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Lab Description

5G Open RAN Testbed –based on open source components


The SNR testbed provides a cloud-native Open RAN platform for the integration, validation
and evaluation of secure 5G network services. The platform follows the O-RAN Alliance
reference architecture, integrating disaggregated radio access network components with an
open-source 5G Core Network, cloud-native orchestration, and cybersecurity mechanisms.
The testbed supports end-to-end Standalone (SA) operation while providing an experimental
environment for validating programmable Open RAN services, and cybersecurity solutions
developed within the project.
The infrastructure is deployed on a Kubernetes cluster hosted on Dell PowerEdge servers
and consists of four functional layers: (i) cloud infrastructure, (ii) management and
orchestration, (iii) radio access network, and (iv) 5G Core Network.

Management and Orchestration Layer

The management layer is based on the O-RAN Service Management and Orchestration
(SMO) framework, which provides centralized lifecycle management of the Open RAN
infrastructure. The SMO is responsible for the deployment, configuration, software
management, fault management and performance monitoring of the O-RAN components
through the standardized O1 interface. It also provides the execution environment for rApps,
enabling policy-driven optimization, network analytics and service automation operating at
the non-real-time timescale.
The Open RAN software components are deployed using the BubbleRAN MX-PDK, which
provides the cloud-native deployment framework for the O-RAN functions and their lifecycle
management within the Kubernetes environment.

Radio Access Network

The radio access network follows the disaggregated O-RAN architecture and comprises the
O-RAN Central Unit (O-CU), O-RAN Distributed Unit (O-DU) and O-RAN Radio Unit (O-RU).
The O-CU and O-DU are deployed as containerized network functions within the Kubernetes
cluster, while the O-RU provides the radio-frequency interface towards the user equipment.
Communication between the O-DU and O-RU follows the standardized Open Fronthaul
(OFH) interface, enabling interoperability between different vendors. The O-CU and O-DU
communicate through the standardized F1 interface, while internal control and management
functions are performed through the corresponding O-RAN management interfaces.
The platform supports the deployment of commercial and software-defined radio equipment,
allowing experimentation with different Open RAN deployment scenarios and interoperability
studies.

5G Core Network

The Standalone 5G Core Network is implemented using Open5GS, providing the complete
Service-Based Architecture (SBA) required for end-to-end network operation. The
deployment includes the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session
Management Function (SMF), User Plane Function (UPF), Network Repository Function
(NRF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Network
Slice Selection Function (NSSF), and Policy Control Function (PCF) network functions
interconnected through standardized 3GPP Service-Based Interfaces (SBI).
The 5GC interfaces with the O-CU via the standard N2 (control plane) and N3 (user plane)
interfaces, enabling complete registration, session establishment and user-plane
connectivity. Commercial 5G User Equipment together with UERANSIM are used for
functional validation, interoperability testing and controlled traffic generation.

Cloud Infrastructure

All software components are deployed as containerized network functions on a Kubernetes
cluster executing on Dell PowerEdge servers. Kubernetes provides resource scheduling,
service orchestration, fault recovery and lifecycle management of the deployed network
functions. The compute infrastructure is interconnected through high-speed Ethernet
switches supporting management, fronthaul and backhaul connectivity between the different
functional components.

Cloud-Native Security Framework

To support cybersecurity experimentation, the Kubernetes platform integrates a cloud-native
security framework based on eBPF technologies.

Experimental Capabilities

The testbed illustrated in Figure 5 supports the experimental evaluation of:

  • O-RAN management and orchestration through the SMO platform.
  • End-to-end Standalone 5G operation based on Open5GS.
  • Deployment and lifecycle management of cloud-native O-RAN components.
  • Open Fronthaul interoperability between disaggregated RAN components.
  • Integration of commercial and software-defined radio equipment.
  • Zero Trust networking and identity-based policy enforcement.
  • Runtime protection of containerized network functions.
  • Network observability and security monitoring using eBPF telemetry.
  • Controlled cyberattack scenarios including denial-of-service, unauthorized workload execution and lateral movement within the Kubernetes cluster.
  • Validation of secure Open RAN deployments and cloud-native cybersecurity mechanisms.

The modular architecture allows new network functions, security services and intelligent O-
RAN applications to be integrated with minimal modifications, making the platform suitable
for evaluating advanced 5G and beyond-5G networking concepts under realistic deployment
conditions.

Physical Testbed

Measurement and Validation Infrastructure

To support the experimental validation of the deployed Open RAN network, the testbed
incorporates a dedicated 5G NR measurement and analysis platform based on the VIAVI
OneAdvisor 800 equipped with the 5G NR Signal Analysis module Figure 6 . The instrument
enables real-time monitoring of the radio interface and provides independent verification of
the physical-layer behaviour of the deployed network.
The analyzer supports over-the-air and direct RF measurements of the deployed 5G NR
carrier, including synchronization signal detection, carrier configuration, resource allocation,
and radio resource utilization. It enables verification of the transmitted waveform,
identification of serving cells, and assessment of radio scheduling under different traffic and
cybersecurity scenarios.

The platform provides measurements including:

  • Carrier frequency and bandwidth verification.
  • Synchronization Signal Block (SSB) detection and PCI identification.
  • Resource Block (RB) allocation and Physical Resource Block (PRB) utilization.
  • Frame and slot-level scheduling visualization.
  • Received signal power and spectrum occupancy.
  • Radio resource utilization under varying traffic conditions.
  • Verification of Open RAN radio transmissions during functional and cybersecurity experiments.

The measurement platform is used throughout the experimental campaign to validate correct
operation of the Open RAN deployment, quantify radio resource utilization, and assess the
impact of network reconfiguration and security mechanisms on radio performance.

5G NR signal analysis (left) resource block allocation, (middle) waveforms and modulation formats, (right) synhronization