CN110677345A

CN110677345A - User message transmission method and communication equipment

Info

Publication number: CN110677345A
Application number: CN201810741796.4A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李汉成; 周汉; 于游洋
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-07-02
Filing date: 2018-07-02
Publication date: 2020-01-10
Anticipated expiration: 2038-07-02
Also published as: CN110677345B

Abstract

The application discloses a user message transmission method and communication equipment, wherein the method comprises the following steps: the session management function equipment determines a path identifier and a user session identifier; the session management function device sends the path identifier and the user session identifier to a first network device, wherein the path identifier is used for identifying a two-layer forwarding path of a first user message, and the end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the first user message is a second network device; the user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located; the first network device is a user plane function device and the second network device is an access network device; or, the first network device is an access network device and the second network device is a user plane function device. By implementing the method and the device, the processing complexity of the network equipment can be simplified, and the transmission efficiency is improved.

Description

User message transmission method and communication equipment

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a user packet transmission method and a communication device.

Background

In the prior art, a user message is forwarded based on a three-layer switching technology. For example, a user packet is encapsulated by using a general packet radio service tunneling protocol user plane (GTP-U) protocol, where the GTP-U is a User Datagram Protocol (UDP) protocol encapsulation, and a GTP-U packet header includes a Tunnel Endpoint Identifier (TEID) field for identifying a session. The IP header to which the GTP-U belongs carries a source Internet Protocol (IP) address and a destination IP address. Based on the IP routing, a packet is transmitted between AN access point (AN) and a User Plane Function (UPF), so that a transmission channel is formed between the AN and the UPF.

Because GTP-U is AN IP message based on UDP, both AN and UPF need to perform GTP-U encapsulation processing on a user message, and AN, UPF and intermediate forwarding equipment between AN and UPF need to perform processing on the basis of three layers, so that the complexity of equipment processing is increased. Meanwhile, the added GTP-U package increases the consumption of message transmission and reduces the transmission efficiency. Therefore, how to design a user message forwarding method capable of simplifying the processing complexity of the network device and improving the transmission efficiency is a technical problem to be solved at present.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the invention provides a user message transmission method and communication equipment, which can simplify the processing complexity of network equipment and improve the transmission efficiency.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a user packet transmission method, which is applied to a session management function device side. The method comprises the following steps: the session management function device determines a path identifier and a user session identifier. The session management function device sends a path identifier and a user session identifier to the first network device, wherein the path identifier is used for identifying a two-layer forwarding path of the first user message, and the end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the first user message is the second network device. The user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located. The first network device is a user plane function device and the second network device is an access network device. Or, the first network device is an access network device and the second network device is a user plane function device.

By implementing the embodiment of the invention, the session management function device distributes the path identifier and the user session identifier on the first network device and the second network device for the first user message. And the intermediate forwarding equipment between the first network equipment and the second network equipment can identify the forwarding path of the user message according to the path identifier carried in the data link layer of the layer two of the user message, so that the user message is forwarded to the appointed second network equipment from the first network equipment or is forwarded to the appointed first network equipment from the second network equipment. And simultaneously, the user session is identified by the user session identification carried in the second layer, so that the first network equipment or the second network equipment can correctly identify the user session in which the user message is positioned according to the user session identification carried in the data link layer of the second layer. Therefore, the first network device, the second network device and the intermediate forwarding device between the first network device and the second network device are not required to perform processing based on layer three, and the complexity of device processing is reduced. Meanwhile, the GTU-U message header does not need to be packaged according to the GTP-U mode in the prior art, so that the message transmission consumption is reduced, and the message transmission efficiency is improved.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: and the session management function equipment sends indication information to the first network equipment, wherein the indication information is used for indicating the first network equipment to carry out two-layer forwarding on the first user message.

In one possible design, the path identifier includes any one of the following: a first Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) identification; a first Tag Protocol Identifier (TPID); a Media Access Control (MAC) address of the second network device; the local MAC address in the local area network is determined by the session management function equipment; a first service MAC address corresponding to a first user message; a first VLAN identification and a MAC address of a second network device; a first VLAN identification and a local MAC address; a first VLAN identification and a first service MAC address; a first tag protocol identifier and a MAC address of a second network device; a first tag protocol identification and a local MAC address; a first label protocol identifier and a first service MAC address; a first VLAN identifier, a first tag protocol identifier and a MAC address of a second network device; a first VLAN identification, a first tag protocol identification and a local MAC address; a first VLAN identification, a first tag protocol identification, and a first traffic MAC address.

In a possible design, the user session identifier includes any one of the following: a second VLAN identification; a second tag protocol identification; a second VLAN identification and a second tag protocol identification; a first VLAN identification and a second VLAN identification; the MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the first user message; the MAC address and the first VLAN identification of the user equipment; the MAC address and the second VLAN identification of the user equipment; the MAC address, the second VLAN identification and the second label protocol identification of the user equipment; the MAC address, the first VLAN identification and the second VLAN identification of the user equipment; a first service MAC address of a first user message; and the session management function device determines the local MAC address in the local area network.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: the session management function device receives first information from the third network device, where the first information includes one or more of a third VLAN identifier, an MAC address of a user device corresponding to the second user packet, a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet, first class of service (CoS) information, and a third label protocol identifier. The session management function device sends the first information to the first network device.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: the session management function device sends a topology information acquisition request to the fourth network device, where the topology information acquisition request is used to request to acquire topology information, and the topology information includes first sending port information of the first network device, first receiving port information of the second network device, a path identifier corresponding to the first sending port information, and a path identifier corresponding to the first receiving port information. Or the topology information includes second receiving port information of the first network device, second sending port information of the second network device, a path identifier corresponding to the second sending port information, and a path identifier corresponding to the second receiving port. The session management function device receives topology information from the fourth network device. And the session management function equipment determines a first transceiving port corresponding to the first user message according to the first sending port information and the first receiving port information. And/or the session management function device determines a second transceiving port corresponding to the first user message according to the second sending port information and the second receiving port information. The session management function device determines a path identifier, and the determining includes: and the session management function equipment determines a path identifier according to the path identifier of the first transceiving port corresponding to the first user message. And/or the session management function device determines the path identifier according to the path identifier of the second transceiving port corresponding to the first user message.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a user packet transmission method, which is applied to a first network device side. The method comprises the following steps: the first network device receives the path identification and the user session identification from the session management function device. The first network equipment packages a path identifier and a user session identifier for the first user message, and performs two-layer forwarding on the first user message after packaging, wherein the path identifier is used for identifying a two-layer forwarding path of the first user message, and the end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the user message is the second network equipment. The first user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located. The first network device is a user plane function device and the second network device is an access network device. Or, the first network device is an access network device and the second network device is a user plane function device.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: the first network device receives indication information from the session management function device, wherein the indication information is used for indicating the first network device to perform two-layer forwarding on the first user message.

In one possible design, the path identifier includes any one of the following: a first Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) identifier; a first tag protocol identification; a media access control, MAC, address of the second network device; the local MAC address in the local area network is determined by the session management function equipment; a first service MAC address corresponding to a first user message; a first VLAN identification and a MAC address of a second network device; a first VLAN identification and a local MAC address; a first VLAN identification and a first service MAC address; a first tag protocol identifier and a MAC address of a second network device; a first tag protocol identification and a local MAC address; a first label protocol identifier and a first service MAC address; a first VLAN identifier, a first tag protocol identifier and a MAC address of a second network device; a first VLAN identification, a first tag protocol identification and a local MAC address; a first VLAN identification, a first tag protocol identification, and a first traffic MAC address.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: the first network device receives a second user message from the second network device.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: the first network device receives the third VLAN identification from the session management function device. And the first network equipment changes the VLAN identification of the second user message into a third VLAN identification. By adopting the embodiment of the invention, when the second network equipment sends the user message to the first network equipment, the VLAN identification in the user message is modified, so that the forwarding path and/or the user session of the user message are identified by the VLAN identification, after the first network equipment receives the user message with the modified VLAN identification, the VLAN identification of the user message needs to be recovered, and then the recovered user message is forwarded to the next-level node, so that the accuracy of the transmitted user message is improved.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: the first network device receives first class of service CoS information from the session management function device. And the first network equipment changes the CoS information of the second user message into the first CoS information. By adopting the embodiment of the invention, when the second network equipment sends the user message to the first network equipment, the CoS information in the user message is modified, so that the CoS information is adopted to identify the forwarding path and/or the user session of the user message, after the first network equipment receives the user message with the modified CoS information, the CoS information of the user message needs to be recovered, and the recovered user message is forwarded to the next-level node, so that the accuracy of the transmitted user message is improved.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: the first network device receives the third tag protocol identification from the session management function device. And the first network equipment changes the label protocol identification of the second user message into a third label protocol identification. By adopting the embodiment of the invention, when the second network equipment sends the user message to the first network equipment, the label protocol identification in the user message is modified, so that the forwarding path and/or the user session of the user message are/is identified by adopting the label protocol identification, after the first network equipment receives the user message with the modified label protocol identification, the label protocol identification of the user message needs to be recovered, and the recovered user message is forwarded to the next-level node, so that the accuracy of the transmitted user message is improved.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: and the first network equipment receives the MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the second user message from the session management function equipment. And the first network equipment changes the local MAC address of the second user message into the MAC address of the user equipment. By adopting the embodiment of the invention, when the second network equipment sends the user message to the first network equipment, the MAC address in the user message is modified, so that the forwarding path and/or the user session of the user message are/is identified by the MAC address, after the first network equipment receives the user message with the modified MAC address, the MAC address of the user message needs to be recovered, and then the recovered user message is forwarded to the next-stage node, so that the accuracy of the transmitted user message is improved.

In a possible design, the user packet transmission method further includes: and the first network equipment receives a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user message from the session management function equipment. And the first network equipment changes the second service MAC address of the second user message into the first service MAC address corresponding to the second user message. By adopting the embodiment of the invention, when the second network equipment sends the user message to the first network equipment, the MAC address in the user message is modified, so that the forwarding path and/or the user session of the user message are/is identified by the MAC address, after the first network equipment receives the user message with the modified MAC address, the MAC address of the user message needs to be recovered, and then the recovered user message is forwarded to the next-stage node, so that the accuracy of the transmitted user message is improved.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a session management function device, where the session management function device may include a plurality of functional modules or units, and is configured to correspondingly execute the user packet transmission method provided in the first aspect.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, where the communication device may include, for a first communication device, a plurality of functional modules or units, and is configured to correspondingly execute the user packet transmission method provided in the second aspect.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a session management function device, where the session management function device is configured to execute the user packet transmission method provided in the first aspect. The session management function device may include: memory, processor, transmitter, receiver, wherein: the transmitter and receiver are used to communicate with other communication devices, such as a first communication device. The memory is used for storing the implementation code of the user message transmission method provided by the first aspect, and the processor is used for executing the program code stored in the memory, namely executing the user message transmission method provided by the first aspect.

In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, where the communication device is a first communication device, and is configured to execute the user packet transmission method provided in the second aspect. The first communication device may include: memory, processor, transmitter, receiver, wherein: the transmitter and receiver are used to communicate with other communication devices, such as session management function devices. The memory is used for storing the implementation code of the user message transmission method provided by the second aspect, and the processor is used for executing the program code stored in the memory, namely executing the user message transmission method provided by the second aspect.

In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, where the communication system includes: a session management function device and a first communication device. Wherein:

the session management function device may be the session management function device described in the third aspect, or may be the session management function device described in the fifth aspect.

The first communication device may be the first communication device described in the fourth aspect above, or may be the first communication device described in the sixth aspect above.

In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a communication chip, which may include: a processor, and one or more interfaces coupled to the processor. The processor may be configured to call the implementation program of the user message transmission method provided in the first aspect from the memory, and execute instructions included in the program. The interface may be configured to output a data processing result of the processor.

In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a communication chip, which may include: a processor, and one or more interfaces coupled to the processor. The processor may be configured to call the implementation program of the user message transmission method provided in the second aspect from the memory, and execute instructions included in the program. The interface may be configured to output a data processing result of the processor.

In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, where instructions are stored on the computer-readable storage medium, and when the instructions are executed on a processor, the processor is caused to execute the user message transmission method described in the first aspect.

In an eleventh aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer-readable storage medium, which stores instructions that, when executed on a processor, cause the processor to execute the user message transmission method described in the second aspect.

In a twelfth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product containing instructions, which when run on a processor, causes the processor to execute the user message transmission method described in the first aspect.

In a thirteenth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer program product containing instructions, which when run on a processor, cause the processor to execute the user message transmission method described in the second aspect.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments or the background art of the present application, the drawings required to be used in the embodiments or the background art of the present application will be described below.

Fig. 1 is a schematic architecture diagram of a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 is a framework of a 5G network user plane protocol stack according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a user message transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of an ethernet frame format according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of another ethernet frame format according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of a user packet forwarding path according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of a protocol stack format provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating another protocol stack format provided by an embodiment of the invention;

fig. 9 is a flowchart illustrating another user message transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 10 is a flowchart illustrating another user message transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 11 is a functional block diagram of a session management function device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 12 is a hardware architecture diagram of a session management function device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 13 is a functional block diagram of an access network device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 14 is a hardware architecture diagram of an access network device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 15 is a functional block diagram of a user plane function device provided by one embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 16 is a schematic hardware architecture diagram of a user plane function device according to an embodiment of the present invention

Fig. 17 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication chip according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The terminology used in the description of the embodiments section of the present application is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments of the present application only and is not intended to be limiting of the present application.

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The wireless communication system 100 includes: a user equipment 101, AN Access Network (AN) device 102, a User Plane Function (UPF) device 103, a Session Management Function (SMF) device 104, AN access and mobility management function (AMF) device 105, and a Data Network (DN) device 106. Wherein the content of the first and second substances,

user equipment 101 can also be referred to as terminal equipment, mobile station, access terminal, subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, or user device, etc. The user equipment may be a handheld user equipment, a notebook computer, a subscriber unit (subscriber unit), a cellular phone (cellular phone), a smart phone (smart phone), a wireless data card, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication function, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, and a mobile station in a future 5G network or a user equipment in a future evolved Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) network, etc. The user equipment 101 and the access network equipment 102 communicate with each other using some air interface technology.

The access network device 102 is mainly responsible for functions of radio resource management, quality of service (QoS) management, data compression and encryption, etc. on the air interface side. The access network device 102 may include various forms of access network devices, such as: macro base stations, micro base stations (also referred to as small stations), relay stations, access points, etc. In systems employing different radio access technologies, the names of access network devices may differ, for example, in a 5G communication system, referred to as a next-generation Node B (gNB); in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, referred to as an evolved node B (eNB or eNodeB); in the third Generation (3G) system, it is called node b (node b) or the like.

The user plane function device 103 is configured to receive the data packet from the user device 101 and forward the data packet. But also for quality of service (QoS) control, accounting information statistics, etc.

The session management function device 104 is configured to manage creation, deletion, and the like of a Packet Data Unit (PDU) session of a user, and maintain a PDU session context and user plane forwarding management channel information.

The access and mobility management device 105 is configured to perform access and mobility management, interact with network elements such as the access network device 102 and the session management function device 104, and forward signaling.

The data network device 106 is used to provide various types of services (e.g., network access, operator services, etc.) to the user. For example, the data network device 106 may be a server.

Types of data networks include, but are not limited to: the Internet (Internet), Internet protocol multimedia subsystem (IMS).

The PDU session described in the embodiments of the present invention refers to: a PDU connection established between the user equipment and the data network. Types of PDU sessions include, but are not limited to: IP type and non-IP type, non-IP type including but not limited to ethernet type.

In the above-described wireless communication system 100, the user equipment 101 and the access network equipment 102 communicate with each other via a wireless interface, and the user equipment 101 and the access and mobility management equipment 105 may also communicate with each other via a wireless interface. Fig. 1 illustrates communication interfaces between functional network elements. Therein, the user equipment 101 is connected with the access and mobility management device 105 through an interface, which may be a Next Generation (NG) 1 interface. The access network device 102 is connected with the access and mobility management device 105 via an interface, which may be an N2 interface. The access network device 102 interfaces with the user plane function device 103 via an interface, which may be an N3 interface. The user plane function device 103 is connected to the session management function device 104 via an interface, which may be an N4 interface.

Referring to fig. 2, the architecture of the 5G network user plane protocol stack is shown. The interface of N3 between the access network device and the user plane function device adopts GTP-U protocol, and GTP-U is UDP protocol package. After receiving the user message sent by the user equipment, the access network equipment encapsulates a layer one (L1) message header, a layer two (L2) message header, a UDP/IP layer message header and a GTP-U message header for the user message. Wherein, the GTP-U message header contains TEID field for identifying the conversation. In the IP message header of GTP-U, the source IP address and the destination IP address are the IP address of the access network device and the IP address of the user plane function device, respectively, and the user message is transmitted between the access network device and the user plane function device through a route based on IP. The access network device or the user plane function device encapsulates the user message in the GTP-U load field, and then the user message is forwarded to the user plane function device or the access network device. Therefore, when the user message is forwarded between the access network device and the user plane function device, the user message does not depend on the address information of the user message, but depends on the address information of a GTP-U tunnel between the access network device and the user plane function device.

By adopting a GTP-U tunnel mode, the uplink flow of the user can be effectively ensured to reach the appointed user plane function equipment, and the downlink flow can reach the appointed access network equipment, so that the core network can effectively control the forwarding path of the user message, and diversified services and mobility management are provided. And the GTP-U message header also contains a TEID field for identifying the session, so that the user session information of the user message can be effectively identified.

However, because the GTP-U is an IP packet based on UDP, the access network device and the user plane function device need to add or remove the GTP-U to the user packet, and the access network device and the user plane function device need to process based on three layers, which increases the complexity of device processing. Meanwhile, the added GTP-U package increases the consumption of message transmission and reduces the transmission efficiency.

In view of this, the embodiment of the present invention adopts a two-layer based forwarding method between the access network device and the user plane function device, which can simplify the complexity of network device processing. The transmission efficiency is improved. For example, when the access network device and the user plane function device transmit a user packet to each other, a path identifier is encapsulated for the user packet at a data link layer, and the path identifier is used to identify a two-layer forwarding path of the user packet. The data link layer belongs to layer two (or called layer two). Therefore, when the user message is forwarded between the access network equipment and the user plane function equipment based on the two layers, the user message can reach the appointed user plane function equipment or the access network equipment according to expectation. In addition, when the access network device and the user plane function device transmit the user message to each other, a user session identifier may be further encapsulated for the user message at the data link layer, and the user session identifier is used to identify the user session where the user message is located. Therefore, when the user message is forwarded between the access network equipment and the user plane function equipment based on the two layers, the user session where the user message is located can be identified. The specific presentation forms of the path identifier and the user session identifier will be described in detail in the following embodiments.

The two-layer forwarding or two-layer switching described in the embodiments of the present invention means that the access network device (or the user plane function device) encapsulates a path identifier at a data link layer of the user packet, and the intermediate forwarding device determines a forwarding path of the user packet based on the path identifier, and further forwards the user packet to the user plane function device (or the access network device). Here, for the upstream, the forwarding path refers to a path through which the user packet can reach the user plane function device from the access network device. For downstream, the forwarding path refers to a path through which a user packet can reach the access network device from the user plane function device. The user message may be forwarded via an intermediate forwarding device (including but not limited to a switch) during transmission.

Based on the foregoing devices in the wireless communication system 100, an embodiment of the present invention provides a user packet transmission method. As shown in fig. 3, the method includes, but is not limited to, the following steps.

S301: the session management function device determines a path identifier and a user session identifier for the first user session, wherein the path identifier is used for identifying a two-layer forwarding path of the first user message, the end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the first user message is a second network device, and the first user message belongs to the first user session; the user session identification is used to identify a first user session.

The first user message refers to a user message sent by the first network device to the second network device. For example, if the first network device is AN and the second network device is a UPF, the first user packet refers to AN uplink user packet. Or, if the first network device is a UPF and the second network device is AN, the first user packet refers to a downlink user packet. The second user packet mentioned later refers to a user packet received by the second network device from the first network device.

The session management function device determines the path identifier and the user session identifier, which may be the path identifier and the user session identifier allocated by the session management function device, or the path identifier and the user session identifier acquired by the session management function device from other devices. Here, the other devices may include, but are not limited to: application Function (AF), Network Resource Function (NRF) device, UPF, and the like.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the user session identifier determined by the session management function device may be understood as a temporary user session identifier, and the temporary user session identifier is valid in the AN and the UPF. For example, the user session identifier allocated by the SMF for user session 1 is identifier 1, the path identifier allocated for user session 1 is identifier 2, and the forwarding path allocated for user session 1 is AN 1-switch 1-switch 2-UPF 1. Assuming that the user message 1 belongs to the user session 1, the forwarding path of the user message 1 is AN 1-switch 1-switch 2-UPF 1. The path identity determined by the SMF for user message 1 and the user session identity are valid in several network elements AN1, switch 1, switch 2, UPF 1. After the switch 1 receives the user packet 1 carrying the identifier 1 and the identifier 2 from the AN1, it can know that the user packet 1 should be forwarded to the next hop node: a switch 2. Similarly, after the switch 2 receives the user packet 1 carrying the identifier 1 and the identifier 2 from the switch 1, it can know that the user packet 1 should be forwarded to the next hop node: UPF 1. After receiving the user message 1 from the switch 2, the UPF1 can identify that the user session where the user message 1 is located is the user session 1 based on the identifier 2, and then forwards the user message 1 to the DN1 providing the user session 1.

Optionally, the path identifier may be modified in the forwarding process of the intermediate forwarding device, for example, the forwarding path of the user packet 1 is: AN 1-switch 1-switch 2-UPF1, after AN1 forwards the user packet 1 to the switch 1, the switch 1 modifies the path identifier 2 into identifier 3, and then forwards the user packet 1 with the modified path identifier to the switch 2, after the switch 2 receives the user packet 1 with the path identifier 3 from the switch 1, it can know that the user packet 1 should be forwarded to the next hop node: UPF 1. For each intermediate forwarding device, only the next hop node in the forwarding path needs to be accurately identified according to the path identifier, and the path identifiers carried by the same user packet when reaching different intermediate forwarding devices may be different.

In this embodiment of the present invention, the path identifier may be a Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) Identifier (ID); or, the path identifier is a first label protocol identifier (TPID); alternatively, the path identification is a Media Access Control (MAC) address of the second network device; or, the path identifier is a local MAC address in the local area network determined by the session management function device; or, the path identifier is a first service MAC address corresponding to the first user packet; or, the path identifier is the first VLAN identifier + the MAC address of the second network device; or, the path identifier is the first VLAN identifier + the local MAC address; or, the path identifier is the first VLAN identifier + the first service MAC address; or, the path identifier is the first label protocol identifier + the MAC address of the second network device; or, the path identifier is the first label protocol identifier + the local MAC address; or, the path identifier is the first label protocol identifier + the first service MAC address; or, the path identifier is the first VLAN identifier + the first tag protocol identifier + the MAC address of the second network device; or the path identifier is a first VLAN identifier, a first tag protocol identifier and a local MAC address; or, the path identifier is the first VLAN identifier + the first tag protocol identifier + the first service MAC address. The path identification may also be any combination of the above parameters.

For example, taking the ethernet packet as an example, the user session where the ethernet packet is located is an ethernet session. As shown in fig. 4, the ethernet frame format includes a destination MAC address, a source MAC address, an ethertype, a data segment, and a Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) field. When the ethertype field is 0x8100, it indicates that VLAN tag (tag) information is inserted into the ethernet frame. 0x8100 is also called TPID in VLAN tag information, or the ethertype field may be other than 0x 8100. That is, the TPID may be other values than 0x 8100. The VLAN tag information includes a TPID, a Priority field, a standard format indicator (CFI), and a VLAN ID field. There may be no VLAN tag information in the ethernet frame. Or there may be a VLAN tag information in the ethernet frame, such as the tag in fig. 4. Or the ethernet frame may have two pieces of VLAN tag information, specifically referring to fig. 5, for convenience of distinction, in the following embodiment, a tag located near a header of a user packet is referred to as an S-VLAN tag, and another tag is referred to as a C-VLAN tag.

In one implementation, the path identifier may be a VLAN ID, where the VLAN ID is used to identify a forwarding path of the user packet, and different VLAN IDs may be mapped to different forwarding paths. The VLAN ID here may refer to a virtual local area network identification (VLAN ID) in fig. 4. Alternatively, the VLAN ID may be the VLAN ID in the corresponding S-VLAN tag in FIG. 5, or the VLAN ID in the corresponding C-VLAN tag in FIG. 5. In the specific deployment, the port on the intermediate forwarding device belongs to one or more VLANs, so that the port of each node on the forwarding path can be divided into one VLAN, and the forwarding of the message in the VLAN is equivalent to the forwarding along the planned path. In addition, the intermediate forwarding device may perform VLAN conversion on the packet, for example, when the received packet is forwarded in the VLAN100, the VLAN in the packet may be modified to 200. The VLAN of the intermediate forwarding device on the forwarding path can be flexibly planned.

For example, as shown in fig. 6, it is assumed that when the user packets of AN1 and AN2 are forwarded to the UPF1, they are accessed to the same port of the UPF1, and the respective forwarding paths are identified by using

VLANs

100 and 200, respectively. The AN1 forwards the user message 1 to the switch 1, the switch 1 can determine that the node of the next hop is the switch 4 after recognizing the VLAN100, the switch 1 forwards the user message 1 to the switch 4, the switch 4 can determine that the node of the next hop is the UPF1 according to the VLAN identifier after receiving the user message 1 forwarded by the switch 1, and the switch 4 forwards the user message 1 to the UPF 1. Similarly, the AN2 forwards the user packet 2 to the switch 2, after the switch 2 identifies the VLAN200, it can determine that the node of the next hop is the switch 4, the switch 2 forwards the user packet 2 to the switch 4, after receiving the user packet 2 forwarded by the switch 2, the switch 4 can determine that the node of the next hop is the UPF1 according to the VLAN identifier, and the switch 4 forwards the user packet 1 to the UPF 1. Similarly, the AN3 forwards the user packet 3 to the switch 3, the switch 3 can determine that the node of the next hop is the switch 5 after recognizing the VLAN100, the switch 3 forwards the user packet 3 to the switch 5, the switch 5 can determine that the node of the next hop is the UPF2 according to the VLAN identifier after receiving the user packet 3 forwarded by the switch 3, and the switch 5 forwards the user packet 3 to the UPF 1. The switch can modify the VLAN identification when receiving the user message, as long as the switch can be ensured to accurately determine the next hop node. Similarly, the VLAN identifiers may be the same for different ANs, as long as it is ensured that a user packet sent from AN can be guaranteed, and the intermediate forwarding device can identify a unique forwarding path based on the VLAN identifier.

For example, as shown in fig. 7, taking the uplink packet as AN example, for a scenario such as AN ethernet session, a user packet received by the AN includes information about a source MAC address and a destination MAC address, and the MAC address is valid in the DN network. For example, the source MAC address is the MAC address of the UE and the destination MAC address is the MAC address of the DN. When the AN forwards the user message to the UPF, the MAC address information in the user message is not modified, but the VLAN tag in the user message is added or modified, so that the intermediate forwarding equipment between the AN and the UPF can identify the forwarding path of the user message based on the VLAN ID in the VLAN tag, and the user message is forwarded to the appointed UPF. For example, in fig. 7, the AN modifies VLAN tag information of the user packet sent by the UE to VLAN tag1+ VLAN tag a. The AN sends the user message with the modified VLAN tag information to the intermediate forwarding equipment, and the intermediate forwarding equipment can also modify the VLAN tag information of the user message. The VLAN tag of the user message received by the UPF from the intermediate forwarding device is VLAN tag3+ VLAN tag a. When forwarding the user message to the DN device, the UPF needs to recover VLAN tag information of the user message, that is, change the VLAN tag information of the user message into an initial VLAN tag of the user message sent by the UE, and then send the user message to the DN. The initial VLAN tag of the user packet may be obtained by the UPF from the SMF, and the SMF obtains the initial VLAN tag from a session creation request sent by the UE, or obtains the initial VLAN tag from another network element such as DN-server. For example, the UE may carry a third VLAN ID when sending the session creation request to the SMF, where the third VLAN ID is an initial VLAN ID of the user packet. Similarly, the UE may carry a third TPID when sending the session creation request to the SMF, where the third TPID is an initial TPID of the user packet.

The above embodiment has been described by taking the path identifier as the VLAN ID as an example, and instead of using the VLAN ID to identify the forwarding path, the TPID may be used to identify the forwarding path. For example, the TPID may be configured with different values, which may represent different forwarding paths. For example, 0x8100 denotes a forwarding path 1, and 0x8101 denotes a forwarding path 2. Or both vlan id and TPID are used to jointly identify the forwarding path. For example, the VLAN ID may refer to the VLAN ID in fig. 4, and the TPID may also refer to the TPID in fig. 4. Alternatively, VLAN ID refers to the VLAN ID in the S-VLAN tag of FIG. 5, and TPID refers to TPID in the S-VLAN tag of FIG. 5, accordingly. Alternatively, VLAN ID refers to the VLAN ID in the C-VLAN tag of FIG. 5, and TPID refers to TPID in the C-VLAN tag of FIG. 5 accordingly. Alternatively, VLAN ID refers to the VLAN ID in the S-VLAN tag of FIG. 5, and TPID also refers to the TPID in the C-VLAN tag of FIG. 5. Alternatively, VLAN ID refers to the VLAN ID in the C-VLAN tag of FIG. 5, and TPID also refers to the TPID in the S-VLAN tag of FIG. 5.

In one implementation, the path identifier may be AN MAC address of AN or AN MAC address of AN UPF, the MAC address is used to identify a forwarding path of the user packet, and different MAC addresses may be mapped to different forwarding paths. For example, referring to fig. 8, for AN IP session or other types of sessions, when AN receives a user packet, there may be no MAC address information in the user packet, or the MAC address is not valid in the DN, so that when the AN forwards the user packet, the AN adds a source MAC address and a destination MAC address to the user packet. Wherein the destination MAC address is the MAC address of the UPF and the source MAC address is the MAC address of the AN. Or the AN is used as gateway equipment of the UE, the AN receives AN uplink user message, the target MAC is the MAC address of the AN, the source MAC is the MAC address of the UE, the AN modifies the target MAC into the MAC address of the UPF when forwarding the user message to the UPF, and the source MAC is not modified or is modified into the MAC address of the AN. Or UPF is used as gateway equipment of UE, AN receives the uplink user message, the destination MAC is the MAC address of UPF, the source MAC address is the MAC address of AN, and AN does not modify the MAC address or modifies the source MAC address to the MAC address of UE when forwarding the message to UPF. In these cases, the destination MAC address, i.e. the MAC address of the UPF, may be used to identify the forwarding path of the user packet. And the intermediate forwarding equipment between the AN and the UPF can identify the forwarding path of the user message based on the MAC address of the UPF, so that the user message is forwarded to the appointed UPF. Correspondingly, for the downlink message, when the UPF receives the user message sent by the DN, the user message may not have AN MAC address, or the MAC address is not valid in the DN, so that when the UPF forwards the user message, the UPF adds a source MAC address and a destination MAC address to the user message, where the source MAC address is AN MAC address of the UPF and the destination MAC address is AN MAC address of the AN. Therefore, the destination MAC address, i.e. the MAC address of the AN, may also be used to identify the forwarding path of the user packet. The intermediate forwarding equipment between the AN and the UPF can identify the forwarding path of the user message based on the MAC address of the AN, so that the user message is forwarded to the appointed AN.

Besides using the MAC address of AN or UPF to identify the forwarding path of the user packet, the local MAC address determined by SMF may also be used to identify the forwarding path of the user packet. Here, the local MAC address determined by the SMF may be a local MAC address allocated by the SMF itself, or may be acquired by the SMF from another network device, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present invention. A native MAC address is one of a class of MAC addresses that can be used for communication within a local area network but not on a public network, and such addresses do not require a request for an address field. The home MAC address is a MAC address valid at the AN and the UPF. For example, the SMF may send the determined local MAC address to the AN and the UPF, so that the AN or the UPF uses the local MAC address to identify the forwarding path when sending the user packet.

Optionally, the forwarding path of the user packet may also be identified by using the first service MAC address corresponding to the user packet. The local MAC may be similar to the MAC of the ue, i.e., it may be used as a source MAC (upstream) or a destination MAC (downstream). The service MAC is similar to a multicast MAC address, does not identify the user, and can only be a destination MAC. The traffic MAC address comprises a multicast MAC address. The AN and the UPF obtain the first service MAC address from the SMF, or the AN and the UPF uniquely allocate a service MAC address for each user session or each user message. It should be noted that although the MAC address is a multicast MAC address, the forwarding method is not necessarily forwarded in a multicast manner, for example, a Time Sensitive Network (TSN).

In addition, the VLAN ID, TPID, and MAC address may be combined to jointly identify a forwarding path of the user packet. For example, for an upstream user packet, the forwarding path of the user packet may be identified jointly by using the VLAN ID and the MAC address of the UPF. Or, for the downlink user packet, the forwarding path of the user packet may be identified jointly by using the VLAN ID, the TPID, and the MAC address of the AN.

In the embodiment of the invention, the user session identifier determined by the SMF is a second VLAN identifier; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is a second label protocol identifier; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is the second VLAN identifier plus the second tag protocol identifier; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is the first VLAN identifier plus the second VLAN identifier; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is the MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the first user message; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is the MAC address of the user equipment plus the first VLAN identifier; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is the MAC address of the user equipment plus the second VLAN identifier; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is the MAC address of the user equipment, the second VLAN identifier and the second label protocol identifier; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is the MAC address of the user equipment, the first VLAN identifier and the second VLAN identifier; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is a first service MAC address of the first user message; or the user session identifier determined by the SMF is a local MAC address in the local area network determined by the session management function device. Alternatively, the user session identity determined by the SMF may be any combination of the above parameters. Here, the user equipment corresponding to the first user packet means: and the user equipment sends the first user message. Or the user equipment to which the first user message sent by the DN belongs.

If the forwarding path is not identified by using the VLAN ID, the user session may be identified by using the VLAN ID in the S-VLAN tag, or by using the VLAN ID in the C-VLAN tag. If the forwarding path and the user session both adopt VLAN IDs, the forwarding path can be identified by the VLAN ID in the S-VLAN tag, and the user session can be identified by the VLAN ID in the C-VLAN tag. Or, the VLAN ID in the S-VLAN tag is adopted to identify the forwarding path, and the VLAN ID in the S-VLAN tag is adopted to be combined with the VLAN ID in the C-VLAN tag to identify the user session. VLAN IDs include VLAN IDs in S-VLANs and/or VLAN IDs in C-VLANs, and identifying forwarding paths can be achieved using VLAN IDs or VLAN IDs in conjunction with topology in the network. The VLAN ID identification user session can be realized by ensuring the uniqueness of the VLAN ID and establishing the mapping relation between the VLAN ID and the user session.

For example, referring to fig. 7, taking AN uplink ethernet session as AN example, after receiving a user packet 1 sent by a UE, AN modifies and adds VLAN tag information in the user packet 1, where the VLAN tag1 is equivalent to the aforementioned S-VLAN tag and is used for identifying a forwarding path, and the VLAN tag a is equivalent to the aforementioned C-VLAN tag and is used for identifying a user session. For example, the forwarding path may be identified with a VLAN ID in VLAN tag1 and the user session may be identified with a VLAN ID in VLAN tagA. Then, the AN sends the user packet 1 to the intermediate forwarding device, and after receiving the user packet 1, the intermediate forwarding device may modify the VLAN tag in the user packet 1 until finally forwarding the user packet 1 to the UPF. In fig. 7, it is assumed that the VLAN information in user message 1 received by the UPF has been modified to VLAN tag 3. Before the user message 1 is sent to the DN by the UPF, the VLAN tag information in the user message 1 needs to be modified to the original VLAN tag of the UE, so as to ensure that the sent user message 1 is consistent with the VLAN tag information in the user message 1 originally sent by the UE, and then the UPF sends the user message 1 to the DN. Or, the forwarding path may be identified by using the destination MAC address, and the user session may be identified by using the VLAN id in VLAN tagA.

Or, referring to fig. 8, taking the uplink IP session as AN example, after receiving the user packet 1 sent by the UE, the AN encapsulates the ethernet header for the user packet 1, that is, adds the source MAC address, the destination MAC address, and the VLAN tag to the user packet 1. The source MAC address may be a MAC address of AN, the destination MAC address is a MAC address of UPF, VLAN tag1 and VLAN tagA may jointly identify a user session, and the destination MAC address may identify a forwarding path.

Optionally, the user session may also be identified by using the TPID or VLAN ID in combination with the TPID. For example, for the case shown in fig. 6 where the ethernet frame contains 2 VLAN tag information, the VLAN ID and TPID in the C-VLAN tag may be used to collectively identify the user session. Alternatively, the TPID in the C-VLAN tag is used to separately identify the user session.

It should be noted that the above-described MAC address of the AN may specifically refer to a MAC address of a certain communication port of the AN. For example, the AN has 2 communication ports, and respective MAC addresses of the 2 communication ports may be different. The intermediate forwarding equipment sends the downlink user message to the communication port of the AN based on the MAC address of the port. Similarly, the MAC address of the UPF may specifically refer to the MAC address of a certain communication port of the UPF. For example, a UPF has 2 communication ports, and the respective MAC addresses of the 2 communication ports are different. The intermediate forwarding equipment forwards the uplink user message to the communication port of the UPF based on the MAC address of the port.

Optionally, the MAC address of the user, that is, the MAC address of the user equipment, may also be used to identify the user session, provided that the MAC addresses used by the user in different user sessions are different, and different user sessions can be distinguished by the MAC addresses.

Or the user's MAC address + VLAN ID may also be used to collectively identify the user session, provided that the user uses different MAC addresses in different VLANs. The VLAN ID referred to herein may be any one of a VLAN ID in a C-VLAN tag, a TPID in a C-VLAN tag, a VLAN ID + TPID in a C-VLAN tag, a VLAN ID in an S-VLAN tag + a VLAN ID in a C-VLAN tag, a VLAN ID in an S-VLAN tag + a TPID in an S-VLAN tag + a VLAN ID in a C-VLAN tag, a VLAN ID in an S-VLAN tag + a VLAN ID in a C-VLAN tag + a TPID in a C-VLAN tag, a VLAN ID in an S-VLAN tag + a TPID in an S-VLAN tag + a C-VLAN tag + a TPID in a C-VLAN tag.

Optionally, the first service MAC address of the user packet may also be used to identify the user session. For example, a user uses different MAC addresses in different service sessions, and thus the same service MAC address belongs to only one session. The first service MAC address is carried in the destination MAC address, so that the user session corresponding to the user message can be determined according to the destination MAC address in the uplink message; and determining the user session corresponding to the user message according to the destination MAC address in the downlink message.

Optionally, the user session may also be identified by a local MAC address determined by the SMF. For example, SMF assigns a MAC address to a subscriber and the same MAC address is assigned to only one session of the subscriber. Therefore, the user session corresponding to the user message can be determined according to the source MAC address in the uplink message; and determining the user session corresponding to the user message according to the destination MAC address in the downlink message.

Optionally, the session management function device may further send a topology information obtaining request to the fourth network device, where the topology information obtaining request is used to request to obtain topology information, and the topology information includes first sending port information of the first network device, first receiving port information of the second network device, a path identifier corresponding to the first sending port information, and a path identifier corresponding to the first receiving port information; or the topology information includes second receiving port information of the first network device, second sending port information of the second network device, a path identifier corresponding to the second sending port information, and a path identifier corresponding to the second receiving port; the session management function equipment determines a first transceiving port corresponding to the first user message according to the first sending port information and the first receiving port information; and/or the session management function device determines a second transceiving port corresponding to the first user message according to the second sending port information and the second receiving port information. For example, if the first network device is AN and the second network device is AN UPF, for the uplink user packet, the session management function device determines a first transceiving port (port 1 of AN-port 2 of UPF) of the uplink user packet according to the sending port information (port 1 is assumed) of the AN and the receiving port information (port 2 is assumed) of the UPF. For the downlink user message, the session management function device determines a second transceiving port (port 1 assumed as UPF-port 2 of AN) of the downlink user message according to the transmitting port information (port 2 assumed) of the UPF and the receiving port information (port 1 assumed) of the AN. The session management function device determines a path identifier of the first user packet/first user session according to a path identifier of a first transceiving port corresponding to the first user packet (assuming that the path identifier includes a path identifier of a port 1 of AN and a path identifier of a port 2 of a UPF); and/or determining the first user message/first user session path identifier according to the path identifier of the second transceiving port (assuming that the path identifier includes the path identifier of the port 1 of the UPF and the path identifier of the port 2 of the AN) corresponding to the first user message. The fourth network device may be a certain network device, and the network device stores topology information of the virtual local area network. For example, the fourth network device may be a centralized controller of a switching network between the AN and the UPF. The session management function device selects a receiving and sending port for transmitting the first user message, and then determines the path identifier. For example, the session management function device selects a transceiving port for transmitting the user message 1 of the UE1 as: port 1 of AN1 and port 2 of UPF 1. Then the UE1 will send the user packet 1 to the AN1, the AN1 will send the user packet 1 through the port 1 after receiving the user packet 1, the intermediate forwarding device will forward the user packet 1 to the port 2 of the UPF1 after receiving the user packet 1, and the port 2 of the UPF1 receives the user packet 1.

S302: the session management function device sends the path identifier and the user session identifier to the first network device, and the first network device receives the path identifier and the user session identifier from the session management function device.

Wherein the first network device is a UPF and the second network device is AN AN; or, the first network device is AN and the second network device is a UPF.

Optionally, the SMF may further send indication information to the first network device, where the indication information is used to indicate the first network device to perform two-layer forwarding on the user packet. Correspondingly, the SMF may further send indication information to the second network device, where the indication information is used to indicate the second network device to perform two-layer forwarding on the user packet.

Optionally, the SMF may further send first sending port information and/or second receiving port information to the first network device, where the first sending port information is used to indicate which sending port is used when the first network device sends the user packet to the other device, and the second receiving port information is used to indicate which receiving port is used when the first network device receives the user packet sent by the other device. Optionally, the SMF may further send, to the second network device, first receiving port information and/or second sending port information, where the second sending port information is used to indicate which sending port is used when the second network device sends the user packet to the other device, and the first receiving port information is used to indicate which receiving port is used when the second network device receives the user packet sent by the other device.

Optionally, the SMF may further send one or more of a third vlan id, an MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the second user packet, a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet, first service class CoS information, and a third label protocol identifier to the first network device. Here, the third VLAN ID means: the initial VLAN ID of the user packet, that is, the VLAN ID carried by the user packet itself when the user equipment sends the user packet to the AN. The third VLAN ID may be, for example, the VLAN ID shown in FIG. 4, or the VLAN ID in the S-VLAN + the VLAN ID in the C-VLAN shown in FIG. 5. The user equipment corresponding to the second user message is: and the user equipment to which the second user message belongs. The first class of service CoS information refers to: initial CoS information of the user packet, that is, CoS information carried by the user packet itself when the user equipment sends the user packet to the AN. The third label protocol identification means: the initial label protocol identifier of the user message, that is, the label protocol identifier carried by the user message when the user equipment sends the user message to the AN.

The parameter information including the third VLAN ID, the MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the second user packet, the first service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet, the first service class CoS information, and the third tag protocol identifier may be acquired by the SMF from the user equipment, or acquired by the SMF from another device. Here, the other devices may include, but are not limited to, an authentication, authorization, and audit (AAA) server.

S303: the first network device receives a first user message.

In one implementation, the first network device is AN and the second network device is a UPF. The AN receives a first user packet from the user equipment, where the first user packet carries a session identifier of a first user session, and for convenience of description, the session identifier of the first user session is named as a first session identifier. And the AN identifies the user session in which the first user message sent by the user equipment is positioned through the first session identifier. Since the AN obtains the path identifier and the temporary user session identifier of the first user session from the SMF in advance, before forwarding the first user packet sent by the user equipment to the UPF, the AN needs to encapsulate the path identifier and the temporary user session identifier of the first user session for the first user packet to be forwarded. And then forwarding the first user message encapsulated with the path identifier and the temporary user session identifier to the UPF.

In another implementation, the first network device is a UPF and the second network device is AN. The UPF receives a first user message from the DN, where the first user message carries a session identifier of a first user session, and for convenience of description, the session identifier of the first user session is named as a first session identifier. And the UPF identifies the user session in which the first user message sent by the user equipment is located through the first session identifier. Since the UPF obtains the path identifier and the temporary user session identifier of the first user session from the SMF in advance, the UPF needs to encapsulate the path identifier and the temporary user session identifier of the first user session for the first user packet to be forwarded before forwarding the first user packet sent by the DN to the AN. And then forwarding the first user message encapsulated with the path identifier and the temporary user session identifier to the AN.

S304: and the first network equipment packages the path identifier and the user session identifier for the first user message.

S305: and the first network equipment performs two-layer forwarding on the encapsulated first user message, and the second network equipment receives the first user message.

For example, taking AN uplink IP session data flow as AN example, the AN receives a user packet sent by the UE, and adds or modifies ethernet encapsulation to the IP data, for example, the following processes are included: adding a destination MAC, wherein the destination MAC address is set as the MAC address of the UPF or the MAC address determined for the SMF; adding a source MAC, wherein the source MAC address is the MAC address of AN or the MAC address of UE; the VLAN tag information in the user packet is modified to the VLAN tag information (for example, VLAN tag1+ VLAN tag a) used for identifying the user session described in step S301, and then the user packet is sent to the intermediate forwarding device through the designated port. Here, the designated port is sent by the SMF to the AN. The intermediate forwarding device receives and forwards the user packet, and the VLAN tag information may be modified during forwarding (for example, modified to VLAN tag3+ VLAN tag a). The intermediate forwarding device identifies a forwarding path of the user packet based on the destination MAC address, and finds a forwarding node of the next hop, which may be another intermediate forwarding device or a UPF, for example. And the intermediate forwarding equipment identifies the user session where the user message is based on the VLAN tag information. And the user message is finally forwarded to the UPF after being forwarded by the intermediate forwarding equipment. This example corresponds to the path identifier sent by the SMF to the AN in step S302 including the MAC address of the UPF and the user session identifier including the VLAN ID and/or TPID.

For another example, in the uplink ethernet packet, the AN receives the user packet sent by the UE, and does not modify the MAC address in the user packet. The SMF may not send the MAC address of the UPF to the AN. The AN modifies the VLAN tag in the user packet to the VLAN tag information (for example, VLAN tag1+ VLAN tag a) for identifying the user session described in step S301, and then sends the user packet to the intermediate forwarding device through the designated port. The intermediate forwarding device receives and forwards the user packet, and the VLAN tag information may be modified during forwarding (for example, modified to VLAN tag3+ VLAN tag a). The intermediate forwarding device identifies the forwarding path of the user packet based on the VLAN tag1, and finds a forwarding node of the next hop, which may be another intermediate forwarding device or a UPF, for example. And the intermediate forwarding equipment identifies the user session where the user message is based on VLAN tagA. And the user message is finally forwarded to the UPF after being forwarded by the intermediate forwarding equipment. This example corresponds to the path identification sent by the SMF to the AN in step S302 including a VLAN ID and/or a TPID.

Optionally, if the AN modifies the VLAN ID in the user packet after receiving the user packet sent by the UE, so as to identify the user session or the forwarding path, after the UPF receives the user packet from the AN, before sending the user packet to the DN, the UPF needs to change information in the user packet, that is, recover the VLAN ID in the user packet. For example, the UPF changes the VLAN ID in the user packet sent by the AN to the third VLAN ID. This is because when the AN sends the user packet to the UPF, the VLAN ID in the user packet is changed to the VLAN ID corresponding to the path identifier and/or the user session identifier, and in order to restore the VLAN ID in the user packet, the UPF needs to change the VLAN ID in the user packet when sending the user packet to the DN device. Here, the third VLAN ID means: when the user equipment sends a user message to the AN, the VLAN ID carried in the user message or the VLAN ID used by the user message in the DN. Here, the VLAN ID used by the user packet in the DN refers to the VLAN ID that the user packet needs to use in the DN, for example, if the user service is in a two-layer network in the DN, the VLAN ID of the user packet in the two-layer network needs to be carried when the user packet enters the two-layer network from the UPF.

Optionally, if the AN modifies the CoS information in the user message after receiving the user message sent by the UE, or the intermediate forwarding device modifies the CoS information in the forwarded user message, the UPF may further change the CoS information of the user message into the first CoS information after receiving the user message sent by the AN, so as to recover the CoS information in the user message. Here, the first CoS information means: when the user equipment sends a user message to the AN, the CoS information carried in the user message or the CoS information used by the user message in the DN. Here, the CoS information used by the user packet in the DN refers to the CoS information that the user packet needs to use in the DN.

Optionally, if the AN modifies the TPID in the user packet after receiving the user packet sent by the UE to identify the user session or the forwarding path, the UPF may further change the TPID of the user packet to the third TPID after receiving the user packet sent by the AN, so as to recover the TPID in the user packet. This is because when the AN sends the user packet to the UPF, the TPID in the user packet is changed to the TPID corresponding to the path identifier and/or the user session identifier, and in order to restore the TPID in the user packet, the UPF needs to change the TPID in the user packet when sending the user packet to the DN device. Here, the third TPID means: when the user equipment sends a user message to the AN, the TPID carried in the user message or the TPID used by the user message in the DN. For example, the UE1 sends user packet 1 to AN1, where the VLAN ID in the VLAN tag in user packet 1 is 100. After the AN1 receives the user packet 1, in order to identify the forwarding path, the VLAN ID in the user packet is modified to 200, and the intermediate forwarding device forwards the user packet 1 to the UPF1 based on the VLAN 200. After receiving the user packet 1, the UPF1 needs to restore the VLAN ID200 in the user packet 1 to the VLAN ID100 in the user packet 1 initially sent by the UE 1. And after updating the VLAN ID, the UPF1 sends the user message 1 to the DN.

Optionally, if the AN modifies the source MAC address in the user packet after receiving the user packet sent by the UE to identify the user session or the forwarding path, the UPF may further change the source MAC address of the user packet to the MAC address of the user device after receiving the user packet sent by the AN, so as to recover the source MAC address in the user packet. The user equipment refers to the user equipment sending the user message. For example, for AN ethernet session, after receiving a user packet sent by a UE, AN modifies a source MAC address into a local MAC address of the user packet to identify the user session or a forwarding path, and the AN forwards the modified packet to AN UPF, and after receiving the user packet, the UPF needs to modify the source MAC address into AN MAC address of the user equipment again, and then sends the modified user packet to a DN. For AN IP session, after receiving a user message sent by UE, AN AN encapsulates AN Ethernet header for the user message, and sets a source MAC address in the Ethernet header as a local MAC address of the user message to identify the user session or a forwarding path, the AN forwards the modified message to a UPF, and the UPF forwards the message in a three-layer tunnel mode without modifying the MAC address after receiving the user message, or the UPF can directly delete the Ethernet header and then forwards the message to a DN. Optionally, if the AN modifies the second service MAC address carried by the destination MAC address in the user message into the first service MAC address after receiving the user message sent by the UE, so as to use the first service MAC address to identify the user session or the forwarding path, and then the AN forwards the modified user message to the UPF, the UPF needs to recover the first service MAC address in the destination MAC address to the second service MAC address after receiving the user message sent by the AN. Here, the first service MAC corresponding to the user packet may be previously sent by the SMF to the AN. The reason why the AN modifies the service MAC address carried by the user message is as follows: service MAC addresses carried by user messages of different user equipments may be the same, in order to implement that one service MAC address can only uniquely identify one forwarding path and/or one user message on AN, AN UPF and AN intermediate forwarding device between the AN and the UPF, the UPF needs to maintain a mapping relationship between the service MAC address and the forwarding path and/or the session identifier, and the UPF needs to modify the service MAC address carried by the user message itself after receiving the user message sent by the user equipment.

And after the UPF changes the information of the user message, the user message is sent to the DN device. Similarly, if the UPF modifies the VLAN ID in the user packet after receiving the user packet sent by the DN to identify the user session or the forwarding path, the AN needs to change the information in the user packet after receiving the user packet from the UPF before sending the user packet to the user device, so as to recover the VLAN ID of the user packet. For example, the AN changes the VLAN ID in the message sent by the UPF to the third VLAN ID. This is because when the UPF sends the user packet to the AN, the VLAN ID in the user packet is changed to the VLAN ID corresponding to the path identifier and/or the user session identifier, and in order to restore the VLAN ID in the user packet, the AN needs to change the VLAN ID in the user packet when sending the user packet to the UE. Here, the third VLAN ID means: when the user equipment sends the user message, the VLAN ID carried in the user message.

Optionally, if the UPF modifies the CoS information in the user message after receiving the user message sent by the DN, or the intermediate forwarding device modifies the CoS information in the forwarded user message, the AN may further change the CoS information of the user message into the first CoS information after receiving the user message sent by the UPF, so as to recover the CoS information of the user message. Here, the first CoS information means: and the AN sends the CoS information used when the user message is sent to the user equipment.

Optionally, if the UPF modifies the TPID in the user packet after receiving the user packet sent by the DN to identify the user session or the forwarding path, the AN may further change the TPID of the user packet to the third TPID after receiving the user packet sent by the UPF, so as to recover the TPID of the user packet. Here, the third TPID means: and the AN sends the TPID used when the user message is sent to the user equipment.

Optionally, if the UPF modifies the destination MAC address in the user message after receiving the user message sent by the DN to identify the user session or the forwarding path, the AN may change the destination MAC address of the user message to the MAC address of the user equipment after receiving the user message sent by the UPF, so as to recover the destination MAC address in the user message. The user equipment is a destination user equipment corresponding to the user message sent by the DN. For example, for AN ethernet session, after receiving a user packet sent by a DN, a UPF modifies a destination MAC address into a local MAC address of the user packet to identify the user session or a forwarding path, and after receiving the user packet, the AN needs to modify the destination MAC address into AN MAC address of a user equipment again, and then sends the modified user packet to the UE. For AN IP session, after receiving a user message sent by a DN, a UPF encapsulates AN Ethernet header for the user message, sets a destination MAC address in the Ethernet header as a local MAC address of the user message to identify the user session or a forwarding path, forwards the modified message to AN, and after receiving the user message, the AN can directly delete the Ethernet header and then forwards the modified message to UE.

Optionally, if the UPF modifies the second service MAC address carried by the destination MAC address in the user message into the first service MAC address after receiving the user message sent by the DN, so as to use the first service MAC address to identify the user session or the forwarding path, and then the UPF forwards the modified user message to the AN, the AN needs to recover the first service MAC address in the destination MAC address to the second service MAC address after receiving the user message sent by the UPF. Here, the first service MAC corresponding to the user packet may be previously sent by the SMF to the UPF. The reason why the UPF modifies the service MAC address carried by the user packet itself is that: service MAC addresses carried by user messages of different user equipments may be the same, in order to implement that one service MAC address can only uniquely identify one forwarding path and/or one user message on AN, AN UPF and AN intermediate forwarding equipment between the AN and the UPF, the AN needs to maintain a mapping relationship between the service MAC address and the forwarding path and/or the session identifier, and after receiving the user message sent by the user equipment, the AN needs to modify the service MAC address carried by the user message itself.

And after the AN changes the information of the user message, the AN sends the user message to the UE.

By implementing the embodiment of the invention, the user message between the AN and the UPF is forwarded in a two-layer forwarding mode, and the intermediate forwarding equipment between the AN and the UPF can identify the forwarding path of the user message according to the information such as VLAN ID, TPID, CoS information, MAC address and the like carried in the data link layer of the layer two of the user message, so that the user message is forwarded to the appointed UPF (or UPF port) from the AN (or AN port) and is forwarded to the AN (or AN port) from the UPF (or UPF port). And meanwhile, the user session is identified by using information such as VLAN ID, TPID, CoS information, MAC address and the like carried in the data link layer, so that the AN or UPF can correctly identify the user session in which the user message is positioned according to the information such as VLAN ID, TPID, CoS information, MAC address and the like carried in the data link layer of the layer two. Therefore, the AN, the UPF and the intermediate forwarding equipment between the AN and the UPF are not needed to process on the basis of layer three, and the complexity of equipment processing is reduced. Meanwhile, the GTU-U message header does not need to be packaged according to the GTP-U mode in the prior art, so that the message transmission consumption is reduced, and the message transmission efficiency is improved. In addition, the embodiment of the invention also solves the problem of insufficient number of sessions identified by only C-VLAN. For the Ethernet session, the UPF performs VLAN tag information and MAC address recovery on the uplink message (the VLAN tag information comprises at least one of VLAN ID, TPID and CoS information), and solves the problem that the VLAN tag information is lost when the user message is transmitted between the AN and the UPF.

Fig. 9 is a schematic flow chart of another user message transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention. The step describes the flow of the user message transmission method by taking the uplink user message as an example. As shown in fig. 9, the flow includes the following steps.

S901: the user equipment sends a PDU session establishment request, the mobility management function equipment receives the PDU session establishment request, then the PDU session establishment request is sent to the session management function equipment, and the session management function equipment receives the PDU session establishment request. The PDU session creation request may further include one or more of a third VLAN identifier, an MAC address of a user equipment corresponding to a second user packet, a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet, first service class CoS information, and a third label protocol identifier.

Wherein, the UE sends a PDU session creation request to the AN, and the AN receives the PDU session creation request from the UE. And the AN sends the PDU session creation request sent by the UE to the AMF, and after the AMF selects one SMF, the AN sends the PDU session creation request sent by the UE to the selected SMF.

Wherein the first session identification is valid within the DN, i.e. for identifying the user session at the user equipment and the data network equipment.

The second user message refers to a user message received by the UPF from the AN, or refers to a user message received by the AN from the UPF. The PDU session creation request is for requesting establishment of a PDU session. The user equipment may carry the parameters of the third VLAN identifier, the MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the second user packet, the first service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet, the first service class CoS information, and the third tag protocol identifier in the PDU session creation request, and send the PDU session creation request to the SMF, or may carry the parameters in other messages and send the SMF.

S902: the session management function equipment determines a path identifier and a user session identifier, wherein the path identifier is used for identifying a two-layer forwarding path of a first user message, and the end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the first user message is second network equipment; the user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located.

The implementation manner of determining the path identifier and the user session identifier by the SMF may refer to the description in the embodiment shown in fig. 3, and is not described herein again. The user session identifier determined by the SMF is valid in AN to UPF, i.e. the AN and UPF can identify the user session according to the user session identifier determined by the SMF.

S903: the session management function device sends an N4 session creation request to the user plane function device, and the user plane function device receives an N4 session creation request from the session management function device, wherein the N4 session creation request comprises a path identifier and a user session identifier.

In addition, the N4 session creation request may further include one or more of a third VLAN identifier, a MAC address of a user equipment corresponding to the second user packet, a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet, first service class CoS information, and a third label protocol identifier. The N4 session creation request may also be other names, which are not limited in this application.

In addition, the N4 session creation request may further include indication information, where the indication information is used to indicate that the user plane function device forwards the received user packet in a two-layer forwarding manner when receiving the downlink user packet sent by the DN device.

S904: the user plane function device sends an N4 session creation response to the session management function device and the N4 session management function device receives an N4 session creation response from the user plane function device.

The N4 session creation response may also be other names, which are not limited in this application.

S905: the session management function device sends an N2 session creation request to the access network device, and the user plane function device receives an N2 session creation request from the session management function device, wherein the N2 session creation request comprises a path identifier and a user session identifier.

In addition, the N2 session creation request may further include one or more of a third VLAN identifier, a MAC address of a user equipment corresponding to the second user packet, a service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet, first service class CoS information, and a third label protocol identifier.

The N2 session creation request may also be other names, which are not limited in this application.

In addition, the N2 session creation request may further include indication information, where the indication information is used to indicate that the access network device forwards the received user packet in a two-layer forwarding manner when receiving the uplink user packet sent by the UE.

S906: the access network device sends an N2 session creation response to the session management function device, which receives an N2 session creation response from the access network device.

S907: the user equipment sends a first user message to the access network equipment, and the access network equipment receives the first user message from the user equipment.

S908: and the access network equipment encapsulates the path identifier and the user session identifier for the first user message.

S909: the access network equipment performs two-layer forwarding on the first user message encapsulated with the path identifier and the user session identifier, and the user plane function equipment receives the first user message.

S910: and the user plane function equipment modifies the information in the first user message.

Optionally, the UPF changes the VLAN ID in the message sent by the AN to the third VLAN ID. Here, the third VLAN ID means: when the user equipment sends a user message to the AN, the VLAN ID carried in the user message or the VLAN ID used by the user message in the DN.

Optionally, after receiving the user packet sent by the AN, the UPF changes the destination MAC address in the user packet to the MAC address of the user equipment. The user equipment refers to the user equipment sending the user message.

Optionally, after receiving the user packet sent by the AN, the UPF changes the first service MAC address of the user packet into the second service MAC address.

Optionally, after receiving the user packet sent by the AN, the UPF changes CoS information of the user packet to the first CoS information. Here, the first CoS information means: when the user equipment sends a user message to the AN, the CoS information carried in the user message or the CoS information used by the user message in the DN.

Optionally, after receiving the user packet sent by the AN, the UPF changes the tag protocol identifier of the user packet to the third TPID. Here, the third TPID means: when the user equipment sends a user message to the AN, the TPID carried in the user message or the TPID used by the user message in the DN.

S911: and the user plane function equipment sends the modified first user message to the data network equipment.

The specific implementation of the steps in the embodiment of the present invention may refer to the related description in the embodiment shown in fig. 3, which is not described herein again.

Correspondingly, for the downlink user message, after receiving the user message from the UPF, the AN modifies the information in the user message, and then the AN sends the modified user message to the user equipment. The process may refer to the related description in the embodiment shown in fig. 3, and is not described again here.

By implementing the embodiment of the invention, the user message between the AN and the UPF is forwarded in a two-layer forwarding mode, and the intermediate forwarding equipment between the AN and the UPF can identify the forwarding path of the user message according to the information such as VLAN ID, TPID, CoS information, MAC address and the like carried in the data link layer of the layer two of the user message, so that the user message is forwarded to the appointed UPF (or UPF port) from the AN (or AN port) and is forwarded to the AN (or AN port) from the UPF (or UPF port). And meanwhile, the user session is identified by using information such as VLAN ID, TPID, CoS information, MAC address and the like carried in the data link layer, so that the AN or UPF can correctly identify the user session in which the user message is positioned according to the information such as VLAN ID, TPID, CoS information, MAC address and the like carried in the data link layer of the layer two. Therefore, the AN, the UPF and the intermediate forwarding equipment between the AN and the UPF are not needed to process on the basis of layer three, and the complexity of equipment processing is reduced. Meanwhile, the GTU-U message header does not need to be packaged according to the GTP-U mode in the prior art, so that the message transmission consumption is reduced, and the message transmission efficiency is improved.

Fig. 10 is a schematic flow chart of another user message transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention. The step describes the flow of the user message transmission method by taking the uplink user message as an example. As shown in fig. 10, the flow includes the following steps.

S1001: the user equipment sends a PDU session creating request, and the SMF receives the PDU session creating request, wherein the PDU session creating request comprises a first session identification which is used for identifying a first user session.

The method comprises the steps that user equipment sends a PDU session creating request to AMF, the AMF receives the PDU session creating request from the user equipment, the PDU session creating request comprises a first session identification, and the first session identification is used for identifying a first user session. Thereafter, the AMF selects an SMF, transmits a PDU session creation request to the selected SMF, and the SMF receives the PDU session creation request from the AMF.

S1002: and the SMF allocates the tunnel identifier of the user message on the UPF side for the first user session. Wherein, the tunnel identifier allocated by the SMF comprises the tunnel identifier of the layer two.

S1003: the SMF sends AN N4 session create request to the UPF, the N4 session create request including the AN's MAC address and tunnel identification, and the UPF receives the N4 session create request from the SMF.

S1004: the UPF sends an N4 session creation response to the SMF, and the SMF receives an N4 session creation response from the UPF.

S1005: the SMF sends AN N2 session create request to the AN, the N2 session create request including the MAC address of the UPF and the tunnel identification, the AN receives the N2 session create request from the SMF.

S1006: the AN sends AN N2 session creation answer to the SMF, which receives AN N2 session creation answer from the AN.

S1007: the user equipment sends a first user message to the AN, and the AN receives the first user message from the user equipment, wherein the first user message belongs to a first user session.

S1008: the AN adds AN outer Ethernet head and a tunnel message head to the first user message, wherein the outer Ethernet head comprises the MAC address of the UPF, and the tunnel message head comprises the tunnel identifier of the user message at the UPF side.

Wherein, the tunnel identifier of the user message at the UPF side is the tunnel identifier allocated by the SMF.

Wherein the ethernet header belongs to layer two.

S1009: the AN forwards the first user message added with the Ethernet header and the tunnel message header to the UPF, and the UPF receives the first user message added with the Ethernet header and the tunnel message header.

S1010: and the UPF deletes the encapsulated Ethernet header and the tunnel message header in the first user message.

S1011: and the UPF sends the first user message with the Ethernet header and the tunnel message header deleted to the DN, and the DN receives the first user message with the Ethernet header and the tunnel message header deleted from the UPF.

Fig. 10 illustrates AN uplink packet forwarding process, and for the downlink packet forwarding process, in step S1004, the SMF allocates a tunnel identifier on the AN side to the user packet. The SMF sends the assigned tunnel identification and the AN's MAC address to the UPF. And after receiving the user message sent by the DN, the UPF adds AN outer Ethernet header and a tunnel message header to the user message, wherein the outer Ethernet header comprises the MAC address of the AN, and the tunnel message header comprises the tunnel identifier of the user message at the AN side. The UPF forwards the user message added with the Ethernet header and the tunnel message header to the AN, and the AN receives the user message added with the Ethernet header and the tunnel message header.

By adopting the embodiment of the invention, the AMF issues the MAC address of the AN or the UPF to the UPF or the AN, so that when the UPF sends the user message to the AN or the AN sends the user message to the UPF, the forwarding path is identified based on the MAC address of the second layer, and the AN, the UPF and the intermediate forwarding equipment between the AN and the UPF do not need to process based on the layer three, thereby reducing the complexity of equipment processing and improving the forwarding efficiency. Meanwhile, as the MAC address of the UPF/AN is actively issued to the AN/UPF by the SMF, the condition that the AN/UPF sends AN Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) request to acquire the MAC address of the UPF/AN can be avoided, and the load of the broadcast message on the network is reduced.

In this embodiment of the present invention, in a process of a session management function device communicating with a first network device (access network device or user plane function device), an operation performed by a session management function device side may be performed by a processing unit, a receiving unit, and a sending unit in the session management function device, where the receiving unit is configured to perform an operation of receiving information (or a message) in the process, the sending unit is configured to perform an operation of sending information (or a message) in the process, and the processing unit is configured to perform other operations in the process except for operations performed by the receiving unit and the sending unit. Alternatively, the sending unit and the receiving unit are controlled by the processing unit, that is, the processing unit may control the sending unit to perform sending operation and control the receiving unit to perform receiving operation, respectively. In addition, the processing unit, the receiving unit and the sending unit in the session management function device may be respectively logic modules divided according to functions, or respectively corresponding hardware modules. When the processing unit, the receiving unit and the sending unit are all logical modules, the structure of the session management function device may be as shown in fig. 11.

Wherein, the processing unit 1101 is configured to determine a path identifier and a user session identifier;

a sending unit 1102, configured to send the path identifier and the user session identifier to a first network device, where the path identifier is used to identify a two-layer forwarding path of a first user packet, and an end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the first user packet is a second network device; the user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located;

the first network device is a user plane function device and the second network device is an access network device; or, the first network device is an access network device and the second network device is a user plane function device.

When the processing unit, the receiving unit and the sending unit are all hardware modules, the processing unit may be specifically a processor, the receiving unit may be specifically a receiver, and the sending unit may be specifically a transmitter, and at this time, the structure of the session management function device may be as shown in fig. 12.

Referring to fig. 12, fig. 12 shows a session management function device provided in an embodiment of the present application, where the session management function device 120 may include: one or more processors 1201, memory 1202, transmitter 1203, receiver 1204. These components may be connected by a bus 1205 or otherwise, as illustrated in FIG. 12 by a bus. Wherein:

the processor 1201 may be a general-purpose processor, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits configured to implement embodiments of the present invention. The processor 1201 may process data received through the receiver 1204. The processor 1201 may also process data to be sent to the transmitter 1203.

The memory 1202 may be coupled to the processor 1201 via the bus 1205 or an input/output port, or the memory 1202 may be integrated with the processor 1201. The memory 1202 is used to store various software programs and/or sets of instructions. In particular, the memory 1202 may include high-speed random access memory, and may also include non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, flash memory devices, or other non-volatile solid-state storage devices. The memory 1202 may also store a network communication program that may be used to communicate with one or more additional devices, one or more terminals, one or more network devices.

The transmitter 1203 may be configured to perform transmission processing on the signal output by the processor 1201. The receiver 1204 may be used for receive processing of received communication signals. In the session management function device 120, the number of the transmitters 1203 and the receivers 1204 may each be one or more.

In this embodiment, the transmitter 1203 may be configured to store an implementation program of the user message transmission method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application on the session management function device 120 side. For implementation of the user message transmission method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application, please refer to the description of the subsequent method embodiment.

The processor 1201 may be configured to read and execute computer readable instructions. Specifically, the processor 1201 may be configured to invoke a program stored in the memory 1202, for example, an implementation program of the user message transmission method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application on the session management function device 120 side, and execute instructions included in the program to implement the method related to the subsequent embodiment. Optionally, when the processor 1201 sends any message or data, it does so, in particular by driving or controlling the transmitter 1203. Optionally, when the processor 1201 receives any message or data, it does so, in particular by driving or controlling the receiver 1204. Thus, the processor 1201 can be considered as a control center that performs transmission or reception, and the transmitter 1203 and receiver 1204 are specific performers for transmission and reception operations.

The processor 1201 is configured to determine a path identifier and a user session identifier;

the processor 1201 is further configured to control the transmitter 1203 to send the path identifier and the user session identifier to a first network device, where the path identifier is used to identify a two-layer forwarding path of a first user packet, and an end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the first user packet is a second network device; the user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located;

It should be noted that the session management function device 120 shown in fig. 12 is only one implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, and in practical applications, the session management function device 120 may further include more or less components, which is not limited herein.

In this embodiment of the present invention, in a process of a session management function device communicating with a first network device (access network device or user plane function device), an operation performed by an access network device side may be performed by a processing unit, a receiving unit, and a sending unit in the access network device, where the receiving unit is configured to perform an operation of receiving information (or a message) in the process, the sending unit is configured to perform an operation of sending information (or a message) in the process, and the processing unit is configured to perform other operations in the process except for operations performed by the receiving unit and the sending unit. Alternatively, the sending unit and the receiving unit are controlled by the processing unit, that is, the processing unit may control the sending unit to perform sending operation and control the receiving unit to perform receiving operation, respectively. In addition, the processing unit, the receiving unit and the sending unit in the access network device may be logic modules divided according to functions, or may be corresponding hardware modules. When the processing unit, the receiving unit and the sending unit are all logic modules, the structure of the access network device may be as shown in fig. 13.

The receiving unit 1301 is configured to receive a path identifier and a user session identifier from a session management function device;

a processing unit 1302, configured to encapsulate the path identifier and the user session identifier for a first user packet;

a sending unit 1303, configured to perform two-layer forwarding on the encapsulated first user packet, where the path identifier is used to identify a two-layer forwarding path of the first user packet, and an end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the user packet is a user plane function device; the first user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located.

When the processing unit, the receiving unit, and the sending unit are all hardware modules, the processing unit may be specifically a processor, the receiving unit may be specifically a receiver, and the sending unit may be specifically a transmitter, where the structure of the access network device may be as shown in fig. 14.

Referring to fig. 14, fig. 14 shows an access network device provided in an embodiment of the present application, where the access network device 140 may include: one or more processors 1401, memory 1402, network interface 1403, transmitter 1405, receiver 1406, coupler 1407, and antenna 1408. These components may be connected by a bus 1404 or otherwise, as illustrated by the bus connection in fig. 14. Wherein:

network interface 1403 may be used for access network device 140 to communicate with other communication devices, such as other network devices. In particular, network interface 1403 may be a wired interface.

Transmitter 1405 may be used to transmit, e.g., signal modulate, the signal output by processor 1401. Receiver 1406 may be used for receive processing of mobile communication signals received by antenna 1408. Such as signal demodulation. In some embodiments of the present application, transmitter 1405 and receiver 1406 may be considered to be one wireless modem. In the access network apparatus 140, the number of the transmitter 1405 and the receiver 1406 may be one or more. The antenna 1408 may be used to convert electromagnetic energy in the transmission line to electromagnetic waves in free space or vice versa. The coupler 1407 may be used to multiplex the mobile communications signal into a plurality of receivers 1406.

The memory 1402 may be coupled to the processor 1401 via the bus 1404 or an input-output port, and the memory 1402 may be integrated with the processor 1401. Memory 1402 is used to store various software programs and/or sets of instructions. In particular, memory 1402 may include high-speed random access memory, and may also include non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, flash memory devices, or other non-volatile solid-state storage devices. The memory 1402 may store an operating system (hereinafter, referred to as a system), such as an embedded operating system like uCOS, VxWorks, RTLinux, or the like. Memory 1402 may also store a network communication program that can be utilized to communicate with one or more additional devices, one or more terminals, and one or more network devices.

Processor 1401 may be used to perform radio channel management, conduct call and communication link setup and teardown, provide cell handover control for users within the control area, and the like. Specifically, processor 1401 may include: an administration/communication module (a 6/C6) (a center for voice channel exchange and information exchange), a basic module (B6) (for performing call processing, signaling processing, radio resource management, management of radio link and circuit maintenance functions), a code conversion and sub-multiplexing unit (TCS 6) (for performing multiplexing/demultiplexing and code conversion functions), and so on.

In embodiments of the present application, the processor 1401 may be configured to read and execute computer readable instructions. Specifically, the processor 1401 may be configured to invoke a program stored in the memory 1402, for example, an implementation program of the user message transmission method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application on the access network device 140 side, and execute instructions contained in the program.

Wherein, the processor 1401 is configured to control the receiver 1406 to receive a path identifier and a user session identifier from the session management function device;

the processor 1401 is further configured to encapsulate the path identifier and the user session identifier for a first user packet, and control the transmitter 1405 to perform two-layer forwarding on the encapsulated first user packet, where the path identifier is used to identify a two-layer forwarding path of the first user packet, and an end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the user packet is a user plane function device; the first user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located.

It should be noted that the access network device 140 shown in fig. 14 is only one implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, and in practical applications, the access network device 140 may further include more or less components, which is not limited herein.

In this embodiment of the present invention, in a process of a session management function device communicating with a first network device (access network device or user plane function device), an operation performed by a user plane function device side may be performed by a processing unit, a receiving unit, and a sending unit in the user plane function device, where the receiving unit is configured to perform an operation of receiving information (or a message) in the process, the sending unit is configured to perform an operation of sending information (or a message) in the process, and the processing unit is configured to perform other operations in the process except for operations performed by the receiving unit and the sending unit. Alternatively, the sending unit and the receiving unit are controlled by the processing unit, that is, the processing unit may control the sending unit to perform sending operation and control the receiving unit to perform receiving operation, respectively. In addition, the processing unit, the receiving unit and the sending unit in the user plane function device may be logic modules divided according to functions, or may be corresponding hardware modules. When the processing unit, the receiving unit and the sending unit are all logic modules, the structure of the user plane function device may be as shown in fig. 15.

Wherein, the receiving unit 1501 is configured to receive a path identifier and a user session identifier from the session management function device;

a processing unit 1502, configured to encapsulate the path identifier and the user session identifier for a first user packet;

a sending unit 1503, configured to perform two-layer forwarding on the encapsulated first user packet, where the path identifier is used to identify a two-layer forwarding path of the first user packet, and an end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the user packet is an access network device; the first user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located.

When the processing unit, the receiving unit and the sending unit are all hardware modules, the processing unit may be specifically a processor, the receiving unit may be specifically a receiver, and the sending unit may be specifically a transmitter, and at this time, the structure of the user plane function device may be as shown in fig. 16.

Referring to fig. 16, fig. 16 shows a user plane function device according to an embodiment of the present application, where the user plane function device 160 may include: one or more processors 1601, memory 1602, transmitter 1603, receiver 1604. These components may be connected by a bus 1605 or otherwise, as exemplified by the bus connection in fig. 16. Wherein:

the processor 1601 may be a general purpose processor, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits configured to implement embodiments of the present invention. The processor 1601 may process data received by the receiver 1604. Processor 1601 may also process data to be sent to transmitter 1603.

The memory 1602 may be coupled to the processor 1601 via the bus 1605 or an input/output port, or the memory 1602 may be integrated with the processor 1601. The memory 1602 is used to store various software programs and/or sets of instructions. In particular, the memory 1602 may include high-speed random access memory, and may also include non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, flash memory devices, or other non-volatile solid-state storage devices. The memory 1602 may also store a network communication program that may be used to communicate with one or more additional devices, one or more terminals, and one or more network devices.

Transmitter 1603 may be used to transmit the signal output by processor 1601. The receiver 1604 may be configured to perform receive processing on received communication signals. In the user plane function device 160, the number of the transmitters 1603 and the receivers 1604 may be one or more.

In this embodiment, the transmitter 1603 may be configured to store an implementation program of the user message transmission method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application on the user plane function device 160 side. For implementation of the user message transmission method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application, please refer to the description of the subsequent method embodiment.

Processor 1601 is operable to read and execute computer readable instructions. Specifically, the processor 1601 is configured to call a program stored in the memory 1602, for example, an implementation program of the user message transmission method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application on the user plane function device 160 side, and execute instructions included in the program to implement the method according to the following embodiments. Alternatively, when the processor 1601 sends any message or data, it does so by driving or controlling the transmitter 1603, among other things. Alternatively, when the processor 1601 receives any message or data, it does so, in particular by driving or controlling the receiver 1604. Thus, the processor 1601 may be considered a control center that performs transmission or reception, with the transmitter 1603 and the receiver 1604 being specific actors performing transmission and reception operations.

Wherein, the processor 1601 is configured to control the receiver 1606 to receive a path identifier and a user session identifier from the session management function device;

the processor 1601 is further configured to encapsulate the path identifier and the user session identifier for a first user packet, and control the transmitter 1605 to perform two-layer forwarding on the encapsulated first user packet, where the path identifier is used to identify a two-layer forwarding path of the first user packet, and a destination of the two-layer forwarding path of the user packet is an access network device; the first user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located.

It should be noted that the user plane function device 160 shown in fig. 16 is only one implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, and in practical applications, the user plane function device 160 may further include more or less components, which is not limited herein.

Referring to fig. 17, fig. 17 shows a schematic structural diagram of a communication chip provided in the present application. As shown in fig. 17, the communication chip 170 may include: a processor 1701, and one or more interfaces 1702 coupled to the processor 1701. Wherein:

the processor 171 is operable to read and execute computer readable instructions. In particular implementations, the processor 1701 may include primarily controllers, operators, and registers. The controller is mainly responsible for instruction decoding and sending out control signals for operations corresponding to the instructions. The arithmetic unit is mainly responsible for executing fixed-point or floating-point arithmetic operation, shift operation, logic operation and the like, and can also execute address operation and conversion. The register is mainly responsible for storing register operands, intermediate operation results and the like temporarily stored in the instruction execution process. In particular, the hardware architecture of the processor 1701 may be an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) architecture, an MIPS architecture, an ARM architecture, an NP architecture, or the like. The processors 1701 may be single core or multi-core.

The interface 1702 may be used to input data to be processed to the processor 1701, and may output a processing result of the processor 1501 to the outside. For example, the interface 1702 may be a General Purpose Input Output (GPIO) interface, and may be connected to a plurality of peripheral devices (e.g., a display (LCD), a camera (camara), a Radio Frequency (RF) module, etc.). The interface 172 is connected to the processor 1701 via a bus 1703.

In this application, the processor 1701 may be configured to invoke, from the memory, a program for implementing the user message transmission method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application on the communication device side, and execute instructions included in the program. The interface 1702 may be used to output the results of execution by the processor 1701. In this application, the interface 1702 may be specifically configured to output the resource allocation result of the processor 1701. For the user message transmission method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application, reference may be made to the foregoing embodiments shown in fig. 3, fig. 9, or fig. 10, and details are not repeated here.

It should be noted that the functions of the processor 1701 and the interface 1702 may be implemented by hardware design, software design, or a combination of hardware and software, which is not limited herein.

In another embodiment of the present application, a readable storage medium is further provided, where a computer executing instruction is stored in the readable storage medium, and when a device (which may be a single chip, a chip, or the like) or a processor invokes the computer executing instruction stored in the readable storage medium, steps executed by the session management function device, the access network device, or the session management function device in the user packet transmission method provided in fig. 3, fig. 9, or fig. 10 are implemented. The aforementioned readable storage medium may include: u disk, removable hard disk, read only memory, random access memory, magnetic or optical disk, etc. for storing program codes.

In another embodiment of the present application, there is also provided a computer program product comprising computer executable instructions stored in a computer readable storage medium; the at least one processor of the device may read the computer-readable storage medium to execute the computer-executable instructions to implement the steps performed by the session management function device, the access network device, or the session management function device in the user message transmission method provided in fig. 3, or fig. 9, or fig. 10.

The terms "first," "second," "third," and "fourth," etc. in the description and claims of this application and in the accompanying drawings are used for distinguishing between different objects and not for describing a particular order. Furthermore, the terms "include" and "have," as well as any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, system, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of steps or elements is not limited to only those steps or elements listed, but may alternatively include other steps or elements not listed, or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

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 application 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, the computer instructions may be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, 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.

Finally, it should be noted that: the above description is only an embodiment of the present application, but the scope of the present application is not limited thereto, and any changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present disclosure should be covered by the scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A user message transmission method is characterized by comprising the following steps:

the session management function equipment determines a path identifier and a user session identifier;

the session management function device sends the path identifier and the user session identifier to a first network device, wherein the path identifier is used for identifying a two-layer forwarding path of a first user message, and the end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the first user message is a second network device; the user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located;

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

and the session management function device sends indication information to the first network device, wherein the indication information is used for indicating the first network device to carry out two-layer forwarding on the first user message.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the path identification comprises any one of:

a first Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) identifier;

a first tag protocol identification;

a media access control, MAC, address of the second network device;

the local MAC address in the local area network determined by the session management function device;

a first service MAC address corresponding to the first user message;

the first VLAN identification and the MAC address of the second network device;

the first VLAN identification and the local MAC address;

the first VLAN identification and the first service MAC address;

the first label protocol identifier and the MAC address of the second network device;

the first tag protocol identification and the native MAC address;

the first label protocol identifier and the first service MAC address;

the first VLAN identification, the first tag protocol identification and the MAC address of the second network device;

the first VLAN identification, the first tag protocol identification, and the local MAC address;

the first VLAN identification, the first tag protocol identification and the first service MAC address.

4. The method according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the user session identifier comprises any of the following:

a second VLAN identification;

a second tag protocol identification;

the second VLAN identification and the second tag protocol identification;

a first VLAN identification and the second VLAN identification;

the MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the first user message;

the MAC address of the user equipment and the first VLAN identification;

the MAC address of the user equipment and the second VLAN identification;

the MAC address of the user equipment, the second VLAN identification and the second label protocol identification;

the MAC address of the user equipment, the first VLAN identification and the second VLAN identification;

a first service MAC address of the first user message;

and the session management function device determines the local MAC address in the local area network.

5. The method of any of claims 1 to 4, further comprising:

the session management function device receives first information from a third network device, wherein the first information comprises one or more of a third VLAN identifier, an MAC address of a user device corresponding to a second user message, a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user message, first service class CoS information and a third label protocol identifier;

and the session management function equipment sends the first information to the first network equipment.

6. The method of any of claims 1 to 5, further comprising:

the session management function device sends a topology information acquisition request to a fourth network device, where the topology information acquisition request is used to request to acquire topology information, and the topology information includes first sending port information of the first network device, first receiving port information of the second network device, a path identifier corresponding to the first sending port information, and a path identifier corresponding to the first receiving port information; or the topology information includes second receiving port information of the first network device, second sending port information of the second network device, a path identifier corresponding to the second sending port information, and a path identifier corresponding to the second receiving port;

the session management function device receiving the topology information from the fourth network device;

the session management function device determines a first transceiving port corresponding to the first user message according to the first sending port information and the first receiving port information; and/or the session management function device determines a second transceiving port corresponding to the first user message according to the second sending port information and the second receiving port information;

the session management function device determines a path identifier, including:

the session management function device determines the path identifier according to the path identifier of the first transceiving port corresponding to the first user message; and/or the session management function device determines the path identifier according to the path identifier of the second transceiving port corresponding to the first user message.

7. A user message transmission method is characterized by comprising the following steps:

the first network equipment receives a path identifier and a user session identifier from the session management function equipment;

the first network device packages the path identifier and the user session identifier for a first user message, and performs two-layer forwarding on the first user message after being packaged, wherein the path identifier is used for identifying a two-layer forwarding path of the first user message, and the end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the user message is a second network device; the first user session identifier is used for identifying a user session in which the first user message is positioned;

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

and the first network equipment receives indication information from the session management function equipment, wherein the indication information is used for indicating the first network equipment to carry out two-layer forwarding on the first user message.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the path identification comprises any one of the following:

a first Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) identifier;

a first tag protocol identification;

a media access control, MAC, address of the second network device;

a first service MAC address corresponding to the first user message;

the first VLAN identification and the MAC address of the second network device;

the first VLAN identification and the local MAC address;

the first VLAN identification and the first service MAC address;

the first tag protocol identification and the native MAC address;

the first label protocol identifier and the first service MAC address;

10. The method according to any of claims 7 to 9, wherein the user session identifier comprises any of the following:

a second VLAN identification;

a second tag protocol identification;

the second VLAN identification and the second tag protocol identification;

a first VLAN identification and the second VLAN identification;

the MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the first user message;

the MAC address of the user equipment and the first VLAN identification;

the MAC address of the user equipment and the second VLAN identification;

a first service MAC address of the first user message;

and the session management function device determines the local MAC address of the local area network.

11. The method of any one of claims 7 to 10, further comprising:

and the first network equipment receives a second user message from the second network equipment.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

the first network device receiving a third VLAN identification from the session management function device;

and the first network equipment changes the VLAN identification of the second user message into the third VLAN identification.

13. The method of claim 11 or 12, further comprising:

the first network equipment receives first class of service (CoS) information from the session management function equipment;

and the first network equipment changes the CoS information of the second user message into the first CoS information.

14. The method of any of claims 11 to 13, further comprising:

the first network device receives a third label protocol identification from the session management function device;

and the first network equipment changes the label protocol identification of the second user message into the third label protocol identification.

15. The method of any of claims 11 to 14, further comprising:

the first network equipment receives the MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the second user message from the session management function equipment;

and the first network equipment changes the local MAC address of the second user message into the MAC address of the user equipment.

16. The method of any of claims 11 to 14, further comprising:

the first network equipment receives a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user message from the session management function equipment;

and the first network equipment changes the second service MAC address of the second user message into the first service MAC address corresponding to the second user message.

17. A session management function device, comprising a processing unit and a transmitting unit, wherein:

the processing unit is used for determining a path identifier and a user session identifier;

the sending unit is configured to send the path identifier and the user session identifier to a first network device, where the path identifier is used to identify a two-layer forwarding path of a first user packet, and an end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the first user packet is a second network device; the user session identifier is used for identifying the user session where the first user message is located;

18. The device according to claim 17, wherein the sending unit is further configured to send indication information to the first network device, where the indication information is used to instruct the first network device to perform layer two forwarding on the first user packet.

19. The session management function device according to claim 17 or 18, wherein the path identifier includes any one of:

a first Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) identifier;

a first tag protocol identification;

a media access control, MAC, address of the second network device;

a first service MAC address corresponding to the first user message;

the first VLAN identification and the MAC address of the second network device;

the first VLAN identification and the local MAC address;

the first VLAN identification and the first service MAC address;

the first tag protocol identification and the native MAC address;

the first label protocol identifier and the first service MAC address;

20. The session management function device according to any of claims 17 to 19, wherein the user session identifier comprises any of:

a second VLAN identification;

a second tag protocol identification;

the second VLAN identification and the second tag protocol identification;

a first VLAN identification and the second VLAN identification;

the MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the first user message;

the MAC address of the user equipment and the first VLAN identification;

the MAC address of the user equipment and the second VLAN identification;

a first service MAC address of the first user message;

21. The session management function device according to any one of claims 17 to 20, further comprising a receiving unit,

the receiving unit is configured to receive first information from a third network device, where the first information includes one or more of a third VLAN identifier, an MAC address of a user device corresponding to a second user packet, a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet, first service class CoS information, and a third tag protocol identifier;

the sending unit is further configured to send the first information to the first network device.

22. The session management function device according to any one of claims 17 to 21, further comprising a receiving unit,

the sending unit is further configured to send a topology information obtaining request to a fourth network device, where the topology information obtaining request is used to request to obtain topology information, and the topology information includes first transceiving port information of the first network device, a path identifier corresponding to the first transceiving port information, second transceiving port information of the second network device, and a path identifier corresponding to the second transceiving port;

the receiving unit is configured to receive the topology information from the fourth network device;

the processing unit is further configured to determine a transceiving port corresponding to the first user packet according to the first transceiving port information and the second transceiving port information;

the processing unit is configured to determine a path identifier, and specifically:

and determining the path identifier according to the path identifier of the transceiving port corresponding to the first user message.

23. A network device, wherein the network device is a first network device, and the first network device comprises a receiving unit, a processing unit, and a transmitting unit, wherein:

the receiving unit is used for receiving the path identifier and the user session identifier from the session management function device;

the processing unit is configured to encapsulate the path identifier and the user session identifier for a first user packet;

the sending unit is configured to perform two-layer forwarding on the first user packet after encapsulation, where the path identifier is used to identify a two-layer forwarding path of the first user packet, and an end point of the two-layer forwarding path of the user packet is a second network device; the first user session identifier is used for identifying a user session in which the first user message is positioned;

24. The network device according to claim 23, wherein the receiving unit is further configured to receive indication information from the session management function device, where the indication information is used to instruct the first network device to perform layer two forwarding on the first user packet.

25. The network device of claim 23 or 24,

the receiving unit is further configured to receive a second user packet from the second network device.

26. The network device of claim 25,

the receiving unit is further configured to receive a third VLAN identifier from the session management function device;

the processing unit is further configured to change the VLAN identifier of the second user packet to the third VLAN identifier.

27. The network device of claim 25 or 26,

the receiving unit is further configured to receive first class of service CoS information from the session management function device;

the processing unit is further configured to change CoS information of the second user packet to the first CoS information.

28. The network device of any one of claims 25 to 27,

the receiving unit is further configured to receive a third tag protocol identifier from the session management function device;

the processing unit is further configured to change the label protocol identifier of the second user packet to the third label protocol identifier.

29. The network device of any one of claims 25 to 28,

the receiving unit is further configured to receive, from the session management function device, an MAC address of the user equipment corresponding to the second user packet;

the processing unit is further configured to change the local MAC address of the second user packet to the MAC address of the user equipment.

30. The network device according to any one of claims 25 to 29, wherein the receiving unit is further configured to receive, from the session management function device, a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet;

the processing unit is further configured to change a second service MAC address of the second user packet to a first service MAC address corresponding to the second user packet.