Viewpoint: Practical Application of Softswitch technology in networking

With the development of China's exchange industry, we have also promoted updates and upgrades of various exchange technologies. Here we have analyzed the network numbers of the Softswitch technology. For next-generation networks, names will be used mainly for E.164 numbers. Therefore, the relationship between numbers and addressing needs to be resolved. In E.164, You need to assign a corresponding number to each endpoint connected to the network. These numbers can be directly used for addressing.

In addition, with the development of networks and businesses, E.164 numbers are not only allocated to endpoints, but also to various businesses. These business numbers include access codes or business numbers assigned to users, such as the 800 number of the centralized payment service called, and the 700 number in personal communications. These numbers are numbers assigned to individuals or enterprises and cannot be directly used for addressing. For addressing, You need to translate it into corresponding physical numbers that can be used for addressing. Therefore, numbers are divided into two layers: user-level. At this level, the number is changed to the personal name, which does not change with the network, such as the UPT number and 800 number. The other layer is the network number corresponding to each endpoint. This number is used for network addressing. Of course, the vast majority of current numbers are user-oriented and network-oriented numbers. They are the same common phone numbers, both for personal names and for network addressing. However, with the development of business and personalized development of numbers, the separation between the two layers will be more obvious. Therefore, numbers in the next generation network still have user-oriented and network-oriented address numbers.

The numbering, naming, and addressing of the Next Generation Network involves a lot of content, but in terms of numbering, the next generation network directly involves the number of the Softswitch technology. The number mentioned in this article only involves the number assigned to the endpoint. We try to make a preliminary analysis on the softswitch endpoint number scheme.

With the introduction of Softswitch technology in the network, it is necessary to consider the numbering of various terminals in the softswitch network. Terminals that can be connected by Softswitch technology include fixed telephone terminals, mobile phone terminals, various IP terminals and multimedia terminals. To enable communication between these terminals and their existing network terminals, an E.164 number must be assigned to these terminals. Number assigned. How to assign a number involves charges, network organization, and business opening. This is a complicated problem. This article aims to clarify the various problems involved and compare possible solutions.

Although there is no clear definition of the Next Generation Network, many countries or operators have considered the introduction of Softswitch technology in the network as part of the evolution to the next generation network. The characteristics of softswitch-based networking are as follows: terminals can be analog terminals, fixed telephone terminals, mobile terminals, and multimedia terminals, numbers must be allocated to these terminals.

The capacity of the Softswitch technology is large, and the network organization is more flexible than that of the traditional circuit switching network. The Application of Softswitch technology in China is mainly based on the blank area of the network, the capacity of these areas is not very large, so a Softswitch can cover multiple cities, so it can be networked across cities.

Softswitch is usually carried over IP networks. The concept of IP Networking is different from that of traditional networks. For example, IP networking does not distinguish between long-distance local and international services, while traditional networks distinguish between local and international services. Therefore, it is worth studying which concept should be used to design the numbering scheme.

The number of the softswitch network has an impact on the traditional telecommunication network. Currently, the soft replacement network is mainly used for voice services. Therefore, if the network of the softswitch technical organization is different from the traditional network in terms of billing and number placement, it will obviously affect the use of the traditional network, this bypasses the business volume of traditional networks. Therefore, multiple factors must be taken into account to determine the numbers of softswitch terminals.

When a Softswitch technical user is called, if it is a user call from another network, it should theoretically be directly connected to the softswitch network. However, to determine whether the user is a Softswitch technical user, you need to determine 6 ~ 7-digit number. If the IP address is a Softswitch IP address, it is connected to the peer Softswitch technical network through the softswitch network. If you cannot identify so many digits, you may encounter difficulties in selecting the softswitch network, and the ASN may be attached to the PSTN network. Only when the user arrives at the receiving end of the PSTN network can it be determined that the user belongs to the softswitch user and then is connected to the softswitch network. Even multimedia users may experience Softswitch over the PSTN network, which is not suitable for the development of multimedia services. Therefore, according to the needs of multimedia business development, the use of local numbers in multimedia terminals is flawed.