VoLTE and Private APN

[Joe60]

Hi All

Does anyone know if its possible to have a SIM with a private APN on it and have VoLTE enabled as well.

Thanks.

[Christopher_G]

Hi @Joe60

Welcome to the community. 🙂

Could you explain what you mean by private APN?

Chris

[Joe60]

Hi Christopher_G
This is the full story.
The company I work for provide cellular mobile data communications. We pay for a fixed data line into the EE network this is called an Access Point Name (APN). All our mobile data connections send data to this APN and only SIMs that have our APN on them can send data to our APN.
We are investigating EEs Band 20 (800MHz) coverage so to do this we have locked the cellular modem to 4G and Band 20. We normally use EE M2M SIMs our EE M2M account manager has informed us that in order to connect to EE 4G Band 20 the SIMs have to be VoLTE (EE refer to this as 4G Calling) enabled but VoLTE is not available on M2M SIMs. We have an enquiry in with our EE Commercial Account manager to see if he can provide a “commercial” SIM.
Summarising I need a SIM with VoLTE so it will connect to EE Band 20 and our own private APN on so I can send data to our own private APN.
Hope this makes sense.

Joe

[bristolian]

Hi @Joe60 

I don't know the exact setup you have there, but locking any device to particular 4G bands is generally a bad idea - if 4G coverage on other bands becomes available, then by locking you won't be able to use the additional spectrum available. If B20 is the only coverage layer available, your device won't need locking. In either case, that seems unnecessary to me.

M2M SIMs that are being used in devices capable of using B20 - strictly speaking - shouldn't need VoLTE enabling unless the voice service is needed. But they would need an exemption added to allow 800Mhz access, and it sounds like your account manager is already seeing whether this would be permissible.

[Joe60]

Hi bristolian

This is not an operational system it is a R&D investigation project. We are investigating EE Band 20 coverage so locking to Band 20 is not an issue. I cannot go into specifics.

Our EE M2M account manager has categorically stated that VoLTE cannot be provisioned for on a EE M2M SIM. This is what he said:

Our EE support team have advised that the reason you cannot utilise the 800MHz band is because your plan doesn't allow VoLTE. Band 20 is reserved for VoLTE users only.

The LTE800 band is reserved for VoLTE users. All other users are rejected with CC15 – No suitable cells in TA. – It is controlled by the RFSPid value in the HSS subscription. A value of 1 = VoLTE capable and can use LTE800.

I am afraid that none of the plans we offer include VoLTE as this is not a service that we support as BT Control Centre SIMs are not provisioned on the IMS platform, so VoLTE isn't available. (IMS = IP multimedia subsystem).

Unfortunately, VoLTE is not possible with M2M SIMs.

It looks like I am now at a dead end with our EE M2M account manager. Our EE “commercial” account manager has gone very quiet, so I am trying another route into EE in the hope that I can get a definitive answer.

To me this appears to be a very simple question, but I don’t seem to be able to connect with anybody in EE who can answer it.

Joe

[bristolian]

That would be a good exception to the rule of not locking to particular bands, and you have hit upon one of the idiosyncracies of Band 20.

There are valid technical reasons why the 800Mhz band is restricted to VoLTE-devices, but some data-only devices also fell foul of the restrictions when the frequency band was initially deployed. Exceptions were later added to allow them to connect, but I am unsure of the exact mechanics behind those exceptions.

It sounds like your SIMs may be effectively 2G/3G-only, judging by the comment about not being provisioned on the IMS-platform.

[ewanrw]

Out of curiosity, are you able to use VoWiFi?

Reason I ask is I know other networks don’t support VoWiFi when you have your own APN,

[bristolian]

It's a good point @ewanrw - although if the SIM is in a cellular modem, then @Joe60 would need to find a known VoWiFi-compatible device to test with, something that may not be practical.

Although VoWiFi & VoLTE normally go together, some older phones do support one but not the other.

[Joe60]

Hi All

It sounds like your SIMs may be effectively 2G/3G-only, judging by the comment about not being provisioned on the IMS-platform.

The SIMs are definitely 4G I can lock the modem to 4G and Band 3 or Band 7 and it works as expected.

Out of curiosity, are you able to use VoWiFi?

Our M2M SIMs don't have voice on by default if I get time I may get voice enabled and see if WiFi calling works.

Also if I use an O2 SIM I have no problem locking to 4G and Band 20 so this is an idiosyncrasy of the EE network. Incidentally with the EE SIM the modem does lock to Band 20 but it reports registration denied.

I have received a message that an EE account manager is going to phone me. Fingers cross.

[ewanrw]

So it’s likely that your M2M SIMs aren’t provisioned at network level to use band 20, so will either be a limitation of EE’s M2M solution, by design or otherwise, or it might be a feature that needs to be requested. Hopefully the latter for your requirements.