CN114531692A

CN114531692A - Method and device for managing network slice data

Info

Publication number: CN114531692A
Application number: CN202011193296.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 朱建国; 童玮; 张勇; 段宝平
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-10-30
Filing date: 2020-10-30
Publication date: 2022-05-24
Also published as: WO2022089163A1

Abstract

The embodiment of the application provides a method and a device for managing network slice data, wherein the method comprises the following steps: a target access management function entity T-AMF receives a relocation message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, wherein the relocation message comprises identification information of a slice unified data management entity UDM and network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI allowed by a user; and the T-AMF performs authentication and registration service operation according to the relocation message. According to the method and the device for managing the network slice data, when the T-AMF completes the registration process according to the UDM identification of the attribution slice of the user subscription information, the discovery of the UDM service is avoided, the unified routing management of the data is favorably supported, the slice can be flexibly planned and deployed, the number section management is avoided, the resource overhead is saved, the registration efficiency is improved, and the requirements of low time delay and physical isolation are met.

Description

Method and device for managing network slice data

Technical Field

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

Background

With the rapid development of mobile communication, digital transformation has involved almost all the conventional industries. However, the conventional cellular network architecture can only provide uniform network services, and it is difficult to satisfy the very different communication requirements, including functional differences and performance differences, caused by the digitalized transition wave. In a fifth Generation (5th Generation, 5G) communication system, the network will be abstracted as "network slices," one network slice meeting the connectivity communication service requirements of a certain class or use case. A 5G system may consist of a large number of network slices that satisfy different connection capabilities.

The network slice example is a real running logic network created by a network management system, and can meet certain network characteristics or service requirements. A network management system may create and manage one or more network slice instances simultaneously, including performance monitoring, fault management, modification, etc. during operation of the network slice instances. A full network slice instance is capable of providing full end-to-end network services. In the prior art, in order to satisfy the isolation of slices, a Unified Data Management (UDM) and a Unified Data Repository (UDR) are deployed in a slice for isolation, and each UDM or UDR is required to forcibly manage number segments, so that a user needs to change cards and numbers when performing cross-slice migration, and as slice instances are in more and more application scenarios, the number of the number segments of the UDM or UDR gradually increases, and the Management tends to be complicated. In order to enable a user to migrate between slices without changing cards or numbers and avoid number segment management, it is imperative to provide a scheme to improve the flexibility of network deployment and the friendliness of terminal user experience.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides a method for managing network slice data, which realizes the flexibility of deployment of a unified data management/storage entity (UDM/UDR), can enable the unified data management/storage entity (UDM/UDR) to be arranged according to different slice isolation requirements, can be collectively deployed, and can also be deployed in a slice in a sinking manner, thereby realizing the requirements of low time delay and physical isolation.

In a first aspect, a method for managing network slice data is provided, the method comprising: a target access management function entity T-AMF receives a relocation message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, wherein the relocation message comprises identification information of a slice unified data management entity UDM and network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI allowed by a user; and the T-AMF performs authentication and registration service operation according to the relocation message.

With reference to the first aspect, in some possible implementations, the method further includes: the identification information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM comprises address information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM.

According to the method for managing the network slice data, the UDM identification of the attributive slice of the user subscription information is obtained through the relocation message received by the target access management function entity T-AMF, so that when the T-AMF completes the registration process according to the UDM identification of the attributive slice of the user subscription information, the UDM service discovery is avoided, the unified routing management of the data is supported, the slice can be planned and deployed flexibly, the number section management is avoided, the resource overhead is saved, the registration efficiency is improved, and the requirements of low time delay and physical isolation are met.

In a second aspect, a method for managing network slice data is provided, the method comprising: an initial access management function entity AMF sends a relocation message to a target access management function entity T-AMF, wherein the relocation message comprises identification information of a slice uniform data management entity UDM and network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI allowed by a user, and the relocation message is used for indicating the target access management function entity T-AMF to complete a registration process according to the identification information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM and the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI allowed by the user.

According to the method for managing the network slice data, provided by the embodiment of the application, the initial access management functional entity AMF transmits the UDM identifier of the attributive slice of the user subscription information to the T-AMF through the relocation message sent to the target access management functional entity T-AMF, so that when the T-AMF completes the registration process according to the UDM identifier of the attributive slice of the user subscription information, the UDM service discovery is avoided, the unified routing management of data is favorably supported, the slice deployment can be flexibly planned, the number-free section management is avoided, the resource overhead is saved, the registration efficiency is improved, and the requirements of low time delay and physical isolation are met.

With reference to the second aspect, in some possible implementations, the method further includes:

the AMF sends a first user signing data acquisition message to a public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, wherein the first user signing data acquisition message is used for requesting user signing network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI and slice unified data management entity UDM identification information from the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR; the initial access management functional entity AMF receives a first response message sent by the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the first response message includes network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by the user and identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM.

With reference to the second aspect, in some possible implementations, the method further includes: the identification information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM comprises address information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM.

According to the method for managing the network slice data, the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR is deployed, so that the UDM/UDR can be arranged according to different slice isolation requirements to support rich scenes of the data slice under the requirement of diversification of a 5G network, can be collectively deployed, and can also be deployed in the slice in a descending manner, the requirements of low time delay and physical isolation are met, and the safety of the data is ensured.

In a third aspect, a method for managing network slice data is provided, the method comprising: a public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR receives a first user signing data acquisition message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, wherein the first user signing data acquisition message is used for requesting user signing network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI and identification information of a slice unified data management entity UDM from the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR; the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR sends a first response message to the initial access management function entity AMF, where the first response message includes network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM.

According to the method for managing the network slice data, the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR is deployed, so that the UDM/UDR can be arranged according to different slice isolation requirements to support rich scenes of the data slice under the requirement of diversification of a 5G network, centralized common deployment can be achieved, the requirements of low time delay and physical isolation are met, and the safety of the data is guaranteed.

With reference to the third aspect, in some possible implementations, before the sending, by the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, the first response message to the initial access management function entity AMF, the method further includes: the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR sends a second user signing data acquisition message to the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, wherein the second user signing data acquisition message is used for requesting the user signed network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI from the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR; the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR receives a second response message sent by the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, the second response message including the network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by the user.

With reference to the third aspect, in some possible implementations, the method further includes: the identification information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM comprises address information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM.

The method for managing the network slice data, provided by the embodiment of the application, can collectively deploy the unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, and can also deploy the unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR into the slice, so that the unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR can be arranged according to different slice isolation requirements, the flexibility of deployment and management is realized, and the requirements on low time delay and physical isolation of data operation are met.

In a fourth aspect, an apparatus for managing network slice data is provided, the apparatus comprising:

a receiving unit, configured to receive a relocation message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, where the relocation message includes identification information of a slice uniform data management entity UDM and user-allowed network slice selection assistance information NSSAI.

And the processing unit is used for carrying out authentication and registration service operation according to the relocation message.

With reference to the fourth aspect, the identification information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM includes address information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM.

In a fifth aspect, an apparatus for managing network slice data is provided, the apparatus comprising:

a sending unit, configured to send a relocation message to a target access management function entity T-AMF, where the relocation message includes identification information of a slice uniform data management entity UDM and user-allowed network slice selection assistance information NSSAI,

wherein, the relocation message is used for indicating the T-AMF to carry out authentication and registration service operation.

With reference to the fifth aspect, the sending unit is further configured to send a first user subscription data acquisition message to the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the first user subscription data acquisition message is used to request, from the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM;

a receiving unit, configured to receive a first response message sent by the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the first response message includes network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by the user and identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM.

With reference to the fifth aspect, the identification information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM includes address information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM.

In a sixth aspect, an apparatus for managing network slice data is provided, the apparatus comprising:

a receiving unit, configured to receive a first user subscription data acquisition message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, where the first user subscription data acquisition message is used to request, from a common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of a slice unified data management entity UDM;

a sending unit, configured to send a first response message to the AMF, where the first response message includes network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of a slice unified data management entity UDM.

With reference to the sixth aspect, the sending unit is further configured to send a second user subscription data obtaining message to the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the second user subscription data obtaining message is used to request, to the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user;

the receiving unit is further configured to receive a second response message sent by the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the second response message includes network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by the user.

With reference to the sixth aspect, the identification information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM includes address information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM.

In a seventh aspect, an apparatus for managing network slice data is provided, where the apparatus for managing network slice data includes a processor in a structure. The processor is configured to support the apparatus for managing network slice data to perform the functions of the first aspect or the second aspect and its various implementations described above, and in one possible design, the apparatus for managing network slice data may further include a transceiver for supporting the apparatus for managing network slice data to receive or transmit information.

In one possible design, the means for managing network slice data may further include a memory for coupling with the processor for storing program instructions and data necessary in the means for managing network slice data.

Alternatively, the apparatus for managing network slice data comprises a memory for storing a computer program and a processor for calling and running the computer program from the memory, so that the apparatus for managing network slice data performs any one of the methods of the first aspect, the second aspect or the third aspect and various implementations thereof.

In an eighth aspect, there is provided a computer readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program for performing the method of any possible implementation of the first, second or third aspect when the computer program is executed.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a registration process of AMF redirection in the prior art.

Fig. 2 is a schematic flow chart of a method for managing network slice data according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 3 is a schematic flow chart of another method for managing network slice data according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 4 is a schematic flow chart of another method for managing network slice data according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a registration flow applied to AMF redirection in an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 6 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for managing network slice data according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 7 is a schematic block diagram of another apparatus for managing network slice data according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 8 is a schematic block diagram of another apparatus for managing network slice data according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

The technical solution in the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The technical solution of the embodiment of the present application may be applied to various communication systems or network management systems supporting network slicing, for example: a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, an LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) system, an LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD), a future fifth Generation (5th Generation, 5G) system, or a New Radio (NR).

Terminal equipment in the embodiments of the present application may refer to user equipment, access terminals, subscriber units, subscriber stations, mobile stations, remote terminals, mobile devices, user terminals, wireless communication devices, user agents, or user devices. The terminal device may also be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a Wireless Local Loop (WLL) station, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a handheld device with Wireless communication function, a computing device or other processing device connected to a Wireless modem, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a terminal device in a future 5G Network or a terminal device in a future evolved Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), and the like, which are not limited in this embodiment.

It should be noted that the terms "user equipment", "terminal equipment", "device", etc. may be used interchangeably herein.

The embodiment of the application relates to a Network slice (Network slice) technology. A network slice is a logical network that can provide certain network capabilities, with certain network characteristics. Network slice is the concept of a logical network, embodied by network slice instances. The network slice instance contains several network function instances, as well as the computing, storage, network, etc. resources needed to compose a deployed logical network. For example, in a 5G network, network slicing is an on-demand networking mode, and brings a new service which can be adjusted according to changing user requirements and quickly meet new application requirements for operators.

The network slicing technique abstracts 5G network physical infrastructure resources into a plurality of network slices according to scene requirements. And each network slice carries out customized cutting of network functions and arrangement management of corresponding network functions according to the requirements of the service scenes and the service models. One network slice can be considered as one instantiated 5G network. Such a network structure allows an operator to provide a network as a service to users, and can freely combine physical networks according to the indexes of rate, capacity, coverage, delay, reliability, security, availability, and the like, so as to meet the requirements of different users.

For ease of understanding, some terms appearing herein are introduced:

network slicing: network slicing is a concept that different logical networks are customized according to different service requirements on top of a physical or virtual network infrastructure. The network slice may be a complete end-to-end network including the terminal, the access network, the transport network, the core network and the application server, and may provide complete telecommunication services with certain network capabilities. The network slice may also be any combination of the above-mentioned terminal, access network, transport network, core network and application server. A network slice may have one or more of the following characteristics: the access network may or may not be sliced. An access network may be common to multiple network slices. Wherein the characteristics of the different network slices and the network functions that make up them may be different.

Network function: the network function is a processing function in the network, defines the behavior and the interface of the functionality, and can be realized by special hardware or a universal hardware platform in the form of virtual function. Thus, from an implementation point of view, network functions may be divided into physical network functions and virtual network functions. From a usage point of view, network functions can be divided into dedicated network functions and shared network functions. In particular, for multiple (sub) network slice instances, different network functions, referred to as proprietary network functions, may be used independently; alternatively, the same network function may be shared, and such a network function is referred to as a shared network function.

Ran (radio Access network): the main function of the radio access network is to control the access of users to the mobile communication network via radio.

AMF (Access Management function): and an Access Management function, which can receive Non-Access Stratum (NAS) signaling of the terminal device and related signaling of the Access network device, and complete the forwarding of a registration procedure and Session Management (SM) signaling of a user and mobility Management.

Nssf (network Slice Selection function): a network slice selection function.

Nrf (network reproducibility function): a network storage function.

UDM (unified Data management): the unified data management function is a permanent storage place of the user subscription data and is positioned in a home network of the user subscription.

UDR (unified Data representation): a unified data store.

PLMN (public Land Mobile network): public land mobile networks.

Tai (tracking Area identity): a tracking area identification.

Network slice identification is the most important parameter in network slice technology. A Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (S-NSSAI) may uniquely identify a Network Slice, while a Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (NSSAI) is a collection of S-NSSAIs that identifies a set of Network slices. NSSAI plays an important role in slice selection, and can be classified into the following types according to their storage locations and roles:

(1) configured NSSAI: NSSAI configured in the terminal equipment in advance, wherein the NSSAI can also be generated by NSSF or AMF and issued to the terminal equipment, and is mainly used for generating Requested NSSAI used in initial registration.

(2) Subscribe NSSAI: NSSAI stored in UDM or UDR under user contract.

(3) Allowed NSSAI: NSSAI that the terminal device is allowed to access in the current registration area. NSSAI generated by NSSF according to Requested NSSAI, Subscribed NSSAI and relevant strategy calculation and then transmitted to AMF and terminal equipment, or generated by AMF directly in some scenes, and stored in user equipment and AMF.

(4) Rejected NSSAI: in the registration process, when the terminal equipment is successfully registered but partial slices reject access, the network equipment terminal equipment issues S-NSSAIs for rejecting access, namely NSSAI for rejecting user equipment access. For NSSAI not supported by PLMN, the terminal equipment can not be accessed under the PLMN, and for NSSAI not supported by the current registration area, the terminal equipment can not be accessed before moving out of the registration area.

(5) Requested NSSAI: the terminal device sends the requested NSSAI to the AMF in the registration process according to the stored Configured NASSI, Allowed NSSAI, the located serving PLMN, the located TAI location area, and other information, and may be carried in Radio Resource Control (RRC) and NAS layer messages of the initial registration message, which indicate the NSSAI requested to be used by the terminal device in the current registration.

Guami (globalley Unique AMF identifier): a globally unique AMF identifier identifying the AMF.

Supi (network Slice Management function): a slice subnet management entity, a unique permanent identity of a user.

Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of registration flow of AMF redirection in the prior art.

The redirection applies to: when the initial AMF is not suitable for providing service for the terminal device after receiving the registration request sent by the terminal device, the AMF may need to redirect the registration request to another target AMF, and the target AMF completes the registration process. The redirection presupposes that the initial AMF and the target AMF need pre-registration capabilities on the NRF.

S100, the terminal equipment sends a registration request message to the RAN, the message can carry the Requested NSSAI and the GUAMI of the terminal equipment, and the Requested NSSAI of the terminal equipment comprises the S-NSSAIs which the terminal equipment desires to register.

S101, the RAN selects an initial AMF according to GUAMI or terminal equipment Requested NSSAI.

S102, the RAN sends a registration request message to the initial AMF.

S103, the initial AMF queries the address of the UDM or the UDR stored in the Subscribed NSSAI of the terminal equipment from the NRF through the number segment of the terminal equipment.

Specifically, the initial AMF sends a query message to the NRF, where the query message carries number segment information of the terminal device, and the NRF determines, according to the number segment information of the terminal device, an address of the UDM or UDR stored in the Subscribed NSSAI corresponding to the terminal device of the number segment.

S104, the NRF sends a response message to the initial AMF, wherein the response message carries the address of the UDM or the UDR of the Subscribed NSSAI of the storage terminal equipment.

S105, the initial AMF sends a message for acquiring subscriber subscription data to the UDM or UDR, where the message is used to acquire a Subscribed NSSAI of the terminal device stored in the UDM or UDR.

Specifically, in the existing procedure, the initial AMF sends a get user subscription data message to the UDM, where the message carries the SUPI information of the terminal device. The initial AMF requests the Subscribed nsai of the terminal device from the UDM by triggering the numm _ SDM _ Get service operation, and the UDM acquires the Subscribed nsai of the terminal device from the UDR by performing the nurr _ DM _ Query operation through the SUPI information of the user.

And S106, the UDM sends a response message to the initial AMF, wherein the response message carries the Subscribed S-NSSAIs information corresponding to the terminal equipment.

Specifically, in the existing flow, the UDM sends a Get message response message to the initial AMF by executing a Nudm _ SDM _ Get operation, where the response message carries the information of the sliced data Subscribed S-nsais corresponding to the terminal device.

S107, the initial AMF sends a query message to the NSSF, wherein the message carries information of Requested NSSAI, Subscribed S-NSSAI, PLMN of SUPI, TAI and the like, and the query message is used for querying the information of Allowed NSSAI and service AMF to the NSSF.

And S108, after receiving the query request, the NSSF processes the request message according to the received information, the local configuration and other locally available information.

Specifically, the NSSF, upon receiving the query message, performs the following operations:

(1) NSSF verifies which S-NSSAIs of the Requested NSSAI are allowed to be accessed according to the Subscribed S-NSSAIs. NSSF also considers default Subscrib S-NSSAIs when none of the S-NSSAIs in the Requested NSSAI are present.

(2) The NSSF selects a network slice instance for the terminal device to serve. At present, there are two slice example distribution modes, one is a mode that all Allowed S-nsais are distributed with slice examples at registration; another way is to assign a slice instance to the terminal device when a slice is first used. In selecting a slice instance, the NSSF may return a slice instance identifier or may simply return an NRF specific to each slice instance.

(3) The NSSF determines a target AMF group serving the terminal equipment, or further determines candidate AMFs according to the configuration or the query NRF.

(4) The NSSF determines the Allowed NSSAI according to the availability of the slice instance in the tracking area where the current terminal device is located.

S109, the NSSF sends a response message to the initial AMF, wherein the message carries the information of the target AMF group, the Allowed NSSAI, the network slice example and the NRF example.

And S110, the initial AMF judges that the AMF is not in the AMF group according to the AMF group in the response message sent by the NSSF.

S111, the initial AMF sends a query message to the NRF, where the query message is used to query the NRF for the candidate AMF list.

S112, the NRF sends a response message to the initial AMF, and the response message returns an available AMF list.

S113, the initial AMF selects one from the available AMF list as a Target AMF.

S114, the initial AMF sends a registration request message of the terminal equipment to the target AMF.

Specifically, the information that the initial AMF carries the Requested NSSAI and GUAMI of the terminal device, the S-NSSAIs that the terminal device desires to register, and the information obtained from the NSSF, which are carried in the registration request message of the terminal device, includes: allowed NSSAI, network slice instance, NRF instance are all sent to the target AMF.

And S115, the target AMF continues to execute the relevant steps of the registration process, namely the target AMF continues to execute the steps S103-S109, and finally the user registration is finished.

Therefore, as can be seen from the above flow, when the target AMF continues to execute the relevant steps of the terminal device registration flow, the target AMF still needs to acquire the address information of the UDM or UDR storing the Subscribed nsai of the terminal device from the NRF depending on the number field.

S201, the AMF sends a user subscription data acquisition message to the UDM/UDR, where the user subscription data acquisition message is used to request, from the UDM/UDR, the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user and the identification information of the UDM.

Specifically, the information for acquiring the user subscription data includes the identification information of the user slice subnet management entity, that is, the SUPI information, according to the SUPI information, the public UDM/UDR can determine the identification information of the slice UDM storing the user subscription network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI, and acquire the subscription network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI of the user.

It is to be understood that the identification information of the slice-uniform data management entity UDM is the identification information of the slice-uniform data management entity storing the network slice selection assistance information signed by the user.

S202, the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR sends a response message to the access management function entity AMF, wherein the response message comprises network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM.

It should be understood that the access management function entity AMF may be an initial access management function entity, or may be a target access management function entity T-AMF, which is not limited in this application. When the access management functional entity is an initial access management functional entity, it may indicate a process of acquiring network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI subscribed by a user when the terminal device is initially registered. When the access management function entity AMF is a target access management function entity T-AMF, it may indicate a process of acquiring network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by a user when the terminal device is performing redirection registration.

In this embodiment, the identification information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM may be address information or other information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM, which is not limited in this application.

By deploying the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, when the access management functional entity AMF requests the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user from the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, the response message returned by the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR carries the identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM to which the user belongs, that is, the identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM to which the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR manages the user in a unified manner, so that unified routing and management of data can be supported, and slice deployment can be planned more flexibly.

S301, the access management functional entity AMF sends a first user subscription data obtaining message to the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the first user subscription data obtaining message is used to obtain, from the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user and the identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM.

And S302, the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR sends a second user signing data acquisition message to the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, wherein the second user signing data acquisition message is used for acquiring network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user from the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR.

S303, the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR determines to store the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user of the user.

S304, the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR sends a second response message to the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the second response message includes the network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by the user.

S305, the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR sends a first response message to the access management function entity AMF, where the first response message includes the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user and the slice unified data management entity UDM identifier.

Specifically, the access management function entity AMF sends a first acquired user subscription data message to the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the first acquired user subscription data message includes SUPI information of a user, and the first acquired user subscription data message is used to acquire network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by the user and identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM from the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR. The public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR stores the identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM, therefore, the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR determines the unified data management entity UDM identification information of the corresponding network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the management user according to the SUPI information, transmits the slice unified data management entity UDM identification information to the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR through the second acquired user signed data message, the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR acquires the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user according to the slice unified data management entity UDM identification information, and returns the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user to the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR through the second response message, and finally, the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR selects the network slice signed by the user And the auxiliary information NSSAI and the slice unified data management entity UDM identification information are transmitted to an access management function entity AMF through a first response message.

Optionally, in this embodiment, the identification information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM may be address information or other information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM, which is not limited in this application.

By deploying the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, when the access management functional entity requests the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user from the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, the existing interface is expanded, information interaction between the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR and the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR is realized, the identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM stored in the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR is stored, slice management of a discrete user can be realized, and the problem of complex number segment management is avoided.

S401, the first access management function entity AMF sends a relocation message to the second access management function entity AMF. The relocation message includes registration request information of the terminal device, Allowed NSSAI, network slice instance, NRF instance, and identification information of slice unified data management UDM.

S402, the second access management function entity AMF authenticates according to the information sent by the first access management function entity AMF, and completes the registration.

When the AMF is accessed to the management function entity to perform the redirection registration process, the address information of the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR can be directly positioned to the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR storing the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user, so that the UDM service discovery process in the redirection registration process is avoided, resources are saved, and the performance of equipment is improved.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a registration flow applied to AMF redirection in an embodiment of the present application. When the initial AMF is not suitable for providing service for the terminal device, the initial AMF needs to send a registration request of the terminal device to another target AMF, and the target AMF completes a registration process of the terminal device. The following description will be made by taking an example in which the method of managing network slice data shown in fig. 3 is applied to the redirection procedure shown in fig. 1.

S500, the terminal device sends a registration request message to the RAN, wherein the message can carry Requested NSSAI and GUAMI of the terminal device, and the Requested NSSAI of the terminal device comprises S-NSSAIs which the terminal device desires to register.

S501, the RAN selects an initial AMF according to GUAMI or terminal equipment Requested NSSAI.

S502, the RAN sends a registration request message of the terminal device to the initial AMF.

S503, after the initial AMF receives the registration request message of the terminal equipment, in order to obtain the Subscribed NSSAI of the terminal equipment, the initial AMF queries the identification information of the public UDM/UDR from the NRF through the number field of the terminal equipment.

Specifically, the initial AMF sends an inquiry message to the NRF, where the inquiry message carries number segment information of the terminal device, and the NRF needs to determine, according to the number segment information of the terminal device, identification information of a public UDM/UDR that manages/stores identification information of a slice UDM/UDR, that is, the public UDM/UDR is used to manage/store the identification information of the slice UDM/UDR.

S504, the NRF sends a response message to the initial AMF, and the response message carries the identification information of the public UDM/UDR.

And S505, by using the identification information of the public UDM/UDR obtained from the NRF, the initial AMF sends a user subscription data acquisition message to the locked public UDM/UDR according to the identification information of the public UDM/UDR, wherein the message is used for acquiring the Subscribed NSSAI of the terminal equipment stored in the slice UDM/UDR and the identification information of the slice UDM/UDR.

S506, after receiving the user subscription information obtained from the initial AMF, the obtained public UDM/UDR determines the identifier information of the slice UDM according to the SUPI information carried in the user subscription data information, and sends a user subscription data obtaining message to the slice UDM/UDR identified by the identifier information, where the user subscription data obtaining message is used to obtain a Subscribed NSSAI of the terminal device stored in the slice UDM/UDR.

S507, the slice UDM/UDR returns the Subscribed NSSAI of the terminal equipment to the public UDM/UDR through a response message.

S508, the public UDM/UDR returns the Subscribed NSSAI of the terminal equipment obtained from the slice UDM/UDR and the identification information of the slice UDM which is stored in the public UDM/UDR and corresponds to the Subscribed NSSAI for managing the terminal equipment to the initial AMF.

S509, the initial AMF sends a query message to the NSSF, where the message carries information of Requested NSSAI, Subscribed S-NSSAI, PLMN of SUPI, TAI, and the query message is used to query the NSSF for information of Allowed NSSAI and serving AMF.

S510, after receiving the query request, the NSSF processes the request message according to the received information, local configuration and other locally available information.

S511, the NSSF sends a response message to the initial AMF, where the message carries information of the target AMF group, the Allowed NSSAI, the network slice instance, and the NRF instance.

And S512, the initial AMF judges that the AMF is not in the AMF group according to the AMF group in the response message sent by the NSSF.

S513, the initial AMF sends a query message to the NRF, where the query message is used to query the NRF for the candidate AMF list.

S514, the NRF sends a response message to the initial AMF, and the response message returns an available AMF list.

S515, the initial AMF selects one from the available AMF list as a target T-AMF.

S516, the initial AMF sends a registration request message of the terminal equipment to the target T-AMF.

Specifically, the information that the initial AMF carries the Requested NSSAI and GUAMI of the terminal device, the S-NSSAIs that the terminal device desires to register, and the information obtained from the NSSF, which are carried in the registration request message of the terminal device, includes: the Allowed NSSAI, the network slice instance, the NRF instance, and the identification information of the slice UDM obtained from the common UDM/UDR are all sent to the target T-AMF.

And S517, the target T-AMF locks the storage position of the Subscribed S-NSSAIs of the terminal equipment according to the received identification information of the sliced UDM, does not perform the discovery process of the UDM any more, and only performs authentication and completes user registration.

Therefore, it can be seen from the above flow that by deploying a common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, addresses of slice unified data management UDMs are uniformly managed and stored, and the identification information of the slice unified data management UDMs can be forwarded to the T-AMF through the initial AMF. When the T-AMF executes the relevant steps of the terminal equipment registration process, the target T-AMF does not need to rely on the number segment to acquire the identification information of the slice UDM of the Subscribed NSSAI for managing the terminal equipment from the NRF. Namely, compared with the prior art, in the redirection process, the T-AMF does not need the service discovery process of secondarily slicing the UDM, thereby avoiding the query of a secondary number segment, improving the registration efficiency and saving resources.

The embodiment of the application also provides a device for realizing any one of the methods. For example, an arrangement is provided, comprising means to implement the steps performed by the access management function entity AMF in any of the above methods. As yet another example, there is provided another apparatus comprising means to implement the steps performed by the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR in any of the above methods.

Fig. 6 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for managing network slice data according to an embodiment of the present application, and as shown in fig. 6, the apparatus 600 may include a receiving unit 601 and a processing unit 602.

The receiving unit is configured to receive a relocation message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, where the relocation message includes identification information of a slice uniform data management entity UDM and network slice selection assistance information NSSAI allowed by a user.

The processing unit is used for performing authentication and registration service operation according to the relocation message.

Fig. 7 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for managing network slice data according to an embodiment of the present application, and as shown in fig. 6, the apparatus 700 may include a receiving unit 701 and a transmitting unit 702.

The sending unit 701 is configured to send a relocation message to a target access management function entity T-AMF, where the relocation message includes identification information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM and user-allowed network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI, and the relocation message is used to instruct the target access management function entity T-AMF to complete a registration procedure according to the identification information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM and the user-allowed network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI.

Optionally, the sending unit 701 is further configured to send a first user subscription data obtaining message to the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the first user subscription data obtaining message is used to request, from the public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user and the identifier information of the slice unified data management entity UDM;

the receiving unit 702 is configured to receive a first response message sent by the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the first response message includes network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user and identification information of the slice unified data management entity UDM;

optionally, the identification information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM received by the receiving unit 701 and sent by the sending unit 702 includes address information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM.

Fig. 8 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for managing network slice data according to an embodiment of the present application, and as shown in fig. 7, the apparatus 800 may include a receiving unit 801 and a sending unit 802.

The receiving unit 801 is configured to receive a first acquired user subscription data message sent by an access management function entity AMF, where the first acquired user subscription data message is used to request, from a public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of a slice unified data management entity UDM;

the sending unit 802 is configured to send a first response message to the access management function entity AMF, where the first response message includes network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of a slice uniform data management entity UDM.

Optionally, before the sending unit 802 sends the first response message to the AMF, the sending unit 802 of the apparatus is further configured to send a second user subscription data obtaining message to the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the second user subscription data obtaining message is used to request, from the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, the network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by the user;

the receiving unit 801 is further configured to receive a second response message sent by the slice unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the second response message includes network slice selection assistance information NSSAI signed by the user.

Optionally, the identification information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM received by the receiving unit 801 and sent by the sending unit 802 includes address information of the slice uniform data management entity UDM.

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 application.

The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the steps performed by the access management function entity AMF in the method as shown in fig. 2 to 5.

The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium having stored therein instructions which, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the steps performed by the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR in the above-described method as shown in fig. 2 to 5.

The present application also provides a computer program product comprising instructions for causing a computer to perform the steps performed by the access management function entity AMF in the method as shown in fig. 2 to 5, when the computer program product runs on the computer.

The present application also provides a computer program product comprising instructions for causing a computer to perform the steps performed by the common unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR in the method as shown in fig. 2-5, when the computer program product is run on the computer.

The embodiment of the present application further provides a system for managing network slices, which includes a device corresponding to the first management function entity and a device corresponding to the second management function entity in the foregoing embodiments.

The method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be applied to a processor, or may be implemented by a processor. The processor may be an integrated circuit chip having signal processing capabilities. In implementation, the steps of the above method may be performed by integrated logic circuits of hardware in a processor or instructions in the form of software. The processor may be a general-purpose processor, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, a system on chip (SoC), a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Network Processor (NP), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a Microcontroller (MCU), a programmable logic controller (PLD), or other integrated chip. The various methods, steps, and logic blocks disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented or performed. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may be any conventional processor or the like. The steps of the method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present application may be directly implemented by a hardware decoding processor, or implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software modules may be located in a Random Access Memory (RAM), a flash memory, a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable ROM, an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register, or other storage media that are well known in the art. The storage medium is located in a memory, and a processor reads instructions in the memory and combines hardware thereof to complete the steps of the method.

It should be understood that, in the embodiment of the present application, the numbers "first" and "second" … are introduced only for distinguishing different objects, such as different "identifications", or different "management requests", and do not limit the scope of the embodiment of the present application.

It should also be understood that, in the various embodiments of the present application, the sequence numbers of the above-mentioned processes do not mean the execution sequence, and the execution sequence of each process should be determined by its function and inherent logic, and should not constitute any limitation to the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

It should also be understood that the term "and/or" herein is merely one type of association that describes an associated object, meaning that three relationships may exist, e.g., a and/or B may mean: a exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone. In addition, the character "/" herein generally indicates that the former and latter related objects are in an "or" relationship.

It can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art that, for convenience and simplicity 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 several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, 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 application 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 application or portions thereof that substantially contribute to the prior art may be embodied in the form of a software product stored in a storage medium and including 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 application. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: various media capable of storing program codes, such as a usb disk, a removable hard disk, a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

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

Claims

1. A method of managing network slice data, comprising:

a target access management function entity T-AMF receives a relocation message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, wherein the relocation message comprises identification information of a slice unified data management entity UDM and network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI allowed by a user;

and the T-AMF performs authentication and registration service operation according to the relocation message.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the identification information of the slice UDM comprises address information of the slice UDM.

3. A method of managing network slice data, comprising:

an initial access management function entity AMF sends a relocation message to a target access management function entity T-AMF, wherein the relocation message comprises identification information of a slice uniform data management entity UDM and network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI allowed by a user,

wherein the relocation message is used for indicating the T-AMF to perform authentication and register service operation.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein prior to the initial AMF sending a relocation message to a T-AMF, the method further comprises:

the initial AMF sends a first acquired user signing data message to a public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, wherein the first acquired user signing data message is used for requesting network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of the slice UDM from the public UDM/UDR;

and the initial AMF receives a first response message sent by the public UDM/UDR, wherein the first response message comprises NSSAI signed by the user and the identification information of the slice UDM.

5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the identification information of the slice UDM comprises address information of the slice UDM.

6. A method of managing network slice data, comprising:

a public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR receives a first user signing data acquisition message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, wherein the first user signing data acquisition message is used for requesting network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of a slice unified data management entity UDM from the public UDM/UDR;

and the public UDM/UDR sends a first response message to the initial AMF, wherein the first response message comprises NSSAI signed by the user and the identification information of the slice UDM.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein prior to the public UDM/UDR sending a first response message to the initial AMF, the method further comprises:

the public UDM/UDR sends a second user signing data acquisition message to the slice UDM/UDR, wherein the second user signing data acquisition message is used for requesting NSSAI signed by the user to the slice UDM/UDR;

and the public UDM/UDR receives a second response message sent by the slice UDM/UDR, wherein the second response message comprises NSSAI signed by the user.

8. The method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the identification information of the slice UDM comprises address information of the slice UDM.

9. An apparatus for managing network slice data, comprising:

a receiving unit, configured to receive a relocation message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, where the relocation message includes identification information of a slice uniform data management entity UDM and network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI allowed by a user;

10. The apparatus of claim 9,

the identification information of the slice UDM in the receiving unit or the processing unit includes address information of the slice UDM.

11. An apparatus for managing network slice data, comprising:

12. The apparatus of claim 11,

the sending unit is further configured to send a first acquired user subscription data message to a public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, where the first acquired user subscription data message is used to request, from the public UDM/UDR, network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of the slice UDM;

a receiving unit, configured to receive a first response message sent by the public UDM/UDR, where the first response message includes an NSSAI signed by the user and identification information of the slice UDM.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 or 12,

the identification information of the slice UDM in the transmitting unit or the receiving unit includes address information of the slice UDM.

14. An apparatus for managing network slice data, comprising:

a receiving unit, configured to receive a first acquired user subscription data message sent by an initial access management function entity AMF, where the first acquired user subscription data message is used to request, from a public unified data management/storage entity UDM/UDR, network slice selection auxiliary information NSSAI signed by a user and identification information of a slice unified data management entity UDM;

a sending unit, configured to send a first response message to the initial AMF, where the first response message includes an NSSAI signed by the user and identification information of the slice UDM.

15. The apparatus of claim 14,

the sending unit is further configured to send a second acquired user subscription data message to the slice UDM/UDR, where the second acquired user subscription data message is used to request the slice UDM/UDR for the NSSAI signed by the user;

the receiving unit is further configured to receive a second response message sent by the slice UDM/UDR, where the second response message includes an NSSAI signed by the user.

16. The apparatus of claim 14 or 15,

17. An apparatus for managing network slice data, comprising:

a memory for storing a computer program;

a processor for executing a computer program stored in the memory to cause the apparatus to perform the method of any of claims 1 to 2, or to perform the method of any of claims 3 to 5, or to perform the method of any of claims 6 to 8.

18. A computer-readable medium comprising a computer program or instructions which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 2, or perform the method of any one of claims 3 to 5, or perform the method of any one of claims 6 to 8.