The rapid increase in data traffic is forcing mobile network operators to enhance and expand their network infrastructure to meet the new requirements of customers’ Service Level Agreements (SLA). Network Function Virtualization (NFV) provides abstractions of core network functions from the vendor-specific hardware. This allows the network functions to move around the cloud, providing better performance and scaling capabilities. However, deploying virtualized mobile core network in the cloud environment opens many security concerns not only regarding communication between the Radio Access Network (RAN) and the mobile core network but also within the core network itself. In this paper, we propose a framework called virtual Evolved Packet Core - virtual Software Defined Perimeter (vEPC-vSDP) to provide secure communications within the mobile core network by using an authentication-based approach. The SDP components are virtualized and placed within the virtualized core network to provide a zero-trust environment where only authenticated and authorized core network elements can have access to one another. The analysis of the proposed vEPC-vSDP framework confirms its ability to shield the core network traffic from both external and internal attacks. The vEPC-vSDP framework was implemented and tested against Denial of Service (DoS), Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) and port scanning attacks to demonstrate the resilience of the proposed framework. The results show the capability of vEPC-vSDP to provide secure communication path to mobile core network elements.

Summary form only given. Wireless sensor networks are examples of the paradigm shift taking place in wireless network architectures. A wireless sensor network consists of large numbers of sensors, which are tiny, low-cost, low-power radio devices dedicated to performing certain functions such as collecting various environmental data and sending them to infrastructure processing nodes. The field of wireless sensor networking is also gaining greater interest among not only researchers but also diverse groups such as environmental, public safety, medicine, and military. This tutorial starts with an overview of the wireless sensor networks. A review of the current technologies used for these types of wireless networks is provided next. The focus is on the architectural issues such as topology, routing, and protocols. Finally, the network management issues related to wireless sensor networks are discussed. The tutorial concludes with a discussion of the open research problems in this area.

This paper describes a set of protocols selected for developing a WLL system based on a wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA) technology. W-CDMA technology used by the WLL system has been selected to provide primarily ISDN like services and data rates to subscribers while providing a smooth transition into the third generation wireless technology. The air interface used in this WLL system is an interim standard of TTA, which specifies a CDMA based protocol operating in the 2.30-2.40 GHz band. The standard allows two types of bandwidth (5 and 10 MHz). The WLL protocols described in this paper provide a solution based on a cost effective, advanced, standard technology allowing the operator to satisfy their current customers while providing smooth transition into the future network solutions.

A novel application on the recently emerging Personal Communication Services (PCS) networks is the multimedia communication.In this paper; we evaluate multimedia communications capability of one of the PCS standards, Personal Access Communications System's (PACS) packet channel (PPC) using simulation modeling.The performance of PPC's slot aggregation and data-sense multiple access techniques are studied by considering the downlii and uplink in a single cell and combined uplink/ downhnk in two cells and changing various parameters such as the number of users and certain protocol parameters.Interconnection of PPC with the Internet is discussed next.Frame rates of MPEG-1 coded images transmitted in a PACS cell as IP datagrams are determined.Handover characteristics of PPC downlink are studied by changing different parameters such as the cell size, the speed of the mobile host and time between handovers.The results clearly establish that multimedia communication on PPC is only feasible at lower bandwidths and frame rates and only a few users per cell can be supported.Careful tuning of PPC protocol parameters are required.There is one parameter whose variation gives opposite results on the downlink and uplink.

This paper presents an analysis of the anchor radio system (RS) handover method for the Personal Access Communications System (PACS). This handover method provides a simple yet effective solution without adding new requirements to the existing network infrastructures. Based on this technique, inter-RS and inter-switch handovers can be achieved using a new RS-to-RS interface called inter-RS interface (IRI). This paper first describes the use of the IRI protocol among PACS based RSs. Then it proposes an analytical model for the Anchor RS handover method to determine the expected handover delay under given mobility, call duration and signaling delay parameters.

The proposed congestion notification strategy for SMDS networks presented in this paper is based on explicit notification, which uses control messages to inform other network elements of congestion. Network elements respond to explicit notifications by matching the traffic entering the network to the network loading. For an effective congestion management strategy, the notifications should carry sufficient information about the congested resource so that the notified switching systems (SSs) may reduce traffic towards the congested SS. Since the internal architecture of an SS is not visible to other SSs in the network, the congestion notification mechanism maps the SS resource congestion to path congestion, identified by open interfaces such as the inter-SS, intercarrier, and customer-to-network interfaces, which are visible to all SSs in the network.>

In summary, a rapidly changing technology, a tremendous growth of software based systems, a need to retrain current technical staff, the issue of programmer productivity, the lack of established educational programs in software engineering at local colleges, and the integration of theory with practical requirements are among the major factors which force us to implement an in-house educational program in software engineering.