{"id":41,"date":"2026-03-09T00:22:37","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T00:22:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/?p=41"},"modified":"2026-03-09T00:22:37","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T00:22:37","slug":"the-move-to-open5gs-as-the-core","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/2026\/03\/09\/the-move-to-open5gs-as-the-core\/","title":{"rendered":"The Move to Open5GS as the core"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Exciting update from <strong>Everyone Bandwidth Inc<\/strong> on our private LTE efforts! As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to empowering low-income families and students with essential resources\u2014like technology access and education\u2014we&#8217;re building secure, reliable wireless connectivity to help bridge the digital divide right here in Shreveport and beyond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We kicked off our journey using Baicells CloudCore for the EPC (Evolved Packet Core), which was a fantastic starting point. It&#8217;s a managed, cloud-based solution tailored for Baicells gear, handling subscriber authentication, basic management, and quick setup without needing deep expertise upfront. Perfect for getting a proof-of-concept running fast while focusing on our mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But as we scale our vision\u2014delivering high-performance private LTE to underserved communities, campuses, or community programs\u2014we needed more flexibility, lower long-term costs, and the ability to innovate. That&#8217;s why we&#8217;ve transitioned to running our own <strong>Open5GS<\/strong> server as the core network. Here&#8217;s why this move has been transformative for us:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Greater Control &amp; Customization<\/strong>: Open5GS is a fully open-source implementation of both LTE EPC and 5G Core (up to recent 3GPP releases). We now own every aspect\u2014MME, SGW, PGW, HSS (and 5G AMF, SMF, UPF, etc.)\u2014with no vendor-imposed limits. This means deeper monitoring, custom policies for our users, and easier integration with tools like Prometheus for metrics or Grafana dashboards. We can tweak everything to prioritize low-latency access for education apps or secure IoT for community resources.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>eSIM Provisioning with Simlessly<\/strong>: A huge win for our nonprofit model! Simlessly&#8217;s RSP platform lets us create and remotely push eSIM profiles over-the-air. No more shipping physical cards or dealing with logistics headaches\u2014ideal when serving families across locations. Users can activate on compatible devices quickly and securely, making onboarding seamless and cost-effective.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Physical SIM Support When It Makes Sense<\/strong>: For legacy devices, high-security needs, or users without eSIM-capable phones, Open5GS supports traditional USIMs (with Milenage auth). We mix eSIM and physical SIM provisioning in the same core, giving us flexibility without silos.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The switch involved reconfiguring our Baicells eNBs (or compatible gear) to point to our Open5GS instance&#8217;s IP for S1 interfaces, aligning PLMN\/HNI settings (like our Shared HNI 315-010-0148), and testing handover\/mobility. It took some tuning for stability, but the result? No recurring cloud fees, full independence from vendor lock-in, and a path to 5G features like network slicing as we grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When should you (or another organization) consider switching to Open5GS or a similar open-source EPC?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Need Deep Customization<\/strong>: If managed clouds feel too rigid and you want APIs, custom auth flows, or integration with external systems (e.g., for nonprofit user management or community portals)\u2014open-source gives you the keys.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Budget-Conscious Scaling<\/strong>: Great for nonprofits, rural deployments, research, or private networks where avoiding proprietary licensing saves money while delivering carrier-grade performance.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Future-Proofing for 5G<\/strong>: Planning CBRS expansions, low-latency apps (like remote learning tools), or VoLTE? Open5GS supports both 4G and 5G SA\/NSA, with strong handover and multi-session features.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>eSIM-Centric or Hybrid Deployments<\/strong>: If remote provisioning is core to your model (like ours for quick family\/student onboarding), pairing Open5GS with Simlessly or similar is powerful.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Stick with Baicells CloudCore If\u2026<\/strong>: You&#8217;re just starting, have limited dev resources, or want Baicells-optimized simplicity and managed support\u2014it&#8217;s still excellent for beginners or smaller setups.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>This shift aligns perfectly with our mission: building affordable, innovative tech solutions that put connectivity in everyone&#8217;s hands. We&#8217;re excited to use this setup to roll out more community-focused networks!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re exploring private LTE for education, nonprofits, or underserved areas\u2014or have tips on Open5GS + Baicells integrations\u2014share below. Let&#8217;s collaborate to close the digital gap! \ud83c\udf10 #PrivateLTE #Open5GS #CBRS #DigitalInclusion #NonprofitTech<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Exciting update from Everyone Bandwidth Inc on our private LTE efforts! As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to empowering low-income families and students with essential resources\u2014like technology access and education\u2014we&#8217;re building secure, reliable wireless connectivity to help bridge the digital divide right here in Shreveport and beyond. We kicked off our journey using Baicells CloudCore for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42,"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41\/revisions\/42"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plte.xyz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}