[glossary] == Glossary 2FF:: 2nd Generation Form Factor; the so-called plug-in SIM form factor 3FF:: 3rd Generation Form Factor; the so-called microSIM form factor 3GPP:: 3rd Generation Partnership Project 4FF:: 4th Generation Form Factor; the so-called nanoSIM form factor A Interface:: Interface between BTS and BSC, traditionally over E1 (_3GPP TS 48.008_ <<3gpp-ts-48-008>>) A3/A8:: Algorithm 3 and 8; Authentication and key generation algorithm in GSM and GPRS, typically COMP128v1/v2/v3 or MILENAGE are typically used A5:: Algorithm 5; Air-interface encryption of GSM; currently only A5/0 (no encryption), A5/1 and A5/3 are in use Abis Interface:: Interface between BTS and BSC, traditionally over E1 (_3GPP TS 48.058_ <<3gpp-ts-48-058>> and _3GPP TS 52.021_ <<3gpp-ts-52-021>>) ACC:: Access Control Class; every BTS broadcasts a bit-mask of permitted ACC, and only subscribers with a SIM of matching ACC are permitted to use that BTS AGCH:: Access Grant Channel on Um interface; used to assign a dedicated channel in response to RACH request AGPL:: GNU Affero General Public License, a copyleft-style Free Software License ARFCN:: Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number; specifies a tuple of uplink and downlink frequencies AUC:: Authentication Center; central database of authentication key material for each subscriber BCCH:: Broadcast Control Channel on Um interface; used to broadcast information about Cell and its neighbors BCC:: Base Station Color Code; short identifier of BTS, lower part of BSIC BTS:: Base Transceiver Station BSC:: Base Station Controller BSIC:: Base Station Identity Code; 16bit identifier of BTS within location area BSSGP:: Base Station Subsystem Gateway Protocol (_3GPP TS 48.018_ <<3gpp-ts-48-018>>) BVCI:: BSSGP Virtual Circuit Identifier CBCH:: Cell Broadcast Channel; used to transmit Cell Broadcast SMS (SMS-CB) CC:: Call Control; Part of the GSM Layer 3 Protocol CCCH:: Common Control Channel on Um interface; consists of RACH (uplink), BCCH, PCH, AGCH (all downlink) Cell:: A cell in a cellular network, served by a BTS CEPT:: Conférence européenne des administrations des postes et des télécommunications; European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations. CGI:: Cell Global Identifier comprised of MCC, MNC, LAC and BSIC dB:: deci-Bel; relative logarithmic unit dBm:: deci-Bel (milliwatt); unit of measurement for signal strength of radio signals DHCP:: Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (_IETF RFC 2131_ <> downlink:: Direction of messages / signals from the network core towards the mobile phone DSP:: Digital Signal Processor dvnixload:: Tool to program UBL and the Bootloader on a sysmoBTS EDGE:: Enhanced Data rates for GPRS Evolution; Higher-speed improvement of GPRS; introduces 8PSK EGPRS:: Enhanced GPRS; the part of EDGE relating to GPRS services ESME:: External SMS Entity; an external application interfacing with a SMSC over SMPP ETSI:: European Telecommunications Standardization Institute FPGA:: Field Programmable Gate Array; programmable digital logic hardware Gb:: Interface between PCU and SGSN in GPRS/EDGE network; uses NS, BSSGP, LLC GERAN:: GPRS/EDGE Radio Access Network ifdef::gfdl-enabled[] GFDL:: GNU Free Documentation License; a copyleft-style Documentation License endif::[] GGSN:: GPRS Gateway Support Node; gateway between GPRS and external (IP) network GMSK:: Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying; modulation used for GSM and GPRS GPL:: GNU General Public License, a copyleft-style Free Software License Gp:: Gp interface between SGSN and GGSN; uses GTP protocol GPS:: Global Positioning System; provides a highly accurate clock reference besides the global position GSM:: Global System for Mobile Communications. ETSI/3GPP Standard of a 2G digital cellular network GSMTAP:: GSM tap; pseudo standard for encapsulating GSM protocol layers over UDP/IP for analysis GT:: Global Title; an address in SCCP GTP:: GPRS Tunnel Protocol; used between SGSN and GGSN HLR:: Home Location Register; central subscriber database of a GSM network HPLMN:: Home PLMN; the network that has issued the subscriber SIM and has his record in HLR IE:: Information Element IMEI:: International Mobile Equipment Identity; unique identifier for the mobile phone IMSI:: International Mobile Subscriber Identity; 15-digit unique identifier for the subscriber/SIM; starts with MCC/MNC of issuing operator IP:: Internet Protocol (_IETF RFC 791_ <>) IPA:: _ip.access GSM over IP_ protocol; used to multiplex a single TCP connection LAC:: Location Area Code; 16bit identifier of Location Area within network LAPD:: Link Access Protocol, D-Channel (_ITU-T Q.921_ <>) LAPDm:: Link Access Protocol Mobile (_3GPP TS 44.006_ <<3gpp-ts-44-006>>) LLC:: Logical Link Control; GPRS protocol between MS and SGSN (_3GPP TS 44.064_ <<3gpp-ts-44-064>>) Location Area:: Location Area; a geographic area containing multiple BTS M2PA:: MTP2 Peer-to-Peer Adaptation; a SIGTRAN Variant (_RFC 4165_ <>) M2UA:: MTP2 User Adaptation; a SIGTRAN Variant (_RFC 3331_ <>) M3UA:: MTP3 User Adaptation; a SIGTRAN Variant (_RFC 4666_ <>) MCC:: Mobile Country Code; unique identifier of a country, e.g. 262 for Germany MFF:: Machine-to-Machine Form Factor; a SIM chip package that is soldered permanently onto M2M device circuit boards. MGW:: Media Gateway MM:: Mobility Management; part of the GSM Layer 3 Protocol MNC:: Mobile Network Code; identifies network within a country; assigned by national regulator MNO:: Mobile Network Operator; operator with physical radio network under his MCC/MNC MS:: Mobile Station; a mobile phone / GSM Modem MSC:: Mobile Switching Center; network element in the circuit-switched core network MSISDN:: Mobile Subscriber ISDN Number; telephone number of the subscriber MTP:: Message Transfer Part; SS7 signaling protocol (_ITU-T Q.701_ <>) MVNO:: Mobile Virtual Network Operator; Operator without physical radio network NCC:: Network Color Code; assigned by national regulator NITB:: Network In The Box; combines functionality traditionally provided by BSC, MSC, VLR, HLR, SMSC functions; see OsmoNITB NSEI:: NS Entity Identifier NVCI:: NS Virtual Circuit Identifier NWL:: Network Listen; ability of some BTS to receive downlink from other BTSs NS:: Network Service; protocol on Gb interface (_3GPP TS 48.016_ <<3gpp-ts-48-016>>) OCXO:: Oven Controlled Crystal Oscillator; very high precision oscillator, superior to a VCTCXO OML:: Operation & Maintenance Link (ETSI/_3GPP TS 52.021_ <<3gpp-ts-52-021>>) OpenBSC:: Open Source implementation of GSM network elements, specifically OsmoBSC, OsmoNITB, OsmoSGSN OpenGGSN:: Open Source implementation of a GPRS Packet Control Unit OpenVPN:: Open-Source Virtual Private Network; software employed to establish encrypted private networks over untrusted public networks Osmocom:: Open Source MObile COMmunications; collaborative community for implementing communications protocols and systems, including GSM, GPRS, TETRA, DECT, GMR and others OsmoBSC:: Open Source implementation of a GSM Base Station Controller OsmoNITB:: Open Source implementation of a GSM Network In The Box, combines functionality traditionally provided by BSC, MSC, VLR, HLR, AUC, SMSC OsmoSGSN:: Open Source implementation of a Serving GPRS Support Node OsmoPCU:: Open Source implementation of a GPRS Packet Control Unit OTA:: Over-The-Air; Capability of operators to remotely reconfigure/reprogram ISM/USIM cards PC:: Point Code; an address in MTP PCH:: Paging Channel on downlink Um interface; used by network to page an MS PCU:: Packet Control Unit; used to manage Layer 2 of the GPRS radio interface PDCH:: Packet Data Channel on Um interface; used for GPRS/EDGE signalling + user data PIN:: Personal Identification Number; a number by which the user authenticates to a SIM/USIM or other smart card PLMN:: Public Land Mobile Network; specification language for a single GSM network PUK:: PIN Unblocking Code; used to unblock a blocked PIN (after too many wrong PIN attempts) RAC:: Routing Area Code; 16bit identifier for a Routing Area within a Location Area RACH:: Random Access Channel on uplink Um interface; used by MS to request establishment of a dedicated channel RAM:: Remote Application Management; Ability to remotely manage (install, remove) Java Applications on SIM/USIM Card RF:: Radio Frequency RFM:: Remote File Management; Ability to remotely manage (write, read) files on a SIM/USIM card Roaming:: Procedure in which a subscriber of one network is using the radio network of another network, often in different countries; in some countries national roaming exists Routing Area:: Routing Area; GPRS specific sub-division of Location Area RR:: Radio Resources; Part of the GSM Layer 3 Protocol RSL:: Radio Signalling Link (_3GPP TS 48.058_ <<3gpp-ts-48-058>>) RTP:: Real-Time Transport Protocol (_IETF RFC 3550_ <>); Used to transport audio/video streams over UDP/IP SACCH:: Slow Associate Control Channel on Um interface; bundled to a TCH or SDCCH, used for signalling in parallel to active dedicated channel SCCP:: Signaling Connection Control Part; SS7 signaling protocol (_ITU-T Q.711_ <>) SDCCH:: Slow Dedicated Control Channel on Um interface; used for signalling and SMS transport in GSM SDK:: Software Development Kit SIGTRAN:: Signaling Transport over IP (_IETF RFC 2719_ <>) SIM:: Subscriber Identity Module; small chip card storing subscriber identity Site:: A site is a location where one or more BTSs are installed, typically three BTSs for three sectors SMPP:: Short Message Peer-to-Peer; TCP based protocol to interface external entities with an SMSC SMSC:: Short Message Service Center; store-and-forward relay for short messages SS7:: Signaling System No. 7; Classic digital telephony signaling system SSH:: Secure Shell; _IETF RFC 4250_ <> to 4254 SSN:: Sub-System Number; identifies a given SCCP Service such as MSC, HLR STP:: Signaling Transfer Point; A Router in SS7 Networks SUA:: SCCP User Adaptation; a SIGTRAN Variant (_RFC 3868_ <>) syslog:: System logging service of UNIX-like operating systems System Information:: A set of downlink messages on the BCCH and SACCH of the Um interface describing properties of the cell and network TCH:: Traffic Channel; used for circuit-switched user traffic (mostly voice) in GSM TCP:: Transmission Control Protocol; (_IETF RFC 793_ <>) TFTP:: Trivial File Transfer Protocol; (_IETF RFC 1350_ <>) TRX:: Transceiver; element of a BTS serving a single carrier u-Boot:: Boot loader used in various embedded systems UBI:: An MTD wear leveling system to deal with NAND flash in Linux UBL:: Initial bootloader loaded by the TI Davinci SoC UDP:: User Datagram Protocol (_IETF RFC 768_ <>) UICC:: Universal Integrated Chip Card; A smart card according to _ETSI TR 102 216_ <> Um interface:: U mobile; Radio interface between MS and BTS uplink:: Direction of messages: Signals from the mobile phone towards the network USIM:: Universal Subscriber Identity Module; application running on a UICC to provide subscriber identity for UMTS and GSM networks VCTCXO:: Voltage Controlled, Temperature Compensated Crystal Oscillator; a precision oscillator, superior to a classic crystal oscillator, but inferior to an OCXO VPLMN:: Visited PLMN; the network in which the subscriber is currently registered; may differ from HPLMN when on roaming VTY:: Virtual TeletYpe; a textual command-line interface for configuration and introspection, e.g. the OsmoBSC configuration file as well as its telnet link on port 4242