X2 Handover UP Integrity Policy Alignment Across RAN Nodes
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Solution Overview
Problem
In LTE systems, there is no support for integrity protection of user plane traffic during handovers, leading to potential security vulnerabilities, and existing technologies do not specify how to manage user plane integrity protection (UP IP) policies and activation status during intra-MME handovers.
Innovation Solution
Implementing methods and systems to manage UP IP policies and activation status by including UE capability and UP IP support information in handover requests and path switch requests, ensuring consistent activation across nodes during intra-MME handovers, even when nodes are upgraded or legacy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If integrity protection is activated for user plane traffic during handover, then security is improved, but device complexity and signaling overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-configuring integrity protection parameters and policies in the handover request message before the actual handover occurs. The source eNB prepares and transfers UP IP policy, activation status, and UE capability information to the target eNB in advance, ensuring that integrity protection is already established when the handover completes, thus improving security without adding complexity during the critical handover moment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses the handover request message as an intermediary carrier to transfer user plane integrity protection information between source and target eNBs. This intermediary mechanism efficiently conveys UP IP policy, activation status, and capability information without requiring separate signaling messages, thereby improving security while minimizing additional signaling overhead and device complexity.
2Reliability
If UP IP information is transferred during handover, then security consistency is improved, but signaling overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the transfer of user plane integrity protection information with the existing handover request signaling procedure. By combining UP IP policy, activation status, and UE capability information into the handover request message that is already being exchanged between eNBs, the patent achieves security consistency without requiring separate dedicated signaling messages, thus minimizing additional signaling overhead.
Solution Approach 2:
The handover request message is given multi-functionality by serving both its original purpose of coordinating handover and the additional purpose of transferring user plane integrity protection information. This universal approach allows a single signaling message to accomplish multiple tasks, improving security consistency while avoiding the signaling overhead that would result from multiple separate messages.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of operating a radio access network, RAN, node of a wireless communication system, includes preparing, at the RAN node, a handover request to handover a user equipment, UE, to a target node. The handover request includes a user plane integrity protection, UP IP, policy associated with the UE. The method further includes transmitting the handover request to the target node.