What are the advantages and disadvantages of different paging strategies in GSM?

1 Single paging

Single paging is the simplest paging strategy, where the network sends a single paging request (PAG_REQ) message to the MS in its current location area (LA). The MS responds with a paging response (PAG_RESP) message if it is active and ready to receive the call or message. The advantage of single paging is that it minimizes the signaling overhead and the paging delay, as only one message is exchanged between the network and the MS. The disadvantage of single paging is that it can cause high congestion and collision in the paging channel, especially when there are many MSs in the same LA or when the LA is large.

2 Sequential paging

Sequential paging is a paging strategy where the network sends multiple PAG_REQ messages to the MS in different cells within its current LA, one after another. The MS responds with a PAG_RESP message as soon as it receives a PAG_REQ message. The advantage of sequential paging is that it reduces the congestion and collision in the paging channel, as only one cell is paged at a time. The disadvantage of sequential paging is that it increases the signaling overhead and the paging delay, as multiple messages are exchanged between the network and the MS and the MS may not be in the first cell that is paged.

3 Parallel paging

Parallel paging is a paging strategy where the network sends multiple PAG_REQ messages to the MS in different cells within its current LA, simultaneously. The MS responds with a PAG_RESP message as soon as it receives a PAG_REQ message. The advantage of parallel paging is that it reduces the paging delay, as the MS can be reached faster in any cell that it is in. The disadvantage of parallel paging is that it increases the signaling overhead and the congestion and collision in the paging channel, as multiple cells are paged at the same time.

4 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?