PortaBilling is integrated with the Huawei BRAS CX600 Router used by service providers to provide broadband Internet access.
The Huawei BRAS CX600 Router is deployed at the edge of the service provider network and acts as an aggregation point through which end users connect to the broadband Internet. It communicates with PortaBilling via the RADIUS protocol to authorize end users and manage their Internet sessions.
Once an end user starts an Internet session, the Huawei BRAS CX600 Router performs the session authorization in PortaBilling to verify that the end user has sufficient balance and is allowed to use the service. PortaBilling also provides information to the Huawei BRAS CX600 Router about bandwidth speed (for example, 1 Mbps or 10 Mbps) allocated to a particular end user.
When the Internet session is established, the Huawei BRAS CX600 Router periodically provides session usage information to PortaBilling, e.g., sends interim (also called keep-alive) accounting requests with information about the current volume of transferred data. When an end user’s balance is not sufficient to use the service, PortaBilling sends the Huawei BRAS CX600 Router a POD (Packet of Disconnect) request. The Huawei BRAS CX600 Router then switches the session to a hotlined state – e.g., redirects the end user to the service provider’s portal.
PortaBilling acts as an OCS (Online Charging System) performing such functions as authentication, authorization, and accounting of end users’ sessions.
This integration extends the variety of equipment that service providers can use for broadband Internet service provisioning.
