Difference between Mobile IP and GSM


Mobile IP extends its hand to communicate between devices that are wirelessly connected. Mobile Internet Protocol (IP) comes under the fourth layer of the OSI model called the Network layer. GSM comes under the second layer which is a physical layer of the OSI model. In GSM, the geographic area is divided into hexagonal cells, each of whose side is determined by the transmitter's strength and load. A base station with a transceiver and an antenna is located in the middle of the cell.

What is Mobile IP?

Mobile IP is a protocol that gives a set of rules to communication between devices that can change its place over time but without the change of IP address. Some of the techniques used are Encapsulation and tunneling. In the context of Mobile IP, tunneling is used to establish a virtual pipe for data packets between the Home Agent (HA) in the home network and the Foreign Agent (FA) in the foreign network.

The HA encapsulates the data packets into new packets and sends them through the tunnel to the FA. In Mobile IP, the HA encapsulates the original data packets into new packets that contain the care-of address of the mobile node as the destination address. These new packets are then sent through the tunnel to the FA, which decapsulates them and sends them to the mobile node.

Data Flow using Mobile IP

  • The Correspondent Node (CN) sends data to the Mobile Node (MN).

  • The data packets reach the Home Agent (HA) in the home network of the MN.

  • Then the Foreign Agent (FA) sends the care-of address to the HA to which all the packets should be sent.

  • A tunnel is established between the HA and the FA by the process of tunneling.

  • The HA encapsulates the data packets into new packets and sends them through the tunnel to the FA.

Example

A New York resident has a Smartphone with a dedicated IP address provided by his local home network. When he visits London and connects to an international network there. Without Mobile IP, the foreign network in London would give his Smartphone a new IP address and terminate any open connections or sessions.

However, while connected to the foreign network in London, his Smartphone might retain its permanent IP address with the help of a Mobile IP. To create a tunnel through which data packets can be transmitted to his Smartphone, the Home Agent (HA) in his home network in New York talks with the Foreign Agent (FA) in the foreign network of London.

The data packets are encapsulated by the HA before being tunneled to the FA, which decapsulates them before sending them to the Smartphone

What is Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM)?

GSM came into existence as an advancement over the analog system. GSM technology used the TDMA for communication purposes between the devices. Before the development of GSM, analog signals were used to transmit voice and data signals to the receiver. The GSM used discrete signals which means digital signals to transmit data in terms of “0’s” and “1’s”.

By transmitting using discrete signals, it makes use of maximum bandwidth and also provides a secure way of data transmission

Features of GSM

  • Roaming

  • Adaptability

  • Support

Example of GSM

When the phone connects to the closest mobile tower when we call, then asks the network to set up the call. To distribute the available bandwidth across numerous customers, the network combines time division multiple access (TDMA) and frequency division multiple access (FDMA). Our voice is digitized and sent to the recipient over the airways after the call has been set up.

Similar to voice calls, sending a text message involves connecting our phone to the closest cell tower and transmitting the message to the network. The recipient's phone receives the message across the network and sees it on their screen.

Difference between Mobile IP and GSM

Basic Parameters

Mobile IP

GSM

Year

It was launched in 1996.

It was launched in 1991.

Purpose

It allows users of mobile devices to switch between networks while keeping their permanent IP address.

It is the standard for digital cellular communication used to deliver mobile voice and data services

Functionality

The packets or IP addresses are used independent of the location used.

It provides some services like data, SMS services, and video transfer.

Open System Interconnection Model

It comes under the network layer of the OSI model

It comes under the second layer of the OSI model.

Technology

The techniques used are encapsulation and tunneling.

It combines the TDMA and FDMA techniques.

Conclusion

Mobile IP is an advancement over the Internet Protocol. Using mobile IP, users can communicate between devices without sessions or connections dropping. Tunneling is the process of encapsulating one network protocol within another and encapsulation is the process of wrapping one packet of data within another packet.

Updated on: 18-Jul-2023

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