PCC Training | Policy and Charging Control Training

PCC Training, Policy and Charging Control Training

PCC Training, Policy and Charging Control training course offers a comprehensive overview of PCC principles, functional entities, architecture, protocols, Diameter messaging for Policy and Charging Control applied in 3GPP networks.

PCC enables a centralized control to ensure that the service sessions or  IP-CAN sessions and provides appropriate bandwidth and QoS. PCC also provides a means to control charging on a per-service basis. Policy and Charging Control functionality encompasses two main including Flow Based Charging, charging control and online credit control, and Policy control such as gating control, QoS control, and QoS signalling.

After completing this course, the participant will be able to:

• Sketch the LTE/EPC and IMS architectures
• Explain Diameter protocol features including the Base
• Indentify Diameter features, applications, security
• Describe Diameter protocol capabilities
• Understand standard diameter messages and their usage/function (CER/CEA, DWR/DWA, DPR/DPA, RAR/RAA, CCR/CCA, etc)
• Describe Diameter Accounting and Credit Control
• Describe the functions supported by Diameter Protocol
• Illustrate key 3GPP/LET/EPC Diameter interfaces
• Describe PCC (Policy and Charging Control)
• Describe Charging Interfaces (Gy, Ro, Gx, Gz, Sy, Rx, Sd
• Sketch PCC architecture (PCRF, PCEF, SPR, OCS)
• Describe Offline and Online Charging
• Understand the difference between Offline and Online Charging
• Understand PCC and Charging Interfaces (Gy, Ro, Gx, Gz, Sy, Rx, Sd, etc.)
• Understand Offline and Online Charging procedures and call flows
• Understand Offline Charging CDR content
• Understand an overview Diameter message manipulation (ie rewrite an AVP through a DRA)
• Be able to develop charging plans and policies based on the PCC architecture
• Be able to decode diameter charging messages in a protocol analyzer, such as wireshark
• Be able to apply PCC to non roaming an roaming scenarios

Content

Introduction to PCC (Policy and Charging Control)

• Overall PCC Logical Architecture
• Policy and charging control architectur
• Policy and charging control rule
• PCC Functional entities
• AF (Application Function)
• BBERF (Bearer Binding and Event Reporting Function)
• OFCS (Offline Charging System)
• OCS (Online Charging System)
• PCEF (Policy and Charging Enforcement Function)
• PCRF (Policy and Charging Rules Function)
• SPR (Subscription Profile Repository)
• User Data Repository (UDR)
• Traffic Detection Function (TDF)

Policy and Charging Control Architecture

• Charging models
• Examples of Service Data Flow Charging
• Policy control requirements
• QoS control
• Subscriber Spending Limits
• Usage Monitoring Control
• Application Detection and Control

PCC Procedures and flows

• IP CAN Session Establishment
• IP CAN Session Termination
• IP CAN Session Modification
• Update of the subscription information in the PCRF
• PCRF Discovery and Selection
• Gateway Control Session Procedures
• Change in subscription for MPS priority services
• Procedures over Sy reference point

Introduction to Diameter Protocol

• What is Diameter?
• History
• Applications
• Protocol description
• Problems to be addressed
• Diameter Protocol in 3GPP context
• Diameter Architecture
• Load Balancer
• Diameter Router
• Diameter Routing Agent (DRA)

Diameter Protocol Overview

• Transport
• Why TCP and SCTP
• Securing Diameter Messages
• Diameter Application Compliance
• Application Identifiers
• Connections vs. Sessions
• Peer Table
• Realm-Based Routing Table
• Role of Diameter Agents
• Relay Agents
• Proxy Agents
• Redirect Agents
• Translation Agents
• End-to-End Security Framework
• Diameter Path Authorization
• Diameter Header
• Command Codes
• Diameter Message Processing
• Diameter AVPs
• AVP Header
• Example AVP with a Grouped Data Type
• Diameter Base Protocol AVPs
• Diameter Request Routing Overview
• Processing Local Requests
• Request Routing
• Processing Received Answers
• Relaying and Proxying Answers
• Error Handling
• Diameter User Sessions

Diameter User Sessions

• AuthorizationSessionStateMachine
• AccountingSessionStateMachine
• ServerInitiated ReAuth
• ReAuthRequest
• ReAuthAnswer
• Session Termination
• SessionTerminationRequest
• SessionTerminationAnswer
• Aborting a Session
• AbortSessionRequest
• AbortSessionAnswer
• Inferring Session Termination from OriginStateId

Accounting and Billing with Diameter Protocol

• Server Directed Model
• Protocol Messages
• Application Document Requirements
• Fault Resilience
• Accounting Records
• Correlation of Accounting Records
• Accounting CommandCodes
• AccountingRequest
• AccountingAnswer
• Accounting AVPs

Diameter Protocol Related Configurable Parameters

• Security Considerations
• IPSec Usage
• TLS Usage

Diameter Applied to PCC, IMS and HSPA/HSPA+/LTE

• Diameter in the LTE/EPS Environment
• Offline and Online Charging procedures and call flows
• Offline Charging CDR content
• Online Charging AVPs and how they can be used for rating
• PCC Architecture in within EPC/LTE
• PCC Architecture and Components: PCRF, PCEF, SPR, OCS
• Charging plans and policies with PCC architecture
• Accounting
• Server Directed Model
• Protocol Messages
• Application Document Requirements
• Fault Resilience
• Accounting Records
• Correlation of Accounting Records
• Diameter messages
• CER/CEA
• DWR/DWA
• DPR/DPA
• RAR/RAA
• CCR/CCA

Example of Diameter Interfaces

• Gx between PDNGW and PCRF
• Gxx (Gxa, Gxb, Gxc) for policy control
• Gy between PDNGW and OCS
• Gz between PDNGW and OFCS
• Rx between PCSCF and PCRF
• Sp between PCRF and SPR
• Diameter Applications in IMS
• Diameter CreditControl Application (RFC 4006): Ro (IMS)

OCS (Online Charging System)

• Characteristics
• Online Charging principles and functions
• OCS integration with network devices and application servers
• Charging subscriber usage activity for all services
• Complex event rating
• Maintaining the current balance of the subscriber’s accounts
• Managing the balance as a result of subscriber activity
• Integrating seamlessly with policy management (PCRF)
• Online Credit Control
• Flow Based Charging (FBC)
• Gy/Ro reference point
• Online Credit Control Application Requirements
• Procedures over Gy interface
• Immediate Event Charging (IEC)
• Event Charging with Unit Reservation (ECUR)
• Session Charging with Unit Reservation (SCUR)
• Usage and Event reporting

OFCS (Offline Charging System)

• Characteristics
• Offline Charging principles and functions
• Collecting event an session based charging data
• Constructing charging data records
• Diameter start and stop events
• Enriching records
• Flow Based Charging (FBC)
• Usage reporting and Event reporting
• Relevant signaling flows
• Protocols ( Diameter, GTP’ and FTP)
• Gz, Ga, Rf reference points
• Gy interface (OCS and PCEF )
• Offline Charging CDR content

Protocol Support for  Gx Interfac

• Abort-Session-Request (ASR)
• Abort-Session-Answer (ASA)
• Capabilities-Exchange-Request (CER)
• Capabilities-Exchange-Answer (CEA)
• Device-Watchdog-Request (DWR)
• Device-Watchdog-Answer (DWA)
• Disconnect-Peer-Request (DPR)
• Disconnect-Peer-Answer (DPA)
• Re-Auth-Request (RAR)
• Re-Auth-Answer (RAA)
• Session-Termination-Request (STR)
• Session-Termination-Answer (STA)

Supported Gx Commands

• Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF and PCEF)
• Procedures over Gx interface
• Request and Provisioning for PCC rules
• PULL procedure (Provisioning solicited by PCEF
• PUSH procedure (Unsolicited provisioning)
• Credit-Control-Request (CCR)
• Credit-Control-Answer (CCA)
• Re-Authorization-Request (RAR)
• Re-Authorization-Answer (RAA)

Gy interface (OCS and PCEF )

• Online credit control for service data flow based charging
• Gy reference point at the Policy Charging and Control (PCC) architecture
• Basic principles for Diameter OCS
• Online Credit Control Application Requirements
• Procedures over Gy interface
• Immediate Event Charging (IEC)
• Event Charging with Unit Reservation (ECUR)
• Session Charging with Unit Reservation (SCUR)