The K2Air monitoring system from Tektronix Communications supports Long-Term Evolution (LTE) networks with Uu Interface monitoring capabilities. It collects data via digital RF interfaces like CPRI, providing insight into air interface performance and key eNodeB functionality that can’t be monitored on the LTE wireline interfaces, according to Tektronix. Also, it is fully integrated with the company’s Network and Service Analyzer (NSA) protocol monitoring solutions for performance test and monitoring in lab verification and live network-troubleshooting environments. And, it provides seamless, fully correlated LTE wireless and wireline monitoring, Tektronix says.

Article Tools

• 

The K2Air probe supports promiscuous mode uplink and downlink monitoring of up to 300 UEs in parallel on the air interface in real time. It correlates this information with data on fixed LTE as well as legacy 2G and 3G interfaces, allowing end-to-end monitoring of network and network element performance. The high-load real-time capabilities of the K2Air probe, combined with the end-to-end monitoring capabilities offered by the NSA, provides advantages over other solutions that typically support data capture for only very short periods or provide detailed insight into only a single interface, the company says.

With existing technologies such as GSM/GPRS and UMTS, considerable information on how the access network is functioning—with critical insight on access issues such as congestion, interference, and coverage problems—is available on wireline network interfaces that can be monitored using traditional tools. This picture changes with LTE, as network access nodes are built to be more intelligent, and the access network control functions move right to the edge of the network to the eNodeB.

Critical radio performance information is no longer available on the wireline interfaces between the access and the core part of the network and cannot be used to determine what, if any, issues exist. This means that vendors and operators are being pushed into looking directly into the air interface for information concerning network access performance and service quality and must have the ability to correlate this analysis easily with data related to other network interfaces.