Open source UE
Open-source UE options compared
srsUE, OpenAirInterface UE, and Amarisoft UE compared for 3GPP conformance work: feature coverage, release support, log quality, and effort to certify.
7 min read
Three stacks dominate open and semi-open UE work. They are not interchangeable, and the right choice depends on which release and which procedure classes you need.
| Stack | License | Strength | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| srsUE (srsRAN) | AGPLv3 | Clean code, excellent logs and PCAP, easy build | 5G SA UE coverage trails the gNB side |
| OpenAirInterface UE | OAI Public License | Broadest NR feature set, strong research community | Heavier build, config surface is large |
| Amarisoft UE | Commercial | Most complete release coverage, vendor support | Licensed per instance, not open source |
Recommendation by goal
- Learning TTCN-3 and conformance flows: srsUE.
- NR feature research (RedCap, NTN, carrier aggregation): OAI UE.
- Pre-certification dry runs before a formal lab: Amarisoft or your own stack.
All three run the same way here
Whichever stack you pick, the platform contract is identical: a build artifact, a config, a lane, a suite. Swapping stacks is a one-line change to your build tag, which makes cross-stack comparison — the same test case against two UEs — a routine exercise rather than a project.
bashbash
for ue in srsue-main oai-ue-develop; do aeon exec run --case TC_6_1_1_1 --build "$ue" --wait --json >> compare.jsonl done jq -r '[.build, .verdict, .duration_s] | @tsv' compare.jsonl
Run this against a real SDR lane
The tester is a service, not a box. Push a build, reserve a lane, get a verdict.