CN110557270B

CN110557270B - Network slice management method and device

Info

Publication number: CN110557270B
Application number: CN201810552703.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李卓明
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-05-31
Filing date: 2018-05-31
Publication date: 2021-10-22
Anticipated expiration: 2038-05-31
Also published as: WO2019228220A1; CN110557270A

Abstract

The embodiment of the application relates to a method and a device for managing network slices, wherein the method comprises the following steps: firstly, a second management network element of a management service consumption side sends a calling request to a CSM service network element of a management service production side, wherein the calling request comprises the operation level and the operation requirement of a service; then the CSM service network element sends a first request to the NSM service network element according to the calling request, wherein the first request is used for indicating the NSM service network element to execute actions corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement; finally, the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element, the method is used for opening an interface of the communication service management service for the management service consumption side to call, and the docking complexity of the management service consumption side can be simplified.

Description

Network slice management method and device

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method and an apparatus for managing network slices.

Background

The traditional cellular network architecture can only provide uniform network service, and is difficult to meet the requirement of differential communication brought by the digitalized transformation surge. In order to provide differentiated communication services, in the next generation mobile network, i.e. a 5G network, the network will be abstracted into multiple "network slices" (one network slice meets the requirements of a certain kind of connected communication services), and the whole 5G network is composed of a large number of network slices meeting different connection capabilities. The service support management system may create a corresponding Network Slice Instance (NSI) according to the communication requirements related to the network slice. One network slice instance can provide a complete end-to-end network service, and what constitutes the network slice instance may be a Network Slice Subnet Instance (NSSI) and/or a network function.

One business model that currently uses network slices is that a network slice is provided to a customer in network slice as a service (NSaaS) service, with the network slice instance being visible to the customer. Specifically, the operator provides a network slicing service to a third party client (e.g., an enterprise, an OTT (over the top, which refers to providing various application services to users via the internet), another operator, etc.), and the third party client may provide communication services provided by the network slicing to the end user, or the third party client further provides own communication services to the end user on the basis of the services provided by the network slicing.

For the business model, in the prior art, when a communication service provider orders a network slice instance, a Communication Service Management Function (CSMF) network element converts a communication service requirement of a client into a network slice related requirement, and then issues a network slice order to a Network Slice Management Function (NSMF) network element according to the network slice related requirement. The NSMF network element will decompose the network slice related requirements into requirements of the core network and the wireless network, and send the decomposed related requirements to a subnet slice management function (NSSMF) of the core network and the wireless network. However, this method has the disadvantage that, besides the CSMF network element, the NSMF and NSSMF also need to open an interface to the third party, which results in that multiple layers of interfaces are needed for the third party to interface with the communication service provider, and there are many open control points and the system structure is complex.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of this, the present application provides a method and an apparatus for managing a network slice, which open an interface of a communication service management service for a management service consuming side to call, and can simplify a docking complexity of the management service consuming side.

In a first aspect, the present application provides a network slice management method, including: a second management network element at a management service consumption side sends a calling request to a CSM service network element, wherein the calling request comprises the operation level and the operation requirement of a service; the CSM service network element sends a first request to an NSM service network element according to the calling request, wherein the first request is used for indicating the NS LCM service network element to execute the action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement; and the CSM service network element sends an execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element.

In the method, the second management network element does not need to be respectively connected with the CSM service network element, the NS LCM service network element and the NSS LCM service network element of the management service production side, and the second management network element can obtain the network management data, the resource management data and the like of the network slice example besides the business management data by calling the CSM service network element of the management service production side. The management service production side unifies external interfaces of the communication service management service, the network slice management service and the resource management service into a service interface of the communication service management service, so that the butt joint complexity of the management service consumption side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, the CSM serving network element determines, according to the invocation request, that the second management network element has an invocation permission, and an operation requirement in the invocation request satisfies a non-conflict condition, where at least one of the requirements satisfies a non-conflict condition, and then sends the first request to the NS LCM serving network element. This is done to control the management behavior of the network slice, to prevent illegal calls, or to prevent conflicting modification operations of the network slice.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, and the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance; the operation level is a network management operation level; when the first request is a message for creating or modifying a network slice instance, before the CSM service network element sends an execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may further receive a first response message returned by the NS LCM service entity, where the first response message includes a newly created network slice instance identifier or a network slice parameter modification result of a network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element.

In the method, the second management network element can create a new network slice instance on the management service production side or modify the existing network slice instance by calling the CSM service network element on the management service production side, and then the management service consumption side can complete network slice combination and provide management service for the client of the management service consumption side.

In one possible implementation, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation level is a resource management operation level, and the operation requirement is a management resource; the first request is a resource management operation request; before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may further receive a third response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, where the third response message includes a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

In the method, the second management network element can modify the number of virtual resources used by a part of network elements in the network slice or modify transmission resources used by the network slice by calling the CSM service network element on the management service production side, and because the management service production side unifies external interfaces of the communication service management service, the network slice management service and the resource management service into a service interface of the communication service management service, the docking complexity of the management service consumption side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an FM service network element or a PM service network element, the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; when the first request is a request for network management data, before the CSM service network element sends an execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may further receive a fourth response message returned by an FM service network element or a PM service network element, where the fourth response message includes network management data or an access address of the network management data.

In the method, the second management network element can obtain the network management data or the access address of the network management data by calling the CSM service network element at the management service production side, and the external interfaces of the communication service management service, the network slice management service and the resource management service are unified into the service interface of the communication service management service at the management service production side, so that the butt joint complexity at the management service consumption side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; when the first request is a request for resource management data, before the CSM service network element sends an execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may further receive a fifth response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, where the fifth response message includes the resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.

In the method, the second management network element can obtain the resource management data or the access address of the resource management data by calling the CSM service network element at the management service production side, and the external interfaces of the communication service management service, the network slice management service and the resource management service are unified into the service interface of the communication service management service at the management service production side, so that the butt joint complexity at the management service consumption side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, before the CSM service network element sends an execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may further determine that the second management network element has an authority to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level.

In the method, when the second management network element calls the CSM service network element at the management service production side, the CSM service network element can firstly determine that the second management network element has the authority of acquiring the management data corresponding to the operation level, so that the management data is prevented from being illegally accessed.

In a second aspect, the present application provides a method for managing a network slice, where a second management network element on a management service consumption side sends a call request to a communication service management CSM service network element on a management service production side, where the call request includes an operation level and an operation requirement of a service; and the second management network element receives an execution result sent by the CSM service network element, wherein the execution result is obtained from the NSM service network element after the CSM service network element calls the NSM service network element according to the call request, and the execution result is generated after the NSM service network element executes the action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement.

In the method, the second management network element does not need to be respectively connected with the CSM service network element, the NS LCM service network element and the NSS LCM service network element of the management service production side, and the second management network element can obtain the service management operation and can also perform network management operation, resource management operation and the like by calling the CSM service network element of the management service production side. The management service production side unifies external interfaces of the communication service management service, the network slice management service and the resource management service into a service interface of the communication service management service, so that the butt joint complexity of the management service consumption side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance, and the operation level is a network management operation level; the execution result comprises a newly created network slice instance identifier or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element; after the second management network element receives the execution result sent by the CSM service network element, the second management network element may further provide a communication service to its own client by using the newly created network slice instance; or, the second management network element may further combine the network slice instance provided by the management service generation side and the network slice instance already created by itself to form a slice federation, and provide communication service to its own client by using the slice federation; or, the second management network element may further use the network slice instance provided by the management service generation side as a subnet slice instance of itself, then combine with other subnet slice instances created by itself to form a new network slice instance, and provide communication service to its own client by using the new network slice instance.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation level is a resource management operation level, and the operation requirement is a management resource; the first request is a resource management operation request; the execution result comprises a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier. In the method, the second management network element can modify the number of virtual resources used by a part of network elements in the network slice or modify transmission resources used by the network slice by calling the CSM service network element on the management service production side, and the management service production side integrates external interfaces of the communication service management service, the network slice management service and the resource management service into a service interface of the communication service management service, so that the docking complexity of the management service consumption side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an FM service network element or a PM service network element, the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is for network management data; the execution result comprises network management data or an access address of the network management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first request is a request for resource management data; the execution result includes the resource management data or the access address of the resource management data.

In a third aspect, the present application provides an apparatus, which may be a CSM service network element on a management service production side. The apparatus has the function of implementing the embodiments of the second aspect described above. The function can be realized by hardware, and can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the functions described above.

In one possible design, when the apparatus is a CSM serving network element, comprising: a processing unit, which may be for example a processor, and a communication unit, which may be for example a transceiver, which includes radio frequency circuitry, optionally the CSM serving network element further includes a storage unit, which may be for example a memory. When the CSM service network element comprises a storage unit, the storage unit stores computer-executable instructions, the processing unit is connected with the storage unit, and the processing unit executes the computer-executable instructions stored by the storage unit, so that the CSM service network element performs the communication method of any one of the above first aspects.

The processor mentioned in any of the above may be a general-purpose CPU, a microprocessor, an ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of the program of the communication method of the first aspect.

In a fourth aspect, the present application provides an apparatus, which may be a second management network element that manages a service consuming side. The apparatus has the function of implementing the embodiments of the second aspect described above. The function can be realized by hardware, and can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the functions described above.

In a possible implementation manner, when the apparatus is a second management network element, the method includes: a processing unit, which may be for example a processor, and a communication unit, which may be for example a transceiver comprising radio frequency circuitry, optionally the second managing network element further comprises a storage unit, which may be for example a memory. When the second management network element includes a storage unit, the storage unit stores computer-executable instructions, the processing unit is connected to the storage unit, and the processing unit executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the storage unit, so that the second management network element executes the communication method of any one of the above-mentioned first aspects.

In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a communication device having functionality to implement the method of the first aspect. The communication equipment comprises a processor and a transceiver, wherein the processor receives a calling request sent by a second management entity through the transceiver, then sends a first request to an NSM service network element through the transceiver according to the calling request, and finally sends an execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element through the transceiver.

In a possible implementation manner, the processor determines that the second management network element has a call authority according to the call request, and/or an operation requirement in the call request meets a non-conflict condition.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, and the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance; the operation level is a network management operation level; when the first request is a message to create or modify a network slice instance; the processor receives a first response message returned by the NS LCM service entity through the transceiver, where the first response message includes the newly created network slice instance identifier or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation level is a resource management operation level, and the operation requirement is a management resource; and when the first request is a resource management operation request, the processor receives a third response message returned by the NS LCM service network element through a transceiver, wherein the third response message comprises a resource management operation result of the resource corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an FM service network element or a physical PM service network element; the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; when the first request is a request for network management data; and the processor simultaneous transceiver element receives a fourth response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, wherein the fourth response message comprises network management data or an access address of the network management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; when the first request is to request resource management data; and the processor receives a fifth response message returned by the NS LCM service network element through a transceiver, wherein the fifth response message comprises the resource management data or the access address of the resource management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the processor determines that the second management network element has the right to acquire the management data corresponding to the operation level, and sends the first request to the NSM service network element.

In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a communication device having functionality to implement the method of the second aspect. The communication equipment comprises a processor and a transceiver, wherein the processor sends a calling request to a communication service management CSM service network element at a management service production side through the transceiver element, and then receives an execution result sent by the CSM service network element, wherein the execution result is obtained from an NSM service network element after the CSM service network element calls the NSM service network element according to the calling request, and the execution result is generated after the NSM service network element executes an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, and when the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance, the operation level is a network management operation level; the execution result includes the newly created network slice instance identifier or includes a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element.

The processor can be further used for providing communication service for the client by utilizing the newly created network slice instance; or combining the network slice instances provided by the management service generation side and the network slice instances already created by the management service generation side to form a slice alliance, and providing communication services for clients by using the slice alliance; or, the network slice instance provided by the management service generation side is taken as a subnet slice instance of the management service generation side, then the network slice instance is combined with other subnet slice instances created by the management service generation side to form a new network slice instance, and the communication service is provided for the client of the management service generation side by using the new network slice instance.

In one possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element; the operation level is a resource management operation level, and the operation requirement is management resources; the first request is a resource management operation request; the execution result comprises a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is a fault management FM service network element or a performance management PM service network element; the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is for network management data; the execution result comprises network management data or an access address of the network management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first request is a request for resource management data; the execution result includes the resource management data or the access address of the resource management data.

In a seventh aspect, the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium having stored therein instructions, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of the above aspects.

In an eighth aspect, the present application also provides a computer program product comprising instructions which, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of the above aspects.

These and other aspects of the present application will be more readily apparent from the following description of the embodiments.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic architecture diagram of a business support management system according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2a and fig. 2b are schematic diagrams of an application scenario system architecture provided in the present embodiment;

fig. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a method for managing network slices according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a schematic interaction diagram of a network service consumption side and a network service production side provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 5 is an interaction diagram in a scenario of creating and activating a web slice according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is an interaction diagram in a scene of modifying a network slice according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a schematic interaction diagram for acquiring management data according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of another apparatus provided herein;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of another apparatus provided herein;

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of another apparatus provided herein;

fig. 11 is a schematic view of another apparatus provided herein.

Detailed Description

The present application will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The embodiment of the application can be applied to various mobile communication systems, such as: new Radio (NR) systems, global system for mobile communication (GSM) systems, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) systems, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, advanced Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, LTE-a) systems, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), evolved Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, and other mobile communication systems.

In the following, some terms in the present application will be explained to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

1) Network slice (Network slice): network slices can be created by a variety of techniques, such as Network Function Virtualization (NFV) techniques and Software Defined Network (SDN) techniques. The embodiment of the present application is described based only on creation of a network slice by a 5G network slice management system. In particular, different logical networks are customized according to different service requirements on the basis of physical or virtual network infrastructure. The network slice can be a complete end-to-end network comprising a terminal, an access network, a transmission network, a core network and an application server, can provide complete telecommunication service and has certain network capacity; the network slice may also be any combination of the above terminals, access networks, transport networks, core networks and application servers. A network slice may have one or more of the following characteristics: the access network may or may not be sliced. The access network may be common to multiple network slices. The characteristics of different network slices and the network functions that make up them may be different.

2) Network Slice Instance (NSI): the network is a real running logic network and can meet certain network characteristics or service requirements. One network slice instance may provide one or more services. When multiple network slice instances coexist, portions of the network resources and network functions may be shared between the network slice instances. The network slice instance may or may not be created from a network slice template. A complete Network Slice Instance is capable of providing a complete end-to-end Network service, and what constitutes the Network Slice Instance may be a Network Slice Subnet Instance (NSSI) and/or a Network function. The network functions may include physical network functions and/or virtual network functions.

3) Network Slice Subnet Instance (NSSI): the network slice subnet instance may not need to provide complete network service end to end, and the network slice subnet instance may be a set formed by network functions of the same equipment provider in the network slice instance, or may be a set formed by network functions divided by domains, such as a core network slice subnet instance, an access network slice subnet instance, or a set formed by other manners, such as a deployment location. A network slice subnet instance may be shared by multiple network slice instances. A network slice instance may be composed of a number of network slice subnet instances, each network slice subnet instance composed of a number of network functions and/or a number of network slice subnet instances; a network slice instance may consist of several network slice subnet instances and network functions that are not divided into network slice subnet instances; it is also possible that one network slice instance consists of only a few network functions.

4) Network Function (NF): the network function can be realized by special hardware, software running on the special hardware, or virtual function on general hardware platform. Thus, from an implementation point of view, network functions may be divided into physical network functions and virtual network functions. From the usage perspective, the network functions may be divided into a dedicated network function and a shared network function, and specifically, for a plurality of (sub) network slice instances, different network functions may be independently used, such a network function is referred to as a dedicated network function, and may also share the same network function, such a network function is referred to as a shared network function.

The 5G network slice management system includes an operation-support system/business support system (OSS/BSS), and fig. 1 is an OSS/BSS architecture diagram provided in an embodiment of the present application, which mainly includes: CSMF, NSMF and NSSMF. The CSMF is mainly used for converting the related requirements of communication services of operators and/or third-party customers into parameter information of network slices and the like; the NSMF is mainly used for managing the life cycle, performance, fault and the like of the network slice; NSSMF is mainly used to manage the life cycle, performance, failure, etc. of a network slice subnet.

Specifically, the CSMF network element is mainly configured to: the method comprises the steps of converting communication service requirements of an operator and/or a third party client into requirements for a network (such as network slicing), sending the requirements for network slicing instances (such as requests for creating, terminating and modifying the network slicing instances) to NSMF network elements through interfaces between the NSMF network elements, acquiring management data (such as performance, fault data and the like) of the network slicing instances from the NSMF network elements, generating management data of communication services running on the network slicing instances, and receiving one or more of subscription requirements of the operator and/or the third party client for the network slicing instance management data and/or the management data of the communication services.

NSMF network element, mainly used for: receiving a requirement of a network slice example sent by a CSMF network element, managing the Life Cycle Management (LCM) of the network slice example, managing the performance, the fault and the like of the network slice example (hereinafter, the life cycle management, the performance management and the fault management are collectively referred to as management), arranging the composition of the network slice example, decomposing the requirement of the network slice example into the requirement of each network slice subnet example and/or network function, and sending one or more of a network slice subnet example management request and the like to each NSSMF network element.

NSSMF network elements, mainly used for: receiving the requirement of the network slice subnet example sent by the NSMF network element, managing the network slice subnet example, arranging the composition of the network slice subnet example, decomposing the requirement of the network slice subnet example into the requirement of each network function and/or nested network slice subnet example, and sending one or more of the nested network slice subnet example management requests and the like to other NSSMF network elements.

Fig. 1 exemplarily shows an architecture diagram of establishing connection between one CSMF and one NSMF, but in practical application, one CSMF may also be connected with multiple NSMFs, or one NSMF may be connected with multiple CSMFs, and the multiple CSMFs may include CSMFs belonging to the same operator as the NSMF, CSMFs belonging to different operators as the NSMF, or CSMFs provided by third parties, which is not limited in this application.

Fig. 2a is a schematic architecture diagram of an application scenario provided in an embodiment of the present application. The system mainly comprises a business support management system of a management service consumption side and a 5G network management system of a management service production side, wherein the management service production side generally refers to an operator, the management service consumption side generally refers to a third party client, and the third party client can be an enterprise, an OTT or another operator. The CSMF network element at the management service production side provides a management interface for the CSMF network element, the NSMF network element and the NSSMF network element at the management service consumption side to call, and the management service consumption side can complete the process of combining network slices and providing management service for own customers. In the operation process of the network slice, the business support management system of the management service production side manages the business, the network and the resources of the network slice through the CSMF network element of the management service production side, acquires management data or performs the guarantee operation of the business quality according to SLA (service level agreement).

Alternatively, when the business support management system adopts a servitized architecture, the management functions such as CSMF, NSMF, and NSSMF may be operated in different forms of management services. As shown in fig. 3, for example, a Communication Service Management (CSM) service, a slice life-cycle management (NS LCM) service, a subnet slice life-cycle management (NSs LCM) service, a Configuration Management (CM) service, a Fault Management (FM) service, a Performance Management (PM) service, an NFV management and organization (MANO) service (NFV-MANO) and the like, it is assumed that an operator a is a management service production side and an operator B is a management service consumption side.

In fig. 2b, the service interface (generally referred to as Itf-CSM) provided by the CSM service in the 5G network management system of operator a may be called by a third party client, in addition to the internal call of operator a. Whereas the other management services (e.g. NS LCM, NSs LCM) in the 5G network management system provide a service interface that can only be invoked within operator a's management system. Carrier B's CSM services, NS LCM services and NSs LCM services may all call operator a's services interface. Operator B may combine the network slice created by itself and the network slice created by operator a into a slice federation, which together provide communication services to customers. The so-called slice federation is that two operators create a complete network slice providing a certain communication service, wherein one operator uses a communication service provided by the other operator and provides it to their own customers together with the communication service provided by the network slice created by themselves, enabling their own customers to use such communication service to a greater extent. The operator B can also combine the network slice provided by the operator a as a subnet slice with other subnet slices created by itself to form a complete network slice to provide communication service for the customer. In the operation process of the network slice, the service support management system of the operator B performs service management, network management and resource management on the network slice by calling the service interface of the operator a, for example, acquiring management data or performing service quality assurance operation according to SLA (service level agreement).

Based on the system architecture shown in fig. 2b, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for managing network slices, where the method mainly includes: the CSM service network element of the management service production side provides the network slices as a communication service to the management service consumption side (namely, a third party client), namely, the CSM service network element of the management service production side provides a service interface for the third party, and the management service consumption side calls various management services of the management service production side through the service interface to realize the combination and management of the network slices. Referring to fig. 3, a flowchart of a network slice management method provided in an embodiment of the present application is schematically illustrated, and as shown in fig. 3, the method may include the following steps:

step 301, the second management network element of the management service consumption side sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the management service production side.

For convenience of description, in the present application, network elements in the service support management system on the management service consumption side are collectively referred to as a second management network element, where the second management network element may refer to a CSM service network element or a CSMF network element, or may refer to an NS LCM service network element or an NSMF network element, or may refer to an NSs LCM service network element or an NSSMF network element, or may refer to all or part of network elements in the service support management system.

In addition, the calling request includes an operation level and the like in addition to the name of the existing called service interface, the service identifier and the specific operation requirement.

Step 302, the CSM service network element sends a first request to a Network Slice Management (NSM) service network element according to the call request.

Here, the first request is used to instruct the NSM service network element to perform an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement. The operation levels can be divided into three operation levels of service, network and resource or two operation levels of network and resource. Since the operation level can be used to distinguish whether the call request made by the management service consuming side is traffic management (which may not explicitly indicate that the default call request is traffic management), network management or resource management, the management service producing side can perform corresponding operations by calling the NSM management function or NSM management service according to the supported network or resource operation level. When aiming at the network management operation level, the operation requirement can be the network management operation of the request, wherein the network management operation comprises the creation, activation, modification, supervision, report, failure, termination and the like of a network slice or a subnet slice, subscription network management data (alarm management data and performance management data); when aiming at the service management operation level, the operation requirement can be a service management operation for the request, wherein the service management operation specifically comprises the creation, modification, release and the like of a service access point, and the subscription of service management (service alarm and service KPI) data to acquire service management data; when aiming at the resource management operation level, the operation requirement may be a resource management operation for the request, where the resource management operation may include allocating resources, releasing resources, subscribing to resource management data (resource location, resource category, resource alarm, resource KPI), obtaining management data of virtual network resources or network link resources, and the like, as shown in table 1.

TABLE 1

Wherein, the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in table one, wherein, the business KPIs may further comprise one or any combination of the following information: latency, coverage, capacity, throughput, reliability, reporting success rate, issuing success rate, and the like. The resource KPI can be CPU occupancy rate, memory occupancy rate, free disk capacity, network link bandwidth utilization rate, etc.

Step 303, the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element.

Specifically, the NS LCM service network elements corresponding to the NSM service network element in different scenes, or the corresponding FM service network element or PM service network element, have different operation requirements for the call request in different scenes, so that the execution result returned from the CSM service network element received by the second management network element also has different results, and the subsequent operation of the second management network element after receiving the execution result also has different results. This is illustrated separately below in connection with different application scenarios.

Scene one

If the calling request is directed at the network management operation level, the operation requirement requests that a network slice instance is created, and the NSM service network element is specifically an NS LCM service network element, the execution result returned to the second management network element by the CSM service network element comprises a newly created network slice instance identifier; if the calling request is directed at the network management operation level, and the operation requirement requests to modify the network slice instance, the calling request further includes the network slice instance identifier requested to be modified by the operator B, and the execution result returned by the CSM service network element to the second management network element includes the network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

Further, the second management network element combines the network slices after receiving the execution result sent by the CSM service network element. Assuming that the management service consumption side is operator B and the management service production side is operator a, there may be several ways for operator B to combine network slices as follows:

(1) the operator B directly provides communication service for own customers by utilizing the newly created network slice example provided by the operator A;

(2) the operator B combines the modified network slice example provided by the operator A with the self-created network slice example and/or other network parts to form a slice alliance, and provides communication service for self customers by utilizing the slice alliance;

(3) and the operator B takes the modified network slice example or the subnet slice example provided by the operator A as a subnet slice example of the operator B, then combines the modified network slice example or the subnet slice example with other subnet slice examples created by the operator B to form a complete network slice example, and provides communication service for customers by using the combined complete network slice example.

Scene two

Similarly, since the network environment may change at any time, in order to meet the related demand of the communication service, the management service consumption side may also request to modify the usage resources of the network slice established by the management service production side according to the current demand capacity. For example, in the network slice operation management process, the invocation request sent by the second management network element may be for a resource management operation level, and the operation requirement requests the resource management operation in table 1, for example, allocating a resource or releasing a resource, and the NSM service network element is specifically an NS LCM service network element. Then the execution result returned by the CSM service network element to said second management network element includes the resource management operation result, and further, after receiving the execution result sent by the CSM service network element, the second management network element records the current slice resource usage, and determines that the resource scale of the current network slice matches with the relevant requirement of the current communication service. When the subsequent communication service capacity requirement changes, the management service consumption side can also continuously request to modify the use resources of the network slice established by the management service production side.

Scene three

After the management service production side provides the NSaaS service to the management service consumption side, according to the network slice ordering protocol signed on both sides, the second management network element of the management service consumption side can obtain the service management data, the network management data, the resource management data and the like of the network slice instance from the FM service network element or the PM service network element of the management service production side. For example, in the network slice operation management process, the call request sent by the second management network element may be a request for acquiring management data corresponding to the operation level, such as a request for acquiring a list of service management data, a list of network management data, a list of resource management data, and the like. The NSM service network element is specifically an FM service network element or a PM service network element, and then the execution result returned by the CSM service network element to the second management network element includes a list of service management data, a list of network management data, or a list of resource management data, or may be that the execution result returned by the CSM service network element to the second management network element includes an access address of the service management data, an access address of the network management data, or an access address of the resource management data. Further, after receiving the management data sent by the CSM service network element or the access address of the corresponding management data, the second management network element monitors the running state of the network slice, determines whether the running state of the slice meets the network quality requirement of the service application, and can further modify the parameters of the network slice to ensure that the running state of the slice can meet the SLA requirement of the service application.

In a possible design, after receiving the call request, the CSM service network element determines whether the second management network element has a call authority, and when it is determined that the second management network element has the call authority, the CSM service network element further sends the first request to the slice management NSM service network element (the NSM service network element refers to a corresponding management service network element in the above different scenarios), and if it is determined that the second management network element does not have the call authority, the CSM service network element does not perform the subsequent action, or directly returns a notification of call failure to the second management network element.

In another possible design, there may be a scenario where multiple management service consumers call the same management service provider at the same time, for example, multiple enterprises call the CSM service of the same operator, so that after receiving the call request, the CSM service network element further needs to perform conflict detection on the call request sent by the second management network element, for example, detect whether an operation requirement for modifying a network slice instance sent by the second management network element conflicts with an operation requirement for modifying a network slice instance requested by another enterprise, and when it is determined that there is no conflict, further send the first request to the slice management NSM service network element, otherwise, when a conflict is found, do not perform a subsequent action, or directly return a notification of call failure to the second management network element.

Of course, the CSM serving network element may also detect the invocation request by combining the two designs, that is, detect whether the second management network element has the invocation permission, and also detect whether the invocation request sent by the second management network element conflicts with the invocation requests of other third-party clients.

In summary, the management method for network slices provided by the present application is suitable for a management service consumption side to manage services provided by a management service production side, and the management service consumption side manages different services by calling an interface of a CSM service network element of the management service production side. On one hand, in the process of creating or modifying the network slices, the management service production side provides the network slice examples as a communication service to the management service consumption side, and the management service consumption side realizes the combination of the network slices through the communication service management function of the management service production side; on the other hand, in the operation process of the network slice, the second management network element on the management service consumption side does not need to be respectively connected with the CSM service network element, the NS LCM service network element, the NSS LCM service network element, the PM service network element, the FM service network element and the like on the management service production side, and the second management network element can obtain the network management data, the resource management data and the like of the network slice example besides the service management data by calling the CSM service network element on the management service production side. Furthermore, the second management network element on the management service consumption side can modify the service access point, or create a network slice instance, reallocate resources, and the like by calling the CSM service network element on the management service production side, thereby realizing management of different services. The management service production side unifies external interfaces of the communication service management service, the network slice management service and the resource management service into a service interface of the communication service management service, so that the butt joint complexity of the management service consumption side can be simplified.

In order to more clearly understand the network slice management method provided by the embodiment of the present application, the following description is made by using several specific embodiments. In the following embodiments, the management service consuming side is taken as the operator B, and the management service generating side is taken as the operator a.

Example 1

After the operator a provides the NSaaS service to the operator B, according to the network slice subscription agreement signed by the operator a and the operator B, the service support management system of the operator B may perform a service management operation, a network management operation, and a resource management operation on the network slice instance through the CSM service network element of the operator a, so as to guarantee the service SLA, and a specific flow is shown in fig. 4.

Business management operation part

In step 401A, operator B sends a call request to the CSM serving network element of operator a. The call request includes a service management operation level (optionally, if the default representation service management operation level is not carried) and an operation requirement.

If the communication service used by the operator B is provided by the network slicing example of the operator A, the service identifier in the calling request is NSaaS, and the network slicing example identifier is also carried; if the communication service is not provided by the network slice of the operator a, the service identifier in the invocation request is the specific communication service and does not carry the network slice instance identifier. The operation requirement may be a service management operation requested to be performed (e.g., creating, modifying, releasing a service access point, subscribing to a service alarm or service KPI, obtaining management data such as a service failure alarm or service performance statistics, etc.).

Step 402A, the CSM service network element of operator a checks whether operator B has the authority to execute these service management operations according to the network slice subscription protocol, if so, it can also check whether the service management operation of the current invocation request conflicts with the service management operations of other third-party clients, if not, it continues to execute 403, otherwise, it returns to the invocation failure.

Step 403A, after the CSM service network element of the operator a passes the check of step 402, if the service identifier is NSaaS, the NS LCM service network element is invoked to execute operations, such as service access point modification, on the network slice instance corresponding to the network slice instance identifier, and receive a second response message from the NS LCM service network element, for example, an operation result of the service access point.

Step 404A, the CSM service network element of operator a returns the service management operation result to the second management network element of operator B; and if the requested service identifier is NSaaS, the CSM service network element of the operator A returns a calling request response of the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element of the operator B, wherein the calling request response comprises an execution result of the NS LCM service network element, and the execution result carries an operation result of the service access point of the network slice instance corresponding to the slice instance identifier specified in the calling request.

It should be noted that, another processing manner may be that CSM directly operates and returns the result of the service operation of the second management network element.

Network management operation part

Step 401B, after the operator a creates a network slice instance for the operator B and provides a corresponding NSaaS service, according to the network slice subscription protocol signed by the two, the second management network element of the operator B may perform some network management operations (such as creating and modifying the network slice instance, modifying the network connection of a part of the network elements in the network slice instance, etc.) through the CSM service network element of the operator a, and the second management network element of the operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator a. The calling request comprises a network management operation level and an operation requirement, and a service identifier in the calling request is NSaaS and also carries a network slice instance identifier; the operation requirement describes a network management operation requested to be performed by the second management network element of operator B.

Step 402B, the CSM service network element of the operator a checks whether the operator B has the authority to execute the network management operations according to the network slice subscription protocol, if so, it can also check whether the network management operation of the current invocation request conflicts with the network management operations of other third-party clients, if not, it continues to execute 403B, otherwise, it returns to the invocation failure.

In step 403B, after the CSM service network element of the operator a passes the check in step 402B, if the service identifier is NSaaS, the CSM service network element sends a first request, that is, a network management operation request, to the NS LCM service network element, where the network management operation request includes a network management operation requested to be performed, such as creating or modifying a network slice instance, modifying network connections of some network elements in the network slice instance, and the like.

And step 404B, the NS LCM service network element calls the NSS LCM service network element and the NFV-MANO to modify or redeploy the network function.

In step 405B, the NS LCM service network element invokes a transmission management system network element to perform a network modification operation, where the transmission management system may be a MANO or an NSSMF of a specific transmission network.

In step 406B, the NS LCM service network element returns a network management operation response to the CSM service network element, where the network management operation response includes a network management operation result, such as a created network slice instance identifier, or a slice parameter of the modified network slice instance.

Step 407B, the CSM service network element of the operator a returns an invocation request response to the second management network element of the operator B, where the invocation request response includes an execution result of the NS LCM service network element, and the execution result carries a network management operation level of the invocation request and a network management operation result of the specified slice instance.

Resource management section

Step 401C, after the operator a creates a network slice instance for the operator B and provides a corresponding NSaaS service, according to the network slice subscription protocol signed by the two, the second management network element of the operator B may execute resource management operations of some network slice instances (for example, modify the number of virtual resources used by some network elements in the network slice, or modify transmission resources used by the network slice instance, etc.) by calling the CSM service network element of the operator a, and the second management network element of the operator B (including an NSLCM service network element or an NSS LCM service network element, etc.) sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator a. The calling request comprises a resource management operation level and an operation requirement, and a service identifier in the calling request is NSaaS and carries a network slice instance identifier; the operation requirement describes a resource management operation requested to be performed by the second management network element of operator B.

Step 402C, the CSM service network element of the operator a checks whether the operator B has the authority to execute the resource management operations according to the network slice subscription protocol, if so, it can also check whether the resource management operation of the current invocation request conflicts with the resource management operations of other third-party clients, if not, it continues to execute 403B, otherwise, it returns to the invocation failure.

In step 403C, after the CSM serving network element of the operator a performs the detection in step 402C, the network element sends a first request, that is, a resource management operation request, to the NS LCM serving network element, where the resource management operation request carries a resource management operation to be performed, for example, the number of virtual resources used by a part of network elements in a network slice is modified, or transmission resources used by the network slice are modified.

And step 404C, the NS LCM service network element calls the NSS LCM service network element and the NFV-MANO to modify the network function resources.

In step 405C, the NS LCM service network element invokes the transmission management system to modify the transmission resources.

In step 406C, the NS LCM service network element returns a third response message, i.e. a resource management operation response, to the CSM service network element, where the resource management operation response carries the corresponding resource management operation result.

Step 407C, the CSM service network element of the operator a returns an invocation request response to the second management network element of the operator B, where the invocation request response includes an execution result of the NS LCM service network element, and the execution result carries a resource management operation level in the invocation request and a resource management operation result of the specified network slice instance.

Application scenario one

Specifically, operator B may request to create a new network slice instance from operator a to generate a slice federation in combination, and when operator B requests to create a network slice, operator a and operator B create the network slice according to the flow shown in fig. 5, which specifically includes the following steps.

In step 501, a second management network element of the operator B (specifically, the second management network element may be a network slice management system or a communication service management system of the operator B) sends a call request to a CSM service network element of the operator a. The call request includes a service identifier (i.e., NSaaS service) and an operation requirement, and also includes a network management operation level.

Optionally, a special network slice instance identifier may be included to indicate the assignment after creation by the NS LCM serving network element of operator a.

Step 502, the CSM service network element of the operator a determines that a new network slice instance needs to be created according to the operation level and the operation requirement in the call request.

Step 503, the CSM service network element of the operator a obtains the relevant requirements of the newly-built network slice instance according to the specific service requirements of the NSaaS service in the operation requirements.

Step 504, the CSM service network element of operator a calls a network slice instance creation service provided by the NS LCM service network element of operator a to request creation of a new network slice instance, where the request for creating a network slice instance carries the related requirements of the newly created network slice instance obtained in step 503.

Step 505, the NS LCM service network element of operator a invokes the NSs LCM service network element of operator a, the transmission management system network element, the NFV-MANO, etc., and completes the creation of the network slice instance according to the prior art.

Step 506, after the NS LCM service network element of the operator a completes creation of the network slice instance, returning a call result of creating the network slice instance service to the CSM service network element of the operator a, wherein if the creation is successful, a slice instance identifier allocated by the NS LCM service network element for the newly created network slice instance is carried, and if the creation is failed, a specific failure reason is carried.

In step 507, the CSM service network element of operator a sends an invocation response to the second management network element of operator B, where the invocation response includes an execution result of the NS LCM service network element, that is, a slice instance identifier of a newly created network slice that succeeds or a reason why creating the network slice instance fails.

In step 508, if the network slice instance is created successfully, the second management network element of operator B stores the slice instance identifier of the network slice newly created by operator a in the call response message as the identifier of the subnet slice instance of the combined slice of operator B.

Application scenario two

Specifically, after the operator B requests the newly created network slice instance from the operator a, the activation process after the creation of the network slice instance needs to be completed, specifically referring to the following steps described in fig. 5.

In step 509, the second management network element (specifically, a network slice management system or a communication service management system) of the operator B first enables the service of each subnet slice instance created by the second management network element.

In step 510, the second management network element of the operator B sends an enable request to the CSM service network element of the operator a, where the enable request is used to request the operator a to enable the NSaaS service provided by the network slice just created, and may include a service management operation level (optionally, if the service management operation level is not default), and an identifier of the network slice instance allocated by the operator in step 508, in addition to the service identifier (i.e., the NSaaS service) and the operation requirement (i.e., the NSaaS service is requested to be enabled, and the specific service management operation request).

Step 511, the CSM Service network element of the operator a activates a Service Access Point (Service Access Point) provided by the network slice according to the Service management operation level, the network slice instance identifier, and the operation requirement (i.e., capable of NSaaS Service).

Step 512, the CSM service network element of the operator a returns an enable response message to the second management network element of the operator B, where the message may carry the operation level (i.e. the service management operation level) specified in the enable response message, and also carries the network slice instance identifier of the network slice and the service management operation result, where the service management operation result indicates that the service access point is successfully activated and provides detailed information of the service access point. At this time, the operator B can obtain the NSaaS service provided by the operator a according to the service access point information, and combine the network slices provided by the two operators into a slice or a slice union with a larger range.

Application scenario three

If operator a has deployed a network slice instance to provide communication services, and operator B wishes to combine the self-deployed network slice instance and the network slice instance already deployed by operator a to provide communication services for customers in a wider range, then operator a may request to modify the network slice instance already deployed by operator a, and when operator B requests to modify the network slice instance of operator a, operator a and operator B modify the network slice according to the flow shown in fig. 6, which specifically includes the following steps.

In step 601, a second management network element (specifically, a network slice management system or a communication service management system) of the operator B sends a call request to a CSM service network element of the operator a. Besides the existing service identifier (i.e., NSaaS service) and the operation requirement, the operation level of network management and the network slice instance identifier are also included, and the operation requirement indicates that the deployed network slice instance of the operator a is requested to provide the required NSaaS service.

Step 602, the CSM service network element of operator a determines, according to the operation level and the operation requirement in the call request, that the deployed network slice instance needs to be modified.

Step 603, the CSM service network element of the operator a obtains the relevant requirement for modifying the network slice instance according to the operation requirement in the call request.

Step 604, the CSM service network element of operator a sends a request for modifying the network slice instance to the NS LCM service network element of operator a, where the request carries the related requirement for modifying the network slice instance obtained in step 603.

Step 605, similar to the process of creating the network slice example in the prior art, the NS LCM service network element of the operator a calls the NSs LCM service network element, the transmission management system network element, the NFV-MANO, and the like, to complete the modification of the network slice example.

Step 606, after the NS LCM service network element of operator a completes the modification of the slicing instance, it sends a response message for modifying the slicing instance to the CSM service network element of operator a, where the response message carries the parameter information after the modification of the network slicing instance.

Step 607, the CSM service network element of the operator a sends a call request response to the second management network element of the operator B, where the call request response indicates that the network slice instance requested to exist is successful in providing the NSaaS service, and the message also carries parameter information corresponding to the network management operation level and the network slice instance identifier specified in the call request message.

At this time, operator B combines the network slices provided by the two operators into a larger range of slices or slice union using NSaaS services provided by the existing network slice instance of operator a.

Example 2

After the operator a provides the NSaaS service to the operator B, according to the network slice subscription protocol signed by the operator a and the operator B, the operator B may obtain the service management data, the network management data, and the resource management data of the network slice instance through the CSM service network element of the operator a, and a specific flow is as shown in fig. 7, and includes the following steps.

Step 701A, the second management network element of operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of operator a. Wherein the invocation request includes a service management operation level and an operation requirement.

If the communication service used by the operator B is provided by the network slice instance of the operator A, the service identifier in the calling request is NSaaS, and the NSaaS carries the network slice instance identifier; if the communication service is not provided by the network slice, the service identifier in the calling request is the specific communication service and does not carry the network slice instance identifier. The operation requirement describes a list of service management data requested to be obtained by the second management network element of the operator B, and specifically may be performance statistics data such as warning data and service KPI of the communication service requested to be obtained, service access point information, and the like.

Step 702A, the CSM service network element of the operator A detects whether the service management data can be provided for the operator B according to the network slice ordering protocol, if not, the calling failure message is returned; if the service management operation level and the network slice instance identification are available, a successful call request response is returned, wherein the call request response carries the service management data or the access address of the service management data corresponding to the service management operation level and the network slice instance identification. If the access address is the service management data, the second management network element of the operator B may obtain the corresponding service management data from the specified access address.

Step 701B, the operator B creates a network slice instance for the customer and provides a corresponding NSaaS service, according to the network slice subscription protocol, the second management network element of the operator B may request the operator a to obtain network management data of some network slice instances, and the second management network element of the operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator a. The calling request comprises a network management operation level and an operation requirement, a service identifier in the calling request is NSaaS, and a network slice instance identifier is carried; the operation requirement describes a list of network management data that the management system of the client wishes to obtain, specifically, data such as alarms and performance statistics of the network slice instance.

In step 702B, the CSM serving network element of operator a checks whether the network management data can be provided to operator B according to the protocol, and if the provision is allowed, the CSM serving network element of operator a sends a first request, i.e. a network management operation request, to the PM or FM serving network element.

In step 703B, the PM or FM service network element calls the transmission management system network element to obtain the fault alarm or performance statistics of the transmission network, or obtains the fault alarm or performance statistics of the network element from the corresponding network function instance (i.e., network element) in the network slice instance, and then summarizes the obtained network management data of each part.

In step 704B, the PM or FM service network element sends a fourth response message, i.e., a network management operation response, to the CSM service network element, where the fourth response message carries the requested network management data or the address for obtaining the network management data.

Step 705B, the CSM service network element of the operator a returns a successful call request response to the second management network element of the operator B, where the call request response carries the network management operation level in the call request and the access address of the network slice instance identifier corresponding to the network management data or the network management data, and if the call request response is the access address of the network management data, the second management network element of the operator B may obtain the corresponding network management data from the specified access address.

Step 701C, the operator a creates a network slice instance for the operator B and provides a corresponding NSaaS service, according to a network slice subscription protocol, a second management network element of the operator B may request the operator a to obtain NFV infrastructure (NFV infrastructure, NFVI) resources, transmission resources, or resource management data of the network resources used by some network slice instances, and the second management network element of the operator B sends a call request to a CSM service network element of the operator a. The calling request comprises a resource management operation level and an operation requirement, a service identifier in the calling request is NSaaS, and a network slice instance identifier is carried; the operation requirement describes a list of resource management data that the second management network element of operator B wishes to obtain, which may specifically be fault alarm or performance statistics data of NFV resources, transmission resources or network resources.

Step 702C, the CSM service network element of the operator A checks whether the resource management data can be provided for the client according to the protocol, and if not, returns a message of failed calling; if so, a first request, i.e. a resource management operation request, is sent to the PM or FM serving network element.

In step 703C, the PM or FM service network element calls the transmission management system network element, or NFV-MANO obtains and summarizes the resource management data of each part.

In step 704C, the PM or FM service network element sends a fifth response message, i.e., a resource management operation response, to the CSM service network element, where the resource management operation response carries the requested resource management data or obtains the address of the resource management data.

Step 705C, the CSM service network element of the operator a returns a call request response to the operator B, where the call request response carries the resource management operation level in the call request and the access address of the resource management data or the resource management data corresponding to the network slice instance identifier, and if the call request response is the access address of the resource management data, the second management network element of the operator B may obtain the corresponding resource alarm or the resource performance statistic data from the specified access address.

Step 701D, if the second management network element of the operator B requests the operator a to obtain the NFV resource, transmission resource, or management data of the network resource used by some network slice instances, which is the specific NFV deployment resource information, and the information of the transmission or network link, the second management network element of the operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator a. The calling request comprises a resource management operation level and an operation requirement, a service identifier in the calling request is NSaaS, and a network slice instance identifier is carried; the operation requirement describes a list of resource management data that the second management network element of operator B wishes to obtain, in particular, specific information of VNFs, VNFCs, and virtual machines VMs of the NFV deployment, and specific information of transport or network links.

Step 702D, the CSM service network element of the operator A checks whether the resource management data can be provided for the client according to the protocol, and if not, returns a message of failed calling; if so, a first request, i.e., a resource management operation request, is sent to the NS LCM serving network element.

Step 703D, the NS LCM service network element calls the transmission management system network element or the NFV-MANO to acquire and summarize the resource management data of each part.

Step 704D, the NS LCM service network element sends a fifth response message, i.e. a resource management operation response, to the CSM service network element, where the resource management operation response carries the requested resource management data or obtains the address of the resource management data.

Step 705D, the CSM service network element of the operator a returns a call request response to the operator B, where the call request response carries the resource management operation level in the call request and the access address of the resource management data or the resource management data corresponding to the network slice instance identifier, and if the call request response is the access address of the resource management data, the second management network element of the operator B may obtain the corresponding resource alarm or the resource performance statistic data from the specified access address.

Based on the same inventive concept, as shown in fig. 8, for a schematic diagram of an apparatus provided by the present application, the apparatus 800 may be a CSM service network element, and may also be a system on chip or a chip, and may perform the method of serving the network element by the CSM in the embodiments shown in fig. 4 to fig. 6.

The apparatus 800 includes at least one processor 801, a transceiver 802, and optionally a memory 803. The processor 801, transceiver 802, memory 803 are connected by a communication bus.

Processor 801 may be a general purpose Central Processing Unit (CPU), microprocessor, application specific ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of programs in accordance with the inventive arrangements.

The communication bus may include a path that transfers information between the devices.

The transceiver 802, which is used to communicate with other devices or a communication network, may be a communication interface, such as a wired or wireless interface, or a wifi interface, or it may include radio frequency circuitry.

The memory 803 may be, but is not limited to, a ROM or other type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a RAM or other type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, an EEPROM, a CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, optical disk storage (including compact disk, laser disk, optical disk, digital versatile disk, blu-ray disk, etc.), a magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. The memory 803 may be separate and coupled to the processor 801 via a communication bus. The memory 803 may also be integrated with the processor. The memory 803 is used for storing program codes for implementing the present invention, and the processor 801 controls the execution of the program codes. The processor 801 is configured to execute application program code stored in the memory 803.

In particular implementations, processor 801 may include one or more CPUs such as CPU0 and CPU1 in device 800, for example, as one embodiment.

In particular implementations, apparatus 800 may include multiple processors, such as processor 801 and processor 808 in apparatus 800, for example, as an example. Each of these processors may be a single-Core (CPU) processor or a multi-Core (CPU) processor, where a processor may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

It should be understood that the apparatus may be used to implement the steps performed by the CSM serving network element in the communication methods in the embodiments shown in fig. 4 to fig. 6, and related features may refer to the above description, which is not described herein again.

The present application may perform division of functional modules on the apparatus according to the above method example, for example, each functional module may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated into one processing module. The integrated module can be realized in a hardware mode, and can also be realized in a software functional module mode. It should be noted that, the division of the modules in the present application is schematic, and is only a logical function division, and there may be another division manner in actual implementation. For example, in the case of dividing each functional module by corresponding functions, fig. 9 shows a schematic diagram of an apparatus, which may be a CSM service network element or a system on chip or a chip involved in the embodiment shown in fig. 9, and includes a processing unit 901 and a communication unit 902. The processing unit 901 may for example be a processor, the communication unit 902 may for example be a transceiver comprising radio frequency circuitry, optionally the CSM serving network element further comprises a storage unit, which may for example be a memory. When the CSM service network element comprises a storage unit, the storage unit stores computer execution instructions, the processing unit is connected with the storage unit, and the processing unit executes the computer execution instructions stored in the storage unit, so that the CSM service network element executes the network slice management method.

The processing unit 901 is configured to control the communication unit 902 to execute the following processing:

receiving a calling request from a second management network element of a management service consumption side, wherein the calling request comprises the operation level and the operation requirement of a service; sending a first request to an NSM service network element according to the calling request, wherein the first request is used for indicating the NSM service network element to execute actions corresponding to the operation requirement and the operation level; and sending the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element.

In a possible implementation manner, the processing unit 901 may further determine that the second management network element has a call authority according to the call request, and/or that an operation requirement in the call request meets a non-conflict condition.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, and the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance; the operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is a message for creating or modifying a network slice instance;

the processing unit 901 is further configured to control the communication unit 902 to: and receiving a first response message returned by the NSM service entity, wherein the first response message comprises the newly created network slice instance identifier or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation level is a resource management operation level, and the operation requirement is a management resource; when the first request is a resource management operation request, the processor 901 receives, through the communication unit 902, a third response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, where the third response message includes a resource management operation result of a resource corresponding to a network slice instance identifier.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an FM service network element or a PM service network element, the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; when the first request is a request for network management data; the processing unit 901 is further configured to control the communication unit 902 to: and receiving a fourth response message returned by the NSM service network element, wherein the fourth response message comprises network management data or an access address of the network management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; when the first request is to request resource management data; the processing unit 901 is further configured to control the communication unit 902 to: and receiving a fifth response message returned by the NSM service network element, wherein the fifth response message comprises resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the processing unit 901 is further configured to determine that the second management network element has the right to acquire the management data corresponding to the operation level, and send the first request to the NSM service network element.

In this embodiment, the apparatus is presented in the form of dividing each functional module corresponding to each function, or the CSM service network element is presented in the form of dividing each functional module. As used herein, a "module" may refer to an ASIC, an electronic circuit, a processor and memory that execute one or more software or firmware programs, an integrated logic circuit, and/or other components that provide the described functionality.

It should be understood that the apparatus may be configured to implement the steps performed by the CSM serving network element in the communication method according to the embodiment of the present invention, and reference may be made to the above for related features, which are not described herein again.

Based on the same inventive concept, as shown in fig. 10, for a schematic diagram of an apparatus provided by the present application, the apparatus 1000 may be a second management network element, and may also be a system on a chip or a chip, and may perform the methods performed by the second management network element in the embodiments shown in fig. 4 to fig. 6.

The apparatus 1000 includes at least one processor 1001, a transceiver 1002, and optionally a memory 1003. The processor 1001, the transceiver 1002, and the memory 1003 are connected by a communication bus.

Processor 1001 may be a general purpose Central Processing Unit (CPU), microprocessor, application specific ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of programs in accordance with the inventive arrangements.

The transceiver 1002, which is used for communication with other devices or a communication network, may be a communication interface, such as a wired interface or a wireless interface, or a wifi interface, or the transceiver comprises radio frequency circuitry.

The memory 1003 may be, but is not limited to, a ROM or other type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a RAM or other type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, an EEPROM, a CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, optical disk storage (including compact disk, laser disk, optical disk, digital versatile disk, blu-ray disk, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. The memory 1003 may be a separate entity and is connected to the processor 1001 through a communication bus. The memory 1003 may also be integrated with the processor. The memory 1003 is used for storing program codes for implementing the present invention, and the processor 1001 controls the execution of the program codes. The processor 1001 is configured to execute application program codes stored in the memory 1003.

In particular implementations, processor 1001 may include one or more CPUs such as CPU0 and CPU1 of fig. 1000, for example, as an example.

In one implementation, the apparatus 1000 may comprise a plurality of processors, such as the processor 1001 and the processor 10010 in fig. 1000, for example. Each of these processors may be a single-Core (CPU) processor or a multi-Core (CPU) processor, where a processor may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

It should be understood that the apparatus may be used to implement the steps performed by the second management network element in the communication methods of the embodiments shown in fig. 4 to fig. 6, and related features may refer to the foregoing description and are not described herein again.

The present application may perform division of functional modules on the apparatus according to the above method example, for example, each functional module may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated into one processing module. The integrated module can be realized in a hardware mode, and can also be realized in a software functional module mode. It should be noted that, the division of the modules in the present application is schematic, and is only a logical function division, and there may be another division manner in actual implementation. For example, in the case of dividing each functional module by corresponding functions, fig. 11 shows a schematic diagram of an apparatus, which may be a second management network element or a system on chip or a chip involved in the embodiment shown in fig. 11, and includes a processing unit 1101 and a communication unit 1102. The processing unit 1101 may be, for example, a processor, the communication unit 1102 may be, for example, a transceiver, and the transceiver includes a radio frequency circuit, and optionally, the second management network element further includes a storage unit, and the storage unit may be, for example, a memory. When the second management network element comprises a storage unit, the storage unit stores computer execution instructions, the processing unit is connected with the storage unit, and the processing unit executes the computer execution instructions stored in the storage unit, so that the CSM service network element executes the network slice management method.

The processing unit 1101 is configured to control the communication unit 1102 to execute the following processing:

sending a calling request to a communication service management CSM service network element at a management service production side, wherein the calling request comprises the operation level and the operation requirement of the service;

and receiving an execution result sent by the CSM service network element, wherein the execution result is obtained from an NS LCM service network element after the CSM service network element calls an NSM service network element according to the calling request, and the execution result is generated after the NSM service network element executes an action corresponding to the operation requirement and the operation level.

The processing unit 1101 is further configured to control the communication unit to perform the following processing:

providing communication service for the client by utilizing the newly created network slice instance; or combining the network slice instances provided by the management service generation side and the network slice instances already created by the management service generation side to form a slice alliance, and providing communication services for clients by using the slice alliance; or, the network slice instance provided by the management service generation side is taken as a subnet slice instance of the management service generation side, then the network slice instance is combined with other subnet slice instances created by the management service generation side to form a new network slice instance, and the communication service is provided for the client of the management service generation side by using the new network slice instance.

In this embodiment, the apparatus is presented in a form of dividing each functional module corresponding to each function, or the second management network element is presented in a form of dividing each functional module in an integrated manner. As used herein, a "module" may refer to an ASIC, an electronic circuit, a processor and memory that execute one or more software or firmware programs, an integrated logic circuit, and/or other components that provide the described functionality.

It should be understood that the apparatus may be configured to implement the steps executed by the second management network element in the communication method according to the embodiment of the present invention, and reference may be made to the above for related features, which are not described herein again.

Embodiments of the present application further provide a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer instructions are stored, and when the instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the above method embodiments.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method embodiments described in the above aspects.

In the above embodiments, the implementation may be wholly or partially realized by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, may be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When loaded and executed on a computer, cause the processes or functions described in accordance with the embodiments of the invention to occur, in whole or in part. The computer may be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a network of computers, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer readable storage medium to another, for example, from one website site, computer, server, or data center to another website site, computer, server, or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device, such as a server, a data center, etc., that incorporates one or more of the available media. The usable medium may be a magnetic medium (e.g., floppy Disk, hard Disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., Solid State Disk (SSD)), among others.

While the invention has been described in connection with various embodiments, other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a review of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the word "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, embodiments of the present application may be provided as a method, apparatus (device), computer-readable storage medium, or computer program product. Accordingly, this application may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects that may all generally be referred to herein as a "module" or "system.

The present application is described with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (devices) and computer program products of the application. It will be understood that each flow and/or block of the flow diagrams and/or block diagrams, and combinations of flows and/or blocks in the flow diagrams and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, embedded processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function specified in the flowchart flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

While the invention has been described in conjunction with specific features and embodiments thereof, it will be evident that various modifications and combinations can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the specification and figures are merely exemplary of the invention as defined in the appended claims and are intended to cover any and all modifications, variations, combinations, or equivalents within the scope of the invention. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the present invention fall within the scope of the claims of the present invention and their equivalents, the present invention is also intended to include such modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A method for managing network slices, the method comprising:

a communication service management CSM service network element at a management service production side receives a calling request from a second management network element at a management service consumption side, wherein the calling request comprises the operation level and the operation requirement of a service;

the CSM service network element determines that the second management network element has a calling authority according to the calling request and/or that the operation requirement in the calling request meets a non-conflict condition; wherein, the conflict-free condition means that the call request sent by the second management network element does not conflict with the call requests of other third-party clients;

the CSM service network element sends a first request to a Network Slice Management (NSM) service network element according to the calling request, wherein the first request is used for indicating the NSM service network element to execute actions corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement;

and the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the NSM service network element is a network slice lifecycle management, NS, LCM service network element, and the operational requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance; the operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is a message for creating or modifying a network slice instance;

before the CSM serving network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM serving network element to the second management network element, the method further includes:

and the CSM service network element receives a first response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, wherein the first response message comprises a newly created network slice instance identifier or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, and the operational requirement is a management resource; the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first request is a resource management operation request;

and the CSM service network element receives a third response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, wherein the third response message comprises a resource management operation result of the resource corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the NSM service network element is a Fault Management (FM) service network element or a Performance Management (PM) service network element; the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is for network management data;

and the CSM service network element receives a fourth response message returned by the FM service network element or the PM service network element, wherein the fourth response message comprises network management data or an access address of the network management data.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first request is a request for resource management data;

and the CSM service network element receives a fifth response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, wherein the fifth response message comprises resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.

6. The method according to claim 4 or 5, wherein before the CSM serving network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM serving network element to the second management network element, the method further comprises:

and the CSM service network element determines that the second management network element has the authority to acquire the management data corresponding to the operation level.

7. A method for managing network slices, the method comprising:

a second management network element of a management service consumption side sends a calling request to a communication service management CSM service network element of a management service production side, wherein the calling request comprises the operation level and the operation requirement of a service;

and the second management network element receives an execution result sent by the CSM service network element, wherein the execution result is that the CSM service network element calls a network slice management NSM service network element after determining that the second management network element has a calling authority according to the calling request and/or an operation requirement in the calling request meets a non-conflict condition, and the execution result is obtained from the NSM service network element and is generated after the NSM service network element executes an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement, wherein the non-conflict condition refers to that the calling request sent by the second management network element does not conflict with the calling requests of other third-party clients.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the NSM service network element is a network slice lifecycle management (NS LCM) service network element, wherein the operational requirement is creation or modification of a network slice instance, and wherein the operational level is a network management operational level;

the execution result comprises a newly created network slice instance identifier or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element;

after the second management network element receives the execution result sent by the CSM serving network element, the method further includes:

the second management network element provides communication service for the client by using the newly created network slice example;

or, the second management network element combines the network slice instance provided by the management service generation side and the network slice instance already created by itself to form a slice federation, and provides communication service to its own client by using the slice federation;

or, the second management network element takes the network slice instance provided by the management service generation side as a subnet slice instance of itself, then combines with other subnet slice instances created by itself to form a new network slice instance, and provides communication service for its own client by using the new network slice instance.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element; the operation requirement is a management resource; the operation level is a resource management operation level; the execution result comprises a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the NSM service network element is a Fault Management (FM) service network element or a Performance Management (PM) service network element; the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; the execution result comprises network management data or an access address of the network management data.

11. The method according to claim 7 or 10, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; the execution result includes the resource management data or the access address of the resource management data.

12. An apparatus belonging to a management service production side, comprising: a processing unit and a communication unit;

the processing unit is used for controlling the communication unit to execute the following processing:

receiving a calling request from a second management network element of a management service consumption side, wherein the calling request comprises the operation level and the operation requirement of a service;

according to the calling request, determining that the second management network element has a calling authority, and/or the operation requirement in the calling request meets a non-conflict condition; wherein, the conflict-free condition means that the call request sent by the second management network element does not conflict with the call requests of other third-party clients;

sending a first request to a Network Slice Management (NSM) service network element according to the calling request, wherein the first request is used for indicating the NSM service network element to execute actions corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement

And sending the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the NSM service network element is a network slice lifecycle management, NS, LCM service network element, and wherein the operational requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance; the operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is a message for creating or modifying a network slice instance

The processing unit is further configured to control the communication unit to: and receiving a first response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, wherein the first response message comprises a newly created network slice instance identifier or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation level is a traffic management operation level, and the operation requirement is a traffic management operation request; the first request is a service management operation request;

the processing unit is further configured to control the communication unit to perform the following processing:

and receiving a first response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, wherein the first response message comprises a newly created network slice instance identifier or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, and the operational requirement is a management resource; the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first request is a resource management operation request;

and receiving a third response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, wherein the third response message comprises a resource management operation result of the resource corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

16. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the NSM service network element is a fault management FM service network element or a performance management PM service network element; the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is for network management data;

and receiving a fourth response message returned by the FM service network element or the PM service network element, wherein the fourth response message comprises network management data or an access address of the network management data.

17. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first request is a request for resource management data;

the processing unit is further configured to control the communication unit to:

and receiving a fifth response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, wherein the fifth response message comprises resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.

18. The apparatus according to claim 16 or 17, wherein the processing unit is further configured to: and determining that the second management network element has the authority to acquire the management data corresponding to the operation level.

19. An apparatus, comprising a processing unit and a communication unit;

and receiving an execution result sent by the CSM service network element, wherein the execution result is obtained from the NSM service network element after the CSM service network element calls a network slice management NSM service network element after determining that a second management network element on a management service consumption side where the device is located has a calling authority according to the calling request and/or an operation requirement in the calling request meets a non-conflict condition, and the execution result is generated after the NSM service network element executes an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement, wherein the non-conflict condition means that the calling request sent by the second management network element does not conflict with calling requests of other third-party clients.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the NSM service network element is a network slice lifecycle management, NS, LCM service network element, wherein the operational requirement is creation or modification of a network slice instance, and wherein the operational level is a network management operational level;

providing communication service for the client by utilizing the newly created network slice instance;

or combining the network slice instances provided by the management service generation side and the network slice instances already created by the management service generation side to form a slice alliance, and providing communication services for clients by using the slice alliance;

or, the network slice instance provided by the management service generation side is taken as a subnet slice instance of the management service generation side, then the network slice instance is combined with other subnet slice instances created by the management service generation side to form a new network slice instance, and the communication service is provided for the client of the management service generation side by using the new network slice instance.

21. The apparatus of claim 19 or 20, wherein the NSM serving network element is an NS LCM serving network element; the operation requirement is a management resource; the operation level is a resource management operation level; the execution result comprises a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

22. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the NSM service network element is a fault management FM service network element or a performance management PM service network element; the operation requirement is to acquire management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; the execution result comprises network management data or an access address of the network management data.

23. The apparatus according to claim 19 or 22, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; the execution result includes the resource management data or the access address of the resource management data.