CN113395711A

CN113395711A - Method and device for shunting service flow

Info

Publication number: CN113395711A
Application number: CN202010165151.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 尼凌飞; 房雅丁
Original assignee: China Mobile Communications Group Co Ltd; China Mobile Communications Ltd Research Institute
Current assignee: China Mobile Communications Group Co Ltd; China Mobile Communications Ltd Research Institute
Priority date: 2020-03-11
Filing date: 2020-03-11
Publication date: 2021-09-14
Anticipated expiration: 2040-03-11
Also published as: CN113395711B

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a method and equipment for shunting service flows, wherein the method for a network open function (NEF) side comprises the following steps: the NEF receives a service flow detection request sent by an application; the NEF generates a data flow detection rule according to the service flow detection request and sends the data flow detection rule to a Session Management Function (SMF); the NEF receives a notification message of the detection result fed back by the SMF; and the NEF sends the detection result to the application. The scheme of the invention can realize local shunting of the service data stream, and intelligently adjust and optimize the shunting result according to the application indication strategy, thereby realizing the improvement of the shunting effect.

Description

Method and device for shunting service flow

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method and an apparatus for offloading a service flow.

Background

The user data stream of the 5G network is divided, and the network can provide a division API for the application to realize corresponding division according to the application requirement.

In the existing scheme, the splitting can be performed according to Information such as S-NSSAI (Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information), DNAI (DN Access Identifier), DNN (Data Network Name), and user Identifier (GPSI).

Wherein for the scene without distinguishing the user, the shunting is carried out according to S-NSSAI, DNN and DNAI.

For distinguishing user scenarios, the offloading may be performed according to a user identifier (GPSI or user IP address), and the process is shown in fig. 1 and specifically includes:

1. an application sends a service flow request to an NEF (Network Exposure Function), and the NEF carries S-NSSAI, DNAI, DNN, user identification (GPSI), shunting rule information and the like;

the NEF stores the related information locally or in UDR (Unified Data Repository function), and the distribution rule includes information such as DNN, S-NSSAI, service DNAI, and UE (User Equipment or terminal) address;

3. when a User enters an application designated area to establish a Protocol Data Unit (PDU) Session, triggering a Policy Control Function (PCF), acquiring shunting rule data from the UDR, forming a shunting Policy and issuing the shunting Policy to a Session Management Function (SMF), wherein the SMF inserts a User Plane Function Uplink Classifier (UPF ULCL) for the User, and issues data flow detection information to the UPF ULCL;

and 4. the UPF ULCL branches the specified service flow to the local UPF, and other flows to the original anchor point UPF.

In the existing solution, an Application Function information on traffic routing scheme (Application Function on traffic routing) is defined, and for a splitting scenario in which an Application side requests to split a required end user traffic flow to a nearby Application server node, the following problems also exist:

1) the restriction is large: the user can be shunted only when using the designated DNN and S-NSSAI, and can not be shunted to the nearby access adjacent application service node when the UE uses the non-designated DNN or S-NSSAI to access the application;

2) the application requirement is high: if the flow is divided according to the user identifier such as GPSI or address, the application is difficult to provide the user identifier or private network IP address which is expected to access the application (the user is required to agree the terminal to provide corresponding authority for the application in the privacy setting); in addition, even if the user identifier is provided, the number used when the user UE really accesses the application may not be provided, for example, the user logs in by using a mobile phone of another person;

3) not intelligent enough: the DNN, DNAI and other stream identification information are irrelevant to the application service, and the user can not be intelligently identified to use the specified service in the plurality of services for stream distribution;

4) there is no detection feedback mechanism: after the shunting strategy is issued, the shunting effect lacks detection feedback;

5) no intelligent tuning strategy is available: the lack of adjustment for shunting or detection based on the result of detection feedback results makes shunting or detection less than optimal.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a method and equipment for shunting service flows. The method can detect the characteristics of the user service data stream meeting the requirements according to the application indication, dynamically distribute the service accessed by the user according to the detection result, realize local distribution of the service data stream, intelligently adjust and optimize the distribution result according to the application indication strategy, and improve the distribution effect.

To solve the above technical problem, an embodiment of the present invention provides the following solutions:

a method for shunting service flow is applied to a network open function (NEF), and the method comprises the following steps:

the NEF receives a service flow detection request sent by an application;

the NEF generates a data flow detection rule according to the service flow detection request and sends the data flow detection rule to a Session Management Function (SMF);

the NEF receives a notification message of the detection result fed back by the SMF;

and the NEF sends the detection result to the application.

Optionally, the service flow detection request carries at least one of a protocol type, a destination address, a port, and a service data flow feature flag of a data flow to be detected.

Optionally, the data stream detection rule includes: at least one of protocol type of the data flow, destination address, port, service data flow characteristic flag, detection notification condition and notification address.

Optionally, after sending the detection result to the application, the method further includes:

and according to the detection result, shunting the service flow of the terminal.

Optionally, the shunting the service flow of the terminal according to the detection result includes:

after a terminal accesses a network, the NEF receives a service flow detection event notification sent by the SMF;

and the NEF sends the service flow detection event notice to an application.

Optionally, the service flow detection event notification carries: at least one of a source address of the terminal, a destination address, a location of the terminal, a code number of the terminal, a matching event type, and a traffic flow identification.

Optionally, after the NEF sends the service flow detection event notification to the application, the method further includes:

the NEF receives a distribution request which is sent by the application according to the detection result and is used for distributing the service flow of the terminal;

and the NEF analyzes the list of the multiple terminals according to the shunting request and sends a shunting strategy request to the PCF.

Optionally, the offloading request carries: and at least one of shunting reference information which is prior to the terminal or prior to the application node, the source address of the terminal and the corresponding application preferred destination address and secondary selection destination address.

Optionally, the offloading policy request carries: at least one of a terminal source address, a destination address, a traffic flow identifier, a offload policy, and an offload detection notification address.

Optionally, the offloading policy carries: at least one of a terminal source address, a destination address, a distribution rule, a near terminal priority or near application node priority distribution, and a distribution detection notification address.

Optionally, after splitting the service flow of the terminal, the method further includes:

and the NEF receives the shunt detection result sent by the SMF.

Optionally, the method for splitting a service flow further includes: if the shunting detection result shows that the shunting is abnormal, calling the PCF to generate a new shunting strategy and issuing the new shunting strategy to the SMF by the PCF.

Optionally, the method for splitting a service flow of a terminal further includes: and sending a shunting result of shunting the service flow of the terminal to the application.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides a network open function NEF, including:

the receiving and sending module is used for receiving a service flow detection request sent by an application; generating a data flow detection rule according to the service flow detection request, and sending the data flow detection rule to a Session Management Function (SMF); and the NEF receives a notification message of the detection result fed back by the SMF and sends the detection result to the application.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: and according to the detection result, shunting the service flow of the terminal.

after a terminal accesses a network, the transceiver module receives a service flow detection event notification sent by an SMF;

and sending the service flow detection event notification to an application.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: receiving a distribution request for distributing the service flow of the terminal sent by the application according to the detection result;

and analyzing the list of the multiple terminals according to the distribution request, and sending a distribution strategy request to the PCF.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: and when the shunting detection result shows that the shunting is abnormal, calling the PCF to generate a new shunting strategy and issuing the new shunting strategy to the SMF by the PCF.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a method for shunting the service flow, which is applied to the SMF, and the method comprises the following steps:

the SMF receives a data flow detection rule sent by a network open function (NEF);

the SMF sends the data flow detection rule to an anchoring User Plane Function (UPF);

and the SMF receives a detection result of the data flow detection rule fed back by the anchoring UPF, and sends the detection result to the NEF.

Optionally, after receiving the detection result that the data flow detection rule fed back by the anchor UPF takes effect and sending the detection result to the NEF, the SMF further includes:

after a terminal accesses a network, the SMF receives a service flow detection event notification sent by the anchoring UPF;

and sending the service flow detection event notice to the NEF.

Optionally, after sending the service flow detection event notification to the NEF, the method further includes:

the SMF receives a shunting strategy sent by the PCF;

and the SMF inserts the UPFULCL user plane function uplink classifier according to the distribution strategy sent by the PCF to distribute the service flow of the terminal.

the SMF receives an shunt detection result sent by the UPFULCL;

and the SMF sends the shunting detection result to the NEF.

Optionally, the method for splitting a service flow further includes:

the SMF receives a new shunting strategy sent by the PCF;

and the SMF inserts a new UPF ULCL according to the received new distribution strategy and distributes the service flow of the terminal.

Optionally, the method for splitting a service flow of a terminal further includes: and sending a shunting result of shunting the service flow of the terminal to the NEF.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides a session management function SMF, including:

the receiving and sending module is used for receiving a data flow detection rule sent by a network open function (NEF); sending the data flow detection rule to an anchoring User Plane Function (UPF); and receiving a detection result of the data flow detection rule fed back by the anchoring UPF, wherein the detection result is effective, and sending the detection result to the NEF.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to shunt a service flow of the terminal according to the detection result.

after the terminal accesses the network, receiving a service flow detection event notification sent by the anchoring UPF;

and sending the service flow detection event notice to the NEF.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: receiving a shunting strategy sent by the PCF;

and inserting the UPFULCL user plane function uplink classifier according to the distribution strategy sent by the PCF, and distributing the service flow of the terminal.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: receiving a shunting detection result sent by the UPFULCL;

and sending the shunting detection result to the NEF.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: receiving a new shunting strategy sent by the PCF;

and inserting a new UPF ULCL according to the received new distribution strategy, and distributing the service flow of the terminal.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a method for shunting the service flow, which is applied to the anchoring user plane function UPF and comprises the following steps:

the anchoring UPF receives a data flow detection rule sent by a Session Management Function (SMF);

and the anchoring UPF sends the detection result of the data flow detection rule to the SMF.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides an anchored user plane function UPF, including:

the receiving and sending module is used for receiving a data flow detection rule sent by the session management function SMF; and sending the detection result of the data flow detection rule to the SMF.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides a communication device, including: a processor, a memory storing a computer program which, when executed by the processor, performs the method as described above.

Embodiments of the present invention also provide a computer-readable storage medium including instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method as described above.

The scheme of the invention at least comprises the following beneficial effects:

according to the scheme of the invention, a service flow detection request sent by an application is received through NEF;

the NEF generates a data flow detection rule according to the service flow detection request, and obtains a detection result of the data flow detection rule in effect through the interaction of the NEF with a Session Management Function (SMF), the SMF and an anchoring User Plane Function (UPF); and the NEF sends the detection result to the application. The difficulty and unreliability of obtaining user information by the application are reduced through network detection perception, and network nearby distribution is easy to be carried out for application calling; furthermore, a shunting strategy is formed according to the application service flow and the network detection result, so that the data flow to be shunted can be more accurately screened from a plurality of service flows used by the user, and shunting is performed, thereby being beneficial to improving the service effect of willing to pay for the application.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system architecture for shunting traffic flows in the prior art;

fig. 2 is a schematic flow chart of a method for offloading a service flow at a NEF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a system architecture for offloading traffic flows according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 4 is a schematic specific flowchart of offloading a service flow according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 5 is a schematic flow chart of a method for shunting a service flow at an SMF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for offloading a service flow at a UPF side according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. While exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in the drawings, it should be understood that the present disclosure may be embodied in various forms and should not be limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.

As shown in fig. 2 and fig. 3, an embodiment of the present invention provides a method for offloading a service flow, which is applied to a network open function NEF, where the method includes:

step 21, the NEF receives a service flow detection request sent by an application; optionally, the service flow detection request carries at least one of a protocol type, a destination address, a port, and a service data flow feature flag of a data flow to be detected.

Step 22, the NEF generates a data flow detection rule according to the service flow detection request, and sends the data flow detection rule to the SMF; optionally, the data stream detection rule includes: at least one of protocol type, destination address, port, service data flow characteristic mark, detection notification condition and notification address of the data flow;

step 23, the NEF receives a notification message of the detection result fed back by the SMF; optionally, the notification message of the detection result is that the SMF sends the data stream detection rule to the anchor UPF, and the anchor UPF performs detection rule configuration after receiving the data stream detection rule, starts data stream detection, and feeds back the detection result to the SMF after the start is successful;

and step 24, the NEF sends the detection result to the application.

In the embodiment, the service flow detection is performed to generate the data flow detection rule, and the service flow of the terminal is detected based on the detection result of the data flow detection rule, so that the difficulty and unreliability of obtaining the user information by the application can be reduced, and the network near shunt is easily performed for the application call.

In an optional embodiment of the present invention, after step 24, the method may further include:

and 25, distributing the service flow of the terminal according to the detection result. Optionally, step 25 may include:

step 251, after the terminal accesses the network, by the interaction between the anchor UPF and the SMF, the NEF receives the service flow detection event notification sent by the SMF; the service flow detection event notification is that after receiving the service flow of the terminal, the anchoring UPF generates a service flow detection event according to a data flow detection rule and sends the service flow detection event to the SMF;

step 252, the NEF sends the service flow detection event notification to an application, so that the application initiates a traffic flow splitting request of a terminal according to the service flow detection event notification.

In an optional embodiment of the present invention, after step 252, further including:

step 253, the NEF receives a request for splitting the service flow of the terminal sent by the application according to the detection result; optionally, the offloading request carries: and at least one of shunting reference information which is prior to the terminal or prior to the application node, the source address of the terminal and the corresponding application preferred destination address and secondary selection destination address.

Step 254, the NEF analyzes the list of multiple terminals according to the offloading request, and sends an offloading policy request to the PCF; optionally, the offloading policy request carries: at least one of a terminal source address, a destination address, a traffic flow identifier, a offload policy, and an offload detection notification address.

Step 255, through the interaction between the PCF and the SMF, the SMF inserts the UPF ULCL user plane function uplink classifier according to the offloading policy sent by the PCF, and offloads the service flow of the terminal. Optionally, the offloading policy carries: at least one of a terminal source address, a destination address, a distribution rule, a near terminal priority or near application node priority distribution, and a distribution detection notification address.

In the embodiment of the invention, the shunting strategy is formed according to the application service flow and the network detection result, so that the data flow to be shunted can be more accurately screened from a plurality of service flows used by a user, and the shunting is carried out, thereby being beneficial to improving the service effect of willing to pay by the application.

In an optional embodiment of the present invention, after step 25, the method may further include:

and step 26, the NEF receives a shunting detection result sent by the SMF, wherein the shunting detection result is obtained by performing detection statistics on the outgoing data stream sent to the application after the shunting of the anchoring UPF ULCL, and is sent to the SMF.

In an optional embodiment of the present invention, after step 26, the method may further include: step 27, if the shunting detection result indicates that the shunting is abnormal, the NEF invokes the PCF to generate a new shunting strategy and the PCF issues the new shunting strategy to the SMF, so that the SMF inserts a new UPF ULCL according to the received new shunting strategy to shunt the service flow of the terminal.

In an optional embodiment of the present invention, after step 27, the method for splitting a service flow of a terminal may further include:

and step 28, sending a shunting result obtained by shunting the service flow of the terminal to the application.

As shown in fig. 4, the following describes a specific implementation process of the foregoing embodiment with reference to a specific flow, and based on the system shown in fig. 3, the implementation process of splitting a service flow includes:

1. the application sends down a service flow to detect NEF, which carries the protocol type, destination address (URL or IP address) and port of the data flow to be detected, and service data flow characteristic mark (offset and identification value of relative header in IP message);

2. the NEF generates a data flow detection rule, and stores the data flow detection rule locally or in the UDR, wherein the data flow detection rule comprises the address, the port, the protocol type, the service data flow characteristic mark, the detection notification condition (including an accurate matching success notification, a fuzzy matching success notification and the like) and a notification address (being the NEF address);

3. the NEF issues the generated data flow detection rule to the SMF, the SMF stores relevant rule data and modifies the detection notification address into an SMF address;

4. SMF sends the data flow detection rule to anchoring UPF, which receives the rule and configures the rule and starts the rule to detect the data flow;

5. and after receiving the result, the NEF sends a detection rule issuing result notice to the application, and the application judges that the data stream detection rule is effective according to the received result.

6. After the terminal accesses the network, the application instructs the terminal to send a service request packet to the application server, the request packet is sent to an anchoring UPF (namely a user plane functional entity which is currently stably served by a user, the anchoring UPF and a UPF ULCL are two different logical entities, the two entities can be on the same physical device or different physical devices), the anchoring UPF is matched with a transmitted data stream detection rule according to a data stream, and a detection event notification is sent to an SMF according to a detection notification condition and an address, wherein the SMF carries a terminal source address and a destination address;

7. after receiving the notification, the SMF acquires information such as the code number, the position and the like of the terminal according to the terminal address, and sends a service flow detection notification event to the NEF according to the locally stored notification address, wherein the NEF carries the source address, the terminal position, the destination address, the terminal code number, the matching event type and the service flow identification;

8. the NEF collects and processes the detected service flow result, and sends a service flow detection notice to the application according to the processed result.

9. The application sends a shunting indication for a service terminal list according to a detection result, carries shunting reference information with a priority close to the terminal/a priority close to an application node, and carries a terminal source address and a corresponding application preferred destination address and a secondary selection destination address;

10. the NEF analyzes the multi-terminal list, issues a shunting strategy request aiming at the terminal address of the service to the PCF, carries the UE source address, the target preferred address and the service flow identification, proposes a shunting strategy (close to the terminal priority/close to the application node priority), and shunts a detection notification address (as the NEF address);

11. PCF correspondingly issues a shunting strategy request to SMF, carrying a terminal source address, a destination address, a shunting rule and a priority (a priority close to the terminal/a priority close to an application node), and shunting detection notification address (a NEF address);

12. according to the shunting strategy information received by the SMF, referring to a shunting strategy suggestion according to a terminal source IP address and an address from a network outlet to an application server, inserting a UPF ULCL into a data plane path of an appointed user, and shunting data of the user;

13. after the UPF ULCL branches, detection statistics is carried out on outgoing data streams sent to the application

14. When abnormal reduction of flow occurs, or abnormal increase of flow occurs, or the shunting time expires, the anchoring UPF sends a shunting detection result to the SMF according to the notification address;

15. the SMF sends the shunting detection result to the NEF according to the notification address, and for the abnormal shunting result, the SMF deletes the inserted UPF ULCL;

16. the NEF processes the received shunting detection event, sends alternative application destination addresses and the like to issue shunting strategies again for shunting abnormal result events, and the SMF reinserts the UPF ULCL to carry out shunting after receiving a new shunting strategy;

17. and the NEF reports the final detection result of the shunting to the application, and the application carries out corresponding processing according to the received shunting result notice.

The embodiment of the invention can intelligently deal with more complex shunting scenes by generating the flow through the flow detection and the corresponding shunting strategy, and increase the intelligent shunting and optimizing by acquiring the shunting result, thereby improving the shunting success rate, and dynamically shunting according to the service data flow characteristics to realize the local intelligent shunting and nearby unloading.

Compared with the scheme of carrying out specified service flow distribution by providing user information (user terminal IP address, user code number) of the service and the like by the application, the scheme in the embodiment of the invention reduces the difficulty and unreliability of obtaining the user information by the application through network detection and perception, and is easy to carry out network near distribution for application calling; compared with a distribution scheme of using DNN and S-NSSAI to distinguish users, the method can reduce the limitation of DNN, S-NSSAI and the like on the service of the user terminal and improve the distribution success rate; a shunting strategy is formed according to the application service flow and the network detection result, so that the data flow to be shunted can be more accurately screened from a plurality of service flows used by a user, and shunting is performed, thereby being beneficial to improving the service effect of willing to pay for the application; through the detection notice of the UPF, the network/application can be intelligently adjusted and processed according to the detection condition, the success of shunting is favorably improved, and the business effect that the application is willing to pay is favorably improved.

Corresponding to the above method, an embodiment of the present invention further provides a network open function NEF, including: the receiving and sending module is used for receiving a service flow detection request sent by an application; generating a data flow detection rule according to the service flow detection request, and sending the data flow detection rule to the SMF; the NEF receives a notification message of the detection result fed back by the SMF; and sending the detection result to the application.

after a terminal accesses a network, the NEF receives a service flow detection event notification sent by the SMF through the interaction of an anchor UPF and the SMF; the service flow detection event notification is that after receiving the service flow of the terminal, the anchoring UPF generates a service flow detection event according to a data flow detection rule and sends the service flow detection event to the SMF;

and sending the service flow detection event notification to an application, so that the application initiates a service flow distribution request of a terminal according to the service flow detection event notification.

analyzing a list of multiple terminals according to the distribution request, and sending a distribution strategy request to the PCF;

and through the interaction between the PCF and the SMF, the SMF inserts a UPF ULCL user plane function uplink classifier according to the distribution strategy sent by the PCF to distribute the service flow of the terminal.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: and when the shunting detection result shows that the shunting is abnormal, calling the PCF to generate a new shunting strategy and transmitting the new shunting strategy to the SMF by the PCF, so that the SMF inserts a new UPF ULCL according to the received new shunting strategy and shunts the service flow of the terminal.

It should be noted that all the implementations in the above method embodiments are applicable to the embodiment of the NEF, and the same technical effect can be achieved.

As shown in fig. 5, an embodiment of the present invention further provides a method for offloading a service flow, which is applied to a session management function SMF, where the method includes:

step 51, the SMF receives a data flow detection rule sent by a network open function NEF; the data flow detection rule is generated by the NEF according to a service flow detection request sent by an application;

step 52, the SMF sends the data flow detection rule to an anchor user plane function UPF;

and step 53, the SMF receives the detection result that the data stream detection rule fed back by the anchor UPF takes effect, and sends the detection result to the NEF.

Optionally, the detection result is that the anchoring UPF performs detection rule configuration after receiving the data stream detection rule, starts data stream detection, and feeds back the detection result to the SMF after the data stream detection is successfully started.

after a terminal accesses a network, the SMF receives a service flow detection event notification sent by the anchoring UPF; the service flow detection event notification is generated by the anchoring UPF according to a data flow detection rule after receiving the service flow of the terminal;

and sending the service flow detection event notification to an application through the NEF, so that the application can notify a shunting request of the service flow of the initiating terminal according to the service flow detection event.

Optionally, after sending the service flow detection event notification to the application through the NEF, the method further includes:

the SMF receives a distribution strategy sent by the PCF, wherein the distribution strategy is that the NEF receives a distribution request which is sent by the application according to the detection result and is used for distributing the service flow of the terminal, analyzes the list of the multiple terminals according to the distribution request, sends the distribution strategy request to the PCF, and the PCF generates the distribution strategy request according to the distribution strategy request;

and the SMF inserts a UPF ULCL user plane function uplink classifier according to the distribution strategy sent by the PCF to distribute the service flow of the terminal.

the SMF receives a shunting detection result sent by the UPF ULCL, wherein the shunting detection result is obtained by detecting and counting an outgoing data stream sent to an application after the UPF ULCL shunts the data stream, and the shunting detection result is sent to the SMF;

and the SMF sends the shunting detection result to the NEF.

Optionally, the method for splitting a service flow further includes:

the SMF receives a new shunting strategy sent by the PCF, wherein the new shunting strategy is generated by calling the PCF and issued to the SMF when the shunting detection result shows that the shunting is abnormal;

Optionally, the method for splitting a service flow of a terminal further includes:

and sending the shunting result of shunting the service flow of the terminal to the application through the NEF.

Corresponding to the foregoing method, an embodiment of the present invention further provides a session management function SMF, including: the receiving and sending module is used for receiving a data flow detection rule sent by a network open function (NEF); sending the data flow detection rule to an anchoring User Plane Function (UPF); and receiving a detection result of the data flow detection rule fed back by the anchoring UPF, wherein the detection result is effective, and sending the detection result to the NEF.

after the terminal accesses the network, receiving a service flow detection event notification sent by the anchoring UPF; the service flow detection event notification is generated by the anchoring UPF according to a data flow detection rule after receiving the service flow of the terminal;

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: receiving a distribution strategy sent by the PCF, wherein the distribution strategy is that the NEF receives a distribution request sent by the application according to the detection result and used for distributing the service flow of the terminal, analyzes the request aiming at a list of multiple terminals according to the distribution request, sends the distribution strategy request to the PCF, and the PCF generates the distribution strategy request according to the distribution strategy request;

and inserting the UPF ULCL user plane function uplink classifier according to the distribution strategy sent by the PCF to distribute the service flow of the terminal.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: receiving a shunting detection result sent by the UPF ULCL, wherein the shunting detection result is obtained by carrying out detection statistics on an outgoing data stream sent to an application after the UPF ULCL shunts the data stream, and sending the result to the SMF;

and sending the shunting detection result to the NEF.

Optionally, the transceiver module is further configured to: receiving a new shunting strategy sent by the PCF, wherein the new shunting strategy is issued to the SMF by calling the PCF to generate the new shunting strategy when the shunting detection result shows that the shunting is abnormal;

It should be noted that all the implementations in the above method embodiments are applicable to the embodiment of the SMF, and the same technical effect can be achieved.

As shown in fig. 6, an embodiment of the present invention further provides a method for offloading a service flow, which is applied to an anchor user plane function UPF, where the method includes:

step 61, the anchor UPF receives a data flow detection rule sent by a session management function SMF, where the data flow detection rule is generated by the NEF according to a service flow detection request sent by an application and sent to the SMF;

and step 62, the anchor UPF sends the detection result of the data flow detection rule to the SMF.

In an optional embodiment of the present invention, the method may further include:

step 63, after the terminal accesses the network, the anchoring UPF generates a service flow detection event notification according to the data flow detection rule after receiving the service flow of the terminal;

step 64, the UPF sends the service flow detection event notification to the SMF; and the SMF sends the service flow detection event notification to an application through the NEF, so that the application initiates a service flow distribution request of a terminal according to the service flow detection event notification.

It should be noted that all the implementation manners in the above method embodiment are applicable to the UPF embodiment, and the same technical effect can be achieved.

a transceiver module, configured to receive a data flow detection rule sent by a session management function SMF, where the data flow detection rule is generated by the NEF according to a service flow detection request sent by an application and is sent to the SMF; and sending the detection result of the data flow detection rule to the SMF.

In an optional embodiment of the present invention, the transceiver module may be further configured to generate a service flow detection event notification according to a data flow detection rule after the terminal accesses the network and receives a service flow of the terminal; sending the service flow detection event notification to the SMF; and the SMF sends the service flow detection event notification to an application through the NEF, so that the application initiates a service flow distribution request of a terminal according to the service flow detection event notification.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides a communication device, including: a processor, a memory storing a computer program which, when executed by the processor, performs the method as described above. All the implementation manners in the above method embodiment are applicable to the embodiment of the SMF, and the same technical effect can be achieved. It should be noted that the terminal is a network device corresponding to the method shown in fig. 2 or fig. 5, and all implementation manners in the above method embodiment are applicable to this embodiment, and the same technical effect can be achieved. The apparatus may further comprise: a memory; the transceiver and the processor, and the transceiver and the memory can be connected through a bus interface, the functions of the transceiver can be realized by the processor, and the functions of the processor can also be realized by the transceiver.

Embodiments of the present invention also provide a computer-readable storage medium including instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method as described above. All the implementation manners in the above method embodiment are applicable to the embodiment of the SMF, and the same technical effect can be achieved.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the various illustrative elements and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware or combinations of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the implementation. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present invention.

It is clear to those skilled in the art that, for convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the above-described systems, apparatuses and units may refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and are not described herein again.

In the embodiments provided in the present invention, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and method may be implemented in other ways. For example, the above-described apparatus embodiments are merely illustrative, and for example, the division of the units is only one logical division, and other divisions may be realized in practice, for example, a plurality of units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted, or not executed. In addition, the shown or discussed mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection may be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, and may be in an electrical, mechanical or other form.

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

In addition, functional units in the embodiments of the present invention may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units are integrated into one unit.

The functions, if implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as a stand-alone product, may be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solution of the present invention may be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium and includes instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device) to execute all or part of the steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present invention. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: various media capable of storing program codes, such as a U disk, a removable hard disk, a ROM, a RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

Furthermore, it is to be noted that in the device and method of the invention, it is obvious that the individual components or steps can be decomposed and/or recombined. These decompositions and/or recombinations are to be regarded as equivalents of the present invention. Also, the steps of performing the series of processes described above may naturally be performed chronologically in the order described, but need not necessarily be performed chronologically, and some steps may be performed in parallel or independently of each other. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that all or any of the steps or elements of the method and apparatus of the present invention may be implemented in any computing device (including processors, storage media, etc.) or network of computing devices, in hardware, firmware, software, or any combination thereof, which can be implemented by those skilled in the art using their basic programming skills after reading the description of the present invention.

Thus, the objects of the invention may also be achieved by running a program or a set of programs on any computing device. The computing device may be a general purpose device as is well known. The object of the invention is thus also achieved solely by providing a program product comprising program code for implementing the method or the apparatus. That is, such a program product also constitutes the present invention, and a storage medium storing such a program product also constitutes the present invention. It is to be understood that the storage medium may be any known storage medium or any storage medium developed in the future. It is further noted that in the apparatus and method of the present invention, it is apparent that each component or step can be decomposed and/or recombined. These decompositions and/or recombinations are to be regarded as equivalents of the present invention. Also, the steps of executing the series of processes described above may naturally be executed chronologically in the order described, but need not necessarily be executed chronologically. Some steps may be performed in parallel or independently of each other.

While the foregoing is directed to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method for offloading traffic flow is applied to a network open function (NEF), and the method includes:

the NEF receives a service flow detection request sent by an application;

and the NEF sends the detection result to the application.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the service flow detection request carries at least one of a protocol type, a destination address, a port and a service data flow characteristic flag of a data flow to be detected.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the data flow detection rule comprises: at least one of protocol type of the data flow, destination address, port, service data flow characteristic flag, detection notification condition and notification address.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein after sending the detection result to the application, the method further comprises:

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the splitting the service flow of the terminal according to the detection result comprises:

and the NEF sends the service flow detection event notice to an application.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the service flow detection event notification carries: at least one of a source address of the terminal, a destination address, a location of the terminal, a code number of the terminal, a matching event type, and a traffic flow identification.

7. The method of splitting a traffic flow according to claim 5, wherein after the NEF sends the traffic flow detection event notification to an application, the method further comprises:

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the offloading request carries: and at least one of shunting reference information which is prior to the terminal or prior to the application node, the source address of the terminal and the corresponding application preferred destination address and secondary selection destination address.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the offloading policy request carries: at least one of a terminal source address, a destination address, a traffic flow identifier, a offload policy, and an offload detection notification address.

10. The method of splitting a traffic flow according to claim 7, wherein the splitting policy carries: at least one of a terminal source address, a destination address, a distribution rule, a near terminal priority or near application node priority distribution, and a distribution detection notification address.

11. The method of splitting a service flow according to claim 7, wherein after splitting the service flow of the terminal, the method further comprises:

and the NEF receives the shunt detection result sent by the SMF.

12. The method for splitting a service flow according to claim 11, further comprising:

if the shunting detection result shows that the shunting is abnormal, calling the PCF to generate a new shunting strategy and issuing the new shunting strategy to the SMF by the PCF.

13. The method for splitting the traffic flow of the terminal according to claim 7 or 12, further comprising:

and sending a shunting result of shunting the service flow of the terminal to the application.

14. A network open function, NEF, comprising:

the receiving and sending module is used for receiving a service flow detection request sent by an application; generating a data flow detection rule according to the service flow detection request, and sending the data flow detection rule to a Session Management Function (SMF); the NEF receives a notification message of the detection result fed back by the SMF; and sending the detection result to the application.

15. The NEF according to claim 14, wherein the transceiver module is further configured to: and according to the detection result, shunting the service flow of the terminal.

16. The NEF according to claim 15, wherein the splitting the traffic flow of the terminal according to the detection result comprises:

and sending the service flow detection event notification to an application.

17. The NEF according to claim 15, wherein the transceiver module is further configured to:

receiving a distribution request for distributing the service flow of the terminal sent by the application according to the detection result;

18. The NEF according to claim 17, wherein the transceiver module is further configured to: and when the shunting detection result shows that the shunting is abnormal, calling the PCF to generate a new shunting strategy and issuing the new shunting strategy to the SMF by the PCF.

19. A method for offloading traffic flow, applied to a Session Management Function (SMF), the method comprising:

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the traffic flow detection request carries at least one of a protocol type, a destination address, a port and a traffic data flow characteristic flag of a data flow to be detected.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the data flow detection rule comprises: at least one of protocol type of the data flow, destination address, port, service data flow characteristic flag, detection notification condition and notification address.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein the SMF receives a detection result that the data flow detection rule fed back by the anchor UPF is valid, and after sending the detection result to the NEF, the method further comprises:

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the splitting the service flow of the terminal according to the detection result comprises:

and sending the service flow detection event notice to the NEF.

24. The method of splitting a service flow according to claim 23, wherein the service flow detection event notification carries: at least one of a source address of the terminal, a destination address, a location of the terminal, a code number of the terminal, a matching event type, and a traffic flow identification.

25. The method of offloading traffic flow of claim 23, wherein after sending the traffic flow detection event notification to the NEF, further comprising:

the SMF receives a shunting strategy sent by the PCF;

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the offloading request carries: and at least one of shunting reference information which is prior to the terminal or prior to the application node, the source address of the terminal and the corresponding application preferred destination address and secondary selection destination address.

27. The method of splitting a service flow according to claim 25, wherein the splitting policy request carries: at least one of a terminal source address, a destination address, a traffic flow identifier, a offload policy, and an offload detection notification address.

28. The method of splitting a service flow according to claim 25, wherein the splitting policy carries: at least one of a terminal source address, a destination address, a distribution rule, a near terminal priority or near application node priority distribution, and a distribution detection notification address.

29. The method of splitting a service flow according to claim 25, wherein after splitting the service flow of the terminal, the method further comprises:

the SMF receives an shunt detection result sent by the UPFULCL;

and the SMF sends the shunting detection result to the NEF.

30. The method of splitting a traffic stream according to claim 29, further comprising:

the SMF receives a new shunting strategy sent by the PCF;

31. The method for splitting the traffic flow of the terminal according to claim 25 or 30, further comprising:

and sending a shunting result of shunting the service flow of the terminal to the NEF.

32. A session management function, SMF, comprising:

33. The SMF according to claim 32, wherein the transceiver module is further configured to split the traffic flow of the terminal according to the detection result.

34. The SMF according to claim 32, wherein the offloading the traffic flow of the terminal according to the detection result comprises:

and sending the service flow detection event notice to the NEF.

35. The session management function, SMF, of claim 34, wherein said transceiver module is further configured to:

receiving a shunting strategy sent by the PCF;

36. The session management function, SMF, of claim 35, wherein said transceiver module is further configured to:

receiving a shunting detection result sent by the UPFULCL;

and sending the shunting detection result to the NEF.

37. The session management function, SMF, of claim 36, wherein said transceiver module is further configured to:

receiving a new shunting strategy sent by the PCF;

38. A method for offloading traffic, applied to an anchor User Plane Function (UPF), the method comprising:

39. An anchored User Plane Function (UPF), comprising:

40. A communication device, comprising: a processor, a memory storing a computer program which, when executed by the processor, performs the method of any of claims 1 to 13, or any of claims 19 to 31, or claim 38.

41. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of any of claims 1 to 13, or any of claims 19 to 31, or claim 38.