METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETERMINING PCRF

• US 20160073328A1
• Filed: 05/12/2014
• Published: 03/10/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: LI, Xiangyang, CAI, Yigang
• Application Number:
  US14/786,745
• Publication Number:
  US 20160073328A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1407 Policy-and-charging control [PCC] architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4588 containing mobile subscriber information, e.g. home subscriber server [HSS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/14 using user query or user detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/12 between location registers or mobility servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/205 Transfer to or from user equipment or user record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 Network addressing or numbering for mobility support

Abstract

First, correspondence relationships between subscribers and PCRFs are preset in HSS, and a same PCRF is configured to subscribers belonging to the same subscriber group. Then, the MME or AF or 3GPP AAA server sends a query message to HSS, obtains the PCRF corresponding to a certain subscriber, and then sends the PCRF information to S-GW or P-GW or ePDG. In this way, S-GW or P-GW or ePDG may send messages related to the same subscriber or the same subscriber group to the same PCRF. A network element may send to the same PCRF messages related to the same subscriber or the same subscriber group as required to be sent to the PCRFs, such that the same PCRF performs a uniform control to all related sessions of the same subscriber or the same subscriber group.

Claims

1. A method of determining PCRF in a first network server, said first network server storing information related to subscribers, the method comprising the following steps:

receiving a first request message containing identification information of a subscriber from a second network server;

determining a PCRF corresponding to the subscriber based on preset correspondence relationships between subscribers and PCRFs;

sending a first reply message containing identification information of the determined PCRF to said second network server;

wherein the first network server pre-stores the correspondence relationships between subscribers and PCRFs.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first network server is a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) or Subscriber Profile Repository (SPR), said second network server is a Mobility Management Entity (MME) or an Application Function (AF) or a 3GPP AAA server.

3. A method of determining PCRF in a second network server, comprising the following steps:

sending a first request message containing identification information of a subscriber to a first network server;

receiving a first reply message containing identification information of the PCRF corresponding to the subscriber from the first network server;

wherein, said first network server pre-stores correspondence relationships between subscribers and PCRFs.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein said first network server is a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) or a Subscriber Profile Repository (SPR), and said second network server is a Mobility Management Entity (MME) or an Application Function (AF) or a 3GPP AAA server.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein when the second network server is a mobility management entity (MME) or a 3GPP AAA server, the step of sending a first request message to the first network server further comprises:

sending a first request message to the first network server in response to an attachment request from the subscriber.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein when the second network server is a mobility management entity (MME) or a 3GPP AAA server, after said step of receiving a first reply message from said first network server, further comprising:

sending a second request message containing said identification information of the subscriber and identification information of the PCRF to a third network server.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the third network server is a Service Gateway (S-GW) or a Packet Data Network Gateway (P-GW) or an Evolved Packet Data Gateway (ePDG).

8. An apparatus of determining PCRF in a first network server, said first network server stores information related to subscribers, the apparatus comprises:

a first receiving device for receiving a first request message containing identification information of a subscriber from a second network server;

a determining device for determining a PCRF corresponding to the subscriber based on preset correspondence relationships between subscribers and PCRFs;

a first sending device for sending a first reply message containing identification information of the determined PCRF to said second network server;

wherein said first network server pre-stores the correspondence relationships between subscribers and PCRFs.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said first network server is a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) or Subscriber Profile Repository (SPR), said second network server is a Mobility Management Entity (MME) or an Application Function (AF) or a 3GPP AAA server.

10. An apparatus of determining PCRF in a second network server, which comprises:

a second sending device for sending a first request message containing identification information of a subscriber to a first network server;

a second receiving device for receiving a first reply message containing identification information of the PCRF corresponding to said subscriber from said first network server;

wherein said first network server pre-stores correspondence relationships between subscribers and PCRFs.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said first network server is a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) or Subscriber Profile Repository (SPR), the second network server is a Mobility Management Entity (MME) or an Application Function (AF) or a 3GPP AAA server.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein, when said second network server is a Mobility Management Entity (MME) or a 3GPP AAA server, said second network server is also used for sending a first request message to the first network server in response to an attachment request from said subscriber.

13. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein, when said second network server is a Mobility Management Entity (MME) or a 3GPP AAA server, said apparatus comprises a third sending device, used for sending a second request message containing identification information of the subscriber and identification information of the PCRF to a third network server after the step of the second receiving device receiving a first reply message from said first network server.

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein said third network server is a Service Gateway (S-GW) or a Packet Data Network Gateway (P-GW) or an Evolved Packet Data Gateway (ePDG).