13 research outputs found
Automated Network Service Scaling in NFV: Concepts, Mechanisms and Scaling Workflow
Next-generation systems are anticipated to be digital platforms supporting
innovative services with rapidly changing traffic patterns. To cope with this
dynamicity in a cost-efficient manner, operators need advanced service
management capabilities such as those provided by NFV. NFV enables operators to
scale network services with higher granularity and agility than today. For this
end, automation is key. In search of this automation, the European
Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) has defined a reference NFV
framework that make use of model-driven templates called Network Service
Descriptors (NSDs) to operate network services through their lifecycle. For the
scaling operation, an NSD defines a discrete set of instantiation levels among
which a network service instance can be resized throughout its lifecycle. Thus,
the design of these levels is key for ensuring an effective scaling. In this
article, we provide an overview of the automation of the network service
scaling operation in NFV, addressing the options and boundaries introduced by
ETSI normative specifications. We start by providing a description of the NSD
structure, focusing on how instantiation levels are constructed. For
illustrative purposes, we propose an NSD for a representative NS. This NSD
includes different instantiation levels that enable different ways to
automatically scale this NS. Then, we show the different scaling procedures the
NFV framework has available, and how it may automate their triggering. Finally,
we propose an ETSI-compliant workflow to describe in detail a representative
scaling procedure. This workflow clarifies the interactions and information
exchanges between the functional blocks in the NFV framework when performing
the scaling operation.Comment: This work has been accepted for publication in the IEEE
Communications Magazin
The Isolation Concept in the 5G Network Slicing
The fifth generation (5G) of cellular networks shall host a number of tenants and provide services tailored to meet a wide range of requirements in terms of performance, dependability and security. Network slicing will be a key enabler, by assigning dedicated resources and functionalities to meet such requirements, where the isolation between slices, i.e., that a slice may operate without interference from other slices, becomes a core issue. The objective of this paper is to give a thorough insight into the isolation concept, discuss the challenges involved in providing it, and outline the means available to provide various levels of isolation. Fundamental concepts that can be used in further work to build an isolation solution tailored to specific needs. This paper defines important concepts such as the Provider Management, the Tenant Management, and the Means of Isolation in the context of the Isolation Dimensions. The conclusion of the study is that dealing with isolation between slices needs extensions in state of the art on the mentioned concepts, and in how to tailor the isolation to meet the needs in a cost-efficiency manner.acceptedVersio
5G-CLARITY : 5G-advanced private networks integrating 5GNR, WiFi, and LiFi
The future of the manufacturing industry highly depends on digital systems that transform existing production and monitoring systems into autonomous systems fulfilling stringent requirements in terms of availability, reliability, security, low latency, and positioning with high accuracy. In order to meet such requirements, private 5G networks are considered as a key enabling technology. In this article, we introduce the 5G-CLARITY system that integrates 5GNR, WiFi, and LiFi access networks, and develops novel management enablers to operate 5G-Advanced private networks. We describe three core features of 5G-CLARITY, including a multi-connectivity framework, a high-precision positioning server, and a management system to orchestrate private network slices. These features are evaluated by means of packet-level simulations and an experimental testbed demonstrating the ability of 5G-CLARITY to police access network traffic, to achieve centimeter-level positioning accuracy, and to provision private network slices in less than one minute
Intelligent optimization and machine learning for 5G network control and management
The adoption of Software Define Networking (SDN), Network Function Virtualization (NFV) and Machine Learning (ML) will play a key role in the control and management of 5G network slices to fulfill the specific requirements of application/services and the new requirements of fifth generation (5G) networks. In this research, we propose a distributed architecture to perform network analytics applying ML techniques in the context of network operation and control of 5G networks.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version
Harmonizing 3GPP and NFV Description Models: Providing Customized RAN Slices in 5G Networks
This work is partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, the European Regional Development Fund (Project TEC2016-76795-C6-4-R), the Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport (FPU Grant 17/01844), and the University of Granada, Andalusian Regional Government and European Social Fund under Youth Employment Program.The standardization of Radio Access Network (RAN) in mobile networks has traditionally been led by 3GPP. However, the emergence of RAN slicing has introduced new aspects that fall outside 3GPP scope. Among them, network virtualization enables the particularization of multiple RAN behaviors over a common physical infrastructure. Using Virtualized Network Functions (VNFs) that comprise customized radio functionalities, each virtualized RAN, denominated RAN slice, could meet its specific requirements. Although 3GPP specifies the description model to manage RAN slices, it can neither particularize the behavior of a RAN slice nor leverage the NFV descriptors to define how its VNFs can accommodate its spatial and temporal traffic demands. In this article, we propose a description model that harmonizes 3GPP and ETSI-NFV viewpoints to manage RAN slices. The proposed model enables the translation of RAN slice requirements into customized virtualized radio functionalities defined through NFV descriptors. To clarify this proposal, we provide an example where three RAN slices with disruptive requirements are described following our solution.This work is partially supported by the Spanish Ministry
of Economy and Competitiveness, the European Regional Development Fund
(Project TEC2016-76795-C6-4-R)Spanish Ministry of Education,
Culture and Sport (FPU Grant 17/01844)University of Granada,
Andalusian Regional Government and European Social Fund under Youth
Employment Program
The Isolation Concept in the 5G Network Slicing
The fifth generation (5G) of cellular networks shall host a number of tenants and provide services tailored to meet a wide range of requirements in terms of performance, dependability and security. Network slicing will be a key enabler, by assigning dedicated resources and functionalities to meet such requirements, where the isolation between slices, i.e., that a slice may operate without interference from other slices, becomes a core issue. The objective of this paper is to give a thorough insight into the isolation concept, discuss the challenges involved in providing it, and outline the means available to provide various levels of isolation. Fundamental concepts that can be used in further work to build an isolation solution tailored to specific needs. This paper defines important concepts such as the Provider Management, the Tenant Management, and the Means of Isolation in the context of the Isolation Dimensions. The conclusion of the study is that dealing with isolation between slices needs extensions in state of the art on the mentioned concepts, and in how to tailor the isolation to meet the needs in a cost-efficiency manner
Performance Limitations of Parsing Libraries : State-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives
The acceleration of mobile data traffic and the shortage of available spectral resources create new challenges for the next-generation (5G) networks. One of the potential solutions is network offloading that opens a possibility for unlicensed spectrum utilization. Heterogeneous networking between cellular and WLAN systems allows mobile users to adaptively utilize the licensed (LTE) and unlicensed (IEEE 802.11) radio technologies simultaneously. At the same time, softwarized frameworks can be employed not only inside the network controllers but also at the end nodes. To operate with the corresponding policies and interpret them efficiently, a signaling processor has to be developed and equipped with a fast packet parsing mechanism. In this scenario, the reaction time becomes a crucial factor, and this paper provides an overview of the existing parsing libraries (Scapy and dpkt) as well as proposes a flexible parsing tool that is capable of reducing the latency incurred by analyzing packets in a softwarized network.acceptedVersionPeer reviewe
Specific Characteristics of Sudden Death in a Mediterranean Spanish Population
Most of the data reported on sudden cardiac death has been from studies of Anglo-Saxon patients. We conducted a study to ascertain the relation between sudden death (SD) and some epidemiologic, clinical, and biochemical parameters and to assess the coronary histopathologic aspects of subjects in a Spanish population who had died suddenly. A total of 204 subjects (86% men), aged 12 to 80 years (mean 54 \ub1 15), who had died from out-of-hospital natural SD were evaluated. Only 15% of subjects had been previously diagnosed with heart disease. Pathologic evidence of underlying cardiovascular disease was found in 90% of cases, with coronary heart disease (CHD) the most frequent (58%). The CHD was acute coronary thrombosis in 41% and a stable plaque with luminal narrowing of 6575% in 59%. An old myocardial infarction was found in 31% of the SD victims. Cardiac hypertrophy was found in 48%, with no relation between the presence of cardiac hypertrophy and CHD. Patients with stable plaques had a greater heart weight than did those with acute coronary thrombosis (p = 0.02). Male gender, older age, smoking, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio of 653 were associated with CHD. A greater percentage of patients with an eroded and/or ruptured plaque than patients with a stable plaque were smokers. Only smoking and a low-density lipoprotein/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio of 653 were associated with an eroded and/or ruptured plaque. In conclusion, compared with the findings from studies of Anglo-Saxon patients, a lower incidence of CHD and acute coronary thrombosis and a greater incidence of cardiac hypertrophy were found in SD victims of a Mediterranean Spanish population