OCUDU Split 7.2: Benetel RAN650 + Falcon

Working lab setup, verified on 14 October 2026 with a Pixel 8 Pro: SIM registration, an srsapn data session, and host-to-phone ping all succeeded. The old cell-visible-but-no-attach setup has been replaced.

Tested setup

Item	Value
RU	Benetel RAN650, hardware 1.3.1, firmware RAN650-1v2.1.0-NM-0820797
Switch	Falcon-RX/812/G, management 192.168.1.90
Software	OCUDU c5acfa5d4c, DPDK 23.11, Open5GS 2.7.6
Host	Intel X550-T2, real-time Linux, IOMMU/SR-IOV enabled
Cell	n78, 3558.18 MHz, ARFCN 637212, 100 MHz, 30 kHz SCS, 4T2R
Network	PLMN 00101, TAC 7, SST 1, APN/DNN srsapn
Timing / fronthaul	PTP domain 24, native VLAN 1588; C/U-plane VLAN 3
RF	RU power 27 dBm; 30 dB attenuator on each of the four antenna paths

Host ens7f1 (10G) ── Falcon port 1/1
Benetel Fiber 1   ── Falcon port 1/2
Host eno1 (1G)   ── Falcon management port 1/21
GNSS antenna    ── Falcon GNSS input

The host management addresses are 192.168.1.50/24 on eno1 and 10.10.0.1/24 on ens7f1. The RU is at 10.10.0.100.

Files

• gnb.yml: tested OCUDU configuration, including the Docker core addresses.
• ru_config.cfg: tested RU settings for firmware 2.1.0.
• ptp4l-domain24.conf: host PTP configuration.
• start-ran650.sh: host preparation and gNB startup.
• Troubleshooting: the faults found and checks to use.

One-time setup

Falcon

Configure GNSS/PTP using the Falcon guide. Use L2 PTP, domain 24, and VLAN 1588. Wait for GNSS lock and a green SyncCenter status.

On the switch CLI, allow VLAN 3 on both fronthaul ports:

configure terminal
vlan 3
exit
interface 10GigabitEthernet 1/1
switchport mode trunk
switchport trunk native vlan 1588
switchport trunk allowed vlan 1,2,3,1588
exit
interface 10GigabitEthernet 1/2
switchport mode trunk
switchport trunk native vlan 1588
switchport trunk allowed vlan 1,2,3,1588
exit
end
copy running-config startup-config

Keep management port GigabitEthernet 1/21 unchanged. PTP lock alone does not prove VLAN 3 is passing fronthaul traffic.

Host and software

These instructions use the existing lab builds; the script does not install software or flash the RU. Install linuxptp and have Docker Compose, Python 3, and a DPDK-enabled OCUDU build available. The tested host uses CPU governor performance and kernel options intel_iommu=on iommu=pt.

The script defaults to these installed paths under:

/home/mohit/Desktop/OpenRAN_Testbeds/Split_7.2/ocudu_parent/
  ocudu_latest/build-dpdk/apps/gnb/gnb
  dpdk-23.11/install/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/
  dpdk-23.11/usertools/dpdk-devbind.py

For another installation, pass sudo env RAN_DIR=/your/builds ./start-ran650.sh. Adapt the NIC, PCI and MAC addresses in both the script and configs. See the OCUDU installation guide for building the software.

The physical interface ens7f1 stays on the kernel driver for PTP and RU management. DPDK uses only VF 0, 0000:75:10.1:

Interface	MAC
Host physical interface	ec:e7:a7:0f:7c:01
DPDK VF / RU's configured DU address	ec:e7:a7:0f:7c:02
RU primary fronthaul address	8c:1f:64:d1:12:e0

VLAN 3 is assigned to the VF by the host. Do not add vlan_tag_cp or vlan_tag_up to this gnb.yml; the NIC inserts the tag. Keep the PF and VF MACs different.

RU

Use the settings in ru_config.cfg for the tested firmware. Back up the existing file before installing it from this repository:

ssh root@10.10.0.100 'cp -p /etc/ru_config.cfg /etc/ru_config.cfg.before-ocudu'
scp ru_config.cfg root@10.10.0.100:/etc/ru_config.cfg

Check cat /etc/ru-sync-mode on the RU: it should be PTP. Reboot the RU after host timing is ready, as described below.

The important changes are short PRACH, dynamic compression, flexran_prach_workaround=disabled, and both DU MAC fields set to the VF MAC ending in 02. The old long-PRACH experiment and firmware 1.0.4 register repair steps are not part of this setup.

Core and SIM

The config expects Open5GS at 10.53.1.2, with the host's N2/N3 address 10.53.1.1. Use PLMN 001/01, TAC 7, SST 1, and DNN srsapn. Provision your SIM's IMSI, Ki and OPC privately in the core; no SIM secrets are stored here.

Save subscriber entries in the core's startup CSV. Without a persistent MongoDB volume at /data/db, container recreation loses database-only changes. A normal container restart and a Compose recreation are different; compose up can recreate a container when its configuration changes.

Run the setup

Run the following after the one-time setup. Do not run extra copies of ptp4l or phc2sys alongside the script; the lab host uses them instead of an NTP service to control its clock.

1. Power on the Falcon and wait for GNSS/PTP lock. Start the core:

cd /home/mohit/Desktop/5gCore/ocudu_parent/ocudu/docker
sudo docker compose up -d --wait 5gc

2. From this repository, prepare the host:

cd /path/to/OCUDU-Split7.2
sudo ./start-ran650.sh --prepare

This sets MTU 9000, prepares VF 0 and 2 GiB of hugepages, and starts PTP and system-clock synchronization. It waits for both clocks to converge before returning.

3. Check the RU:

ssh root@10.10.0.100
# Reboot if you changed ru_config.cfg or the log says initialization failed:
reboot

After it comes back, reconnect and check:

tail -20 /tmp/logs/radio_sync_status
tail -30 /tmp/logs/radio_status

Wait for O-RU in PTP locked state, Transmission enabled (4x2) and Radio bringup complete. Startup takes a few minutes. If the RU exhausted its synchronization retries before the Falcon was ready, reboot it now.

4. Back on the host, start OCUDU:

sudo ./start-ran650.sh

5. Connect the Pixel: insert the provisioned SIM, set APN srsapn, enable mobile data/5G, toggle airplane mode, and select 00101 / OCUDU if needed. With the four 30 dB attenuators, begin about 0.5–1 metre from the antennas. Disable Wi-Fi when testing cellular data.

6. Check the result:

systemctl is-active ocudu-ran650-ptp ocudu-ran650-phc ocudu-ran650-gnb
tail -f /tmp/gnb-benetel.log
docker logs --since 5m open5gs_5gc 2>&1 | grep -E 'Registration complete|IPv4\['

Successful registration and a PDU session confirm attachment. The verified phone received 10.45.0.4 and answered 4/4 host pings; its dynamically allocated address may change. To ping from the host, ensure a route to the UE subnet exists:

sudo ip route replace 10.45.0.0/24 via 10.53.1.2
ping <phone-IP>

The core also needs forwarding/NAT for the desired data path. Registration alone does not verify Internet access.

Stop only the gNB with sudo systemctl stop ocudu-ran650-gnb. Leave the timing services running while the RU is in use. The script starts transient services; rerun it after a host reboot.