PROJECT TITLE :

Detecting Problematic Control-Plane Protocol Interactions in Mobile Networks

ABSTRACT:

The control-plane protocols in 3G/4G mobile networks communicate with every different, and provide a rich set of control functions, like radio resource management, mobility support, connectivity management, to call some. Despite their significance, the problem of verifying protocol correctness remains largely unaddressed. During this paper, we have a tendency to examine control-plane protocol interactions in mobile networks. We have a tendency to propose CNetVerifier, a 2-part signaling diagnosis tool to detect problematic interactions in both style and follow. CNetVerifier first performs protocol screening based on 3GPP standards via domain-specific model checking, and then conducts phone-based empirical validation in operational 3G/4G networks. With CNetVerifier, we tend to have uncovered seven varieties of troublesome interactions, along three dimensions of cross (protocol) layers, cross (circuit-switched and packet-switched) domains, and cross (3G and 4G) systems. Some are caused by necessary nonetheless problematic cooperation (i.e., protocol interactions are needed but they misbehave), whereas others are because of freelance nonetheless unnecessary coupled operations (i.e., protocols interactions don't seem to be required but truly coupled). These instances span each design defects in 3GPP standards and operational slips by carriers and vendors. They all lead to performance penalties or purposeful incorrectness. We tend to deduce root causes, gift empirical results, propose solutions, and summarize learned lessons.