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Private 5G: NPN Architecture, Spectrum & the Enterprise Edge — 5G certification courseWatch free

Free preview · NPN models on one plant: four designs, one brief — opens in the course player

NewIntermediateReleased Oct 2026

Private 5G: NPN Architecture, Spectrum & the Enterprise Edge

Private 5G decided the way a plant actually decides it: whose network it is and who runs each piece, which spectrum it may use and who it must stay in step with, how many cells a metal hall really needs, and where the core sits when the WAN goes down. It ends on a reference port, decided layer by layer and tested one failure at a time.

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Every 5G & 6G course free for 7 days

Lessons
34
Video
≈3.6h
Hands-on
4 labs · 13 checkpoints
Before you start
5G Foundation

About this course

Who it's for. Working RAN, core and transport engineers, and enterprise IT/OT network engineers in factories, ports, mines, campuses, hospitals and venues.

Before you start. 5G Foundation. RAN and core depth are not assumed — decibels, frame arithmetic and the authentication methods are built from zero where the course needs them.

This course includes

  • 34 video lessons — the first needs no account, and all are free for your first 7 days
  • Hands-on labs and checkpoints
  • Study pack — question bank and slides
  • Certification exam and a QR-verifiable certificate

Skills you'll gain

  • SNPN & PNI-NPN design
  • Network function placement
  • EAP-TLS & credentials holders
  • Device onboarding
  • CBRS & local licences
  • TDD coexistence
  • Industrial uplink capacity
  • Small cells, DAS & MOCN
  • Edge UPF & N6 design

Syllabus

7 modules · 34 lessons · certification exam

  1. Module 1 — NPN designs on one plant: ownership, traffic and placement

    Sort four NPN designs by placement, ownership and operation; compute which direction runs out first against the neighbours' frame; pick one and derive its site footprint.

    1. NPN models on one plant: four designs, one briefWatch free6:30
    2. Plant traffic mix: busy-hour uplink against the frameFree with an account6:46
    3. NPN decision tree: six questions that pick a designFree with an account6:37
    4. Network function placement: on site or off siteFree with an account6:40
    5. Run the Six Questions · Checkpoint~5 min

  2. Module 2 — SNPN and PNI-NPN mechanics: identity, selection and access control

    Read how SNPN and PNI-NPN networks identify themselves, how devices select them and are admitted, and exactly where each model's boundaries lie.

    1. SNPN identity: PLMN ID plus a network identifierFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership7:17
    2. SNPN selection and access control: find, register, rejectFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership7:39
    3. PNI-NPN on a public network: dedicated DNN or sliceFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:19
    4. CAG: closed access groups on public cellsFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:54
    5. SNPN boundaries: mobility, roaming and the N3IWF overlayFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:41
    6. The Fence Between Two Plants · Checkpoint~6 min
    7. What Crosses the Fence · Checkpoint~5 min

  3. Module 3 — Credentials and onboarding: certificates, holders and first contact

    For certificate-only devices, choose EAP-TLS or AKA plus secondary authentication, trace EAP-TLS to the anchor key, and onboard factory-fresh devices through a credentials holder.

    1. SNPN primary authentication: AKA keys or certificatesFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership8:37
    2. EAP-TLS in an SNPN: exchange and anchor keyFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership7:38
    3. Credentials Holder: AAA-server and AUSF/UDM variantsFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:43
    4. UE onboarding: default credentials to provisioned accessFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:35
    5. Device readiness: bands, SNPN mode, credential routeFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:24
    6. Down to the Anchor Key · Checkpoint~6 min
    7. The First Way In · Checkpoint~6 min

  4. Module 4 — Spectrum regimes and TDD coexistence

    Classify private-spectrum routes by mechanism, work database-managed grants and fixed area-licence edges, choose synchronised, semi-synchronised or guard-band TDD, and build the licence application ledger.

    1. Private spectrum routes: five licensing models by mechanismFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership7:29
    2. Database-managed sharing: CBRS tiers and SAS grantsFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:41
    3. Local licences: where the licensed area endsFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:39
    4. TDD coexistence: sync, semi-sync or guard bandFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:26
    5. Licence application ledger: site inputs to feeFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership4:55
    6. Place the Offer · Checkpoint~6 min
    7. Line Up the Frames · Interactive lab~7 min

  5. Module 5 — Industrial RAN design: uplink, metal, mobility and position

    Count each zone's cells from uplink demand and a metal-hall link budget, choose small cells, DAS or MOCN, budget AGV handovers, and sort positioning claims.

    1. Uplink capacity under D·D·D·S·U: cameras set the countFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership4:52
    2. Indoor link budget: a metal-hall small-cell ledgerFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:52
    3. Small cells, DAS or shared RAN: MOCN and neutral hostsFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership7:05
    4. AGV mobility across dense cells: interruption versus control loopFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership7:45
    5. Industrial positioning: targets, simulations and field claimsFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:03
    6. Count the Cells · Interactive lab~6 min
    7. Close the Link · Interactive lab~6 min
    8. Pull a Lever · Checkpoint~5 min
    9. Where the Claim Sits · Checkpoint~5 min

  6. Module 6 — Enterprise edge: control plane, user plane, plant network

    Decide where the control and user planes run and what a WAN cut stops, then design the plant's data networks, addressing, N6 firewall, Layer-2 carriage and timing.

    1. Off-site control plane: what a WAN cut stopsFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:37
    2. On-site UPF placement: local exit on the plant-edge nodeFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:14
    3. DNN design and N6: zones, addresses, firewallFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:45
    4. Ethernet PDU sessions and 5G VN groups: Layer-2 carriageFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:15
    5. TSN and time sync over 5G: one bridge per UPFFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:13
    6. What the Cut Stops · Checkpoint~6 min
    7. Which Lane Carries It · Checkpoint~5 min
    8. Rule or Practice · Checkpoint~5 min

  7. Module 7 — Operations, migration and alternatives: a design you can defend

    Assign operations and SLA ownership per design, weigh Wi-Fi against private LTE and 5G, plan an LTE-to-5G migration within its interworking limits, and stress-test a port design.

    1. Operations and SLAs: who is paged when it failsFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:48
    2. Wi-Fi, private LTE or private 5G: a two-sided decisionFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:04
    3. Private LTE to 5G: interworking limits and market evidenceFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership6:02
    4. Reference port design: every layer decidedFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership7:13
    5. Failure-mode review: what the port design survivesFree for 7 days with a free account, then with Prime Membership5:19
    6. Who Gets the Call · Checkpoint~5 min
    7. Weigh It Both Ways · Interactive lab~6 min
    8. Take One Away · Checkpoint~6 min

  8. Certification exam

    Earns a certificate

    49 questions · 60 min · 65% to pass — earns your TELCOMA Certified Private 5G Specialist, a QR-verifiable certificate.

Join for free

Look up any acronym in the telecom glossary

Certification

Earn the TELCOMA Certified Private 5G Specialist

Pass the 49-question exam with 65% or more, and the certificate is yours to show anyone.

  • Show proofEvery certificate carries a QR code and a public page that anyone can check.
  • Add it to LinkedInPut it in the Licenses & certifications section of your profile in one click.
  • Build a collectionEach of our 13 courses earns its own certificate.
Specimen of the TELCOMA Certified Private 5G Specialist certificate — the real design, marked SPECIMEN
The certificate you receive — shown as a specimen.

Study materials

Download the Private 5G: NPN Architecture, Spectrum & the Enterprise Edge question bank and slide deck — every signal check in the course, with answers, plus every figure.

  • Question BankPDF45 KB
  • Slide DeckPPTX18 MB

Hands-on learning

Do it, don't just watch it

Modules end with a hands-on exercise — 4 labs · 13 checkpoints in this course. You move the controls, the numbers answer back, and a wrong turn tells you why.

Try this one first:

Run the Six Questions · Checkpoint · ~5 min

Try it free

Free with an account — no card.

Run the Six Questions — a hands-on checkpoint from Private 5G: NPN Architecture, Spectrum & the Enterprise Edge

What you'll build

3 of 17 — the rest are in the syllabus

Ways to learn

Choose the way that fits you.

This certification

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One credential, yours for good

  • Lessons and labs in this course
  • Study pack — question bank and slides
  • Certification exam and verifiable certificate — this course
  • Every other course — first module
  • Not included: Full-length practice exams
  • Not included: TelcoMentor AI coach
  • Hands-on scenarios — traces, logs, configs — selected traces

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  • Study pack — question bank and slides
  • Certification exam and verifiable certificate — every course
  • Every other course — all, and new ones
  • Full-length practice exams
  • TelcoMentor AI coach
  • Hands-on scenarios — traces, logs, configs
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Free

Every course for your first 7 days, then the first module of each

  • Lessons and labs in this course — all for your first 7 days, then the first module
  • Study pack — question bank and slides — for your first 7 days
  • Not included: Certification exam and verifiable certificate
  • Every other course — all for your first 7 days, then the first module
  • Full-length practice exams — for your first 7 days
  • TelcoMentor AI coach — for your first 7 days, at a smaller daily limit
  • Hands-on scenarios — traces, logs, configs — all for your first 7 days, then selected traces
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A new free account opens every course for its first 7 days, no card needed: every lesson and lab, the study packs, the full-length practice exams and TelcoMentor. In those 7 days only the certification exam needs a paid option. After them, the first module of every course stays free. Both paid options come with a 7-day money-back guarantee.

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