M2M is an abbreviation for Machine to Machine. With little involvement from humans, M2M technology allows communication between machines to run more reliably, efficiently, and affordably. This is achieved by using telemetry, which is a language used by machines when speaking to one another.
The hardware and software that enable physical devices to connect, also collects data that is incorporated into IT systems. This data provides valuable information that helps B2C and B2B monitor and optimize their businesses.
SIM or Subscriber Identity Module is a removable smart card that stores the service subscriber key, often abbreviated as IMSI. The service subscriber key and authentication codes are used to identify a subscriber’s mobile telephony device (computer) and mobile phones.
APN is a common name for an access point on HSDPA/HSUPA/GPRS/3G/4G/.
There are three types of access points:
1). Internet network where a mobile device can connect.
2). The settings used to make that connection.
3). A specific configuration in a group of settings on a mobile phone.
All network providers have a Public APN. After a SIM card is enabled for data from GPRS/3G/4G or any other mobile telecommunication technology, the Public APN is added by default. The Public APN has no limitations on users and is open to use by everyone.
With a Private APN a customer has direct access to their LAN and can specify specific parameters like the private address space allocated to the devices & RADIUS server attributes used for user authentication. This APN also allows users to access the internet.
Security is one of the key benefits to a Private APN. By staying completely on a GPRS/3G, you’re exposure to external threats, such as viruses and spammers, is almost eliminated.
Another benefit of a Private APN is the lower complexity of the communication path, which also reduces chance of system failure.
Think of it as an address for your internet connected devices. An IP address is a unique identification number assigned to every machine that interfaces with the internet. An example of an IP address looks like: 212.47.31.315
The decimals used to express IP addresses are used primarily to aid in recall of the numbers. Think of it as an international telephone number. First you have the country code, then you have the area code, and finally a regional prefix. With an IP address, data can be sent to any machine.
A public IP address is an IP address visible to anyone. Since these IP addresses are public, other people can find and access devices, like a Web server.
An IP number that lies within the IP address ranges designated for private use by the Internet standards groups. The ranges reserved for Private IP addresses are:
10.0.0.0 through 10.255.255.255
169.254.0.0 through 169.254.255.255 (APIPA only)
172.16.0.0 through 172.31.255.255
192.168.0.0 through 192.168.255.255
Private IP addresses are normally used on local networks such as schools, home and business LAN’s including many hotels and airports. Devices that have private IP address are unable to directly access the internet. Similarly, computers beyond the local network are unable to connect to a device with a Private IP address. The alternative lets these devices access the internet through a brokered router or similar device that is capable of supporting NAT or Network Address Translation. This acronym conceals the Private IP numbers, but allows selective exchange of messages between devices, adding another layer of security to the local network.
Sometimes referred to as a static IP address, a fixed IP address is an address assigned to a computer by an Internet service provider (ISP) and is its permanent address on the Internet.
IP addresses are used by computers to locate and communicate with each other while on the internet. This process is similar to how we use our telephones to communicate and locate businesses and friends. Like a phone number, an IP address will be the same no matter the frequency it connects/disconnects from a network.
Upon connecting to a network a machine can be assigned a dynamic IP address, which will change when the machine disconnects. In its simplest terms a dynamic IP address is the opposite of a fixed IP address, because every time the machine connects to the network it will pick up a new IP address.
Public IP addresses have several advantage for customers who want to connect to a network from any machine anywhere. Setting up a VPN tunnel is not necessary and is one of the reasons a fixed public IP address can be ideal for users without a firewall or don’t mandate setup of a VPN tunnel of some type. Conversely, a device with a public IP address can be connected by anyone who knows the IP address.
This represents a potential security threat to the customer, and if you have a 3G/GPRS router it is strongly advised to set up a logon page to stop unauthorized access.
Unlike a public IP address, a private IP address stays ‘hidden’ for the device. No machine can access the device without setting up a secure VPN tunnel between the device and the machine. This added layer of security is crucial to customers whose data is of the utmost importance.
A VPN allows machines to connect from a public network (most often the internet) to devices that use private IP address. VPN’s use ‘virtual’ connections that are directed through the Internet from the business’ private network to the remote device. Used by those with a private IP address on their SIMs
Two firewalls used to create a VPN tunnel. We use IPSEC VPN tunnels at Ci2i. The configuration of the firewall is done on our side first and then sent with the appropriate configured parameters to the customer. The configured parameters are entered by the customer into their firewall/router.
This enables any machine or machines using a company’s LAN to connect to any of their devices using our M2M SIMs. This VPN connection is an always-on type. If a customer wanted to create a site-to-site tunnel, the customer would require a hardware firewall/router capable of setting up an IPSEC VPN tunnel.
For customers who need a Private IP address but lack a hardware firewall/router, they can quickly download the Sonicwall NetExtender VPN client. We will then setup the customer with a username and password. The customer would enter the login information to start up the VPN client.
This will create a VPN tunnel from the client’s machine to the devices that have the SIM cards. When the client has disconnected, the VPN tunnel will break. It doesn’t matter where any machine is once it has the VPN client installed. It will now be able to access the devices with private IP addresses.
General Packet Radio Service, is a wireless technology used by GSM (Global System for Mobile) networks to enable Internet and other data communication.
GPRS is packet based so you can stay online for an endless amount of time because only downloaded data is observed with this service.
3G stands for third generation, a generic term in the wireless industry for mobile data at high speeds delivered over mobileular networks. 3G networks lets users send and receive high bandwidth information like video, virtual conferences, high quality audio and web data on-demand, almost anytime and anywhere in the world.
4G is the next or fourth generation of mobile telephony, with an umbrella of standards beyond 3G that are being developed. One large reason for this is to bring mobile systems together with other networks like Wi-Fi and WiMAX.
(HSDPA) High-Speed Downlink Packet Access is a new mobile telephony protocol and is often referred to as a 3.5G (or 3½G) technology. HSDPA provides a smooth evolutionary path for Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) networks allowing for data capacities of up to 14.4 Mbit/s per cell downlink and 2 Mbit/s in the uplink per cell.
High-Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA) is a 3G mobile telephony protocol with up-link speeds up to 5.76 Mbit/s in the HSPA family.
Global System for Mobile communications commands in excess of 71 per cent of the world market. It was originally created for Europe as their second generation digital technology.
Developed originally for operation in the 900MHz band. Modified for the 850, 1800 and 1900MHz bands. At one time GSM stood for Group Special Mobile, the CEPT committee which started the GSM standardization process.
HLR is the network database that contains the details of every customer SIM card, it stands for ‘Home Location Register.’ Before a customer can access a service, the network must check the HLR to see if the customer has the required authorization. HLR also keeps the customers’ locations, this SMS’ and incoming calls to be connected.
There are many circumstances where a PDP context will be closed by a local network, which may have come into play.
• Lack of radio access
• Roaming network initiated close (i.e. the network that you are roaming on is using a shorter timeout)
• Application closed access (Hang up)
