How to build a private LTE network

The limitations of public networks can quickly become a bottleneck in a business world driven by connectivity. By replacing your public connections with private LTE networks, you can ditch that network congestion. Instead, you can build a dedicated, secure, and scalable network tailored to your unique needs.

In this post, you’ll discover the potential of private LTE and how it can offer unparalleled security, boost operational efficiency, and provide a customizable infrastructure to meet your organization’s specific demands.

What is a private LTE network?

Choosing private LTE is a strategic connectivity choice for businesses. Unlike public LTE networks designed for the masses, private LTE is a dedicated, standalone network infrastructure tailored for a specific organization or set of users. It operates on a dedicated spectrum, ensuring consistent performance unaffected by external traffic, and emphasizes security, redundancy, and customization.

Why your traffic is vulnerable on the public internet

Public networks, managed by telecom operators, are shared among countless devices. While they aim to provide widespread coverage, this broad reach can lead to congestion during peak times, affecting data speeds and call quality. Moreover, the sheer number of users and the vastness of the network can make them more vulnerable to breaches. In contrast, private LTE offers a controlled environment where data remains within the organization's domain, reducing the risk of external threats.

How does a private LTE network work?

Every type of LTE network, public or private, relies on a Radio Access Network (RAN) to connect user equipment to a core network. Some network providers, like Telnyx, offer private LTE networks that leverage partner Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) for RAN connectivity. In instances like this, the entire request flow is siloed from the public internet to maximize ease of access and security.

Private LTE network architecture

The architecture of private LTE networks is meticulously designed to cater to specific business needs. It has three main components:

• Core network: The central hub that manages user connections, mobility, and services.
• Radio access network (RAN): Ensures seamless connectivity between user devices and the core network.
• User equipment: Devices optimized to harness the full potential of the private LTE network.

This architecture provides a controlled environment, enhancing security and reducing the risk of external breaches. Check out our blog post linked here to learn more about private LTE network architecture.

Private LTE network data flow

The diagram below shows the end-to-end flow of data for private LTE networks with Telnyx Private Wireless Gateways. Private Wireless Gateways are a special use case of Telnyx Cloud VPN. With Cloud VPN, you can connect any endpoints, applications or devices directly to the Telnyx network without using the public internet.

Here’s how it works:

1. A Telnyx SIM will request to connect to the visited MNO network. Telnyx SIMs have access to over 650 networks globally.
2. The SIM is routed to a private Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX) network, where it connects to the Telnyx Evolved Packet Core (EPC).
3. Packets are routed to a Private Wireless Gateway. A Private Wireless Gateway is a dedicated P-Gateway (PGW) inside the Telnyx EPC.
4. In the final hop between the customer's Private Wireless Gateway on the Telnyx network and the customer's cloud service provider (CSP), traffic is sent through a VPN interface, separating it from the public internet.

In essence, Telnyx's private LTE network data flow ensures a secure, direct connection from the SIM to the customer's CSP. By leveraging Private Wireless Gateways and Cloud VPN, Telnyx bypasses the public internet, offering enhanced security and reliability for data transmission across its expansive global network.

Top benefits of using a private LTE network

Private LTE networks offer a superior alternative to public networks and traditional Wi-Fi. They provide enhanced security, improved reliability, greater capacity, and better quality of service (QoS).

With a private LTE network, you can connect your SIM cards to a private (corporate) network, which provides a few key advantages:

Security

Devices can send and receive data without ever touching the public internet, which means your data is more secure. With its dedicated infrastructure, private LTE ensures data integrity and robust protection against external threats. For developers, this means a secure environment for deploying and testing applications. For heads of engineering, it translates to peace of mind, knowing that sensitive data and proprietary software are protected.

Better access to IoT devices

You can directly access your devices via their private IP addresses. This is especially helpful for troubleshooting because you can directly push updated firmware to devices, minimizing the time to resolution. Private LTE networks facilitate seamless integration with IoT devices, becoming the backbone of smart cities, homes, and transportation systems. For technical operation managers this ensures that IoT deployments are efficient, scalable, and secure for technical operation managers.

More control

You can exert more control over SIM data connections, allowing for customer-configured traffic shaping. The control and customization offered by private LTE are unparalleled. Engineers can ensure the network aligns with the company's technical requirements and growth plans. Developers can fine-tune network parameters to optimize application performance.

Improved reliability and scalability

Private LTE networks offer consistent connectivity, making them ideal for SaaS applications that require high uptime. They can also scale to accommodate growing user bases, ensuring that software businesses can expand without connectivity bottlenecks.

With the limitations of public networks and the unpredictable nature of Wi-Fi, private LTE emerges as a solution that addresses connectivity issues, security vulnerabilities, and scalability challenges. We’ll talk more about the advantages of private LTE networks later on. Now that you know these benefits and their implications, you can find innovative ways to implement private LTE in your sector.

Use cases for private LTE networks

The versatility of private LTE networks has led to their adoption across a wide range of industries, each leveraging the technology to address specific challenges and enhance operations.

SaaS applications

For SaaS businesses, private LTE ensures applications are always accessible, with low latency and high reliability. It also offers a secure data storage and transmission environment, which is crucial for applications handling sensitive user data.

Unified communications and contact centers (UC and CC)

Private LTE provides UC and CC platforms with consistent, high-quality connectivity, ensuring clear voice and video communications. It also offers the scalability needed to handle peak call volumes.

IoT deployments

For technical operation managers overseeing IoT deployments, private LTE offers a reliable and secure connectivity solution. Whether it's smart city sensors, industrial IoT devices, or connected vehicles, private LTE ensures devices stay connected and data flows seamlessly.

Partner with Telnyx for private LTE networks

The benefits and use cases of private LTE are clear, but the success of its implementation hinges on one crucial decision: choosing the right provider. The provider you select will determine your private LTE network's reliability, scalability, and overall performance, making it a pivotal choice for your business's future.

With Telnyx, you're backed by our award-winning support team and a developer-friendly environment, ensuring smooth integration and management. Our next-generation architecture enables you to leverage our private, global network and manage your communications solutions through one easy-to-use portal. With our Private Wireless Gateway, you can craft your own Private LTE Network, ensuring unmatched security and connectivity.

Our multi-carrier SIMs are equipped with intelligent network switching to ensure your devices always connect to the best available network. Our solutions reach over 650 networks worldwide—no matter where they are. With our comprehensive API, you can activate and monitor all devices remotely with a single global SIM.

Telnyx's private LTE solutions cater to a diverse range of industries, from healthcare to industrial sectors. We don’t just provide connectivity. We aim to revolutionize the way businesses operate and serve their customers.

Our team of experts is on hand to help 24/7/365, whether you're exploring private LTE for the first time or you’re ready to optimize your existing network.

Get in touch with our experts today to purchase your Telnyx SIMs and create your own private LTE network.

Check out some of our other resources to learn more about private LTE networks:

• Get tips for choosing an IoT SIM card provider.
• Deploy devices with our Private Wireless Gateway.
• Secure your IoT devices with Private LTE Networks.