CN112312381A

CN112312381A - Communication method and device

Info

Publication number: CN112312381A
Application number: CN201910693902.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 朱建国; 段宝平; 刘佳琦
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-07-30
Filing date: 2019-07-30
Publication date: 2021-02-02
Anticipated expiration: 2039-07-30
Also published as: CN112312381B; CN114828204A; WO2021017669A1

Abstract

A first device determines that a 4G/5G converged user firstly requests to register a 5G network according to a received network registration request, and can send first information to a BOSS which can communicate with devices of the 4G network and the 5G network, so that the BOSS can control the first device according to the first information, and the first device acquires and stores user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS, wherein the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability. The method can realize the online migration of the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user, avoid manual operation and improve the migration efficiency.

Description

Communication method and device

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a communication method and device.

Background

With the introduction of the fifth generation (5rd generation, 5G) network and service, operators face a situation that multiple networks such as the fourth generation (4th generation, 4G) network and the 5G network coexist. At present, different users need to access different networks according to different user attributes and service attributes, for example, a 4G user accesses a 4G network, a 5G user accesses a 5G network, and a 4G/5G convergence user accesses a 4G/5G convergence network.

When a 4G user accesses a network, a Mobility Management Entity (MME) performs authentication, authorization, and subscription check on the 4G user, so as to ensure that the 4G user is a valid user. When authenticating the 4G user, the MME acquires user data of the 4G user from a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) to which the 4G user belongs, thereby authenticating the 4G user. When a 5G user accesses a network, an access and mobility management function (AMF) network element performs authentication, authorization and the like on the 5G user, wherein when the AMF performs authentication on the 5G user, the AMF acquires user data of the 5G user from a Unified Data Management (UDM) network element to which the 5G user belongs.

When a 4G user purchases a terminal with 5G capability, the 4G/5G converged user can be obtained, that is, the 4G service and the 5G service can be performed by adopting the 5G terminal. At present, after a user purchases a 5G terminal, the user usually needs to perform 5G network registration in a business hall of an operator to become a 4G/5G converged user, and when a worker of the operator performs 5G network registration on the user, the worker needs to manually migrate user data in the 4G network from the HSS to a UDM network element in the 5G network. Therefore, the procedure of the 4G/5G convergence user is complicated when registering the 5G network, and the efficiency is low.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides a communication method and equipment, which are used for providing a method for online migration of user data of a 4G/5G fusion user, avoiding manual operation and further improving migration efficiency.

In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, in which a first device determines, according to a received network registration request, that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register a 5G network for the first time, and may send first information to a BOSS capable of communicating with devices of the 4G network and the 5G network, so that the BOSS may control the first device according to the first information, and the first device acquires and stores user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on control of the BOSS, where the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability. The user data may include, but is not limited to, subscription data and/or policy data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network, and the like.

In the application, the first device belongs to a network element of a 5G network, and when the first device determines that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register the 5G network for the first time, the first device can notify the BOSS to migrate user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network to the 5G network, so that the BOSS controls the first device to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network, and the user data is automatically migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network, and the process does not need manual participation of an operator business hall, so that migration operation of the user data from the 4G network to the 5G network can be simplified, and further data migration efficiency can be improved.

In one possible design, the first device acquires and stores user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS, and the user data can be realized by the first device receiving the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the BOSS, and the user data is acquired by the BOSS accessing a second device for storing the user data in the 4G network after receiving the first information; or receiving the access right fed back by the BOSS through the first device, and acquiring the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access right, wherein the access right is the right for accessing the second device, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used for storing the user data.

The application provides two modes of migrating the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network to the 5G network, wherein one mode is that the first equipment is directly obtained from the second equipment based on the control of the BOSS; another way is that the BOSS acquires the user data from the second device, and then the BOSS sends the acquired user data to the first device. The two modes can realize the migration of the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network to the 5G network, so that the BOSS can flexibly select the migration mode according to the actual situation.

In one possible design, the first device may include a user data repository UDR entity, but may also include other entities, which is not limited herein.

Considering that the user data of the 4G/5G converged user is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network and possibly to the UDM in the 5G network, the application can use the UDR as the communication interface of the UDM and the BOSS because the UDM has no communication interface with the BOSS. Of course, the first device includes the UDR by way of example only, and the first device is not limited in this application as long as it can serve as a communication interface between a network element in the 5G network and the BOSS.

In a possible design, the determining, by the first device, that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register in the 5G network for the first time may include receiving, by the first device, indication information from a third device in the 5G network, where the indication information is used to indicate that user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a valid user.

The first device may be directly or indirectly informed whether the 4G/5G converged user requests to register to the 5G network for the first time, for example, the third device may inform the first device whether the 4G/5G converged user requests to register to the 5G network for the first time, which is not limited in this application.

In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, in which a BOSS receives first information from a first device, where the first device is configured to store user data in a 5G network, and the first information is configured to notify the BOSS to migrate user data of a 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability; therefore, the BOSS can control the first device to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information.

In the application, when the first device determines that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register the 5G network for the first time, the BOSS can be notified to migrate the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network to the 5G network, so that the BOSS can control the first device to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network, and the user data can be migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network.

In one possible design, the BOSS controls the first device to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information, and can access the second device used for storing the user data in the 4G network after receiving the first information through the BOSS to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network; the BOSS sends user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network to the first equipment for realization; or sending an access right to the first device through the BOSS, wherein the access right is a right to access the second device, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used for storing user data, and the access right is used for indicating the first device to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access right.

The application provides two modes of migrating the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user from the 4G network to the 5G network by the BOSS, wherein one mode is that the BOSS controls the first equipment to directly acquire the user data from the second equipment; the other mode is that the BOSS acquires the user data from the second equipment and then sends the acquired user data to the first equipment, so that the BOSS can flexibly select a user data migration mode according to actual conditions.

In one possible design, the first device may include a user data repository UDR entity.

In one possible design, the BOSS may further send indication information to the second device, where the indication information is used to instruct the second device to delete the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network. In the application, after the user data of the 4G/5G converged user is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network, the BOSS may instruct the second device to delete the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network, so as to save storage resources.

In a third aspect, a communication device is provided, which has functionality to implement the first device behavior in the method of the first aspect. The functions can be realized by hardware, and the functions can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-described functions.

In one possible design, the communication device may be a first device in a 5G network, and the first device includes a processor, a memory, and a communication interface, the processor being coupled to the memory and the communication interface, respectively; the communication interface is used for the first equipment to communicate with other equipment; the processor is used for receiving a network registration request through the communication interface and determining that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register a 5G network for the first time according to the network registration request, the first device is used for storing user data in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability; the communication interface is further configured to send first information to a business operation support system BOSS after the processor determines that a 4G/5G converged user first requests to register to a 5G network, where the BOSS is capable of communicating with devices of the 4G network and the 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the BOSS to migrate user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the processor is further configured to obtain user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network through the communication interface based on the control of the BOSS, and store the user data in the memory.

In addition, the communication device provided in the third aspect may be configured to execute the method corresponding to the first device in the first aspect, and for implementation manners not described in detail in the communication device provided in the third aspect, reference may be made to the foregoing embodiments, and details are not described here.

When the first device is implemented based on a software architecture, the method may include: the determining unit is used for determining that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register the 5G network for the first time according to the received network registration request, the first equipment is used for storing user data in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability; the system comprises a sending unit, a service operation support system BOSS and a service operation support system, wherein the sending unit is used for sending first information to the BOSS, the BOSS can communicate with devices of a 4G network and a 5G network, and the first information is used for informing the BOSS to transfer user data of a 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; and the acquisition unit is used for acquiring and storing the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS. In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, where the communication device has a function of implementing a BOSS behavior in the method of the second aspect. The functions can be realized by hardware, and the functions can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-described functions.

In one possible design, the communication device is a BOSS device, and the BOSS may be capable of communicating with devices of a 4G network and a 5G network, including: a processor and a communication interface, the processor coupled with the communication interface; the communication interface is used for the BOSS to communicate with other equipment; specifically, the communication interface is configured to receive first information from a first device, where the first device is configured to store user data in a 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the communication device to migrate user data of a 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability; the processor is used for controlling the first equipment to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network according to the first information.

In addition, the communication device provided in the fourth aspect may be configured to execute the method corresponding to the first device in the second aspect, and for implementation manners not described in detail in the communication device provided in the fourth aspect, reference may be made to the foregoing embodiments, and details are not described here.

When the BOSS is implemented based on a software architecture, the implementation may include: the communication device comprises a receiving unit, a sending unit and a receiving unit, wherein the receiving unit is used for receiving first information from first equipment, the first equipment is used for storing user data in a 5G network, and the first information is used for informing the communication equipment to migrate user data of a 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability; and the control unit is used for controlling the first equipment to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network according to the first information.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, where the system includes the communication device according to the first aspect and/or the communication device according to the second aspect.

In a sixth aspect, this application provides a computer storage medium for storing computer software instructions for executing the functions of any one of the designs of the first aspect and the first aspect described above, and any one of the designs of the second aspect and the second aspect described above, and containing a program designed for executing the method of any one of the designs of the first aspect and the first aspect described above, and any one of the designs of the second aspect and the second aspect described above.

In a seventh aspect, this application provides a computer program product, where the computer program product includes instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of any one of the first aspect and the first aspect, and any one of the second aspect and the second aspect.

In an eighth aspect, embodiments of the present application further provide a chip system, where the chip system may include a processor, configured to support a communication device to implement the method in any one of the above aspects, for example, to generate or process data and/or information involved in the method. In one possible design, the system-on-chip may also include a memory for storing program instructions and data necessary for the communication device. The chip system may be formed by a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a 4G/5G convergence network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of another architecture of a 4G/5G convergence network according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of independent and dependent networking provided by an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a network architecture according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a flowchart of an implementation manner of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of another network architecture according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a flowchart of another implementation manner of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of another network architecture according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a flowchart of another implementation manner of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of another network architecture according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 12 is a flowchart of another implementation manner of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 13 is a block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 14 is a block diagram of another communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 15 is a block diagram of another communication device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the embodiments of the present application will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The specific methods in the method embodiments may also be applied in the device embodiments or the system embodiments. In the description of the present application, the term "plurality" means two or more unless otherwise specified.

Before the present application is introduced, a brief explanation will be given to some terms in the embodiments of the present application and a compatible architecture of a 5G network and a 4G network, so as to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

1) Please refer to fig. 1, which is a compatible architecture of a 5G network and a 4G network, and may be a specific application scenario of the embodiment of the present application. The network architecture shown in fig. 1 may include three parts, a terminal device part, a Data Network (DN) part, and a carrier network part.

The operator network may include a Policy Control Function (PCF) network element, a Unified Data Management (UDM) network element, AN Application Function (AF) network element, AN access and mobility management function (AMF) network element, a Session Management Function (SMF) network element, a radio access network (R) AN, a User Plane Function (UPF) network element, AN authentication service function (AUSF) network element, a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF) network element, and the like. In the operator network described above, the parts other than the (radio) access network part may be referred to as core network parts. For convenience of description, the (R) AN will be referred to as RAN as AN example.

The network architecture may further include a Business and Operation Support System (BOSS) that provides an end-to-end operation flow for an operation support platform of an operator to support the operator to handle daily transactions such as customer service, pricing, charging, settlement, and hastening.

The terminal device (also referred to as User Equipment (UE)) of the present application is a device with a wireless transceiving function, and can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; can also be deployed on the water surface (such as a ship and the like); and may also be deployed in the air (e.g., airplanes, balloons, satellites, etc.). The terminal device may be a mobile phone (mobile phone), a tablet computer (pad), a computer with a wireless transceiving function, a Virtual Reality (VR) terminal, an Augmented Reality (AR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control (industrial control), a wireless terminal in self driving (self driving), a wireless terminal in remote medical (remote medical), a wireless terminal in smart grid (smart grid), a wireless terminal in transportation safety (transportation safety), a wireless terminal in smart city (smart city), a wireless terminal in smart home (smart home), and the like.

The terminal device may establish a connection with the carrier network through an interface (e.g., N1, etc.) provided by the carrier network, and use data and/or voice services provided by the carrier network. The terminal device may also access the DN via an operator network, use operator services deployed on the DN, and/or services provided by a third party. The third party may be a service party other than the operator network and the terminal device, and may provide services such as data and/or voice for the terminal device. The specific expression form of the third party may be determined according to an actual application scenario, and is not limited herein.

The RAN corresponds to different access networks, for example, a 4G network, a 5G network, a wired access, a wireless base station access, and the like. The corresponding access network equipment is equipment for providing a wireless communication function for the terminal. Access network equipment includes, for example but not limited to: next generation base station (G node B, gNB), evolved node B (eNB), Radio Network Controller (RNC), Node B (NB), Base Station Controller (BSC), Base Transceiver Station (BTS), home base station (e.g., home evolved node B, or home node B, HNB), Base Band Unit (BBU), transmission point (TRP), Transmission Point (TP), mobile switching center, etc. in 5G. In the present application, the RAN may be a network composed of a plurality of RAN nodes, and implement a radio physical layer function, a resource scheduling and radio resource management function, a radio access control function, and a mobility management function. For example, the 5G RAN is connected to the UPF network element through the user plane interface N3, and is used for transmitting data of the UE; the RAN establishes a control plane signaling connection with the core network access and the AMF network element through the control plane interface N2, so as to implement functions such as radio access bearer control.

In this application, the mobility management network element is a control plane network element provided by an operator network, and is responsible for access control and mobility management of terminal equipment accessing the operator network, for example, including functions of mobility state management, user temporary identity assignment, user authentication and authorization, and the like. In 5G, the mobility management network element may be an AMF network element, and in future communications such as the 6th generation (6G), the mobility management network element may still be an AMF network element or have another name, which is not limited in this application. The AMF network element is mainly responsible for the authentication of the UE, the mobility Management of the UE, the selection of network slices, the selection of a Session Management Function (SMF) network element and other functions; as anchor points for the signaling connections of N1 and N2, and provides routes for the Session Management (SM) messages of N1 and N2 for the SMF network elements; status information of the UE is maintained and managed.

In this application, the session management function network element SMF may be a control plane network element provided by an operator network, and is responsible for managing a Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session of the terminal device. A PDU session is a channel for transmitting PDUs, and a terminal device needs to transfer PDUs to and from the DN through the PDU session. The PDU session is established, maintained, deleted and the like by the SMF network element. SMF network elements include Session-related functions such as Session establishment, modification and release, including tunnel maintenance between the UPF and RAN, selection and control of UPF network elements, Service and Session Continuity (SSC) mode selection, roaming, etc. The SMF network element is connected to the AMF network element through an N11 interface, and is mainly responsible for all Control plane functions of UE session management, including UPF network element selection, Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation, Quality of Service (QoS) attribute management of a session, Policy Control and Charging (PCC) rules and the like, obtained from a PCF network element. In 5G, the session management network element may be an SMF network element, and in future communications such as 6G, the session management network element may still be an SMF network element, or have another name, which is not limited in this application.

In this application, the user plane network element is a gateway provided by an operator, and is a gateway for communication between an operator network and a DN. The UPF network element comprises user plane related functions such as data packet routing and transmission, packet detection, Service usage reporting, Quality of Service (QoS) processing, legal monitoring, uplink packet detection, downlink data packet storage and the like. In 5G, the user plane network element may be a UPF network element, and is connected to the SMF network element through an N4 interface, and the UPF network element serves as an anchor point of PDU session connection, and is responsible for filtering data packets of the UE, transmitting or forwarding data, controlling a rate, generating charging information, and the like. In future communications such as 6G, the user plane network element may still be a UPF network element, or have another name, and this application is not limited thereto.

A DN, which may also be referred to as a Packet Data Network (PDN), is a network located outside an operator network, where the operator network may access multiple DNs, and the DNs may be configured with multiple services, and is connected to a UPF network element through an N6 interface, so as to provide services such as data and/or voice for a terminal device. For example, the DN is a private network of a certain intelligent factory, a sensor installed in a workshop of the intelligent factory can be a terminal device, a control server of the sensor is deployed in the DN, and the control server can provide services for the sensor. The sensor can communicate with the control server, obtain the instruction of the control server, transmit the sensor data gathered to the control server, etc. according to the instruction. For another example, the DN is an internal office network of a company, the mobile phone or computer of the employee of the company may be a terminal device, and the mobile phone or computer of the employee may access information, data resources, and the like on the internal office network of the company.

In this application, the data management network element is a control plane network element provided by an operator, and is responsible for storing information such as a user permanent identifier (SUPI), a credential (trusted), a security context (security context), and subscription data of a subscription user in an operator network. These information stored by the UDM network element can be used for authentication and authorization of the terminal device to access the operator network. The subscriber of the operator network may be specifically a user using a service provided by the operator network, for example, a user using a mobile phone core card of china telecommunications, or a user using a mobile phone core card of china mobile, and the like. The above-mentioned Permanent Subscription Identifier (SUPI) of the subscriber may be the number of the mobile phone core card, etc. The credentials and security context of the subscriber may be a small file stored with an encryption key of the core card of the mobile phone or information related to encryption of the core card of the mobile phone, and used for authentication and/or authorization. The security context may be data (cookie) or token (token) stored on the user's local terminal (e.g., cell phone), etc. The subscription data of the subscriber may be a service associated with the mobile phone core card, such as a traffic package or a network using the mobile phone core card. It should be noted that the permanent identifier, credentials, security context, authentication data (cookie), and token equivalent authentication and authorization related information are not distinguished or limited in this application for convenience of description. Unless otherwise specified, the embodiments of the present application will be described in the context of security, but the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to authentication, and/or authorization information in other expressions. In 5G, the data management network element may be a UDM network element, and is connected to the AMF network element through an N8 interface, and is connected to the SMF network element through an N10 interface, and is configured to store subscription information related to a user, and provide subscription-related parameter information for these corresponding network elements through N8 and N10 interfaces, respectively. In future communications such as 6G, the data management network element may still be a UDM network element, or have another name, and the present application is not limited thereto.

In this application, the policy control network element is a control plane function provided by an operator, and is configured to provide a PDU session policy to the SMF network element. The policies may include charging related policies, QoS related policies, authorization related policies, and the like. In 5G, the policy control network element may be a PCF network element, connected to the SMF network element through an N7 interface, connected to the AMF network element through an N15 interface, and configured to generate and store PCC rules related to session management and provide the PCC rules to the SMF network element, and further configured to generate and provide policy information related to mobility management to the AMF network element. In the framework, PCFs connected to the AMF and the SMF are respectively and correspondingly accessed to a mobility control policy control function (PCF for access and mobility control, AM PCF) and a session management policy control function (PCF for session management, SM PCF), and may not be the same PCF entity in an actual deployment scenario. In future communications such as 6G, the policy control network element may still be a PCF network element, or have another name, and the present application is not limited thereto.

In this application, the network open network element is a control plane network element provided by an operator, for example, an AF network element: the network side requirement, such as the QoS requirement, of the application side is mainly transferred by connecting with the PCF network element through the N5 interface. The AF network element may be a third-party functional entity, or may be an application service deployed by an operator, such as an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) voice call service.

In this application, the authentication service network element is a control plane network element provided by an operator, for example, an AUSF network element: the network element is connected with the UDM network element through an N13 interface and is connected with the AMF network element through an N12 interface, and the network element mainly provides an authentication function for 3GPP and non-3GPP access.

In this application, the network dividing network element is a control plane network element provided by an operator, for example, an NSSF network element: and the network slice selection function is provided for an access user by connecting with the AMF network element through an interface N22.

In fig. 1, N1, N2, N3, N4, N5, N6, N7, N8, N10, N11, N12, N13, and N22 are interface serial numbers. The meaning of these interface sequence numbers can be referred to as that defined in the 3GPP standard protocol, and is not limited herein.

In the architecture shown in fig. 1, a UDM network element suitable for 5G is co-located with an AUSF network element suitable for 4G (as shown by the dashed box in fig. 1). The BOSS can perform data interaction with both the UDM network element and the PCF network element, thereby realizing the control of the 4G network and the 5G network.

In addition, in order to implement smooth transition from a 4G network to a 5G network, a framework for convergence and deployment of the 4G core network and the 5G core network is also provided in the standard, and please refer to fig. 2, which is a fusion framework of the 5G network and an Evolved Packet Core (EPC)/evolved universal terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN), and is a specific application scenario of the embodiment of the present application. Likewise, the network architecture shown in fig. 2 may also include three parts, a terminal device part, a DN part and an operator network part. The difference from fig. 1 is that the operator network portion in fig. 2 includes both a 4G operator network portion and a 5G operator network portion, and for different network elements in fig. 2 from fig. 1, the functions of the duplicated network elements shown in fig. 1 are not described again here:

wherein, Serving Gateway (SGW): the network element is connected with the UPF network element through an S5-U interface, is connected with the SMF network element through an S5-U interface, and is used for routing and forwarding data packets under the control of a Mobility Management (MME) network element.

The packet data network-gateway (PGW) includes a control plane packet data gateway (PGW-C) and a user plane packet data gateway (PGW-U). The PGW-C in the 4G network is combined with the SMF in the 5G network, connected with the AMF network element through an N11 interface and mainly responsible for all control plane functions of UE session management. The PGW-U is co-located with UPF in the 5G network, connected with RAN through N3 interface, and is mainly responsible for all user plane functions of UE session management. The UDM in the 5G network is co-located with the HSS in the 4G network for managing user data of the user, etc.

MME network element: the method is connected with a UDM network element through an S6a interface, connected with an SGW through an S11 interface and connected with an E-UTRAN through an S1-MME interface. The method is mainly responsible for functions of mobility management, bearer management, authentication and authentication of users, selection of SGW and PGW and the like. Under the single registration from the 5G network to the 4G network, the switching of an N26 interface is supported between the MME network element and the AMF network element. Of course, handover of other interfaces may also be supported between the MME network element and the AMF network element, which is not limited herein.

E-UTRAN: the SGW is connected through an S1-U interface, and the MME is connected through an S1-MME interface. Wherein, the S1-MME interface is a control plane protocol reference point between the E-UTRAN and the MME; the S1-U interface is the user plane tunnel reference point for each bearer between the E-UTRAN and the SGW.

It should be understood that each network element shown in fig. 2 may be independent, or two or more network elements may be integrated, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited in particular.

In addition, for 5G network evolution deployment, the current 3GPP standard also defines a non-stand alone (NSA) architecture. Referring to fig. 3(a) -3(b), fig. 3(a) is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a Stand Alone (SA), and fig. 3(b) is a schematic diagram of an NSA. Compared with the NSA, the UE defined by the SA is directly accessed to the 5G core network through an S1-U interface between the 5G base station and the 5G core network, the UE is accessed to the EPC network mainly through the E-UTRAN in the NSA networking mode, and in a deployment area of the 5G base station, whether a 5G NR branch is inserted or not can be decided by the E-UTRAN so as to enjoy the large-bandwidth and low-delay service supported by the 5G base station. In the architecture shown in fig. 3(b), the core network part is still the EPC network, but at the same time, two user plane paths, corresponding to and one signaling path, may exist for the UE. The technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the application can be suitable for SA and NSA.

For convenience of description, in the following, the AMF network element is referred to as AMF, the UDM network element is referred to as UDM, the RAN device is referred to as RAN, and the terminal device is referred to as UE.

It is to be understood that the network elements or functions in fig. 1 and fig. 2 described above may be network elements in a hardware device, or may be software functions running on dedicated hardware, or virtualization functions instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform). Optionally, the network element or the function may be implemented by one device, or may be implemented by multiple devices together, or may be a functional module in one device, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.

Some english in this document is referred to as 4G network and current 5G network as examples to describe the embodiments of the present application, which may change with the evolution of the network, and the specific evolution may refer to descriptions in corresponding standards.

After the 4G user purchases the terminal with 5G capability, the 4G/5G converged user can be obtained, namely, the 5G terminal can be used for carrying out 4G services and also can be used for carrying out 5G services. At present, after a user purchases a 5G terminal, the user usually needs to perform 5G network registration in a business hall of an operator to become a 4G/5G converged user, and when a worker of the operator performs 5G network registration on the user, the user data of the user in the 4G network needs to be manually migrated from an HSS to a UDM network element in the 5G network, so that the 4G/5G converged user can normally use services provided by the 5G network. Therefore, the procedure of the 4G/5G convergence user is complicated when registering the 5G network, and the efficiency is low.

To solve the above technical problem, based on the architecture shown in fig. 2, as shown in fig. 4, the present application provides a communication method. The method is applied to communication systems of two different standards, such as architectures including a 5G network and a 4G network. In the method, when the 4G/5G convergence user performs the 5G service, the user data of the 4G/5G convergence user can be triggered to migrate to a Unified Data Repository (UDR) network element through the BOSS, the UDR network element is mainly responsible for storing the user data, for example, for the access function of data such as subscription data, policy data, application data, and the like, and the UDM network element (PCF network element) can directly acquire the user data from the UDR network element, namely, the user data of the 4G/5G convergence user is migrated online, so that the manual participation of an operator business hall is not needed, and the migration operation of migrating the user data from the 4G network to the 5G network can be simplified.

In addition, when the 4G/5G converged user performs the 5G service, the user data of the 4G/5G converged user is triggered to be migrated, so that the user data and the like which all use 5G terminals do not need to be migrated from the HSS to the UDM network element in advance, the number of the UDM network elements which need to be deployed is small, and the cost for constructing the 5G is further reduced.

Of course, the two different communication systems to which the method is applied may also be a 5G network and other communication systems, such as wireless fidelity (wifi), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), global system of mobile communication (GSM) system, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) system, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) system, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, advanced long term evolution (LTE-a) system, universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS-3 GPP) related system, and the like. Hereinafter, the method is applied to a communication system including a 4G network and a 5G network as an example.

In addition, the solution of the present application may also be applied to future-oriented communication technologies, and the system described in the embodiment of the present application is for more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application, and does not form a limitation on the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application, and as a person having ordinary skill in the art knows, along with the evolution of the network architecture, the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application is also applicable to similar technical problems.

Specifically, referring to fig. 4, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, including the following steps:

step S401, the first device determines that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register the 5G network for the first time.

The 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using the UE supporting the 5G communication capability. The first device is a device for storing user data in the 5G network, and may be, for example, the UDM or the PCF shown in fig. 2, where the UDM is used to store subscription data in the user data, and the PCF is used to store policy data in the user data, such as charging policy data.

When a 4G user purchases a UE with 5G capability, a 5G service can be opened, that is, the 4G user performs the 5G service through the UE, so that the UE needs to access the 5G network. The procedure of whether the UE accesses the 4G network or the 5G network may follow the access procedure of the related art and is not described herein.

When the UE accesses the 5G network in the coverage area of the 5G network, the UE may be uplinked to a network element in the 5G network, such as UDM or PCF, through the AMF. If the UDM or PCF determines that there is no user data, such as subscription data or policy data, of the 4G/5G converged user using the UE, and the 4G/5G converged user is a valid user, such as a user registered in a 4G network, the UDM or PCF may determine that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register in the 5G network for the first time, that is, a network element in the 5G network does not store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user. Since the user data of the 4G/5G converged user is registered in the 4G network before, the 4G network stores the user data of the 4G/5G converged user. Therefore, in the application, the UDM or PCF may obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network and store the obtained user data of the 4G/5G converged user, thereby migrating the user data of the 4G/5G converged user online, avoiding human participation and improving migration efficiency.

Step S402, the first device sends the first information to the BOSS, so that the BOSS receives the first information.

If the first device determines that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register the 5G network for the first time, the first device may send first information to a BOSS, wherein the BOSS is capable of communicating with devices of the 4G network and the 5G network. The first information may be used to notify the BOSS to migrate the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network.

If the first device is a UDM or PCF, and there is no service interface between the BOSS and the UDM or PCF, in this application, the first device may use the UDR as a service interface between the UDM or PCF and the BOSS, that is, the UDM or PCF sends the first information to the BOSS through a User Data Repository (UDR) that can communicate with the UDM. In this case, when the UDM or PCF determines that the 4G/5G converged user first requests to register with the 5G network, it may inform the UDR that the 4G/5G converged user first requests to register with the 5G network, and at this time, the UDR sends the first information to the BOSS.

Of course, the first device may also be understood as UDR, in which case the UDM or PCF informs the UDR that the 4G/5G converged user first requests to register with the 5G network. For example, the UDM or PCF may send indication information to the UDR, where the indication information may be used to indicate that the user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a valid user, so that the UDR may determine, according to the indication information, that the 4G/5G converged user first requests to register in the 5G network.

Step S403, after the BOSS receives the first information, the first device may be controlled to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network, so that the first device obtains and stores the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network; correspondingly, the first device acquires and stores the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS.

For the convenience of understanding, the embodiment shown in fig. 4 is described in detail below with reference to specific scenarios and examples.

In a scenario one, user data of a 4G/5G converged user includes subscription data as an example.

As shown in fig. 5, an architecture diagram of each network element involved in the scenario provided in the present application is shown. The network architecture shown in fig. 5 includes network elements in a 5G network and network elements in a 4G network. For example, network elements in a 5G network include AMFs, SMFs, and UDMs, where a UDM may further include a UDR. Network elements in a 4G network include an MME (mobile switching center), a routing agent node (DRA), a Signaling Transfer Point (STP), and an HSS, where the HSS includes a Front End (FE) and a Back End (BE). In scenario one, a UE with 5G capability used by a 4G user, that is, a 5G UE may access a 4G network in a 4G network coverage area, and may access a 5G network in a 5G network coverage area, where fig. 5 takes the example of accessing a 5G network as an example.

In a scenario one, as shown in fig. 6, a specific implementation procedure of the embodiment shown in fig. 4 includes the following steps:

step S601, 5G UE sends attach message to AMF, so that AMF receives the attach message.

Wherein the attach message may be considered as a network access request message. As shown in fig. 5, in step (r), if the UE accesses in the area covered by the 5G network, the UE may go online to the UDM through the AMF, or a combination of the UDM and the AUSF. Here and hereinafter, the combined UDM and AUSF device is referred to collectively as UDM.

Step S602, the AMF sends an authentication request to the UDM, so that the UDM receives the authentication request.

And after receiving the authentication request, the UDM authenticates the UE. Specifically, the UDM may determine whether the UE is accessed from a 5G network. If it is determined that the UE is accessed from a 5G network, the UDM may determine whether the UE is a legitimate user, i.e., has registered with a non-4G network, and if the UE has registered with a non-4G network, the UE may be a legitimate user. The UDM determines whether registration information of the UE is in the UDM after determining that the UE is a legitimate user. If the UDM determines that the registration information of the UE is not on the UDM, the UDM judges that the UE is a 5G network registered for the first time.

Step S603, the UDM sends the first information to the BOSS, and thus, the BOSS receives the first information.

The first information may be used to instruct the BOSS to migrate subscription data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network. When the UDM determines that the UE is first registered in the 5G network, the UDM may send first information to the BOSS to notify the BOSS to perform an account opening and subscription data migration operation of the 5G user.

Specifically, the UDM sends the first information to the BOSS mainly includes two steps, as shown in fig. 5, in step (ii), the UDM sends the first information to the UDR, and then, in step (iii), the UDR forwards the first information to the BOSS. That is, the UDM may send the first information to the BOSS first information through the UDR.

And step S604, the BOSS sends a response message of the first information to the UDM. This step is an optional step, not essential, so is illustrated in fig. 6 by a dashed line.

Step S605, the BOSS sends a trigger message to the UDM, so that the UDM receives the trigger message.

The UDR is part of the UDM and the BOSS sends a trigger message to the UDM, which may be considered as the BOSS sending a trigger message to the UDR. For example, in step (r) shown in fig. 5, the BOSS sends a trigger message to the UDR. The trigger message may instruct the UDR to migrate subscription data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network.

For example, the trigger message may refer to an access right, for example, the trigger message carries right information of a network element located in the 4G network that the UDR can access, and the network element located in the 4G network may be, for example, a second device storing subscription data of a user in the 4G network. Such as the HSS.

Step S606, the UDM sends a request message to the HSS based on the access right, for requesting to acquire the subscription data of the user in the 4G network from the HSS.

And the UDM sends a request message to the HSS according to the trigger message so as to realize the purpose of migrating the subscription data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network. Specifically, as shown in step (c) of fig. 5, the UDM may send a request message to the Back End (BE) of the HSS to obtain the subscription data.

Step S607, HSS sends the subscription data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network to UDM.

The UDR, upon receiving the trigger message from the BOSS, may access the second device. For example, the UDR sends a request message to the second device requesting to retrieve subscription data of the 4G/5G converged subscriber in the 4G network from the BE. Then, as shown in fig. 5, in step (v), the BE may send the subscription data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network to the UDR, thereby implementing the migration of the subscription data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network.

Step S608, the UDM sends a response message to the BOSS.

In some embodiments, after the UDM receives the subscription data from the BE through the UDR, a response message may BE fed back to the BOSS through the UDR, and the response message may BE used to indicate whether the UDR received the subscription data.

Step S609, after the response message indicates that the UDR receives the subscription data, the BOSS sends a notification message to the UE, so that the UE receives the notification message. Specifically, if the response message indicates that the UDR receives the subscription data, in step (sixty) shown in fig. 5, the BOSS may further send a notification message to the UE to notify the 4G/5G convergence user that the 5G service has been automatically opened.

It should be noted that the BOSS notifies the 4G/5G convergence user that the 5G service has been automatically opened may also be performed before the BOSS triggers the UDM, that is, step S609 may be performed before step S605 or step S607, that is, the BOSS notifies the UE first and then performs the migration operation of the subscription data.

In a second scenario, the user data of the 4G/5G converged user includes subscription data as an example.

As shown in fig. 7, an architecture diagram of each network element related to scenario two provided in the present application is shown. The network architecture shown in fig. 7 comprises the same network elements as the network architecture shown in fig. 5. The difference is in the data interaction flow between the network elements.

In scenario two, as shown in fig. 8, another specific implementation procedure of the embodiment shown in fig. 4 includes steps S801 to S807. Step S801 is the same as step S601, step S802 is the same as step S602, and step S803 is the same as step S603, which are not repeated here.

The difference from the process shown in fig. 6 is that after receiving the first information, the BOSS may first obtain the subscription data, and then send the obtained subscription data to the UDM. Specifically, the steps S804 and S805 are included as follows.

Step S804, the BOSS sends a request message to the second device, where the request message requests to acquire the subscription data in the second device.

In step (r) shown in fig. 7, the BOSS may send a request message to the BE in the HSS, so as to request to acquire the subscription data of the 4G/5G converged user from the BE.

Step S805, the HSS sends the subscription data to the BOSS.

And step S806, the BOSS sends the acquired subscription data to the UDM.

In step (v) shown in fig. 7, the BOSS sends the obtained subscription data to the UDR, and the UDM may obtain the subscription data from the UDR.

Step S807, the UDM sends a response message to the BOSS, where the response message received the subscription data.

Step S808, the BOSS sends a notification message to the UE.

Step S807 is the same as step S608, and step S808 is the same as step S609, and will not be described again here.

The foregoing describes a migration process of subscription data of a user with the network architectures shown in fig. 5 and fig. 7, and a communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application is described below with policy data of a migrated user as an example.

It should be noted that the BOSS notifies the 4G/5G convergence user that the 5G service has been automatically opened may also be performed before the BOSS acquires the subscription data, that is, step S808 may be performed before step S804 or step S806, that is, the BOSS notifies the UE first and then performs the migration operation of the subscription data.

And a third scenario, taking the example that the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user comprises policy data.

As shown in fig. 9, an architecture diagram of each network element related to scenario three provided in the present application is shown. The network architecture shown in fig. 9 includes network elements in a 5G network and network elements in a 4G network. For example, network elements in a 5G network include AMFs, SMFs, or core-network gateways (GW-cs), as well as PCFs and UDRs. Network elements in a 4G network include an MME, a PDN gateway (P-GW, DRA), and Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF) network elements and Subscription Profile Repository (SPR). The SPR may store the subscriber policy subscription information.

In the network architecture shown in fig. 9, when the 5G UE accesses the 4G network, it will be routed to the 5G network and come online on the PCF through the N7 interface. As shown in step (r) of fig. 9, if the UE accesses the network in the 4G network coverage area, the MME may support network selection according to the capability of the terminal, reroute the UE to the SMF/PGW-C, and thereby go online in the PCF. Of course, if routing is performed according to the subscription information of the user, the subscription of the 5G network has been completed. Therefore, if routing is according to the subscription information of the user, the MME does not select a network, so the MME selection network is illustrated in fig. 9 by a dotted line.

In a third scenario, as shown in fig. 10, a specific implementation process of the embodiment shown in fig. 4 includes the following steps:

step S1001, PCF determines that UE registers to 5G network for the first time, and sends the first information to BOSS, so that the BOSS receives the first information.

Before PCF determines that UE registers for 5G network for the first time, UE sends an attachment message to MME, in a 4G coverage area, MME can select an access network for UE according to the capability of UE, namely if UE is 5G UE, MME reroutes the UE to SMF/PGW-C, and SMF/PGW-C sends an access network session connection request to PCF, namely UE is on line in PCF. The PCF may then determine whether the UE is first registered with the 5G network.

The first information may be used to instruct the BOSS to migrate policy data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network. When the PCF determines that the UE is first registered with the 5G network, the PCF may send first information to the BOSS to notify the BOSS to perform account opening and data migration operations for the 5G user. Specifically, as shown in fig. 9, the PCF sends the first information to the BOSS in step (ii). The BOSS may then send a response message to the PCF for the first information. Since this step is not indispensable, it is indicated by a dotted line in fig. 10.

Step S1002, the BOSS sends a trigger message to the UDR, so that the UDR receives the trigger message.

Wherein the trigger message may instruct the UDR to migrate the policy data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network. After the BOSS receives the first information, as shown in fig. 9, in step (c), the BOSS may send a trigger message to the UDR. Illustratively, the trigger message may refer to an access right, for example, the trigger message carries an access right of a network element located in the 4G network that the UDR can access, and the network element located in the 4G network may be, for example, a second device, such as an SPR, that stores subscription data of a user in the 4G network.

Step S1003, PCF sends request message to SPR, which is used to request to obtain strategy data of user in 4G network.

The PCF may access an SPR, such as the SPR shown in fig. 9, based on the trigger message. As shown in step (iv) in fig. 9, the PCF accesses the SPR through the UDR, or the PCF sends a message requesting to acquire the policy data of the user in the 4G network to the SPR through the UDR, so as to implement the migration of the policy data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network.

In step S1004, the PCF receives policy data from the SPR via the UDR.

Step S1005, the PCF feeds back a response message to the BOSS through the UDR, where the response message may be used to indicate whether the PCF receives the policy data.

Step S1006, when the response message indicates that the PCF receives the policy data, the BOSS sends a notification message to the UE.

Wherein, the notification message can be used to inform the user that the 5G service has been automatically opened. For example, if the response message indicates that the PCF receives the policy data, as shown in fig. 9, in step (v), the BOSS may send a notification message to the UE to inform the 4G/5G converged user that the 5G service has been automatically opened. Step S1006 is not indispensable, and is illustrated by a broken line in fig. 10.

It should be noted that the BOSS notifies the 4G/5G convergence user that the 5G service has been automatically opened, or may be performed before the BOSS triggers the UDM to acquire subscription data, that is, step S1006 may be performed before step S1002 or step S1004, that is, the BOSS notifies the UE first, and then performs a migration operation of the subscription data.

And a fourth scenario, taking the example that the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user comprises policy data.

As shown in fig. 11, an architecture diagram of each network element related to scenario four provided in the present application is shown. The network architecture shown in fig. 11 includes the same network elements as the network architecture shown in fig. 9. The difference lies in the data interaction flow between the network elements.

In a fourth scenario, as shown in fig. 12, another specific implementation procedure of the embodiment shown in fig. 4 is shown, and the implementation procedure includes steps S1201-S1206. Step S1201 is the same as step S1001, step S1205 is the same as step S1005, and step S1206 is the same as step S1006, which are not repeated here.

The difference from the process shown in fig. 10 is that after receiving the first information, the BOSS may first obtain the policy data, and then send the obtained policy data to the UDR. Specifically, the following steps S1203 and S1204 are included.

Step S1202, the BOSS sends a trigger message to the second device, so that the second device receives the trigger message.

The BOSS may obtain the policy data from the second device and forward the policy data to the PCF. For example, the second device is an SPR, and in step ③ shown in fig. 11, the BOSS may send a trigger message to the SPR, where the trigger message may request to acquire policy data of the 4G/5G converged subscriber in the 4G network from the SPR.

Step S1203, SPR sends policy data to BOSS, so that BOSS receives the policy data.

And step S1204, the BOSS sends the acquired policy data to the PCF through the UDR.

As shown in the step (r) in fig. 11, after the BOSS acquires the policy data, the BOSS may send the policy data to the PCF through the UDR, so that the PCF may acquire the policy data from the SPR through the UDR, and implement migration of the policy data of the 4G/5G convergence user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network.

It should be noted that the BOSS notifies the 4G/5G convergence user that the 5G service has been automatically opened, or may be performed before the BOSS triggers the UDM to acquire the subscription data, that is, step S1206 may be performed before step S1202 or step S1204, that is, the BOSS notifies the UE first, and then performs the migration operation of the subscription data.

Further, after the UDM or PCF acquires the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network, the BOSS may instruct the second device, e.g., BE or SPR, to delete the stored user data of the 4G/5G converged user, so as to save storage resources. For example, the BOSS may send indication information to the BE or the SPR, where the indication information is used to instruct the BE or the SPR to delete the policy data of the 4G/5G converged subscriber.

In the above embodiment, when the UE supports communication in two different network architectures, for example, an architecture including a 5G network and a 4G network, and when the 4G/5G convergence user performs a 5G service, the application may indirectly or directly migrate the user data of the 4G/5G convergence user from the 4G network to the 5G network through the BOSS, without human participation, so that the migration operation may be simplified.

The following describes an apparatus for implementing the above method in the embodiment of the present application with reference to the drawings. Therefore, the above contents can be used in the subsequent embodiments, and the repeated contents are not repeated.

Fig. 13 shows a schematic structural diagram of a communication device 1300. The communication device 1300 may implement the functionality of the first device referred to above. In one embodiment, the communication device 1300 may be a UDM or UDR as described above, or may be a chip disposed in a UDM or UDR as described above. Thus, the communication device 1300 may include a processor 1301 and a communication interface 1302, and further, the communication device 1300 may further include a memory 1303, where the memory 1303 may be a separate memory, such as an off-chip memory, and is connected to the processor 1301 through a communication bus 1304. Memory 1303 may also be integrated with processor 1301.

The communication interface 1302 may be any transceiver or other communication device for communicating with other devices or communication networks, such as an ethernet, a Radio Access Network (RAN), a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), and the like. The communication bus 1304 may include a path that conveys information between the aforementioned components. Processor 1301 may be configured to perform the processing steps performed by the first device in the embodiments shown in fig. 4 or fig. 6 or fig. 8 or fig. 10 or fig. 12, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein, such as all or part of the other processes performed by the first device except the transceiving processes described above. The communication interface 1302 may be used to perform the transceiving steps in the embodiments illustrated in fig. 4 or 6 or 8 or 10 or 12, and/or other processes to support the techniques described herein, such as all or part of the transceiving processes performed by the first device described above.

For example, the processor 1301 is configured to receive a network request through the communication interface 1302, and determine, according to the received network registration request, that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register in a 5G network for the first time, where the first device is configured to store user data in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability; the communication interface 1302 is configured to send first information to the BOSS, where the BOSS is capable of communicating with devices of the 4G network and the 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the BOSS to migrate user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the processor 1301 is further configured to acquire and store user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS.

In one possible design, the processor 1301 may be specifically configured to receive, through the communication interface 1302, user data of a 4G/5G convergence user in the 4G network from the BOSS, where the user data is obtained by the BOSS accessing, after receiving the first information, a second device in the 4G network, where the second device is used for storing the user data; or the processor 1301 may receive the access right fed back by the BOSS, and obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access right, where the access right is a right to access the second device, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used to store the user data.

In one possible design, the processor 1301 may be specifically configured to receive, through the communication interface 1302, indication information from a third device in the 5G network, where the indication information is used to indicate that user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a valid user.

All relevant contents of each step related to the above method embodiment may be referred to the functional description of the corresponding functional module, and are not described herein again.

By programming the processor 1301 and the communication interface 1302, codes corresponding to the communication method are fixed in a chip, so that the chip can execute the communication method when running, and how to program the processor 1301 and the communication interface 1302 is a technology known by those skilled in the art and will not be described herein again.

In another embodiment, the communication device 1300 may also be the BOSS described above, or may be a chip disposed in the BOSS described above. The processor 1301 may be used to perform the processing steps performed by the BOSS in the embodiments shown in fig. 4 or fig. 6 or fig. 8 or fig. 10 or fig. 12, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein, such as all or part of the other processes performed by the BOSS described above except the transceiving processes. The communication interface 1302 may be used to perform the transceiving steps performed by the BOSS in the embodiments shown in fig. 4 or fig. 6 or fig. 8 or fig. 10 or fig. 12, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein, such as all or part of the transceiving processes performed by the BOSS described above.

For example, the communication interface 1302 is configured to receive first information from a first device, where the first device is configured to store user data in a 5G network, and the first information is configured to notify the communication device to migrate user data of a 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability; the processor 1301 is configured to control the first device to obtain and store user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information.

In a possible design, the processor 1301 may be specifically configured to, after receiving the first information, access a second device in the 4G network, where the second device is used to store user data, to obtain user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network; sending user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network to the first equipment; or sending an access right to the first device, wherein the access right is used for instructing the first device to acquire user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access right, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used for storing the user data.

In one possible design, the communication interface 1302 may be further configured to send indication information to the second device, where the indication information is used to instruct the second device to delete the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network.

In addition, the embodiment shown in fig. 13 provides a communication device 1300, which can also be implemented in other forms when implementing the processing function of the first device in the above method embodiments. For example, as shown in fig. 14, the communication apparatus includes a determination unit 1401, a transmission unit 1402, and an acquisition unit 1403. For example, the determining unit 1401 and the obtaining unit 1403 may be implemented by the processor 1301, and the transmitting unit 1402 may be implemented by the communication interface 1302. The determining unit 1401 may be configured to perform S401 in the embodiment shown in fig. 4, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein, for example, all or part of the other processes except the transceiving processes performed by the first device described in the foregoing may be performed. The sending unit 1402 may be configured to perform S402 in the embodiment shown in fig. 4, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein, for example, all or part of the transceiving processes performed by the first device described in the foregoing may be performed. The obtaining unit 1403 may be configured to perform S403 in the embodiment shown in fig. 4, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein, for example, all or part of the other processes except the transceiving processes performed by the first device described in the foregoing may be performed.

For example, the determining unit 1401 is configured to determine, according to the received network registration request, that a 4G/5G converged user first requests to register a 5G network, where the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability; the sending unit 1402 is configured to send first information to a business operation support system BOSS, where the BOSS is capable of communicating with devices of a 4G network and a 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the BOSS to migrate user data of a 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the obtaining unit 1403 is used for obtaining and storing user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS.

In a possible design, the obtaining unit 1403 is specifically configured to receive user data of a 4G/5G converged user from the BOSS in the 4G network, where the user data is obtained by the BOSS accessing a second device for storing the user data in the 4G network after receiving the first information; or receiving an access right fed back by the BOSS, and acquiring user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access right, wherein the access right is a right for accessing the second device, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used for storing the user data.

In a possible design, the determining unit 1401 may specifically receive indication information from a third device in the 5G network, where the indication information is used to indicate that the user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a valid user.

In addition, when the communication device 1300 provided in the embodiment shown in fig. 13 implements the processing function of the BOSS device in the above method embodiment, the communication device 1300 provided in the embodiment shown in fig. 13 may also be implemented in other forms. For example, as shown in fig. 15, the communication apparatus includes a control unit 1501 and a reception unit 1502. For example, the control unit 1501 may be implemented by the processor 1301, and the reception unit 1502 may be implemented by the communication interface 1302. The control unit 1501 may be configured to execute S403 in the embodiment shown in fig. 4, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein, for example, all or part of the other processes except the transceiving process executed by the first device described in the foregoing may be executed. The receiving unit 1502 may be configured to perform S402 in the embodiment shown in fig. 4, and/or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein, for example, all or part of the transceiving processes performed by the first device described in the foregoing may be performed.

For example, the receiving unit 1502 is configured to receive first information from a first device, where the first device is configured to store user data in a 5G network, and the first information is used to notify a communication device to migrate user data of a 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability; the control unit is used for controlling the first equipment to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network according to the first information.

In a possible design, the control unit 1501 is specifically configured to, after receiving the first information, access a second device in the 4G network, where the second device is used to store user data, to obtain user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network; the communication equipment sends user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network to the first equipment; or sending an access right to the first device, wherein the access right is used for instructing the first device to acquire user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access right, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used for storing the user data.

In a possible design, a sending unit 1503 may be further included to send indication information to the second device, where the indication information is used to instruct the second device to delete the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network.

Since the communication device 1300 provided in the embodiment of the present application can be used to execute the method provided in the embodiment shown in fig. 4, the technical effect obtained by the method can refer to the above method embodiment, and is not described herein again.

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

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 on a computer readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer readable storage medium to another, for example, from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wire (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., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., a Digital Versatile Disk (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a Solid State Disk (SSD)), among others.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the embodiments of the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the application. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the embodiments of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is also intended to encompass such modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A method of communication, comprising:

the method comprises the steps that a first device determines that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register the 5G network for the first time according to a received network registration request, the first device is used for storing user data in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capacity;

the first equipment sends first information to a business operation support system BOSS, the BOSS can communicate with equipment of a 4G network and a 5G network, and the first information is used for informing the BOSS to migrate user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network;

and the first equipment acquires and stores the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtaining and storing of the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network by the first device based on the control of the BOSS comprises:

the first device receives user data of the 4G/5G converged user in a 4G network from the BOSS, wherein the user data is obtained by accessing a second device used for storing user data in the 4G network after the BOSS receives the first information; or

And the first equipment receives the access authority fed back by the BOSS, and acquires the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network from the second equipment based on the access authority, wherein the access authority is the authority for accessing the second equipment, and the second equipment belongs to the 4G network and is used for storing the user data.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the first device comprises a user data repository, UDR, entity.

4. The method of any one of claims 1-3, wherein the first device determining that the 4G/5G converged user first requests registration with the 5G network comprises:

the first device receives indication information from a third device in a 5G network, wherein the indication information is used for indicating that user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a legal user.

5. A method of communication, comprising:

a Business Operation Support System (BOSS) receives first information from first equipment, wherein the first equipment is used for storing user data in a 5G network, and the first information is used for informing the BOSS to migrate user data of a 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability;

and the BOSS controls the first equipment to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the BOSS controls the first device to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information, and comprises:

after receiving the first information, the BOSS accesses a second device used for storing user data in the 4G network to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network; the BOSS sends user data of the 4G/5G converged user in a 4G network to the first equipment; or

And the BOSS sends an access right to the first equipment, and is used for indicating the first equipment to acquire user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in a 4G network from second equipment based on the access right, wherein the access right is the right for accessing the second equipment, and the second equipment belongs to the 4G network and is used for storing the user data.

7. The method of claim 5 or 6, wherein the first device comprises a user data repository, UDR, entity.

8. The method of claim 6 or 7, further comprising:

and the BOSS sends indication information to the second equipment, wherein the indication information is used for indicating the second equipment to delete the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network.

9. A communication device comprising a processor, a memory, and a communication interface, the processor coupled with the memory and the communication interface;

the communication interface is used for the communication between the communication equipment and other equipment;

the processor is used for receiving a network registration request through the communication interface, determining that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register a 5G network for the first time according to the network registration request, wherein the communication device is used for storing user data in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability;

the communication interface is further configured to send first information to a business operation support system BOSS after the processor determines that a 4G/5G converged user first requests to register to a 5G network, where the BOSS is capable of communicating with devices of the 4G network and the 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the BOSS to migrate user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network;

the processor is further configured to obtain user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network through the communication interface based on the control of the BOSS, and store the user data in the memory.

10. The communications device according to claim 9, wherein the processor, when acquiring the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network through the communications interface based on the control of the BOSS, is specifically configured to:

receiving user data of the 4G/5G converged user in a 4G network from the BOSS through the communication interface, wherein the user data is obtained by accessing a second device for storing the user data in the 4G network after the BOSS receives the first information; or

And receiving the access right fed back by the BOSS through the communication interface, and acquiring the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the second equipment through the communication interface based on the access right, wherein the access right is the right to access the second equipment, and the second equipment belongs to the 4G network and is used for storing the user data.

11. A communication device according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the communication device comprises a user data repository, UDR, entity.

12. The communications device according to any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the processor receives a network registration request through the communications interface, and determines, according to the network registration request, that the 4G/5G converged user first requests to register with the 5G network, and is specifically configured to:

and receiving indication information from a third device in the 5G network through the communication interface, wherein the indication information is used for indicating that the user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a legal user.

13. A communication device comprising a processor and a communication interface, the processor coupled with the communication interface;

the communication interface is used for receiving first information from first equipment, wherein the first equipment is used for storing user data in a 5G network, and the first information is used for informing the communication equipment to migrate user data of a 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal supporting 5G communication capability;

and the processor is used for controlling the first equipment to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network according to the first information.

14. The communication device according to claim 13, wherein the processor, when controlling the first device to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information, is specifically configured to:

after the first information is received through the communication interface, accessing a second device used for storing user data in the 4G network through the communication interface to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network; sending user data of the 4G/5G converged user in a 4G network to the first equipment through the communication interface; or

And sending an access right to the first device through the communication interface, wherein the access right is used for instructing the first device to acquire user data of the 4G/5G converged user in a 4G network from a second device based on the access right, the access right is the right to access the second device, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used for storing the user data.

15. The communication device according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the processor is further configured to send indication information to the second device through the communication interface, wherein the indication information is used to instruct the second device to delete the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network.

16. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program comprising program instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of any of claims 1-4 or 5-8.

17. A computer program product, characterized in that the computer program product stores a computer program comprising program instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the method according to any one of claims 1-4 or 5-8.