CN116319958A

CN116319958A - Communication method and device

Info

Publication number: CN116319958A
Application number: CN202111571813.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 魏鑫鹏; 朱奋勤
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-12-21
Filing date: 2021-12-21
Publication date: 2023-06-23
Also published as: WO2023116240A1

Abstract

The application provides a communication method and device, wherein the method comprises the following steps: the session management network element receives a Domain Name System (DNS) query report message, wherein the DNS query report message comprises a fully defined domain name queried by terminal equipment; the session management network element determines client subnet option information of a first DNS expansion mechanism according to the DNS query report message and the first information; the first information comprises identification information of a first mobile network operator and second information corresponding to the first mobile network operator, wherein the second information comprises a fully-defined domain name queried by the terminal equipment; and/or, the first information comprises a corresponding relation between a second fully-defined domain name and client subnet option information of a second DNS extension mechanism, and the second fully-defined domain name comprises a fully-defined domain name queried by the terminal equipment. Client subnet option information of the appropriate DNS extension mechanism may be determined by the first information session managing network element for service discovery between MNOs.

Description

Communication method and device

Technical Field

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

Background

The multi-access edge computing (MEC) federation (federation) refers to the composition of a federation between MEC platforms belonging to multiple mobile network operators (mobile network operator, MNOs). MEC isolation supports sharing, coordination, etc. of resources between operators. An edge application of an application service provider (application service provider, ASP) may be deployed in some of the operator platforms in the MEC federation and may be accessed by end users accessing other operator platforms of the federation.

The discovery of the edge application server (edge application server, EAS) providing the edge application may be implemented by a domain name system (domain name system, DNS) technology, specifically including: introducing an edge application server discovery function (edge application server discovery function, EASDF) network element into edge calculation, wherein the EASDF can report a DNS message notification according to a DNS message processing rule sent by a session management function (session management function, SMF) network element, and receive client subnet (extension mechanisms for DNS client subnet, ECS) option (option) information of a DNS extension mechanism constructed by the SMF; the EASDF generates ECS option based on client subnet option information of a DNS extension mechanism, and sends a DNS message added with the ECS option to a local DNS server (DNS server) or a central DNS server for service discovery, wherein the ECS option information can be determined by the SMF according to deployment information of edge application.

In the MEC effect deployment scenario, deployment information of edge applications between MNOs may not be interworking, so that appropriate ECS option information cannot be determined.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides a communication method and a communication device, wherein a session management network element can determine client subnet option information of a proper DNS extension mechanism to perform a service discovery process between MNOs.

In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: the method comprises the steps that a session management network element receives a Domain Name System (DNS) query report message, wherein the DNS query report message comprises a first fully-defined domain name, and the first fully-defined domain name is a fully-defined domain name queried by terminal equipment; the session management network element determines client subnet option information of a first DNS expansion mechanism according to the DNS query report message and the first information; the first information comprises identification information of a first mobile network operator, the first information further comprises second information corresponding to the identification information of the first mobile network operator, and the second information comprises the first fully-defined domain name.

According to the method provided by the embodiment of the application, the session management network element can determine the client subnet option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to the received full-limit domain name queried by the terminal equipment and the first information, wherein the first information comprises the identification information of the mobile network operator and the second information corresponding to the identification information of the mobile network operator, and the second information comprises the full-limit domain name queried by the terminal equipment. Alternatively, the session management network element may determine, according to the first information, that the global name queried by the terminal device defines a corresponding first mobile network operator, and then determine client subnet option information of a first DNS extension mechanism related to the first mobile network operator, so as to perform a service discovery procedure between MNOs.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the session management network element receives the first information from an application function network element.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the session management network element determines the first mobile network operator according to the first fully qualified domain name and the first information; the session management network element determines client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementation manners of the first aspect, the session management network element determines a data network access identifier of the first mobile network operator according to the first fully qualified domain name and the first information; the first information includes data network access identification information, and the session management network element determines client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs, and the data network access identification of the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementation manners of the first aspect, the session management network element determines a protocol data unit PDU session anchor in the second mobile network operator according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, where the PDU session anchor is used to transmit a traffic flow of the terminal device.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementation manners of the first aspect, the session management network element receives a DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first edge application server; the session management network element determines a first data network access identifier according to the IP address of the first edge application server; the session management network element determines a protocol data unit PDU session anchor point according to the first data network access identifier, the PDU session anchor point belongs to a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs, and the PDU session anchor point is used for transmitting the service flow of the terminal equipment.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the second information may further include correspondence information between the data network access identifier and an IP address of an edge application server, where the session management network element determines, according to the IP address of the first edge application server and the second information, a data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server, where the data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server is the first data network access identifier, and the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the session management network element determines the first data network access identifier according to configuration information and an IP address of the first edge application server, where the configuration information includes identification information of a first mobile network operator, a correspondence between data network access identifiers and IP addresses, and a data network corresponding to the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the session management network element determines the PDU session anchor according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, and the first data network access identity.

In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: the method comprises the steps that a session management network element receives a Domain Name System (DNS) query report message, wherein the DNS query report message comprises a first fully-defined domain name, and the first fully-defined domain name is a fully-defined domain name queried by terminal equipment; the session management network element determines client subnet option information of a first DNS expansion mechanism according to the DNS query report message and the first information; wherein the first information includes a correspondence of a second fully qualified domain name and client subnet option information of a second DNS extension mechanism, the second fully qualified domain name including the first fully qualified domain name.

It should be noted that the first fully qualified domain name may be a fully qualified domain name of a current mobile network operator (a mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs) or a fully qualified domain name in a first mobile network operator, which is different from the mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs.

According to the method provided by the embodiment of the application, the session management network element receives the full-limit domain name queried by the terminal equipment, and the session management network element can determine the client-side network option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism corresponding to the full-limit domain name queried by the terminal equipment according to the corresponding relation between the second full-limit domain name and the client-side network option information of the second DNS expansion mechanism so as to perform the service discovery process between MNOs. The first fully qualified domain name may be a fully qualified domain name of a current mobile network operator (a mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs) or a fully qualified domain name in other mobile network operators; alternatively, the client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism may be client subnet option information of a DNS extension mechanism associated with the current mobile network operator or client subnet option information of a DNS extension mechanism associated with other mobile network operators.

With reference to the second aspect, in certain embodiments of the second aspect, the session management network element receives the first information from an application function network element.

With reference to the second aspect, in certain implementations of the second aspect, the first information includes a correspondence between the second fully-defined domain name, location area information and client subnet option information of the second DNS extension mechanism, and the session management network element determines the client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the location area information of the terminal device, the first fully-defined domain name and the first information.

With reference to the second aspect, in certain embodiments of the second aspect, the session management network element receives a DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first edge application server; the session management network element determines that the first edge application server belongs to the first mobile network operator according to configuration information, wherein the configuration information comprises the corresponding relation between the identification information of the first mobile network operator and the IP address.

With reference to the second aspect, in certain implementations of the second aspect, the session management network element determines a protocol data unit, PDU, session anchor in the second mobile network operator according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, the PDU session anchor being used for transmitting traffic flows of the terminal device.

With reference to the second aspect, in certain embodiments of the second aspect, the session management network element receives the DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first edge application server; the session management network element determines a first data network access identifier according to the IP address of the first edge application server; the session management network element determines a protocol data unit PDU session anchor point according to the first data network access identifier, the PDU session anchor point belongs to a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs, and the PDU session anchor point is used for transmitting the service flow of the terminal equipment.

With reference to the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the configuration information includes a correspondence between identification information of a first mobile network operator, a data network access identifier, and an IP address, where a data network corresponding to the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator; specifically, the session management network element determines, according to the configuration information, a data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server as the first data network access identifier, where the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the second aspect, in certain implementations of the second aspect, the session management network element determines a protocol data unit PDU session anchor in the second mobile network operator according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, and the first data network access identity.

In a third aspect, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: the application function network element sends first information to the session management network element, so that the session management network element determines client sub-network option information of a first DNS expansion mechanism corresponding to the fully-defined domain name queried by the terminal equipment according to the first information; the first information comprises identification information of a first mobile network operator, the first information further comprises second information corresponding to the identification information of the first mobile network operator, and the second information comprises the first fully-defined domain name; and/or the first information includes a correspondence of a second fully qualified domain name and client subnet option information of a second DNS extension mechanism, the second fully qualified domain name including the first fully qualified domain name.

In a fourth aspect, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: the method comprises the steps that an edge application service discovery function network element receives a DNS query message sent by terminal equipment, wherein the DNS query message comprises a first fully-defined domain name; the edge application service discovery function network element determines that the mobile network operator corresponding to the first full-limit domain name is the first mobile network operator according to a DNS processing rule, wherein the DNS processing rule comprises identification information of the first mobile network operator and second information corresponding to the first mobile network operator, and the second information comprises the first full-limit domain name; the edge application service discovery function network element sends a DNS query report message to the session management network element, where the DNS query report message carries identification information of the first mobile network operator.

According to the communication method provided by the application, the edge application service discovery function network element can determine the identification information of the mobile network element operator corresponding to the full-limit domain name queried by the terminal equipment according to the DNS processing rule, and the edge application service discovery function network element can send the identification information of the mobile network operator corresponding to the full-limit domain name queried by the terminal equipment to the session management network element through the DNS query report message, so that the session management network element can determine the client terminal network option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism to perform the service discovery process between MNOs.

With reference to the fourth aspect, in certain implementations of the fourth aspect, the identification information of the first mobile network operator is used by the session management network element to determine client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism.

With reference to the fourth aspect, in certain implementations of the fourth aspect, the edge application service discovery function network element receives the DNS handling rules from the session management network element.

In a fifth aspect, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: the session management network element receives a DNS query report message from the edge application service discovery function network element, wherein the DNS query report message carries the identification information of the first mobile network operator; the session management network element determines client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the DNS query report message.

With reference to the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the identification information of the first mobile network operator is determined according to DNS processing rules, and the method further includes: the session management network element sends the DNS processing rule to the edge application service discovery function network element, where the DNS processing rule includes identification information of a first mobile network operator, and second information corresponding to the first mobile network operator, where the second information includes a first fully-defined domain name, and the first fully-defined domain name is a fully-defined domain name queried by the terminal device.

With reference to the fifth aspect, in certain implementation manners of the fifth aspect, the session management network element receives first information from an application function network element, the session management network element determines the DNS processing rule according to the first information, the first information includes identification information of the first mobile network operator, and the second information corresponding to the first mobile network operator, and the second information includes the first fully defined domain name.

With reference to the fifth aspect, in some implementations of the fifth aspect, the determining, by the session management network element, client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the DNS query report message includes: the session management network element obtains network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs according to the identification information of the first mobile network operator; and determining client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the network deployment information.

With reference to the fifth aspect, in some implementations of the fifth aspect, the session management network element obtains network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs according to the identification information of the first mobile network operator; and determining a protocol data unit PDU session anchor point in the second mobile network operator according to the network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, wherein the PDU session anchor point is used for transmitting the service flow of the terminal equipment.

With reference to the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the session management network element receives a DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first edge application server; the session management network element determines a first data network access identifier according to the IP address of the first edge application server; the session management network element is used for determining a protocol data unit PDU session anchor point according to the first data network access identifier, the PDU session anchor point belongs to a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs, and the PDU session anchor point is used for transmitting the service flow of the terminal equipment.

With reference to the fifth aspect, in some implementations of the fifth aspect, the second information may further include correspondence information between the data network access identifier and an IP address of an edge application server, where the session management network element determines, according to the IP address of the first edge application server and the second information, a data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server, where the data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server is the first data network access identifier, and the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the fifth aspect, in some implementations of the fifth aspect, the session management network element determines the first data network access identifier according to configuration information and an IP address of the first edge application server, where the configuration information includes identification information of a first mobile network operator, a correspondence between data network access identifiers and IP addresses, and a data network corresponding to the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the session management network element determines the PDU session anchor according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, and the first data network access identity.

In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, where the device includes a transceiver unit configured to receive a DNS query report message of a domain name system, where the DNS query report message includes a first fully-defined domain name, and the first fully-defined domain name is a fully-defined domain name queried by a terminal device; the processing unit is used for determining client subnet option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to the DNS query report message and the first information; the first information comprises identification information of a first mobile network operator, the first information further comprises second information corresponding to the identification information of the first mobile network operator, and the second information comprises the first fully-defined domain name.

According to the device provided by the embodiment of the application, the processing unit can determine the client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the received fully qualified domain name queried by the terminal device and the first information, where the first information includes identification information of the mobile network operator and second information corresponding to the identification information of the mobile network operator, and the second information includes the fully qualified domain name queried by the terminal device. Alternatively, the processing unit may determine, according to the first information, that the global name queried by the terminal device defines a corresponding first mobile network operator, and then determine client subnet option information of a first DNS extension mechanism related to the first mobile network operator, so as to perform a service discovery procedure between MNOs.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the transceiver unit is specifically configured to receive the first information from an application function network element.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the processing unit is specifically configured to determine the first mobile network operator according to the first fully qualified domain name and the first information; and determining client subnet option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and a second mobile network operator to which the device belongs.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in certain embodiments of the sixth aspect, the processing unit is specifically configured to determine a data network access identifier of the first mobile network operator according to the first fully qualified domain name and the first information, where the first information includes data network access identifier information; and determining client sub-network option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs and the data network access identifier of the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the processing unit is specifically configured to determine a protocol data unit PDU session anchor in the second mobile network operator according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, where the PDU session anchor is used to transmit a traffic flow of the terminal device.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive a DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first edge application server; the processing unit is further configured to determine a first data network access identifier according to the IP address of the first edge application server; the processing unit is further configured to determine a PDU session anchor according to the first data network access identifier, where the PDU session anchor belongs to a second mobile network operator to which the device belongs, and the PDU session anchor is used to transmit a service flow of the terminal device.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the second information may further include correspondence information between the data network access identifier and an IP address of an edge application server, and the processing unit is specifically configured to determine, according to the IP address of the first edge application server and the second information, a data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server, where the data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server is the first data network access identifier, and the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the processing unit is specifically configured to determine the first data network access identifier according to configuration information and an IP address of the first edge application server, where the configuration information includes identification information of a first mobile network operator, a correspondence between data network access identifiers and IP addresses, and a data network corresponding to the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the processing unit is specifically configured to determine the PDU session anchor according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, and the first data network access identifier.

In a seventh aspect, there is provided a communication apparatus comprising: the receiving and transmitting unit is used for receiving a Domain Name System (DNS) query report message, wherein the DNS query report message comprises a first full-limit domain name which is a full-limit domain name queried by terminal equipment; the processing unit is used for determining client subnet option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to the DNS query report message and the first information; wherein the first information includes a correspondence of a second fully qualified domain name and client subnet option information of a second DNS extension mechanism, the second fully qualified domain name including the first fully qualified domain name.

It should be noted that the first fully qualified domain name may be a fully qualified domain name of a current mobile network operator or a fully qualified domain name in a first mobile network operator, the first mobile network operator being different from the current mobile network operator.

According to the device provided by the embodiment of the application, the receiving and transmitting unit receives the full-limit domain name queried by the terminal device, and the processing unit can determine the client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism corresponding to the full-limit domain name queried by the terminal device according to the corresponding relation between the second full-limit domain name and the client subnet option information of the second DNS extension mechanism, so as to perform a service discovery process between MNOs.

With reference to the seventh aspect, in some implementations of the seventh aspect, the transceiver unit is specifically configured to receive the first information from an application function network element.

With reference to the seventh aspect, in certain implementations of the seventh aspect, the first information includes a correspondence between the second fully-defined domain name, location area information and client subnet option information of the second DNS extension mechanism, and the processing unit is specifically configured to determine the client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the location area information of the terminal device, the first fully-defined domain name and the first information.

With reference to the seventh aspect, in some implementations of the seventh aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive a DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first edge application server; the processing unit is further configured to determine that the first edge application server belongs to the first mobile network operator according to configuration information, where the configuration information includes a correspondence between identification information of the first mobile network operator and an IP address.

With reference to the seventh aspect, in certain implementations of the seventh aspect, the processing unit is specifically configured to determine a protocol data unit PDU session anchor in the second mobile network operator according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, where the PDU session anchor is used to transmit a traffic flow of the terminal device.

With reference to the seventh aspect, in some implementations of the seventh aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive the DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first edge application server; the processing unit is further configured to determine a first data network access identifier according to the IP address of the first edge application server; the processing unit is further configured to determine a PDU session anchor according to the first data network access identifier, where the PDU session anchor belongs to a second mobile network operator to which the device belongs, and the PDU session anchor is used to transmit a service flow of the terminal device.

With reference to the seventh aspect, in some implementations of the seventh aspect, the configuration information includes a correspondence between identification information of a first mobile network operator, a data network access identifier, and an IP address, where a data network corresponding to the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator; the processing unit is specifically configured to determine, according to the configuration information, that a data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server is the first data network access identifier, where the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the seventh aspect, in certain implementations of the seventh aspect, the processing unit is specifically configured to determine a protocol data unit PDU session anchor in the second mobile network operator according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, and the first data network access identifier.

In an eighth aspect, there is provided a communication apparatus comprising: the receiving and transmitting unit is used for transmitting first information to the session management network element so that the session management network element can determine client sub-network option information of a first DNS expansion mechanism corresponding to the fully-defined domain name inquired by the terminal equipment according to the first information; the first information comprises identification information of a first mobile network operator, the first information further comprises second information corresponding to the identification information of the first mobile network operator, and the second information comprises the first fully-defined domain name; and/or the first information includes a correspondence of a second fully qualified domain name and client subnet option information of a second DNS extension mechanism, the second fully qualified domain name including the first fully qualified domain name.

In a ninth aspect, there is provided a communication apparatus comprising: the receiving and transmitting unit is used for receiving a DNS query message sent by the terminal equipment, wherein the DNS query message comprises a first full-limit domain name; a processing unit, configured to determine that a mobile network operator corresponding to the first full-defined domain name is the first mobile network operator according to a DNS processing rule, where the DNS processing rule includes identification information of the first mobile network operator, and second information corresponding to the first mobile network operator, and the second information includes the first full-domain name definition; the receiving and transmitting unit is further configured to send a DNS query report message to the session management network element, where the DNS query report message carries identification information of the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the ninth aspect, in certain implementations of the ninth aspect, the identification information of the first mobile network operator is used by the session management network element to determine client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism.

With reference to the ninth aspect, in some implementations of the ninth aspect, the transceiver unit is specifically configured to receive the DNS processing rule from the session management network element.

In a tenth aspect, there is provided a communication apparatus comprising: the receiving and transmitting unit is used for receiving a DNS query report message from the edge application service discovery function network element, wherein the DNS query report message carries the identification information of the first mobile network operator; and the processing unit is used for determining client subnet option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to the DNS query report message.

With reference to the tenth aspect, in some implementations of the tenth aspect, the identification information of the first mobile network operator is determined according to a DNS processing rule, and the transceiver unit is further configured to send the DNS processing rule to the edge application service discovery function network element, where the DNS processing rule includes identification information of the first mobile network operator, and second information corresponding to the first mobile network operator, where the second information includes a first fully-defined domain name, and the first fully-defined domain name is a fully-defined domain name queried by the terminal device.

With reference to the tenth aspect, in some implementations of the tenth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to determine, by the session management network element according to the DNS query report message, client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism includes: the session management network element obtains network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs according to the identification information of the first mobile network operator; and determining client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the network deployment information.

With reference to the tenth aspect, in some implementations of the tenth aspect, the transceiver unit is specifically configured to obtain network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs according to the identification information of the first mobile network operator; and determining client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the network deployment information.

With reference to the tenth aspect, in certain implementations of the tenth aspect, the processing unit is further configured to determine a protocol data unit PDU session anchor in the second mobile network operator according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, where the PDU session anchor is used to transmit a traffic flow of the terminal device.

With reference to the tenth aspect, in certain implementation manners of the tenth aspect, the transceiver unit is further configured to receive a DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first edge application server; the processing unit is further configured to determine a first data network access identifier according to the IP address of the first edge application server, determine a protocol data unit PDU session anchor according to the first data network access identifier, where the PDU session anchor belongs to a second mobile network operator to which the device belongs, and the PDU session anchor is used to transmit a service flow of the terminal device.

With reference to the tenth aspect, in some implementations of the tenth aspect, the second information may further include correspondence information between the data network access identifier and an IP address of an edge application server, and the processing unit is further configured to determine, according to the IP address of the first edge application server and the second information, a data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server, where the data network access identifier corresponding to the first edge application server is the first data network access identifier, and the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the tenth aspect, in some implementations of the tenth aspect, the processing unit is specifically configured to determine the first data network access identifier according to configuration information and an IP address of the first edge application server, where the configuration information includes identification information of a first mobile network operator, a correspondence between data network access identifiers and IP addresses, and a data network corresponding to the first data network access identifier belongs to the first mobile network operator.

With reference to the tenth aspect, in certain implementations of the tenth aspect, the processing unit is further configured to determine the PDU session anchor according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator, and the first data network access identifier.

In an eleventh aspect, a communication device is provided that includes a processor. The processor is coupled to the memory and operable to execute instructions in the memory to implement the functionality of the session management network element in any of the possible implementations of the first aspect or the second aspect or the fifth aspect. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a memory. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a communication interface, the processor being coupled to the communication interface.

In one implementation, the apparatus is a session management network element. When the device is a session management network element, the communication interface may be a transceiver, or an input/output interface.

In another implementation, the apparatus is a chip configured in a session management network element. When the device is a chip configured in a session management network element, the communication interface may be an input/output interface.

Alternatively, the transceiver may be a transceiver circuit. Alternatively, the input/output interface may be an input/output circuit.

In a twelfth aspect, a communications apparatus is provided that includes a processor. The processor is coupled to the memory and is operable to execute instructions in the memory to implement the functions of the application function network element of the third aspect. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a memory. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a communication interface, the processor being coupled to the communication interface.

In one implementation, the apparatus is an application function network element. When the device is an application function network element, the communication interface may be a transceiver, or an input/output interface.

In another implementation, the apparatus is a chip configured in an application function network element. When the device is a chip configured in an application function network element, the communication interface may be an input/output interface.

In a thirteenth aspect, a communications apparatus is provided that includes a processor. The processor is coupled to the memory and is operable to execute instructions in the memory to implement the functionality of the edge application service discovery function network element in any one of the possible implementations of the fourth aspect and the fourth aspect. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a memory. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a communication interface, the processor being coupled to the communication interface.

In one implementation, the apparatus discovers a functional network element for an edge application service. When the apparatus is an edge application service discovery function network element, the communication interface may be a transceiver, or an input/output interface.

In another implementation, the apparatus is a chip configured in an edge application service discovery function network element. When the apparatus is a chip configured in an edge application service discovery function network element, the communication interface may be an input/output interface.

In a fourteenth aspect, there is provided a processor comprising: input circuit, output circuit and processing circuit. The processing circuit is configured to receive a signal via the input circuit and transmit a signal via the output circuit, such that the processor performs the method of any one of the first to fifth aspects or any one of the possible implementations of any one of the first to fifth aspects.

In a specific implementation process, the processor may be a chip, the input circuit may be an input pin, the output circuit may be an output pin, and the processing circuit may be a transistor, a gate circuit, a trigger, various logic circuits, and the like. The input signal received by the input circuit may be received and input by, for example and without limitation, a receiver, the output signal may be output by, for example and without limitation, a transmitter and transmitted by a transmitter, and the input circuit and the output circuit may be the same circuit, which functions as the input circuit and the output circuit, respectively, at different times. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific implementation manner of the processor and the various circuits.

In a fifteenth aspect, an apparatus is provided that includes a processor and a memory. The processor is configured to read instructions stored in the memory and is configured to receive a signal via the receiver and to transmit a signal via the transmitter to perform the method of any one of the first to fifth aspects or any one of the possible implementations of any one of the first to fifth aspects.

Optionally, the processor is one or more, and the memory is one or more.

Alternatively, the memory may be integrated with the processor or the memory may be separate from the processor.

In a specific implementation process, the memory may be a non-transient (non-transitory) memory, for example, a Read Only Memory (ROM), which may be integrated on the same chip as the processor, or may be separately disposed on different chips.

It should be appreciated that the related data interaction process, for example, transmitting the indication information, may be a process of outputting the indication information from the processor, and the receiving the capability information may be a process of receiving the input capability information by the processor. Specifically, the data output by the processing may be output to the transmitter, and the input data received by the processor may be from the receiver. Wherein the transmitter and receiver may be collectively referred to as a transceiver.

The apparatus in the fifteenth aspect may be a chip, the processor may be implemented by hardware or may be implemented by software, and when implemented by hardware, the processor may be a logic circuit, an integrated circuit, or the like; when implemented in software, the processor may be a general-purpose processor, implemented by reading software code stored in a memory, which may be integrated in the processor, or may reside outside the processor, and exist separately.

In a sixteenth aspect, there is provided a computer program product comprising: a computer program (which may also be referred to as code, or instructions) which, when executed, causes a computer to perform the method of any one of the first to fifth aspects or any one of the possible implementations of any one of the aspects.

In a seventeenth aspect, there is provided a computer readable medium storing a computer program (which may also be referred to as code, or instructions) which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of any one of the first to fifth aspects or any one of the possible implementations of any one of the first to fifth aspects.

In an eighteenth aspect, there is provided a chip system comprising a processor for calling and running a computer program from a memory, such that a device in which the chip system is installed performs the method of any one of the above-mentioned first to fifth aspects or any one of the possible implementations of any one of the aspects.

A nineteenth aspect provides a communication system comprising one or more of a session management network element, an edge application service discovery function network element, a terminal device, and an application function network element as in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect or any one of the possible implementation forms of any one of the third aspect or the third aspect.

A twentieth aspect provides a communication system comprising one or more of a session management network element, an edge application service discovery function network element, a terminal device, and an application function network element as in any one of the fourth or fifth aspects or any one of the possible implementations of any one of the aspects.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a system architecture diagram to which embodiments of the present application are applicable.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of an edge service architecture according to an embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a scenario in which embodiments of the present application are applicable

Fig. 4 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 400 provided herein.

Fig. 5 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 500 provided herein.

Fig. 6 is a schematic flow chart diagram of a communication method 600 provided herein.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 8 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device provided in another embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of a chip system according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

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

Wireless communication systems mentioned in embodiments of the present application include, but are not limited to: global system for mobile communications (global system of mobile communication, GSM), long term evolution (long term evolution, LTE) frequency division duplex (frequency division duplex, FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (time division duplex, TDD), LTE system, long term evolution-Advanced (LTE-a) system, next generation communication system (e.g., 6G communication system), a converged system of multiple access systems, or evolved system.

The technical solutions provided herein may also be applied to machine-type communication (machine type communication, MTC), inter-machine communication long term evolution technology (Long Term Evolution-machine, LTE-M), device-to-device (D2D) networks, machine-to-machine (machine to machine, M2M) networks, internet of things (internet of things, ioT) networks, or other networks. The IoT network may include, for example, an internet of vehicles. The communication modes in the internet of vehicles system are generally called as vehicle to other devices (V2X, X may represent anything), for example, the V2X may include: vehicle-to-vehicle (vehicle to vehicle, V2V) communication, vehicle-to-infrastructure (vehicle to infrastructure, V2I) communication, vehicle-to-pedestrian communication (vehicle to pedestrian, V2P) or vehicle-to-network (vehicle to network, V2N) communication, etc.

Fig. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an example wireless communication system architecture suitable for use in the present application, which may include, as shown, the following network elements:

1. (radio) access network (R) AN: an access network implementing access network functions based on wireless communication technology may be referred to as a radio access network. The radio access network can manage radio resources, provide access service for the terminal, and further complete the forwarding of control signals and user data between the terminal and the core network.

The radio access network device according to the present application may be a device having a radio transceiver function. The radio access network device may be a device that provides wireless communication functionality services, typically located on the network side, including but not limited to: next generation base stations (gndeb, gNB) in the fifth generation (5th generation,5G) communication system, next generation base stations in the sixth generation (6th generation,6G) mobile communication system, base stations in the future mobile communication system, access nodes in the WiFi system, and the like, evolved Node bs (enbs) in the LTE system, radio network controllers (radio network controller, RNC), node Bs (NB), base station controllers (base station controller, BSC), home base stations (e.g., home evolved NodeB, or home Node bs, HNBs), base Band Units (BBU), transmission reception points (transmission reception point, TRP), transmission points (transmitting point, TP), base transceiver stations (base transceiver station, BTS), and the like. In one network architecture, the access network device may include a Centralized Unit (CU) node, or a Distributed Unit (DU) node, or a RAN device including a CU node and a DU node, or a control plane CU node and a user plane CU node, and a RAN device of a DU node. The access network device provides services for a cell, and the user equipment communicates with the base station through transmission resources (e.g., frequency domain resources, or spectrum resources) used by the cell, where the cell may be a cell corresponding to the base station (e.g., a base station), and the cell may belong to a macro base station or a base station corresponding to a small cell (small cell), where the small cell may include: urban cells (metro cells), micro cells (micro cells), pico cells (pico cells), femto cells (femto cells) and the like, and the small cells have the characteristics of small coverage area and low transmitting power and are suitable for providing high-rate data transmission services. The wireless access network device may be a macro base station, a micro base station or an indoor station, a relay node or a donor node, a device in the V2X communication system for providing wireless communication service for the user device, a wireless controller in a cloud wireless access network (cloud radio access network, CRAN) scenario, a relay station, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a network device in a future evolution network, and the like. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technology and the specific device configuration adopted by the radio access network device.

2. User plane function network element (user plane function, UPF): quality of service (quality of service, qoS) handling, etc. for packet routing and forwarding, or user plane data. User data may be accessed to a Data Network (DN) through the network element.

3. Data Network (DN): for providing a network for transmitting data.

4. Access and mobility management function network element (access and mobility management function, AMF): for mobility management and access management etc., may be used to implement other functions than session management among the mobility management entity (mobility management entity, MME) functions, such as lawful interception, or access authorization/authentication etc.

5. Session management function network element (session management function, SMF): the method is mainly used for session management, network interconnection protocol (internet protocol, IP) address allocation and management of terminal equipment, terminal node for selecting manageable user plane functions, strategy control and charging function interfaces, downlink data notification and the like.

6. Network open network element (network exposure function, NEF): mainly for securely opening to the outside the services and capabilities provided by the third generation partnership project (3 GPP) network functions, etc.

7. Policy control network element (policy control function, PCF): a unified policy framework for guiding network behavior, providing policy rule information for control plane function network elements (e.g., AMF, SMF network elements, etc.), and the like.

8. -application function network element (application function, AF): the method is used for carrying out data routing of application influence, accessing network elements with open functions of the network, interacting with a policy framework to carry out policy control and the like.

In addition, the network architecture further comprises a network slice selection function network element (network slice selection function, NSSF) for managing information related to the network slice; and the network storage function network element (network repository function, NRF) is used for storing the network function entity and the description information of the service provided by the network function entity, supporting the functions of service discovery, network element entity discovery and the like.

In the network architecture, an N2 interface is an interface of RAN and AMF network elements, and is used for sending non-access stratum (NAS) messages and the like; the N3 interface is an interface between the RAN and the UPF network element and is used for transmitting data of a user plane and the like; the N4 interface is an interface between the SMF network element and the UPF network element, and is used for transmitting information such as tunnel identification information, data buffer indication information, downlink data notification message, and the like of the N3 connection.

It will be appreciated that the network elements or functions described above may be either network elements in a hardware device, software functions running on dedicated hardware, or virtualized functions instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform).

For convenience of explanation, the following description will take an access management function network element as an AMF network element, a session management network element as an SMF network element, and a policy control network element as a PCF network element as an example.

Further, the AMF network element may be abbreviated as AMF, the SMF network element may be abbreviated as SMF, and the PCF network element may be abbreviated as PCF. That is, the AMFs described later in this application may be replaced by access management function network elements, the SMFs may be replaced by session management network elements, and the PCFs may be replaced by policy control network elements.

For convenience of explanation, the method for information transmission will be described by taking the device as an AMF entity, an SMF entity, and a PCF entity as examples, and for the implementation method in which the device is a chip in the AMF entity, a chip in the SMF entity, or a chip in the PCF entity, reference may be made to specific descriptions in which the device is an AMF entity, an SMF entity, and a PCF entity, respectively, and description will not be repeated.

In the network architecture shown in fig. 1, the UE is connected to the AMF through an N1 interface, the RAN is connected to the AMF through an N2 interface, and the RAN is connected to the UPF through an N3 interface.

The UPFs are connected through an N9 interface, and are interconnected with a Data Network (DN) through an N6 interface.

The SMF controls the UPF through the N4 interface.

In fig. 1, N2, N3, N4, etc. are interface serial numbers. The meaning of these interface serial numbers can be found in the meaning defined in the current standard protocol, without limitation.

It should be understood that the network architecture applied to the embodiments of the present application is merely an exemplary network architecture described from the perspective of a conventional point-to-point architecture and a service architecture, and the network architecture to which the embodiments of the present application are applicable is not limited thereto, and any network architecture capable of implementing the functions of the respective network elements described above is applicable to the embodiments of the present application.

Fig. 2 shows a schematic diagram of a system architecture or scenario applied by an embodiment of the present application, and the system may also be regarded as that support for Edge Computing (EC) may be introduced in the above network architecture.

To facilitate understanding of the technical solution of the present application, a brief description will be first made of a protocol data unit (protocol data unit, PDU) session (session).

A PDU session refers to a process of communication between a UE and a DN, and after the PDU session is established, a data transmission channel between the UE and the DN is established. Each PDU session supports one PDU session type (e.g., IPv4, IPv6, IPv4v6, ethernet, unstructured) one PDU session may possess multiple PDU session anchors (anchors), for support of selectable routing functions to DNs and support of traffic and session continuity (service and session continuity, SSC) mode (mode) 3, smf may control data routing of the PDU session so that this PDU session may have multiple N6 interfaces at the same time, UPF for each N6 interface may be referred to as PDU session anchor (PDU session anchor, PSA) multiple PSA for a single PDU session may have the following two implementations:

Mode one: an uplink classifier (uplink classifier, UL CL) is used in one PDU session.

The SMF may insert an upstream classifier "UL CL" in the data transmission path of the PDU session, and the UL CL "function may be provided in the UPF, with the purpose of forwarding the data packets satisfying the traffic filtering rules to the designated path, similar to the role of the routing table. Insertion and deletion of "UL CL" is controlled by the SMF, which can operate on the UPF through the N4 interface, although the SMF also looks at the UPF capabilities, i.e. whether the UPF supports "UL CL". When a "UL CL" is inserted into a PDU session data channel, the PDU session has multiple PSAs that provide multiple different paths to access the same DN. The function of the UL CL is to forward the uplink traffic data to different PSAs according to the filter requirements, and combine the downlink data from multiple PSAs of the UE.

Fig. 2 can be seen as a scenario where one PDU session has two PSAs. The uplink classifier (UL CL) is inserted on the UPF of the N3 interface termination point, the anchor point (PSA 1) and the anchor point (PAS 2) are terminated on the N6 interface, and the uplink classifier UPF and the anchor point UPF are transmitted through the N9 interface.

Mode two: using IPv6 multi-homing (PDU session);

One PDU session may be associated with multiple IPv6 prefixes, a so-called multi-homed PDU session. A multi-homed PDU session may access one data network DN through multiple PSAs. The data channels corresponding to each PSA are eventually converged into a common UPF, which has a "branching point" (BP) function, called a branching point UPF. The branching point UPF forwards the uplink packet to different PSAs and merges the data from each PSA downward. The branch point UPF may be used for billing statistics, rate control. The SMF controls insertion or removal of the branching point at the UPF through the N4 interface, and of course, also see the capability of the UPF, i.e., whether the UPF supports the branching point function.

Fig. 2 can be seen as a scenario where one PDU session has two PSAs, and a common UPF can transmit upstream data to different PSAs, e.g., PSA1 and PAS2; the common UPF may also combine the data from the individual PSAs.

In the system architecture described in fig. 2, a UPF (UL CL/BP) may represent a UPF providing UL CL functionality or a common UPF, i.e. the UPF may transmit upstream data to different PSAs, e.g. PSA1 and PSA2, where the data channels corresponding to the respective PSAs are all converged at the UPF and downstream data is combined to the UE.

In 4G and previous traditional mobile network architectures and deployments, user plane devices basically follow a tree topology deployment. The uplink user message passes through the access network equipment and the backhaul network, and finally accesses the data network through the anchor point gateways which are deployed in a centralized way, and the anchor point gateways are generally deployed at higher positions in the network, such as a central machine room of a large area. The topology structure is relatively simple, and the operators can conduct centralized service control and message processing at the anchor points. With the explosive growth of mobile traffic, this deployment approach becomes increasingly difficult to support with rapidly growing mobile traffic models. On one hand, in the network with centralized deployment of anchor gateways, the increased flow is finally concentrated at the gateways and the core machine room, and higher requirements are put on the backhaul network bandwidth, the machine room throughput and the gateway specification; on the other hand, the long-distance backhaul network and the complex transmission environment from the access point to the anchor gateway result in a large delay and jitter of user message transmission.

Based on the above background, the industry has proposed the concept of edge computing EC. The EC realizes the local processing of distributed service traffic by downwards moving UPF and service processing capacity to the network edge, and avoids excessive concentration of traffic, thereby greatly reducing the specification requirements on a core machine room and a concentrated gateway, reducing end-to-end (E2E) time delay and jitter of user messages, and enabling the deployment of ultra-low time delay services to be possible.

In an EC deployment scenario, certain traffic may be served by a plurality of edge application servers (edge application server, EAS) deployed in an edge data network (edge data network, EDN). EAS may also be referred to as an application instance, edge application instance, MEC application (server), EAS function, etc. The edge application may specifically refer to a server application (e.g., social media software, augmented reality (augmented reality, AR), virtual Reality (VR)) deploying instances (instances) running on the EDN. An application may deploy one or more EAS in one or more EDNs, deploying EAS running in different EDNs may be considered as different EAS of an application, they may share a domain name, or may use different domain names with applications deployed on the cloud, which may be fully qualified domain names (fully qualified domain name, FQDN), may use an anycast internet protocol (internet protocol, IP) address, or may use different IP addresses.

The edge data network EDN may be a local data network, where the local DN may be understood as an access point of a data network closer to the attachment point of the user, and the data network refers to a service network of an operator or a third party, and may provide services such as an operator service or an internet service for the user equipment. The local DN may be identified by a data network access identifier (data network access identifier, DNAI) and a data network name (data network name, DNN).

When a UE needs to access a certain service, the EC scenario requires it to access available EAS that are closer to the UE. Thus, the UE needs to acquire the IP address of the appropriate EAS. Third generation partnership project (3) ^rd generation partnership project,3 GPP) defines a new network element that assists in discovering EAS, an edge application service discovery function network element (edge application server discovery function, EASDF) that functions primarily to process domain name system (domain name system, DNS) messages according to the SMF's instructions.

The process of EAS discovery using EASDF is: in the session establishment procedure, after the SMF selects EASDF, the SMF may send a DNS processing rule to the EASDF through a PDU session, where the DNS processing rule may include at least one of range information of a FQDN, EASIP address range information, and DNS server identifier (identifier) information; wherein the FQDN range and EASIP address range may represent deployment situations of edge services, and if the FQDN or EAS IP of a service is within the above ranges, it indicates that the service is deployed at a local edge. When the EASDF receives a DNS query (query) sent by the UE, the FQDN contained in the DNS query may be matched to the FQDN range described above, and if so, the EASDF sends a DNS message report to the SMF and obtains a constructed EDNS client subnet (EDNS Client Subnet, ECS) option (option) from the SMF. Wherein the ECS is a new protocol supported by DNS services that appends a user IP address in a DNS request packet. In this way, the DNS server can return to the user's closer server IP address based on the user's IP address rather than the IP address of the recursive server, enabling the client to achieve near access. The EASDF adds ECS option to the DNS query and forwards to the DNS server. After receiving the DNS response from the DNS server, the EASDF matches the EAS IP address contained in the DNS response with the range of the EAS IP address, and if the range is within the range, the EASDF sends a DNS message report to the SMF; the SMF inserts "UL CL" or "BP" accordingly, and instructs the EASDF to forward DNS response to the UE, thereby completing discovery of local traffic.

The foregoing briefly describes the process of EAS discovery using EASDF, and for a better understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the terms or terminology referred to herein will be briefly described.

1. MEC alliance (relationship)

MEC federation refers to that a federation (federation) is formed among MEC platforms belonging to a plurality of mobile network operators (mobile network operator, MNOs), so as to support operations such as sharing and coordination of resources among the operators, and the whole federation can be managed uniformly by a federation management (federation manager) function. The MEC effect architecture defined by the global system for mobile communications (GSMA) organization is shown in fig. 3. An federation is formed between a plurality of operator platforms (operator platform), edge applications of an application service provider (application service provider, ASP) can be deployed in some of the operator platforms in the MEC federation, and the edge applications can be accessed by end users accessing other operator platforms of the federation.

Taking the scenario of actual deployment of MEC scenario as an example, as shown in (a) of fig. 3, in some areas, mno#1 does not deploy its own MEC platform, but rather deploys the MEC platform by means of mno#2, and ASP deploys only the MEC application at mno#2. In this scenario, the end user of MNO #1 can access the edge application with the best edge location at MNO # 2. Alternatively, as shown in fig. 3 (b), both mno#1 and mno#2 deploy their own MEC platforms, but the ASP deploys MEC applications only on mno#2's platform. In this scenario, the end user of MNO #1 can also access the edge application with the best edge location at MNO # 2. Wherein the MEC platform can be understood as AF.

In the MEC feature deployment scenario, the deployment information of the edge applications in the MNOs may not be interworking, for example, the deployment information of the EAS may include the deployment situation of the EAS in the Local DN indicated by each DNAI, that is, the EAS deployment information is specific to each DNAI, and the DNAI information is a character string defined by each MNO itself, which is not unique. Therefore, mno#1 may not recognize EAS deployment information of another mno#2, so that when a terminal in mno#1 wants a device to access an edge application in mno#2, a session management network element in mno#1 cannot select an appropriate ECS option, where the appropriate ECS option is used for a DNS server to return an edge application server address in mno#2 that is closer to the terminal device, which may cause an edge application failure of an end user of mno#1 to access mno#2, affecting a service experience of the user.

In view of this, the present application provides a communication method, which may enable a session management network element to determine a client subnet option of a suitable DNS extension mechanism to perform a service discovery procedure between MNOs, so as to improve a service experience of a user.

In order to facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the following description is made.

First, the first, second, and various numerical numbers (e.g., "#1", "#2", etc.) shown in the present application are for convenience of description only, and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application for distinguishing objects. For example, to distinguish between different MNOs, etc. Rather than to describe a particular order or sequence. It is to be understood that the objects so described may be interchanged under appropriate circumstances so as to be able to describe aspects other than the embodiments of the application.

Second, in this application, "preset" may include predefined, e.g., protocol definitions. The "pre-configuration" may be implemented by pre-storing a corresponding code, a table, or other means that may be used to indicate relevant information in a device (including, for example, a terminal device or a network device), which is not limited to a specific implementation manner.

Third, references to "save" in embodiments of the present application may refer to saving in one or more memories. The one or more memories may be provided separately or may be integrated in an encoder or decoder, processor, or communication device. The one or more memories may also be provided separately in part, and integrated in the decoder, processor, or communication device. The type of memory may be any form of storage medium, and this application is not limited in this regard.

The following embodiments of the present application, in which a terminal device is described by taking a user equipment UE as an example, are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 4 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 400 provided in an embodiment of the present application. The method 400 may include the following steps.

S410, the session management function network element SMF obtains the first information.

Specifically, the first information may include identification information of the mobile network operator (mobile network operator, MNO) and second information corresponding to the identification information of the MNO. The MNO identification information may be, for example, a public land mobile network (public land mobile network, PLMN) Identification (ID) of the MNO, or the MNO identification information may also be an MNOID, an MNO name, etc. defined by each MNO of the disclosure.

Wherein the second information includes FQDNs, i.e., range information of FQDNs, corresponding to the applications supported in the EAS. The FQDNs corresponding to the applications supported in the EAS include a first FQDN, where the first FQDN is an FQDN queried by the terminal device, that is, the second information includes the first FQDN.

Optionally, the second information may further include at least one of the following information: EAS IP address range, DNAI corresponding to EAS IP address range.

As one possible implementation, this second information may be referred to as EAS deployment information.

As another possible implementation, the first information is referred to as EAS deployment information, i.e., identification information of the MNO is carried in the EAS deployment information. The second information is other information in the EAS deployment information than the identification information of the MNO, for example, the second information includes FQDN corresponding to an application running in the EAS, an EAS IP address range, and the like.

Or specifically, the first information may include information of a correspondence (which may also be understood as a "mapping relationship") between the second FQDN and ECS option information, where the correspondence information is used by the SMF to determine the ECS option information according to the received FQDN information. At least one FQDN may be included in the second FQDN, which may belong to a different MNO, and the second FQDN includes the first FQDN.

For example, the first information includes fqdn#1 and fqdn#2, the fqdn#1 and fqdn#2 corresponding to one or more ECS option, respectively, and the fqdn#1 and fqdn#2 may belong to different MNOs.

Optionally, the first information may further include correspondence information of the second FQDN, location area information, and ECS option information. The location area information may include, for example, cell identification information, tracking area identification (tracking area identity, TAI) information, or geographic location information (e.g., province, city, district, or latitude and longitude, etc.), or data network access identification (Data Network Access Identifier, DNAI) information.

The second FQDN may include at least one FQDN, and each FQDN of the at least one FQDN may correspond to at least one location area information, respectively, which corresponds to one or more ECS option information, respectively.

For example, the first information includes fqdn#1 and fqdn#2, fqdn#1 corresponding to Location area#1 and Location area#2,Location area#1 corresponding to ECS option#1,Location area#2 corresponding to ECS option#2; FQDN#2 corresponds to Location area#3,Location area#3 corresponds to ECS option#3, and the first information can be expressed as: { fqdn#1: (Location area #1: < ECS option #1>; location area #2: < ECS option #2 >); fqdn#2: (Location area #3: < ECS option #3 >) }.

It should be understood that the above representation of the first information is merely illustrative, and is not limited thereto, and any modification pertaining to the above representation of the first information is applicable to the present application. For example, the above first information may also be represented in the form of a table.

In the present application, the ECS option information is information for determining the ECS option. The ECS option information may specifically be ECS option, or other information for determining ECS option, for example, IP address information for determining ECS option, which is not limited in this application.

In one possible implementation, the SMF may obtain the first information from the NEF or PCF, the first information coming from the AF network element.

For example, the SMF may send information #1 to the NEF, and accordingly, the SMF receives information #2 from the NEF, and the first information may be included in the information # 2. The information #1 may be nnef_easliployment_ Subscribe Request or nsmf_easliployment_notifyrequest, and the information #2 may be nnef_easliployment_ Subscribe Response or nsmf_easliployment_notifyresponse, which is not limited in this application.

For another example, the SMF may also send a request to the PCF to obtain a policy and charging control rule (policy and charging control, PCC) rule (rule), and accordingly, the SMF receives a PCC rule from the PCF, where the PCC rule carries the first information.

Optionally, the method may further include S420, where the SMF determines DNS handling rules.

Specifically, the SMF may determine a DNS processing rule according to the first information. The DNS handling rules are used by the EASDF to handle the corresponding DNS message, which may include two parts: DNS detection information and DNS message handling actions. The DNS detection information is used for matching the DNS message, and if the DNS message is matched with the DNS detection information, the DNS processing rule can be considered to be applicable to the DNS message; the DNS message processing actions may include one or more of the following: reporting DNS information, reporting the content in the DNS, caching the DNS information and forwarding the DNS information.

The SMF determining a DNS handling rule according to the first information may be understood as that the SMF determines a DNS handling rule, and DNS detection information in the DNS handling rule includes part or all of the content in the first information.

In one possible scenario, the DNS detection information may include one or more of the following: FQDN, EAS IP address range, DNAI, etc. Specifically, the DNS detection information may include one or more of the following: the FQDN corresponding to the application program supported in the EAS, and the range of the EAS IP address, the DNAI corresponding to the range of the EAS IP address.

In another possible case, the DNS detection information may further include identification information of an MNO, where the identification information of the MNO has a correspondence relationship with other information in the DNS detection information. It should be understood that other information herein refers to FQDN, EAS IP address range, DNAI, etc. mentioned above and will not be described in detail.

Optionally, the method may further include S430, the SMF sending the DNS handling rules to the EASDF.

Before the SMF sends the DNS handling rules to the EASDF, the UE may initiate an Application (APP) to initiate a session establishment procedure or reuse the UE's existing session to establish a user plane connection between the UE and the UPF. During the PDU session establishment procedure, the SMF may select EASDF. In the embodiment of the present application, the specific implementation manner of starting the APP by the UE, initiating the session establishment procedure, and selecting the EASDF by the SMF is not limited, and reference may be made to the description in the related art at present.

The SMF may send a DNS context setup Request message (which may be, for example, neasdf DNSContext Create Request) to the selected EASDF, including the DNS processing rule.

S440, the EASDF sends a DNS query report message to the SMF, and accordingly, the SMF receives the DNS query report message.

Before the EASDF sends a DNS query report message to the SMF, the EASDF receives a DNS query request message sent by the UE, wherein the DNS query request message carries the first FQDN. The EASDF may send a DNS query report message to the SMF based on the DNS processing rule, where the DNS query report message may be a neasdf_dnscontext_notify Request, and the DNS query report message carries the first FQDN.

Optionally, if in S420 the DNS processing rule determined by the SMF includes the identification information of the MNO, the method may further include S441, where the EASDF determines, according to the DNS processing rule, the MNO corresponding to the first FQDN (an example of the first MNO) before the EASDF sends the DNS query report message to the SMF. Accordingly, the DNS query report message sent by the EASDF to the SMF may further include identification information of the first MNO.

S450, the SMF determines first ECS option information.

In one possible implementation manner, if the DNS query report message carries the identifier information of the MNO (an example of the first MNO) corresponding to the first FQDN, the SMF may determine the first ECS option information according to the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO.

Optionally, the SMF may also determine whether the first MNO is a second MNO to which the SMF belongs.

If the SMF determines that the first MNO is the second MNO, the SMF determines the first ECS option information and the subsequent service discovery procedure may refer to the existing related art.

If the SMF determines that the first MNO is different from the second MNO, the SMF may determine the first ECS option information according to network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO after determining the first MNO. Wherein the first MNO and the second MNO are MNOs in MEC creation.

In particular, the network deployment information may be used to characterize network connection topology information between a first MNO and a second MNO, for example, the network deployment information includes information of a UPF (first UPF) in the first MNO and information of a UPF (second UPF) in the second MNO having a network connection with the first UPF, and for example, the network deployment information may also include information of DNAI of the first MNO and information of DNAI of the second MNO having a network connection with the first MNO or DNAI of the second MNO; the network deployment information may also include network connection performance information, such as data transmission latency, bandwidth, distance between the first UPF and the second UPF, and the like. The above description of the network deployment information using the UPF information as granularity is merely an example, and does not limit the application, and the network deployment information may further include information of communication nodes represented by other granularities, for example, granularity of DNAI and granularity of local DNs. That is, the communication nodes having network connections in the first MNO and the second MNO can be known from the network deployment information, and the network connection performance information between the communication nodes can be known.

It should be understood that the network deployment information may also have other names, and the application is not limited to how to refer to the network deployment information, for example, the network deployment information may also be referred to as network connection information or network configuration information, etc.

Illustratively, the SMF determining the first ECS option information may include: the SMF may select, according to the network deployment information, the IP address information of the first UPF in the first MNO that is closer to the second UPF in the second MNO as information for determining the first ECS option, that is, first ECS option information; for another example, the SMF may select, according to the network deployment information, the IP address information of the first UPF in the first MNO to be the first ECS option information, where the IP address information is closer to the local DN of the second MNO.

Optionally, the SMF may further query DNAI (second DNAI) in the first MNO corresponding to the first FQDN according to the first information, where the first information includes second information corresponding to the first MNO, and the second information may include DNAI corresponding to an EAS IP address range, as described in S410. The SMF determining the first ECS option information may further include: the SMF determines the first ECS option information based on network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the second DNAI.

Illustratively, the SMF may select, according to the network deployment information, the IP address information of the first UPF that is closer to the second UPF in the second MNO in the second DNAI to be information for determining the first ECS option, that is, determine the first ECS option information.

In another possible implementation manner, if the DNS query report message does not carry the identification information of the first MNO corresponding to the first FQDN, the SMF first determines, according to the first FQDN and the first information, the identification information of the MNO (an example of the first MNO) corresponding to the first FQDN.

Specifically, the SMF may query the first FQDN from FQDNs corresponding to applications supported in the EAS of the first information, and determine identification information of a first MNO corresponding to the first FQDN.

After the SMF determines the identification information of the first MNO corresponding to the first FQDN, a process of the SMF determining the first ECS option information is described above, which is not described herein.

In another possible implementation manner, the first information includes a correspondence between the second FQDN and ECS option information (second ECS option information), the second FQDN includes the first FQDN, and the SMF queries, according to the first information, the ECS option information corresponding to the first FQDN, that is, determines the first ECS option information.

Optionally, if the first information includes a correspondence between the second FQDN, location area information, and ECS option information, the SMF may determine the location area information of the terminal device, and query, from the first information, ECS option information corresponding to the first FQDN and the location area information of the terminal device, that is, determine the first ECS option information.

Subsequently, the SMF may send the first ECS option information to the EASDF. Furthermore, the EASDF may add the first ECS option to the DNS query message and forward the first ECS option to the DNS server, where the first ECS option carries an IP address information, and the IP address information may reflect current location information of the UE, so that the DNS server may return, according to the first ECS option, an address of an edge application server that is closer to the terminal device in the first MNO.

Further, the method may further comprise S460, the SMF determining a local PDU session anchor (L-PSA) in the second MNO, the L-PSA being for transmitting traffic flows of the terminal device.

In one possible implementation, the SMF receives a DNS response report message sent by the EASDF, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first EAS, and it is understood that the FQDN of the application supported on the first EAS includes the first FQDN; the SMF may determine, according to the IP address of the first EAS and the first information, a local DN corresponding to the first EAS in the first MNO (the local DN is indicated by DNAI), that is, the SMF may determine, according to the IP address of the first EAS and the first information, a first DNAI corresponding to the first EAS; the SMF determines the L-PSA based on network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the first DNAI.

Specifically, as described in S410, the first information includes second information corresponding to the first MNO, where the second information may include DNAI corresponding to the EAS IP address range; the SMF may query the DNAI corresponding to the IP address of the first EAS, i.e., determine the first DNAI; illustratively, the SMF determining the L-PSA from the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the first DNAI may include: the SMF can select a second UPF which is closer to a first UPF in a local DN corresponding to the first DNAI in the second MNO according to the network deployment information as L-PSA; in yet another example, the SMF may select, as the L-PSA, a second UPF with a smaller communication latency than a first UPF in a local DN corresponding to the first DNAI in the second MNO according to the network deployment information.

In another possible implementation, the SMF may determine the L-PSA from the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO after receiving a DNS response report message sent by the EASDF. Illustratively, the SMF may select a second UPF of the second MNO that is closer to the first UPF of the first MNO as the L-PSA.

In another possible implementation manner, the SMF receives a DNS response report message sent by the EASDF, where the DNS response report message includes the IP address of the first EAS; the SMF may also determine the L-PSA based on the IP address of the first EAS, and the configuration information. The configuration information may include a correspondence between an IP address and identification information of an MNO, where the identification information of the MNO includes identification information of the first MNO.

Specifically, the SMF may determine an MNO (first MNO) corresponding to the IP address of the first EAS according to the IP address of the first EAS and the configuration information; the SMF determines the L-PSA from the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO. The SMF determines the L-PSA from the network deployment information as described above and will not be described in detail herein.

Optionally, the configuration information may further include an IP address, identification information of the MNO, and correspondence information of DNAI. The SMF may determine DNAI (first DNAI) corresponding to the IP address of the first EAS, and a corresponding first MNO according to the IP address of the first EAS and the configuration information; the SMF determines the L-PSA based on network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the first DNAI. The SMF determines the L-PSA according to the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the first DNAI, as described above, and will not be described herein.

It should be noted that the configuration information may be preconfigured in the SMF, or the SMF may also obtain the configuration information from other network elements, for example, obtain the configuration information from the AF. The SMF may acquire the configuration information through a signaling exchange procedure for acquiring the first information, or the SMF may acquire the configuration information through a separate signaling exchange procedure.

According to the method provided by the embodiment of the application, the session management function network element can determine the first ECSoption information according to the first information provided by the application function network element, so that the problem that the ECS option construction is affected due to the fact that deployment information of edge applications in a plurality of MNOs are not mutually communicated is avoided, and therefore a service discovery process can be carried out between the MNOs.

The communication method provided in the present application is specifically described below by taking fig. 5 and 6 as examples. It should be understood that the terms and steps used in the various embodiments of the disclosure may be referenced to one another.

Fig. 5 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application, where in the communication method shown in fig. 5, the first information may include identification information of an MNO. The method comprises at least the following steps.

S510, the SMF acquires the first information.

Specifically, the first information may include identification information of the MNO, and second information corresponding to the identification information of the MNO. The identification information of the MNO and the second information are similar to those in S410, and are not described herein.

The SMF may obtain the first information from the NEF or PCF, the first information originating from the AF network element. The SMF may refer to S410 for a specific manner of acquiring the first information.

S520, the SMF generates DNS processing rules according to the first information.

The DNS handling rules are used by the EASDF to handle the corresponding DNS message, which may include two parts: DNS detection information and DNS message handling actions. The DNS detection information and DNS message processing action can be specifically referred to the description in S420.

The SMF generating the DNS processing rule according to the first information may be understood as that the SMF generates the DNS processing rule, where the DNS detection information may include part or all of the content included in the first information. Reference is made in particular to possible implementations in S420.

S530, the SMF sends the DNS handling rule to the EASDF.

The SMF may send a DNS context setup Request message (which may be, for example, neasdf dnscontext_create Request) to the EASDF, including DNS processing rules; accordingly, the EASDF sends a DNS context setup Response message (which may be, for example, neasdf_dnscontext_create Response) to the SMF. Subsequently, when DNS message handling rules need to be updated, the SMF may also interact with the EASDF to update DNS handling rules on the EASDF.

In the embodiment of the present application, the case where the DNS processing rule needs to be updated is not limited, and may be that related information used for establishing the DNS message processing rule on the EASDF is changed, or other cases are not described herein.

S540, the UE sends a DNS query request message to the EASDF, and correspondingly, the EASDF receives the DNS query request message.

Specifically, the DNS query request message may be sent to the EASDF through the RAN, UPF. The DNS query request message may carry the FQDN of the APP, that is, the FQDN queried by the terminal device (an example of the first FQDN).

S551, the EASDF sends a DNS query report message to the SMF, and accordingly, the SMF receives the DNS query report message.

After receiving the DNS query Request message from the UE, the EASDF may send a DNS query report message to the SMF based on the DNS processing rule, e.g., the DNS query report message may be a neasdf_dnscontext_notify Request. The DNS inquiry report message comprises the first FQDN; optionally, the DNS query report message may further include type information of a DNS message, where the type information of the DNS message may be, for example, a DNS query message or a DNS response message.

Optionally, if in S520 the DNS processing rule generated by the SMF includes the identification information of the MNO, the method may further include S552, where the EASDF determines the MNO (an example of the first MNO) corresponding to the first FQDN according to the DNS processing rule. Accordingly, the DNS query report message sent by the EASDF to the SMF may further include identification information of the first MNO.

Optionally, the method may further include S553, where the SMF determines an MNO (an example of the first MNO) corresponding to the first FQDN according to the DNS query report message and the first information.

Specifically, the SMF may determine the first FQDN according to the DNS query report message, and the SMF may query an MNO corresponding to the first FQDN from the first information.

It may be appreciated that if the SMF determines the MNO corresponding to the first FQDN, the DNS processing rule generated in S520 may not include the identification information of the MNO.

That is, in the embodiment of the present application, the EASDF may determine the first MNO corresponding to the first FQDN according to a DNS processing rule, where the DNS processing rule includes identification information of the MNO; alternatively, the MNO corresponding to the first FQDN may be determined by the SMF according to the first information and the first FQDN. The MNO corresponding to the first FQDN may be a second MNO to which the SMF belongs, or may be another MNO in an MEC effect scene formed with the second MNO, for example, the first MNO.

If the MNO corresponding to the first FQDN is the second MNO, the subsequent service discovery procedure may refer to the existing related art.

If the MNO corresponding to the first FQDN is a first MNO, the method may further include S560, where the SMF determines first ECS option information according to network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO.

The SMF determines the first ECS option information according to the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and may refer to S450, which is not described herein.

Optionally, the SMF may further determine ECS option according to the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and location information of the terminal device, where the location information of the terminal device is in a specific form, for example, geographical location information, tracking Area (TA) information, and L-PSA related to a location of the terminal device. For example, the SMF may determine, according to the network deployment information, that the IP address of the second UPF in the second MNO is information for determining the first ECS option, that is, the first ECS option information, is closer to the location of the terminal device.

According to the method provided by the embodiment of the application, the SMF can construct the ECS option according to the first information provided by the application function network element, so that the UE can access the EAS in other MNOs in the MEC option, and the service experience of the user is improved.

S570, the SMF sends the first ECS option information to the EASDF, and accordingly, the EASDF receives the first ECS option information.

Specifically, the SMF may send an updated DNS handling rule to the EASDF, the updated DNS handling rule including the first ECS option information. For example, the SMF sends a DNS context Update Request message (neasdf_dnscontext_update Request) to the EASDF, where the DNS context Update Request message carries the first ECS option information.

S580, the EASDF interacts with the DNS server to make DNS queries.

Specifically, this step may include S581, the EASDF sending a DNS query message to the DNS server, where the DNS query message includes the first ECS option. Accordingly, the DNS server receives the DNS query message, and the DNS server may select an IP address of the EAS corresponding to the DNS query message according to the stored correspondence between the network location information and the EAS server, and the current location information of the UE included in the first ECS option. S582, the DNS server sends a DNS response message to the EASDF, including the IP address information of the selected EAS (an example of the first EAS IP address); accordingly, the EASDF receives the DNS response message.

S590, the EASDF sends a DNS response report message to the SMF; accordingly, the SMF receives the DNS response report message.

The DNS response report message may be, for example, neasdf DNSContext Notify. The DNS response report message carries the IP address of the first EAS.

Optionally, the method may further include S5100, the SMF determining, according to the DNS response report message and the first information, an L-PSA in the second MNO, where the L-PSA is used to transmit a traffic flow of the UE.

In one possible implementation, the SMF determines the L-PSA from the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, the L-PSA being used to transmit traffic flows for the UE. Illustratively, the SMF may select a UPF of the second MNO that is closer to the UPF of the first MNO as the L-PSA.

In another possible implementation, the SMF receives a DNS response report message sent by the EASDF, where the DNS response report message includes the IP address of the first EAS; the SMF may determine, according to the IP address of the first EAS and the first information, a local DN corresponding to the first EAS in the first MNO (the local DN is indicated by DNAI), that is, the SMF may determine, according to the IP address of the first EAS and the first information, a first DNAI corresponding to the first EAS; the SMF determines the L-PSA based on network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the first DNAI.

As described in S410, the first information includes second information corresponding to the first MNO, where the second information may include DNAI corresponding to the EAS IP address range; the SMF may query the DNAI corresponding to the IP address of the first EAS, i.e., determine the first DNAI; illustratively, the SMF determining the L-PSA from the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the first DNAI may include: the SMF can select a second UPF which is closer to a first UPF in a local DN corresponding to the first DNAI in the second MNO according to the network deployment information as L-PSA; in yet another example, the SMF may select, as the L-PSA, a second UPF with a smaller communication latency than a first UPF in a local DN corresponding to the first DNAI in the second MNO according to the network deployment information.

Optionally, the method may further include S5110, where the SMF issues a processing manner for the DNS response message to the EASDF, and instructs the EASDF to return the DNS response message to the UE.

Subsequently, the SMF may use the selected L-PSA to establish a PDU session that accesses the edge service.

Fig. 6 is a schematic flow chart diagram of another communication method 600 provided herein. In the communication method shown in fig. 6, the first information may include correspondence information between FQDNs corresponding to applications supported on EAS and ECS options. The method comprises at least the following steps.

S610, the SMF acquires the first information.

The first information may include correspondence information between the second FQDN and ECS option information, where the correspondence information is used by the SMF to determine the ECS option information according to the received FQDN information. At least one FQDN may be included in the second FQDN, which may belong to a different MNO, and the second FQDN includes the first FQDN. Illustratively, the first information includes fqdn#1 and fqdn#2, the fqdn#1 and fqdn#2 corresponding to one or more ECS option information, respectively, the fqdn#1 and fqdn#2 belonging to different MNOs.

Optionally, the first information may further include correspondence information of the second FQDN, the location area information, and the ECS option information, which is similar to that in S410.

Optionally, the first information may further include second information, where the second information includes at least one of FQDN (range information of FQDN) corresponding to the application supported in EAS, and EAS IP address range, DNAI corresponding to the EAS IP address range. Wherein, the FQDN corresponding to the application running in the EAS includes a first FQDN. This second information may be referred to as EAS deployment information.

S620, the SMF determines DNS processing rules.

The DNS handling rules are for the EASDF to handle the corresponding DNS message, and include DNS detection information and DNS message handling actions. The DNS detection information may include at least one of range information of the FQDN, EAS IP address range information, and DNAI corresponding to the EAS IP address range.

S630, the SMF sends the DNS handling rules to the EASDF.

This step is similar to S430 in that the UE may initiate a session establishment procedure or reuse the UE' S existing session to establish a user plane connection between the UE and the UPF prior to the SMF and EASDF interactions. During the PDU session establishment procedure, the SMF may select EASDF.

The SMF may send a DNS context setup request message to the selected EASDF including DNS processing rules. Subsequently, when DNS message handling rules need to be updated, the SMF may also interact with the EASDF to update DNS handling rules on the EASDF.

S640, the UE sends a DNS query request message to the EASDF, and accordingly, the EASDF receives the DNS query request message.

Similar to S540, the DNS query information may carry the FQDN of the APP, that is, the FQDN queried by the terminal device (an example of the first FQDN).

S650, the EASDF sends a DNS query report message to the SMF, and accordingly, the SMF receives the DNS query report message.

After receiving the DNS query Request message from the UE, the EASDF may report information related to the DNS query Request message to the SMF based on the DNS processing rule, i.e., send the DNS query report message to the SMF (e.g., the DNS query report message may be a neasdf_dnscontext_notify Request). The DNS query report message includes the first FQDN.

And S660, the SMF determines first ECS option information according to the DNS query report message and the first information.

Specifically, the SMF may determine the first FQDN according to the DNS query report message, and select ECS option information corresponding to the first FQDN according to the first information, that is, the SMF determines the first ECS option information. As described in S610, the first information includes correspondence information between a second FQDN and ECS option information, and the second FQDN includes the first FQDN; or, the SMF may determine the first FQDN according to the DNS query report message, and select ECS option information corresponding to the first FQDN and location information of the terminal device according to the first information, where the first information includes a second FQDN, location area information, and correspondence information of the ECS option information, and the second FQDN includes the first FQDN. The first ECS option information may carry an IP address information, where the IP address information may reflect current location information of the UE.

According to the method provided by the embodiment of the application, the SMF can select the ECS option according to the first information provided by the application function network element, so that the UE can access the EAS in other MNOs in the MEC option, and the service experience of the user is improved.

S670, the SMF sends the first ECS option information to the EASDF, and correspondingly, the EASDF receives the first ECS option information.

Specifically, the SMF may send an updated DNS handling rule to the EASDF, the updated DNS handling rule including the first ECS option information. Illustratively, the SMF may send updated DNS processing rules to the EASDF by sending a DNS context Update Request message (Neasdf_DNSContext_update Request).

S680, the EASDF interacts with the DNS server to make DNS queries.

Specifically, this step may include S681, where the EASDF sends a DNS query message to the DNS server, where the DNS query message includes the first ECS option. The DNS server may select an IP address of an EAS (an example of the first EAS) server corresponding to the DNS query message according to the correspondence between the stored network location information and the EAS server and the current location information of the UE included in the first ECS option. S682, the DNS server sends a DNS response message to the EASDF, including the IP address of the first EAS.

S690, the EASDF sends a DNS response report message to the SMF.

After receiving the DNS response message from the DNS server, the EASDF matches the FQDN or the IP range of EAS contained in the DNS response, and if the DNS response message is in the FQDN range or the EAS IP range, the EASDF sends a DNS response report message to the SMF, where the DNS response report message includes the IP address information of the first EAS.

S6100, the SMF determines the L-PSA in the second MNO according to the DNS response report message, wherein the L-PSA is used for transmitting the service flow of the UE.

Specifically, the SMF may determine, according to the configuration information, an MNO (an example of a first MNO) to which the IP address of the first EAS carried in the DNS response report message belongs, where the MNO to which the first EAS belongs is different from the second MNO to which the SMF belongs.

In one possible implementation manner, the configuration information may include a correspondence between an IP address and identification information of an MNO, where the identification information of the MNO includes identification information of the first MNO. For example, the correspondence between the identification information of the MNO and the IP address range information may be a one-to-one relationship, that is, the identification information of one MNO corresponds to one IP address range, or the correspondence between the identification information of the MNO and the IP address range information may be a one-to-many relationship, that is, the identification information of one MNO may correspond to a plurality of IP address ranges. For example, the correspondence may be expressed as (MNO#1: < IP range#1>; MNO#2: < IP range#2 >); as another example, the correspondence may be expressed as (MNO#1: < IP range#1, IP range#2>; MNO#2: < IP range#3 >).

The SMF may determine an MNO (first MNO) corresponding to the IP address of the first EAS according to the configuration information; the SMF determines the L-PSA from the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO. Illustratively, the SMF may select a UPF of the second MNO that is closer to the UPF of the first MNO as the L-PSA.

In another possible implementation, the configuration information may include an IP address, identification information of an MNO, and correspondence information of DNAI. Illustratively, the correspondence may be: the MNO's identification information may correspond to at least one DNIA, and each of the at least one DNAI may correspond to at least one IP address range information. For example, the correspondence may be expressed as: { mno#1: (dnai#1: < IP range#1, IP range#2 >); mno#1: (dnai#2: < IP range#3 >); mno#2: (dnai#3: < IP range#4 >) }.

The SMF may determine DNAI (first DNAI) corresponding to the IP address of the first EAS and MNO (first MNO) corresponding to the IP address of the first EAS according to the IP address of the first EAS and the configuration information; the SMF determines the L-PSA based on network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the first DNAI. Illustratively, the SMF determining the L-PSA from the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the first DNAI may include: the SMF can select a second UPF which is closer to a first UPF in a local DN corresponding to the first DNAI in the second MNO according to the network deployment information as L-PSA; in yet another example, the SMF may select, as the L-PSA, a second UPF with a smaller communication latency than a first UPF in a local DN corresponding to the first DNAI in the second MNO according to the network deployment information.

In yet another possible implementation, if the first information includes second information, the second information includes DNAI corresponding to the EAS IP address range. The SMF may determine a DNAI (first DNAI) corresponding to the IP address of the first EAS according to the information of the DNAI corresponding to the EAS IP address range; the SMF determines the L-PSA based on network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and DNAI (first DNAI) corresponding to the first EAS. The SMF determines the L-PSA from the network deployment information between the first MNO and the second MNO, and the first DNAI, as described above.

It should be noted that, the configuration information may be preconfigured in the SMF, or the SMF may also obtain the configuration information from other network elements, for example, obtain the configuration information from the AF, where the SMF may obtain the configuration information through a signaling interaction procedure for obtaining the first information, or the SMF may also obtain the configuration information through a separate signaling interaction procedure.

Optionally, the method may further include S6110, where the SMF issues a processing manner for the DNS response message to the EASDF, and instructs the EASDF to return the DNS response message to the UE. Subsequently, the SMF may use the selected L-PSA to establish a PDU session that accesses the edge service.

It should be understood that in embodiments of the present application, "at least one" means one or more, "at least two" and "a plurality" means two or more. "and/or", describes an association relationship of an association object, and indicates that there may be three relationships, for example, a and/or B, and may indicate: a alone, a and B together, and B alone, wherein a, B may be singular or plural. The character "/" generally indicates that the context-dependent object is an "or" relationship. "at least one of" or the like means any combination of these items, including any combination of single item(s) or plural items(s). For example, at least one (one) of a, b, and c may represent: a, b, or c, or a and b, or a and c, or b and c, or a, b and c, wherein a, b and c can be single or multiple. It should also be appreciated that the specific examples in the embodiments of the present application are intended only to help those skilled in the art to better understand the embodiments of the present application and do not limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application.

It should be further understood that the sequence numbers of the above processes do not mean the order of execution, and the order of execution of the processes should be determined by the functions and the internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

It is also to be understood that in the various embodiments of the application, terms and/or descriptions of the various embodiments are consistent and may be referenced to one another in the absence of a particular explanation or logic conflict, and that the features of the various embodiments may be combined to form new embodiments in accordance with their inherent logic relationships.

It will be appreciated that in the above embodiments of the present application, the method implemented by the communication device may also be implemented by a component (e.g. a chip or a circuit) that may be configured inside the communication device.

The communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application is described in detail above with reference to fig. 4 to 6. The above communication method is mainly described in terms of interaction between network elements. It will be appreciated that each network element, in order to implement the above-described functions, includes corresponding hardware structures and/or software modules that perform each function. Those of 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 hardware or combinations of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is implemented as hardware or computer software driven hardware depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the solution. 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 following describes in detail the communication device provided in the embodiment of the present application with reference to fig. 7 to 9. It should be understood that the descriptions of the apparatus embodiments and the descriptions of the method embodiments correspond to each other, and thus, descriptions of details not shown may be referred to the above method embodiments, and for the sake of brevity, some parts of the descriptions are omitted.

Fig. 7 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 700 provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 7, the communication apparatus 700 may include: a transceiver unit 710 and a processing unit 720. The transceiving unit 710 may be used to implement corresponding communication functions. The transceiver unit 710 may also be referred to as a communication interface or a communication unit. The processing unit 720 may be configured to implement a corresponding processing function, for example, determining ECS option information.

In one possible design, the communication device 700 may be a session management network element in the above method embodiment, or may be a chip for implementing the function of the session management network element in the above method embodiment.

Optionally, the apparatus 700 further includes a storage unit, where the storage unit may be configured to store instructions and/or data, and the processing unit 720 may read the instructions and/or data in the storage unit, so that the apparatus implements the actions of the device or the network element in the foregoing method embodiments.

It is to be understood that the communication device 700 may correspond to a session management network element in the method 400 or the method 500 or the method 600 according to embodiments of the present application, and that the communication device 700 may comprise a method element for performing the session management network element in the method 400 in fig. 4, a method element for performing the SMF in the method 500 in fig. 5, a method element for performing the SMF in the method 600 in fig. 6. And, each unit in the communication device 700 and the other operations and/or functions described above are respectively for implementing the respective flows of the method 400 in fig. 4 to the method 600 in fig. 6. The transceiver unit 710 may be configured to perform operations related to the transceiver of the session management network element in the above method embodiment, and the processing unit 720 may be configured to perform operations related to the processing of the session management network element in the above method embodiment.

Specifically, in a first possible implementation manner, the transceiver unit 710 is configured to receive first information, where the first information may include identification information of an MNO, and second information corresponding to the identification information of the MNO, where the second information includes a second FQDN, and the second FQDN includes an FQDN (first FQDN) queried by the terminal device; or, the first information may include correspondence information between a second FQDN and ECS option information, where the second FQDN may include at least one FQDN, and the at least one FQDN may belong to a different MNO, and the second FQDN includes the first FQDN. Optionally, the first information may further include correspondence information of the second FQDN, location area information, and ECS option information.

The receiving and transmitting unit is further configured to receive a DNS query report message, where the DNS query report message carries the first FQDN.

And a processing unit 720, configured to determine the first ecsocket information according to the first information and the DNS query report message. Optionally, the processing unit is further configured to determine, according to the first information and the DNS query report message, identification information of a first MNO corresponding to the first FQDN.

Optionally, the transceiver unit 710 is further configured to receive a DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message carries the IP address information of the first EAS.

Optionally, the processing unit 720 is further configured to determine a PDU session anchor point in the current mobile network operator according to the first information and the DNS response report message.

Optionally, the processing unit 720 is further configured to determine a first DNAI to which the first EAS belongs according to the first information and the DNS response report message.

Optionally, the processing unit is further configured to determine a first MNO corresponding to the first FQDN according to the DNS response report message and configuration information, where the configuration information includes corresponding care information of the IP address and identification information of the MNO.

In a second possible implementation manner, the transceiver unit 710 is configured to receive the first information; the transceiver unit 710 is further configured to send DNS processing rules to the edge application service discovery function network element, where the DNS processing rules carry identification information of the MNO.

The receiving and transmitting unit is further configured to receive a DNS query report message, where the DNS query report message carries the first FQDN and identification information of a first MNO corresponding to the first FQDN, where the identification information of the first MNO corresponding to the first FQDN is determined by using an edge application service discovery functional network element. The processing unit 720 is configured to determine first ECS option information according to the DNS query report message.

In another possible design, the communication device 700 may be an edge application service discovery function network element in the above method embodiment, or may be a chip for implementing the function of the edge application service discovery function network element in the above method embodiment.

It is to be understood that the communication device 700 may correspond to an edge application service discovery function network element in the method 400 or the method 500 or the method 600 according to embodiments of the present application, and that the communication device 700 may comprise a method element for performing the edge application service discovery function network element in the method 400 in fig. 4, a method element for performing the EASDF in the method 500 in fig. 5, a method element for performing the EASDF in the method 600 in fig. 6. And, each unit in the communication device 700 and the other operations and/or functions described above are respectively for implementing the respective flows of the method 400 in fig. 4 to the method 600 in fig. 6.

Specifically, the transceiver unit 710 is configured to receive a DNS query message sent by a terminal device, where the DNS query message includes a first FQDN; the processing unit 720 is configured to determine an MNO (first MNO) corresponding to the first FQDN according to a DNS processing rule, where the DNS processing rule includes identification information of the first MNO, and second information corresponding to the first MNO, and the second information includes the first FQDN; the transceiver unit 710 is further configured to send a DNS query report message to the session management network element, where the DNS query report message carries the identification information of the first MNO.

Optionally, the transceiver unit 710 is further configured to receive the DNS processing rule from the session management network element.

Optionally, the transceiver unit is further configured to send a DNS response report message to the session management network element, where the DNS response report message carries IP address information of the first EAS, and the DNS response report message is used by the session management network element to determine a PDU session anchor point in the current mobile network operator.

It should be understood that the specific process of each unit performing the corresponding steps has been described in detail in the above method embodiments, and is not described herein for brevity.

In yet another possible design, the communication device 700 may be an application function network element in the above method embodiment, the communication device includes a transceiver unit 710, and the communication device 700 may also be a chip for implementing the function of the application function network element in the above method embodiment.

It is to be understood that the communication device 700 may correspond to the application function network elements in the methods 400 to 600 according to embodiments of the present application, and that the communication device 700 may comprise means for performing the methods performed by the application function network elements in the methods 400 to 600 in fig. 4 to 6. And, each unit in the communication device 700 and the other operations and/or functions described above are respectively for implementing the respective flows of the method 400 in fig. 4 to the method 600 in fig. 6. It should be understood that the specific process of each unit performing the corresponding steps has been described in detail in the above method embodiments, and is not described herein for brevity.

It should also be appreciated that the transceiver unit 710 in the communication apparatus 700 may correspond to the transceiver 820 in the communication device 800 shown in fig. 8. The processing unit 720 in the communication apparatus 700 may correspond to the processor 810 in the communication device 800 shown in fig. 8.

It should also be appreciated that when the communication device 700 is a chip, the chip includes a transceiver unit. The chip may also comprise a processing unit, for example. The receiving and transmitting unit can be an input and output circuit or a communication interface; the processing unit may be an integrated processor or microprocessor or an integrated circuit on the chip.

The transceiver unit 710 is configured to perform a transceiver operation of a signal of the communication device 700, and the processing unit 720 is configured to perform a processing operation of the signal of the communication device 700.

Illustratively, the communications device 700 further includes a storage unit 730, the storage unit 730 configured to store instructions.

As shown in fig. 8, an embodiment of the present application provides another apparatus 800 for communication. The apparatus 800 comprises a processor 810, the processor 810 being adapted to execute computer programs or instructions stored in a memory 820 or to read data/signaling stored in the memory 820 for performing the methods in the method embodiments above. Optionally, the processor 810 is one or more.

Optionally, as shown in fig. 8, the apparatus 800 further comprises a memory 820, the memory 820 being for storing computer programs or instructions and/or data. The memory 820 may be integral with the processor 810 or may be separate. Optionally, the memory 820 is one or more. The apparatus 800 further comprises a transceiver 830, the transceiver 830 being adapted to receive and/or transmit signals. For example, the processor 88 is configured to control the transceiver 830 to receive and/or transmit signals.

One possible design is for the apparatus 800 to implement the operations performed by the session management network element in the various method embodiments above. The processor 810 is configured to execute computer programs or instructions stored in the memory 820 to implement the relevant operations of the session management network element in the method embodiments above.

In another possible design, the apparatus 800 is configured to implement the operations performed by the edge application service discovery function network element in the method embodiments above. Processor 810 is configured to execute computer programs or instructions stored in memory 820 to perform the operations associated with the edge application service discovery function network elements in the various method embodiments described above.

Still another possible design, the apparatus 800 is configured to implement the operations performed by the application function network element in the method embodiments above. Processor 810 is configured to execute computer programs or instructions stored in memory 820 to perform the relevant operations of the application function network elements in the various method embodiments described above.

It should be appreciated that the processors referred to in the embodiments of the present application may be central processing units (central processing unit, CPU), but may also be other general purpose processors, digital signal processors (digital signal processor, DSP), application specific integrated circuits (application specific integrated circuit, ASIC), off-the-shelf programmable gate arrays (field programmable gate array, FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, or the like. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may be any conventional processor or the like.

It should also be understood that the memories mentioned in the embodiments of the present application may be volatile memories and/or nonvolatile memories. The nonvolatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a Programmable ROM (PROM), an Erasable PROM (EPROM), an electrically Erasable EPROM (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory may be random access memory (random access memory, RAM). For example, RAM may be used as an external cache. By way of example, and not limitation, RAM includes the following forms: static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), synchronous DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct memory bus RAM (DR RAM).

It should be noted that when the processor is a general purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware components, the memory (storage module) may be integrated into the processor.

It should also be noted that the memory described herein is intended to comprise, without being limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

The embodiments of the present application also provide a computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer instructions for implementing the methods in the above-described method embodiments.

For example, the computer program when executed by a computer may enable the computer to implement the method performed by the session management network element, or the method performed by the edge application function network element, or the method performed by the application function network element in the embodiments of the method described above.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed by a computer, implement the methods of the method embodiments described above.

The embodiment of the application also provides a communication system, which comprises one or more of the session management network element, the edge application function network element, the application function network element and the terminal equipment.

The explanation and beneficial effects of the related content in any of the above-mentioned devices can refer to the corresponding method embodiments provided above, and are not repeated here.

Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of a chip system according to an embodiment of the present application. The chip system here can also be a system of circuits. The chip system 900 shown in fig. 9 includes: logic 910 for coupling with an input interface through which data is transferred to perform the methods described in fig. 4-6, and an input/output interface 920.

The embodiment of the application also provides a processing device, which comprises a processor and an interface. The processor may be used to perform the methods of the method embodiments described above.

It should be understood that the processing means may be a chip. For example, the processing device may be a field programmable gate array (field programmable gate array, FPGA), an application specific integrated chip (application specific integrated circuit, ASIC), a system on chip (SoC), a central processing unit (central processor unit, CPU), a network processor (network processor, NP), a digital signal processing circuit (digital signal processor, DSP), a microcontroller (micro controller unit, MCU), a programmable controller (programmable logic device, PLD) or other integrated chip.

In implementation, the steps of the above method may be performed by integrated logic circuits of hardware in a processor or by instructions in the form of software. The steps of a method provided in connection with the embodiments of the present application may be embodied directly in a hardware processor or in a combination of hardware and software modules in a processor. The software modules may be located in a random access memory, flash memory, read only memory, programmable read only memory, or electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, etc. as well known in the art. The storage medium is located in a memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory and, in combination with its hardware, performs the steps of the above method. To avoid repetition, a detailed description is not provided herein.

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 solution. 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.

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

In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices, and methods may be implemented in other manners. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative, e.g., the division of the units is merely a logical function division, and there may be additional divisions when actually implemented, e.g., multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted or not performed. Alternatively, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed with each other may be an indirect coupling or communication connection via some interfaces, devices or units, which may be in electrical, mechanical or other form.

The units described as separate units may or may not be physically separate, and units shown 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 may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated in one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units may be integrated in 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 may be embodied essentially or in a part contributing to the prior art or in a part of the technical solution, in the form of a software product stored in a storage medium, including several instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the methods described in the embodiments of the present application. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: a U-disk, a removable hard disk, a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a random access Memory (Random Access Memory, RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk, or other various media capable of storing program codes.

The foregoing is merely 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 think about changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present application, and the changes and substitutions are intended to 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 communication, comprising:

the method comprises the steps that a session management network element receives a Domain Name System (DNS) query report message, wherein the DNS query report message comprises a first fully-defined domain name, and the first fully-defined domain name is a fully-defined domain name queried by terminal equipment;

the session management network element determines client sub-network option information of a first DNS expansion mechanism according to the DNS query report message and the first information;

the first information comprises identification information of a first mobile network operator and second information corresponding to the identification information of the first mobile network operator, and the second information comprises the first fully-defined domain name; and/or the number of the groups of groups,

the first information includes a correspondence of a second fully qualified domain name and client subnet option information of a second DNS extension mechanism, the second fully qualified domain name including the first fully qualified domain name.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein before the session management network element determines client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism from the DNS query report message and the first information, the method further comprises:

the session management network element receives the first information from the application function network element.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the determining, by the session management network element, client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the DNS query report message and the first information comprises:

the session management network element determines the first mobile network operator according to the first full-limit domain name and the first information, wherein the first information comprises identification information of the first mobile network operator and second information corresponding to the identification information of the first mobile network operator, and the second information comprises the first full-limit domain name;

and the session management network element determines the client sub-network option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to the network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs.

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first information includes a correspondence between the second fully defined domain name, location area information and client subnet option information of the second DNS extension mechanism, and wherein the session management network element determining the client subnet option information of the first DNS extension mechanism according to the DNS query report message and the first information includes:

and the session management network element determines client sub-network option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to the position area information of the terminal equipment, the first fully-defined domain name and the first information.

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

the session management network element receives a DNS response report message, wherein the DNS response report message comprises an IP address of a first edge application server;

the session management network element determines a first data network access identifier according to the IP address of the first edge application server;

and the session management network element determines a protocol data unit PDU session anchor point according to the first data network access identifier, wherein the PDU session anchor point belongs to a second mobile network operator to which the session management network element belongs, and the PDU session anchor point is used for transmitting the service flow of the terminal equipment.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the second information further includes correspondence information between data network access identities and IP addresses of edge application servers, and wherein the session management network element determining a first data network access identity from the IP address of the first edge application server comprises:

the session management network element determines a data network access identifier corresponding to the IP address of the first edge application server according to the IP address of the first edge application server and the second information, where the data network access identifier corresponding to the IP address of the first edge application server is the first data network identifier.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the session management network element determining a first data network access identity from the IP address of the first edge application server comprises:

the session management network element determines the first data network access identifier according to configuration information and the IP address of the first edge application server, wherein the configuration information comprises the corresponding relationship among the identifier information of the first mobile network operator, the data network access identifier and the IP address.

8. The method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the determining, by the session management network element, a protocol data unit, PDU, session anchor according to the first data network access identity comprises:

the session management network element determines the PDU session anchor point according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator and the first data network access identifier.

9. A communication device, comprising:

the receiving and transmitting unit is used for receiving a Domain Name System (DNS) query report message, wherein the DNS query report message comprises a first fully-defined domain name which is a fully-defined domain name queried by terminal equipment;

the processing unit is used for determining client subnet option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to the DNS query report message and the first information;

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the transceiver unit is further configured to:

the first information from the application function network element is received.

11. The device according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the processing unit is specifically configured to:

determining the first mobile network operator according to the first full-limit domain name and the first information, wherein the first information comprises identification information of the first mobile network operator and second information corresponding to the identification information of the first mobile network operator, and the second information comprises the first full-limit domain name;

and determining client sub-network option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and a second mobile network operator to which the device belongs.

12. The apparatus according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the first information comprises a correspondence between the second fully defined domain name, location area information and client subnet option information of the second DNS extension mechanism, and the processing unit is specifically configured to:

and determining client subnet option information of the first DNS expansion mechanism according to the position area information of the terminal equipment and the first fully-defined domain name and the first information.

13. The device according to any one of claims 9 to 12, wherein,

the receiving and transmitting unit is further configured to receive a DNS response report message, where the DNS response report message includes an IP address of the first edge application server;

the processing unit is further configured to determine a first data network access identifier according to the IP address of the first edge application server;

the processing unit is further configured to determine, according to the first data network access identifier, a PDU session anchor, where the PDU session anchor belongs to a second mobile network operator to which the device belongs, and the PDU session anchor is used to transmit a service flow of the terminal device.

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the second information further comprises correspondence information between a data network access identifier and an internet protocol IP address of an edge application server, and the processing unit is specifically configured to:

and determining a data network access identifier corresponding to the IP address of the first edge application server according to the IP address of the first edge application server and the second information, wherein the data network access identifier corresponding to the IP address of the first edge application server is the first data network identifier.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the session management network element determining a first data network access identity from the IP address of the first edge application server comprises:

16. The apparatus according to claim 14 or 15, the processing unit being in particular configured to:

and determining the PDU session anchor point according to the network deployment information between the first mobile network operator and the second mobile network operator and the first data network access identifier.

17. A session management network element, comprising:

a processor and a memory for storing computer-executable instructions which, when executed by the session management network element, cause the session management network element to perform the data transmission method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

18. A communication device, comprising:

a memory for storing a computer program;

a processor coupled to the memory for executing the computer program stored in the memory to cause the communication device to perform the communication method of any one of claims 1 to 8.

19. A computer readable storage medium, characterized in that the computer readable storage medium has stored thereon a computer program which, when run by a communication device, causes the device to perform the method according to any of claims 1 to 8.

20. A chip system, comprising:

a processor for calling and running a computer program from a memory, causing a communication device in which the chip system is installed to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

21. A computer program product comprising instructions, characterized in that,

which when run on a computer causes the computer to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 8.

22. A communication system, comprising:

session management network element for performing the method according to any of claims 1 to 8;

The first network element is used for sending first information to the session management network element;

the first network element is a policy control network element or a network opening network element, and the first information comprises identification information of a first mobile network operator; and/or the number of the groups of groups,

23. A communication system, comprising:

an application function network element, configured to send the first information to the first network element;