Chapter 4: Function of GPRS Elements

Objectives

When you complete the reading in this chapter, you will be able to

• Describe the locations for the CCU.

• Describe the four different types of channel codec services.

• Understand where the options are for locating the PCU.

• Discuss the role of the GGSN and SGSN.

• Understand the way that the HLR and VLR interact in the GPRS network.

For the first time, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) fully enables mobile Internet functionality by permitting interworking between the existing Internet and the new GPRS network. Any service that is used over the fixed Internet today (such as File Transfer Protocol [FTP], Web browsing, chat, e-mail, and telnet) will be as available over the mobile network because of GPRS. In fact, many network operators are considering the opportunity to use GPRS to help become Wireless Internet Service Providers (W-ISPs) in their own right.

The World Wide Web is becoming the primary communications interface people access the Internet for entertainment and information collection, the intranet for accessing company information and connecting with colleagues, and the extranet for accessing customers and suppliers. These are all derivatives of the World Wide Web aimed at connecting different communities of interest. The trend is moving away from storing information locally in specific software packages on PCs to remotely on the Internet. When you want to check your schedule or contacts, instead of using a dedicated contact manager on the PC, you go onto the Internet site such as a...