GTPv1 vs GTPv2

GTPv1-C was defined for 2G/3G packet core; GTPv2-C replaced it for LTE with a cleaner IE encoding and TEID handling. GTP-U kept a single version. Roaming and legacy fallback keep both control-plane versions in production.

AttributeGTPv1GTPv2
Generation2G / 3G packet coreLTE (SGW / PGW)
Reference3GPP TS 29.0603GPP TS 29.274
IE formatTLV, fixed typesTLIV with instance byte
Bearer modelPDP contextEPS bearer
InterworkingGn / GpS5 / S8

Verdict

A GTP firewall spec that only names "GTP" is ambiguous. FS.20 covers both versions; deployments must decode both, correlate v1 PDP contexts with v2 bearers at handover, and screen for cross-version smuggling.

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