WHITEPAPER

virtualized solutions has become a necessity as

Part 1: Accelerating 5G carriers seek opportunities to reduce costs, while
also enabling a more flexible, dynamic and
virtual RAN deployment responsive RAN.

A good example of this kind of collaboration is the

With open, cost-optimized O-RAN Alliance O-RAN Alliance, which is focused on accelerating
whitebox implementations the implementation of standards and reference
designs for virtualized 5G RAN solutions. The
May, 2020
O-RAN Alliance reference designs are provided as
This whitepaper provides an overview of the “whitebox” or un-branded implementations that
O-RAN Alliance and the value provided by O-RAN to can be deployed by carriers today thereby reducing
the carrier industry along with a brief introduction costs and vendor lock-in.
to Comcores, our O-RAN solutions and our role in
the O-RAN eco-system. The O-RAN Alliance whitebox group (WG7) has
released a whitebox implementation of both a 5G
RAN O-DU and O-RU. Comcores has provided the
Executive summary core functionality of the O-RU whitebox
5G is currently being deployed across the globe implementing layer 1 offload and the eCPRI
with carriers expected to invest over $480 billion in interface to the Intel® FlexRAN-based O-DU, which
infrastructure deployment not including spectrum is the first implementation of an open front-haul
investments. 5G discussions on business cases still interface.
continue, but the focus for carriers now is cost This is not just a reference design, but a significant
optimization. step in enabling cost-effective 5G RAN deployments.
The Radio Access Network (RAN) is the most critical
part of new 5G networks. 5G ambitions to deliver
more data, faster and with lower latency require a
complete rethink on how the RAN is designed. It
also requires a rethink on how the RAN is
implemented. 5G RAN infrastructure Total Cost of
Ownership (TCO) can grow by 65% compared to
current 4G RAN costs. Energy costs can grow by as
much as 140%. Managing these costs is critical to
the carrier business case.

According to studies by the GSMA, virtualization of

the RAN can reduce TCO by 25% while opening
critical interfaces, such as the fronthaul interface
can enable network sharing leading to a further
40% saving. Ensuring that solutions are compact Figure 1: O-RAN solutions critical to 5G business case
and energy efficient will also be critical to the 5G
business case.

Developing a 5G RAN that can meet future service

needs cost-effectively is more than one carrier or
vendor can address on their own. Collaboration on
the development of open, standards-based,

Comcores ApS [Link] 1

 WHITEPAPER

Figure 2: 5G RAN functions

5G is a revolution not an evolution 5G RAN architecture

5G is designed to deliver high-quality voice and With 5G, a new architecture was introduced that
faster Internet connectivity, like previous allows the decision on whether to centralize or
generations. But it is also designed to support decentralize functionality to be made on a per
emerging service needs, such as connecting billions service basis. Figure 2 shows the 4G enhanced
of Internet of Things (IoT) devices, supporting NodeB (eNB) and the new 5G RAN architecture. In
4K/8K video streaming, autonomous vehicles, 5G, the 4G eNB equivalent is referred to as Next
eHealth and industrial automation. Generation Node B (gNB). This includes three
distinct functions that can be separated
The challenge in 5G, which requires a revolution in geographically; a Central Unit (CU) that can support
network design and architecture, is to build an multiple Distributed Units (DUs) each connected to
infrastructure that can meet diverse service needs, one or more Radio Units (RUs).
at the same time, cost-effectively.
4G LTE introduced the option to split the eNB into a
Delivering higher data rates at massive scale with Baseband Unit (BBU) and Remote Radio Unit (RRU).
ultra-low latency requires more capacity and The RRU that previously was installed together with
intelligence at the edge of the network. But how the BBU at the base of the antenna could now be
much capacity is required and for how long deployed on the mast close to the antenna and the
depends on the specific service. What is required is BBU could be deployed centrally. This allows
the ability to deploy exactly what is needed by a remote radio heads to be deployed in small cells
specific service, when it is needed without where the macro cell is struggling to keep up with
impacting the experience delivered for all other bandwidth demand or coverage dark spots.
services. This requires a new Radio Access Network
(RAN) architecture, new technologies, like As more intelligence is centralized, the bandwidth
virtualization and new techniques like network requirements for connecting functions increases as
slicing. more “raw” data needs to be backhauled for
processing. The flexibility to deploy the CU and DU
centrally or remotely enables the best compromise
between latency and backhaul bandwidth
requirements to be achieved.

Comcores ApS [Link] 2

 WHITEPAPER

Fronthaul protocols and layer splits

The CPRI interface has to date been proprietary to
In 4G networks, the connection between the BBU the vendor implementing the radio equipment.
and RRU is referred to as the fronthaul network and
With eCPRI, it is now possible to define an open
is typically based on the Common Public Radio interface that can allow other vendors to develop
Interface (CPRI), as can be seen in Figure 2. This is a DU or RU equipment that can interoperate with
point-to-point connection running over a single other vendor equipment.
fibre that can support distances up to 20km. But
this means dedicated fibres for each RRU, which The choice of where to make the split is a trade-off
becomes a costly bottleneck. To address this, an between latency and backhaul requirements. Thus
ethernet based version of CPRI called eCPRI was far, 3GPP has specified a “Higher Layer” Split 2
introduced in 2017. With eCPRI, radio signals are between the PDCP and RLC layers, which is
transported over Ethernet, which allows multiple effectively the interface between the CU and the
signals to be multiplexed and transported on a DU while eCPRI proposes a “Lower Layer” split 7 or
single fibre. An Ethernet switch or Fronthaul “intra-PHY” split between the higher and lower PHY
Gateway can be used to connect multiple RUs to a layers, which is the interface between the DU and
single DU thus reducing the number of fibres to be RU. 3GPP is considering this option for future
deployed. revisions of their specifications.

As shown in Figure 3, CPRI provides an interface Depending on where you place the RRU, DU and CU
between the radio frequency and the physical layer functions, it is possible to find the right trade-off
of the communication stack. eCPRI defines five between latency and backhaul requirements on a
possible splits as well as options to split the PHY per service basis. But, to get the most benefit from
layer. 3GPP defines 8 split locations, which align the flexibility that the gNB offers, a mechanism is
with eCPRI splits. required to dynamically deploy functionality when
and where it is required. This is where virtualization
of RAN network functions and network slicing are
essential.

Figure 3: 5G RAN functional splits

Comcores ApS [Link] 3

 WHITEPAPER

Figure 4: 5G Network slices

Virtualizing the RAN Optimizing the cost of 5G RAN

To date, virtualization in mobile networks has been Virtualizing the RAN for 5G requires a new
focused on core functions like Evolved Packet Core architecture and new technologies, which will
(EPC), where significant progress has been made. increase costs. However, the new architectures and
Virtualizing the RAN and the edge of the network is technologies also provide opportunities to manage
more demanding, but crucial to the success of 5G and optimize these costs.
deployments. Since services are delivered with
In a recent study by GSMA, it was reported that
performance requirements end-to-end, the ability
carriers, as a result of uncertainty about service
to manage how resources are deployed in the RAN
revenue, have recently shifted their focus from
in real-time becomes extremely important.
building the business case for 5G services to
The virtualization of 5G networks has introduced optimizing the cost of 5G. In the study, it was found
the key concept of network slices. A network slice is that the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) associated
a virtual network dedicated to a specific customer with 5G RAN infrastructure, including capital
or service where the resources supporting the expenditures for buying equipment and operational
service are configured and deployed to meet the costs, can grow as much as 65% compared to
performance profile required. By logically current mobile networks. Optimizing these costs is
separating the functions in the gNB and then therefore a priority for carriers.
implementing them as virtual software, the 5G RAN
In the study, it was concluded that by virtualizing
can support specific network slice requirements
the RAN, using more automation and intelligence
and the diverse demands of each service at the
and by adopting open implementations, such as
same time.
those provided by the O-RAN Alliance, it would be
possible to reduce these costs by 25%. This is made
possible by the flexibility to deploy functions and
capabilities when and where they are needed.

Comcores ApS [Link] 4

 WHITEPAPER

According to the GSMA, using open The O-RAN Alliance

implementations also enables sharing of network Formed through the merger of the xRAN Forum and
ownership and costs, which can further reduce RAN the C-RAN Alliance in 2018, the O-RAN Alliance is
TCO by up to 40%. seeking an open, standards-based consensus for
But the largest cost accelerator identified in the virtualizing the RAN. They are focused on building a
study is energy. The study found that the more cost-effective and agile RAN through open
introduction of 5G can increase energy costs by as interfaces, while using intelligence and deep
much as 140% of current needs. This is driven by learning techniques to automate operations.
massive MIMO, the need for more sites and mobile The O-RAN Alliance proposes a new architecture
data traffic growth requiring more processing based on continuous data collection and deep
power. learning techniques. The RAN Intelligent Controller
This means that any possibility to reduce power (RIC) is a key component in the new architecture
consumption in mobile networks is valuable, which, and is responsible for managing and optimising the
in turn requires the right functionality to be deployment and use of RAN resources. See Figure 5
deployed in the right locations at the right time to for an overview of the
optimize energy usage while also meeting service O-RAN architecture.
requirements. The O-RAN Alliance is also focused on opening the
To read the study in more detail, see: front-haul interface between the O-DU and O-RU,
[Link] which is currently not standardized. This is critical
cost-evolution/ to enabling multi-vendor O-DU and O-RU
deployments and network sharing.

Figure 5: O-RAN Architecture

Comcores ApS [Link] 5

 WHITEPAPER

O-RAN O-RU whitebox solution

One of the nine work groups formed by the
O-RAN Alliance is the whitebox hardware
workgroup (WG7). The goal of the O-RAN whitebox
hardware working group is to “specify and release a Demo Only
complete reference design of a high-performance, Enclosure

spectral and energy efficient whitebox base ADI

ADV902x
station”.
Arria® 10 SoC /
eASIC SoC
3D Rendering of
The first test platform for the O-RAN O-RU Demo Only Enclosure O-RAN 10/20G
Optical
whitebox solution is now available. Full details of Interface

Developed in collaboration between

the solution are available including reference O-RU
Board
design schematics and open software so that others
can build their own O-RU solutions. The O-RAN O- Figure 6: O-RAN O-RU Reference Platform
DU is expected to be available in late 2020.
The Comcores eCPRI solution is the first
The WG7 implementations are the result of a implementation of an open fronthaul interface.
collaboration between Analog Devices, Comcores, Now, for the first time, it is possible for carriers to
Intel, Radisys, and Whizz Systems. The O-RU is deploy a vendor-neutral RAN architecture.
based on a combination of Intel® Arria 10® System-
However, it is possible to independently upgrade
on-Chip (SoC) and Analog Devices ADV902x Digital
the Comcores eCPRI solution to accommodate new
Front End (DFE).
eCPRI split options or alternative fronthaul
Comcores provides the FPGA software or technologies. This provides carriers with a flexible,
Intellectual Property (IP) that implements the but future-proof solution that can adapt to new
functions of the O-RU on the FPGA. The IP includes requirements and needs.
implementation of the eCPRI front-end protocol as
For more information on specs and availability
well as layer 1 offload functionality.
contact Comcores at sales@[Link]

The role of Comcores in the acceleration of 5G RAN

Carriers are already making early-stage 5G investments and trials, with initial commercial service launches
being deployed alongside existing 4G network assets. However, carriers also need to plan and prepare for
the next step; evolution to fully stand-alone 5G networks.
Managing and optimizing costs are paramount. This is the one area of the business case that is fully within
carrier control. This requires cost-effective, yet flexible implementations of 5G functions that can support
carrier cost goals without limiting revenue opportunities.
The Comcores solution portfolio is designed to support the new functions, technologies and protocols
required for 5G deployments along with the options and enhancements required to support flexibility.
Comcores reference designs and platforms enable cost-effective implementation and testing of O-RAN
solutions providing carriers with open and reliable 5G RAN solutions. This provides carriers with the
confidence to accelerate 5G deployments.
Through our participation in collaborations like the O-RAN Alliance, Comcores ensures that we continue to
remain at the forefront of developments so that the right capabilities are available when you need them.
Read Part 2 of the Whitepaper series at:

Comcores ApS [Link] 6