How are SMS messages routed?

How Does SMS Work? When you send a text message, it first goes to a nearby cellular tower over a pathway called the control channel, and then into an SMS center (SMSC). The SMSC resends that message to the tower closest to the recipient, and then it goes to their phone.

How are text messages delivered?

When a text message sends, the cell carriers receive it. Their servers then attempt to deliver it. The SMS will then either be successfully delivered or remain either temporarily or permanently undelivered. Their servers then send back info to us about the status of each message.

Where do texts go when you send them?

When you receive and send text messages, they’re sent through — and saved by — your service provider’s data network. Data is then maintained on the phone. Deleting these messages clears them from the visible display, but a small piece of data is still stored temporarily in the device’s system memory.

How messages are sent from one phone to another?

Text messages channel information through a cellular tower, which is essentially a two-way radio that accepts and relays information to and from cell phones. Radios emit what are known as radio waves, which are invisible and allow you to communicate back and forth with a radio.

How do text messages travel through the air?

Once your message is typed, it travels through radio waves to the control channel. The control channel is the pathway that allows your phone to communicate with your cell phone tower so that your phone can send and receive calls, data packets and SMS messages.

How long do carriers keep text messages?

The text messages are stored in both locations. Some phone companies also keep records of sent text messages. They sit on the company’s server for anywhere from three days to three months, depending on the company’s policy. Verizon holds texts for up to five days and Virgin Mobile keeps them for 90 days.

Do texts go through satellites?

Satellite phones are designed specifically for telephonic communications, meaning that most allow you to make and receive calls — and that’s about it. However, newer models are coming out with access to Internet in certain “hotspots” and the capability to send and receive text messages.

How are cell phone signals transmitted?

When you’re talking on a cell phone, it converts your voice into a signal that is transmitted via radio waves to the nearest cell tower. The cell tower then relays the radio wave back to the person you’re speaking to, converting it first to a signal and then back to sound again.