WO2019129112A1 - 应用服务器的切换方法及会话管理网元、终端设备 - Google Patents

应用服务器的切换方法及会话管理网元、终端设备 Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2019129112A1
WO2019129112A1 PCT/CN2018/124108 CN2018124108W WO2019129112A1 WO 2019129112 A1 WO2019129112 A1 WO 2019129112A1 CN 2018124108 W CN2018124108 W CN 2018124108W WO 2019129112 A1 WO2019129112 A1 WO 2019129112A1
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WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
network element
application server
address
terminal device
local application
Prior art date
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PCT/CN2018/124108
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English (en)
French (fr)
Inventor
袁立平
胡翔
Original Assignee
华为技术有限公司
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by 华为技术有限公司 filed Critical 华为技术有限公司
Priority to EP18895305.3A priority Critical patent/EP3720049A4/en
Publication of WO2019129112A1 publication Critical patent/WO2019129112A1/zh
Priority to US16/913,261 priority patent/US11503509B2/en

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Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W36/00—Hand-off or reselection arrangements
    • H04W36/12—Reselecting a serving backbone network switching or routing node
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L41/00—Arrangements for maintenance, administration or management of data switching networks, e.g. of packet switching networks
    • H04L41/12—Discovery or management of network topologies
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L61/00—Network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L61/00—Network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming
    • H04L61/50—Address allocation
    • H04L61/5007—Internet protocol [IP] addresses
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L67/00—Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications
    • H04L67/01—Protocols
    • H04L67/10—Protocols in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network
    • H04L67/1001—Protocols in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
    • H04L67/1004—Server selection for load balancing
    • H04L67/1008—Server selection for load balancing based on parameters of servers, e.g. available memory or workload
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L67/00—Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications
    • H04L67/14—Session management
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L67/00—Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications
    • H04L67/14—Session management
    • H04L67/142—Managing session states for stateless protocols; Signalling session states; State transitions; Keeping-state mechanisms
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L67/00—Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications
    • H04L67/14—Session management
    • H04L67/146—Markers for unambiguous identification of a particular session, e.g. session cookie or URL-encoding
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L67/00—Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications
    • H04L67/50—Network services
    • H04L67/55—Push-based network services
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W36/00—Hand-off or reselection arrangements
    • H04W36/0005—Control or signalling for completing the hand-off
    • H04W36/0011—Control or signalling for completing the hand-off for data sessions of end-to-end connection
    • H04W36/0019—Control or signalling for completing the hand-off for data sessions of end-to-end connection adapted for mobile IP [MIP]
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W48/00—Access restriction; Network selection; Access point selection
    • H04W48/17—Selecting a data network PoA [Point of Attachment]

Definitions

  • the present application relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method for switching an application server, a session management network element, and a terminal device.
  • Mobile edge computing is a technology based on the fifth generation (5rd generation, 5G) mobile communication architecture that deeply integrates the access network with Internet services. It deploys the application server (AS) and the mobile broadband (MBB) core network part of the service processing and resource scheduling functions together to the edge of the network close to the access network, and the service is close to the user for reliable implementation. Ultra low latency business processing.
  • AS application server
  • MBB mobile broadband
  • MEP mobile edge platforms
  • the MEP is connected to the corresponding user plane network element.
  • the terminal device often moves, causing the user plane network element corresponding to the terminal device to switch.
  • the terminal device still accesses the application server accessed before the handover, it cannot guarantee reliable and ultra-low latency. Business processing.
  • the application provides a method for switching the application server and the session management network element and the terminal device, so that the terminal device can obtain the reliable and low provided by the local application server in the scenario that the user plane network element corresponding to the terminal device is switched. Delayed service.
  • the application server switching method is applied to the scenario in which the user plane network element corresponding to the terminal device is switched, the method includes: the session management network element according to the switched user plane network element, and the user plane Corresponding relationship between the network element and the address of the local application server, and obtaining the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element; wherein the correspondence between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server is used to indicate When the terminal device accesses a user plane network element, the address of the local application server capable of providing the service to the terminal device in the one or more application servers deployed in the network that provide the same service; and the session management network element Sending, to the terminal device, an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • the UE can access the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover, so that the UE can obtain a reliable, low-latency service provided by the local application server.
  • the local application server includes an application server with the highest priority among the one or more application servers that provide the same service, or an application server with the closest user plane network element relationship with the terminal device access. .
  • the application server with the highest priority or the closest topological relationship can be considered as the best local application server corresponding to the UPF cut.
  • the method further includes: the session management network element storing a correspondence between the user plane network element and an address of the local application server.
  • the session management network element stores a correspondence between one or more user plane network elements and addresses of one or more local application servers.
  • the session management network element stores a correspondence between the user plane network element and an address of the local application server, where the session management network element receives the user plane network sent by the network capability open network element.
  • the correspondence between the element and the address of the registered local application server is saved in the corresponding relationship between the stored user plane network element and the address of the local application server.
  • the correspondence is sent by the NEF.
  • the session management network element stores a correspondence between the user plane network element and an address of the local application server, where the session management network element receives and stores the user plane network configured by the operation support system.
  • the correspondence between the element and the address of the local application server is manually configured, and the correspondence between the one or more UPFs and the address of the local application server is directly sent to the SMF through the OSS, and the corresponding relationship is stored by the SMF.
  • the method further includes: the session management network element receiving, by the network capability open network element, a first enable identifier for an address of the service push local application server; or The session management network element receives a first enable identifier of an address of the service support local application server configured by the operation support system.
  • the session management network element receives a first enable identifier of an address of the service support local application server configured by the operation support system.
  • the enabling identifier is used to instruct the session management network element to push an address of the local application server to the terminal device after the user plane network element corresponding to the terminal device is switched.
  • the method further includes: the session management network element acquiring the subscription information of the terminal device from the unified data management network element, where the subscription information includes pushing for the terminal device a second enable identifier of the address of the local application server; the session management network element determines, according to the subscription information, that an address of the local application server is pushed to the terminal device.
  • the session management network element determines, according to the subscription information, that an address of the local application server is pushed to the terminal device.
  • the method further includes: the session management network element receiving an identifier and/or a user of the terminal device that is enabled by the operation support system to enable an address push function of the local application server
  • the session management network element determines to push the address of the local application server to the terminal device according to the identifier of the terminal device and/or the user attribute.
  • the SMF determines the identifier or user of the terminal device that has the push address function enabled in the SMF for the specific terminal device. Whether the identity or user attribute of the terminal device is included in the attribute, thereby determining whether to push the address of the local application server to the specific terminal device.
  • the method further includes: the session management network element receiving, by the application network element, an identifier of a terminal device that enables an address push function of the local application server; the session management network And determining, according to the identifier of the terminal device, the address of the local application server to be pushed to the terminal device.
  • the AF saves the identity of the terminal device and sends the identity of the terminal device that enables the address push function to the SMF.
  • the SMF determines whether the identifier of the terminal device that is the function of the push address saved in the SMF is included in the identifier of the terminal device that is saved in the SMF. Whether to push the address of the local application server to the specific terminal device.
  • the session management network element sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element to the terminal device, including: the session management network element to the The terminal device sends an application trigger request, where the application trigger request includes an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element; or the session management network element sends the switched user to the application network element.
  • the address of the local application server corresponding to the surface network element, and the application network element sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element to the terminal device.
  • the SMF sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover to the terminal device, and the SMF may send the address of the local application server to the terminal device through the application triggering mechanism (that is, through the control plane channel), or may be in the terminal.
  • the AF sends the address of the local application server to the terminal device through the data channel.
  • an application server switching method is provided, which is applied to a scenario in which a user plane network element corresponding to a terminal device is switched.
  • the method includes: the terminal device receives an application trigger request, where the application triggers The request includes the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element; and the terminal device accesses the local application server according to the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • the UE in a scenario where the UPF of the UE is switched, the UE can access the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover, so that the UE can obtain a reliable, low-latency service provided by the local application server.
  • the terminal device receives an application trigger request, where the terminal device receives the application triggering request sent by the session management network element or the application network element.
  • a session management network element in another aspect, has a function of implementing the behavior of the session management network element in the foregoing method.
  • the functions may be implemented by hardware or by corresponding software implemented by hardware.
  • the hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the functions described above.
  • the session management network element includes: a first acquiring unit, configured to acquire, according to the switched user plane network element, and the correspondence between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server, The address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element; wherein the correspondence between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server is used to indicate that when the terminal device accesses a user plane network element, in the network An address of a local application server that can provide the service to the terminal device in the deployed one or more application servers; and a sending unit, configured to send the switched user plane network element corresponding to the terminal device The address of the local application server.
  • the session management network element includes: a receiver, a transmitter, a memory, and a processor; wherein the memory stores a set of program codes, and the processor is configured to invoke the memory
  • the program code stored in the device performs the following operations: acquiring the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element according to the switched user plane network element and the correspondence between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server An address, where the correspondence between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server is used to indicate that one or more application servers that provide the same service are deployed in the network when the terminal device accesses a user plane network element.
  • An address of the local application server capable of providing the service to the terminal device; and transmitting, to the terminal device, an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • a terminal device may be a chip (such as a baseband chip, or a communication chip, etc.) or a device (such as a terminal device or the like).
  • the above method can be implemented by software, hardware, or by executing corresponding software by hardware.
  • the structure of the communication device includes a processor and a memory; the processor is configured to support the device to perform a corresponding function in the foregoing communication method.
  • the memory is for coupling with a processor that holds the necessary programs (instructions) and/or data for the device.
  • the communication device may further include a communication interface for supporting communication between the device and other network elements.
  • the communication device may include a receiving unit and an access unit, where: the receiving unit is configured to receive an application trigger request, where the application trigger request includes the switched user plane network element An address of the corresponding local application server; and an access unit, configured to access the local application server according to the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • the receiving unit may be an input unit, such as an input circuit or a communication interface; the sending unit may be an output unit, such as an output circuit or a communication interface.
  • the receiving unit may be a receiver (which may also be referred to as a receiver); the transmitting unit may be a transmitter (which may be a transmitter or a transmitter).
  • a computer readable storage medium having stored therein instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the methods described in the various aspects above.
  • a computer program product comprising instructions for causing a computer to perform the methods described in the above aspects when executed on a computer is provided.
  • FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application.
  • FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a next generation communication system according to an example of an embodiment of the present application.
  • FIG. 3 is a schematic flowchart of switching of a general mobile edge platform
  • FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a general application trigger mechanism
  • FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an interaction process of a method for switching an application server according to an embodiment of the present disclosure
  • FIG. 6 is a schematic flowchart of a method for switching an application server according to a specific example of the present disclosure
  • FIG. 7 is a schematic flowchart of a method for switching an application server according to another specific example provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure.
  • FIG. 8 is a schematic flowchart of a method for switching an application server according to another specific example provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure.
  • FIG. 9 is a structural block diagram of a session management network element according to an embodiment of the present application.
  • FIG. 10 is a structural block diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application.
  • FIG. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of hardware of a session management network element according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
  • FIG. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of hardware of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
  • the present application provides a communication system, which is a schematic structural diagram of a communication system provided by the embodiment of the present application as shown in FIG.
  • the communication system 1000 can include a user plane network element 100 and a session management network element 101. Further, the communication system can further include a terminal device 102 and a network open network element 103.
  • the communication system 1000 is coupled to a mobile edge platform 2000.
  • One or more local application servers 200 providing the same service are deployed on the mobile edge platform 2000 (only one local application server is illustrated here). Specifically, each mobile edge platform 2000 deployed with the local application server 200 is connected to one user plane network element 100, and the user plane network element 100 can be connected to one or more mobile edge platforms.
  • the terminal device 102 implements access to the local application server 200 deployed on the mobile edge platform 2000 through the data/user plane channel established with the user plane network element 100.
  • the terminal device 102 can also manage the network element 101 and the network open network through the session.
  • the signaling plane interaction is performed between the element 103 and the user plane network element 100.
  • the session management network element and the user plane network element are only one name, and the name itself does not limit the network element.
  • the session management network element may also be replaced with a "session management function" or other name.
  • the session management network element may also correspond to a network element including other functions besides the session management function.
  • the user plane network element may also be replaced with a "user plane function" or other name
  • the user plane network element may also correspond to an network element including other functions besides the user plane function.
  • a unified explanation is given here, and will not be described below.
  • the session management network element acquires the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element according to the switched user plane network element and the correspondence between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server.
  • the address of the user plane network element and the address of the local application server is used to indicate one or more application servers deployed in the network to provide the same service when the terminal device accesses a user plane network element.
  • the address of the local application server that can provide the service to the terminal device; the session management network element sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element to the terminal device.
  • FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a next-generation communication system architecture according to an example of an embodiment of the present application.
  • the communication system may include a user plane function (UPF) and a session management function (SMF), and may also include a network capability open function entity (NEF).
  • the user plane network element 100 in FIG. 1 may be the UPF here; the session management network element 200 in FIG. 1 may be the SMF here; the network open network element 103 in FIG. 1 may be the NEF here.
  • the communication system is coupled to one or more mobile edge platforms (here only two MEPs are illustrated).
  • One or more local application servers are deployed on each MEP (here, only one AS is deployed on MEP1 and MEP2, and AS1 and AS2 can provide the same service).
  • UPF is mainly responsible for packet data forwarding, quality of service (QoS) control, accounting information statistics, etc.; SMF is responsible for unified session management.
  • QoS quality of service
  • SMF is responsible for unified session management.
  • the signaling interaction between the session management function entity and the terminal device is not directly connected, but also through the access and mobility management function (AMF) and the access network device (access).
  • a network, AN) or a radio access network (RAN) can implement a complete signaling plane interaction path.
  • the data plane channel between the user plane function entity and the terminal device also needs to pass the AN or RAN for data/user plane interaction.
  • the communication system may further comprise a terminal device, an AN or RAN, an AMF, a unified data management functional entity (UDM), and an application function entity (AF).
  • AF can also be called a central application server (Central application server).
  • the terminal device communicates with the user plane function entity and the session management function entity located on the network side to access the local application server deployed on the mobile edge platform.
  • the AN or RAN is responsible for accessing the terminal device to the network side;
  • the AMF is mainly responsible for access management of the terminal device;
  • the NEF is responsible for receiving the request of the application server to invoke the underlying network interface, and calling a plurality of network capabilities through a series of network interfaces to obtain the call result and return To the application server;
  • the UDM is responsible for the unified management of the subscription data of the terminal device.
  • Fig. 2 other functional entities may also be included, and only a few functional entities involved in the present application are highlighted herein.
  • the entities are connected by an Nx interface (for example, N1, N2, etc. in the figure).
  • Nx interface for example, N1, N2, etc. in the figure.
  • the session management function entity and the user plane function entity are only one name, and the name itself does not limit the entity.
  • the session management function entity may also be replaced with a "session management function" or other name.
  • the session management function entity may also correspond to an entity that includes other functions in addition to the session management function.
  • the user plane function entity may also be replaced with a "user plane function" or other name, and the user plane function entity may also correspond to an entity including other functions in addition to the user plane function.
  • a unified explanation is given here, and will not be described below.
  • the foregoing functional entity or network element in the system shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2 may be implemented by one physical device or may be implemented by multiple physical devices in a specific implementation, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application. . That is, it can be understood that any one of the foregoing functional entities or network elements may be a logical functional module in the physical device, or may be a logical functional module composed of multiple physical devices. This example does not specifically limit this.
  • the terminal device shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2 is a device having a wireless transceiving function, which can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld, wearable or on-board; or can be deployed on the water surface (such as a ship, etc.); Can be deployed in the air (such as airplanes, balloons, satellites, etc.).
  • the terminal device may be a mobile phone, a tablet, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, and industrial control ( Wireless terminal in industrial control, wireless terminal in self driving, wireless terminal in remote medical, wireless terminal in smart grid, transportation safety A wireless terminal, a wireless terminal in a smart city, a wireless terminal in a smart home, and the like.
  • a terminal device may also be referred to as a user equipment (UE), an access terminal device, a UE unit, a UE station, a mobile station, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal device, a mobile device, a UE terminal device, and a terminal (terminal). ), a wireless communication device, a UE proxy or a UE device, and the like.
  • UE user equipment
  • an access terminal device a UE unit
  • a UE station a mobile station
  • a mobile station a mobile station, a remote station
  • remote terminal device a mobile device, a UE terminal device, and a terminal (terminal).
  • a wireless communication device a UE proxy or a UE device, and the like.
  • the MEP refers to a platform formed by deploying the application server and the MBB core network part of the service processing and resource scheduling functions to the edge of the network close to the access side.
  • the application server and the domain name system proxy (DNSP) entity may be deployed on the MEP, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment.
  • the MEP in the embodiment of the present application may also be referred to as an MEC platform, an MEC system, or the like.
  • a terminal application is a software product installed on a terminal device for accessing a service provided by an application server, and may also be referred to as an application client on a terminal device.
  • the WeChat client on the terminal device or the browser on the terminal device can be used to access the service provided by the WeChat application server, and a unified description is provided herein, and details are not described herein.
  • the application server in the embodiment of the present application refers to a carrier capable of providing a corresponding service.
  • the WeChat server can be a carrier capable of providing WeChat services.
  • the carrier in the embodiment of the present application may be a virtual device or a physical device, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.
  • the virtual device herein may be, for example, a virtual machine or a container, and is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.
  • a local application server also referred to as an edge application server, is an application server deployed on the MEP.
  • the central application server is opposite to the edge application server and can interact with the edge application server.
  • the edge application server can send control information or synchronize data, so the edge application server usually has all the functions or parts of the central application server.
  • the function is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.
  • the edge application server since the edge application server is deployed near the edge of the network on the access network side, that is, the deployment location is low, it can provide better services for users, such as lower delay and higher speed.
  • the application server deployed on the MEP may be described as a local application server or an edge application server, or may be directly described as an application server deployed on the MEP.
  • the embodiment does not specifically limit this. A unified explanation is given here, and will not be described below.
  • the IP address of the local application server is usually allocated by the MEP when deploying the edge application server. Of course, it can also be uniformly allocated by other address allocation devices.
  • the IP address of the edge application server may be a private network IP address or a public network IP address, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.
  • the IP address of the application server deployed on each MEP may be in one or more IP address segments, and the IP addresses of application servers deployed on different MEPs may be different.
  • the deployment system can allocate an IP address segment of 1.1.0.1-1.1.255.255 to the application server on the MEP1, and an IP address segment of 2.2.0.1-2.2.255.255 for the application server on the MEP2.
  • MEP1 can assign an IP address of 1.1.1.2 to the application server corresponding to app.com; when deploying the application server on MEP2, MEP2 can assign IP to the application server corresponding to app.com.
  • the address is 2.2.1.2.
  • the identifier of the MEP is used to uniquely identify a MEP, for example, the location information of the UPF entity deployed on the MEP or the data network access identity (DNAI).
  • DNAI data network access identity
  • the terminal device when the terminal device accesses an application server, it is usually accessed through the domain name of the application server, where the domain name of the application server refers to the real domain name of the application server.
  • the domain name of an application server is app.com
  • the process of accessing the application server by the terminal device is as follows:
  • Step 1 The user inputs app.com in the browser or directly opens the terminal application corresponding to the application server for access.
  • Step 2 The browser or the terminal application initiates a DNS request to obtain an internet protocol (IP) address corresponding to the app.com.
  • IP internet protocol
  • Step 3 The operating system (OS) of the terminal device queries the local DNS cache. If the DNS record corresponding to app.com is queried, the corresponding IP address is directly returned to the browser or the terminal application.
  • the mapping between a domain name and an IP address is a DNS record.
  • Step 4 If the DNS record corresponding to app.com is not queried in step 3, the terminal device sends a DNS resolution request to the DNS server.
  • Step 5 After receiving the DNS resolution request from the terminal device, the DNS server performs DNS resolution, and sends the IP address list corresponding to app.com to the terminal device through a DNS response message.
  • Step 6 After receiving the DNS resolution response from the DNS server, the terminal device returns the IP address corresponding to the app.com to the browser or the terminal application, and stores the corresponding DNS record in the terminal device.
  • the cache time recorded by the DNS in the terminal device may be set according to a time to live (TTL) parameter in the DNS response, or may be set by the OS or the terminal application.
  • TTL time to live
  • Step 7 After obtaining the IP address corresponding to app.com, the browser or the terminal application initiates a connection request to the application server corresponding to the IP address. Furthermore, the application server can return the requested content to the terminal device and display it by the browser or the terminal application. At this point, the process of the terminal device accessing the application server ends.
  • the 5G system supports different session and service continuity (SSC) modes, including three SSC modes. Among them, switching between UPFs is involved in both SSC mode 2 and SSC mode 3. As shown in Figure 3, the UPF switching and selection process is described below by taking SSC mode 2 as an example to describe the UPF switching and selection process:
  • the SMF determines that the UPF of the service needs to be relocated.
  • the SMF sends a non-access stratum (NAS) message to the terminal device via the AMF.
  • the NAS message includes a protocol data unit (PDU) session identifier.
  • PDU protocol data unit
  • the SMF performs a PDU session release process.
  • the terminal device starts a PDU session establishment process.
  • the AMF then forwards the session establishment request to the same SMF so that the SMF can select a new UPF to establish a PDU session.
  • the application trigger mechanism provides a method for the application server to actively push messages to the terminal device through the core network.
  • This mechanism is provided in the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) 23.501 4.4.5 and 23.502 5.2.6.1. Detailed Description.
  • 3GPP 3rd generation partnership project
  • the application server sends an application trigger request to a network exposure function (NEF) entity, so that the NEF entity receives an application trigger request from the application server.
  • NEF network exposure function
  • the application trigger request may include an identifier of the terminal device, a requester identifier, a validity period of the message, an identifier of the terminal application, a trigger payload, etc.
  • the identifier of the terminal device may be, for example, an international mobile subscriber identifier (international mobile The subscriber identity (IMSI) or the IP address of the terminal device, etc., is used to indicate to which terminal device the message is pushed;
  • the requester identifier may be, for example, an IP address or a name of the application server, which is used to indicate which application server the message is initiated by, where
  • the requester identifier is usually an identifier that is assigned by the operator or negotiated by the two parties after the application server is contracted with the operator, and can be used for authenticating, quota control, or charging the message sender;
  • the validity period of the message is used to indicate that the message is How long is effective, if the message fails to be sent and is still valid, the core network needs to be retransmitted; the
  • the NEF entity acquires related information of the terminal device from the UDM according to the terminal identifier carried in the application trigger request.
  • the related information of the terminal device may be, for example, core network element information for providing services for the terminal device, such as which AMF provides services for the terminal device.
  • the NEF entity sends the application trigger request to an AMF entity serving the terminal device, so that the AMF entity receives an application trigger request from the NEF entity.
  • the AMF entity sends an application trigger request to the terminal device, so that the terminal device receives an application trigger request from the AMF entity.
  • the terminal device sends an application trigger response to the AMF entity, so that the AMF entity receives an application trigger response from the terminal device.
  • the application trigger response is used to indicate that the terminal device has successfully received the application trigger request.
  • the AMF entity sends an application trigger response to the NEF entity, so that the NEF entity receives an application trigger response from the AMF entity.
  • the NEF entity sends an application trigger response to the application server, so that the application server receives an application trigger response from the NEF entity.
  • step S401 to the step S407 can refer to the existing application trigger mechanism process, and details are not described herein again.
  • the terminal device that must support the application trigger mechanism can use the above application triggering process.
  • how to enable the terminal device to support the application triggering mechanism may be implemented in multiple manners.
  • the terminal baseband chip recognizes an application trigger request after receiving a non-access stratum (NAS) message, and may trigger the application.
  • the request is sent to the OS processing of the terminal device.
  • a service provided by the OS of the terminal device can process the application trigger request, where a service provided by the OS of the terminal device is a function or a function module provided by the operating system to implement some specific functions, such as device control and message notification function. Etc., hereby unified, the following will not repeat.
  • the OS of the terminal device may send the application triggering request to a specific terminal application according to the identifier of the terminal application carried in the application triggering request, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment.
  • the terminal application for processing the application trigger request is a special application, and the identifier of the corresponding terminal application may be a special identifier assigned by the operator, such as “0”, which is uniformly described herein, and details are not described herein.
  • the network architecture and the service scenario described in the embodiments of the present application are for the purpose of more clearly illustrating the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation of the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application.
  • the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application are equally applicable to similar technical problems.
  • system and “network” in the embodiments of the present application may be used interchangeably.
  • Multiple means two or more.
  • a plurality can also be understood as “at least two” in the embodiment of the present application.
  • the character "/” unless otherwise specified, generally indicates that the contextual object is an "or" relationship.
  • the words “first”, “second”, and the like are used to distinguish the same items or similar items whose functions and functions are substantially the same. Those skilled in the art can understand that the words “first”, “second” and the like do not limit the number and execution order, and the words “first”, “second” and the like are not necessarily limited.
  • FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an interaction process of a method for switching an application server according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, where the method is applied to a scenario in which a user plane network element corresponding to a terminal device is switched, the method may include the following steps:
  • the session management network element obtains, according to the switched user plane network element, the address of the user plane network element and the address of the local application server, the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element, where The corresponding relationship between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server is used to indicate that when the terminal device accesses a user plane network element, the one or more application servers deployed in the network that provide the same service can be the terminal device.
  • the address of the local application server that provides the service is used to indicate that when the terminal device accesses a user plane network element, the one or more application servers deployed in the network that provide the same service.
  • the session management network element sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element to the terminal device.
  • the terminal device receives an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • the terminal device accesses the local application server according to an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • This embodiment uses a next-generation mobile communication system (such as a 5G system) as an example to specifically describe the handover procedure of the application server.
  • a next-generation mobile communication system such as a 5G system
  • each MEP is connected to one UPF (of course, one UPF can be connected to multiple MEPs), and one or more local application servers are deployed on each MEP, wherein each local application server A service can be provided.
  • the network side can determine the best local application server for the user.
  • the best local application server may be the application server with the highest priority among the one or more application servers that provide the same service, or the application server that has the closest relationship with the user plane network element accessed by the terminal device.
  • the highest priority refers to the application server on the MEP that is considered to be the best service quality of the UFP connection based on the operator configuration, and is defined as the highest priority.
  • the topology relationship recently means that the communication link with the UPF is the shortest, which can reduce the end-to-end delay and improve the communication service quality.
  • the SMF saves the correspondence between the UPF and the address of the local application server, and when the local application server deployed on the MEP changes, the SMF updates the corresponding relationship in real time.
  • the UPF switching and selection process diagram is shown.
  • the UE in order to ensure continuity of sessions and services, it is necessary to switch and reselect UPF. If the UPF is switched, the UE still accesses the application server on the MEP connected to the source UPF.
  • the application server corresponding to the source UPF is not the highest priority application server or source among the one or more application servers that provide the same service.
  • the application server corresponding to the UPF is not the application server closest to the user plane network element topology relationship accessed by the terminal device, and thus the UE cannot obtain the best service.
  • the SMF obtains the local application corresponding to the destination UPF according to the destination UPF (specifically, the identifier of the destination UPF) and the correspondence between the saved UPF and the address of the local application server.
  • the address of the server and the address of the local application server corresponding to the destination UPF is sent to the terminal device.
  • the terminal device can access the local application server according to the address of the local application server corresponding to the destination UPF. Therefore, the terminal device can access the local application server that provides the same service on the MEP of the switched UPF connection.
  • the application server corresponding to the destination UPF is generally the application server with the highest priority among the one or more application servers that provide the same service, or the application server with the closest relationship with the user plane network element accessed by the terminal device, so that the terminal device can be guaranteed. Provide reliable, low latency business processing.
  • the method may further include: the session management network element stores a correspondence between the user plane network element and an address of the local application server.
  • the correspondence may be sent by the NEF or manually configured. specifically:
  • the session management network element stores a correspondence between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server, and specifically includes: the session management network element receives the user plane network element and the registration sent by the network capability open network element.
  • the correspondence between the addresses of the local application servers is saved in the correspondence between the stored user plane network elements and the addresses of the local application servers.
  • the local application server needs to be registered to the MEP, and the address of the local application server is provided to the MEP.
  • the MEP determines the UPF according to the location information of the local application server and the topology relationship of the UPF. Correspondence with the address of the local application server.
  • the MEP sends the identifier of the UPF and the address of the local application server to the NEF.
  • the NEF authenticates, authorizes, authenticates, and authorizes the newly registered local application server
  • the NEF sends the identifier of the UPF and the address of the local application server.
  • the SMF receives the identity of the UPF and the address of the local application server and records the corresponding relationship. If there is a new application server registration on the MEP or other MEP, the SMF saves the correspondence between the received UPF and the address of the newly registered local application server in the stored correspondence.
  • the correspondence may be saved in the SMF in the form of a table or the like. This will be further elaborated later in conjunction with the specific process. In this implementation manner, once there is a newly registered application server, updating the correspondence between the UPF stored by the SMF and the address of the local application server may enable the correspondence relationship stored by the SMF to be updated in real time.
  • the session management network element stores a correspondence between the user plane network element and an address of the local application server, and specifically includes: the session management network element receives and stores an operation support system (OSS) Correspondence between the configured user plane NE and the address of the local application server.
  • OSS operation support system
  • the OSS manages the local application server deployed on one or more MEPs, and records the identifier of the UPF and the address of the local application server.
  • the OSS sends the correspondence between the UPF and the address of the local application server to the SMF, and the SMF stores the correspondence. This will be further elaborated later in conjunction with the specific process.
  • the correspondence between one or more UPFs and the address of the local application server may be directly sent to the SMF through the OSS, and the corresponding relationship is stored by the SMF.
  • the method may further include: the session management network element acquiring a first enable identifier for an address of the service push local application server.
  • the first enabling identifier is used to instruct the session management network element to push the address of the local application server to the terminal device after the user plane network element corresponding to the terminal device is switched.
  • the SMF pushes the address of the local application server corresponding to the UPF to the terminal device.
  • the session management network element obtains the first enable identifier of the address of the local application server for the service, and specifically includes: the session management network element receives the target that is sent by the network capability open network element.
  • the service pushes a first enablement identifier of an address of the local application server.
  • the MEP may also send the enable identifier to the NEF, and then The NEF sends the enable identifier to the SMF. This will be further elaborated later in conjunction with the specific process.
  • the session management network element acquires a first enable identifier of an address of the local application server for the service, where the method includes: the session management network element receives the service support system configured for the service Push the first enable identifier of the address of the local application server.
  • the OSS when managing the local application server deployed on one or more MEPs, the OSS also needs to enable the terminal device to be managed by pushing the address of the local application server. Thus, the OSS sends an enable identifier for the address of the local application server for a certain service to the SMF.
  • the first enable identifier of the address of the local application server pushed by the AF for the service provided by the AF may be sent to the SMF.
  • whether the address of the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover needs to be pushed to the terminal device may also be configured. Therefore, before the session management network element sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element to the terminal device, it is required to determine whether to push the address of the local application server to the terminal device.
  • the method further includes: the session management network element acquiring the subscription information of the terminal device from the unified data management network element, where the subscription information includes pushing for the terminal device a second enable identifier of the address of the local application server; the session management network element determines, according to the subscription information, that an address of the local application server is pushed to the terminal device.
  • the UDM performs unified management on the subscription information of the terminal device, and the subscription information may include an enable identifier for pushing the address of the local application server for the specific terminal device.
  • the SMF detects that the UPF corresponding to the terminal device is switched, the subscription information of the terminal device is obtained from the UDM. If the subscription information includes the enable identifier, the SMF pushes the address of the local application server to the terminal device.
  • the method further includes: the session management network element receiving an identifier of the terminal device that is sent by the operation support system and enabling an address push function of the local application server, and/or User attribute; the session management network element determines, according to the identifier of the terminal device and/or the user attribute, the address of the local application server to be pushed to the terminal device.
  • the user attribute may include, for example, at least one of the following information: roaming information, accessed data network information, and access point name APN; UE identity: fifth generation mobile communication permanent subscription identifier, international mobile subscriber identity IMSI, MSISDN.
  • the OSS configures the terminal device that needs to enable the address of the local application server according to the identifier of the terminal device or the user attribute, and then sends the identifier or user attribute of the terminal device with the push address function enabled to the SMF.
  • the SMF determines whether the identifier or the user attribute of the terminal device that has the push address function enabled in the SMF is included in the specific terminal device. The identity or user attribute of the terminal device to determine whether to push the address of the local application server to the specific terminal device.
  • the method before the step S502, the method further includes: the session management network element receiving, by the application function entity, an identifier of a terminal device that enables an address push function of the local application server; the session management The network element determines, according to the identifier of the terminal device, that the address of the local application server is pushed to the terminal device.
  • the AF can also be used to manage the address of the local application server to the specific terminal device.
  • the terminal device can communicate with the specific AF, and the push switch needs to be performed when the UPF corresponding to the terminal device is switched. The address of the local application server corresponding to the subsequent UPF is given to the terminal device.
  • the AF saves the identity of the terminal device and sends the identity of the terminal device that enables the address push function to the SMF.
  • the SMF determines whether the identifier of the terminal device that is the function of the push address saved in the SMF is included in the identifier of the terminal device that is saved in the SMF. Whether to push the address of the local application server to the specific terminal device.
  • the SMF sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover to the terminal device, and the SMF may send the address of the local application server to the terminal device through the application triggering mechanism (that is, through the control plane channel), or may be in the terminal device.
  • the address of the local application server is sent by the AF through the data channel to the terminal device.
  • the S502 specifically includes: the session management network element sends an application trigger request to the terminal device, where the application trigger request includes an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element. .
  • the terminal device receives the application trigger request sent by the session management network element.
  • the session management network element may send an application trigger request to the application function entity, and then the application function entity sends an application trigger request to the terminal device, and the terminal device receives the application trigger request.
  • the application triggering mechanism provides a method for the application server to actively push a message to the terminal device through the core network, and the SMF is used as a network element in the control plane of the core network, and the terminal device is used.
  • the message is an application trigger request
  • the application trigger request includes an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched UPF. This will be further elaborated later in conjunction with the specific process.
  • the S502 specifically includes: the session management network element sends an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element to the application function entity, where the application function entity sends the address to the terminal device Sending the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • the terminal device receives the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • the SMF may send the address of the local application server to the NEF, and then the NEF sends the AF to the AF, and the AF sends the local through the established data plane channel.
  • the address of the application server is given to the terminal device.
  • FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a handover process of an application server according to a specific example, which specifically includes the following steps:
  • the local application server After the new local application server is deployed on the S601 and the MEP, the local application server initiates a registration process and sends a registration request to the MEP, where the registration request carries the address of the local application server.
  • the MEP receives the registration request.
  • the MEP determines the correspondence between the UPF and the address of the local application server according to the location information of the local application server and the topology relationship of the UPF or the priority information of the local application server. That is, the corresponding relationship is determined by the two methods.
  • the method is to determine the relationship between the location of the local application server and the topology relationship of the UPF.
  • the topology relationship of the UPF refers to the relationship between the deployment of the UPF and the location of the MEP.
  • the local application server corresponding to the UPF is the application server closest to the UPF topology. Another way is to determine the correspondence according to the priority information of the local application server.
  • the AF configures the priority of the local application server on the MEP for each MEP, and the local application server corresponding to the UPF may be the highest priority application server among the one or more application servers that provide the same service.
  • the MEP initiates a registration request process of the local application server to the NEF of the 5G core network, and sends a registration request to the NEF.
  • the registration request may carry the identifier of the UPF, the address of the local application server, and may also carry the address of the local application server. Can identify.
  • the SGF After receiving the registration request of the local application server sent by the MEP, the SGF authenticates and authorizes the MEP based on the standard authentication and authorization process.
  • the NEF sends a registration request of the local application server to the SMF for the registration request of the local application server that meets the requirements.
  • the registration request may carry the identifier of the UPF, the address of the local application server, and the enable identifier of the address of the local application server.
  • the SMF After receiving the identifier of the UPF, the address of the local application server, and the enable identifier, the SMF records the correspondence between the UPF and the address of the new local application server to the stored correspondence, and simultaneously accesses the corresponding local application server.
  • the terminal device of the data network turns on the function of pushing the address of the local application server after the UPF switch.
  • the SMF sends a registration response message of the local application server to the NEF.
  • the NEF receives the registration response message.
  • the registration response message can include an indication of the registration result. For example, 1 bit indicates registration result, “1" indicates registration is passed, “0” indicates registration failure; or vice versa, "0" indicates registration is passed, and "1" indicates registration failure.
  • the NEF sends a registration response message of the local application server to the MEP.
  • the MEP receives the registration response message.
  • the MEP sends a registration response message of the local application server to the local application server.
  • the local application server receives the registration response message and obtains the registration result.
  • the local application server corresponding to the source UPF is accessed through the source UPF. However, if the terminal device moves, its corresponding UPF also switches.
  • S609-S610 After the terminal device moves, the handover process is triggered.
  • the SMF implements the UPF handover process based on the standard definition UPF selection mechanism, activates the session on the target UPF, and the subsequent terminal device accesses the data service through the target UPF. For details, see the process shown in Figure 3.
  • the SMF when the terminal device moves the process to trigger the handover process, implements the UPF switching process based on the standard UPF selection process, and determines, according to the session information, that the terminal device needs to access a specific application, and determines whether the application, the service, or the terminal device has Enable the address push function of the local application server.
  • the application triggering process is initiated to the AMF, specifically, the application trigger request is sent to the AMF.
  • the application trigger request carries the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched UPF.
  • the AMF receives the application trigger request.
  • the AMF After receiving the application trigger request, the AMF sends an application trigger request to the terminal device by using the (R)AN according to a standard procedure.
  • the application trigger request carries the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched UPF.
  • the terminal device receives the application trigger request.
  • the terminal device After receiving the application triggering request, the terminal device parses the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched UPF carried in the request and records the local address.
  • the terminal device sends an application trigger request response to the AMF via the (R)AN.
  • the AMF receives the application trigger request response.
  • the AMF sends an application trigger request response to the SMF.
  • the SMF receives the application trigger request response.
  • the terminal device initiates a service access process based on the address of the new local application server (the address of the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover), so that the terminal device can obtain the reliable, low-latency service provided by the local application server. service.
  • the local application server corresponding to the UPF can be selected by the SMF, and the SMF transmits the address of the local application server to the terminal device, so that the network planning is transparent to the terminal device and accelerates.
  • the process in which the terminal device discovers the address of the local application server, and improves the service experience of the specified device of the terminal device.
  • FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a handover process of an application server according to another specific example, and the method may include the following steps:
  • the OSS system configures, on the SMF, a correspondence between addresses of local application servers corresponding to one or more sets of UPFs.
  • the SMF receives the correspondence and saves the relationship.
  • the local application server deployed on the MEP initiates a registration request process of the local application server to the NEF, and the registration request carries the enable identifier of the address of the local application server after the UPF switch corresponding to the terminal device.
  • the NEF receives the enable identifier.
  • the S704 and the NEF After receiving the registration request sent by the local application server, the S704 and the NEF perform authentication and authorization processing on the local application server based on the standard authentication and authorization process.
  • the NEF pushes the registration request of the local application server to the SMF, where the registration request carries the enable identifier.
  • the SMF receives the enable identifier.
  • the SMF opens a function of pushing an address of the local application server to the terminal device or the designated terminal device of the data network corresponding to the local application server.
  • the SMF sends a registration request response to the NEF.
  • the NEF receives the registration request response.
  • the NEF sends a registration request response to the local application server that initiates the registration request.
  • the local application server receives the registration request response.
  • the mapping between the UPF and the local application server can be directly configured by the OSS of the 5G core network.
  • the SMF can select the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover, and the SMF will The address of the local application server is transmitted to the terminal device, so that the network planning is transparent to the terminal device, and the process of discovering the address of the local application server by the terminal device is accelerated, and the service experience of the specified APP of the terminal device is improved.
  • FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a handover process of an application server according to still another specific example, and the method may include the following steps:
  • the OSS sends a correspondence between addresses of local application servers corresponding to one or more groups of UPFs to the SMF.
  • the SMF receives the correspondence.
  • the AF initiates a registration request process of the local application server to the NEF, where the registration request carries the enabling identifier.
  • the NEF receives the enable identifier.
  • the S804 After receiving the registration request of the local application server sent by the AF, the S804 performs authentication and authorization processing on the local application server based on the standard authentication and authorization process.
  • the NEF pushes the registration request of the local application server to the SMF, where the registration request carries the enable identifier.
  • the SMF After receiving the foregoing enable identifier, the SMF, after accessing the terminal device of the data network corresponding to the local application server or the designated application, starts the UPF switch, and then pushes the address of the local application server.
  • the SMF sends a registration response message of the local application server to the NEF.
  • the NEF receives the registration response message.
  • the NEF sends a registration response message to the AF.
  • the AF receives the registration response message.
  • the terminal device After the terminal device goes online, it accesses its corresponding local application server through the source UPF.
  • S809-S810 After the terminal device moves, the handover process is triggered.
  • the SMF implements the UPF handover process based on the standard definition UPF selection mechanism, activates the session on the target UPF, and the subsequent terminal device accesses the data service through the target UPF.
  • the terminal device determines that the terminal device needs to access a specific application according to the session information, and determines whether the address push function of the local application server is enabled for the application, the service, or the terminal device.
  • the SMF sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the destination UPF to the AF through the NEF.
  • the AF receives the address of the local application server.
  • the AF After the AF receives the address of the local application server, there are two ways to push the address of the local application server to the terminal device:
  • the AF can send an application trigger request to the terminal device through the NEF, the AMF, and the (R)AN based on the standard application triggering process, and the application triggers the request to carry the address of the local application server corresponding to the destination UPF.
  • the terminal device parses the address of the local application server carried in the request and records it locally.
  • the terminal device reply application trigger request response message is sent to the AF via (R)AN, AMF, NEF.
  • the AF can directly push the address of the local application server corresponding to the destination UPF to the terminal device through the data plane link.
  • the terminal device initiates a service access process based on the address of the new local application server (the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched UPF), so that the terminal device can obtain the reliable, low-latency service provided by the local application server. service.
  • the SMF after the UPF handover occurs, the SMF notifies the AF of the address of the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover, and the address of the local application server is pushed to the terminal device by using an application trigger process or a data plane process.
  • the network planning is transparent to the terminal device, and the process of discovering the address of the local application server by the terminal device is accelerated, so that the terminal device can obtain the reliable and low-latency service provided by the local application server.
  • the edge platform and the network side can jointly obtain the correspondence between the switched UPF and the address of the local application server.
  • the terminal device can better select the local application server, so that the network planning is performed.
  • the terminal device is transparent, accelerating the process of the terminal device discovering the local application server.
  • the session management network element obtains the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element. And sending the address to the terminal device, the UE can access the local application server corresponding to the switched UPF, so that the UE can obtain a reliable, low-latency service provided by the local application server.
  • the structure of the session management network element and the terminal device will be described in detail below with reference to FIG. 9 to FIG. 12 respectively. It should be noted that the following session management network element and terminal device can be applied to the foregoing method.
  • FIG. 9 is a structural block diagram of a session management network element according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
  • the session management network element 3000 may include:
  • the first obtaining unit 31 is configured to obtain, according to the switched user plane network element, and the correspondence between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server, the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element;
  • the mapping between the user plane network element and the address of the local application server is used to indicate that when the terminal device accesses a user plane network element, the one or more application servers deployed in the network that provide the same service can be The terminal device provides an address of the local application server of the service;
  • the sending unit 32 is configured to send, to the terminal device, an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • the local application server includes an application server with the highest priority among the one or more application servers that provide the same service, or an application server with the closest user-to-network element topology relationship accessed by the terminal device.
  • the session management network element 3000 may further include: a storage unit, configured to store a correspondence between the user plane network element and an address of the local application server.
  • the storage unit is specifically configured to: receive a correspondence between a user plane network element sent by the network capability open network element and an address of the registered local application server, and save the saved user plane network element and the local The correspondence between the addresses of the application servers.
  • the storage unit is specifically configured to: receive and store a correspondence between a user plane network element configured by the operation support system and an address of the local application server.
  • the session management network element 3000 may further include: a first receiving unit, configured to receive a first enable identifier sent by the network capability open network element for an address of the service push local application server; or And a receiving unit, configured to receive a first enabling identifier of an address of the service supporting system configured for the service to push the local application server.
  • the first enabling identifier is used to instruct the session management network element to push an address of the local application server to the terminal device after the user plane network element corresponding to the terminal device is switched.
  • the session management network element 3000 may further include: a second obtaining unit, configured to acquire subscription information of the terminal device from the unified data management network element, where the subscription information includes a push for the terminal device a second enabling identifier of the address of the local application server; and a first determining unit, configured to determine, according to the subscription information, an address of the local application server to be pushed to the terminal device.
  • the session management network element 3000 may further include: a third receiving unit, configured to receive an identifier and/or a user attribute of the terminal device that is enabled by the operation support system to enable the address pushing function of the local application server And a second determining unit, configured to determine, according to the identifier of the terminal device and/or the user attribute, the address of the local application server to be pushed to the terminal device.
  • a third receiving unit configured to receive an identifier and/or a user attribute of the terminal device that is enabled by the operation support system to enable the address pushing function of the local application server
  • a second determining unit configured to determine, according to the identifier of the terminal device and/or the user attribute, the address of the local application server to be pushed to the terminal device.
  • the session management network element 3000 may further include: a fourth receiving unit, configured to receive, by the application network element, an identifier of the terminal device that enables the address pushing function of the local application server; and a third determining unit, And determining, according to the identifier of the terminal device, to push an address of the local application server to the terminal device.
  • the sending unit 32 is specifically configured to: send an application trigger request to the terminal device, where the application trigger request includes an address of a local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element; or The application network element sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element, and the application network element sends the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element to the terminal device.
  • the UE in a scenario in which the UPF of the UE is switched, the UE can access the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover, so that the UE can obtain reliable information provided by the local application server. Low latency service.
  • FIG. 10 is a structural block diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application.
  • the terminal device 4000 can include:
  • the receiving unit 41 is configured to receive an application trigger request, where the application trigger request includes an address of a local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element;
  • the access unit 42 is configured to access the local application server according to the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element.
  • the receiving unit 41 is specifically configured to receive the application trigger request sent by the session management network element or the application network element.
  • the UE may access the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover, so that the UE can obtain a reliable low time provided by the local application server. Extended service.
  • FIG. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of hardware of a session management network element according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
  • the session management network element 1100 may include a receiver 1101, a transmitter 1102, a processor 1103, and a memory 1104, and the receiver 1101, the transmitter 1102, the processor 1103, and the memory 1104 are connected to each other through a communication line.
  • the memory includes, but is not limited to, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM), or a portable A compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) for use in related instructions and data.
  • RAM random access memory
  • ROM read-only memory
  • EPROM erasable programmable read only memory
  • CD-ROM portable A compact disc read-only memory
  • the receiver is for receiving data and/or signals
  • the transmitter is for transmitting data and/or signals.
  • the transmitter and receiver can be stand-alone devices or a single device.
  • the processor may include one or more processors, for example, including one or more central processing units (CPUs).
  • CPUs central processing units
  • the CPU may be a single-core CPU or may be Multi-core CPU.
  • the related functions implemented by the first obtaining unit 31 in FIG. 9 may be implemented by one or more processors, and related functions implemented by the sending unit 32 may be implemented by a transmitter,
  • the related functions implemented by the first, second, and third receiving units may be implemented by a receiver, and related functions implemented by the storage unit may be implemented by a memory.
  • the processor 1103 is configured to obtain an address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element, for example, step S501 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5; and the transmitter 1102 is configured to send the switch to the terminal device.
  • the address of the local application server corresponding to the user plane network element for example, the step S502 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 is performed.
  • the UE in a scenario in which the UPF of the UE is switched, the UE can access the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover, so that the UE can obtain reliable information provided by the local application server. Low latency service.
  • FIG. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of hardware of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
  • the terminal device uses a mobile phone as an example.
  • the terminal device includes a processor, a memory, a radio frequency circuit, an antenna, and an input/output device.
  • the processor is mainly used for processing communication protocols and communication data, and controlling terminal devices, executing software programs, processing data of software programs, and the like.
  • Memory is primarily used to store software programs and data.
  • the RF circuit is mainly used for the conversion of the baseband signal and the RF signal and the processing of the RF signal.
  • the antenna is mainly used to transmit and receive RF signals in the form of electromagnetic waves.
  • Input and output devices such as touch screens, display screens, keyboards, etc., are primarily used to receive user input data and output data to the user. It should be noted that some types of terminal devices may not have input and output devices.
  • the processor When the data needs to be sent, the processor performs baseband processing on the data to be sent, and outputs the baseband signal to the radio frequency circuit.
  • the radio frequency circuit performs radio frequency processing on the baseband signal, and then sends the radio frequency signal to the outside through the antenna in the form of electromagnetic waves.
  • the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna, converts the RF signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor, which converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.
  • the memory may also be referred to as a storage medium or a storage device or the like.
  • the memory may be independent of the processor, or may be integrated with the processor, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present application.
  • an antenna and a radio frequency circuit having a transceiving function can be regarded as a receiving unit and a transmitting unit (also collectively referred to as a transceiving unit) of the terminal device, and a processor having a processing function is regarded as a processing unit of the terminal device.
  • the terminal device includes a receiving unit 1201, a processing unit 1202, and a transmitting unit 1203.
  • the receiving unit 1201 may also be referred to as a receiver, a receiver, a receiving circuit, etc.
  • the transmitting unit 1203 may also be referred to as a transmitter, a transmitter, a transmitter, a transmitting circuit, or the like.
  • the processing unit may also be referred to as a processor, a processing board, a processing module, a processing device, and the like.
  • the receiving unit 1201 is configured to perform step S502 of the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, and receive an application trigger request.
  • the processing unit 1202 is configured to perform step S503 of the embodiment shown in FIG.
  • the address of the local application server corresponding to the switched user plane network element accesses the local application server.
  • the UE may access the local application server corresponding to the UPF after the handover, so that the UE can obtain a reliable low time provided by the local application server. Extended service.
  • the disclosed systems, devices, and methods may be implemented in other manners.
  • the device embodiments described above are merely illustrative.
  • the division of the unit is only a logical function division.
  • there may be another division manner for example, multiple units or components may be combined or Can be integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed.
  • the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interface, device or unit, and may be in an electrical, mechanical or other form.
  • the units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components displayed as units may or may not be physical units, that is, may be located in one place, or may be distributed to multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of the embodiment.
  • each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.
  • the computer program product includes one or more computer instructions.
  • the computer can be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device.
  • the computer instructions can be stored in or transmitted by a computer readable storage medium.
  • the computer instructions may be from a website site, computer, server or data center via a wired (eg, coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (eg, infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) Another website site, computer, server, or data center for transmission.
  • the computer readable storage medium can be any available media that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server, data center, or the like that includes one or more available media.
  • the usable medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a digital versatile disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state disk (SSD)). )Wait.
  • the foregoing storage medium includes: a read-only memory (ROM) or a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk, and the like, which can store program code.

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Abstract

本申请公开了一种应用服务器的切换方法及会话管理网元、终端设备。该方法包括：SMF根据切换后的UPF，以及UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址；SMF向UE发送切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址。还公开了相应的装置。本申请中，在UE对应的UPF发生切换的场景下，UE可以访问切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，从而UE可以获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。

Description

应用服务器的切换方法及会话管理网元、终端设备
本申请要求于2017年12月27日提交中国国家知识产权局、申请号为201711450503.9、发明名称为“应用服务器的切换方法及会话管理网元、终端设备”的中国专利申请的优先权，其全部内容通过引用结合在本申请中。
技术领域
本申请涉及通信技术领域，尤其涉及一种应用服务器切换的方法及会话管理网元、终端设备。
背景技术
移动边缘计算(mobile edge computing，MEC)是基于第五代(5rd generation，5G)移动通信架构，将接入网与互联网业务深度融合的一种技术。它将应用服务器(application server，AS)和移动宽带(mobile broadband，MBB)核心网部分业务处理和资源调度的功能一同部署到靠近接入网的网络边缘，通过业务靠近用户处理，以实现可靠、超低时延的业务处理。
通常，为提供极致的业务体验，在邻近的移动边缘平台(mobile edge platform，MEP)上均部署提供相同服务的应用服务器。MEP与对应的用户面网元连接。然而，终端设备经常会发生移动，导致与该终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换，此时，若终端设备仍然访问切换前所访问的应用服务器，则不能保证可以实现可靠、超低时延的业务处理。
因此，如何实现在终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换的场景下，终端设备如何获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务，是目前亟待解决的问题。
发明内容
本申请提供一种应用服务器切换的方法及会话管理网元、终端设备，以实现在终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换的场景下，终端设备可以获取到本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。
一方面，提供了一种应用服务器的切换方法，应用于终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换的场景下，所述方法包括：会话管理网元根据切换后的用户面网元，以及用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；其中，所述用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系用于指示当终端设备接入一个用户面网元时，在网络中部署的提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中能够为终端设备提供所述服务的本地应用服务器的地址；以及所述会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。在该方面中，在UE对应的UPF发生切换的场景下，UE可以访问切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，从而UE可以获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。
在一种可能的实现方式中，所述本地应用服务器包括提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中优先级最高的应用服务器、或与终端设备接入的用户面网元拓扑关系最近的应用服务器。在该实现方式中，优先级最高或拓扑关系最近的应用 服务器可以认为是UPF切好后对应的最佳的本地应用服务器。
在另一种可能的实现方式中，所述方法还包括：所述会话管理网元存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。在该实现方式中，会话管理网元存储一个或多个用户面网元与一个或多个本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。
在又一种可能的实现方式中，所述会话管理网元存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，包括：所述会话管理网元接收网络能力开放网元发送的用户面网元与注册的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，并保存到已存储的用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系中。在该实现方式中，该对应关系是NEF发送的。一旦有新注册的应用服务器，则更新SMF存储的UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，可以使得SMF存储的该对应关系得到实时更新。
在又一种可能的实现方式中，所述会话管理网元存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，包括：所述会话管理网元接收并存储运营支撑系统配置的用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。在该实现方式中，该对应关系是人为配置的，可以通过OSS直接将一个或多个UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系发送给SMF，由SMF存储该对应关系。
在又一种可能的实现方式中，所述方法还包括：所述会话管理网元接收所述网络能力开放网元发送的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识；或所述会话管理网元接收运营支撑系统配置的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识。在该实现方式中，针对某个具体的服务，在UPF发生切换的场景下，若需要推送其本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备，需要使能针对该服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的功能。SMF在获取了该使能标识后，且在确定终端设备对应的UPF发生切换时，才向该终端设备推送UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
在又一种可能的实现方式中，所述使能标识用于指示所述会话管理网元在当终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换后，向所述终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
在又一种可能的实现方式中，所述方法还包括：所述会话管理网元从统一数据管理网元获取所述终端设备的签约信息，其中，所述签约信息包括针对所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址的第二使能标识；所述会话管理网元根据所述签约信息，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。在该实现方式中，针对某个具体的终端设备，在该终端设备发生移动，其对应的UPF发生切换时，是否需要向该终端设备推送切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址，也可以进行配置。在SMF感知终端设备对应的UPF发生切换时，从UDM获取该终端设备的签约信息，若该签约信息包括该使能标识，则SMF向该终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
在又一种可能的实现方式中，所述方法还包括：所述会话管理网元接收所述运营支撑系统发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识和/或用户属性；所述会话管理网元根据所述终端设备的标识和/或用户属性，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。在该实现方式中，SMF在接收到使能了推送地址功能的终端设备的标识或用户属性后，针对具体的终端设备，确定在SMF保存的使能了推送地址功能的终端设备的标识或用户属性中，是否包括该终端设备的标识或用户属性，从而确定是否要向该具体的终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
在又一种可能的实现方式中，所述方法还包括：所述会话管理网元接收应用网元发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识；所述会话管理网元根 据所述终端设备的标识，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。在该实现方式中，AF保存该终端设备的标识，并发送使能地址推送功能的终端设备的标识给SMF。SMF在接收到使能了推送功能的终端设备的标识后，针对具体的终端设备，确定在SMF保存的使能了推送地址功能的终端设备的标识中，是否包括该终端设备的标识，从而确定是否要向该具体的终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
在又一种可能的实现方式中，所述会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，包括：所述会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；或所述会话管理网元向应用网元发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，由所述应用网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。在该实现方式中，SMF发送切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备，SMF可以通过应用触发机制(即通过控制面信道)发送本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备，也可以在终端设备已与AF存在通信的情况下，由AF通过数据通道发送本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备。
另一方面，提供了一种应用服务器的切换方法，应用于终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换的场景下，所述方法包括：所述终端设备接收应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；以及所述终端设备根据所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址访问本地应用服务器。在该方面中，在UE对应的UPF发生切换的场景下，UE可以访问切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，从而UE可以获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。
在一种可能的实现方式中，所述终端设备接收应用触发请求，包括：所述终端设备接收会话管理网元或应用网元发送的所述应用触发请求。
又一方面，提供了一种会话管理网元，该会话管理网元具有实现上述方法中会话管理网元行为的功能。所述功能可以通过硬件实现，也可以通过硬件执行相应的软件实现。所述硬件或软件包括一个或多个与上述功能相对应的模块。
一种可能的实现方式中，所述会话管理网元包括：第一获取单元，用于根据切换后的用户面网元，以及用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；其中，所述用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系用于指示当终端设备接入一个用户面网元时，在网络中部署的提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中能够为终端设备提供所述服务的本地应用服务器的地址；以及发送单元，用于向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
另一种可能的实现方式中，所述会话管理网元包括：接收器、发射器、存储器和处理器；其中，所述存储器中存储一组程序代码，且所述处理器用于调用所述存储器中存储的程序代码，执行以下操作：根据切换后的用户面网元，以及用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；其中，所述用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系用于指示当终端设备接入一个用户面网元时，在网络中部署的提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中能够为终端设备提供所述服务的本地应用服务器的地址；以及向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
基于同一申请构思，由于该装置解决问题的原理以及有益效果可以参见上述各可能 的会话管理网元的方法实施方式以及所带来的有益效果，因此该装置的实施可以参见方法的实施，重复之处不再赘述。
又一方面，提供了一种终端设备。该终端设备可以是芯片(如基带芯片，或通信芯片等)或者设备(如终端设备等)。可以通过软件、硬件、或者通过硬件执行相应的软件实现上述方法。
在一种可能的实现方式中，所述通信装置的结构中包括处理器、存储器；所述处理器被配置为支持所述装置执行上述通信方法中相应的功能。存储器用于与处理器耦合，其保存所述装置必要的程序(指令)和/或数据。可选的，所述通信装置还可以包括通信接口用于支持所述装置与其他网元之间的通信。
在另一种可能的实现方式中，所述通信装置，可以包括接收单元和访问单元；其中：接收单元，用于接收应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；以及访问单元，用于根据所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址访问本地应用服务器。
当该终端设备为芯片时，接收单元可以是输入单元，比如输入电路或者通信接口；发送单元可以是输出单元，比如输出电路或者通信接口。当所述通信装置为设备时，接收单元可以是接收器(也可以称为接收机)；发送单元可以是发送器(该发送器可以是发射器或发射机)。
又一方面，提供了一种计算机可读存储介质，所述计算机可读存储介质中存储有指令，当其在计算机上运行时，使得计算机执行上述各方面所述的方法。
又一方面，提供了一种包含指令的计算机程序产品，当其在计算机上运行时，使得计算机执行上述各方面所述的方法。
附图说明
为了更清楚地说明本申请实施例或背景技术中的技术方案，下面将对本申请实施例或背景技术中所需要使用的附图进行说明。
图1为本申请实施例提供的一种通信系统的结构示意图；
图2为本申请实施例示例的下一代通信系统的架构示意图；
图3为一种通用的移动边缘平台的切换的流程示意图；
图4为一种通用的应用触发机制流程示意图；
图5为本申请实施例提供的一种应用服务器的切换方法的交互流程示意图；
图6为本申请实施例提供的一种具体示例的应用服务器的切换方法的流程示意图；
图7为本申请实施例提供的另一种具体示例的应用服务器的切换方法的流程示意图；
图8为本申请实施例提供的又一种具体示例的应用服务器的切换方法的流程示意图；
图9为本申请实施例提供的一种会话管理网元的结构框图；
图10为本申请实施例提供的一种终端设备的结构框图；
图11为本申请实施例提供的一种会话管理网元的硬件结构示意图；
图12为本申请实施例提供的一种终端设备的硬件结构示意图。
具体实施方式
下面结合本申请实施例中的附图对本申请实施例进行描述。
本申请提供了一种通信系统，如图1所示的本申请实施例提供的一种通信系统的结 构示意图。该通信系统1000可以包括用户面网元100和会话管理网元101，进一步地，该通信系统还可以包括终端设备102和网络开放网元103。该通信系统1000与移动边缘平台2000连接。移动边缘平台2000上部署有提供相同服务的一个或多个本地应用服务器200(这里仅示例了一个本地应用服务器)。具体地，每一个部署有本地应用服务器200的移动边缘平台2000与一个用户面网元100连接，用户面网元100可以连接一个或多个移动边缘平台。终端设备102通过与用户面网元100建立的数据/用户面通道，实现对部署在移动边缘平台2000上的本地应用服务器200的访问；终端设备102还可以通过会话管理网元101与网络开放网元103、用户面网元100之间进行信令面交互。需要说明的是，会话管理网元以及用户面网元仅是一个名字，名字本身对网元不构成限定。例如，该会话管理网元也有可能被替换为“会话管理功能”或其它名字。而且，该会话管理网元也可以对应一个包括除了会话管理功能外还有其他功能的网元。用户面网元也有可能被替换为“用户面功能”或其它名字，而且，该用户面网元也可以对应一个包括除了用户面功能外还有其他功能的网元。在此进行统一说明，以下不再赘述。
在本申请实施例中，会话管理网元根据切换后的用户面网元，以及用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；其中，所述用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系用于指示当终端设备接入一个用户面网元时，在网络中部署的提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中能够为终端设备提供服务的本地应用服务器的地址；所述会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
以下一代通信系统为例，图2为本申请实施例示例的下一代通信系统架构示意图。该通信系统可包括用户面功能实体(user plane function，UPF)和会话管理功能实体(session management function，SMF)，还可以包括网络能力开放功能实体(network exposure function，NEF)。图1中的用户面网元100可以是这里的UPF；图1中的会话管理网元200可以是这里的SMF；图1中的网络开放网元103可以是这里的NEF。该通信系统与一个或多个移动边缘平台(这里仅示例了两个MEP)连接。其中，每个MEP上部署有一个或多个本地应用服务器(在这里，仅示例了MEP1和MEP2上分别部署一个AS，且AS1和AS2可提供相同的服务)。UPF主要负责分组数据包的转发、服务质量(quality of service，QoS)控制、计费信息统计等；SMF负责进行统一的会话管理。
需要说明的是，会话管理功能实体与终端设备之间的信令交互不是直连的，还要经过接入和移动性管理功能实体(access and mobility management function，AMF)和接入网设备(access network，AN)或无线接入网设备(radio access network，RAN)才能实现完整的信令面交互路径。用户面功能实体和终端设备之间的数据面通道也需要经过AN或RAN才能进行数据/用户面交互。因而，进一步地，该通信系统还可以包括终端设备、AN或RAN、AMF、统一数据管理功能实体(uniform data management，UDM)和应用功能实体(application function，AF)。其中，AF又可称为中心应用服务器(central application server，Central APP)。其中，终端设备与位于网络侧的用户面功能实体和会话管理功能实体进行通信，以访问部署在移动边缘平台上的本地应用服务器。AN或RAN负责将终端设备接入网络侧；AMF主要负责终端设备的接入管理；NEF负责接收应用服务器调用底层网络接口的请求，并通过一系列网络接口调用多种网络能力获得调用结果并返回给应用服务器；UDM负责统一管理终端设备的签约数据。
在图2中，还可包括其它的功能实体，在这里仅重点描述本申请涉及的几个功能实 体。各实体之间通过Nx接口连接(例如图中的N1、N2等)。需要说明的是，会话管理功能实体以及用户面功能实体仅是一个名字，名字本身对实体不构成限定。例如，该会话管理功能实体也有可能被替换为“会话管理功能”或其它名字。而且，该会话管理功能实体也可以对应一个包括除了会话管理功能外还有其他功能的实体。用户面功能实体也有可能被替换为“用户面功能”或其它名字，而且，该用户面功能实体也可以对应一个包括除了用户面功能外还有其他功能的实体。在此进行统一说明，以下不再赘述。
上述图1或图2所示系统中的任意一种功能实体或网元，具体实现中，可能由一个实体设备实现，也可能由多个实体设备共同实现，本申请实施例对此不作具体限定。即，可以理解的是，上述系统中的任意一种功能实体或者网元，都可能是实体设备内的一个逻辑功能模块，也可能是由多个实体设备组成的一个逻辑功能模块，本申请实施例对此不作具体限定。
图1或图2中所示的终端设备是一种具有无线收发功能的设备可以部署在陆地上，包括室内或室外、手持、穿戴或车载；也可以部署在水面上(如轮船等)；还可以部署在空中(例如飞机、气球和卫星上等)。所述终端设备可以是手机(mobile phone)、平板电脑(Pad)、带无线收发功能的电脑、虚拟现实(virtual reality，VR)终端设备、增强现实(augmented reality，AR)终端设备、工业控制(industrial control)中的无线终端、无人驾驶(self driving)中的无线终端、远程医疗(remote medical)中的无线终端、智能电网(smart grid)中的无线终端、运输安全(transportation safety)中的无线终端、智慧城市(smart city)中的无线终端、智慧家庭(smart home)中的无线终端等等。本申请的实施例对应用场景不做限定。终端设备有时也可以称为用户设备(user equipment，UE)、接入终端设备、UE单元、UE站、移动站、移动台、远方站、远程终端设备、移动设备、UE终端设备、终端(terminal)、无线通信设备、UE代理或UE装置等。
为了方便理解本申请实施例的技术方案，下面给出本申请相关技术的简要介绍。
MEP：
MEP是指将应用服务器和MBB核心网部分业务处理和资源调度的功能一同部署到靠近接入侧的网络边缘后所形成的一个平台。通常，MEP上可以部署各种应用服务器和域名系统代理(domain name system proxy，DNSP)实体等，本申请实施例对此不作具体限定。
可选的，本申请实施例中的MEP也可以称之为MEC平台、MEC系统或其他，本申请实施例对此不作具体限定。
终端应用：
终端应用是指安装在终端设备上，用于访问应用服务器提供的服务的软件产品，也可以称之为终端设备上的应用客户端。例如，终端设备上的微信客户端或者终端设备上的浏览器，可以用于访问微信应用服务器提供的服务，在此进行统一说明，以下不再赘述。
应用服务器：
本申请实施例中的应用服务器是指能够提供相应服务的载体。例如，微信服务器可以是能够提供微信服务的载体。
其中，本申请实施例中的载体可以是虚拟设备，也可以是实体设备，本申请实施例对此不作具体限定。其中，这里的虚拟设备例如可以是虚拟机或者容器等，本申请实施 例对此不作具体限定。
本地应用服务器和中心应用服务器:
本地应用服务器，又可以称为边缘应用服务器，是指部署在MEP上的应用服务器。而中心应用服务器是相对于边缘应用服务器来说的，可以和边缘应用服务器交互，比如可以向边缘应用服务器下发控制信息或同步数据等，因此边缘应用服务器通常具有中心应用服务器的全部功能或部分功能，本申请实施例对此不作具体限定。此外，由于边缘应用服务器部署在靠近接入网侧的网络边缘，也就是说部署位置较低，因此可以为用户提供更好的服务，比如时延更低、速率更高等。
需要说明的是，本申请下述实施例中的描述中，可以将部署在MEP上的应用服务器描述成本地应用服务器或边缘应用服务器，也可以直接描述成部署在MEP上的应用服务器，本申请实施例对此不作具体限定。在此进行统一说明，以下不再赘述。
本地应用服务器的地址分配：
本地应用服务器的IP地址通常由MEP在部署边缘应用服务器时分配，当然也可以是由其它地址分配设备统一分配。边缘应用服务器的IP地址可以是私网IP地址或公网IP地址，本申请实施例对此不作具体限定。
一种可能的实现方式中，部署在每个MEP上的应用服务器的IP地址可以在一个或多个IP地址段内，部署在不同MEP上的应用服务器的IP地址可以不同。比如，部署系统可以为MEP1上的应用服务器分配IP地址段1.1.0.1-1.1.255.255，为MEP2上的应用服务器分配IP地址段2.2.0.1-2.2.255.255。进而，MEP1在部署MEP1上的应用服务器时，可以为app.com对应的应用服务器分配IP地址为1.1.1.2；MEP2在部署MEP2上的应用服务器时，可以为app.com对应的应用服务器分配IP地址为2.2.1.2。
需要说明的是，本申请实施例中，MEP的标识用于唯一标识一个MEP，例如可以是部署在MEP上的UPF实体的位置信息或者数据网络接入标识(data network access identity，DNAI)等，本申请实施例不作具体限定。在此统一说明，以下不再赘述。
应用服务器的访问
本申请实施例中，当终端设备访问某个应用服务器时，通常通过应用服务器的域名访问，这里应用服务器的域名指的是应用服务器的真实域名。比如，假设某应用服务器的域名为app.com，则终端设备访问此应用服务器的过程如下：
步骤一、用户在浏览器中输入app.com或直接打开此应用服务器对应的终端应用进行访问。
步骤二、浏览器或终端应用发起DNS请求，以获得app.com对应的网际协议(internet protocol，IP)地址。
步骤三、终端设备的操作系统(operating system，OS)查询本机DNS缓存，若查询到app.com对应的DNS记录，则直接将对应的IP地址返回给浏览器或终端应用。其中，一个域名和IP地址的映射关系即为一条DNS记录。
步骤四、若步骤三中未查询到app.com对应的DNS记录，则终端设备向DNS服务器发送DNS解析请求。
步骤五、DNS服务器接收到来自终端设备的DNS解析请求后进行DNS解析，将app.com对应的IP地址列表通过DNS响应消息发送给终端设备。
步骤六、终端设备接收来自DNS服务器的DNS解析响应后，将app.com对应的IP地址返回给浏览器或终端应用，同时将相应的DNS记录存储在终端设备中。其中，DNS记 录在终端设备中的缓存时间可以根据DNS响应中的生存时间(time to live，TTL)参数进行设置，也可以由OS或终端应用进行设置。当DNS记录在终端设备中的缓存时间到期后，该DNS缓存将被清除或不再有效。
步骤七、浏览器或终端应用得到app.com对应的IP地址后向此IP地址对应的应用服务器发起连接请求。进而，该应用服务器可以向终端设备返回请求的内容，并由浏览器或终端应用进行显示。至此，终端设备访问该应用服务器的过程结束。
UPF的切换和选择流程
为支持5G系统架构中会话和服务的连续性，需要能够满足终端设备的不同应用/服务的各种连续性要求。5G系统支持不同的会话和服务连续性(session and service continuity，SSC)模式，主要包括三种SSC模式。其中，在SSC模式2和SSC模式3中都涉及UPF的切换。如图3所示的UPF切换和选择流程，下面以SSC模式2为例描述UPF的切换和选择流程：
S301.当可以从UPF重定位获益的一些事件发生时，SMF确定服务的UPF需要重新定位。
S302.SMF经由AMF发送非接入层(non-access stratum，NAS)消息给终端设备。该NAS消息包括协议数据单元(protocol data unit，PDU)会话标识。
S303.SMF执行PDU会话释放流程。
S304.终端设备启动PDU会话建立流程。然后，AMF转发该会话建立请求到同一个SMF，这样SMF可以选择一个新的UPF来建立PDU会话。
可以看出，在一些场景中，为保证会话和服务的连续性，需要进行UPF的切换和重新选择。
应用触发(application trigger)机制：
应用触发机制提供了一种应用服务器通过核心网控制面向终端设备主动推送消息的方法，此机制在第三代合作伙伴计划(3rd generation partnership project，3GPP)23.501 4.4.5和23.502 5.2.6.1中有详细描述。其主要流程如图4所示，包括如下步骤：
S401、应用服务器向网络对外功能(network exposure function，NEF)实体发送应用触发请求(application trigger request)，以使得NEF实体接收来自应用服务器的应用触发请求。
其中，该应用触发请求中可以包括终端设备的标识、请求者标识、消息的有效期、终端应用的标识、触发负载(trigger payload)等，终端设备的标识例如可以是国际移动用户识别码(international mobile subscriber identity，IMSI)或终端设备的IP地址等，用于指示向哪个终端设备推送消息；请求者标识例如可以是该应用服务器的IP地址或者名称，用于指示消息由哪个应用服务器发起，其中，该请求者标识通常是应用服务器与运营商签约后由运营商分配或双方协商好的标识，可以用于对消息发送者进行鉴权、配额控制或计费等；消息的有效期用于指示消息在多长时间内有效，若消息发送失败并且还在有效期内，则需要核心网进行重传；终端应用的标识例如可以是数字标识或域名等，通常也是应用服务器与运营商签约后由运营商分配或双方协商的一个全局唯一的标识，用于指示消息需要发给终端设备上的哪个终端应用；触发负载是需要终端应用处理的内容，具体可参考现有的方案，在此不予赘述。
S402、NEF实体根据应用触发请求中携带的终端标识从UDM获取终端设备的相关信 息。
其中，该终端设备的相关信息例如可以是为此终端设备提供服务的核心网网元信息，比如哪个AMF为该终端设备提供服务。
S403、NEF实体向为终端设备服务的AMF实体发送该应用触发请求，以使得AMF实体接收来自NEF实体的应用触发请求。
S404、AMF实体向终端设备发送应用触发请求，以使得终端设备接收来自AMF实体的应用触发请求。
S405、终端设备向AMF实体发送应用触发响应(application trigger response)，以使得AMF实体接收来自终端设备的应用触发响应。其中，该应用触发响应用于指示终端设备已经成功接收到应用触发请求。
S406、AMF实体向NEF实体发送应用触发响应，以使得NEF实体接收来自AMF实体的应用触发响应。
S407、NEF实体向应用服务器发送应用触发响应，以使得应用服务器接收来自NEF实体的应用触发响应。
至此，应用触发机制的基本流程结束。其中，步骤S401至步骤S407的具体实现可参考现有的应用触发机制流程，在此不再赘述。
需要说明的是，必须支持应用触发机制的终端设备才可以使用上述的应用触发流程。而如何使得终端设备可以支持应用触发机制，可以有多种实现方式，比如终端基带芯片接收到非接入层(non-access stratum，NAS)消息后识别出是应用触发请求，可以将该应用触发请求发送到终端设备的OS处理。进而，终端设备的OS提供的一个服务可以处理该应用触发请求，这里终端设备的OS提供的一个服务就是操作系统提供的一个功能或者功能模块，实现一些特定的功能，比如设备控制，消息通知功能等，在此统一说明，以下不再赘述。或者，终端设备的OS接收到应用触发请求后，可以根据应用触发请求中携带的终端应用的标识，将应用触发请求发送给一个特定的终端应用来处理，本申请实施例对此不作具体限定。其中，由于处理应用触发请求的终端应用是一个特殊应用，因此对应的终端应用的标识可以是由运营商分配的一个特殊的标识，比如“0”，在此统一说明，以下不再赘述。
本申请实施例描述的网络架构以及业务场景是为了更加清楚的说明本申请实施例的技术方案，并不构成对于本申请实施例提供的技术方案的限定，本领域普通技术人员可知，随着网络架构的演变和新业务场景的出现，本申请实施例提供的技术方案对于类似的技术问题，同样适用。
需要说明的是，本申请实施例中的术语“系统”和“网络”可被互换使用。“多个”是指两个或两个以上，鉴于此，本申请实施例中也可以将“多个”理解为“至少两个”。“和/或”，描述关联对象的关联关系，表示可以存在三种关系，例如，A和/或B，可以表示：单独存在A，同时存在A和B，单独存在B这三种情况。另外，字符“/”，如无特殊说明，一般表示前后关联对象是一种“或”的关系。另外，为了便于清楚描述本申请实施例的技术方案，在本申请的实施例中，采用了“第一”、“第二”等字样对功能和作用基本相同的相同项或相似项进行区分。本领域技术人员可以理解“第一”、“第二”等字样并不对数量和执行次序进行限定，并且“第一”、“第二”等字样也并不限定一定不同。
图5为本申请实施例提供的一种应用服务器的切换方法的交互流程示意图，应用于 终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换的场景下，该方法可包括以下步骤：
S501、会话管理网元根据切换后的用户面网元，以及用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；其中，所述用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系用于指示当终端设备接入一个用户面网元时，在网络中部署的提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中能够为终端设备提供服务的本地应用服务器的地址。
S502、所述会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。所述终端设备接收所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
S503、所述终端设备根据所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址访问所述本地应用服务器。
本实施例以下一代移动通信系统(如5G系统)为例来具体描述应用服务器的切换流程。如图1或图2所示，每个MEP与一个UPF连接(当然，一个UPF可以与多个MEP连接)，每个MEP上部署有一个或多个本地应用服务器，其中，每个本地应用服务器可以提供一种服务。网络中存在多个MEP，当用户的位置移动导致接入到不同的UPF上时，网络侧可以为用户确定最佳的本地应用服务器。具体地，该最佳的本地应用服务器可以是提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中优先级最高的应用服务器，也可以是与终端设备接入的用户面网元拓扑关系最近的应用服务器。其中，优先级最高是指基于运营商配置认为这个UFP连接的可以提供最好的服务质量的MEP上的应用服务器，则定义为优先级最高。拓扑关系最近则是指与UPF的连接通信链路最短，可以降低端到端的时延，提升通信服务质量。本实施例中，SMF保存UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，而且当MEP上部署的本地应用服务器发生变化时，SMF实时更新该对应关系。
如图3所示的UPF的切换和选择流程示意图，在一些场景下，为了保证会话和服务的连续性，需要切换并重新选择UPF。若UPF切换后，UE仍访问源UPF连接的MEP上的应用服务器，而一般情况下，源UPF对应的应用服务器不是提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中优先级最高的应用服务器，或源UPF对应的应用服务器不是与终端设备接入的用户面网元拓扑关系最近的应用服务器，这样就导致UE无法获得最佳的服务。本实施例中，在UE对应的UPF发生切换的场景下，SMF根据目的UPF(具体可以是目的UPF的标识)以及保存的UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取目的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址，并将该目的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址发送给终端设备。终端设备可以根据目的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址访问该本地应用服务器。从而保证终端设备可以访问到切换后的UPF连接的MEP上的提供相同服务的本地应用服务器。目的UPF对应的应用服务器一般是提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中优先级最高的应用服务器、或与终端设备接入的用户面网元拓扑关系最近的应用服务器，从而可以保证给终端设备提供可靠的、低时延的业务处理。
进一步地，步骤S501之前，该方法还可以包括：所述会话管理网元存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。该对应关系可以是NEF发送的，也可以是人为配置的。具体地：
在一个实现方式中，所述会话管理网元存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，具体包括：所述会话管理网元接收网络能力开放网元发送的用户面网元与注册的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，并保存到已存储的用户面网元与本地应用服务 器的地址的对应关系中。具体实现中，当在MEP上部署新的本地应用服务器时，本地应用服务器需要注册到MEP，提供本地应用服务器的地址给MEP，MEP根据本地应用服务器部署的位置信息和UPF的拓扑关系，确定UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。然后，MEP将UPF的标识和本地应用服务器的地址发送给NEF，NEF对新注册的本地应用服务器进行鉴权、授权，鉴权、授权通过后，NEF将UPF的标识和本地应用服务器的地址发送给SMF，SMF接收UPF的标识和本地应用服务器的地址并记录其对应关系。若该MEP或其它MEP上再有新的应用服务器注册时，SMF将接收到的UPF与新注册的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系保存到已存储的对应关系中。具体地，该对应关系可以以表格等形式保存在SMF中。后面将结合具体的流程进一步详细阐述。在该实现方式中，一旦有新注册的应用服务器，则更新SMF存储的UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，可以使得SMF存储的该对应关系得到实时更新。
在另一个实现方式中，所述会话管理网元存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，具体包括：所述会话管理网元接收并存储运营支撑系统(operation support system，OSS)配置的用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。具体实现中，OSS对在一个或多个MEP上部署的本地应用服务器进行管理，记录UPF的标识和本地应用服务器的地址。并且OSS将UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系发送给SMF，由SMF存储该对应关系。后面将结合具体的流程进一步详细阐述。在该实现方式中，可以通过OSS直接将一个或多个UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系发送给SMF，由SMF存储该对应关系。
针对某个具体的服务，在UPF发生切换的场景下，若需要推送其本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备，需要使能针对该服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的功能。因而，进一步地，步骤S501之前，该方法还可以包括：所述会话管理网元获取针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识。其中，所述第一使能标识用于指示所述会话管理网元在当终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换后，向所述终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。SMF在获取了该使能标识后，且在确定终端设备对应的UPF发生切换时，才向该终端设备推送UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址。具体地：
在一个实现方式中，所述会话管理网元获取针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识，具体包括：所述会话管理网元接收所述网络能力开放网元发送的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识。具体实现中，在上述MEP发送UPF标识和本地应用服务器的地址给NEF、以及NEF发送UPF标识和本地应用服务器的地址给SMF的流程中，MEP还可以发送该使能标识给NEF，然后再由NEF发送该使能标识给SMF。后面将结合具体的流程进一步详细阐述。
在另一个实现方式中，所述会话管理网元获取针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识，具体包括：所述会话管理网元接收运营支撑系统配置的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识。具体实现中，OSS在对一个或多个MEP上部署的本地应用服务器进行管理时，还对是否需要使能推送该本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备进行管理。从而，OSS发送针对某个服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的使能标识给SMF。
当然，还可以有其它的实现方式，例如，可以由AF发送针对其提供的服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识给SMF。
针对某个具体的终端设备，在该终端设备发生移动，其对应的UPF发生切换时，是 否需要向该终端设备推送切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址，也可以进行配置。因而，进一步地，在会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址之前，需要确定是否向该终端设备推送该本地应用服务器的地址。具体地：
在一个实现方式中，在S502之前，所述方法还包括：所述会话管理网元从统一数据管理网元获取所述终端设备的签约信息，其中，所述签约信息包括针对所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址的第二使能标识；所述会话管理网元根据所述签约信息，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。具体实现中，UDM对终端设备的签约信息进行统一管理，该签约信息可以包括针对具体的终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址的使能标识。在SMF感知终端设备对应的UPF发生切换时，从UDM获取该终端设备的签约信息，若该签约信息包括该使能标识，则SMF向该终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
在另一个实现方式中，在S502之前，所述方法还包括：所述会话管理网元接收所述运营支撑系统发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识和/或用户属性；所述会话管理网元根据所述终端设备的标识和/或用户属性，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。其中，所述用户属性例如可以包括以下信息中的至少一种：漫游信息、接入的数据网络信息和接入点名称APN；UE标识：第五代移动通信永久签约标识、国际移动用户识别码IMSI、MSISDN。具体实现中，OSS根据终端设备的标识或用户属性，配置需要使能推送本地应用服务器的地址的终端设备，然后，将使能了推送地址功能的终端设备的标识或用户属性发送给SMF。SMF在接收到使能了推送地址功能的终端设备的标识或用户属性后，针对具体的终端设备，确定在SMF保存的使能了推送地址功能的终端设备的标识或用户属性中，是否包括该终端设备的标识或用户属性，从而确定是否要向该具体的终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
在又一个实现方式中，在S502之前，所述方法还包括：所述会话管理网元接收应用功能实体发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识；所述会话管理网元根据所述终端设备的标识，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。具体实现中，AF也可以对是否推送其本地应用服务器的地址给具体的终端设备进行管理，例如，终端设备可以与具体的AF进行通信，要求在该终端设备对应的UPF发生切换时，推送切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址给该终端设备。AF保存该终端设备的标识，并发送使能地址推送功能的终端设备的标识给SMF。SMF在接收到使能了推送功能的终端设备的标识后，针对具体的终端设备，确定在SMF保存的使能了推送地址功能的终端设备的标识中，是否包括该终端设备的标识，从而确定是否要向该具体的终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
在S502中，SMF发送切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备，SMF可以通过应用触发机制(即通过控制面信道)发送本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备，也可以在终端设备已与AF存在通信的情况下，由AF通过数据通道发送本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备。具体地：
在一个实现方式中，S502具体包括：所述会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。终端设备接收会话管理网元发送的该应用触发请求。当然，也可以是会话管理网元发送应用触发请求给应用功能实体，再由应用功能实体发送应用触发请求给终端设 备，终端设备接收该应用触发请求。具体实现中，如图4所示的应用触发流程，应用触发机制提供了一种应用服务器通过核心网控制面向终端设备主动推送消息的方法，SMF作为核心网控制面中的网元，向终端设备主动推送消息，也需要通过该应用触发机制向终端设备推送消息。具体地，该消息即应用触发请求，该应用触发请求包括切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址。后面将结合具体的流程进一步详细阐述。
在另一个实现方式中，S502具体包括：所述会话管理网元向应用功能实体发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，由所述应用功能实体向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。终端设备接收该切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。具体实现中，若在终端设备发生移动时，终端设备正在访问AF，则SMF可以将本地应用服务器的地址发送给NEF，再由NEF发送给AF，由AF通过已建立的数据面通道发送该本地应用服务器的地址给终端设备。
下面通过具体的几个示例描述上述方法对应的完整的流程：
在一个示例中，某个MEP上部署有新的本地应用服务器时，该本地应用服务器上线之后需要向MEP发起注册流程。MEP根据本地应用服务器部署的位置信息和UPF的拓扑关系，将UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系通过NEF推送到SMF，同时使能SMF在UPF的切换流程之后，主动触发Application Trigger Service流程，将切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器地址推送给终端设备，以便于终端设备在UPF切换之后，可以及时访问到切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址。如图6所示的一个具体示例的应用服务器的切换流程示意图，具体包括以下步骤：
S601、MEP上有新的本地应用服务器上线后，本地应用服务器会发起注册流程，发送注册请求给MEP，该注册请求携带该本地应用服务器的地址。MEP接收该注册请求。
S602、MEP根据本地应用服务器部署的位置信息以及UPF的拓扑关系、或本地应用服务器的优先级信息，确定UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。即确定该对应关系包括两种方式，一种方式是根据本地应用服务器部署的位置信息以及UPF的拓扑关系确定该对应关系，其中，UPF的拓扑关系是指UPF的部署与MEP的位置的关系，则与该UPF对应的本地应用服务器为与UPF拓扑关系最近的应用服务器。另一种方式是，根据本地应用服务器的优先级信息确定该对应关系。一般情况下，AF针对每个MEP配置该MEP上的本地应用服务器的优先级，则与该UPF对应的本地应用服务器可以为提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中优先级最高的应用服务器。
然后，MEP向5G核心网的NEF发起本地应用服务器的注册请求流程，发送注册请求给NEF，该注册请求可以携带UPF的标识、本地应用服务器的地址，还可以携带推送本地应用服务器的地址的使能标识。
S603、NEF收到MEP发送的本地应用服务器的注册请求后，基于标准的鉴权和授权流程对MEP进行鉴权、授权处理。
S604、对于符合要求的本地应用服务器的注册请求，NEF会将本地应用服务器的注册请求发送给SMF。该注册请求可以携带UPF的标识、本地应用服务器的地址，还可以携带推送本地应用服务器的地址的使能标识。
S605、SMF接收到UPF的标识、本地应用服务器的地址和使能标识后，记录UPF与新的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系到已存储的对应关系中，同时对访问本地应用服务器所对应的数据网络的终端设备开启UPF切换后推送本地应用服务器的地址的功能。
S606、SMF发送本地应用服务器的注册响应消息给NEF。NEF接收该注册响应消息。 该注册响应消息可以包括注册结果的指示。例如，用1比特表示注册结果，“1”表示注册通过，“0”表示注册失败；或者反之亦可，“0”表示注册通过，“1”表示注册失败。
S607、NEF发送本地应用服务器的注册响应消息给MEP。MEP接收该注册响应消息。
S608、MEP发送本地应用服务器的注册响应消息给本地应用服务器。本地应用服务器接收该注册响应消息，获得注册结果。
终端设备上线后，通过源UPF访问源UPF对应的本地应用服务器。但是，若终端设备发生移动，其对应的UPF也对应的进行切换。
S609-S610、终端设备移动之后，触发切换流程，SMF基于标准定义的UPF选择机制，实现UPF的切换流程，在目标UPF上激活会话，后续终端设备通过目标UPF访问数据业务。具体请参见图3所示的流程。
S611、SMF在终端设备移动过程触发切换流程时，基于标准的UPF选择流程实现UPF的切换流程之后，根据会话信息判断该终端设备需要访问特定的应用，针对该应用、服务或终端设备确定是否已使能本地应用服务器的地址推送功能。
S612、若SMF确定已使能本地应用服务器的地址推送功能，则向AMF发起应用触发流程，具体地，发送应用触发请求给AMF。该应用触发请求中携带切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址。AMF接收该应用触发请求。
S613、AMF收到该应用触发请求之后，基于标准流程通过(R)AN发送应用触发请求给终端设备。该应用触发请求中携带切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址。终端设备接收该应用触发请求。
S614、终端设备接收到应用触发请求之后，解析该请求中携带的切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址并记录在本地。
S615、终端设备经(R)AN发送应用触发请求响应给AMF。AMF接收该应用触发请求响应。
S616、AMF发送应用触发请求响应给SMF。SMF接收该应用触发请求响应。
S617、终端设备将基于新的本地应用服务器的地址(切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址)发起业务访问流程，从而终端设备可以获取到本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的业务服务。
在该示例中，在终端设备对应的UPF发生切换后，可以由SMF选择切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，SMF将本地应用服务器的地址传递给终端设备，使网络规划对终端设备透明，加速终端设备发现本地应用服务器的地址的过程，提升终端设备指定APP的业务体验。
在另一个示例中，本地应用服务器上线之后需要向MEP发起注册流程，OSS直接在SMF上配置UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，本地应用服务器通过NEF发送推送本地应用服务器的地址的使能标识给SMF，使能SMF在UPF选择流程之后主动触发Application Trigger Service流程，将切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址推送到终端设备，以便于终端设备在UPF切换之后可以及时获取该UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址，从而获得本地应用服务器给终端设备提供的可靠的、低时延的业务服务。如图7所示的另一个具体示例的应用服务器的切换流程示意图，该方法可包括以下步骤：
S701、OSS系统在SMF上配置一组或多组UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。
S702、SMF接收该对应关系并保存。
S703、MEP上部署的本地应用服务器向NEF发起本地应用服务器的注册请求流程，其注册请求携带在终端设备对应的UPF切换后，推送本地应用服务器的地址的使能标识。NEF接收该使能标识。
S704、NEF在接收到本地应用服务器发送的注册请求后，基于标准的鉴权和授权流程对本地应用服务器进行鉴权、授权处理。
S705、对于符合要求的本地应用服务器注册请求，NEF会将本地应用服务器的注册请求推送到SMF，该注册请求携带上述使能标识。SMF接收该使能标识。
S706、SMF对访问本地应用服务器所对应的数据网络的终端设备或指定终端设备开启推送本地应用服务器的地址的功能。
S707、SMF发送注册请求响应给NEF。NEF接收该注册请求响应。
S708、NEF发送注册请求响应给发起注册请求的本地应用服务器。该本地应用服务器接收该注册请求响应。
后续的业务流程与图6所示的流程相同，在此不再赘述。
在该示例中，可以由5G核心网的OSS直接配置UPF与本地应用服务器的对应关系表，在终端设备对应的UPF发生切换后，可以由SMF选择切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，SMF将本地应用服务器的地址传递给终端设备，使网络规划对终端设备透明，加速终端设备发现本地应用服务器的地址的过程，提升终端设备指定APP的业务体验。
在又一个示例中，本地应用服务器上线之后需要向MEP发起注册流程，OSS直接在SMF上配置UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，本地应用服务器通过NEF发送推送本地应用服务器的地址的使能标识到SMF，使能SMF在UPF选择流程之后主动通知AF，由其通过Application Trigger Service流程或数据面通道，将切换后的UPF后对应的本地应用服务器的地址推送给终端设备，以便于终端设备在UPF切换之后可以及时获取切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址，以获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的业务服务。当然，对应关系和使能标识也可以通过图6所示的流程发送给SMF。如图8所示的又一个具体示例的应用服务器的切换流程示意图，该方法可包括以下步骤：
S801、OSS发送一组或多组UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系给SMF。SMF接收该对应关系。
S802、SMF保存上述对应关系。
S803、AF向NEF发起本地应用服务器的注册请求流程，其注册请求携带上述使能标识。NEF接收该使能标识。
S804、NEF接收到AF发送的本地应用服务器的注册请求后，基于标准的鉴权和授权流程对本地应用服务器进行鉴权、授权处理。
S805、对于符合要求的本地应用服务器的注册请求，NEF会将本地应用服务器的注册请求推送到SMF，该注册请求携带上述使能标识。
S806、SMF接收到上述使能标识后，对访问本地应用服务器所对应的数据网络的终端设备或指定应用开启UPF切换后，推送本地应用服务器的地址的功能。
S807、SMF发送本地应用服务器的注册响应消息给NEF。NEF接收该注册响应消息。
S808、NEF发送注册响应消息给AF。AF接收该注册响应消息。
终端设备上线后，通过源UPF访问其对应的本地应用服务器。
S809-S810、终端设备移动之后，触发切换流程，SMF基于标准定义的UPF选择机制，实现UPF的切换流程，在目标UPF上激活会话，后续终端设备通过目标UPF访问数据业 务。
S811、SMF基于标准的UPF选择流程实现UPF的切换流程之后，根据会话信息判断该终端设备需要访问特定的应用，针对该应用、服务或终端设备确定是否已使能本地应用服务器的地址推送功能。
S812、若确定已使能本地应用服务器的地址推送功能，则SMF通过NEF向AF发送目的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址。AF接收该本地应用服务器的地址。
AF在接收到本地应用服务器的地址之后，有两种方式可以实现推送本地应用服务器的地址到终端设备：
一种方式是，AF可以基于标准的应用触发流程通过NEF、AMF和(R)AN将应用触发请求发送给终端设备，该应用触发请求携带目的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址。终端设备接收到应用触发请求之后，解析该请求中携带的本地应用服务器的地址，并记录在本地。终端设备回复应用触发请求响应消息经(R)AN、AMF、NEF发送到AF。
另一种方式是，如果终端设备已经和AF建立了数据面连接，AF可以通过该数据面链路直接推送目的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址到终端设备。
S813、终端设备将基于新的本地应用服务器的地址(切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址)发起业务访问流程，从而终端设备可以获取到本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的业务服务。
在该示例中，在发生UPF切换后，SMF将切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器的地址通知给AF，由其通过应用触发流程或数据面流程将该本地应用服务器的地址推送给终端设备，使网络规划对终端设备透明，加速终端设备发现本地应用服务器的地址的过程，从而终端设备可以获取到本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。
可见，在移动边缘计算场景，边缘平台及网络侧可以协同获得切换后的UPF与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，在UPF切换后，终端设备能够更好的选择本地应用服务器，使网络规划对终端设备透明，加速终端设备发现本地应用服务器的过程。
根据本申请实施例提供的一种应用服务器的切换方法，在终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换的场景下，会话管理网元获取切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，并发送该地址给终端设备，UE可以访问切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，从而UE可以获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。
下面将结合图9-图12分别对会话管理网元和终端设备的结构进行详细介绍。需要说明的是，下述的会话管理网元和终端设备可应用于上述方法中。
图9为本申请实施例提供的一种会话管理网元的结构框图，该会话管理网元3000可包括：
第一获取单元31，用于根据切换后的用户面网元，以及用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；其中，所述用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系用于指示当终端设备接入一个用户面网元时，在网络中部署的提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中能够为终端设备提供所述服务的本地应用服务器的地址；
发送单元32，用于向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
进一步地，所述本地应用服务器包括提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中优先级最高的应用服务器、或与终端设备接入的用户面网元拓扑关系最近的应用服务器。
再进一步地，该会话管理网元3000还可包括：存储单元，用于存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。
在一个实现方式中，所述存储单元具体用于：接收网络能力开放网元发送的用户面网元与注册的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，并保存到已存储的用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系中。
在另一个实现方式中，所述存储单元具体用于：接收并存储运营支撑系统配置的用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。
再进一步地，该会话管理网元3000还可包括：第一接收单元，用于接收所述网络能力开放网元发送的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识；或第二接收单元，用于接收运营支撑系统配置的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识。
具体地，所述第一使能标识用于指示所述会话管理网元在当终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换后，向所述终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
再进一步地，该会话管理网元3000还可包括：第二获取单元，用于从统一数据管理网元获取所述终端设备的签约信息，其中，所述签约信息包括针对所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址的第二使能标识；以及第一确定单元，用于根据所述签约信息，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。
再进一步地，该会话管理网元3000还可包括：第三接收单元，用于接收所述运营支撑系统发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识和/或用户属性；以及第二确定单元，用于根据所述终端设备的标识和/或用户属性，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。
再进一步地，该会话管理网元3000还可包括：第四接收单元，用于接收应用网元发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识；以及第三确定单元，用于根据所述终端设备的标识，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。
再进一步地，所述发送单元32具体用于：向所述终端设备发送应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；或向应用网元发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，由所述应用网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
根据本申请实施例提供的一种会话管理网元，在UE对应的UPF发生切换的场景下，UE可以访问切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，从而UE可以获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。
图10为本申请实施例提供的一种终端设备的结构框图。该终端设备4000可包括：
接收单元41，用于接收应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；
访问单元42，用于根据所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址访问本地应用服务器。
进一步地，所述接收单元41具体用于接收会话管理网元或应用网元发送的所述应用触发请求。
根据本申请实施例提供的一种终端设备，在UE对应的UPF发生切换的场景下，UE可以访问切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，从而UE可以获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。
图11为本申请实施例提供的一种会话管理网元的硬件结构示意图。该会话管理网元1100可以包括：接收器1101、发送器1102、处理器1103和存储器1104，所述接收器1101、发送器1102、处理器1103和存储器1104通过通信线路相互连接。
存储器包括但不限于是随机存储记忆体(random access memory，RAM)、只读存储器(read-only memory，ROM)、可擦除可编程只读存储器(erasable programmable read only memory，EPROM)、或便携式只读存储器(compact disc read-only memory，CD-ROM)，该存储器用于相关指令及数据。
接收器用于接收数据和/或信号，以及发送器用于发送数据和/或信号。发送器和接收器可以是独立的器件，也可以是一个整体的器件。
处理器可以包括是一个或多个处理器，例如包括一个或多个中央处理器(central processing unit，CPU)，在处理器是一个CPU的情况下，该CPU可以是单核CPU，也可以是多核CPU。
具体地，在一个实施例中，图9中的第一获取单元31所实现的相关功能可以由一个或多个处理器来实现，发送单元32所实现的相关功能可以由发送器来实现，第一、第二、第三接收单元所实现的相关功能可以由接收器来实现，存储单元所实现的相关功能可以由存储器来实现。处理器1103用于获取切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，例如执行图5所示实施例中的S501步骤；以及发送器1102用于向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，例如执行图5所示实施例中的S502步骤。
具体实现请参阅上述方法实施例的描述。
根据本申请实施例提供的一种会话管理网元，在UE对应的UPF发生切换的场景下，UE可以访问切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，从而UE可以获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。
图12为本申请实施例提供的一种终端设备的硬件结构示意图。便于理解和图示方便，图12中，终端设备以手机作为例子。如图12所示，终端设备包括处理器、存储器、射频电路、天线以及输入输出装置。处理器主要用于对通信协议以及通信数据进行处理，以及对终端设备进行控制，执行软件程序，处理软件程序的数据等。存储器主要用于存储软件程序和数据。射频电路主要用于基带信号与射频信号的转换以及对射频信号的处理。天线主要用于收发电磁波形式的射频信号。输入输出装置，例如触摸屏、显示屏，键盘等主要用于接收用户输入的数据以及对用户输出数据。需要说明的是，有些种类的终端设备可以不具有输入输出装置。
当需要发送数据时，处理器对待发送的数据进行基带处理后，输出基带信号至射频电路，射频电路将基带信号进行射频处理后将射频信号通过天线以电磁波的形式向外发送。当有数据发送到终端设备时，射频电路通过天线接收到射频信号，将射频信号转换为基带信号，并将基带信号输出至处理器，处理器将基带信号转换为数据并对该数据进行处理。为便于说明，图12中仅示出了一个存储器和处理器。在实际的终端设备产品中，可以存在一个或多个处理器和一个或多个存储器。存储器也可以称为存储介质或者存储设备等。存储器可以是独立于处理器设置，也可以是与处理器集成在一起，本申请实施例对此不做限制。
在本申请实施例中，可以将具有收发功能的天线和射频电路视为终端设备的接收单元和发送单元(也可以统称为收发单元)，将具有处理功能的处理器视为终端设备的处理 单元。如图12所示，终端设备包括接收单元1201、处理单元1202和发送单元1203。接收单元1201也可以称为接收器、接收机、接收电路等，发送单元1203也可以称为发送器、发射器、发射机、发射电路等。处理单元也可以称为处理器，处理单板，处理模块、处理装置等。
例如，在一个实施例中，接收单元1201，用于执行图5所示实施例的步骤S502，接收应用触发请求；处理单元1202，用于执行图5所示实施例的步骤S503，根据所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址访问本地应用服务器。
具体可参考方法实施例的描述。
根据本申请实施例提供的一种终端设备，在UE对应的UPF发生切换的场景下，UE可以访问切换后的UPF对应的本地应用服务器，从而UE可以获得本地应用服务器提供的可靠的、低时延的服务。
本领域普通技术人员可以意识到，结合本文中所公开的实施例描述的各示例的单元及算法步骤，能够以电子硬件、或者计算机软件和电子硬件的结合来实现。这些功能究竟以硬件还是软件方式来执行，取决于技术方案的特定应用和设计约束条件。专业技术人员可以对每个特定的应用来使用不同方法来实现所描述的功能，但是这种实现不应认为超出本申请的范围。
所属领域的技术人员可以清楚地了解到，为描述的方便和简洁，上述描述的系统、装置和单元的具体工作过程，可以参考前述方法实施例中的对应过程，在此不再赘述。
在本申请所提供的几个实施例中，应该理解到，所揭露的系统、装置和方法，可以通过其它的方式实现。例如，以上所描述的装置实施例仅仅是示意性的，例如，所述单元的划分，仅仅为一种逻辑功能划分，实际实现时可以有另外的划分方式，例如多个单元或组件可以结合或者可以集成到另一个系统，或一些特征可以忽略，或不执行。另一点，所显示或讨论的相互之间的耦合或直接耦合或通信连接可以是通过一些接口，装置或单元的间接耦合或通信连接，可以是电性，机械或其它的形式。
所述作为分离部件说明的单元可以是或者也可以不是物理上分开的，作为单元显示的部件可以是或者也可以不是物理单元，即可以位于一个地方，或者也可以分布到多个网络单元上。可以根据实际的需要选择其中的部分或者全部单元来实现本实施例方案的目的。
另外，在本申请各个实施例中的各功能单元可以集成在一个处理单元中，也可以是各个单元单独物理存在，也可以两个或两个以上单元集成在一个单元中。
在上述实施例中，可以全部或部分地通过软件、硬件、固件或者其任意组合来实现。当使用软件实现时，可以全部或部分地以计算机程序产品的形式实现。所述计算机程序产品包括一个或多个计算机指令。在计算机上加载和执行所述计算机程序指令时，全部或部分地产生按照本申请实施例所述的流程或功能。所述计算机可以是通用计算机、专用计算机、计算机网络、或者其他可编程装置。所述计算机指令可以存储在计算机可读存储介质中，或者通过所述计算机可读存储介质进行传输。所述计算机指令可以从一个网站站点、计算机、服务器或数据中心通过有线(例如同轴电缆、光纤、数字用户线(digital subscriber line，DSL))或无线(例如红外、无线、微波等)方式向另一个网站站点、计算机、服务器或数据中心进行传输。所述计算机可读存储介质可以是计算机能够存取的任何可用介质或者是包含一个或多个可用介质集成的服务器、数据中心等数据存储设备。所述可用介质可以是磁性介质，(例如，软盘、硬盘、磁带)、光介质(例 如，数字通用光盘(digital versatile disc，DVD))、或者半导体介质(例如固态硬盘(solid state disk，SSD))等。
本领域普通技术人员可以理解实现上述实施例方法中的全部或部分流程，该流程可以由计算机程序来指令相关的硬件完成，该程序可存储于计算机可读取存储介质中，该程序在执行时，可包括如上述各方法实施例的流程。而前述的存储介质包括：只读存储器(read-only memory，ROM)或随机存储存储器(random access memory，RAM)、磁碟或者光盘等各种可存储程序代码的介质。

Claims (28)

  1. 一种应用服务器的切换方法，应用于终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换的场景下，其特征在于，所述方法包括：会话管理网元根据切换后的用户面网元，以及用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；其中，所述用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系用于指示当终端设备接入一个用户面网元时，在网络中部署的提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中能够为终端设备提供所述服务的本地应用服务器的地址；
    所述会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
  2. 如权利要求1所述的方法，其特征在于，所述本地应用服务器包括提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中优先级最高的应用服务器、或与终端设备接入的用户面网元拓扑关系最近的应用服务器。
  3. 如权利要求1或2所述的方法，其特征在于，所述方法还包括：
    所述会话管理网元存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。
  4. 如权利要求3所述的方法，其特征在于，所述会话管理网元存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，包括：
    所述会话管理网元接收网络能力开放网元发送的用户面网元与注册的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，并保存到已存储的用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系中。
  5. 如权利要求3所述的方法，其特征在于，所述会话管理网元存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，包括：
    所述会话管理网元接收并存储运营支撑系统配置的用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。
  6. 如权利要求4或5所述的方法，其特征在于，所述方法还包括：
    所述会话管理网元接收所述网络能力开放网元发送的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识；或
    所述会话管理网元接收运营支撑系统配置的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识。
  7. 如权利要求6所述的方法，其特征在于，所述第一使能标识用于指示所述会话管理网元在当终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换后，向所述终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
  8. 如权利要求1-7任一项所述的方法，其特征在于，所述方法还包括：
    所述会话管理网元从统一数据管理网元获取所述终端设备的签约信息，其中，所述签约信息包括针对所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址的第二使能标识；
    所述会话管理网元根据所述签约信息，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。
  9. 如权利要求5-8任一项所述的方法，其特征在于，所述方法还包括：
    所述会话管理网元接收所述运营支撑系统发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识和/或用户属性；
    所述会话管理网元根据所述终端设备的标识和/或用户属性，确定向所述终端设备推送 所述本地应用服务器的地址。
  10. 如权利要求1-7任一项所述的方法，其特征在于，所述方法还包括：
    所述会话管理网元接收应用网元发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识；
    所述会话管理网元根据所述终端设备的标识，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。
  11. 如权利要求1-10任一项所述的方法，其特征在于，所述会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，包括：
    所述会话管理网元向所述终端设备发送应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；或
    所述会话管理网元向应用网元发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，由所述应用网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
  12. 一种应用服务器的切换方法，应用于终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换的场景下，其特征在于，所述方法包括：
    所述终端设备接收应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；
    所述终端设备根据所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址访问本地应用服务器。
  13. 如权利要求12所述的方法，其特征在于，所述终端设备接收应用触发请求，包括：
    所述终端设备接收会话管理网元或应用网元发送的所述应用触发请求。
  14. 一种会话管理网元，其特征在于，包括：
    第一获取单元，用于根据切换后的用户面网元，以及用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，获取所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；其中，所述用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系用于指示当终端设备接入一个用户面网元时，在网络中部署的提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中能够为终端设备提供所述服务的本地应用服务器的地址；
    发送单元，用于向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
  15. 如权利要求14所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，所述本地应用服务器包括提供相同服务的一个或多个应用服务器中优先级最高的应用服务器、或与终端设备接入的用户面网元拓扑关系最近的应用服务器。
  16. 如权利要求14或15所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，还包括：
    存储单元，用于存储用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。
  17. 如权利要求16所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，所述存储单元具体用于：
    接收网络能力开放网元发送的用户面网元与注册的本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系，并保存到已存储的用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系中。
  18. 如权利要求16所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，所述存储单元具体用于：
    接收并存储运营支撑系统配置的用户面网元与本地应用服务器的地址的对应关系。
  19. 如权利要求17或18所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，还包括：
    第一接收单元，用于接收所述网络能力开放网元发送的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识；或
    第二接收单元，用于接收运营支撑系统配置的针对所述服务推送本地应用服务器的地址的第一使能标识。
  20. 如权利要求19所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，所述第一使能标识用于指示所述会话管理网元在当终端设备对应的用户面网元发生切换后，向所述终端设备推送本地应用服务器的地址。
  21. 如权利要求14-20任一项所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，还包括：
    第二获取单元，用于从统一数据管理网元获取所述终端设备的签约信息，其中，所述签约信息包括针对所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址的第二使能标识；
    第一确定单元，用于根据所述签约信息，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。
  22. 如权利要求18-21任一项所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，还包括：
    第三接收单元，用于接收所述运营支撑系统发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识和/或用户属性；
    第二确定单元，用于根据所述终端设备的标识和/或用户属性，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。
  23. 如权利要求14-20任一项所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，还包括：
    第四接收单元，用于接收应用网元发送的使能所述本地应用服务器的地址推送功能的终端设备的标识；
    第三确定单元，用于根据所述终端设备的标识，确定向所述终端设备推送所述本地应用服务器的地址。
  24. 如权利要求14-23任一项所述的会话管理网元，其特征在于，所述发送单元具体用于：向所述终端设备发送应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；或
    向应用网元发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址，由所述应用网元向所述终端设备发送所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址。
  25. 一种终端设备，其特征在于，包括：
    接收单元，用于接收应用触发请求，其中，所述应用触发请求包括切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址；
    访问单元，用于根据所述切换后的用户面网元对应的本地应用服务器的地址访问本地应用服务器。
  26. 如权利要求25所述的终端设备，其特征在于，所述接收单元具体用于接收会话管理网元或应用网元发送的所述应用触发请求。
  27. 一种会话管理网元，其特征在于，包括接收器、发射器、存储器和处理器；其中，所述存储器中存储一组程序代码，且所述处理器用于调用所述存储器中存储的程序代码，执行权利要求1-11任一项所述方法中的操作。
  28. 一种终端设备，其特征在于，包括接收器、发射器、存储器和处理器；其中，所述存储器中存储一组程序代码，且所述处理器用于调用所述存储器中存储的程序代码，执行以下权利要求12或13所述方法中的操作。
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