Overview

 ISDN
 SDH and SONET
 Signaling systems (SS7)
 Frame relay, X25, and ATM networks

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Goal of this section
 Provide an overview of signaling in circuit-switched
telecom networks
 The use of signaling in PSTN

 Highlight the requirements of modern signaling system

 New services in PSTN (apart from voice call and traditional
signaling)
 How to provide packet-based services on traditional PSTN?

 Review Signaling System number 7 (SS7) networks

 Packet-switched networks overlaid on existing circuit-switched
networks
 Components of SS7 networks
 Protocol stack in SS7

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Overview
 Signaling in Circuit-Switched Networks
 Call set-up procedure
 Location and types of signaling
 Modern signaling systems
 Signaling System Number 7 (SS7)

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Signaling in Circuit-Switched Networks
 Signaling: Process of exchanging information to establish,
monitor, and terminate connections in telecom networks
 To establish a telephone call, a series of signaling messages must
be exchanged

 Signaling provides means for resource reservation

 Signaling provides connection-related information exchange prior
to and/or after information transfer

 Traditional use of signaling in telecom networks was

minimal
 Restricted to establish/release a voice channel

 Now, signaling is becoming more complex

 Because of advent of supplementary services (e.g., Call
Forwarding)

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Example: Call Set-up and Signalling
Three phases of
User A User B communication
Start (off-hook)

Dial tone
Dig. 1
Digi. 2
Digi. n
Establish
Ring
accept
Ring

Connected Transfer
terminate

terminate

Disconnect
Disconnected

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Call Set-up and Signalling Sequence
1. Both phones on hook (not in use)
2. One subscriber lifts receiver (off hook)
 Call begins
 End office switch signaled
3. Switch responds with dial tone
4. Caller dials number
5. If target not busy, the switch sends ringing signal to target
subscriber
6. Feedback to caller by the switch
 Ringing tone, engaged tone (busy signal), unobtainable
7. Target accepts call by lifting receiver (off hook)
8. Switch terminates ringing signal and ringing tone
 Switch establishes connection
9. Connection release when either subscriber hangs up
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Location of Signaling
 Signaling information is exchanged between
1. Subscriber and network (switch)
 Access signaling
 Interaction between a user equipment and local switch
 Depends on subscriber device and human need
 Example: Q.931
2. Interoffice signaling (within network)
 Backbone signaling
 Computer-to-computer signaling
 Management of subscriber calls and network
 Interaction b/n network nodes for establishment and control of a call,
and the allocation and management of network recourse
 Example: Signaling System Number 7 (SS7)

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Interoffice Signalling – SS7
Exchange Offices

A B C D

Start

Establishing
Signalling Connection Te. Network
Example ISDN

SS7 Information
Transfer

Disconnect

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Signaling in Circuit-Switched Networks
1. In-channel signaling
 Uses same channel for signaling and call
 Begins at the subscriber and follows same path as the call
 Requires no additional transmission facilities
 Types of in-channel signaling
A. In-band signaling
B. Out-of-band signaling

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In-Channel Signaling
A. In-Band Signaling
 Uses same voice frequency (also physical path) as voice signal (i.e.,
300-3400Hz)
 Can go anywhere a voice signal can
 No limits on the use of in-band signaling anywhere in the network
 Impossible to set up a call on a faulty speech path

B. Out-of-band signaling
 Uses frequencies above the voice band (but
below the upper threshold of 4000Hz)
 Voice signals do not use full 4kHz bandwidth
 Narrow signal band within 4kHz used for control
 Can be sent whether or not voice signals are on
the line
 Allows continuous supervision
 Needs extra electronics to handle the signaling
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Drawbacks of In-Channel Signaling
 Limited transfer rate
 In-band signaling: the channel is only available for control signals
when there are no voice signals
 Out-of-band signaling: narrow bandwidth is available
 Delay between entering address (dialing) and connection
 Both problems are addressed by common channel
signaling

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Signaling in Circuit-Switched Networks
2. Common Channel Signaling
 Signaling and voice use independent channels/paths
 The signaling network is a distributed computer network carrying
short messages (signaling network)
 Signal channel carry control signals for variety of functions
 Categorized into Associated & Non-Associated Signaling
A. Associated signaling
 Signaling channels and the data paths follow same network (same
topology as information network)
 Common channel closely tracks inter-switch trunk
B. Non-associated signaling
 No correspondence between
signaling network and data paths
 Additional nodes (signal transfer points)
 Effectively two separate networks
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In-Channel vs. Common-Channel Signalling

SS7
Common control signal channel carry signals for a number of subscriber channels

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Common Channel Signaling

Associated

Non Associated

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Overview
 Signaling in Circuit-Switched Networks
 Modern signaling systems
 Signaling System Number 7 (SS7)

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Modern Signaling Systems
 Modern signaling systems use common channel signaling
 Signaling network is
 Implemented using packet-switching networks
 A separate network
 Provides reliability to the signaling network, i.e. more secure

 Can be viewed as a packet-switched network overlaid on

circuit-switched voice network
 Signaling networks does not extend to the user because of
security concerns
 Separate user-to-network signaling procedures
 Signaling can be carried out at the same time as user
information is exchanged

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Modern Signaling Systems
 More efficient use of resources - allocated on a demand
basis
 Separate signaling network means less processing on
messages
 No need to separate signaling from user information
 Signaling protocol can evolve independently, without
affecting user application communication stack, can also
be more complex
 At call set-up, signaling messages can be transmitted in
parallel with the establishment of information channel
 Set-up times tend to be shorter

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Overview
 Signaling in Circuit-Switched Networks
 Modern signaling systems
 Signaling System Number 7 (SS7)
 Objectives and examples
 SS7 network components
 SS7 protocols stack

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Signaling System Number 7 (SS7)
 SS7 also known as
 Common Channel Signaling No. 7 (CCSS7)
 ITU-T Central Signalling System Nr. 7
 Defines the procedures and protocol by which network elements in
PSTN (i.e., circuit-switched networks) exchange information over a
digital signaling network to effect call setup, routing, and control

 Objectives of SS7
 A signaling network separate from payload network
 Is a common channel signaling scheme
 Flexible, extendable, and offers new applications
 Optimized for operation with digital (ISDN) networks
 Optimized for 64k digital channel network
 Call control, remote control, management and maintenance
 Reliable means of transfer of info in sequence

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Example: ISDN D-Channel and SS7 Network

SSP
B-Channel
Payload channel
(voice channels) D-Channel

B-Channel SSP
(data)

CCS7
STP
D-Channel
(control)
CCS7

SSP: signalling service point

STP: signalling transfer point

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 Transfer Points Control Plane

SS7 Network
STP: Signaling Transfer Point
SP: Signaling Point
TC: Transit Center
LE: Local Exchange
Information Plane
 Packet-switching signaling
function vs. circuit-switching
information transfer function
 Control plane
 Responsible for establishing
and managing connections
 Information plane
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Services by SS7
 SS7 network and protocol are used for
 Basic call setup, management and tear down
 Enhanced call features such as call forwarding, calling party
name/number display and three-way calling
 In mobile systems, roaming and mobile subscriber authentication
 Local number portability (LNP)
 Toll-free (800/888) and toll (900) wireline services
 Efficient and secure worldwide telecommunications
 Signaling Links
 SS7 messages are exchanged between network elements over 56
or 64 kbps bidirectional channels called signaling links
 Signaling occurs out-of-band on dedicated channels rather than in-
band on voice channels

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Overview
 Signaling in Circuit-Switched Networks
 Modern signaling systems
 Signaling System Number 7 (SS7)
 Objectives and examples
 SS7 network components
 SS7 protocols stack

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SS7 Network Components
 Major physical components in SS7 includes
 Signaling Service Point (SSP) or simply Signaling Point (SP)
 Signal Transfer Point (STP)
 Service Control Point (SCP) and
 Signaling Link (SL)

SS7 Network Topology

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1. Signaling Service Point (SSP)
 SSP is local exchange to a subscriber and is an interface to a
telephone network
 SS7 signaling information is produced at the sending SSP and is
handled at the receiving SSP
 SSP is a node/switch that either
 Originates and receives signaling messages or
 Transfers signaling messages from one signaling point to another
 SSP converts voice signaling into the SS7 signal units, and vice
versa
 It also supports database access queries
 SSP sends query to a central database called a Service Control
Point (SCP) to determine how to route a call
 E.g., in a toll-free 800/888 call
 SCP sends a response to the originating SSP containing the routing
number(s) associated with the dialed number

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2. Signal Transfer Point (STP)
 STP
 Are packet switch (network node) used to route signaling messages
from one SSP to another
 It works like a router to perform the routing of messages to
other signaling points
 STP's relay SS7 messages between SSPs, SCPs, and other STPs
 Based on the address fields of the SS7 messages, the STP routes
the messages to the appropriate outgoing signaling link
 It is usually paired to provide redundancy for a reliable
message transfer
 No need for direct links between signaling points
 It is adjunct to a voice switch, and might stand alone as a
separate machine

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3. Service Control Point (SCP)
 SCP works as the interface with the databases, which
contain the information of the subscribers, such as 800
service, calling cards, fraud data, etc
 When receiving a request, it is triggered to handle the
database queries, and returns a response with the results
of the queries to the originating SSP

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4. Signaling Links(SL)
 Are links that interconnect signaling points of SS7 network
 A SL is made up of digital transmission channels
 In each channel, the standard bit rate on a bearer service
is 56 or 64 kbps
 But these channels may be multiplexed into a transmission
rate of 1.544, 2.048, or 8.448 Mbps
 All the links between two signaling points (e.g. SSP, STP,
SCP) compose a “link set”
 The network traffic between two signaling points are evenly
distributed to reach a load sharing within a link set
 These different link sets can provide the redundancy to
ensure the high reliability of message transfer

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Signaling Links (SL)
 There are six types of SL: A, B, C,D,E, F links

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Signaling Links(SL)
1. “A” Link: Access link & connects SSP or SCP to STP
 Provides access from switching office
2. “B” Link: A bridge link connects an STP to another STP
 Routing of messages from SSP to another via multiple STPs
3. “C” Link: A cross link connects two “mated pair” STP
 Communication between paired STPs
 Also provides alternative route around failed B links (This is done
to improve reliability)
4. “D” Link: A diagonal links similarly to a B link
 STP to STP
5. “E” Link: An extended link connects an SSP to an extra
STP in the event that the A link cannot reach one
 SSP to STP and provides direct connection to non-home STP
6. “F” Link: A fully associated link connects SSP’s
 SSP to SSP and provides direct access between switching offices
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Overview
 Signaling in Circuit-Switched Networks
 Modern signaling systems
 Signaling System Number 7 (SS7)
 Objectives and examples
 SS7 network components
 SS7 protocols stack

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SS7 Protocol Stack
 A suite of protocols operating in concert
OSI Layers

Application OMAP MAP

Presentation
Session TCAP ISUP

Transport SCCP

Network MTP Level 3

Data Link MTP Level 2

Physical MTP Level 1

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Message Transfer Part (MTP)
 The lowest three levels
 Provides reliable connection but connectionless (datagram style)
services for routing messages through SS7 network

 MTP1 (message transfer part level 1) is the physical layer

 It provides a transport for an individual signaling data link
 It defines the physical, electrical, and functional
characteristics of a signaling data link and the means to
access it
 In a digital environment, 56 or 64 kbps digital paths are
used for the signaling data link

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MTP2
 MTP2 (message transfer part level 2) is the data link layer
 It provides the functions and procedures to transfer
signaling messages over an individual signaling data link
 It is primarily responsible for error free transmission of data
for some basic communication functions
 Once information enters the network, it must be transferred
in the proper sequence and without error between network
nodes over each segment of the transmission path

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MTP3
 MTP3 (message transfer part level 3) is the network layer
 It provides functions and procedures that are common to
(but independent from) the operation of individual signaling
links
 It provides services that transmit the data through the
network from originator to its final destination
 The message routing is implemented at this layer through
the routing labels maintained in MTP3 signal units and at a
specific signaling point

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MTP3
 The OPC (origination point code) or DPC (destination point
code) in a routing label consists of three bytes which are
used to identify the node on network
 The SLS (signaling link selector) in a routing label is used
to balance the traffic load among signaling links
 MTP3 also provides the means to establish, maintain, and
terminate connections between systems
 For example, in case of signaling link failure detection and
link recovery

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SCCP
 On the top of MTP3 is the SCCP (signaling connection
control part), which is a combination of parts of the network
layer and parts of the transport layer
 It relies on the MTP level 1, 2, 3 to provide additional
functions for both connectionless and connection- oriented
network services to transfer circuit-related and non-circuit-
related signaling information between switches
 When coupled with the MTP layers, SCCP provides
specialized routing and management and control functions
for the transfer of higher level messages between the MTP
layers and the SCCP users
 Example, TCAP (Transaction Capabilities Application Part)

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SCCP
 There are four classes of service in SCCP, two for
connectionless services and the other two for connection-
oriented services:
 Basic connectionless class (class 0)
 Sequenced connectionless class (class 1)
 Basic connection-oriented class (class 2)
 Flow control connection-oriented class (class 3)

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