CN110495197B - Method and device for managing network slices - Google Patents
Method and device for managing network slices Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- CN110495197B CN110495197B CN201780089348.4A CN201780089348A CN110495197B CN 110495197 B CN110495197 B CN 110495197B CN 201780089348 A CN201780089348 A CN 201780089348A CN 110495197 B CN110495197 B CN 110495197B
- Authority
- CN
- China
- Prior art keywords
- slice
- group
- slices
- tenant
- network
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Active
Links
Images
Classifications
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
- H04W48/00—Access restriction; Network selection; Access point selection
- H04W48/18—Selecting a network or a communication service
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
- H04W8/00—Network data management
- H04W8/18—Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
- H04W8/00—Network data management
- H04W8/26—Network addressing or numbering for mobility support
Abstract
The embodiment of the invention provides a method and a device for managing network slices in a communication network. The method mainly comprises the steps of receiving a slice instantiation request associated with a tenant; creating a slice group for the tenant based on the slice instantiation request; wherein the slice group includes at least one network slice, and each slice of the at least one network slice includes one or more NFs. The embodiment of the invention can meet various requirements of tenants on isolation.
Description
Technical Field
The present invention relates to the field of communication networks, and in particular to the management of network slices.
Background
In 2020 and the future, mobile internet and internet of things services will become the main power of 5G development. The 5G can meet the diversified service requirements of people in various fields such as life, work, leisure, traffic and the like. Even in scenarios with ultra-high traffic density, ultra-high connection density, and ultra-high mobility features, such as dense residential areas, offices, stadiums, open-air gatherings, subways, highways, high-speed rails, and wide area network coverage, the ultimate service experience, such as high-definition video, virtual reality, augmented reality, cloud desktops, and online gaming, can be provided to users. In the future, 5G has more vertical industries to access to 5G networks, such as the Internet of vehicles, intelligent manufacturing, smart power grids and the like. All these scenarios require a true "everything interconnection" to be achieved. It is expected that 1000 million people and 900 million things will be interconnected by 2025.
In 5G, the various service requirements differ in speed, performance, security, reliability and latency. For example, enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) scenarios, such as virtual reality and augmented reality scenarios, have bandwidth requirements of up to 10 Gbps; large-scale access needs to be supported in large-scale mechanical communication (mtc) scenarios, such as wearable scenarios and smart grids; and scenarios of ultra-reliable and low latency communication (urrllc), such as autopilot, telesurgery, and industrial control, require support for ultra-low latency of 1 millisecond. The differentiated requirements and the ultimate experience requirements under different scenarios pose a huge challenge for 5G communication devices.
In 5G mobile communication technology research, the industry acknowledges that "network slicing" technology can flexibly construct networks with different characteristics according to 5G scenarios and requirements. Fig. 1 shows an exemplary network containing different network slices, and each network slice is essentially a combination of resources and network functionality needed to satisfy a certain class of users or certain business services. For example, slice 1 is dedicated to smartphone services and slice 2 is dedicated to autopilot services. In fact, a network slice is a complete logical network.
In some cases, to improve network and resource utilization, two different network slices may share some Network Functions (NF) so that the two different network slices are not isolated. In terms of slice usage and deployment, some customers (hereinafter referred to as "tenants") may subscribe to multiple slices, some tenants may have isolation requirements, and some tenants may not have isolation requirements. Therefore, independent deployment is necessary in terms of product function implementation.
In order to flexibly deploy and manage slices, a flexible network slice management method and a corresponding apparatus satisfying various requirements are required.
Disclosure of Invention
To solve the technical problem, embodiments of the present invention provide a method, an apparatus, and a system for managing network slices in a communication network. For tenants with isolation requirements, a slice of isolation from other tenant networks may be provided. Multiple slices within a tenant with isolation requirements may be deployed in an isolated manner or a shared manner according to different requirements of the tenant.
For a tenant without isolation requirements, the slice may be shared with another tenant that also has no isolation requirements.
In a first aspect of the invention, a method of managing network slices in a communication network is provided. The method is performed by a slice management apparatus. The method comprises the following steps: receiving a first slice instantiation request associated with a first tenant; creating a first slice group for the first tenant based on the first slice instantiation request; wherein the first set of slices includes at least one network slice, and each of the at least one network slice contains one or more NFs.
The embodiment of the invention can meet various requirements of tenants on isolation. For example, some sensitive or private information of one or more tenants in a group may be well protected from being acquired or shared by other tenants not in the group; or the slice resources are only used for the tenants in the group and are not shared or used by other tenants in different groups, so the quality of service for those tenants in the group can be well ensured. In one implementation form of the first aspect, the method further comprises: receiving an update request associated with a first tenant and updating a first slice group according to the update request; wherein the update request carries an ID of the first slice group.
In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the updating step comprises at least one of: adding a new slice comprising NF in the first slice group; terminating an existing slice in the first slice group that contains NF; adding NF in an existing slice in the first slice group; terminating NF in an existing slice in the first slice group; or reconfiguring NFs in existing slices in the first slice group; or any combination thereof.
In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the first slice instantiation request carries a field indicating whether the first slice group is exclusive or shareable.
In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the method further comprises the following steps: receiving a second slice instantiation request associated with a second tenant; determining whether the first slice group can be shared by a second tenant; if so, sharing a first slice group with a second tenant; if not, a second slice group is created for the second tenant. Sharing slice groups with other tenants can help save slice resources, especially when slice resources are scarce. In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the step of determining whether the first slice group can be shared by the second tenant comprises: if the first slice group is sharable and the second slice instantiation request carries a field representing non-isolation, then the first slice group may be shared by the second tenant; otherwise, the second tenant cannot share the first slice group.
In a further implementation form of the first aspect, each slice of the slice group comprises a plurality of sub-slices, and each of the sub-slices comprises one or more network functions.
In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the step of creating the first and/or second slice group is performed by: tagging one or more existing slices with the same group ID, or creating one or more slices and then tagging the created slices with the same group ID; or one or more slices are created and then one or more existing slices and the created slices are labeled with the same group ID.
In a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a slice management apparatus for managing network slices in a communication network, the apparatus comprising: a transceiver, one or more processors, and non-transitory computer readable memory storing a program for execution by the one or more processors, the program comprising instructions for receiving, by the transceiver, a first slice instantiation request associated with a first tenant; creating a first slice group for the first tenant based on the first slice instantiation request; wherein the first set of slices includes at least one network slice, and each of the at least one network slice includes one or more NFs.
In one implementation form of the second aspect, the program further includes instructions for receiving, by the transceiver, an update request associated with the first tenant, and instructions for updating the first slice group in accordance with the update request; wherein the update request carries an ID of the first slice group.
In a further implementation form of the second aspect, the instructions for updating the first slice group comprise instructions for: adding a new slice comprising NF in the first slice group; terminating an existing slice in the first slice group that includes NF; adding NF in an existing slice in the first slice group; terminating NF in an existing slice in the first slice group; or reconfiguring NFs in existing slices in the first slice group; or any combination thereof.
In a further implementation form of the second aspect, the first slice instantiation request carries a field indicating whether the first slice group is exclusive or shareable, and the program further comprises instructions for: receiving, by the transceiver, a second slice instantiation request associated with a second tenant; determining whether the first slice group can be shared by a second tenant; if so, sharing a first slice group with a second tenant; if not, a second slice group is created for the second tenant.
In a further implementation form of the second aspect, the program further comprises instructions for: by tagging one or more existing slices with one and the same group ID, or creating one or more slices and then tagging the created slices with the same group ID; or creating one or more slices and then marking one or more existing slices and the created slices with the same group ID to create the first and/or second slice groups.
In a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for managing network slices in a communication network, comprising: a Business Support System (BSS) configured to send a first slice instantiation request associated with a first tenant; the slice management device is configured to receive a first slice instantiation request and create a first slice group for a first tenant based on the first slice instantiation request; wherein the first set of slices includes at least one network slice, and each of the at least one network slice includes one or more NFs. The slice management apparatus may be implemented as the apparatus according to the second embodiment.
In one implementation form of the third aspect, the BSS is configured to send an update request associated with a first tenant; the slice management device is configured to update a first slice group according to the update request; wherein the update request carries an ID of the first slice group.
In an implementation form of the third aspect, the updating comprises at least one of: adding a new slice comprising NF in the first slice group; terminating an existing slice in the first slice group that includes NF; adding NF in an existing slice in the first slice group; terminating NF in an existing slice in the first slice group; or reconfiguring NFs in existing slices in the first slice group; or any combination thereof.
In one implementation form of the third aspect, the first and second slice instantiation requests carry a field indicating whether the first and second slice groups are exclusive or shareable, wherein: the BSS is configured to send a second slice instantiation request associated with the second tenant; the slice management apparatus is configured to determine whether a first slice group can be shared by the second tenant; if so, sharing a first slice group with a second tenant; if not, a second slice group is created for the second tenant.
In one implementation form of the third aspect, the step of creating the first and/or second slice group is performed by: by tagging one or more existing slices with the same group ID, or creating one or more slices and then tagging the created slices with the same group ID; or one or more slices are created and then one or more existing slices and the created slice are labeled with the same group ID.
Further, embodiments of the present invention also provide a machine-readable storage medium storing executable program instructions that, when executed, cause a data processing system (e.g., a slice management apparatus or a system for managing network slices) to perform the above-described steps.
In view of the above, embodiments of the present invention provide a method and an apparatus capable of flexibly deploying and managing slices, so as to meet various requirements of tenants on isolation.
Drawings
Fig. 1 schematically shows an example of a prior art communication system;
FIG. 2 shows a schematic block diagram of a slice management system;
FIG. 3A shows a schematic diagram of the relationship of different groups and slices;
FIG. 3B shows a different set of attribute information;
FIG. 4 shows a schematic flow chart diagram of one embodiment of creating or updating a slice group;
FIG. 5 shows a schematic flow chart diagram of one embodiment of terminating or adjusting a network slice;
fig. 6 shows a schematic block diagram of a slice management apparatus.
Detailed Description
The following embodiments of the present invention describe the technical solutions with reference to the drawings.
In one possible model of network slicing, a tenant's services may be provided by one or more network slices ("slices" may be referred to as "slice instances"), and a network slice may include one or more sub-slices corresponding to one or more subnets, such as access network slice subnets and core network slice subnets. Further, one network slice subnet may include one or more Network Functions (NFs). The embodiment of the invention provides a network slice management system for managing network slices and sub-slices.
Referring to fig. 2, an embodiment of the present invention provides a slice management system, which includes a service support system (BSS)201 and a slice management apparatus 202. The BSS 201 is a network entity that is used by a telecommunication service provider to perform service operations on customers or tenants. The slice management apparatus 202 is an entity that creates slice instances and manages the slice instances. At a logical level, the slice management means may comprise a slice manager 2021, which manages Network Slice Instances (NSI) (slices 1, 2, 3), and one or more slice subnet managers (2022, 2023), which mainly manage Network Slice Subnet Instances (NSSI) (sub-slices 1 and 2). The network slice management system may include a management and orchestration (MANO)203, and the MANO 203 is primarily a management and orchestration entity for network function virtualization, primarily to allocate or adjust virtualized resources for NFs.
As described above, the service of one tenant may be supported by a plurality of slices. If a tenant wants all slices to be completely isolated from slices of other tenants, the slice management apparatus will create a slice group for the tenant, and the slice group includes all slices that can provide the tenant with the intended service. When multiple such groups are created for different tenants, each group is isolated from each other. Inter-group isolation means that resources allocated to a network slice in a slice group cannot be used by other network slices in another slice group. The "isolation" may avoid negative effects between different sets of multiple network slices. For example, those sensitive or private information of one or more tenants in a group may be well protected and not acquired or shared by other tenants not within the group; or the slice resources are only used for those tenants in a group and are not used by other tenants not in the group, so that the quality of service for those tenants in the group can be well guaranteed.
For isolated groups of slices, the same slice or the same network function cannot be shared by different groups, so slices are isolated between different groups, but within a group, different slices may not be isolated by sharing one or more network functions. In addition, according to respective service requirements and types of groups of different tenants, a slice group may be exclusively owned by a single tenant or shared by multiple tenants. For example, referring to fig. 3A, in group I exclusive to tenant 1, "shared NF" is provided by slice B and slice C in common; in group II shared by tenant 2 and tenant 3, the "shared NF" is provided by slice E and slice F in common. Therefore, although group I and group II are separated from each other, section B and section C in group I are not isolated from each other, and section E and section F in group II are not isolated from each other.
Referring to fig. 3B, each slice group has corresponding attribute information, which may reflect the basic features of the group, and the attribute information may include: (1) group type (exclusive or shared); (2) supported service types or supported slice types (smartphone or autopilot); and (3) information (tenant ID) of the tenant using the group.
FIG. 4 is a flow chart schematically illustrating one implementation of the present invention. The specific implementation process is as follows:
401. the BSS transmits a slice instantiation request to the slice management apparatus. The request may carry fields containing "service type", "Service Level Agreement (SLA) information", and "tenant ID".
The BSS processes a service request from a tenant and then sends a corresponding slice instantiation request to a slice management apparatus. The service type carried in the slice instantiation request shows the service type that needs to be provided to the tenant. The service type may include enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), large machine type communication (mtc), ultra-reliable low latency communication (urrllc), and the like. The eMB service type is used for scenes such as virtual reality, augmented reality and the like which need large bandwidth requirements; the mtc service type is used in wearable devices and smart grids, which need to support large-scale access; and the uRLLC service type is used in scenarios such as autopilot and telesurgery. Alternatively, the slice instantiation request may carry a "slice type" instead of a "service type" to tell the slice management device directly what type of slice is to be provided. The SLA information indicates a particular level or quality of service that the tenant wants to obtain. The tenant ID represents the identity of the tenant.
Optionally, a "service quarantine" flag may also be carried in the request. If the "service isolation" flag is carried and its value is "yes," this indicates that the tenant wishes the slice management apparatus to create an exclusive group for the tenant. If the "service isolation" flag is carried and its value is "no", this indicates that the tenant wishes the slice management apparatus to create a shareable group for the tenant. If the "service isolation" flag is not carried, it may be determined by default that the tenant wishes the slice management device to create an exclusive group for the tenant. It is also feasible to determine that a tenant wishes to create a shareable group if it does not carry a "service isolation" flag, depending on how the relevant rules for this are set. In an embodiment of the present invention, if service isolation is not carried, it is determined that the tenant desires the slice management apparatus to create an exclusive group.
402. Upon receiving the slice instantiation request, the slice management device creates a slice group containing one or more slices. The created slice group contains the following attribute field information: group type, supported service type or supported slice type, and information on tenant ID.
As described above, the slice instantiation request may carry a flag indicating whether the group that the tenant wishes the slice management apparatus to create is exclusive or sharable. When creating a slice group, the "group type" field records the corresponding type (exclusive or sharable).
The supported service type or the service types that each slice in the supported slice type record group can support corresponds to the field "service type" carried in the slice instantiation request. The tenant wants to obtain certain types of services by carrying the field "service type", and according to the field "service type", the slice management apparatus will create a slice group including corresponding slices (or slice instances), where one or some slices can individually support certain types of services. For example, one or more slices may support smartphone services, and other slices may support autonomous driving services. If the field carried in the request is "slice type" instead of "service type", the slice management means may create a slice group containing such slice type.
The information about tenant ID records information of how many and which tenants the slice group serves.
Each slice in the slice group contains one or more network functions that collectively provide various services to the tenant. Optionally, each slice in the slice group may include a plurality of sub-slices, and each sub-slice includes one or more network functions. Each sub-slice provides more specific functionality than each slice. For example, an access network sub-slice may provide corresponding functionality related to an access network, and a core network sub-slice may provide corresponding functionality related to a core network.
To create such a slice group, the slice management means may mark the relevant slices that are to belong to the slice group. For example, the slice management apparatus may assign an identical group ID to each slice, and then these slices having the identical group ID will form a slice group; the slice management means may assign another identical group ID to each slice, and these slices with the identical group ID will then form another slice group. As long as these slices can be identified as a slice group, the group ID can be replaced with other similar symbols, such as "flag", "timestamp". When creating a slice group, the slice management apparatus may select existing slices, or create new slices, or select existing slices and create new slices, and then mark them to create a slice group.
Specifically, when the slice management apparatus needs to create a slice group, the slice management apparatus may perform the following steps:
and (1). A slice manager in the slice management apparatus breaks the request into different sub-requests.
And 2. step 2. Then, the slice manager sends the sub-requests to the corresponding slice subnet managers in the slice management device respectively.
And 3. step 3. Each of the slice subnet managers will then create a sub-slice from the sub-request.
For example, a request may be sent to the access slice subnet manager, which may carry information about the slice type, subnet request, tenant ID, slice instantiation ID, and group ID. The access slice subnet manager will then create a subslice type and corresponding network function on that subslice according to the request. Similarly, another request may also be sent to the core slice subnet manager, which may carry the same slice type, a different subnet request, the same tenant ID, the same slice instantiation ID, and the same group ID. The core slice subnet manager will then create a corresponding sub-slice and corresponding network functions on that sub-slice according to the request. Finally, these sub-slices may constitute the desired slice. When the slice management apparatus selects only existing slices to create a slice group, steps 1-3 are not required.
403. Optionally, the slice management apparatus may further receive another update request associated with the same tenant as described in step 401.
After creating a slice group and providing certain services for a tenant for a period of time, the tenant may wish to add new services or cut existing services that are not provided in the current slice group. In this case, the request carries the same tenant ID, and service type and SLA information, and the request may further carry a slice group ID. Carrying a new service type and new SLA information if the update is adding a new slice; if the update is modifying an existing slice, the same service type is carried, but the SLA information is different.
404. The slice management means determines that the request is for an update and then updates the slice group according to the request.
According to the slice group ID, the slice management apparatus determines that it is an update request, and then performs an update operation. Even if the slice group ID is not carried in the request, the slice management apparatus may determine whether the request is an update request by searching for a tenant ID to find whether a slice group for the tenant exists. The update operation includes, but is not limited to, adding a new slice; terminating the existing section; adding NF to the existing slices; terminating NF in existing slices; or reconfiguring the NF in an existing slice; or any combination thereof. When a group is updated by adding a new slice or terminating or adjusting an existing slice, the slice management apparatus may transmit a sub-request to the slice subnet manager to create a sub-slice or terminate or adjust an existing slice according to the sub-request.
The update request may also be marked with a flag indicating that this is the update request at the time the request was sent by the BSS. The BSS may determine whether a request from a tenant is for an update and then mark it or not.
405. Optionally, the slice management apparatus may receive a slice instantiation request associated with another tenant. The request carries fields containing "service type", "Service Level Agreement (SLA) information", and "tenant ID", etc.
406. The slice management means determines whether the slice group created in step 402 can be shared by other tenants; if yes, sharing the slice group with other tenants; if not, a new slice group is created for the other tenants.
Specifically, the slice management apparatus determines whether a flag "service isolation" is carried in slice instantiation requests associated with other tenants. If the "service isolation" flag is carried and the value thereof is "no" and the slice group created in step 402 is sharable, the slice management apparatus determines that the slice group is sharable by other tenants and shares the slice group created in step 402 with other tenants; otherwise, the slice management device will determine that the slice group cannot be shared by other tenants, and then create another new slice group for the other tenants. If the 'service isolation' flag is carried and the value is 'yes' or the 'service isolation' flag is not carried, the slice management device creates a new slice group for other tenants, and the new slice group is marked as 'isolated'; if the "service isolation" flag is carried and its value is "no", but the slice group created in step 402 is "exclusive", the slice management apparatus will determine that the slice group cannot be shared by other tenants, and then create a new slice group for the other tenants, which will be marked as "shareable".
In step 406, the slice management apparatus may simply not be able to determine whether the slice group created in step 402 can be shared by other tenants and always create a new separate slice group for the other tenants. An advantage may be that the process of creating slice groups is simpler, but more network resources are wasted since more slice groups have to be created.
Optionally, as described in step 405, the slice management apparatus may further receive a slice update request associated with other tenants, and then the slice management apparatus updates the slice group according to the request. The specific steps of the update are the same as described in step 404.
Alternatively, when the slicing management apparatus continues to receive a new instantiation request from the third tenant, the procedure is similar to that described in steps 405 and 406. The main difference is that the slice management means will determine whether any one slice group created for a tenant in steps 402 and 406 can be shared by a third tenant; if one slice group can be shared, the slice management device shares the slice group with a third tenant; if not, the slice management device will create a new slice group for the third tenant. As described above, the slice management apparatus may not be able to determine whether an existing slice group can be shared and directly create a separate new slice group for the third tenant.
In the embodiments described in steps 405 and 406, if the slice management apparatus determines that the slice group can be shared by other tenants, the slice management apparatus shares the slice group with other tenants. In particular, the slice management means may send different requests to different slice subnet managers to create sub-slices. When one of the slice subnet managers is creating a sub-slice and finds that there is one network function in the existing slice that can be shared, the slice subnet manager will further determine if the sharable network function should be modified. The modifications include basic resource changes, such as resource extensions. If a change in network functionality is required, a resource change request is sent to the MANO, while a configuration change request is sent to the NF. After the resource extension process is completed, the slice subnet manager configures the network functions to be shared by different slices, as shown in fig. 3A, slice E and slice F together provide "shared NF". Similarly, when a slice group exclusive to tenants is created, the slice management apparatus may send different requirements to create sub-slices to different slice subnet managers. When there is one network function that can be shared, the slice subnet manager will share the network function between different slices, as shown in fig. 2, with "shared NF" being provided by slice B and slice C together.
With respect to the update operation of the slice group, fig. 5 gives a specific example. The specific process is as follows:
501. the BSS sends a request to the slice management apparatus to terminate or adjust the network slice, and the request carries a network slice instantiation ID and an indication to terminate or adjust the slice.
502. A slice manager in the slice management apparatus receives the request to terminate or adjust the network slice, and sends the request to the slice subnet manager, wherein the request carries a network slice instantiation ID and an indication to terminate or adjust a sub-slice of the network slice.
503. The slice subnet manager terminates or adjusts the slice instance.
Upon terminating a slice or sub-slice instance, the slice subnet manager determines whether only a slice instance exists in the group; if so, the slice subnet manager will terminate the information related to the group and the information related to the slice instance. Otherwise, the slice subnet manager simply terminates the information related to the slice instance.
The adjustment of the slice may include terminating the dedicated NF or altering the shared NF in the slice. For NFs to be terminated, the slice subnet manager sends a message to the MANO indicating deletion of the NF. For NFs to be changed, the sliced subnet manager sends a message to the MANO indicating the NF change, and the sliced subnet manager may further send a reconfiguration message to the NF.
504-505. Upon termination of the subnet slice instance, the slice subnet manager returns an ACK message to the slice manager, and the slice manager returns an ACK message to the BSS.
Fig. 6 provides a schematic block diagram of one possible physical implementation of the slice management apparatus of fig. 2. Which mainly comprises a transceiver, one or more processors and memory. The memory stores one or more programs that, when executed, cause the slice management means to perform the above-described steps 401 and 406, as well as other steps performed by the slice management means. The program mainly comprises:
instructions for receiving, by a transceiver, a slice instantiation request associated with a tenant;
instructions for creating a slice group for the tenant based on the slice instantiation request;
wherein the slice group includes at least one network slice, and each of the at least one network slice includes one or more NFs.
Further, the program includes instructions for receiving, by the transceiver, an update request associated with the first tenant, and instructions for updating the first slice group according to the update request; wherein the update request carries an ID of the first slice group.
Further, the program includes instructions to update the first slice group, including instructions to: adding a new slice comprising NF in the first slice group; terminating an existing slice in the first slice group that contains NF; adding NF to the existing slices; terminating NF in existing slices; or reconfiguring the NF in an existing slice; or any combination thereof.
When the first slice instantiation request carries a field indicating whether the first slice group is exclusive or shareable, and the program further comprises instructions for: receiving, by the transceiver, a second slice instantiation request associated with a second tenant; determining whether the first slice group is shareable by a second tenant; if so, sharing the first slice group with the second tenant; if not, a second slice group is created for the second tenant.
Further, the program includes instructions for: by tagging one or more existing slices with the same group ID, or creating one or more slices and then tagging the created slices with the same group ID; or creating one or more slices and then marking one or more existing slices and the created slices with the same group ID to create the first and/or second slice groups.
As noted above, fig. 2 provides a schematic block diagram of a system for managing network slices in a communication network that provide a plurality of network functions NF for use by one or more tenants. The system includes a service support system (BSS), a slice management apparatus, and the like. Mainly, the air conditioner is characterized in that,
the BSS is configured to send a slice instantiation request associated with a tenant;
the slice management device is configured to receive a slice instantiation request through a transceiver and create a slice group for a tenant based on the slice instantiation request;
wherein the slice group includes at least one network slice, and each of the at least one network slice includes one or more NFs.
Furthermore, the slice management means is configured to perform the above-mentioned steps 401 and 406 as well as other steps performed by the slice management means.
It will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that all or part of the steps of the embodiments may be implemented by hardware or a program indicating the relevant hardware. The program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. The storage medium may include: read-only memory, magnetic or optical disk. The computer readable storage medium stores executable program instructions that, when executed, cause a data processing system (e.g., the slice management apparatus or system for managing network slices) to perform steps 401 and 406 and other related steps described above.
The foregoing description, for purpose of explanation, has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, the illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Any modification, equivalent replacement and improvement made without departing from the principle of the present invention shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.
Claims (18)
1. A method of managing network slices in a communication network, the method being performed by a slice management apparatus, the method comprising:
receiving a first slice instantiation request associated with a first tenant;
creating a first slice group for the first tenant based on the first slice instantiation request;
wherein the first slice group comprises at least one network slice, and each of the at least one network slice comprises one or more network functions;
wherein the first slice instantiation request carries a field indicating whether the first slice group is exclusive or shareable.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
receiving an update request associated with the first tenant, an
Updating the first slice group according to the update request;
wherein the update request carries an ID of the first slice group.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the update comprises at least one of:
adding a new slice comprising network functionality in the first slice group;
terminating an existing slice in the first slice group that includes a network function;
adding a network function in an existing slice in the first slice group;
terminating network functions in existing slices in the first slice group; or
Reconfiguring network functions in existing slices in the first slice group.
4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:
receiving a second slice instantiation request associated with a second tenant;
determining whether the first slice group can be shared by the second tenant based on the first slice instantiation request;
if so, sharing the first slice group with the second tenant;
and if not, creating a second slice group for the second tenant.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the step of determining whether the first slice group can be shared by the second tenant based on the first slice instantiation request comprises:
if the first slice group is shareable and the second slice instantiation request carries a field representing non-isolation, then the first slice group may be shared by the second tenant; otherwise, the first slice group cannot be shared by the second tenant.
6. The method of any of the above claims, wherein each slice in the set of slices comprises a plurality of sub-slices, and each of the sub-slices comprises one or more network functions.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of creating a first slice group is performed by the steps of:
marking one or more existing slices with the same group ID, or
Creating one or more slices and then labeling the created slices with the same group ID; or
One or more slices are created and then one or more existing slices and the created slices are labeled with the same group ID.
8. A slice management apparatus for managing network slices in a communication network, the apparatus comprising:
a transceiver;
one or more processors; and
a non-transitory computer readable memory storing a program for execution by the one or more processors, the program comprising:
instructions for receiving, by the transceiver, a first slice instantiation request associated with a first tenant;
instructions for creating a first slice group for the first tenant based on the first slice instantiation request;
wherein the first slice group comprises at least one network slice, and each of the at least one network slice comprises one or more network functions;
wherein the first slice instantiation request carries a field indicating whether the first slice group is exclusive or shareable.
9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the program further comprises:
instructions for receiving, by a transceiver, an update request associated with the first tenant, an
Instructions for updating the first slice group according to the update request;
wherein the update request carries an ID of the first slice group.
10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the instructions to update the first slice group comprise instructions to perform at least one of:
adding a new slice comprising network functionality in the first slice group;
terminating an existing slice in the first slice group that includes a network function;
adding a network function in an existing slice in the first slice group;
terminating network functions in existing slices in the first slice group; or
Reconfiguring network functions in existing slices in the first slice group.
11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the program further comprises instructions for:
receiving, by the transceiver, a second slice instantiation request associated with a second tenant;
determining whether the first slice group can be shared by the second tenant;
if so, sharing the first slice group with the second tenant;
and if not, creating a second slice group for the second tenant.
12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the program further comprises instructions for:
creating the first and/or second slice group by tagging one or more existing slices with the same group ID, or
Creating one or more slices and then labeling the created slices with the same group ID; or
One or more slices are created and then one or more existing slices and the created slices are labeled with the same group ID.
13. A system for managing network slices in a communication network, comprising:
a Business Support System (BSS) configured to send a first slice instantiation request associated with a first tenant;
a slice management device configured to receive the first slice instantiation request through a transceiver and create a first slice group for the first tenant based on the first slice instantiation request;
wherein the first slice group comprises at least one network slice, and each of the at least one network slice comprises one or more network functions;
wherein the first slice instantiation request carries a field indicating whether the first slice group is exclusive or shareable.
14. The system of claim 13, wherein:
the BSS is configured to send an update request associated with the first tenant; and
the slice management device is configured to update the first slice group according to the update request;
wherein the update request carries an ID of the first slice group.
15. The system of claim 14, wherein the slice management device is configured to update the first slice group by performing at least one of:
adding a new slice comprising network functionality in the first slice group;
terminating an existing slice in the first slice group that includes a network function;
adding a network function in an existing slice in the first slice group;
terminating network functions in existing slices in the first slice group; or
Reconfiguring network functions in existing slices in the first slice group.
16. The system of claim 13, wherein the BSS is configured to send a second slice instantiation request associated with a second tenant; and
the slice management apparatus is configured to determine whether the first slice group can be shared by the second tenant;
if so, sharing the first slice group with the second tenant;
and if not, creating a second slice group for the second tenant.
17. The system of claim 13, wherein the system is configured to create the first and/or second slice groups by tagging one or more existing slices with the same group ID, or creating one or more slices and then tagging the created slices with the same group ID, or creating one or more slices and then tagging the one or more existing slices and the created slices with the same group ID.
18. A computer readable storage medium storing executable program instructions that when executed cause a slice management apparatus to perform the method of any of claims 1 to 7.
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/CN2017/090616 WO2019000284A1 (en) | 2017-06-28 | 2017-06-28 | Method and apparatus for managing network slices |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CN110495197A CN110495197A (en) | 2019-11-22 |
| CN110495197B true CN110495197B (en) | 2021-01-15 |
Family
ID=64740265
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CN201780089348.4A Active CN110495197B (en) | 2017-06-28 | 2017-06-28 | Method and device for managing network slices |
Country Status (2)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CN (1) | CN110495197B (en) |
| WO (1) | WO2019000284A1 (en) |
Families Citing this family (4)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WO2020147102A1 (en) * | 2019-01-18 | 2020-07-23 | Nokia Shanghai Bell Co., Ltd. | Slice grouping for mobility of terminal device |
| US20220174548A1 (en) * | 2019-04-01 | 2022-06-02 | Nokia Technologies Oy | Administrative states of slices |
| CN110149646B (en) * | 2019-04-10 | 2022-04-15 | 中国电力科学研究院有限公司 | Intelligent power grid resource management method and system based on time delay and throughput |
| GB2621184A (en) * | 2022-08-05 | 2024-02-07 | Nokia Solutions & Networks Oy | Apparatus, method and computer program |
Citations (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN106375987A (en) * | 2015-07-22 | 2017-02-01 | 中兴通讯股份有限公司 | Method and system for selecting network slice |
| US20170141973A1 (en) * | 2015-11-13 | 2017-05-18 | Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. | Systems and methods for network slice management |
Family Cites Families (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US20160353367A1 (en) * | 2015-06-01 | 2016-12-01 | Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. | System and Method for Virtualized Functions in Control and Data Planes |
| US10425830B2 (en) * | 2015-09-07 | 2019-09-24 | Electronics And Telecommunications Research Institute | Mobile communication network system and method for composing network component configurations |
-
2017
- 2017-06-28 CN CN201780089348.4A patent/CN110495197B/en active Active
- 2017-06-28 WO PCT/CN2017/090616 patent/WO2019000284A1/en active Application Filing
Patent Citations (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN106375987A (en) * | 2015-07-22 | 2017-02-01 | 中兴通讯股份有限公司 | Method and system for selecting network slice |
| US20170141973A1 (en) * | 2015-11-13 | 2017-05-18 | Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. | Systems and methods for network slice management |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| CN110495197A (en) | 2019-11-22 |
| WO2019000284A1 (en) | 2019-01-03 |
Similar Documents
| Publication | Publication Date | Title |
|---|---|---|
| CN110495197B (en) | Method and device for managing network slices | |
| US10791040B2 (en) | Systems and methods for network slice management | |
| US10616133B2 (en) | Resource configuration method and network device thereof | |
| WO2019007345A1 (en) | Method, apparatus, and system for selecting network slice, and storage medium | |
| US10999740B2 (en) | Network slice management method, management unit, and system | |
| EP2922238B1 (en) | Resource allocation method | |
| US10230591B2 (en) | Network resource governance in multi-tenant datacenters | |
| US20180316627A1 (en) | Systems and methods for allocating end device reources to a network slice | |
| CN105183561B (en) | A kind of resource allocation methods and system | |
| US10924966B2 (en) | Management method, management unit, and system | |
| US20200177460A1 (en) | Network slice management method and apparatus | |
| US20170373931A1 (en) | Method for updating network service descriptor nsd and apparatus | |
| US11831509B2 (en) | Network service management method, device, and system | |
| CN104780071A (en) | Method and device for upgrading virtual switch | |
| US20200344126A1 (en) | Network slice deployment method and apparatus | |
| US20170111207A1 (en) | Nfv system and method for linking vnfm | |
| WO2019024671A1 (en) | Method, device and system for deploying network slice | |
| CN115086330B (en) | Cross-cluster load balancing system | |
| CN108345490B (en) | Method and system for deploying virtual machine in NFV | |
| US11405967B2 (en) | Enhanced femtocell with on-premise private network slice controller and multi-access edge computing service | |
| EP3534578B1 (en) | Resource adjustment method, device and system | |
| WO2019029704A1 (en) | Network object management method and apparatus therefor | |
| US20190042294A1 (en) | System and method for implementing virtualized network functions with a shared memory pool | |
| US20210194790A1 (en) | Communication device and communication method | |
| US11553378B2 (en) | Network slicing with multiple slice instance variation types |
Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| PB01 | Publication | ||
| PB01 | Publication | ||
| SE01 | Entry into force of request for substantive examination | ||
| SE01 | Entry into force of request for substantive examination | ||
| GR01 | Patent grant | ||
| GR01 | Patent grant |