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Performance Analysis and Comparison of Full-Fledged 5G Standalone Experimental TDD Testbeds in Single & Multi-UE Scenarios

Maryam Amini, Catherine Rosenberg

TL;DR

This work presents a comprehensive, multi-element study of 5G-SA experimental testbeds operating in TDD mode, built from open-source software and COTS hardware. By constructing 30 testbeds that vary RAN/core UE configurations and host computing resources, the authors quantify data rate, latency, coverage, and CPU/memory usage across single- and multi-UE scenarios and across multiple locations. They show that RAN software choice (srsRAN vs OAI-RAN) and UE type strongly shape performance, with OAI-RAN offering more robust latency and coverage in challenging conditions, while srsRAN can achieve higher rates when hosted on a powerful PC in favorable locations. The study also highlights the importance of automatic power control in OAI-RAN for stable multi-UE performance and documents significant sensitivity of srsRAN to host-PC power and resource constraints. Collectively, the results guide researchers in selecting suitable software-platforms and hardware for open 5G-SA testbeds and point to practical considerations for interoperability and scalable experimentation.

Abstract

Open-source software and Commercial Off-The-Shelf hardware are finally paving their way into the 5G world, resulting in a proliferation of experimental 5G testbeds. Surprisingly, very few studies have been published on the comparative analysis of testbeds with different hardware and software elements. In this paper, we first introduce a precise nomenclature to characterize a 5G-standalone single-cell testbed based on its constituent elements and main configuration parameters. We then build 30 distinct such testbeds and systematically analyze their performance with an emphasis on element interoperability (by considering different combinations of hardware and software elements from different sources), the number and type of User Equipment (UE) as well as the Radio Access Network hardware and software elements to address the following questions: 1) How is the performance (in terms of bit rate and latency) impacted by different elements? 2) How does the number of UEs affect these results? 3) What is the impact of the user(s)' location(s) on the performance? 4) What is the impact of the UE type on these results? 5) How far does each testbed provide coverage? 6) And finally, what is the effect of the computing resources available to each open-source software? This study focuses on TDD testbeds.

Performance Analysis and Comparison of Full-Fledged 5G Standalone Experimental TDD Testbeds in Single & Multi-UE Scenarios

TL;DR

This work presents a comprehensive, multi-element study of 5G-SA experimental testbeds operating in TDD mode, built from open-source software and COTS hardware. By constructing 30 testbeds that vary RAN/core UE configurations and host computing resources, the authors quantify data rate, latency, coverage, and CPU/memory usage across single- and multi-UE scenarios and across multiple locations. They show that RAN software choice (srsRAN vs OAI-RAN) and UE type strongly shape performance, with OAI-RAN offering more robust latency and coverage in challenging conditions, while srsRAN can achieve higher rates when hosted on a powerful PC in favorable locations. The study also highlights the importance of automatic power control in OAI-RAN for stable multi-UE performance and documents significant sensitivity of srsRAN to host-PC power and resource constraints. Collectively, the results guide researchers in selecting suitable software-platforms and hardware for open 5G-SA testbeds and point to practical considerations for interoperability and scalable experimentation.

Abstract

Open-source software and Commercial Off-The-Shelf hardware are finally paving their way into the 5G world, resulting in a proliferation of experimental 5G testbeds. Surprisingly, very few studies have been published on the comparative analysis of testbeds with different hardware and software elements. In this paper, we first introduce a precise nomenclature to characterize a 5G-standalone single-cell testbed based on its constituent elements and main configuration parameters. We then build 30 distinct such testbeds and systematically analyze their performance with an emphasis on element interoperability (by considering different combinations of hardware and software elements from different sources), the number and type of User Equipment (UE) as well as the Radio Access Network hardware and software elements to address the following questions: 1) How is the performance (in terms of bit rate and latency) impacted by different elements? 2) How does the number of UEs affect these results? 3) What is the impact of the user(s)' location(s) on the performance? 4) What is the impact of the UE type on these results? 5) How far does each testbed provide coverage? 6) And finally, what is the effect of the computing resources available to each open-source software? This study focuses on TDD testbeds.
Paper Structure (44 sections, 2 equations, 4 figures, 6 tables)

This paper contains 44 sections, 2 equations, 4 figures, 6 tables.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Background and Nomenclature
  3. Literature Review
  4. Targeted Studies on the performance of a single testbed
  5. Comparative studies on the performance of multiple testbeds
  6. Elements & Testbeds under-study
  7. The RAN
  8. RAN Software Platforms
  9. RAN Hardware Platforms (SDR)
  10. RAN Host Computers
  11. The Core
  12. 5GC Software Platforms
  13. 5GC Hardware Platforms
  14. The UEs
  15. Miscellaneous
  16. ...and 29 more sections

Figures (4)

  • Figure 1: A typical single cell 5G-SA testbed
  • Figure 2: Our testbeds elements
  • Figure 3: Map indicating the positions where tests were conducted
  • Figure 4: CPU utilization as a function of number of UEs for OAI and srsRAN in UL and DL