CN107370615B

CN107370615B - Network policy control method and equipment

Info

Publication number: CN107370615B
Application number: CN201610319101.4A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 王峰; 倪庆; 高东生; 马松岩
Original assignee: China Mobile Group Liaoning Co Ltd
Current assignee: China Mobile Group Liaoning Co Ltd
Priority date: 2016-05-13
Filing date: 2016-05-13
Publication date: 2020-12-01
Anticipated expiration: 2036-05-13
Also published as: CN107370615A

Abstract

The invention discloses a network policy control method and equipment, wherein the method comprises the following steps: and the policy and charging rule functional unit PCRF receives a credit control request CCR message sent by the network element through a Gx interface, wherein the CCR message is used for negotiating the QoS information of the service. The PCRF determines that a strategy meeting a trigger condition exists outside a specified area according to the current position of a user; the PCRF determines to execute action information according to the policy; and the PCRF carries the execution action information in a credit control answer CCA message and sends the CCA message to a network element through a Gx interface.

Description

Network policy control method and equipment

Technical Field

The present invention relates to wireless communication technologies, and in particular, to a network policy control method and device.

Background

After adopting Policy Control and Charging (PCC) network architecture, a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network has the capability of performing Policy Control on users and services. As shown in fig. 1-1, the Policy and Charging Rules Function unit (PCRF) includes a Policy control decision and a Function based on flow Charging control, and provides a Policy and Charging Enforcement Function (PCEF) with a network control Function related to Service data flow detection, gating, Quality of Service (QoS) and flow Charging (except credit control), and can generate a control rule to be issued to the PCEF for execution by using multiple dimensions of Service, user, location, cumulative usage, access type, time, and the like as trigger conditions, so as to implement effective management and implementation of user Service Quality and Charging, thereby improving Service control capability and user experience of an operator. The PCEF includes functions of detection, policy enforcement, flow-based charging, and the like of a Service data flow, so the functional entity is usually located in a Gateway device, for example, a PCEF function in a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) network is located on a GPRS Support Node (GGSN), a PCEF function in an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network is located on a PGW/GGSN, and the PCEF is matched with other related network elements, thereby completing an end-to-end network control function.

In order to realize service management and control, various strategy control schemes are proposed successively to realize strategy control on various communication networks. As the existing network policy control technology has the following defects: in the PCC policy management application process, the Network control capability of the PCC needs to be combined with the marketing service capability facing the user, but the existing PCEF (such as GGSN, Public Data Network (PDN) gateway (PGW, PDN GW), etc.) does not have the execution capability of the marketing service behavior. A Business Operation Support System (BOSS) System has a user-oriented marketing service capability, but according to the existing PCC network architecture, a PCRF cannot issue a policy to a BOSS System for execution, and an existing PCEF does not have a capability of completing marketing service behavior execution by interfacing with a BOSS. In addition, the PCRF issues the policy each time and only executes the policy for the PCEF (such as GGSN, PGW, etc.) attached to the user, and cannot control multiple PCEF devices to execute the policy at the same time, and only can perform user network control, but cannot perform user-oriented marketing service behavior control at the same time. The defects weaken the execution effect of the PCC strategy in partial scenes, so that the application scene of the PCC strategy is limited, and the development of marketing service work facing users is influenced.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of this, embodiments of the present invention provide a network policy control method and device for solving at least one problem in the prior art, which can extend an application scenario of a PCC policy, thereby developing a marketing service work for a user.

The technical scheme of the embodiment of the invention is realized as follows:

in a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network policy control method, where the method includes:

and the policy and charging rule functional unit PCRF receives a credit control request CCR message sent by the network element through a Gx interface, wherein the CCR message is used for negotiating the QoS information of the service. The PCRF determines that a strategy meeting a trigger condition exists outside a specified area according to the current position of a user; the PCRF determines to execute action information according to the policy; and the PCRF carries the execution action information in a credit control answer CCA message and sends the CCA message to a network element through a Gx interface.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network policy control method, where the method includes:

the BOSS system signs a policy for a user, and synchronizes the signed policy and a corresponding specified location area to the PCRF;

the BOSS system receives a re-authentication request RAR message sent by the PCRF, wherein the RAR message comprises a policy;

and the BOSS system informs the user of the current charging state information according to the strategy.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a PCRF, where the PCRF includes a first receiving unit, a first determining unit, a second determining unit, a carrying unit, and a first sending unit, where:

the first receiving unit is configured to receive, through a Gx interface, a credit control request CCR message sent by a network element, where the CCR message is used to negotiate quality of service QoS information of a service.

The first determining unit is used for determining that a strategy meeting the trigger condition exists outside the specified area according to the current position of the user;

the second determining unit is used for determining the execution action information according to the strategy;

the carrying unit is used for carrying the execution action information in a credit control answer CCA message;

the first sending unit is configured to send the CCA message to a network element through a Gx interface.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a BOSS system, where the BOSS system includes a first subscription unit, a first synchronization unit, a third reception unit, and a notification unit, where:

the first signing unit is used for signing a user signing policy according to the designated area of the user;

the first synchronization unit is used for synchronizing the signed policy and the corresponding designated location area to the policy and charging rule function unit PCRF;

the third receiving unit is configured to receive a re-authentication request RAR message sent by the PCRF, where the RAR message includes a policy;

and the first notification unit is used for notifying the current charging state information of the user according to the strategy.

The embodiment of the invention provides a network policy control method and equipment, wherein a policy and charging rule functional unit (PCRF) receives a network element PE through a Gx interface_niAnd sending a Credit Control Request (CCR) message, wherein the CCR message is used for negotiating the QoS information of the service. The PCRF determines that a policy P (i) meeting the triggering condition of E (i) exists outside a specified area according to the current position of a user; the PCRF determines to perform action a1 (PE) according to policy P (i)_ni) Information; the PCRF converts the a1 (PE)_ni) The information is carried in a credit control answer CCA message, and the CCA message is sent to the PE through a Gx interface_ni(ii) a Therefore, the application scene of the PCC strategy can be expanded, and the marketing service work facing the user is developed.

Drawings

Fig. 1-1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional PCC network architecture;

fig. 1-2 is a schematic flow chart illustrating an implementation of a network policy control method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 is a schematic flow chart illustrating an implementation of a network policy control method according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3-1 is a schematic diagram of an improved PCC network architecture in an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3-2 is a schematic flow chart of a third implementation of the network policy control method according to the embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3-3 is a schematic flow chart illustrating an implementation process of a network policy control method according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of a composition structure of a PCRF in an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of a five-BOSS system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

In the following embodiments of the present invention, the policy control capability of the PCRF is extended, the BOSS system includes a PCEF functional entity responsible for the user marketing service function, and is connected to the PCRF through a Gx interface, and after completing a policy decision according to information such as user data and business rules, the PCRF can issue to a plurality of PCEFs to execute different control behaviors, and at the same time, the PCRF should ensure the timing and integrity of the execution of the PCEFs.

The technical solution of the present invention is further elaborated below with reference to the drawings and the specific embodiments.

Example one

In order to solve the technical problem in the background art, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network policy control method, where the method is applied to a PCRF, and a function implemented by the method may be implemented by a processor in the PCRF calling a program code, where the program code may be stored in a computer storage medium.

Fig. 1-2 is a schematic flow chart illustrating an implementation process of a network policy control method according to an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in fig. 1-2, the method includes:

step S101, the PCRF receives a CCR message sent by the PGW through a Gx interface, wherein the CCR message is used for negotiating the QoS information of the service.

Step S102, the PCRF determines that a strategy P (i) meeting the triggering condition of E (i) exists outside a specified area according to the current position of a user;

step S103, the PCRF determines to execute action a1 (PE) according to policy P (i)_ni) Information;

step S104, the PCRF converts the a1 (PE)_ni) The information is carried in a credit control answer CCA message, and the CCA message is sent to the PE through a Gx interface_ni。

In this embodiment of the present invention, the network element is a public data network gateway PGW, and correspondingly, the a1 (PE)_ni) The information is the perform action a1(PGW) information for the packet data network gateway. At this time, the strategy P (i) meeting the triggering condition of E (i) comprises a super-region low-speed internet access strategy; in a corresponding manner, the first and second electrodes are,

when the PCRF determines that an ultra-region low-speed Internet access policy is included outside a specified region, the PCRF determines a1(PGW) information of the PGW according to the ultra-region low-speed Internet access policy;

the PCRF carries the a1(PGW) in a credit control answer CCA message and sends the CCA message to the PE through a Gx interface_ni。

In other embodiments of the present invention, the method further comprises:

and the PCRF sends an RAR message to a business operation support BOSS system, and a policy P (i) in the re-authentication request RAR message is obtained.

In other embodiments of the present invention, the method comprises:

and the PCRF receives the signed policy P (i) and the corresponding appointed location area information synchronized by the BOSS system.

Example two

Based on the foregoing embodiments, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network policy control method, where the method is applied to a PCRF, and a function implemented by the information processing method may be implemented by a processor in the PCRF calling a program code, where the program code may be stored in a computer storage medium, and as a matter of course, the PCRF at least includes the processor and the storage medium.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of an implementation flow of a network policy control method according to an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 2, the method includes:

step S201, the business operation support BOSS system signs a user subscription policy P (i), and synchronizes the signed policy P (i) and a corresponding designated location area to a policy and charging rule function unit PCRF;

step S202, the BOSS system receives a re-authentication request RAR message sent by the PCRF, wherein the RAR message comprises a policy P (i);

step S203, the BOSS system notifies the user of the current charging status information according to the policy p (i).

In other embodiments of the present invention, the policy p (i) is super-domain low-speed internet access, and correspondingly, the BOSS system notifies the user of the current charging status information according to the policy p (i), including: and the BOSS system informs the user that the user is not on line in the designated area and the current internet-surfing charge information.

In other embodiments of the present invention, the method further comprises:

the BOSS system sends a re-authentication response RAA message to the PCRF;

the BOSS system signs a high-speed internet access strategy for the user and synchronously signs the strategy to the PCRF;

the BOSS system receives an RAR message sent by the PCRF, wherein the RAR message comprises a high-speed internet access strategy;

the BOSS system informs the user of the high-speed internet access and the current tariff information;

and the BOSS system sends RAA information to the PCRF through the Gx interface.

EXAMPLE III

In order to solve the foregoing technical problem, an embodiment of the present invention first provides a new PCC network architecture, and fig. 3-1 shows an improved schematic diagram of the PCC network architecture, as shown in fig. 3-1, the improved PCC network architecture mainly includes devices such as SPR, AF, PCRF, PGW (PCEF), boss (PCEF), and the like, and now the following are introduced:

the SPR is used to store policy subscription information for the subscriber, which is generated by the BOSS system and synchronized to the SPR through the SOAP interface. The subscription information provided by the SPR includes services allowed by the subscriber, a priority of each allowed service, QoS information allowed by the subscriber, and charging related information of the service of the subscriber, such as an access type, location information, and a number of times of use, a type of the subscriber, and the like. The SPR may co-operate with the PCRF device.

Application Function (AF) is a functional entity for providing applications that require dynamic policy control and charging control for Internet Protocol (IP) access network user bearers. The AF applies for the application to the network by reporting the service information to the PCRF, and the PCRF decides the PCC rules according to the received service information. The AF may also subscribe to IP-CAN related events from the PCRF, which reports them to the AF when they occur.

The PCRF entity interacts with the SPR entity through the Sp interface to acquire user subscription information, interacts with the AF entity through the Rx interface to acquire service related information, interacts with the PCEF entity in the PGW through the Gx interface to acquire information such as the position of a cell where a user is located, and combines configured PCC policy information with the user subscription information, service information, position information and the like to formulate a user service control policy. In the embodiment of the present invention, the PCRF needs to add a Gx interface docking capability with a BOSS (PCEF), and supports issuing a control policy to a plurality of PCEF functional entities (such as a PGW, a BOSS, etc.) in one policy decision process, and each PCEF functional entity can execute different policy behaviors. In addition, when the PCRF issues the policy to multiple PCEF functional entities, the timing and integrity of the policy issuance should be controlled according to the policy rule definition, so as to ensure effective execution of the policy behavior of each PCEF functional entity. On the basis, the subsequent PCRF can also continue to expand the Gx interface docking capability with other non-EPC network domain equipment, and support issuing control strategies to more PCEF functional entities in one strategy decision process so as to support a wider PCC strategy management requirement scene.

A PCEF entity in a Pgw (PCEF) may collect information such as a location of a cell where a user is located, report to the PCRF, and complete network control functions such as user service data flow detection, QoS control, gating, and the like according to policy rules issued by the PCRF.

The utility model discloses a policy and charging enforcement system, which comprises a BOSS (PCEF) newly-added and PCRF Gx interface docking capability, wherein a PCEF entity in the BOSS can complete the execution of policy behaviors of users such as multi-channel product marketing, service and the like according to policy rules issued by the PCRF.

Let P (n) be the nth item of policy information in the policy definition information table,

P(n)＝(E(n),A(n)) (1)；

in formula (1), e (n) is trigger condition definition information of the policy p (n), and a (n) is action definition information that the policy p (n) needs to execute. Wherein, the expression of E (n) is shown in (3-2), and the expression of A (n) is shown in (3-3);

E(n)＝F_n(e_n1,e_n2,e_n3,…,e_nm) (2)；

A(n)＝{a_n1(PE_n1),a_n2(PE_n2),an3(PE_n3),…,a_nk(PE_nk)}(3)；

in the formula (2), e_n1,e_n2,e_n3,…,e_nmIs m atom judgment conditions related to E (n), each atom judgment condition e_niCalculating a judgment result according to the factors such as the user subscription information, the service information, the position information and the like; f_nIs determined by an atom_n1,e_n2,e_n3,…,e_nm) And the formed conditional calculation expression is used for calculating the strategy triggering condition.

In the formula (3), a_n1(PE_n1),a_n2(PE_n2),an3(PE_n3),…,a_nk(PE_nk) Performing actions for associated k atoms of A (n), each atom performing action a_ni(PE_ni) With corresponding PCEF Entity (PE)_ni) Correlation, i.e. the PCRF will inform the corresponding PCEF Entity (PE)_ni) Performing an atomic execution action a_ni(ii) a A (n) performing action a by k atoms_n1(PE_n1),a_n2(PE_n2),a_n3(PE_n3),…,a_nk(PE_nk) Namely, the PCRF will respectively notify different PCEF Entities (PEs) according to the sequence order_ni) Performing different atomic execution actions a_ni(ii) a As each atom performs action a_niAfter successful execution, the next PCEF Entity (PE) is notified_ni+1) Performing the next atomic execution action a_ni+1Like performing action a atomically_niIf the execution fails, the executed atomic execution actions { a } need to be rolled back in reverse order_ni-1,a_ni-2,a_ni-3,…,a_n1To guarantee the integrity of the execution of the policy p (n).

Taking the policy control related to the partition preferential products as an example, and referring to fig. 3-2, a specific flow of executing the multi-system policy based on the improved PCC network architecture is described, assuming that p (i) is a low-speed internet access policy for the preferential area exceeding, and p (j) is a high-speed internet access policy for the preferential area exceeding, where p (j) is a high-speed internet access policyFirst order higher than P (i); e.g. of the type₁Signed policy P (i) for user e₂Signed policy P (j) for user e₃The current position of the user exceeds the specified position area; a is₁(PGW) performing a user Internet speed reduction action for the PGW, a₂(BOSS) performing a recommended high-speed Internet overlay packet product action for the BOSS, a₃(PGW) performing a user speed-up action for the PGW, a₄(BOSS) executing a notification to the user that the high-speed Internet access action is performed for the BOSS; e (i) ═ e₁and e₃，E(j)＝e₂and e₃，A(i)＝{a₁(PGW)，a₂(BOSS)}，A(j)＝{a₃(PGW)，a₄(BOSS) }. The process comprises the following steps:

step 1, a user purchases a partition preferential product through a BOSS system, designates a preferential cell range using the product, can surf the internet at a high speed in a designated area and has preferential charges, and can surf the internet at a low speed and have more expensive charges beyond the designated area;

step 2, the BOSS system signs a low-speed internet access strategy exceeding the preferential area for the user, namely a signing strategy P (i), and synchronizes strategy signing information and a specified position area to the PCRF/SPR through an SOAP interface;

step 3, the user prepares to surf the internet, and the mobile terminal sends a PDP context creation request message to the PGW/PCEF;

step 4, the PGW/PCEF judges that the user signs a PCC strategy, collects the current cell position of the user, sends CCR information to the PCRF/SPR through the Gx interface, and negotiates service QoS information;

step 5, the PCRF/SPR checks the current position of the user, and when the current position of the user is found to be outside the designated area and accords with E (i) triggering conditions, a strategy P (i) is executed, the PCRF sends a CCA message to a PGW/PCEF through a Gx interface, and the CCA message comprises information of executing action a1 (PGW);

step 6, the PGW/PCEF sends a PDP context creation response message to the mobile terminal, and the user starts to surf the internet;

step 7, PCRF/SPR sends RAR message to BOSS/PCEF through Gx interface, including executing action a2(BOSS) information;

step 8, the BOSS/PCEF informs the user that the Internet is not accessed in the designated area and the current Internet access cost information through channels such as short messages, WeChat, Toolbar and the like, and recommends the user to order a high-speed Internet access superposition packet product, thereby increasing the Internet access speed and avoiding generating high cost;

step 9, the BOSS/PCEF sends RAA information to the PCRF/SPR through the Gx interface;

step 10, ordering high-speed internet-surfing overlapping package products by a user through channels such as short messages, WeChat, Toolbar and the like;

step 11, the BOSS system signs a high-speed network-accessing strategy exceeding the preferential area for the user, namely a signing strategy P (j), and synchronizes strategy signing information to the PCRF/SPR through an SOAP interface;

step 12, the PCRF/SPR checks the current location of the user, finds that the current location is outside the designated area, meets the triggering conditions of e (i), e (j), and executes the policy p (j) because the priority of p (j) is higher than that of p (i), and the PCRF/SPR sends an RAR message to the PGW/PCEF through the Gx interface, including executing action a3(PGW) information;

step 13, the PGW/PCEF sends a PDP context change request message to the mobile terminal, and adjusts the QoS of the user for surfing the Internet;

step 14, the mobile terminal sends a PDP context change response message to the PGW/PCEF;

step 15, the PGW/PCEF sends RAA information to PCRF/SPR through Gx interface;

step 16, PCRF/SPR sends RAR message to BOSS/PCEF via Gx interface, including executing action a4(BOSS) information;

step 17, the BOSS/PCEF informs the user of the high-speed internet access and the current charge information through short messages, WeChat, Toolbar and other channels;

step 18, BOSS/PCEF sends RAA message to PCRF/SPR through Gx interface;

and ending the process of executing the multi-system strategy.

Taking the policy control related to the partition preferential product as an example, and referring to fig. 3-3, a specific process for executing the multi-system policy based on the improved PCC network architecture is described below, where the process includes:

step 2, the BOSS system signs a policy for the user, and synchronizes policy signing information and a designated location area to PCRF/SPR through a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) interface;

step 3, the user prepares to surf the internet, and the mobile terminal sends a Packet Data Protocol (PDP) context creation request message to the PGW/PCEF;

step 5, the PCRF/SPR checks the current position of the user, and when the current position is found to be outside the designated area, the PCRF sends a CCA message to the PGW/PCEF through the Gx interface, wherein the CCA message comprises an ultra-area low-speed internet access strategy;

step 7, PCRF/SPR sends RAR message to BOSS/PCEF through Gx interface, including super-region low-speed Internet access strategy;

step 8, the BOSS/PCEF informs the user that the user does not surf the internet in the designated area through channels such as short messages, WeChat, tool bars (Toolbar) and the like, and the current internet surfing expense information, and recommends the user to order a high-speed internet surfing superposition packet product, thereby increasing the internet surfing speed and avoiding generating high cost;

step 11, the BOSS system signs a high-speed internet access strategy for a user and synchronizes strategy signing information to the PCRF/SPR through the SOAP interface;

step 12, the PCRF/SPR sends an RAR message to the PGW/PCEF through the Gx interface, wherein the RAR message comprises a high-speed internet access strategy;

step 15, the PGW/PCEF sends RAA information to PCRF/SPR through Gx interface;

step 16, the PCRF/SPR sends an RAR message to the BOSS/PCEF through the Gx interface, wherein the RAR message comprises a high-speed internet access strategy;

step 18, BOSS/PCEF sends RAA message to PCRF/SPR through Gx interface;

and ending the process of executing the multi-system strategy.

As can be seen from the above flow, the embodiment of the present invention has the following features: 1) after a policy decision is made once, the PCRF is issued to a plurality of PCEF functional entities to execute different control behaviors; 2) when the PCRF issues the policy to each PCEF functional entity, the time sequence and integrity of the policy issuing are controlled according to the policy rule definition; 3) and the BOSS system is additionally provided with a Gx interface with the PCRF and is responsible for executing user marketing service strategy behaviors issued by the PCRF. Compared with the prior art, the embodiment of the invention has the following technical advantages: 1) the embodiment expands the policy control capability of the PCRF, the PCRF needs to add a new Gx interface docking capability with the BOSS (PCEF), and the PCEF entity in the BOSS can complete the execution of policy behaviors of users, such as multi-channel product marketing, service, and the like, according to policy rules issued by the PCRF. The PCRF supports issuing control policies to multiple PCEF functional entities (such as PGW, BOSS, etc.) in one policy decision process, and each PCEF functional entity can perform different policy behaviors. 2) When the PCRF issues the policy to the multiple PCEF functional entities, the time sequence and integrity of the policy issuance should be controlled according to the policy rule definition, so as to ensure effective execution of the policy behavior of each PCEF functional entity. The scheme enriches the application scenes of the PCC strategy, strengthens the execution effect of the PCC strategy and is convenient for developing the marketing service work facing users. 3) On the basis, the subsequent PCRF can also continue to expand the Gx interface docking capability with other non-EPC network domain equipment, and support issuing control strategies to more PCEF functional entities in one strategy decision process so as to support a wider PCC strategy management requirement scene.

Example four

Based on the foregoing embodiments, an embodiment of the present invention provides a PCRF, where units such as a first receiving unit, a first sending unit, and a second sending unit that are included in the PCRF can all be implemented by a processor in the PCRF; of course, the implementation can also be realized through a specific logic circuit; in the course of a particular embodiment, the processor may be a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Microprocessor (MPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), or the like.

Fig. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a fourth PCRF in an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 4, the PCRF400 includes a first receiving unit 401, a first determining unit 402, a second determining unit 403, a carrying unit 404, and a first sending unit 405, where:

the first receiving unit 401 is configured to receive a network element PE through a Gx interface_niAnd sending a Credit Control Request (CCR) message, wherein the CCR message is used for negotiating the QoS information of the service.

The first determining unit 402 is configured to determine, according to the current location of the user, that a policy p (i) meeting the trigger condition of e (i) exists outside the specified area;

the second determining unit 403 is configured to determine to execute action a1 (PE) according to policy p (i)_ni) Information;

the carrying unit 404 is configured to carry the a1 (PE)_ni) The information is carried in a credit control answer CCA message;

the first sending unit 405 is configured to send the CCA message to the PE through the Gx interface_ni。

In other embodiments of the present invention, the network element is a public data network gateway PGW, and correspondingly, the a1 (PE)_ni) The information is a1(PGW) information.

In other embodiments of the present invention, the policy p (i) meeting the trigger condition of e (i) includes a super-region low-speed internet access policy; in a corresponding manner, the first and second electrodes are,

the second determining unit is configured to determine, by the PCRF, a1(PGW) information of the PGW according to an ultra-regional low-speed internet policy;

the carrying unit is configured to carry the a1(PGW) in a credit control answer CCA message;

the first sending unit is configured to send the CCA message to the PE through the Gx interface_ni。

In other embodiments of the present invention, the PCRF further includes a second sending unit, configured to send an RAR message to a business operation support BOSS system, where the re-authentication request RAR message includes a policy p (i).

In other embodiments of the present invention, the PCRF further includes a second receiving unit, configured to receive a subscribed policy p (i) synchronized by the BOSS system and corresponding designated location area information.

Here, it should be noted that: the description of the PCRF embodiment is similar to the description of the method, and has the same beneficial effects as the method embodiment, and therefore, the description is omitted. For technical details that are not disclosed in the PCRF embodiment of the present invention, a person skilled in the art should refer to the description of the method embodiment of the present invention to understand that, for brevity, details are not described here again.

EXAMPLE five

Based on the foregoing embodiment, an embodiment of the present invention provides a BOSS system, where units such as a determining unit, a fifth sending unit, a fifth receiving unit, and a first notifying unit included in the BOSS system may all be implemented by a processor in a PCRF; of course, the implementation can also be realized through a specific logic circuit; in the course of a particular embodiment, the processor may be a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Microprocessor (MPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), or the like.

Fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of a five BOSS system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 5, the BOSS system 500 includes a first signing unit 501, a first synchronization unit 502, a third receiving unit 503, and a first notification unit 504, where:

the first signing unit 501 is configured to sign a policy p (i) for a user according to a designated area of the user;

the first synchronization unit 502 is configured to synchronize the subscribed policy p (i) and the corresponding designated location area to the policy and charging rule function unit PCRF;

the third receiving unit 503 is configured to receive a RAR message sent by the PCRF, where the RAR message includes a policy p (i);

the first notifying unit 504 is configured to notify the user of the current charging status information according to the policy p (i).

In another embodiment of the present invention, the policy p (i) is super-regional low-speed internet access, and correspondingly, the first notification unit is configured to notify the user that the user is not accessing the internet in the designated region and the current internet access tariff information.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the BOSS system further includes a third sending unit, a second signing unit, a second synchronizing unit, a fourth receiving unit, a second notifying unit, and a fourth sending unit, wherein: the third sending unit is configured to send an RAA message to the PCRF; the second signing unit is used for signing a high-speed internet access strategy for the user; the second synchronization unit is used for synchronizing the strategy subscription to the PCRF; the fourth receiving unit is configured to receive an RAR message sent by the PCRF, where the RAR message includes a high-speed internet access policy;

the second notification unit is used for notifying the user that the high-speed internet access and the current tariff information are started;

and the fourth sending unit is used for sending the RAA message to the PCRF through the Gx interface.

Here, it should be noted that: the description of the embodiments of the BOSS system is similar to the description of the method, and has the same beneficial effects as the embodiments of the method, and therefore, the description thereof is omitted. For technical details not disclosed in the embodiments of the BOSS system of the present invention, those skilled in the art should refer to the description of the embodiments of the method of the present invention for understanding, and for the sake of brevity, will not be described again here.

It should be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, the appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. It should be understood that, in various embodiments of the present invention, the sequence numbers of the above-mentioned processes do not mean the execution sequence, and the execution sequence of each process should be determined by its function and inherent logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present invention. The above-mentioned serial numbers of the embodiments of the present invention are merely for description and do not represent the merits of the embodiments.

It should be noted that, in this document, the terms "comprises," "comprising," or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising an … …" does not exclude the presence of other like elements in a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element.

In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and method may be implemented in other ways. The above-described device embodiments are merely illustrative, for example, the division of the unit is only a logical functional division, and there may be other division ways in actual implementation, such as: multiple units or components may be combined, or may be integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted, or not implemented. In addition, the coupling, direct coupling or communication connection between the components shown or discussed may be through some interfaces, and the indirect coupling or communication connection between the devices or units may be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

The units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and parts displayed as units may or may not be physical units; can be located in one place or distributed on a plurality of network units; some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of the embodiment.

In addition, all the functional units in the embodiments of the present invention may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may be separately regarded as one unit, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit; the integrated unit can be realized in a form of hardware, or in a form of hardware plus a software functional unit.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that: all or part of the steps for realizing the method embodiments can be completed by hardware related to program instructions, the program can be stored in a computer readable storage medium, and the program executes the steps comprising the method embodiments when executed; and the aforementioned storage medium includes: various media that can store program codes, such as a removable Memory device, a Read Only Memory (ROM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

Alternatively, the integrated unit of the present invention may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium if it is implemented in the form of a software functional module and sold or used as a separate product. Based on such understanding, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention may be essentially implemented or a part contributing to the prior art may be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device) to execute all or part of the methods described in the embodiments of the present invention. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: a removable storage device, a ROM, a magnetic or optical disk, or other various media that can store program code.

The above description is only for the specific embodiments of the present invention, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and any person skilled in the art can easily conceive of the changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present invention, and all the changes or substitutions should be covered within the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention shall be subject to the protection scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A network policy control method, the method comprising:

a Policy and Charging Rule Function (PCRF) unit receives a Credit Control Request (CCR) message sent by a network element through a Gx interface, wherein the CCR message is used for negotiating the service quality (QoS) information of a service; the CCR message comprises the position information of a cell where a user is located;

the PCRF determines that a strategy meeting a trigger condition exists outside a specified area according to the current position of a user; the strategy meeting the trigger condition comprises a super-region low-speed internet access strategy;

when the PCRF determines that an ultra-region low-speed Internet access strategy is included outside the specified region, the PCRF determines to execute action information according to the ultra-region low-speed Internet access strategy;

the PCRF carries the execution action information in a credit control answer CCA message and sends the CCA message to a network element through a Gx interface; the network element comprises a BOSS system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the network element is a public data network gateway (PGW), and correspondingly, the performing action information is performing action information for a packet data network gateway.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the method further comprises:

and the PCRF sends an RAR message to a business operation support BOSS system, and the re-authentication request RAR message comprises a policy.

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the method comprises:

and the PCRF receives the signed strategy synchronized by the BOSS system and the corresponding appointed position area information.

5. A network policy control method, the method comprising:

the business operation support BOSS system signs a policy for a user and synchronizes the signed policy and a corresponding designated location area to a policy and charging rule function unit (PCRF); when the PCRF determines that an ultra-region low-speed Internet access strategy is contained outside a specified region, the PCRF determines to execute action information according to the ultra-region low-speed Internet access strategy; the PCRF carries the execution action information in a credit control answer CCA message and sends the CCA message to a network element through a Gx interface;

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the policy is super-regional low-speed internet access, and correspondingly, the step of notifying, by the BOSS system, the current charging status information of the user according to the policy comprises: and the BOSS system informs the user that the user is not on line in the designated area and the current internet-surfing charge information.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

the BOSS system sends a re-authentication response RAA message to the PCRF;

the BOSS system signs a high-speed internet access strategy for a user and synchronously signs the strategy to the PCRF;

and the BOSS system sends RAA information to the PCRF through the Gx interface.

8. The utility model provides a tactics and charging rule functional unit PCRF, its characterized in that, PCRF includes first receiving element, first determining unit, second determining unit, carries unit and first transmitting unit, wherein:

the first receiving unit is configured to receive, through a Gx interface, a credit control request CCR message sent by a network element, where the CCR message is used to negotiate quality of service QoS information of a service; the CCR message comprises the position information of a cell where a user is located;

the first determining unit is used for determining that a strategy meeting the trigger condition exists outside the specified area according to the current position of the user; the strategy meeting the trigger condition comprises a super-region low-speed internet access strategy;

the second determining unit is used for determining to execute action information according to the super-region low-speed internet access strategy when determining that the super-region low-speed internet access strategy is contained outside the designated region;

the first sending unit is configured to send the CCA message to a network element through a Gx interface; the network element comprises a BOSS system.

9. The utility model provides a BOSS system is supported in operation, which characterized in that, BOSS system includes first signing unit, first synchronization unit, third receiving element and first notice unit, wherein:

the first synchronization unit is used for synchronizing the signed policy and the corresponding designated location area to the policy and charging rule function unit PCRF; when the PCRF determines that an ultra-region low-speed Internet access strategy is contained outside a specified region, the PCRF determines to execute action information according to the ultra-region low-speed Internet access strategy; the PCRF carries the execution action information in a credit control answer CCA message and sends the CCA message to a network element through a Gx interface;