Installation - Callbox

The purpose of this tutorial is to show you how to install a new release on the Callbox. Even with sophisticated functionality, the size of the installation package is pretty small (comparing to the package that comes with other equipment) and installation process is simple and reliable.

There are a fewways of the installation that are most commonly used as follows. In terms of the installation software (installation script), there is no differences between them. The differences come from the option parameter used with install.sh

• ./install.sh : Run the installation scrip without any option. If you install in this way, the script would let you to respond to questions for each step of the installation (this is mainly for you to select the which component to install).
• ./install.sh --default : Run the installation scrip with the option '--default'. With this, the script would install all the components defined in 'default' option and you don't need to manually specify anything during the installation. The installation script will install every components based on default configuration.

NOTE : The questions (item selection quation) during the installation would vary with the contents (components) contained in the installation tar ball. This contents is defined by the license options that you have purchased. When you download the installation package from extranet, the extranet creates the tar ball based on your license option and let you download it.

NOTE : Is there any way to change the items for the default installation ? Yes. Perform the manual installation (i.e, ./install.sh without option) and reply to all the questions during the installation process. The answer you replied in this process will be stored in /root/lte-install and the selection stored in this file will be used as your own 'default' option.

Table of Contents

• Installation - Callbox
• Introduction
• Summary of the Tutorial
• Directory Structure of Installed Release
• Download the New Release
• Install
• Downgrade / Switching to Different Release
• Downgrading / Switching to 2022-09-16 or later
• Downgrading / Switching to older than 2022-09-16

Introduction

The Callbox is a specialized telecommunications testing device that provides a comprehensive platform for simulating network environments and validating the performance of network equipment and devices. Its modular architecture enables users to install, upgrade, and manage a wide array of software components tailored to specific testing needs, making it a vital tool for network engineers and developers. The installation process for new software releases on the Callbox is engineered to be both efficient and robust, featuring a compact installation package despite the system’s advanced functionality. The installation script (install.sh) is designed to accommodate different user preferences—offering both interactive and automated installation modes—by utilizing option parameters that dictate the installation workflow. The flexibility of this process is further enhanced by license-dependent packaging, ensuring that users only receive and install components relevant to their purchased features. This tutorial details the procedures for installing new releases on the Callbox, clarifying the distinctions between installation methods, the role of user input, and mechanisms for customizing installation defaults, all within the context of a secure and reliable deployment environment. Understanding this process is crucial for maintaining system integrity, ensuring feature availability, and optimizing the operational capabilities of the Callbox in diverse laboratory and field settings.

• Context of the Technology
  • The Callbox is a high-performance network test instrument, widely used for simulating various telecommunication scenarios, protocol validation, and device certification.
  • Its software-defined functionality is modular, allowing targeted installation and upgrades of specific test suites, protocols, or features via controlled installation packages.
  • The installation process is managed through the install.sh script, which supports both manual and automated workflows, improving operational flexibility.
• Relevance and Importance of the Tutorial
  • Efficient installation and upgrade processes are essential for minimizing downtime and ensuring that the Callbox operates with the latest features and security enhancements.
  • Understanding the installation mechanisms empowers users to tailor system configurations to their specific licensing and testing requirements.
  • The ability to customize default installation parameters streamlines future deployments and supports rapid adaptation to evolving test needs.
• What Learners Will Gain
  • Comprehensive knowledge of the Callbox software installation process, including both interactive and default installation modes.
  • Insights into the structure and significance of the installation package relative to licensed features.
  • Practical skills for customizing installation defaults and understanding how user selections are persisted for subsequent installations.
  • Best practices for maintaining system reliability and managing software upgrades in a controlled test environment.
• Prerequisite Knowledge and Skills
  • Basic familiarity with Linux command-line operations and permissions.
  • Understanding of file system navigation and execution of scripts in a Unix-like environment.
  • Awareness of Callbox system architecture and licensed feature management is beneficial, but not mandatory.

Summary of the Tutorial

This tutorial outlines the procedures for installing, verifying, and downgrading the Amarisoft Callbox software release. The instructions cover handling both standard installations and situations requiring firmware changes, including step-by-step methodologies for each scenario.

• Directory Structure Verification:
  • Check the /root directory for an existing installation directory structure.
• Downloading the New Release:
  • Obtain the installation package (Tarball) from the Amarisoft Extranet account.
  • Place the downloaded package in a desired directory (e.g., /root or /tmp), noting that /tmp is volatile and may be cleared on reboot.
• Installation Procedure:
  • Untar the downloaded package to extract the installation directory and files.
  • Navigate to the extracted directory (e.g., 2021-11-19) and list its contents, ensuring the presence of the installation shell script and required files.
  • Run the installation shell program using the --default parameter for automatic selection of typical options:
    • If --default is omitted, manual selection of all options during installation is required.
  • Wait for the installation to complete, confirming success via the "Installation Successful" message.
• Post-Installation Verification and Actions:
  • Verify the creation of installation directories in /root related to Amari Callbox.
  • Check the status of the LTE service using service lte status to ensure the application layer program is running.
  • Important: A successful status does not guarantee full functionality; a system reboot is recommended to complete component upgrades (e.g., FPGA on SDR card).
  • If issues arise (e.g., SDR card errors), first try rebooting the PC. If the problem persists, refer to the SDR checkup tutorial.
• Downgrade / Switching to a Different Release:
  • The process is similar to installation, with additional considerations for firmware compatibility.
  • For releases 2022-09-16 or later:
    • Perform installation and firmware switching in a single step with ./install.sh --trx-force-upgrade.
  • For releases older than 2022-09-16:
    • Step 1: Install the software using ./install.sh --default.
    • Step 2: Reflash the firmware:
      • Stop the LTE service: service lte stop.
      • Navigate to /root/trx_sdr.
      • Upgrade the SDR firmware: ./sdr_util upgrade -force.

Directory Structure of Installed Release

In most cases you may have a software release already installed on your machine (callbox). If there is an existing installation, you would see the directory struction in /root directory something similar to following.

The command output shows the installed Callbox release structure under the /root directory. Each Amarisoft component is stored in a version-specific directory, such as lteenb-linux-2021-10-14, ltemme-linux-2021-10-14, lteots-linux-2021-10-14, and trx_sdr-linux-2021-10-14. Short symbolic links such as enb, mme, ots, mbms, and trx_sdr point to the corresponding active release directories, allowing the system to use simple and release-independent paths.

Download the New Release

Download the new Callbox release installation package from the Amarisoft Extranet Releases page. Locate the required release by its date, then click the download icon next to the release entry to download the installation tarball.

Place the downloaded installation tarball in a convenient working directory, such as /root, and verify it using the pwd and ll commands. Avoid storing it in /tmp if the Callbox may be power-cycled, because files in /tmp can be deleted. The components included in the tarball depend on the license options registered for the Amarisoft Extranet account.

NOTE : you may put the file into /tmp if you like, but be aware that the contents of /tmp will be deleted when you power cycle the PC.

NOTE : The contents (components) contained within the downloaded tarball varies with the license options registerred in the extranet download site.

Install

Extract the downloaded installation package with the tar xzf command. This creates the installation files and directories required for the new Amarisoft release.

After extraction, a new directory named with the release date, such as 2021-11-19, is created beside the original tarball. This directory contains the software packages and installation script required to install the new Amarisoft release.

Enter the extracted release directory and use ll to verify its contents. The directory includes install.sh, the installation guide, supporting libraries, and component-specific tarballs such as lteenb, ltemme, lteots, lteue, lteww, and trx_sdr. The exact set of packages depends on the license options registered for the Amarisoft Extranet account.

NOTE : The contents (components) contained within this directory would vary with the license options registerred in the extranet download site.

Run ./install.sh --default from the extracted release directory to install the software using the installer’s predefined selections. The --default option automatically answers the installation prompts and is recommended for a standard Callbox installation. Run ./install.sh without this option only when specific components or non-default settings, such as a non-Amarisoft SDR, must be selected manually.

NOTE : '--default' parameter selects appropriate options prompted by the installer during the installation process. If you don't put this parameter, you need to manually select all the options being asked during the installation process. I strongly recommend you to use this option unless you know exactly what you need to select for each options during the installation or you need to select any specific installation options like using non-amarisoft sdr or install only specific components of the callbox software.

The installer detects the Callbox model and proceeds through the configuration questions automatically using the --default selections. It enables the LTE automatic service, migrates configuration files from the currently installed release, and installs the selected EPC and eNB components with their default options. No user input is required while the default responses are applied.

Wait for the installer to complete all component installation, SDR initialization, firmware checks, configuration migration, and service startup. Confirm that the process ends with Installation successful. Review any migration warnings because modified configuration files may be imported as backup files and require manual reapplication of previous changes.

After installation, the new version-specific component directories appear under /root while the previous release directories remain available. Symbolic links such as enb, mme, mbms, ots, and trx_sdr are updated to point to the newly installed 2021-11-19 release, making it the active Callbox software version.

Check the Amarisoft LTE service with service lte status and confirm that it reports active (running). This status only verifies that the LTE service process is running and does not guarantee correct Callbox operation. Reboot the Callbox after installation because SDR firmware or FPGA updates may require a system restart. If SDR-related errors remain after rebooting, perform the SDR checkout procedure.

NOTE : 'service lte status' just shows the status of the application layer program. Even if you see the same result as shown above, it does not guarantee that LTE 100 works properly.

NOTE : Even though you may see 'active(running)' after installation, I strongly recommend you to reboot the PC after installation because some components (e.g, FPGA upgrade on sdr card done in the process of installation) requires PC reboot.

NOTE : If you have any problem (like error message about sdr card) after the installation, the first option I want to suggest is to reboot the PC and try again. If the problem still remains after the PC reboot, try check sdr as per the tutorial : sdr checkup.

Downgrade / Switching to Different Release

Basically Downgrade or switching to other software release is same as Installation procedure explained above. We don't have any separate procedure for downlink or software switching. But there is something you need to keep in mind when you trying downgrade. Depending on situation, downgrade / firmware switching requires firmware switching. You can do it with following two ways.

Downgrading / Switching to 2022-09-16 or later

You can do the installation and firmware switching in a single step as below.

./install.sh --trx-force-upgrade

Downgrading / Switching to older than 2022-09-16

In this case, you have to do it in two steps.

Step 1 : Install the software

./install.sh --default

Step 2: Reflash the firmware

service lte stop cd /root/trx_sdr ./sdr_util upgrade -force