[2024 SXSW] Build Your Own Open Source 5g Node

[Mentioned in Forbes Ultimate SXSW Guide: https://www.forbes.com/sites/martineparis/2024/02/26/the-ultimate-sxsw-2024-guide-hottest-panels-parties-and-popups/] Can you build your own 5G node (tower) with all open-source software and non-proprietary hardware? The answer is a resounding yes! In the workshop, we will walk you through each component of a working open-source 5G node and show you how to connect it to a phone. Bring your laptops so that you can follow along. We will have a faraday cage and the rest of the radio equipment so that you can safely see what it's like to set up a 5G node that connects to a commercial off-the-shelf phone. We will also give a review of what 5G is, why it is important in the internet of things, and more!

1. W. Watson Principal Vulk Coop Build Your Own Open Source 5g Tower SXSW 2024 Austin, Tx Taylor C. Principal Vulk Coop https://hackmd.io/@vulk/sxsw2024

2. https://hackmd.io/@vulk/sxsw2024

3. 5g Workshop Overview Who are we What you will learn What you will need to participate To use a cloud session Any laptop with ssh To run the node Linux laptop

4. What you will learn (15 minutes) What is 5g What is Cloud native 5g What are the components of a 5g node and RAN How to safely run a 5g node 5g Simulator Workshop 5g tower Workshop 5g Use Cases

5. What is 5g? A standard by the 3GPP Has provisions for supporting more connected devices than 4g New, broader spectrum assignments Better security More interoperability Ultra Reliable Low Latency guarantees

6. What is a Cloud Native 5g node? Cloud native 5g architecture uses immutable infrastructure, declarative configuration, and microservices when creating a 5g node. This is exemplified by putting the 5g core and RAN into containers and hosting them in Kubernetes.

7. What is a RAN? A radio (hardware) We will be using a Universal Software Radio Peripheral (USRP), a software defined radio (SDR) Radio software We will be using SRSRan For this installation to be cloud native, we will need to install SRSRan into Kubernetes There is a movement, called ORAN, to make RANs more interoperable

8. What are the components of a RAN?

9. What are the components of a 5g node core?

10. What do you need to safely run a 5g node? A Faraday cage Regulations require to have a license to transmit on the 5g bands. A faraday cage is used for safely testing radio equipment. Electromagnetic signals can not get in or out. You need a 5g core. We will be using open5gs for this You need a radio. We will be using an NI Ettus B200 for this You need software to configure the radio for 5g spectrums. We will be be using SRSRan for this. You need a phone with a 5g modem/chipset in it. We will be using a Oneplus 10t with a Snapdragon 8+ modem for this You need a programmable sim card. We will be using a sysmocom simcard for this You need a card reader/writer We used a HID Omnikey writer for this You need a computer to act as the GNB We used a Dell XPS 13 9320 for this

11. 5g Phone Set up COTS UE (commercial off the shelf user equipment) requires special set up Programmable Sim Card Setup Sysmocom card HID Omnikey writer pysim

12. Protip: Some 5g Phones Still Don’t Work 5g technology is still new. The phones are still evolving to support it Lots of phones are tough to configure or are not fully 5g (they support 5g non-standalone mode only) or they don’t support bands that work with some solutions It's best to get phones that have already been tested with the RAN that you have selected https://docs.srsran.com/projects/project/en/latest/knowledge_base/source/cots_ues/source/index.html

13. Workshop Time! (45 minutes) Log in to simulator cloud instance using ssh Install the 5g core and UERANSIM locally Shell into the RAN and ping the core Shell into the RAN and ping the UEsimulator (A simulated phone) Shell into the UESimulator and ping the internet

14. Workshop Time! (45 - 60 minutes) S tudents will connect their machine to the 5g node in the faraday cage using the exposed network Students will start and stop the 5g core, ran, and 5g phone share S tudents will send whatsapp messages/calls to the phone in the faraday cage from their phones. Students will see a screen share of phone to prove messages/calls were received.

15. Send a text to [phone] from WhatsApp

16. What is Private 5g? Private 5g is used in places where there are many connected devices Smart manufacturing plant Hospitals Private 5g is also used where ultra low latency and reliability is required Hospital equipment Robots Drones Private 5g is when someone, usually a business, licenses part of the 5g spectrum for use within a restricted area, such as a warehouse

17. What is CBRS? C itizens Broadband Radio Service Innovation band Previously for military Mid band spectrum Spectrum band 48 3.5 - 3.7 ghz 150 mhz portion

18. Why CBRS? Low interference Compared to wifi 802.11 family Implementations 4g lte 5g cbrs Interoperability High reliability Mobility fast handover between access points Low latency 20 ms Security Pre authenticated sim cards Capacity Coverage 10x

19. How Does CBRS Work? Tiers Incumbent PAL by county GAA Unlicensed CBSD citizen broadband radio service device cbrs spectrum grant maximum power Geolocation fcc database ESC radar use D OD SAS spectrum allocation system

20. When should we use CBRS ? use cases industrial iot Hotels Event venues Campus Airports Sports stadiums Hospitals Mines Warehouses Skyscrapers Decentralized physical infrastructure Dpin Helium Cbrs 5g nsa

21. https://hackmd.io/@vulk/sxsw2024

22. Austin Software Cooperatives Meetup https://www.meetup.com/Austin-Software-Co-operatives/ CNTI Test Catalog GitHub https://github.com/cnti-testcatalog Twitter @vulkcoop Email [email protected] CNCF Telco Initiatives Connecting