In this section:

Related articles:

Modified: for 12.1.2


Use the Diam Node window to define the parameters for the SBC side of a Diameter interface.

The SBC Core uses a connection over a Diameter interface for both quality of service (QoS) resource reservation requests and for transmitting lawful intercept (LI) information to mediation servers in deployments that follow the PacketCable 2.0 LI model. Within SBC configuration there is a single Diameter node object that is shared for both use cases. 

In the first use case, the Rx interface pertains to QoS resource reservation for reserving bandwidth in an IP access network. The Rx interface is used to exchange application-level session information between a Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF) element and the P-CSCF. The SBC, acting as a P-CSCF, creates a TCP connection with the configured PCRF. For this case, you use the Diam Node window to configure the Diameter realm for sending external QoS requests on a per-IP-trunk-group basis.

In the second case, the SBC uses a Diameter-based interface (X2 interface) over TCP transport to send intercepted call data and associated call events from the SBC to an LI mediation server. In general, LI configuration must be completed by a user with specific LI privileges (the calea user). However because the Diameter node object is also used for a non-LI purpose, the name  of the Diameter node must be assigned, as described on this page, by a user with admin privileges. You then include the Diameter node name in the LI call data channel (CDC) configuration. However, the remaining Diameter configuration required to support PC 2.0 LI (Diameter peers and Diameter realm routes), must be completed by the calea user within CDC configuration. Refer to PacketCable 2.0 LI Configuration for more information and Configure CDC for PacketCable 2.0 (RAMP documentation) for procedures for configuring Diameter parameters for PC 2.0 LI deployments.


Note

The  SBC 7000 system supports creating IP Interface Groups containing sets of IP interfaces that are not "processor friendly" (i.e. carried on physical Ethernet ports served by separate processors). However, restrictions exist regarding the usage of such Interface Groups.

(This ability does not apply to the SBC 5400, which has only two physical media ports. You may configure the IP interfaces from the two physical ports within the same IP Interface Groups without restrictions.)

For complete details, refer to Configuring IP Interface Groups and Interfaces.

Do not configure PCRF on the egress leg of the trunk group for REGISTER.

When configuring the Diameter node in an HA configuration, the Secondary Origin Host parameter must be configured with the Standby hostname

The Diameter Protocol (Rx) interface is supported on SBC CNe. The Signaling Gateway (SG) Pod applies the SBC configuration related to DS, D+, DIAMETER, and Lawful Intercept (LI) IMS Signaling, similar to the SLB (Load Balancer). In a VNF environment, the Diameter Agent and Diameter client are located on the same system.  

For Diameter Rx in the CNF environment, the Diameter Agent runs on the SC or RS pod with the Diameter Client running on the SG Pod. For Lawful Intercept (LI), the Diameter Client is IM and is co-hosted on the SG Pod with the Diameter client.

The message exchanged between the SC/RS Pod (Diameter Agent) and the SG Pod (Diameter Client) are serialized using functional-blocks and sent using Inter-pod ICM service. The SG Pod is fixed to a 1:1 model. It is not scalable horizontally, which prevents storing redundancy data in the database and directly storing the information in the standby SG Pod.

On VNF, the Diameter client tracks each of the Diameter agents via registration messages sent from individual Diameter agents. Registering and maintaining the agent list on the Diameter Client was used to propagate the Diameter node configuration change to the agents. From now on, the Diameter agent reads the configuration directly from the CDB for the CNF and VNF. The DIAM client no longer pushes the configuration to the DIAM agents. Instead, the Diameter agent reads the configuration directly from CDB for the CNF and VNF environments.

To View Diam Node Configuration

On the SBC main screen, navigate to All > Address Context > Diam Node.

The Diam Node window opens. In Address Context, select the address context for the Diameter node.

Diam Node Window

Diam Node Window for SBC CNe


To Create the Diam Node

To create the Diam Node:

  1. Click New Diam Node. The Create New Diam Node window opens.



  2. Use the following table when configuring the fields and then click Save.
    Diam Node Parameters

    Parameter

    		Length/Range

    Description

    Name

    		1-23 characters

    The name of this Diameter node. If you are configuring the SBC for PC 2.0 LI, use this name in the LI CDC configuration. Refer to Configure CDC for PacketCable 2.0 (RAMP documentation) for more information.

    Origin Realm

    		1-128 characters

    The origin realm for the node.

    Primary Origin Host

    		1-128 characters

    The primary origin host for the node.

    Secondary Origin Host

    		1-128 characters

    The secondary origin host for the node.

    Transaction Timeout

    		500-6000

    The timeout value in milliseconds, with a default value of 1000.

    State

    		N/A

    The state of the Diameter node.

    • Disabled (default)
    • Enabled

    Dump Pdu

    		N/A

    When enabled, the SBC logs the DIAMETER PDU sent and received on the Rx interface to the debug log.

    • Disabled (default)
    • Enabled

    This option is not applicable if you are using the Diameter node for PC 2.0 LI.

    IP Interface Group Name

    		N/A

    The name of the IP Interface group to use.

    IP V4Address

    		N/A

    The IPv4 address used to create connections towards a peer.

    Note

    This feature does not apply to the SBC Cloud Native edition (CNe).

    IP V6Address

    		N/A

    The IPv6 address used to create connections towards a peer.

    Note

    This feature does not apply to the SBC Cloud Native edition (CNe).

    IP Name v4

    		N/A

    The IPv4 address variable name.


    Note

    This feature applies to the SBC Cloud Native edition (CNe) only.


    IP Name v6

    		N/A

    The IPv6 address variable name.


    Note

    This feature applies to the SBC Cloud Native edition (CNe) only.


    Network Segment Name

    		N/A

    The name of the Network Segment Table.


    Note

    This feature applies to the SBC Cloud Native edition (CNe) only.


To Edit the Diam Node

To edit the Diam node configuration:

  1. Click the radio button next to the Diam node name. The Edit Selected Diam Node window opens.
  2. Make any required changes and click Save.

To Delete the Diam Node 

To delete the Diam Node configuration:

  1. Click the radio button next to the Diam node you want to delete.
  2. Click the Delete icon (X) at the end of the row.
  3. Confirm the deletion when prompted.

Diameter Node Configuration for SBC CNe

Mandatory Parameters:

  1. At least one IP address name (ipNameV4 or ipNameV6) and networkSegmentName is required.
  2. diamNode name
  3. primaryOriginHost name
  4. ipInterfaceGroupName
  5. originRealm name

Default Values:

  • state = disabled
  • transactionTimeout = 1000 ms

Requirements:

  • You cannot modify the ipNameV4/ipNameV6 unless the diamNode is in disabled state.
  • The ipAddress (networkSegmentName) assigned for the diamNode is from the new Network Segment Table NsTableType="NS_SG".
  • The  ipInterfaceGroup associated with the diamNode contains at least one ipInterface of type NS_SG on non-PFE deployments.
  • The ipAddress (networkSegmentName) assigned for the diamNode is from the new Network Segment Table NsTableType="PFE" on non-PFE deployments.
  • "The  ipInterfaceGroup associated with the diamNode contains at least one ipInterface of type PFE (for PFE deployments) or type SG (for non-PFE deployments).
  • All the fields related to ipAddress/ipMetaVar are hidden for CNF.
  • You cannot modify the network segment table if the ipName is in use by the diamNode.