OMD6072

Case Analysis—Congestion
ISSUE1.1

Wireless Curriculum
Development Section
 Summary

TCH Congestion Ratio

 BasicPrinciple
 Cause and Locating the Cause
 Cases analyze
SDCCH Congestion Ratio
 Cause and Locating the Cause
 Cases analyze
TCH congestion ratio

TCH congestion ratio

Basic principle
Cause and locating method
Cases analyze
 TCH Congestion Ratio

Basic Principle of TCH congestion ratio

Definition of TCH congestion ratio

Traffic statistics measurement point of TCH
congestion ratio and analysis
 Basic Principle of TCH Congestion Ratio

Definition of TCH congestion ratio

 TCH congestion ratio (not including handover)

=TCH occupation failure times (not including handover)/TCH occupation request

times (not including handover)*100%

=(TCH call occupation failure times+very early assigned TCH occupation failure
times)/(TCH call occupation request times+very early assigned TCH occupation
request times)*100%.
 Basic Principle of TCH Congestion Ratio

Definition of TCH Congestion Ratio

 TCH congestion ratio (including handover)

=TCH occupation failure times (including handover)/TCH occupation request times
(including handover)*100%
=(TCH call occupation failure times+very early assigned TCH occupation failure
times+TCH occupation failure times for in-cell handover intra-BSC (due to
congestion)+TCH occupation failure times for in-cell handover inter-BSC (due to
congestion)/(TCH call occupation request times + early assigned TCH
occupation request times + TCH occupation request times for in-cell handover
intra-BSC + TCH occupation request times for in-cell handover inter-BSC)*100%

 TCH congestion ratio (congestion on all busy)

 Basic Principle of TCH Congestion Ratio
MS BTS BSC MSC
of TCH Congestion Ratio
Traffic Measurement Point
Channel_req

Channel_Active

Channel_Active_Ack

IMMEDIATE ASSIGN COMMAND

first SABM
Establish_IND( CM Service Req)

CR(Complete_l3_information)

CC

CM Service Accepted

Setup

Call Proceeding

Channel_Active Assignment_Req

Channel_Active_Ack
ASSIGNMENT COMMAND
SDCCH first SABM
Establish_IND
SDCCH
UA
SACCH(TCH)
ASSIGNMENT CMP
SACCH(TCH) Assignment_CMP
Alerting
Connect

Connect Ack

communication
Disconnect
Release
Release Complete
Clear_CMD

Clear_CMP

MS call flow as the caller

 Basic Principle of TCH Congestion Ratio

Request Times Statistic Point of TCH Congestion Ratio

TCH call occupation request times

(1) Receive the MSC assignment request message
Early assigned TCH occupation request times:
(1) When there is no resource for SDCCH allocation and
instant assignment is permitted
(2) When channel request is received and channel type is
TCH
TCH occupation request times for in-cell handover intra-BSC
(1) When in-cell handover request message between cells
intra- BSC is received (non-SDCCH handover).
TCH occupation request times for in-cell handover inter-BSC:
(1) When incoming handover request message is received
(handover type is non-SDCCH)
 Basic Principle of TCH Congestion Ratio
Failure Statistic Points of TCH Congestion Ratio
TCH call occupation failure times:
(1) CONN_FAIL message is received in process of assignment.
(2) CLEAR_CMD is received in process of out-BSC handover. The
cause of handover is direct retry.
(3) CLEAR_CMD is received in process of assignment
(4) RR_ABORT_REQ is received in process of out-BSC handover and
the cause of handover is direct retry.
(5) RR_ABORT_REQ is received in process of assignment.
(6) MSG_HO_REQ_REJ is received in process of out-BSC handover
(direct retry).
(7) HO_FAIL is received in out-BSC handover (direct retry)
(8) ERR_IND is received in process of assignment.
(9) When assignment failure message is sent.
(10) TN_T7 (direct retry) timeout (out-BSC handover request)
(11) TN_T8 (direct retry) timeout (out-BSC handover complete)
 Basic Principle of TCH Congestion Ratio

Failure Statistic Point of TCH Congestion Ratio

Early assigned TCH occupation failure times:

(1) CH_ACT_NACK is received in the very early assigned process.
(CH_ACT_NACK is received in WAIT_RR_EST status in satellite
transmission)
(2) In very early assigned process, the returned cause is (internal
error) CVI_INTERNAL_ERR when channel is being allocated.
(3) In very early assigned process, the returned cause is (channel
request illegal) CVI_NO_ACCEPT when channel is being allocated.
(4) In very early assigned process, no channel is allocated.
(5) TN_WAIT_CH_ACT timeout in very early assigned process.
 Basic Principle of TCH Congestion Ratio

Failure Statistic Point of TCH Congestion Ratio

TCH Occupation Failure Times for in-cell handover

intra-BSC (due to congestion):
Allocation to TCH channel fails at in-cell handover
between cells intra-BSC
TCH Occupation Failure Times for in-cell handover
inter-BSC (due to congestion):
When in-cell handover inter-BSC occurs,
handover failure message is sent because it is not
allocated to TCH channel.
 Basic Principle of TCH Congestion Ratio

 Analysis of failure statistic point of TCH congestion ratio

A interface
After MSC sends Assignment_req, If trunk circuit at A
interface is fault, BSC will return Assignment_refuse directly.
In this case, the usually cause is incorrect CIC data
configuration of trunk circuit.
 Basic Principle of TCH Congestion Ratio

 Analysis of failure statistic point of TCH congestion ratio

ABIS interface and UM interface

1. TRX board is faulty or performance unstable
2. Unbalance of uplink/downlink level in BTS
3. Poor quality of uplink/downlink signal due to interference
4. SDCCH and TCH do not belong to the same TRX board,
i.e. the two TRX boards cover different areas or TCH TRX
board is faulty.
 TCH Congestion Ratio

 TheCause of High TCH Congestion Ratio and

Locating Method

 The cause of high TCH congestion ratio

 How to locate the cause of TCH congestion
ratio
 Cause of High TCH Congestion Ratio and Locating
Method

 Causes of High TCH Congestion Ratio

Incorrect configuration of trunk circuit data at A interface

Co-frequency and co-BSIC results in TCH assignment failure in handover
Board fault or unstable performance causes the high congestion ratio
BTS hardware is not properly installed, which causes uplink/downlink
unbalance and TCH congestion.
The cell is attached with a repeater. After the cell expansion, the repeater is not
expanded.
The transmitting power of BCCH TRX is higher than that of TCH TRX in the same
cell.
Interference causes the congestion
TCH assignment failure due to Isolated site and complicated topography result
in the high congestion ratio
 Cause of High TCH Congestion Ratio and
Locating Method
 How to Locate the Causes of High TCH Congestion Ratio

Analyze the cause of congestion remotely

1. Preliminary analysis through traffic measurement
2. Check alarms
3. BTS remote maintenance console
4. Test and analyze ABIS interface message with a
signaling analyzer.

Check the BTS locally

 Cause of High TCH Congestion Ratio and
Locating Method
 Remote analysis 1: Preliminary Analysis Through Traffic Statistics

 Through the traffic statistic “Cell TCH Performance Measurement”, check whether TCH
congestion is attributed to all busy status. If yes, perform traffic equalization or suggest
the equipment buyer to expand the capacity.
 If the congestion is not due to all busy status, analyze whether it is caused by
interference. Check interference bands 1~5. In the cell affected by interference, the
drop ratio will be high.
 Register “Receiving Performance Measurement” traffic statistic task:
1. Check the measurement result by object to see whether the numbers of
uplink/downlink reports on the same TRX board are balanced. Thus you can know
whether the uplink/downlink hardware tributaries on the board are balanced.
2. Check the measurement result by time to see whether TRX measurement reports are
excessive in a cell. Thus you can know whether the congestion is related to the board.
 Cause of High TCH Congestion Ratio and
Locating Method

Remote analysis 2: View alarm

 Check alarms of the site in the cell where there is high congestion
ratio. Check whether there is any abnormal alarm, such as
standing wave ratio alarm, PCM OOF alarm and uplink data bus
alarm. Judge whether the congestion ratio is associated with
alarms with traffic measurement .
 Cause of High TCH Congestion Ratio and
Locating Method

Remote analysis 3: BTS remote maintenance console

 On the BTS remote maintenance console, block TCH channels

of cell TRX board with high congestion ratio in turn. Observe
whether the congestion ratio is related to the cell TRX board.
 Cause of High TCH Congestion Ratio and
Locating Method
Remote analysis 4: Test and analyze ABIS interface message with a
signaling analyzer

Trace ABIS message of the congested BTS, analyze Assignment CMD sent by SDCCH and judge
whether the assignment always fails on a specific TRX board.

 If the assignment always fails on a specific TRX board, the cause may be one of the following:

1) TRX board faulty or performance unstable

2) Uplink/downlink level difference, hardware problem in uplink tributary or downlink tributary.

3) Low quality of uplink/downlink signal. Analyze TA value of the MS to locate interference.

 If the assignment fails on the RC boards of the whole cell randomly, analyze the measurement
reports. The causes may be the following:

1) The topography in the cell coverage is quite complicated.

2) There is band interference in the whole cell, such as repeater interference.

Cause of High TCH Congestion Ratio and
Locating Method
 Cause of High TCH Congestion Ratio and
Locating Method
Check BTS locally

Perform local maintenance and check to see if there are abnormal alarms. If
yes, process it promptly.

Check whether there is any hardware problem in uplink/downlink

antenna/feeder tributary, such as loose connector,etc.

Perform a dial test with the test mobile phone in the same place to see
whether the assignment failure always occurs in one frequency or is randomly
distributed.

Make driving test to see whether there is abnormal handover relation and
downlink interference, so as to find the real cause of the congestion ratio.

Search the interference source with a spectrum analyzer.

Observe whether the topography in the cell coverage is complex.

 TCH Congestion Ratio

Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio

 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Data configuration problem at A interface ----------------------- Case 1

TRX board faulty , causing high congestion ratio ------------ Case 2

Uplink hardware problem --------------------------------- Cases 3,

Downlink hardware problem ------------------------------------ Cases 4,5

Effect from booster attached to the cell -------------------------- Case 6

Other data configuration ------------------- Cases 7, 8

Isolated site and complicated topography ----------- Case 9

 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 1

Fault description: There is one BSC in the local network. And from one day
on, TCH congestion ratio of the whole network begins to rise (frequency
planning was not changed). TCH congestion ratio of the whole network (not
including handover) is 4%(the congestion ratio on all busy is very low). In
addition, many cells but not a few cells are highly congested.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 1

Analysis:
1. Since the frequency plan is not adjusted, radio interface
problem is ruled out.
2. Congestion ratio is abnormal in most BTS. In this case,
search in a smaller range to see whether the congestion
problem is related to module or data modification.
3. Analyze the main cause of TCH occupation failure
through traffic statistic and finally locate the problem as
data or hardware fault.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem
Case 1
Troubleshooting:
1. View the traffic statistics . The problem occurs after BSC data are modified and loaded. Maybe it is
related to BSC loading.
2. Analyze traffic statistics to find that the highly congested cells are focused on module 1 of BSC.
Then the problem should be with module 1.
3. Check the module to find that TCH occupation failure is mainly attributed to unavailability of
terrestrial resources. It shows that unavailability of terrestrial resource is the main cause of high
congestion ratio in module 1.
4. The cause of terrestrial resources unavailability is mainly on the circuit of Abis interface or A
interface. This problem occurs to many cells in module 1. However, it is quite unlikely that Abis
interface is faulty in many cells at the same time. Therefore, the cause should be the hardware or data
at A interface.
5. Check the hardware of A interface to find that the hardware is normal. A interface hardware problem
is ruled out.
6. Check the data configuration of the trunk circuit of A interface to find that the CIC code of the first 32
timeslots of group 0, module 1 is 65535. But group 0 of module 1 in the trunk group table corresponds
to the circuit from BSC to MSC. Obviously this CIC number is wrong. Change it to 0~31 and set
dynamically, and then the congestion ratio is lowered to normal.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem
Case 1

Conclusion:
1. In trunk circuit data configuration at A interface, CIC must be
correct, otherwise, TCH assignment will fail and the congestion
ratio will be high.
2. In the meantime, if the CIC of two FTC boards (multiple trunk
circuits) are the same, this problem will also happen.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 2

Fault description: The configuration of a specific BTS is S6/4/2 and it had

been running normally. One day, the result of traffic statistics shows that
TCH channel in cell 1 (6 TRX) overflows very seriously and the congestion
ratio comes to 20%.
1. The traffic of the cell is very low, which is about 0.8Erl in busy hours.
2. At the same time, the times of TCH occupation on all busy is 0.
3. Observe the channel status of all base bands in cell 1. It is all “Idle”.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 2

Analysis:
1. No data have been adjusted and there is no hopping in the cell. 6
TRX use different bands. It is unlikely that they are subject to
external interference at the same time. Therefore, it can not be Um
interface interference or data problem.
2. Check hardware specifically. Since the problem only occurs to cell
1, we can block TRX in turn to determine which TRX causes the
assignment failure.
3. Find out whether there is hardware fault in the TRX for assignment
failure. Check them one by one by means of resetting and replacing.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 2

Troubleshooting:
1. Check BT channel status through remote maintenance and find that there is
possibility of TCH occupation failure in BT4, BT5 in cell 1.
2. Block BT4 and BT5 as well as RC4 and RC5 at the same time and find that there is
no TCH congestion all the day. It indicates that the problem is on RC4 and RC5.
3. Unblock BT4, BT5, RC4, RC5, and reset RC4(TRX4), RC5(TRX5) and high congestion
arise again.
4. Go to the BTS site and make a dial test with the frequency locked (on TRX4, TRX5),
TCH occupation failure still occurs. Exchange the slots of TRX4 and TRX5 and make
the dial test again (TRX4, TRX5). The TCH occupation failure persists.
5. Replace TRX4, TRX5 and make dial test with the frequency locked (on TRX4, TRX5),
TCH occupation is successful and there is no TCH congestion. The problem is solved.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 2

Conclusion:
1. The faulty TCH TRX board causes TCH assignment failure and
high congestion ratio.
2. Usually, the fault of TRX board can not be found on the BTS
maintenance console . The problem can be confirmed by
blocking in turn.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 3

Fault description: A specific BTS is configured as S6/6/6. Since

the BTS in service, the congestion ratio of the 3 cells is high. Check
and confirm that there is no interference.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 3

Analysis: There is no interference but congestion always exists after the BTS is in
service, in every cell. But other BTS has no such problem, therefore, check hardware
of the BTS.
1. Hardware fault: communication is normal in every cell, so it is unlikely that there is
fault in the hardware of every cell.
2. Hardware connection: Check hardware connection carefully. Analyze the traffic
measurement to locate whether the fault is in the uplink or the downlink and then
check the hardware connection of the uplink or the downlink.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 3

Troubleshooting:
1. Register traffic statistics “Receiving Level Measurement Function” and
query the result of traffic statistics by time. It is found that when the receiving
level and receiving quality of different TRX boards in the same cell are the
same, the number of downlink measurement reports is balanced but the
number of uplink measurement reports is not, regularly unbalanced.
2. Check and find that the connection of TRX and CDU in the same cell is
incorrect. After correction, the problem is solved.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 3
Times of uplink Times of uplink Times of Uplink receiving
receiving level receiving level grade 0 level grade 0 and receiving
grade 0 and and receiving quality quality level 2
receiving quality level 1
level 0

30 minutes starting from 11:00 18-3-

2001
Module ID 1, Cell ID 5, TRX 2 0 7
No. 12
Module ID 1, Cell ID 5, TRX 3 0 3
No. 13
Module ID 1, Cell ID 5, TRX 1 0 5
No. 14
Module ID 1, Cell ID 5, TRX 655 105 293
No. 15
Module ID 1, Cell ID 5, TRX 294 46 166
No. 16
Module ID 1, Cell ID 5, TRX 222 58 142
No. 17
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 3

Conclusion:
Incorrect hardware connection will cause TCH assignment
failure. The problem can be located accurately by analyzing
different traffic statistics tasks.
In this case, uplink hardware receiver problem is located
through “Receiving Level Performance Measurement”.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 4

Fault description: In a BTS S6/6/5, one cell has high congestion

one day. No adjustment has been made in this period.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 4

Analysis: There is no parameter adjustment before/after the fault,

therefore attention should be focused on the hardware, to see
whether there is any fault or alarm.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 4

Troubleshooting:

1. Trace ABIS interface message of the BTS with a signaling analyzer MA10 and analyze the
signaling to find that in process of TCH assignment failure, the uplink signal in the
measurement report from the MS is of high quality after BSC sends ASSIGNMENT CMD, but
the downlink signal level can not be resolved, i.e. the levels of uplink/downlink signals are
not balanced. Then ASSI FAILURE message is returned. It is also found that the assignment
is directed to the last TRX board in the cell.

2. Block the TRX board channel temporarily and congestion ratio of the cell is lowered to 1%.
Perhaps there is problem in TRX board and the downlink hardware.

3. Check and find that the Transmitting antenna&feeder VSWR is over 2.5 alarm on the
combiner connected with TRX board. Process the antenna&feeder VSWR alarm and the
problem is solved.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 4

Conclusion: Antenna VSWR alarm results in large loss, small

coverage and assignment failure. When the MS is in the cell BCCH
coverage, but not in the coverage area of the board where VSWR alarm
occurs, assignment to this TRX board is easy to fail and the
congestion ratio in the cell goes up as a result.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 6

Fault description: When a BTS O2 is expanded to O4, high

congestion ratio occurs, with the peak of 40%.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 6

Analysis: Since congestion ratio is abnormal after expansion,

we can

1. Check whether the congestion occurs to all TRX. If yes, re-

check the connection of newly added hardware of the BTS to
see whether there is any fault.

2. If congestion occurs to one or a few TRX, check the

hardware of these TRX.

3. When hardware problem is ruled out, consider external

cause. For example, the booster is not expanded, which
results in assignment failure.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 6
Troubleshooting:
1. Block TRX of the last two newly added TRX on the remote BTS maintenance console to find that
the congestion ratio is lowered to normal status. Perhaps, the problem is related to the two boards.
2. Trace and analyze ABIS interface signaling to find that the assignment failure occurs to the two
newly added TRX. When the assignment fails, SDCCH measurement report analysis shows that the
level on SDCCH is normal and TA value is large and the assignment takes place in a distant area.
However, there is no measurement report on SACCH (TCH). Perhaps the two boards have hardware
problem in uplink/downlink tributaries. Sometimes the assignment of the two boards succeeds, so
the boards could not be faulty.
3. A 4 in 1 combiner and a splitter are used in the cell, the antenna & feeder part can not have a
hardware fault. Check the cable from TRX board to the combiner/splitter and no hardware problem is
found. Basically it can not be a hardware problem.
4. It is told that this cell is attached with a repeater. After the expansion, the repeater did not lock the
two newly added TRX, which causes the assignment failure. When the repeater band problem is
solved, the congestion problem is also solved.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 6

Conclusion:
Because of the repeater, the coverage areas of the first two
TRX and the last two TRX in the same area are different,
which results in the assignment failure.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 8

Fault description: In the optimization of a network, the congestion ratio

(including handover) on busy hours of the two cells is as high as 10%.
“TCH seizure Excluding Handover” and “TCH block rate(meeting a TCH
block state on attempt TCH seizures)” are normal. Here, “TCH seizure
failure (all)” is very high, 89 times and 61 times respectively. But “TCH
seizure failure for MOC” is 0”.
The traffic is a little lower than that before optimization.
The interference band is normal.
Congestion ratio was normal before optimization.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 8

Analysis: When the network planning parameters are optimized and

modified, the congestion ratio of the two cells is higher and only the
congestion ratio including handover is higher, therefore, radio
interference or hardware fault can be ruled out. Analyze whether the
handover is abnormal.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 8

Troubleshooting:
1. Register “Incoming Inter cell Handover Measurement Function” for 15 minutes
in the two cells to find that all the handovers from a specific cell
(CGI=*********1768) to these two cells fail, and the handover is not the actual
cause of congestion.
2. Failure of all handovers means that there is problem with the handover data.
Check the handover data of the two cells to find that there is co-frequency and
co-BSIC as expected. The two cells are adjacent to the specific cell, therefore the
handover from the specific cell to any other cell will fail. The failure occurs when
TCH channel is assigned.
3. Modify the BCCH and BSIC of the two cells, and then the handover is
recovered and congestion ratio is normal.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 8

Conclusion:
1. Two cells (both adjacent to a specific cell) with co-frequency and
co-BSIC will not only result in low in-cell handover success ratio, but
also high TCH congestion ratio (including handover).
2. The case indicates that TCH congestion ratio (including handover)
and TCH congestion ratio (not including handover) are different.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 9

Fault description: Site O2 of a suburban county has suffered from high

congestion ratio (not including handover), from 3% to 10% (in proportion to
traffic). But the congestion ratio on all busy is 0%.
1. Block 2 TRX in turn, the congestion ratio remains serious as before.
2. Other indexes: dropout ratio is high (about 5%). Interference band is
normal.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 9

Analysis:
1. Since the congestion ratio is not very high, the problem may not be on
the data or hardware.
2. The interference band is normal, so the interference at the Um
interface is unlikely.
3. Analyze the cause of assignment failure. Take dropout ratio into
consideration and analyze the receiving performance of uplink/downlink,
including level, quality.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 9

Troubleshooting:
1. View “Dropout Performance Measurement” to find that TA value is large upon
dropout, at a distance of 25.6km~31.1km away from the BTS.
2. View “Receiving Level Performance Measurement” to find that there are many
measurement reports of low level grades.
3. Analyze ABIS signaling to find that the uplink level is very low (about –98dbm)
when the assignment fails.
4. Make a driving test on the site to find that the site is isolated, with large
coverage and complicated topography. When the MS is more than 25 kilometers
away from the BTS, it can receive –90dbm downlink signal. But the uplink signal
is not enough, so TCH assignment fails.
 Cases of TCH Congestion Ratio Problem

Case 9

Conclusion:
1. Poor uplink coverage causes the high congestion ratio.
Adding BTS can help form a continuous coverage.
Change the omni-directional site into a directional site
by adjusting the antenna angle. Intensify the transmitting
level and BTS receiver sensitivity. Avoid over coverage.
2. Trace Abis port message on the BTS maintenance
console to analyze the assignment status.
SDCCH Congestion Ratio

SDCCH congestion ratio

Basic principle
Cause and locating method
Cases analyze
Basic Principle of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Calculation formula:
SDCCH congestion ratio=SDCCH occupation
on all busy times/SDCCH occupation request
times
SDCCH occupation on all busy times:
SDCCH occupation failure due to all busy
The cause of SDCCH occupation:
1) The caller assignment command is sent to channels
2) The called paging response is sent reported to channels
3) Location updating
4) Short message
5) IMSI detachment and attachment process
Basic Principle of SDCCH Congestion
Ratio
MS BTS BSC MSC

Channel Request (RACH)

Channel Required

BSC random access – immediate assignment

Cell SDCCH occupation request times

Cell immediate assignment request times

SDCCH Channel No Resource

Cell SDCCH occupation on all busy 008014

Cell SDCCH occupation failure BTSS008015

Immediate Assignment Command

Immediate Assignment Reject

 Cause of SDCCH Congestion and Locating the
Cause

 Location area boundary results in excessive

SDCCH location updating
Policy: Modify location area selection
Modify CRH (Cell Reelect Hysteresis)
Modify the parameters of periodical area updating.
Modify the frequent handover problem of the dual-frequency
network.

Excessive short messages

Policy: Add SDCCH channel

 Cause of SDCCH Congestion and Locating
the Cause

Insufficient system capacity: more SDCCH should be

configured

Policy: expansion

Improper setting of system parameters,RACH system

parameter. Actually multiple SDCCH are assigned.

Policy: Increase RACH access threshold (for coping with

interference).
Decrease MAX re-transmitting times and increase extended
transmission timeslots appropriately

Dynamic SDCCH allocation

Board (TRX) fault and transmission fault result in SDCCH

congestion
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem

SDCCH Congestion Cases

 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 1:

In a network, the radio call complete ratio is low. Analyze

the traffic statistics to find that SDCCH congestion only

occurs to a few sites.

 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 1

【Analysis】: Since only a few BTS are congested,

please register “SDCCH Measurement Function” and
analyze the shares of respective causes for SDCCH
occupation. Solve the problems accordingly.
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 1
【Troubleshooting】:
1. Analyze traffic measurement : in the congested cell, SDCCH is occupied for 300-400 times in
busy hours. They are all S1/1/1 BTS. Each cell is configured with SDCCH/8 channels. Normally,
they are capable of supporting with 300-400 SDCCH occupations. But it is strange enough that
there are only dozens of SDCCH congestion in each cell on busy hours.
2. Register “SDCCH Measurement Function” to find that most SDCCH occupations are attributed
to location updating. Analyze the cell locations and find that the above congested BTS are at the
cross points of two location area on railway lines. This gives us a hint that maybe sudden location
updating results in SDCCH congestion.
3. Register “SDCCH Measurement Function” for five minutes to find that locations are always
updated in a specific 5 minutes. Query the train timetable to find that 4 or 5 trains pass by the point
in this period. When the trains pass by, a large amount of location updating occur in a short, which
results in the congestion.
4. Add SDCCH or enable SDCCH dynamic allocation function.
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 1

【Conclusion】:
For SDCCH congestion due to location updating, check
whether it is caused by improper setting of location area.
This case is a special one. Add SD or enable dynamic
allocation function to solve the problem.
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 3

【Fault description】
Deploy a BTS30 base station. After the deployment, SDCCH channel is
always in all busy status (A). TCH channel is in (I) or (A) status. When
the call is connected, the communication is normal. Observe the traffic
statistics and find that the SDCCH assignment of traffic statistics fails
about 1000 times (in busy hours).
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 3

【Analysis】:
1. Since SDCCH is congested after the BTS deployment, but TCH and
communication are normal. First check data and hardware. The whole site
suffers from congestion problem. Swap ports with other sites of the same
type to confirm whether there is data problem or hardware problem under
Abis interface.
2. If data problem and hardware problem are ruled out, attention should be
focused on the transmission problem.
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 3

【Troubleshooting】
1. Check alarm: LAPD link fault alarm and recovery alarm (within one second). The alarm
appears once per ten minutes.
2. Check the data to find no problem. At night, exchange with BIE port of other BTS of
the same type, other sites work normally but problem of this site persists. Data problem
and BSC side hardware problem are ruled out.
3. Since the BTS is far from the city , first register the transmission related traffic
measurement . Observe the result (related to transmission) and find no problem, but
SDCCH traffic measurement remains abnormal.
4. Replace TMU and TRX board in the BTS and the problem persists.
5. Measure the transmission and self-loop BIE, then It is found that there is bit error in
the transmission. Test the line section by section and find that in a segment of access
network from a county to the BTS, one 2M transmission board is faulty. Replace the
board and the problem is solved (the two BTS are on the same board).
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 3

【Conclusion】:
The causes of SDCCH congestion can be :
1. Data configuration error
2. SDCCH channels insufficient
3. Um interface problem (interference, low level, uplink/downlink unbalance)
4. Hardware fault
5. Transmission quality problem
In this case, the cause is item 5 mentioned above. Due to transmission bit error, large
number of data are lost at SDCCH assignment or data are resent many times to
timeout after the data loss. This causes the occupation failure and hence the high
congestion.
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 4

【Fault description】
A complaint is received that mobile subscribers near 4 sites (ABCD) of a local
network can not make calls, but there no related alarm information on the alarm
maintenance console.
1. Check the 4 BTS, the board status is all normal. Almost no TCH channel is
occupied. Sometimes one TCH is occupied, it becomes idle in several seconds. All
SDCCH channels are in A status.
2. It is learnt that .BTS-A is attached under it with BTS-B and BTS-C. BTS-D, using a
primary combiner (a transmission timeslot multiplexer), shares a 2M transmission
line with BTS-A.
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 4

【Analysis】
The symptom can help judge whether the problem is on the hardware or
on the transmission. But it is unlikely that faults occur to hardware of the
4 BTS. The transmission lines of the 4 BTS are related, therefore, check
the transmission carefully.
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 4
【Troubleshooting】
1. Carefully observe 32BIE indicator to find that the indicator flashes every 12 seconds. It indicates
that there is bit error in the transmission. Check the microwave and optical transceiver and no
abnormal indication is found.
2. Check ABIS interface signaling to find that a large number of PAGING_CMD messages are
generated. Among them, one RF_RESORCE_INDICATION message is generated occasionally.
There is no CHAN_ACTIV, CHAN_ACTIV_ACK or IMMEDIATE_ASSIGN_COMMAND message. It
indicates that SDCCH channel is not activated.
3. Check data O&M log, and find no data modification has been done in a few days in the past.
Therefore data problem is ruled out.
4. Check the indicator of corresponding ports of 32BIE and find that the indicator is off. It seems
that the transmission is normal.
5. Reload and activate the board software of BTS-ABCD, and find that the system response is slow,
even with communication timeout prompt. When the board is loaded and activated, SDCCH is still
congested. Users still complain that they can hardly call out. Since the 4 sites share one 2M
transmission line and SDCCH occupation is abnormal at the same time, it is concluded that it is
transmission problem.
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 4

【Troubleshooting】
6. The only transmission equipment in doubt after the resetting --- primary
combiner (resetting causes the re-initialization of ABCD). After ABCD
initialization is complete, and it is found that SDCCH are fully occupied and TCH
can be occupied normally. Trace ABIS interface signaling, CHAN_ACTIV,
CHAN_ACTIV_ACK or IMMEDIATE_ASSIGN_COMMAND message appears.
SDCCH is no longer congested. Users on the site say that they can make calls
normally.
7. The same problem may occur to the primary combiner, therefore the operator
is recommended to use optical transmission circuit. After the modification, the 4
BTS have been running normally.
 Cases of SDCCH Congestion Ratio
Problem
Case 4

【Conclusion】:

The transmission problem causes SDCCH congestion. But transmission problem is

attributed to different causes. In this case, the fault on the primary combiner results in the
transmission problem. All BTS connected with this transmission equipment have the same
problem. In handling this type of problems, try to find the similarity of the problem and
finally locate the problem with the exclusive method.