xHaul architecture overview

Understanding xHaul Segmentation

The term xHaul encompasses the three transport segments connecting disaggregated RAN elements to the mobile core. Fronthaul links the O-RU radio unit at the antenna site to the O-DU distributed unit, typically located at an edge aggregation site. Midhaul connects the O-DU to the O-CU centralized unit, which may be at a regional data center. Backhaul carries traffic from the O-CU to the 5G Core network functions. Each segment has distinct bandwidth, latency, and synchronization requirements driven by the functional split between RAN components. The disaggregation of the traditional base…