity activation.
13/14. This only happens in the cross-PCE scenario: The MeNB sends an E-RAB
Modification Indication message to the EPC, notifying the EPC that the downlink tunnel
information has changed. Upon receiving this message, the EPC replies with an E-RAB
Modification Confirmation message.
15/16. After the SgNB addition is completed, the PSCell cell at the SgNB side sends a
measurement reconfiguration message to the UE through SRB3, carrying the A2 event
threshold.
⚫ Standard Signaling of Handover in the NSA Networking Mode
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Compared with the handover procedure in the SN networking mode, the handover
procedure in the NSA networking mode has two more steps: the SN release and addition.
The source MN sends a handover request to the target MN. After receiving the handover
request, the target MN adds the target SN. After receiving an acknowledgement, the
source MN releases the SN. Then, the user plane and control plane of the MN and the SN
are updated. (The data of the source SN are transmitted to the target SN through the MN).
Currently, NSA handover triggered by MN handover is the only handover scenario in an

NSA pilot network. In essence, it is the MN handover that causes the release of an SN at
the source cell and the addition of an SN at the target cell.
⚫ Signaling of Sn Release in the NSA Networking Mode
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1. The MeNB sends an SgNB Release Request message to the SgNB via the X2 interface,
and initiates the SgNB release procedure.
2. The SgNB replies with an SgNB Release Request Acknowledge message and stops
sending service data on the NR air interface.
3/4. The MeNB sends an RRC Connection Reconfiguration message to the UE, which
carries the SCG-RELEASE IE. The UE replies with an RRC Connection Reconfiguration
Complete message.
5/6/7. Only in the cross-PCE scenario, data need to be transferred back (to avoid service
interruption during the dual-connectivity deactivation). The SgNB replies to the MeNB with
an SN Status Transfer message, and the data is transferred back from the SgNB to MeNB.
This only happens in the cross-PCE scenario: The SgNB sends a Secondary RAT Data
Volume Report message to the MeNB.
8. This only happens in the cross-PCE scenario: The MeNB sends an EPC E-RAB
Modification Indication message to the EPC, notifying the EPC that the downlink tunnel
information has changed. Upon receiving this message, the EPC replies with an E-RAB
Modification Confirmation message.
9. The MeNB sends a Ue Context Release message to the SgNB. After receiving this
message, the SgNB releases the local resources to release the SgNB. The bearer finally
goes back to the MeNB network.
3.2.2 Foreground Air Interface Signaling
⚫ Signaling in the Window at the MN Side
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Figure 3-1 Access at the 4G Side
Figure 3-2 Dual-Connection Establishment
Figure 3-3 Handover at the 4G Side, MN and SN Release
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Figure 3-4 SN Addition of the Target Cell
⚫ Signaling in the Window at the Sn Side
Figure 3-5 Corresponding to SN Addition of the 4G Source Cell
Figure 3-6 Corresponding to SN Addition of the Target Cell
Current handover solution in the NSA networking mode: The MN and the SN correspond
to each other exclusively. The SN is released during MN handover, and the SN
corresponding to the target MN is added after the UE has performed handover to the
target MN.
3.2.3 Key Signaling
⚫ Measurement Control Message at the 4G Side
It provides the 4G neighbor cells and SN configuration (usually with the same coverage)
configured on the EMS.
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The A3 event is used for 4G handover and the B1 event is used for SN addition.
⚫ Measurement Control Message at the NR Side
The A2 event is used to delete the SN. (The SN neighbor cells are not configured because
the version does not support this feature).
If the NR is configured with an intra-frequency neighbor cell, A3 measurement will be

delivered. Otherwise, A2 measurement will be delivered for coverage-based SN release.
⚫ Measurement Report
It carries the information about SN addition and the neighbor cell information for 4G
handover.
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⚫ Handover Execution
Figure 3-7 SN Release
Figure 3-8 Information About the Target Cell for 4G Handover
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3.3 NSA Handover Delay

4G Control 5G Control
4G User Plane 5G User Plane
Scenario Plane Delay Plane Delay
Delay (ms) Delay (ms)
(ms) (ms)
Same gNBs 30 40.4 579 1637.5
Different gNBs 30 42.6 599.5 1538.2
The 2 ms single-period frame structure version does not support handover with SN (5G
NR) cells, resulting in a large delay on the 5G control plane and user plane. The Q1 version
of 2019 (2.5 dual-frame structure) supports NSA handover with SN, and the 5G delay is
greatly reduced.
In the NSA networking mode, the handover delays respectively on the 4G control plane
and user plane are basically the same as those in a pure 4G network.
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4 NR Handover Optimization Principle
4.1 Overall Policy for SA Handover Optimization

For all the abnormal procedures, you need to first check whether the relevant base
stations, transmission, and terminals are abnormal.
The handover procedure can be divided into the following stages:
⚫ Stage 1: Check whether a handover command is received after a measurement

report is sent.
⚫ Stage 2: Check whether MSG1 is successfully sent from the destination side after
the reconfiguration command is received.
⚫ Stage 3: Check whether MSG2 is received normally after MSG1 is sent successfully.
To check whether a fault is caused by a certain terminal, it is recommended that you

replace the terminal and perform a test.
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4.1.1 Stage 1
⚫ The base station does not receive any measurement report. (You can check it
through background signaling tracing).
Confirm the coverage (RSRP and SINR) at the measurement report points, and check
whether the UE is located at the edge of a cell or whether the uplink is restricted (according
to the path loss estimated by the downlink UE). If the answer is affirmative, adjust the
coverage and handover parameters according to the actual conditions to solve the
problem.
Check whether there is uplink interference. This can be queried through the background
MTS. If the noise floor is too high when there is no user, there must be uplink interference.
For uplink interference, first check see whether it is caused by GPS out-of-lock of an
adjacent cell. Currently, the background tool cannot locate the interference source. The
engineers can only shut down the suspect sites and perform CW tests with scanners.
⚫ The base station receives a measurement report.
1. No handover command is sent to the terminal.
i. Check whether the target cell is not configured as a neighbor cell.
ii. If the neighbor cells are configured, when the source base station receives the
measurement report, it will send a handover request to the target cell via X2
interface or S1 interface (if X2 coupling is not configured). In this case, it is
necessary to check the messages from the target cell. If the target cell does not
sent a handover response to the source cell or it sends a HANDOVER
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PREPARATION FAILUE signaling, the source cell will not send the handover
command to the UE.
In this case, it is necessary to locate the fault from the following three aspects:
a) Target cell preparation failure, RNTI preparation failure, and abnormal

PHY/MAC parameters may cause target cell admission failure,
accompanied by a HANDOVER PREPARATION FAILUE message.
b) Abnormal transmission links may cause the target cell not to respond.
c) Abnormal target cell status may cause the target cell not to respond.
2. A handover command is sent to the terminal.
Check the coverage at the measurement report point to see whether it is in a weak
field or a strong-interference area. It is recommended to solve the coverage problem
by adjusting engineering parameters first. If it is difficult to adjust the coverage, adjust
handover parameters.
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4.1.2 Stage 2
Usually, the coverage of the cells reported in the measurement report is better than that
of the source cell. However, the coverage of the target cell may change sharply. Therefore,
it is necessary to first check whether the handover problem is caused by the testing
environment. If it is, adjust the coverage first. If it is difficult to adjust the coverage, adjust
If the coverage is stable but transmission still fails, check whether there is uplink
interference at the base station side.
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4.1.3 Stage 3
If the RAR reception is abnormal, usually it is necessary to check the radio environment
at the test point. Optimize coverage first, and if it is difficult to adjust the coverage, adjust
4.2 Overall Policy for NSA Handover Optimization

⚫ General Principles
− 4G and 5G cover the same area, and they are optimized jointly to avoid signal
overshooting.
− Threshold optimization for SN addition and deletion is also a part of handover

optimization.
a) The MN handover threshold and the SN change threshold should be

consistent with the handover/change point.
b) The SN addition threshold and deletion threshold should reach the

minimum threshold for NR to provide services.
⚫ Inheritance of 4G Optimization Results
− LTE neighbor relations in the existing network.
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− Network strategies, including the LTE system priority and multi-frequency

networking priority.
− Offset, hysteresis, TTT and CIO parameters of the A3 event for LTE.
− Individual offsets of LTE handover and reselection
⚫ 4/5G Collaborative Optimization
− 4/5G DT data are used together with the WNG (CXT) tool to provide the optimal
antenna downtilt and azimuth for coverage optimization based on the principle
of controlling the optimal handover band.
− Considering that 4G and 5G cover the same area, the power of the 4/5G cells
can be flexibly set to keep the 4/5G handover bands consistent, so the 4/5G
handover will performed at the same time to reduce the delay.
− In some special scenarios such as corners, because 5G fading is great, co-

coverage planning can be omitted.
4.3 Common NSA Handover Problems

⚫ The secondary node fails to be added.
i. In measurement control, the 5G information is correct, but no measurement

report is sent, resulting in dual-connectivity failure.
At present, the common method is to delete and create a cell, and then try again.
Alternatively, you can execute the relevant command to make the CPE receive
measurement control again.
ii. There is 5G information in the measurement control, but the 5G information is

incorrect, resulting in dual-connectivity failure.
Two 5G neighbor cells are configured during the single-check of a site, resulting
in dual-connection failure.
iii. There is no 5G information in measurement control, resulting in dual-

connectivity failure.
NR2.0 has one bug: When the secondary node is added, the pceid information
obtained at the 4G side is incorrect and thus there is no 5G information in the
measurement control. The temporary solution is to restart the pceuds and pcec
containers.
iv. The data configuration is incorrect.
Confidential▲
In the background data, the number of SCTP incoming/outgoing streams of 5G

is configured to 2, which should be configured to 3, resulting in a disconnection
between the CPE and 4G.
v. The NI value is great and causes dual-connectivity failure.
At the 5G side, the UE keeps sending MSG1, but it cannot receive MSG2.
⚫ Poor processing capability of the 4G CPE causes handover failure.
Poor processing capability of the 4G CPE causes handover failure. When the number
of neighbor cells increases, the 4G CPE is unable to send measurement reports.
What is more, this problem also occurs to commercial terminals. The solution is to
control the number of 4G neighbor cells.
Confidential▲
5 NR Handover Optimization Parameters

The following table lists the common background parameters related to handover
optimization.
Transmission Default
Parameter Scope Function
Path Value
This parameter specifies
the transmit power per RE
of primary and secondary
synchronous signals. It is
used in cell search,
downlink channel
estimation, and channel
detection, and directly
affects cell coverage. It the
pssSssPower gNB->UE 28 Cell
parameter value is too
great, it may cause pilot
pollution and inter-cell
interference. If the
parameter value is too
small, cell selection or
reselection may fail, and
data channel demodulation
may fail.
the threshold of minimum
Rx level for a cell to meet
qRxLevMin gNB->UE -120 gNB the selection conditions.
This parameter directly
determines the downlink
coverage range of a cell.
filterCoeffRsr the RSRP Layer-3 filtering
gNB->UE 4 Cell
p coefficient for smooth
measurement.
filterCoeffRsr the RSRQ Layer-3 filtering
gNB->UE 4 Cell
q coefficient for smooth
measurement.
beamFilerCo the Beam RSRP Layer-3
gNB->UE 4 Cell
effRsrp filtering coefficient for
measurement.
beamFilerCo the Beam RSRQ Layer-3
gNB->UE 4 Cell
effRsrq filtering coefficient for
measurement.
Confidential▲
Path Value
This parameter determines
beamMeasur whether to carry the Beam
gNB->UE 2 Cell
ementType measurement results in the
measurement report.
beamReport
gNB->UE 0 Cell the Beam measurement
Quantity
report quantity.
ocs gNB->UE 0 Cell the individual offset of the
serving cell.
the absolute threshold for
determining intra-
frequency/inter-
frequency/inter-RAT
measurement. If the RSRP
sMeasure gNB->UE -70 Cell value of the serving cell
after L3 filtering is lower
than this threshold, intra-
frequency/inter-
frequency/inter-RAT
measurement will be
started.
When the RSRP difference
between the neighbor cell
and the local cell is larger
A3offset gNB->UE 1.5 Cell
than the value of this
parameter, RSRP reporting
will be triggered.
the measurand for
triggering an event. When
triggerQuantit the UE detects that the
gNB->UE 0 Cell
y measurand meets the
threshold for triggering an
event, a cell measurement
event will be triggered.
When the RSRP of the
serving cell is lower than
this threshold and the
A5Thrd1Rsrp gNB->UE -90 Cell RSRP of the neighbor cell
is higher than the
configured threshold, the
UE reports an A5 event.
Confidential▲
Path Value
When the RSRQ of the
To
gNB->UE - 11 Cell RSRQ of the neighbor cell
A5Thrd1Rsrq
is higher than the
configured threshold, the
UE reports an A5 event.
If the RSRP of the neighbor
cell is higher than this
threshold and the RSRP of
A5Thrd2Rsrp gNB->UE -90 Cell the serving cell is lower
than the configured
threshold, the UE reports
an A5 event.
If the RSRQ of the
neighbor cell is higher than
A5Thrd2Rsrq gNB->UE - 11 Cell RSRQ of the serving cell is
lower than the configured
threshold, the UE reports
an A5 event.
the measurement event.
Select a proper
eventId gNB->UE A3 Cell
measurement event
according to the actual
scenario.
the individual cell offset of a
cell. It is a cell handover
parameter used for
controlling UE handover.
Neighbo
cellIndividual This parameter is sent to
gNB->UE 1 r-
Offset the UE along with the
relation
measurement control
message. The larger the
value, the easier the
handover from the serving
cell to the neighbor cell.
Confidential▲
Path Value
The larger the Time to
trigger value, the stricter
the event triggering
decision, but this parameter
timeToTrigger gNB->UE 320 gNB needs to be set according
to the actual requirements,
because sometimes if the
value is too large, it may
affect the service quality.
the hysteresis factor for
Hysteresis gNB->UE 0 Cell
starting and stopping
event-triggered reporting.
the maximum number of
times that the
measurement result is
reported after an event is
triggered. On the UE side,
when an event is triggered,
rptAmount gNB->UE 3 Cell the UE reports the
measurement result on the
basis of the report interval.
If the number of reports
exceeds the value of this
parameter, the UE stops
reporting the measurement
result.
the time interval for
reporting the measurement
result after the event is
rptInterval gNB->UE 1024
triggered, which means that
the UE reports the
measurement result at an
interval of rptInterval.
cells that can be measured
(not including the serving
cell). The base station can
maxRptCellN
gNB->UE 3 Cell determine the priority of
um
candidate target cells for
outgoing handover
according to a certain
policy (for example, signal
strength and load).
Confidential▲
Path Value
Beams in the Beam
measurement report (SS
ssBlockRepo Block). The base station
gNB->UE 1 Cell
rtMaxNum can rank the reported
Beams and determine the
best Beam according to a
certain policy (for example,
signal strength).
the absolute RSRP
threshold of an A2 event for
the serving cell during
A2Threshold
gNB->UE -140 Cell measurement. When the
Rsrp
measured RSRP of the
the threshold, the UE
reports an A2 event.
the absolute RSRP
the neighbor cell during
A4ThrdRsrp gNB->UE -75 Cell measurement. When the
measured RSRP of a
this threshold, the UE
the absolute RSRQ
the serving cell during
A4ThrdRsrq gNB->UE -8 Cell measurement. When the
measured RSRQ of a
this threshold, the UE
Confidential▲
6 NR Handover Optimization Cases
6.1 Commercial UE Failing to Access the NSA

network
Problem description:
One NSA pilot network used FDD+NR, the core network PLMN=460-07 was built, and the
SIM card was burnt and its IMSI was added on the core network side. Samsung S7 could
only camp on 460-00 2G, MF251 could an only camp on 460-00 2G and 4G TDD, and
FDD CPE could camp on 460-07 FDD.
The UE capability information of MF251 that used a China Telecom SIM card was as
follows: Band3 was not supported. After MF251 used a China Unicom SIM card, Band3
was supported.
The following figure shows the signaling after a China Telecom SIM card was inserted.
The following figure shows the signaling after a China Unicom SIM card was inserted.
Confidential▲
Conclusion:
When a commercial terminal accessed China Mobile PLMN (460-00, 02, 04, 07), it was
regarded that the mobile did not support FDD (there was no FDD license in the early stage)
by default. Therefore, even if the terminal supported Band3, this capability was not
reported. Only prototypes or Huawei mobile phones supported China Mobile’s FDD
frequency bands. (ZTE V8 mobile phones also supported Band3.}
6.2 ZTE V8 Commercial Mobile Phones Failing to

Access the NSA Network
Problem 1: The attach request of the UE was reject by the core network, and the cause
given by the core network was that it had sent a ESM message but not received a
response, so it rejected the request.
Explanation from the UE: The UE did not give a response because the core network had
not sent authentication encryption.
Confidential▲
Problem 2: Authentication fails because the HSS did not add KI or OPC information after
the CN enabled authentication.
In most cases, only the PLMN information was burnt for a testing SIM card. The KI and
OPC information contained in the SIM card must be added at the CN side.
Problem 3: After the authentication was enabled on the CN, the HSS added KI and OPC
information and the UE was attached successfully but it could not stay on the network
stably, that is, it was disconnected from the network soon.
Confidential▲
1. The attachment of the UE was combined attachment, that is, voice + data.
2. The attach accept information of the CN contained “eps only” rather than combined
attachment, and the CN did not support voice service.
3. Both CSFB and VOLTE failed, and the UE could not have voice calls. Therefore, a
TAU was initiated soon. If the TAU type is “combined TA/LA updating with IMSI
attach,” it indicates that the UE still wants to have voice calls.
Confidential▲
4. The subsequent TAU accept information showed that the MSC was not reachable.
For the UE, this TAU was unsuccessful, so the UE continued to send TAU requests
rather than replying with a TAU complete message.
Solution: Try modifying the UE configuration to make the CN support voice service or
make the UE only initiate the eps attachment.
6.3 The SN Failing to be Added

Sometimes, there was only 4G measurement information in the reconfiguration message
but no NR measurement information. In this case, no SN would be added. The possible
causes were as follows:
1. The NR cell status was abnormal.
2. The frequencies and PCIs of the NR cells were not configured correctly or completely.
3. No SN neighbor relations were configured for the 4G network.
Confidential▲
6.4 Optimized Handover Relations

The drive test on a site showed that there were two unnecessary handovers. After the
engineer adjusted the azimuth and downtilt of the 4/5G antenna, the unnecessary
handovers were successfully eliminated.
Figure 6-1 Unnecessary Handover 1
Figure 6-2 Unnecessary Handover 2
The handover relations after the optimization was as shown in the following figure.
Confidential▲

5G NR Radio Network Handover Optimization Guide - R1.1 - 20190322

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Copyright © 2019 ZTE CORPORATION.

The ultimate right to interpret this product resides in ZTE CORPORATION.

Hi-tech Road South

Product Version Document Version Serial Number Reason for Revision

Date Document Version Prepared by Reviewed by Approved by

Intended audience: 5G NR network optimization personnel

2 NR Handover Principles ................................................................................. 1

3 NR Handover Signaling .................................................................................. 9

4 NR Handover Optimization Principle........................................................... 23

5 NR Handover Optimization Parameters ...................................................... 30

6 NR Handover Optimization Cases ............................................................... 35

Figure 2-1 UE Measurement Mechanism ............................................................................. 7

2.1 Intra-LTE Mobility

2.2 Intra-NR Mobility

2.2.1 UE Moving Within the NR Service Area

4. The gNB and the UE execute the SN change procedure.

2.2.1.1 PSCell Change

(#@RptCfgPSCellChangeIntraF.A3offset@#) is reached, the A3 event measurement

The corresponding signaling flow is as shown in the following figure.

1. The UE sends an A3 measurement report to the source SN through the UL RRC

3. Upon receiving the RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION message, the UE

4. Upon receiving the RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION COMPLETE

The corresponding signaling flow is as shown in the following figure.

1. The UE sends an A3 measurement report to the source SN through the UL RRC

2. According to the measurement report, the source SN makes an SN change decision,

3. Upon receiving the SN CHANGE REQUIRED message, the MN sends an SN

4. After the target SN completes the preparation, it replies to the MN with an SN

5. Upon receiving SN ADDITION REQUEST ACKNOWLEDGE, the MN sends an SN

6. The MN sends an RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION message to the UE

7. Upon receiving the RRC CONNECTION RECONFIGURATION message, the UE

8. The UE performs non-contention-based random access at the target SN side and

9. The MN sends an SN RECONFIGURATION COMPLETE message to the target SN,

2.2.2 UE Moving to the Edge of the NR Service Area

2.3 NR Handover Measurement Mechanism

1. Measurement: The RRCConnectionReconfiguration message carries this relevant

2. Decision: When a UE reports an MR (the MR can be periodic or event-triggered), the

Figure 2-1 UE Measurement Mechanism

⚫ When the UE keeps meeting the condition of A3 event (Mn+Ofn+Ocn-

⚫ When the UE meet the condition of Mn+Ofn+Ocn+Hys<Ms+Ofs+Ocs+Off, the A3

− Mn: Measured value of the neighbor cell

− Ofn: Frequency offset of the neighbor cell

− Ocn: Offset of the neighbor cell

− MS: Measurement value of the serving cell

− Ofs: Frequency offset of the serving cell

− Ocs: Offset of the serving cell

2.4 NR Handover Policy

A1 The signal strength of the serving cell is higher than an absolute

A2 The signal strength of the serving cell is lower than an absolute

A4 The signal strength of the neighbor cell is higher than an absolute

A5 The signal strength of the neighbor cell is higher than an absolute

A6 In carrier aggregation (CA), when the RSRP/RSRQ/SINR difference

B1 The signal strength of the inter-RAT neighbor cell is higher than an

B2 The signal strength of the serving cell is lower than an absolute

The following table lists the recommended handover policies.

Coverage-based intra-frequency measurement A3, and A5

Release of the SN cell A2

Addition of Scell measurement for CA A4

Deletion of Scell Measurement for CA A2

Coverage-based inter-frequency measurement A3, and A5

Enabling inter-frequency measurement for handover A2

Disabling inter-frequency measurement for handover A1

3.1 SA Handover Signaling