CN114363291A

CN114363291A - Address allocation method, device, control plane functional entity and user plane functional entity

Info

Publication number: CN114363291A
Application number: CN202011044217.4A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 谷群; 魏彬
Original assignee: China Mobile Communications Group Co Ltd; China Mobile Communications Ltd Research Institute
Current assignee: China Mobile Communications Group Co Ltd; China Mobile Communications Ltd Research Institute
Priority date: 2020-09-28
Filing date: 2020-09-28
Publication date: 2022-04-15

Abstract

The invention provides an address allocation method, an address allocation device, a control plane functional entity and a user plane functional entity, wherein the address allocation method comprises the following steps: allocating a first IP address for first user equipment, and sending the first IP address to a first user plane functional entity corresponding to the first user equipment; receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity; the first user plane function entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane function UPF entity. The scheme can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after switching control (namely CU) separation, so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Description

Address allocation method, device, control plane functional entity and user plane functional entity

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to an address allocation method, an address allocation device, a control plane functional entity, and a user plane functional entity.

Background

With the popularization of a separate architecture of transfer control (i.e. CU, control plane and user plane), whether a user adopts 4G access or 5G access, the function of allocating IP addresses is assumed by the control plane (SAE GW-C system architecture evolution gateway control plane or session management function SMF).

However, under the architecture, due to the service requirement, the address is divided according to at least three dimensions, such as a control plane, a user plane, and a user location, otherwise, an IP address collision situation occurs, and thus, the address utilization rate is low or even the address is insufficient due to the excessive subdivision of the address pool.

As can be seen from the above, the existing address allocation scheme has a problem of low IP address utilization.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide an address allocation method, an address allocation device, a control plane functional entity and a user plane functional entity, and aims to solve the problem of low IP address utilization rate of an address allocation scheme in the prior art.

In order to solve the above technical problem, an embodiment of the present invention provides the following solutions:

in a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation method, which is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and the method includes:

allocating a first IP address for first user equipment, and sending the first IP address to a first user plane functional entity corresponding to the first user equipment;

receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity;

the first user plane function entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane function UPF entity.

Optionally, after receiving the verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, the method further includes:

under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one first preset operation until verification response information which indicates that the verification of the IP address is successful and is sent by the first user plane functional entity is received;

the first preset operation is as follows: distributing a new IP address different from the IP address failed in verification to the first user equipment according to verification response information indicating the IP address failed in verification, and sending the new IP address to the first user plane functional entity;

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, the first IP address is allocated to second user equipment and is sent to a second user plane functional entity corresponding to the second user equipment, and the first user plane functional entity and the second user plane functional entity correspond to different functional entities;

the second user plane functional entity is a second SAE GW-U entity or a second UPF entity.

Optionally, the check response information is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol session establishment response message.

Optionally, when the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to be checked, the check response information includes a check failure cause value.

Optionally, before allocating the first IP address to the first user equipment, the method further includes:

receiving information of an IP address which is not applied by the first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity;

the allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment includes:

and allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address.

Optionally, the information of the non-applied IP address is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

Optionally, in a field where the information of the non-applied IP address is located: the 1 st byte and the 2 nd byte are used for carrying the type of the IP address which is not applied, the 3 rd byte and the 4 th byte are used for carrying the length of the required byte, and the rest bytes except the 1 st byte, the 2 nd byte, the 3 rd byte and the 4 th byte are used for carrying the IP address which is not applied;

the required bytes are bytes required for carrying the unapplied IP address;

every n bytes in the remaining bytes carry one of the unapplied IP addresses, the n being determined according to the type.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation method, which is applied to a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and the method includes:

receiving a first IP address distributed for first user equipment and sent by a control plane function entity;

checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity;

according to the check result, the check response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity;

the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity.

Optionally, after the feedback of the verification response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity according to the verification result, the method further includes:

under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one second preset operation until verification response information indicating that the verification of the IP address succeeds is obtained, and sending the verification response information to the control plane functional entity;

wherein the second preset operation is: and receiving a new IP address which is sent by the control plane functional entity and distributed to the first user equipment and is different from the IP address failed in verification, verifying the new IP address, and sending verification response information to the control plane functional entity according to a verification result.

Optionally, before receiving the first IP address allocated to the first user equipment and sent by the control plane function entity, the method further includes:

according to a preset period or under the condition of meeting a preset condition, sending information of IP addresses which are not applied by the user plane functional entity to the control plane functional entity;

wherein the preset condition includes that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes.

the required bytes are bytes required for carrying the unapplied IP address;

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation method, which is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and the method includes:

receiving information of an address which is not applied by a first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity;

allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the IP address which is not applied;

the required bytes are bytes required for carrying the unapplied IP address;

Optionally, after allocating the first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address, the method further includes:

sending the first IP address to the first user plane functional entity;

and receiving the verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity.

executing at least one first preset operation under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails; until receiving verification response information which is sent by the first user plane functional entity and indicates that the IP address is successfully verified;

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation method, which is applied to a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and the method includes:

according to a preset period or under the condition of meeting a preset condition, sending information of IP addresses which are not applied by the user plane functional entity to a control plane functional entity;

the preset condition comprises that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes;

the required bytes are bytes required for carrying the unapplied IP address;

Optionally, after sending the information of the IP address not applied by the user plane functional entity to the control plane functional entity, the method further includes:

receiving a first IP address distributed for first user equipment and sent by the control plane function entity;

and feeding back the verification response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity according to the verification result.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation apparatus, which is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and the apparatus includes:

the first processing module is used for allocating a first IP address for first user equipment and sending the first IP address to a first user plane functional entity corresponding to the first user equipment;

a first receiving module, configured to receive verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity;

Optionally, the method further includes:

a first executing module, configured to, after receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, execute at least one first preset operation when the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails, until receiving verification response information that indicates that verification of the IP address is successful and sent by the first user plane functional entity;

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

a second processing module, configured to, after receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, allocate the first IP address to a second user equipment and send the second IP address to a second user plane functional entity corresponding to the second user equipment when the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails, where the first user plane functional entity and the second user plane functional entity correspond to different functional entities;

Optionally, the method further includes:

a second receiving module, configured to receive, before allocating a first IP address to first user equipment, information of an IP address that is not applied to a first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity;

the first processing module comprises:

and the first allocating submodule is used for allocating a first IP address for the first user equipment according to the non-applied IP address.

In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation apparatus, which is applied to a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and the apparatus includes:

a third receiving module, configured to receive a first IP address allocated to the first user equipment and sent by the control plane functional entity;

the first checking module is used for checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity;

a first feedback module, configured to feed back, according to a check result, check response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity;

Optionally, the method further includes:

a second execution module, configured to, after the check response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity according to the check result, execute at least one second preset operation when the check response information indicates that the check of the first IP address fails, until the check response information indicating that the check of the IP address is successful is obtained, and send the check response information to the control plane functional entity;

Optionally, the method further includes:

a first sending module, configured to send, to a control plane functional entity, information of an IP address that is not applied by a user plane functional entity according to a preset period or under a condition that a preset condition is met before receiving a first IP address allocated to a first user equipment and sent by the control plane functional entity;

In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation apparatus, which is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and the apparatus includes:

a fourth receiving module, configured to receive information of an address, which is not applied by the first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity;

the first allocation module is used for allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the non-applied IP address;

Optionally, the method further includes:

a second sending module, configured to send a first IP address to the first user plane functional entity after allocating the first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address;

a fifth receiving module, configured to receive verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity.

Optionally, the method further includes:

a third executing module, configured to, after receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, execute at least one first preset operation when the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails; until receiving verification response information which is sent by the first user plane functional entity and indicates that the IP address is successfully verified;

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

a third processing module, configured to, after receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, allocate the first IP address to a second user equipment and send the second IP address to a second user plane functional entity corresponding to the second user equipment when the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails, where the first user plane functional entity and the second user plane functional entity correspond to different functional entities;

In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation apparatus, applied to a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and the apparatus includes:

a third sending module, configured to send, according to a preset period or under a condition that a preset condition is met, information of an IP address that is not applied by the user plane functional entity to a control plane functional entity;

Optionally, the method further includes:

a sixth receiving module, configured to receive, after sending information of an IP address that is not applied by the user plane functional entity to a control plane functional entity, a first IP address allocated to a first user equipment and sent by the control plane functional entity;

the second check module is used for checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity;

and the second feedback module is used for feeding back the verification response information of the first IP address to the control plane function entity according to the verification result.

Optionally, the method further includes:

a fourth executing module, configured to, after the check response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity according to the check result, execute at least one second preset operation when the check response information indicates that the check of the first IP address fails, until the check response information indicating that the check of the IP address is successful is obtained, and send the check response information to the control plane functional entity;

In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and the control plane functional entity includes: a processor and a transceiver;

the processor is configured to allocate a first IP address to a first user equipment, and send the first IP address to a first user plane function entity corresponding to the first user equipment through the transceiver;

receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity;

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

after receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, and under a condition that the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one first preset operation until receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information that indicates that verification of the IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity succeeds;

the first preset operation is as follows: according to the verification response information indicating the IP address verification failure, distributing a new IP address different from the IP address verification failure to the first user equipment, and sending the new IP address to the first user plane functional entity through the transceiver;

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

after receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, and when the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails, allocating the first IP address to a second user equipment, and sending, by the transceiver, the first IP address to a second user plane functional entity corresponding to the second user equipment, where the first user plane functional entity and the second user plane functional entity correspond to different functional entities;

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

before allocating a first IP address to first user equipment, receiving information of an IP address which is not applied by a first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity through the transceiver;

the processor is specifically configured to:

In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and the user plane functional entity includes: a processor and a transceiver;

the processor is configured to receive, by the transceiver, a first IP address allocated to the first user equipment and sent by the control plane function entity;

according to a check result, checking response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver;

Optionally, the method further includes:

after the verification response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver according to the verification result, under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one second preset operation until the verification response information indicating that the verification of the IP address succeeds is obtained, and sending the verification response information to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver;

wherein the second preset operation is: and receiving a new IP address which is different from the IP address failed in verification and distributed to the first user equipment by the transceiver and sent by the control plane function entity, verifying the new IP address, and sending verification response information to the control plane function entity by the transceiver according to a verification result.

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

before receiving a first IP address distributed for first user equipment and sent by a control plane functional entity through the transceiver, sending information of IP addresses which are not applied by the user plane functional entity to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver according to a preset period or under the condition of meeting a preset condition;

In an eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and the control plane functional entity includes: a processor and a transceiver;

the processor is configured to receive, through the transceiver, information of an address, which is not applied by a first user plane functional entity, sent by the first user plane functional entity;

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

after allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address, sending the first IP address to the first user plane function entity through the transceiver;

and receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane function entity.

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

after receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, and if the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one first preset operation; until receiving verification response information which indicates that the IP address is successfully verified and is sent by the first user plane functional entity through the transceiver;

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

after receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, and when the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, allocating the first IP address to a second user equipment, and sending, by the transceiver, the first IP address to a second user plane functional entity corresponding to the second user equipment, where the first user plane functional entity and the second user plane functional entity correspond to different functional entities;

In a twelfth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and the user plane functional entity includes: a processor and a transceiver;

the processor is configured to send, to a control plane functional entity through the transceiver, information of an IP address that is not applied by the user plane functional entity according to a preset period or when a preset condition is satisfied;

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

after the information of the IP address which is not applied by the user plane function entity is sent to a control plane function entity through the transceiver, a first IP address which is sent by the control plane function entity and distributed for first user equipment is received through the transceiver;

and according to a check result, feeding back check response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver.

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

In a thirteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a control plane functional entity, including a memory, a processor, and a program stored in the memory and executable on the processor; the processor implements the address allocation method of the first aspect when executing the program; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

the processor implements the address allocation method according to the third aspect when executing the program.

In a fourteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a user plane functional entity, including a memory, a processor, and a program stored in the memory and executable on the processor; the processor implements the address allocation method according to the second aspect when executing the program; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

the processor implements the address allocation method according to the fourth aspect when executing the program.

In a fifteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a readable storage medium, on which a program is stored, where the program, when executed by a processor, implements the steps in the address allocation method according to the first aspect; or, the program implements the steps in the address assignment method according to the second aspect when executed by the processor; or, the program is executed by a processor to implement the steps of the address assignment method according to the third aspect; alternatively, the program implements the steps in the address assignment method described in the fourth aspect when executed by the processor.

The technical scheme of the invention has the following beneficial effects:

in the above scheme, the address allocation method allocates a first IP address to a first user equipment and sends the first IP address to a first user plane functional entity corresponding to the first user equipment; receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity; the first user plane functional entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane functional UPF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a first flowchart illustrating an address allocation method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a second address allocation method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a third flowchart illustrating an address allocation method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a fourth flowchart illustrating an address allocation method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an implementation principle of an address allocation method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 is a first flowchart illustrating a specific implementation of an address allocation method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a schematic view illustrating a specific implementation flow of an address allocation method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a first block diagram of an address allocation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a second schematic structural diagram of an address allocation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a third schematic structural diagram of an address allocation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a fourth schematic structural diagram of an address allocation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 12 is a first structural diagram of a control plane functional entity according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 13 is a first schematic structural diagram of a user plane functional entity according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 14 is a second structural diagram of a control plane functional entity according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of a user plane functional entity according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

In order to make the technical problems, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention more apparent, the following detailed description is given with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

The invention provides an address allocation method aiming at the problem of low IP address utilization rate of an address allocation scheme in the prior art, and the address allocation method is concretely shown in the following embodiment A and embodiment B:

example one

An embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation method, which is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and as shown in fig. 1, the method includes:

step 11: allocating a first IP address for first user equipment, and sending the first IP address to a first user plane functional entity corresponding to the first user equipment;

step 12: receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity; the first user plane function entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane function UPF entity.

The address allocation method provided by the embodiment of the invention allocates a first IP address for first user equipment and sends the first IP address to a first user plane functional entity corresponding to the first user equipment; receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity; the first user plane functional entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane functional UPF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, after receiving the check response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, the method further includes: under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one first preset operation until verification response information which indicates that the verification of the IP address is successful and is sent by the first user plane functional entity is received; the first preset operation is as follows: distributing a new IP address different from the IP address failed in verification to the first user equipment according to verification response information indicating the IP address failed in verification, and sending the new IP address to the first user plane functional entity;

or, under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, allocating the first IP address to a second user equipment, and sending the first IP address to a second user plane functional entity corresponding to the second user equipment, where the first user plane functional entity and the second user plane functional entity correspond to different functional entities; the second user plane functional entity is a second SAE GW-U entity or a second UPF entity.

The IP address which fails to be verified refers to the IP address which is allocated to the first user equipment and fails to be verified; specifically, the first preset operation may be executed once each time verification response information indicating that the IP address verification fails is received.

In the embodiment of the invention, the verification response information is carried in the packet forwarding control protocol session establishment response message.

Wherein, when the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to check, the check response information includes a check failure cause value.

Further, before allocating the first IP address to the first user equipment, the method further includes: receiving information of an IP address which is not applied by the first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity; the allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment includes: and allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address.

And the information of the non-applied IP address is carried in the packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

Specifically, the information of the unapplied IP address may be in a field: the 1 st byte and the 2 nd byte are used for carrying the type of the IP address which is not applied, the 3 rd byte and the 4 th byte are used for carrying the length of the required byte, and the rest bytes except the 1 st byte, the 2 nd byte, the 3 rd byte and the 4 th byte are used for carrying the IP address which is not applied; the required bytes are bytes required for carrying the unapplied IP address; every n bytes in the remaining bytes carry one of the unapplied IP addresses, the n being determined according to the type.

The embodiment of the invention also provides an address allocation method, which is applied to a user plane functional entity (specifically corresponding to the first user plane functional entity; the processing flow of the second user plane functional entity is similar to the processing flow of the first user plane functional entity), wherein the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and as shown in figure 2, the method comprises the following steps:

step 21: receiving a first IP address distributed for first user equipment and sent by a control plane function entity;

step 22: checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity;

step 23: according to the check result, the check response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity.

The address allocation method provided by the embodiment of the invention receives a first IP address allocated to first user equipment and sent by a control plane function entity; checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity; according to the check result, the check response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, after the feedback of the check response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity according to the check result, the method further includes: under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one second preset operation until verification response information indicating that the verification of the IP address succeeds is obtained, and sending the verification response information to the control plane functional entity; wherein the second preset operation is: and receiving a new IP address which is sent by the control plane functional entity and distributed to the first user equipment and is different from the IP address failed in verification, verifying the new IP address, and sending verification response information to the control plane functional entity according to a verification result.

Further, before receiving the first IP address allocated to the first user equipment sent by the control plane function entity, the method further includes: according to a preset period or under the condition of meeting a preset condition, sending information of IP addresses which are not applied by the user plane functional entity to the control plane functional entity; wherein the preset condition includes that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes.

Example two

An embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation method, which is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and as shown in fig. 3, the method includes:

step 31: receiving information of an address which is not applied by a first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity;

step 32: allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the IP address which is not applied; the first user plane function entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane function UPF entity.

The address allocation method provided by the embodiment of the invention receives the information of the address which is not applied by the first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity; allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the IP address which is not applied; the first user plane functional entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane functional UPF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, after allocating the first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address, the method further includes: sending the first IP address to the first user plane functional entity; and receiving the verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity.

Further, after receiving the check response message of the first IP address sent by the first user plane function entity, the method further includes: executing at least one first preset operation under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails; until receiving verification response information which is sent by the first user plane functional entity and indicates that the IP address is successfully verified; the first preset operation is as follows: distributing a new IP address different from the IP address failed in verification to the first user equipment according to verification response information indicating the IP address failed in verification, and sending the new IP address to the first user plane functional entity;

The embodiment of the invention also provides an address allocation method, which is applied to a user plane functional entity (specifically corresponding to the first user plane functional entity; the processing flow of the second user plane functional entity is similar to the processing flow of the first user plane functional entity), wherein the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and as shown in figure 4, the method comprises the following steps:

step 41: according to a preset period or under the condition of meeting a preset condition, sending information of IP addresses which are not applied by the user plane functional entity to a control plane functional entity; the preset condition comprises that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity.

According to the address allocation method provided by the embodiment of the invention, information of IP addresses which are not applied by the user plane functional entity is sent to the control plane functional entity according to a preset period or under the condition of meeting a preset condition; the preset condition comprises that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, after sending the information of the IP address not applied by the user plane functional entity to the control plane functional entity, the method further includes: receiving a first IP address distributed for first user equipment and sent by the control plane function entity; checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity; and feeding back the verification response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity according to the verification result.

Wherein, the check response information is carried in the session establishment response message of the packet forwarding control protocol.

In the embodiment of the present invention, when the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, the verification response information includes a verification failure cause value.

The address allocation method provided by the embodiment of the present invention is described below by referring to multiple sides, such as a control plane functional entity and a user plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity takes an SAE GW-C/(or) SMF entity as an example, and is hereinafter referred to as SAE GW-C/SMF; the user plane functional entity takes SAE GW-U/(or) UPF entity as an example, and is referred to as SAE GW-U/UPF in the following.

In view of the above technical problem, and in view of: the same IP address can not be repeated under one or a group of SAE GW-U (system architecture evolution gateway user plane) or UPF (user plane function), but the allocation of the IP address is executed by the SAE GW-C or SMF, if the synchronous information of the two is not timely, the SAE GW-C or SMF is inevitably caused to allocate the same IP for two users (under the same or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF), and further address collision is caused; the existing mechanism completely lacks the definition of the information synchronization mechanism; the embodiment of the invention provides an address allocation method, which is used for realizing the address sharing of SAE GW-C or SMF in the same POOL, greatly relieving the problem of address tension, improving the utilization efficiency of IP addresses and avoiding address collision to the greatest extent.

Specifically, the scheme relates to an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after transfer control (namely CU) separation, which is convenient for a network side to carry out address allocation, improves the utilization rate of addresses and effectively avoids address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF. For the implementation principle of this solution, see fig. 5:

the same IP address cannot be repeated under one or a group of SAE GW-U or UPF, but the assignment of IP address is performed by SAE GW-C or SMF, and two users can use the same IP address. The GW-C POOL in the figure represents a GW-C POOL.

The scheme mainly provides a related address allocation and anti-collision scheme aiming at the following parts:

(1) part 1: the specific process of the address collision retry mechanism can be as shown in fig. 6 (for example, in 5G access), including:

<1> establishing a control plane link and selecting network elements of SAE GW-C/SMF (indicating SAE GW-C or SMF);

<2> SAE GW-U/UPF (representing SAE GW-U or UPF) selection is completed, and an IP address is allocated to the user;

specifically, in a PDU (protocol data unit) session establishment flow of a user, SAE GW-C/SMF selects an SAE GW-U/UPF for the user;

<3> use the retry mechanism of address collision until the IP address assignment of the user is completed;

specifically, the following steps can be performed: an SAE GW-C/SMF sends a PFCP (packet forwarding control protocol) Session Establishment Request message to an SAE GW-U/UPF, and carries an IP address allocated to the user through a UE IP address field in a PDI (packet detection information) (specifically, carries the IP address allocated to the user in an N4 interface Session Establishment or Modification Request N4 Session Establishment/Modification Request);

after receiving the Address, SAE GW-U/UPF checks whether the Address is already applied to the device, and if the check fails, notifies SAE GW-C/SMF through a packet forwarding control protocol Session Establishment Response PFCP (packet forwarding control protocol) Session Establishment Response (specifically, N4 interface Session Establishment or Modification Response N4 Session Establishment/Modification Response) message, where the value of the cause of failure (for example, #79, Address collision) may be carried, which may specifically refer to the following table.

The SAE GW-C/SMF replaces a new address to initiate an N4 Session Establishment/Modification Request flow to the UPF again, or the SAE GW-C/SMF reselects the SAE GW-U/UPF and initiates the N4 Session Establishment/Modification Request flow; it is explained here that different UPFs may use the same IP.

After receiving the address, SAE GW-U/UPF continues to check whether the address is applied to the equipment or not until the check is passed, and returns a success message through N4 Session Establishment/Modification Response.

<4> the interaction of the subsequent control plane link and the user plane link is completed.

(2) Part 2: an address assignment notification mechanism;

considering the situation in part 1, which may be due to repeated attempts, not only would a huge signaling waste be caused, but also a signaling delay or a user traffic failure.

To this end, the present solution proposes section 2, specifically relating to:

in the process of user online, SAE GW-C/SMF selects an SAE GW-U/UPF for the user;

<2> SAE GW-C/SMF sends a PFCP Session availability Request message to SAE GW-U/UPF, and carries the IP address allocated to the user in PDI through UE IP address field (specifically, carries the IP address allocated to the user in N4 interface Session Establishment or Modification Request N4 Session availability/Modification Request);

<3> SAE GW-U/UPF receives the address and completes the check (specifically, whether the address is applied on the device or not is checked), and notifies the SAE GW-C/SMF through a packet forwarding control protocol Session Establishment Response (PFCP) Session Establishment Response (specifically, N4 interface Session Establishment or Modification Response N4 Session Establishment/Modification Response) message.

In this part, when the address assignment situation changes, the SAE GW-U/UPF can update the assignment state of the IP address to the SAE GW-C/SMF, or the SAE GW-U/UPF periodically updates the address to the SAE GW-C/SMF (i.e., reports the IP address update information, specifically, the information of the non-applied IP address, to the SMF); specifically, as shown in fig. 7, SAE GW-U/UPF sends a PFCP Association Update Request message (a message based on connection of device granularity) to all SAE GW-C/SMF connected to SAE GW-U/UPF to notify address allocation, where the message may carry Available IPv4 address (Available IP version 4 address) and Available IPv6 address (Available IP version 4 address), and the Available IP addresses (including the above Available IPv4 address and/or Available IPv4 address) field includes the assignable IP address under SAE GW-U/UPF. The SAE GW-C/SMF feeds back a PFCP Association Update Response message to the SAE GW-U/UPF to inform the receipt of the PFCP Association Update Request message.

The form of the Available IP addresses field in the PFCP Association Update Request message may be as shown in the following table:

available IPv4 Address field definition indication table

The table shows that: the first two bits of a byte (1 byte ═ 8 bits) indicate the type, and then indicate the length of the byte required by the subsequent IP address; followed by a specific IP address; each IP address occupies 4 bytes.

Available IPv6 Address field definition indication table

The table shows that: the first two bits of a byte (1 byte ═ 8 bits) indicate the type, and then indicate the length of the byte required by the subsequent IP address; followed by a specific IP address; each IP address occupies 16 bytes.

It is explained here that if an address conflict occurs just during the update of the IP address status, the solution of part 1 can be continued to solve this problem.

In summary, the above-mentioned technical problem can be solved by using the above-mentioned part 1, part 2 or part 1+ part 2 for address management.

From the above, the present solution involves:

(1) address collision retry mechanism: SAE GW-C/SMF (representing SAE GW-C or SMF) allocates an address for the user and sends the address to SAE GW-U/UPF (representing SAE GW-U or UPF), after the SAE GW-U/UPF receives the address, whether the address is applied on the equipment is checked, if the address is not checked, a failure cause value is returned, and the SAE GW-C/SMF reallocates the address or reselects the SAE GW-U/UPF.

(2) Address assignment notification mechanism: when an address is used on the SAE GW-U/UPF, the SAE GW-U/UPF should inform all SAE GW-C/SMFs connected to it to prevent other SAE GW-C/SMFs from allocating the same address again to the user on this SAE GW-U/UPF.

Compared with the prior art, the method and the device can solve the address multiplexing problem under the transfer control separation architecture, avoid address collision, improve the utilization efficiency of the address pool and greatly relieve the problem of insufficient IPv4 addresses of the existing network.

In summary, the present solution provides an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after switching control separation, and through an address collision retry mechanism and/or an address allocation notification mechanism, the address sharing of SAE GW-C or SMF in the same POOL can be realized, thereby greatly alleviating the problem of address shortage in the current network IPv4, facilitating the address allocation on the network side, improving the address utilization rate, and effectively avoiding address collision under the same SAE GW-U or UPF.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides an address allocation apparatus, which is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and as shown in fig. 8, the apparatus includes:

a first processing module 81, configured to allocate a first IP address to a first user equipment, and send the first IP address to a first user plane function entity corresponding to the first user equipment;

a first receiving module 82, configured to receive verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity; the first user plane function entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane function UPF entity.

The address allocation device provided by the embodiment of the invention allocates a first IP address for first user equipment and sends the first IP address to a first user plane functional entity corresponding to the first user equipment; receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity; the first user plane functional entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane functional UPF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, the address allocation apparatus further includes: a first executing module, configured to, after receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, execute at least one first preset operation when the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails, until receiving verification response information that indicates that verification of the IP address is successful and sent by the first user plane functional entity; the first preset operation is as follows: distributing a new IP address different from the IP address failed in verification to the first user equipment according to verification response information indicating the IP address failed in verification, and sending the new IP address to the first user plane functional entity;

or, after receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, under a condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, the second processing module is configured to allocate the first IP address to a second user equipment and send the second IP address to a second user plane functional entity corresponding to the second user equipment, where the first user plane functional entity and the second user plane functional entity correspond to different functional entities; the second user plane functional entity is a second SAE GW-U entity or a second UPF entity.

Further, the address allocation apparatus further includes: a second receiving module, configured to receive, before allocating a first IP address to first user equipment, information of an IP address that is not applied to a first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity; the first processing module comprises: and the first allocating submodule is used for allocating a first IP address for the first user equipment according to the non-applied IP address.

The implementation embodiments of the address allocation method for the control plane function entity in the first embodiment are all applicable to the embodiment of the address allocation apparatus, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides an address allocation apparatus, which is applied to a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and as shown in fig. 9, the apparatus includes:

a third receiving module 91, configured to receive the first IP address allocated to the first user equipment and sent by the control plane functional entity;

a first checking module 92, configured to check the first IP address according to the IP address that is already applied by the user plane functional entity;

a first feedback module 93, configured to feed back, according to a check result, check response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity.

The address allocation device provided by the embodiment of the invention receives a first IP address allocated to first user equipment and sent by a control plane function entity; checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity; according to the check result, the check response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, the address allocation apparatus further includes: a second execution module, configured to, after the check response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity according to the check result, execute at least one second preset operation when the check response information indicates that the check of the first IP address fails, until the check response information indicating that the check of the IP address is successful is obtained, and send the check response information to the control plane functional entity; wherein the second preset operation is: and receiving a new IP address which is sent by the control plane functional entity and distributed to the first user equipment and is different from the IP address failed in verification, verifying the new IP address, and sending verification response information to the control plane functional entity according to a verification result.

Further, the address allocation apparatus further includes: a first sending module, configured to send, to a control plane functional entity, information of an IP address that is not applied by a user plane functional entity according to a preset period or under a condition that a preset condition is met before receiving a first IP address allocated to a first user equipment and sent by the control plane functional entity; wherein the preset condition includes that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes.

In the first embodiment, the implementation embodiments of the address allocation method on the user plane function entity side are all applicable to the embodiment of the address allocation apparatus, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

An embodiment of the present invention provides an address allocation apparatus, which is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, as shown in fig. 10, the apparatus includes:

a fourth receiving module 101, configured to receive information of an address, which is not applied by a first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity;

a first allocating module 102, configured to allocate a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the non-applied IP address; the first user plane function entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane function UPF entity.

The address allocation device provided by the embodiment of the invention receives the information of the address which is not applied by the first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity; allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the IP address which is not applied; the first user plane functional entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane functional UPF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, the address allocation apparatus further includes: a second sending module, configured to send a first IP address to the first user plane functional entity after allocating the first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address; a fifth receiving module, configured to receive verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity.

Further, the address allocation apparatus further includes: a third executing module, configured to, after receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, execute at least one first preset operation when the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails; until receiving verification response information which is sent by the first user plane functional entity and indicates that the IP address is successfully verified; the first preset operation is as follows: distributing a new IP address different from the IP address failed in verification to the first user equipment according to verification response information indicating the IP address failed in verification, and sending the new IP address to the first user plane functional entity;

or, after receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, under a condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, the third processing module is configured to allocate the first IP address to a second user equipment and send the second IP address to a second user plane functional entity corresponding to the second user equipment, where the first user plane functional entity and the second user plane functional entity correspond to different functional entities; the second user plane functional entity is a second SAE GW-U entity or a second UPF entity.

The implementation embodiments of the address allocation method for the control plane function entity in the second embodiment are all applicable to the embodiment of the address allocation apparatus, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides an address allocation apparatus, which is applied to a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and as shown in fig. 11, the apparatus includes:

a third sending module 111, configured to send, according to a preset period or under a condition that a preset condition is met, information of an IP address that is not applied by the user plane functional entity to the control plane functional entity; the preset condition comprises that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity.

The address allocation apparatus provided in the embodiment of the present invention sends, to a control plane functional entity, information of an IP address that is not applied by the user plane functional entity according to a preset period or when a preset condition is satisfied; the preset condition comprises that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, the address allocation apparatus further includes: a sixth receiving module, configured to receive, after sending information of an IP address that is not applied by the user plane functional entity to a control plane functional entity, a first IP address allocated to a first user equipment and sent by the control plane functional entity; the second check module is used for checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity; and the second feedback module is used for feeding back the verification response information of the first IP address to the control plane function entity according to the verification result.

Further, the address allocation apparatus further includes: a fourth executing module, configured to, after the check response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity according to the check result, execute at least one second preset operation when the check response information indicates that the check of the first IP address fails, until the check response information indicating that the check of the IP address is successful is obtained, and send the check response information to the control plane functional entity; wherein the second preset operation is: and receiving a new IP address which is sent by the control plane functional entity and distributed to the first user equipment and is different from the IP address failed in verification, verifying the new IP address, and sending verification response information to the control plane functional entity according to a verification result.

In the second embodiment, the implementation embodiments of the address allocation method on the user plane function entity side are all applicable to the embodiment of the address allocation apparatus, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and as shown in fig. 12, the control plane functional entity includes: a processor 121 and a transceiver 122;

the processor 121 is configured to allocate a first IP address to a first user equipment, and send the first IP address to a first user plane function entity corresponding to the first user equipment through the transceiver 122;

receiving, by the transceiver 122, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane function entity; the first user plane function entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane function UPF entity.

The control plane functional entity provided by the embodiment of the invention allocates a first IP address for first user equipment and sends the first IP address to a first user plane functional entity corresponding to the first user equipment; receiving verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity; the first user plane functional entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane functional UPF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, the processor is further configured to: after receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, and under a condition that the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one first preset operation until receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information that indicates that verification of the IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity succeeds; the first preset operation is as follows: according to the verification response information indicating the IP address verification failure, distributing a new IP address different from the IP address verification failure to the first user equipment, and sending the new IP address to the first user plane functional entity through the transceiver;

or after receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, and when the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, allocating the first IP address to a second user equipment, and sending, by the transceiver, the first IP address to a second user plane functional entity corresponding to the second user equipment, where the first user plane functional entity and the second user plane functional entity correspond to different functional entities; the second user plane functional entity is a second SAE GW-U entity or a second UPF entity.

Further, the processor is further configured to: before allocating a first IP address to first user equipment, receiving information of an IP address which is not applied by a first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity through the transceiver; the processor is specifically configured to: and allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address.

The implementation embodiments of the address allocation method for the control plane functional entity in the first embodiment are all applicable to the embodiment of the control plane functional entity, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

The embodiment of the present invention further provides a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, as shown in fig. 13, and the user plane functional entity includes: a processor 131 and a transceiver 132;

the processor 131 is configured to receive, through the transceiver 132, a first IP address allocated to a first user equipment and sent by a control plane function entity;

according to the checking result, the transceiver 132 feeds back the checking response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity.

The user plane functional entity provided by the embodiment of the invention receives a first IP address which is sent by a control plane functional entity and is distributed for first user equipment; checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity; according to the check result, the check response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, the user plane functional entity further includes: after the verification response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver according to the verification result, under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one second preset operation until the verification response information indicating that the verification of the IP address succeeds is obtained, and sending the verification response information to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver; wherein the second preset operation is: and receiving a new IP address which is different from the IP address failed in verification and distributed to the first user equipment by the transceiver and sent by the control plane function entity, verifying the new IP address, and sending verification response information to the control plane function entity by the transceiver according to a verification result.

Further, the processor is further configured to: before receiving a first IP address distributed for first user equipment and sent by a control plane functional entity through the transceiver, sending information of IP addresses which are not applied by the user plane functional entity to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver according to a preset period or under the condition of meeting a preset condition; wherein the preset condition includes that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes.

In the first embodiment, the implementation embodiments of the address allocation method for the user plane function entity are all applicable to the embodiment of the user plane function entity, and the same technical effect can be achieved.

An embodiment of the present invention provides a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, as shown in fig. 14, and the control plane functional entity includes: a processor 141 and a transceiver 142;

the processor 141 is configured to receive, through the transceiver 142, information of an address, which is not applied by a first user plane functional entity, sent by the first user plane functional entity;

allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the IP address which is not applied; the first user plane function entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane function UPF entity.

The control plane functional entity provided by the embodiment of the invention receives the information of the address which is not applied by the first user plane functional entity and is sent by the first user plane functional entity; allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the IP address which is not applied; the first user plane functional entity is a first system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a first user plane functional UPF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, the processor is further configured to: after allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address, sending the first IP address to the first user plane function entity through the transceiver; and receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane function entity.

Still further, the processor is further configured to: after receiving, by the transceiver, verification response information of the first IP address sent by the first user plane functional entity, and if the verification response information indicates that verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one first preset operation; until receiving verification response information which indicates that the IP address is successfully verified and is sent by the first user plane functional entity through the transceiver; the first preset operation is as follows: according to the verification response information indicating the IP address verification failure, distributing a new IP address different from the IP address verification failure to the first user equipment, and sending the new IP address to the first user plane functional entity through the transceiver;

In the second embodiment, the implementation embodiments of the address allocation method for the control plane functional entity are all applicable to the embodiment of the control plane functional entity, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

The embodiment of the present invention further provides a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, as shown in fig. 15, and the user plane functional entity includes: a processor 151 and a transceiver 152;

the processor 151 is configured to send, according to a preset period or in a case that a preset condition is met, information of an IP address that is not applied by the user plane functional entity to a control plane functional entity through the transceiver 152; the preset condition comprises that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity.

The user plane functional entity provided by the embodiment of the invention sends information of an IP address which is not applied by the user plane functional entity to a control plane functional entity according to a preset period or under the condition of meeting a preset condition; the preset condition comprises that the IP address of the user plane functional entity application changes; the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity; the method can support and realize an address allocation multiplexing mechanism after the separation of transfer control (namely CU), so that the address utilization rate is improved when the network side allocates the addresses conveniently, the address collision under the same station or the same group of SAE GW-U or UPF is effectively avoided, and the problem of low IP address utilization rate in the address allocation scheme in the prior art is well solved.

Further, the processor is further configured to: after the information of the IP address which is not applied by the user plane function entity is sent to a control plane function entity through the transceiver, a first IP address which is sent by the control plane function entity and distributed for first user equipment is received through the transceiver; checking the first IP address according to the IP address applied by the user plane functional entity; and according to a check result, feeding back check response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver.

Still further, the processor is further configured to: after the verification response information of the first IP address is fed back to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver according to the verification result, under the condition that the verification response information indicates that the verification of the first IP address fails, executing at least one second preset operation until the verification response information indicating that the verification of the IP address succeeds is obtained, and sending the verification response information to the control plane functional entity through the transceiver; wherein the second preset operation is: and receiving a new IP address which is different from the IP address failed in verification and distributed to the first user equipment by the transceiver and sent by the control plane function entity, verifying the new IP address, and sending verification response information to the control plane function entity by the transceiver according to a verification result.

In the second embodiment, the implementation embodiments of the address allocation method in the user plane function entity are all applicable to the embodiment of the user plane function entity, and the same technical effect can be achieved.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a control surface functional entity, which comprises a memory, a processor and a program which is stored on the memory and can run on the processor; when the processor executes the program, the address allocation method of the control plane function entity in the first embodiment is implemented; or, the processor implements the address assignment method on the control plane function entity side in the second embodiment when executing the program.

The implementation embodiments of the address allocation method for the control plane functional entity in the first embodiment or the control plane functional entity in the second embodiment are all applicable to the embodiment of the control plane functional entity, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a user plane functional entity, which comprises a memory, a processor and a program which is stored on the memory and can be operated on the processor; when the processor executes the program, the address allocation method of the user plane function entity side in the first embodiment is realized; or, the processor implements the address assignment method on the user plane function entity side in the second embodiment described above when executing the program.

The implementation embodiments of the address assignment method in the user plane function entity in the first embodiment or the address assignment method in the user plane function entity in the second embodiment are all applicable to the embodiment of the user plane function entity, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides a readable storage medium, on which a program is stored, where the program, when executed by a processor, implements the steps in the address allocation method on the control plane function entity side in the first embodiment; or, the program is executed by a processor to implement the steps in the address assignment method on the user plane function entity side in the first embodiment; or, the program is executed by a processor to implement the steps in the address allocation method on the control plane function entity side in the second embodiment; alternatively, the program implements the steps in the address assignment method on the user plane function entity side in the second embodiment described above when executed by the processor.

The implementation embodiments of the address allocation method in the control plane function entity in the first embodiment, the user plane function entity in the first embodiment, the control plane function entity in the second embodiment, or the user plane function entity in the second embodiment are all applicable to the embodiment of the readable storage medium, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

It should be noted that many of the functional components described in this specification are referred to as modules/sub-modules in order to more particularly emphasize their implementation independence.

In embodiments of the invention, the modules/sub-modules may be implemented in software for execution by various types of processors. An identified module of executable code may, for instance, comprise one or more physical or logical blocks of computer instructions which may, for instance, be constructed as an object, procedure, or function. Nevertheless, the executables of an identified module need not be physically located together, but may comprise disparate instructions stored in different bits which, when joined logically together, comprise the module and achieve the stated purpose for the module.

Indeed, a module of executable code may be a single instruction, or many instructions, and may even be distributed over several different code segments, among different programs, and across several memory devices. Likewise, operational data may be identified within the modules and may be embodied in any suitable form and organized within any suitable type of data structure. The operational data may be collected as a single data set, or may be distributed over different locations including over different storage devices, and may exist, at least partially, merely as electronic signals on a system or network.

When a module can be implemented by software, considering the level of existing hardware technology, a module implemented by software may build a corresponding hardware circuit to implement a corresponding function, without considering cost, and the hardware circuit may include a conventional Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) circuit or a gate array and an existing semiconductor such as a logic chip, a transistor, or other discrete components. A module may also be implemented in programmable hardware devices such as field programmable gate arrays, programmable array logic, programmable logic devices or the like.

While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. An address allocation method is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and the method includes:

2. The address assignment method according to claim 1, after receiving the check response message of the first IP address sent by the first user plane function entity, further comprising:

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

3. The address assignment method of claim 1, wherein the check response message is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol session establishment response message.

4. The address allocation method according to claim 1, wherein in a case where the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to check, the check response information contains a check failure cause value.

5. The address assignment method of claim 1, further comprising, prior to assigning the first IP address to the first user device:

the allocating a first IP address to the first user equipment includes:

6. The address assignment method of claim 5, wherein the information of the unapplied IP address is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

7. An address allocation method is applied to a user plane functional entity, wherein the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and the method comprises the following steps:

8. The address allocation method according to claim 7, after feeding back the check response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity according to the check result, further comprising:

9. The address assignment method of claim 7, wherein the check response message is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol session establishment response message.

10. The address allocation method according to claim 7, wherein in a case that the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to check, the check response information contains a check failure cause value.

11. The address allocation method of claim 7, wherein before receiving the first IP address allocated to the first user equipment sent by the control plane function entity, the method further comprises:

12. The address assignment method of claim 11, wherein the information of the unapplied IP address is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

13. An address allocation method is applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, and the method includes:

14. The address assignment method of claim 13, wherein the information of the unapplied IP address is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

15. The address assignment method of claim 13, wherein after assigning the first IP address to the first user equipment according to the unapplied IP address, further comprising:

sending the first IP address to the first user plane functional entity;

16. The address assignment method according to claim 15, after receiving the check response message of the first IP address sent by the first user plane function entity, further comprising:

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

17. The address assignment method of claim 15, wherein the check response message is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol session establishment response message.

18. The address allocation method according to claim 15, wherein in a case that the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to check, the check response information contains a check failure cause value.

19. An address allocation method is applied to a user plane functional entity, wherein the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, and the method comprises the following steps:

20. The address assignment method of claim 19, wherein the information of the unapplied IP address is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

21. The address allocation method of claim 19, further comprising, after sending information of an IP address not applied by the user plane function entity to a control plane function entity:

22. The address allocation method of claim 21, wherein after the feedback of the check response information of the first IP address to the control plane functional entity according to the check result, the method further comprises:

23. The address assignment method of claim 22, wherein the check response message is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol session establishment response message.

24. The address assigning method according to claim 22, wherein in a case that the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to check, the check response information includes a check failure cause value.

25. An address allocation apparatus, applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, the apparatus includes:

26. The address assignment device of claim 25, further comprising:

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

27. The address assignment device of claim 25, wherein the check response message is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol session establishment response message.

28. The address assigning apparatus of claim 25, wherein in case that the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to check, the check response information includes a check failure cause value.

29. The address assignment device of claim 25, further comprising:

the first processing module comprises:

30. The address assignment device of claim 29, wherein the information of the unapplied IP address is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

31. An address allocation device, applied to a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, the device comprising:

32. The address assignment device of claim 31, further comprising:

33. The address assignment device of claim 31, wherein the check response message is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol session establishment response message.

34. The address assigning apparatus of claim 31, wherein in case that the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to check, the check response information includes a check failure cause value.

35. The address assignment device of claim 31, further comprising:

36. The address assignment device of claim 35, wherein the information of the unapplied IP address is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

37. An address allocation apparatus, applied to a control plane functional entity, where the control plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, the apparatus includes:

38. The address assignment device of claim 37, wherein the information of the unapplied IP address is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

39. The address assignment device of claim 37, further comprising:

40. The address assignment device of claim 39, further comprising:

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

41. The address assignment device of claim 39, wherein the check response message is carried in a packet Forwarding control protocol Session establishment response message.

42. The address assignment device of claim 39, wherein in case that the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to check, the check response information includes a check failure cause value.

43. An address allocation device, applied to a user plane functional entity, where the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, the device comprising:

44. The address assignment device of claim 43, wherein the information of the unapplied IP address is carried in a packet forwarding control protocol association update request message.

45. The address assignment device of claim 43, further comprising:

46. The address assignment device of claim 45, further comprising:

47. The address assignment device of claim 46, wherein the check response message is carried in a packet Forwarding control protocol Session establishment response message.

48. The address assignment device of claim 46, wherein in case that the check response information indicates that the first IP address fails to check, the check response information includes a check failure cause value.

49. A control plane functional entity, which is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, wherein the control plane functional entity comprises: a processor and a transceiver;

50. A user plane functional entity, the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, characterized in that the user plane functional entity comprises: a processor and a transceiver;

51. A control plane functional entity, which is a system architecture evolution gateway control plane SAE GW-C entity or a session management function SMF entity, wherein the control plane functional entity comprises: a processor and a transceiver;

52. A user plane functional entity, the user plane functional entity is a system architecture evolution gateway user plane SAE GW-U entity or a user plane function UPF entity, characterized in that the user plane functional entity comprises: a processor and a transceiver;

53. A control plane functional entity comprising a memory, a processor, and a program stored on the memory and executable on the processor; wherein the processor implements the address allocation method of any one of claims 1 to 6 when executing the program; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

the processor, when executing the program, implements an address allocation method as claimed in any one of claims 13 to 18.

54. A user plane functional entity comprising a memory, a processor and a program stored on the memory and executable on the processor; wherein the processor implements the address allocation method of any one of claims 7 to 12 when executing the program; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

the processor, when executing the program, implements an address allocation method as claimed in any one of claims 19 to 24.

55. A readable storage medium on which a program is stored, the program realizing the steps in the address allocation method according to any one of claims 1 to 6 when executed by a processor; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

the program implementing the steps in the address allocation method according to any one of claims 7 to 12 when executed by a processor; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

the program implementing the steps in the address allocation method according to any one of claims 13 to 18 when executed by a processor; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

the program when executed by a processor implementing the steps in the address allocation method according to any one of claims 19 to 24.