WO2019228220A1

WO2019228220A1 - Method and device for managing network slice

Info

Publication number: WO2019228220A1
Application number: PCT/CN2019/087698
Authority: WO
Inventors: 李卓明
Original assignee: 华为技术有限公司
Priority date: 2018-05-31
Filing date: 2019-05-21
Publication date: 2019-12-05
Also published as: CN110557270B; CN110557270A

Abstract

The embodiments of the present application relate to a method and device for managing a network slice. The method comprises: first, a second managing network element of a managing service-consuming side transmits a call request to a CSM serving network element of a managing service-producing side, where the call request comprises an operational level and an operational requirement of a service; then, the CSM serving network element transmits a first request to an NSM serving network element on the basis of the call request, the first request being used for instructing the NSM serving network element to execute an action corresponding to the operational level and to the operational requirement; and finally, the CSM serving network transmits an execution result returned by the NSM serving network element to the second managing network element. The method is used for making available an interface of a communication service managing service to be called by the managing service-consuming side and simplifies the complexity of docking with the managing service-consuming side.

Description

Method and device for managing network slices

This application claims the priority of a Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on May 31, 2018, with application number 201810552703.3, and the invention name is "A Method and Device for Managing Network Slices", the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference In this application.

Technical field

The present application relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method and device for managing network slices.

Background technique

The traditional cellular network architecture can only provide unified network services, and it is difficult to meet the different communication needs brought by the wave of digital transformation. In order to provide differentiated communication services, in the next-generation mobile network, that is, the 5G network, the network will be abstracted into multiple "network slices". One network slice meets the needs of a certain type of connection communication service. The entire 5G network consists of It consists of a large number of network slices that meet different connection capabilities. The business support management system may create a corresponding network slice instance (NSI) according to the communication needs related to the network slice. A network slice instance can provide complete end-to-end network services, and network slice instances can be composed of network slice subnet instances (NSSI) and / or network functions.

A business model that currently uses network slicing is that network slicing provides network slicing as a service (NSaaS) services to customers, and network slicing instances are visible to customers. Specifically, an operator provides a network slicing service to a third-party customer (for example, an enterprise, an OTT (over the top) provider that provides various application services to users through the Internet, another operator, etc.). The communication service provided by the slice is provided to the end user, or a third party customer further provides the end user with its own communication service based on the service provided by the network slice.

In view of the above business model, in the prior art, when a communication service provider orders a network slice instance, a communication service management function (CSMF) network element will convert the customer's communication service requirements into network slice related requirements, and then Related requirements for network slicing place a network slicing order to a network slice management function (NSMF) network element. The NSMF network element decomposes the related requirements of the network slice into the requirements of the core network and the wireless network, and sends the decomposed relevant requirements to the core network and the wireless network's network management function (NSSMF). However, the disadvantage of this is that in addition to the CSMF network elements, NSMF and NSSMF also need to open interfaces to third parties, which leads to the need for multiple levels of interfaces for the third party to communicate with the communication service provider. There are many open control points and the system structure is complex.

Summary of the Invention

In view of this, the present application provides a management method and device for network slicing. An interface of a communication service management service is opened for the management service consumer to call, which can simplify the complexity of the docking of the management service consumer.

In a first aspect, the present application provides a network slice management method, including: a second management network element on a management service consumer side sends a call request to a CSM service network element, where the call request includes an operation level and an operation requirement of a service; The CSM service network element sends a first request to the NSM service network element according to the call request, and the first request is used to instruct the NS LCM service network element to perform an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement. The CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element.

In the above method, the second management network element no longer needs to be separately connected with the CSM service network element on the management service production side, the NS LCM service network element, and the NSS LCM service network element. The second management network element calls the management service production side CSM service network elements can obtain network management data and resource management data of network slice instances in addition to service management data. Because the management service production side unifies the external interfaces of the communication service management service, network slice management service, and resource management service into the service-oriented interface of the communication service management service, the complexity of the docking of the management service consumer side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, the CSM service network element determines that the second management network element has a calling right according to the calling request, and an operation requirement in the calling request meets a non-conflict condition, at least one of which meets Then, the first request is sent to the NS LCM service network element. The reason for this is to control the management behavior of the network slice, prevent illegal calls, or prevent conflicts in the modification operation of the network slice.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance, the operation level is a network management operation level, and the first request is When the message of the network slice instance is created or modified, before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may also receive the A first response message returned by the NS LCM service entity, where the first response message includes a newly created network slice instance identifier or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element.

In this method, by invoking the CSM service network element on the management service production side, the second management network element can create a new network slice instance on the management service production side, or modify an existing network slice instance, and then the management service consumption side can Complete network slicing portfolio and provide management services for own customers.

In a possible implementation, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation level is a resource management operation level, the operation demand is a management resource, and the first request is a resource management operation request; Before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may also receive a third response returned by the NS LCM service network element Message, and the third response message includes a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

In this method, by calling the CSM service network element on the production side of the management service, the second management network element can modify the amount of virtual resources used by some network elements in the network slice or modify the transmission resources used by the network slice. The external interfaces of the communication service management service, the network slice management service, and the resource management service are unified into the service-oriented interface of the communication service management service, which can simplify the connection complexity of the management service consumer side.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an FM service network element or a PM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; When the first request is requesting network management data, before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may also Receive a fourth response message returned by the FM service network element or the PM service network element, where the fourth response message includes network management data or an access address of the network management data.

In this method, the second management network element can obtain the network management data or the access address of the network management data by invoking the CSM service network element on the management service production side. The management service production side uses the communication service management service and the network slice management service. The external interface with the resource management service is unified as a service-oriented interface for the communication service management service, which can simplify the complexity of the docking of the management service consumer side.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; when the first When a request is for resource management data, before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may also receive the NS A fifth response message returned by the LCM service network element, where the fifth response message includes resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.

In this method, the second management network element can obtain the resource management data or the access address of the resource management data by invoking the CSM service network element on the management service production side. The management service production side uses the communication service management service and the network slice management service. The external interface with the resource management service is unified as the service-oriented interface of the communication service management service, so the complexity of the docking of the management service consumer side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NS LCM service network element to the second management network element, the CSM service network element may further determine the first The second management network element has the authority to obtain management data corresponding to the operation level.

In this method, when the second management network element invokes the CSM service network element on the production side of the management service, the CSM service network element first determines that it has the authority to obtain management data corresponding to the operation level to prevent the management data from being accessed illegally.

In a second aspect, the present application provides a method for managing a network slice. A second management network element on the management service consumer side sends a call request to a communication service management CSM service network element on the management service production side, where the call request includes a service Operation level and operation requirement; the second management network element receives an execution result sent from the CSM service network element, and the execution result is that after the CSM service network element calls the NSM service network element according to the call request, An execution result obtained by the NSM service network element, where the execution result is generated after the NSM service network element performs an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement.

In the above method, the second management network element no longer needs to be separately connected with the CSM service network element on the management service production side, the NS LCM service network element, and the NSS LCM service network element. The second management network element calls the management service production side CSM service network elements can perform network management operations and resource management operations in addition to service management operations. Because the management service production side unifies the external interfaces of the communication service management service, network slice management service, and resource management service into the service-oriented interface of the communication service management service, the complexity of the docking of the management service consumer side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance, and the operation level is a network management operation level; the execution result includes a new The created network slice instance identifier, or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element; after the second management network element receives the execution result sent from the CSM service network element, The second management network element may also use the newly created network slice instance to provide communication services to its own customers; or, the second management network element may further use the network slice instance and The network slice instances created by itself are combined to form a slice alliance, and the slice alliance is used to provide communication services to its own customers; or, the second management network element may also use the network slice instance provided by the management service generating side as A subnet slice instance of itself, and then combine it with other subnet slice instances that you create to form a new net Network slicing instance and use the new network slicing instance to provide communication services to its own customers.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation level is a resource management operation level, the operation demand is a management resource, and the first request is a resource management operation request ; The execution result includes a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier. In this method, by calling the CSM service network element on the production side of the management service, the second management network element can modify the amount of virtual resources used by some network elements in the network slice, or modify the transmission resources used by the network slice. The external interfaces of the communication service management service, network slice management service, and resource management service are unified into the service-oriented interface of the communication service management service, so the complexity of the docking of the management service consumer side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an FM service network element or a PM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; The first request is a request for network management data; the execution result includes network management data or an access address of the network management data.

In this method, the second management network element can obtain the network management data or the access address of the network management data by invoking the CSM service network element on the management service production side. The management service production side uses the communication service management service and the network slice management service. The external interface with the resource management service is unified as the service-oriented interface of the communication service management service, so the complexity of the docking of the management service consumer side can be simplified.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first The request is requesting resource management data; the execution result includes resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.

In a third aspect, the present application provides a device, which may be a CSM service network element on the management service production side. The device has the functions of implementing the embodiments of the second aspect described above. This function can be realized by hardware, and can also be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

In a possible design, when the device is a CSM serving network element, the processing unit includes a processing unit and a communication unit. The processing unit may be, for example, a processor, and the communication unit may be, for example, a transceiver. The transceiver includes The radio frequency circuit, optionally, the CSM service network element further includes a storage unit, which may be, for example, a memory. When the CSM service network element includes a storage unit, the storage unit stores a computer execution instruction, the processing unit is connected to the storage unit, and the processing unit executes the computer execution instruction stored in the storage unit, so that the CSM service network element executes the first Any one of the communication methods.

The processor mentioned above may be a general-purpose CPU, a microprocessor, an ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of a program of the communication method of the first aspect.

In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a device, which may be a second management network element on the management service consumer side. The device has the functions of implementing the embodiments of the second aspect described above. This function can be realized by hardware, and can also be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

In a possible implementation manner, when the device is a second management network element, the processing unit includes a processing unit and a communication unit. The processing unit may be, for example, a processor, and the communication unit may be, for example, a transceiver. The device includes a radio frequency circuit. Optionally, the second management network element further includes a storage unit, which may be, for example, a memory. When the second management network element includes a storage unit, the storage unit stores computer execution instructions, the processing unit is connected to the storage unit, and the processing unit executes the computer execution instructions stored by the storage unit, so that the second management network element executes The communication method according to any one of the first aspects.

In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a communication device having the function of implementing the method of the first aspect. The communication device includes a processor and a transceiver. The processor receives a call request sent by the second management entity through the transceiver, and then sends a first request to the NSM service network element through the transceiver according to the call request, and finally sends all requests to The execution result returned by the NSM service network element is sent to the second management network element by a transceiver.

In a possible implementation manner, the processor determines that the second management network element has a calling right according to the calling request, and / or an operation requirement in the calling request meets a non-conflicting condition.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, and the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance; the operation level is a network management operation level; when the first request When creating or modifying a message of a network slice instance; the processor receives, via the transceiver, a first response message returned by the NS LCM service entity, where the first response message includes a newly created network slice instance identifier, or The network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element is included.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation level is a resource management operation level, and the operation demand is a management resource; when the first request is a resource management operation When requested, the processor receives a third response message returned by the NS LCM service network element through a transceiver, and the third response message includes a resource management operation result of a resource corresponding to a network slice instance identifier.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an FM service network element or a PM service network element; the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level When the first request is a request for network management data, the processor receives the fourth response message returned by the NS LCM service network element at the same time by the transceiver element, and the fourth response message includes network management data or network management Data access address.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; when the first A request is when requesting resource management data; the processor receives a fifth response message returned by the NS LCM service network element through a transceiver, and the fifth response message includes resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the processor determines that the second management network element has a right to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and then sends a first request to the NSM service network element.

In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a communication device having the function of implementing the method in the second aspect. The communication device includes a processor and a transceiver. The processor sends a call request to a communication service management CSM service network element on a management service production side through the transceiver element, and then receives an execution result sent from the CSM service network element. The execution result is an execution result obtained from the NSM service network element after the CSM service network element invokes the NSM service network element according to the call request, and the execution result is that the NSM service network element performs the operation with the operation. The level is generated after an action corresponding to the operation requirement.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element. When the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance, the operation level is a network management operation level; the execution result includes The newly created network slice instance identifier, or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element.

The processor may be further configured to use the newly created network slice instance to provide a communication service to its own customer; or, combine the network slice instance provided by the management service generating side with the network slice instance that has been created by itself Slice alliance, and use the slice alliance to provide communication services to its own customers; or, use the network slice instance provided by the management service generating side as one of its own subnet slice instances, and then create other subnetwork slice instances with itself Combine to form a new network slice instance, and use the new network slice instance to provide communication services to its own customers.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element; the operation level is a resource management operation level, the operation demand is a management resource; and the first request is a resource management operation request ; The execution result includes a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is a fault management FM service network element or a performance management PM service network element; the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network Management operation level; the first request is to request network management data; and the execution result includes network management data or an access address of the network management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first request is a request for resource management data; and the execution result includes a resource Access address for management data or resource management data.

According to a seventh aspect, the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, where the computer-readable storage medium stores instructions, and when the computer-readable storage medium runs on the computer, the computer executes the methods described in the above aspects.

In an eighth aspect, the present application also provides a computer program product containing instructions, which when executed on a computer, causes the computer to execute the methods described in the above aspects.

These or other aspects of the present application will be more concise and easy to understand in the description of the following embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a service support management system according to an embodiment of the present application; FIG.

2a and 2b are schematic diagrams of an application scenario system architecture according to an embodiment of the present application;

3 is a schematic diagram of a method for managing a network slice according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of interaction between a network service consumer side and a network service production side according to an embodiment of the present application; FIG.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of interaction in a scenario of creating and activating a network slice according to an embodiment of the present application; FIG.

6 is a schematic diagram of interaction in a modified network slice scenario according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of interaction for obtaining management data according to an embodiment of the present application; FIG.

8 is a schematic diagram of another device provided by the present application;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of another device provided by the present application; FIG.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of another device provided by the present application; FIG.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of another device provided by the present application.

Detailed ways

The present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The embodiments of the present application can be applied to various mobile communication systems, such as: a new wireless (NR) system, a global mobile communication (GSM) system, and a code division multiple access (CDMA) system. ) System, wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, general packet radio service (GPRS), long term evolution (LTE) system, advanced long evolution Term-evolution (LTE-A) system, universal mobile communication system (UMTS), evolved long term evolution (eLTE) system, and other mobile communication systems.

In the following, some terms in the present application are explained first, so as to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

1) Network slice: Network slices can be created through multiple technologies, such as network function virtualization (NFV) technology and software-defined network (SDN) technology. This embodiment of the present application is described based on only creating a network slice through a 5G network slice management system. Specifically, it refers to different logical networks that are customized on the basis of physical or virtual network infrastructure according to different service requirements. The network slice can be a complete end-to-end network including terminals, access networks, transmission networks, core networks, and application servers, which can provide complete telecommunications services and have certain network capabilities. Any combination of network access, transmission network, core network and application server. Network slicing may have one or more of the following characteristics: the access network may or may not be sliced. The access network may be shared by multiple network slices. The characteristics of different network slices and the network functions that make up them may be different.

2) Network slice instance (NSI): It is a logical network that runs in real life and can meet certain network characteristics or service requirements. A network slice instance may provide one or more services. When multiple network slice instances coexist, some network resources and network functions may be shared between the network slice instances. Network slice instances may or may not be created from a network slice template. A complete network slice instance can provide complete end-to-end network services, and the network slice instance can be a Network Slice Subnet Instance (NSSI) and / or a network function. Network functions may include physical network functions and / or virtual network functions.

3) Network Slice Subnet Instance (NSSI): The network slice subnet instance does not need to provide complete end-to-end network services. The network slice subnet instance can be the same equipment vendor in the network slice instance. The network function composition set may also be a collection of network functions divided by domains, for example, core network network slice subnet instances, access network network slice subnet instances, or other methods to form a collection. Network slice subnet instances may be shared by multiple network slice instances. A network slice instance may consist of several network slice subnet instances, and each network slice subnet instance consists of several network functions and / or several network slice subnet instances; a network slice instance may consist of several network slice subnet instances and no Network functions that are divided into network slice subnet instances; a network slice instance may also consist of only a few network functions.

4) Network function (NF): It is a processing function in the network that defines functional behavior and interfaces. Network functions can be implemented by dedicated hardware or by running software on dedicated hardware. It can be implemented in the form of virtual functions on a common hardware platform. Therefore, from an implementation perspective, network functions can be divided into physical network functions and virtual network functions. From the perspective of use, network functions can be divided into dedicated network functions and shared network functions. Specifically, for multiple (sub) network slice instances, different network functions can be used independently. This network function is called exclusive Network functions can also share the same network function. This network function is called shared network function.

The 5G network slicing management system includes a business support management system (operation / support system / business support system (OSS / BSS)). Figure 1 is an OSS / BSS architecture diagram provided by the embodiment of this application, which mainly includes: CSMF, NSMF, and NSSMF. Among them, CSMF is mainly used to translate the communication service related requirements of operators and / or third-party customers into parameter information of network slices, etc .; NSMF is mainly used to manage the life cycle, performance, faults, etc. of network slices; NSSMF is mainly used to Used to manage the life cycle, performance, and faults of network slice subnets.

Specifically, the CSMF network element is mainly used to translate the communication service requirements of operators and / or third-party customers into the requirements of the network (such as network slicing), and to the NSMF network through the interface with the NSMF network element. The unit sends requirements for network slice instances (such as creating, terminating, modifying network slice instance requests, etc.), obtains management data (such as performance, fault data, etc.) of network slice instances from NSMF network elements, and generates and runs on network slice instances. One or more of the management data of the communication service, the operator and / or the third party customer's subscription requirements for the network slice instance management data and / or the communication service management data.

NSMF network elements are mainly used to: receive the needs of network slice instances sent by CSMF network elements, manage the life cycle management (LCM) of network slice instances, and manage the performance and failure of network slice instances (the following will be Life cycle management, performance management, and fault management are collectively referred to as management), orchestrating the composition of network slice instances, decomposing the needs of network slice instances into the requirements of each network slice subnet instance and / or network function, and sending network slices to each NSSMF network element One or more of subnet instance management requests and the like.

The NSSMF network element is mainly used to: receive the needs of the network slice subnet instance sent by the NSMF network element, manage the network slice subnet instance, arrange the composition of the network slice subnet instance, and decompose the requirements of the network slice subnet instance into various One or more of the requirements of the network function and / or the nested network slice subnet instance, sending the nested network slice subnet instance management request to other NSSMF network elements.

FIG. 1 exemplarily illustrates an architecture diagram for establishing a connection between a CSMF and an NSMF, but in practical applications, one CSMF can also be connected to multiple NSMFs, or one NSMF can be connected to multiple CSMFs, and the multiple CSMFs can be This includes CSMF belonging to the same operator as NSMF, CSMF belonging to a different operator from NSMF, or CSMF provided by a third party, which is not limited in this application.

FIG. 2a is a schematic architecture diagram of an application scenario provided by an embodiment of the present application. It mainly includes the business support management system on the management service consumer side and the 5G network management system on the management service production side. Among them, the management service production side generally refers to the operator, and the management service consumer side generally refers to third-party customers. Third-party customers can be enterprises, OTT, or another operator. The CSMF network element on the management service production side provides a management interface for the CSMF network element, NSMF network element, and NSSMF network element on the management service consumer side to call. The management service consumer side can complete the process of network slice composition and provide management services for its own customers. . During the operation of network slicing, the business support management system on the production side of the management service manages the network slicing through the CSMF network elements on the management service production side, obtains management data, or conducts business in accordance with the SLA (Service Level Agreement) Quality assurance operations.

In another case, when the business support management system adopts a service-oriented architecture, management functions such as CSMF, NSMF, and NSSMF can run in the form of different management services. As shown in Figure 3, for example, communication service management (CSM) services, slice life-cycle management (NS LCM) services, and sub-network slice life-cycle management (NSS LCM) service, configuration management (CM) service, failure management (FM) service, performance management (PM) service, NFV management and orchestration (MANO) service (referred to as It is NFV-MANO), etc. It is assumed that the operator A is a management service production side, and the operator B is a management service consumption side.

In FIG. 2b, the service-oriented interface (commonly called Itf-CSM) provided by the CSM service in the 5G network management system of the operator A can be used by the third-party customer in addition to the internal call of the operator A. The service interface provided by other management services in the 5G network management system (for example, NS LCM, NSS LCM) can only be called within the management system of operator A. Operator C's CSM service, NS LCM service and NSS LCM service can all call operator A's service-oriented interface. Operator B can combine the network slice created by himself and the network slice created by Operator A into a slice alliance to provide communication services to customers together. The so-called slicing alliance is a complete network slicing that both operators create to provide a certain communication service. One operator uses the communication service provided by the other operator and provides it to itself along with the communication service provided by the network slice created by itself. Customers, enabling their customers to use this communication service on a larger scale. Carrier B can also use the network slice provided by Carrier A as a subnet slice and other subnetwork slices created by itself to form a complete network slice to provide communication services to customers. During the operation of network slicing, the service support management system of operator B performs service management, network management, and resource management on network slicing by calling serviced interface of operator A, such as obtaining management data or performing SLA (Service Level Agreement) Assurance of service quality, etc.

Based on the system architecture shown in FIG. 2b, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for managing a network slice. The method mainly includes: a CSM service network element on the management service production side provides the network slice as a communication service to the management service consumer side (That is, third-party customers), that is, the CSM service network element on the management service production side provides a service-oriented interface to the third party, and the management service consumer side calls various management services on the management service production side through the service-oriented interface to achieve network slice Composition and management. Referring to FIG. 3, a schematic flowchart of a network slice management method according to an embodiment of the present application is shown. As shown in FIG. 3, the method may include the following steps:

Step 301: The second management network element on the management service consumer side sends a call request to the CSM service network element on the management service production side.

It should be noted that, for convenience of description, the network elements in the service support management system of the management service consumer side are collectively referred to as the second management network element, where the second management network element may refer to a CSM service network element or a CSMF network. Element, or it can refer to the NS LCM service network element or the NSMF network element, it can also refer to the NSS LCM service network element or the NSSMF network element, or the second management network element can refer to all network elements in the business support management system Or some network elements.

In addition, in addition to the name of the existing service interface, business identifier, and specific operation requirements, the call request also includes the operation level.

Step 302: The CSM service network element sends a first request to a network slice management (NSM) service network element according to the call request.

Here, the first request is used to instruct the NSM service network element to perform an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement. Among them, the operation level can be divided into three types of operation, network, resource, or network and resource operation levels. Because the operation level can be used to distinguish whether the call request made by the management service consumer side is communication service management (it may not be explicitly indicated, the default call request is communication service management), network management or resource management. In this way, the management service production side can The supported network or resource operation level performs corresponding operations by calling NSM management functions or NSM management services. When the network management operation level is targeted, the operation requirements can be a request for network management operations. The network management operations can include network slice or subnet slice creation, activation, modification, supervision, reporting, invalidation, termination, etc., and subscribe to network management. Data (alarm management data and performance management data); when targeting business management operation levels, operational requirements can be requested for business management operations, where the business management operations can specifically include the creation, modification, release, etc. of service access points, and subscriptions Business management (business alerts and business KPI) data subscriptions to obtain business management data; when targeting resource management operation levels, operational requirements can be resource management operations for requests, where resource management operations can include resource allocation, resource release, and resource subscription Management data (resource location, resource type, resource alarm, resource KPI), management data for obtaining virtual network resources or network link resources, etc. are shown in Table 1.

Table 1

Among them, the key performance indicators (KPIs) in Table 1, wherein the business KPIs may further include one or any combination of the following information: latency, coverage, capacity, throughput ), Reliability (reliability), reporting success rate (report success ratio), issuing success rate (command success ratio), etc. Resource KPIs can be CPU usage, memory usage, free disk capacity, network link bandwidth usage, etc.

Step 303: The CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element.

Specifically, the NSM service network element corresponds to the NS LCM service network element in different scenarios, or corresponds to the FM service network element or PM service network element. Because the operation requirements of the call request are different in different scenarios, the second management network The execution results returned from the CSM service network element received by the element are also different, and the subsequent operations of the second management network element after receiving the execution results are also different. The following examples are used to illustrate different application scenarios.

scene one

If the call request is for a network management operation level, and an operation requirement requests to create a network slice instance, the NSM service network element is specifically an NSCMLCM service network element, then the CSM service network element returns to the second management network element The execution result includes the newly created network slice instance ID. If the call request is for a network management operation level, and the operation request requests modification of the network slice instance, the call request also includes the network slice instance ID requested by operator B to modify. Then, the execution result returned by the CSM service network element to the second management network element includes a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

Further, the second management network element combines the network slices after receiving the execution result sent by the CSM service network element. Assume that the management service consumer side is operator B and the management service production side is operator A. Then, the combination of network slicing by operator B may also have the following methods:

(1) Operator B uses the newly created network slice instance provided by Operator A to directly provide communication services to its own customers;

(2) Operator B combines the modified network slice instance provided by Operator A with the network slice instance and / or other network parts that it has created to form a slice alliance, and uses the slice alliance to provide communication services to its customers;

(3) Operator B regards the modified network slice instance or subnet slice instance provided by operator A as one of its own subnet slice instances, and then combines with other subnetwork slice instances created by itself to form a complete network Slicing instances, using the combined complete network slicing instance to provide communication services to customers.

Scene two

Similarly, since the network environment can change at any time, in order to meet the related requirements of the communication service, the management service consumer side can also request to modify the use resources of the network slice established by the management service production side according to the current demand capacity. For example, in the network slice operation management process, the call request sent by the second management network element may be directed to the resource management operation level. The operation request requests the resource management operations in Table 1, such as allocating resources or releasing resources. The NSM service network element is specifically an NS LCM service network element. Then the execution result returned by the CSM service network element to the second management network element includes the resource management operation result. Further, the second management network element records the current slice resource usage after receiving the execution result sent by the CSM service network element. Situation, and determine that the resource size of the current network slice matches the relevant requirements of the current communication service. When the subsequent communication service capacity requirements change, the management service consumer side can also continue to request modification of the resources used by the network slice established by the management service production side.

Scene three

After the management service production side provides the NSaaS service to the management service consumer side, according to the network slice ordering agreement signed on both sides, the second management network element on the management service consumer side can be from the FM service network element or PM service network on the management service production side. Obtain the service management data, network management data, and resource management data of the network slice instance. For example, in the network slice operation management process, the call request sent by the second management network element may be a request to obtain management data corresponding to the operation level, such as a list of requests for service management data, a list of network management data, and a list of resource management data. Wait. The NSM service network element is specifically an FM service network element or a PM service network element, and then the execution result returned by the CSM service network element to the second management network element includes a list of service management data, a list of network management data, or a list of resource management data. The list, etc., may also be an execution result returned by the CSM service network element to the second management network element, including an access address for service management data, an access address for network management data, or an access address for resource management data. Further, after receiving the management data or the corresponding management data access address sent by the CSM service network element, the second management network element monitors the running status of the network slice to determine whether the running status of the slice meets the network quality requirements of the business application. The parameters of the network slice can be further modified to ensure that the slice running status can meet the SLA requirements of the business application.

In a possible design, after receiving the call request, the CSM service network element first determines whether the second management network element has the call right, and after determining that it has the call right, it further manages the NSM service network element (NSM) to the slice. The service network element refers to the corresponding management service network element in the different scenarios described above) sends the first request, and if it is determined that the second management network element does not have the calling right, then no subsequent actions are performed, or the call fails directly to the second management network element announcement of.

In another possible design, there may be a scenario where multiple management service consumers call the same management service provider at the same time. For example, multiple enterprises call the CSM service of the same operator. In this case, the CSM service network elements are receiving After the call request, conflict detection needs to be performed on the call request sent by the second management network element, for example, detecting whether the operation requirement of modifying the network slice instance sent by the second management network element is different from the operation requirement of another enterprise requesting to modify the network slice instance. Conflict, when it is determined that there is no conflict, the first request is further sent to the slice management NSM service network element; otherwise, when a conflict is found, no subsequent action is performed or a notification of call failure is returned directly to the second management network element.

Of course, the CSM service network element can also combine the above two designs to detect the call request, that is, it can detect whether the second management network element has the right to call, and it can also detect whether the call request sent by the second management network element is related to other first The call requests of the three parties conflict.

In summary, the network slice management method provided in this application is applicable to the management service consumer side to manage the services provided by the management service production side. The management service consumer side calls the interface of the CSM service network element on the management service production side. To manage different services. On the one hand, during the creation or modification of the network slice, the management service production side provides the network slice instance as a communication service to the management service consumer side, and the management service consumer side implements the network slice through the communication service management function of the management service production side. On the other hand, during the operation of network slicing, the second management network element on the management service consumption side no longer needs to be separate from the CSM service network element on the management service production side, NS LCM service network element, and NSS LCM service network element. , PM service network element, FM service network element, etc. The second management network element can obtain the network management data and resources of the network slice instance in addition to the business management data by calling the CSM service network element on the production side of the management service. Management data, etc. Furthermore, the second management network element on the management service consumer side can modify the business access point by invoking the CSM service network element on the management service production side, or create a network slice instance and reallocate resources, etc., to achieve different services. management. Because the management service production side unifies the external interfaces of the communication service management service, network slice management service, and resource management service into the service-oriented interface of the communication service management service, the complexity of the docking of the management service consumer side can be simplified.

In order to more clearly understand the network slice management method provided in the embodiments of the present application, the following description will be made through several specific embodiments. The following embodiments are described by taking the management service consumer side as the operator B and the management service generation side as the operator A as an example.

Example 1

After operator A provides NSaaS services to operator B, according to the network slice subscription agreement signed by the two, operator B's business support management system can perform service management operations on the network slice instance through the CSM service network element of operator A, and the network. Management operations and resource management operations to ensure business SLA, the specific process is shown in Figure 4.

Business management operations

Step 401A, the operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator A. The call request includes a service management operation level (optional, if not carrying a default, it indicates a service management operation level) and operation requirements.

If the communication service used by operator B is provided by the network slice instance of operator A, the service identifier in the call request is NSaaS, and it also carries the network slice instance identifier; if the communication service is not provided by the network slice of operator A , Then the service identifier in the call request is a specific communication service and does not carry the network slice instance identifier. Operational requirements can be requested service management operations (such as creating, modifying, releasing service access points, subscribing to business alarms or business KPIs, obtaining management data such as business failure alarms or business performance statistics, etc.).

Step 402A, the CSM service network element of the operator A checks whether the operator B has the authority to perform these service management operations according to the network slice ordering agreement. If it has the authority, it can also check whether the service management operation of the current call request is related to other third parties. The customer's business management operations conflict. If there is no conflict, continue to perform 403, otherwise the return call fails.

Step 403A, after the CSM service network element of operator A passes the check of step 402 above, if the service identifier is NSaaS, the NS LCM service network element is invoked to perform operations such as service access point modification on the network slice instance corresponding to the network slice instance identifier Wait for the operation, and receive a second response message from the NS LCM service network element, such as the operation result of the service access point.

Step 404A, the CSM service network element of operator A returns the service management operation result to the second management network element of operator B; if the requested service identifier is NSaaS, the CSM service network element of operator A sends the The second management network element returns a call request response of the NS LCM service network element, where the call request response includes the execution result of the NS LCM service network element, and the execution result carries the service connection of the network slice instance corresponding to the slice instance identifier specified in the call request. The result of the operation of the entry point.

It should be noted that another processing method may be that the CSM directly operates and returns the service operation result of the second management network element.

Network Management Operation Section

Step 401B, after operator A creates a network slice instance for operator B and provides the corresponding NSaaS service, according to the network slice subscription agreement signed by the two, the second management network element of operator B can pass the CSM service network of operator A Element performs some network management operations (such as creating and modifying network slice instances, modifying network connections of some network elements in the network slice instance, etc.), the second management network element of operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of operator A . The call request includes the network management operation level and operation requirements. The service identifier in the call request is NSaaS and also carries the network slice instance identifier. The operation request describes the network management operation requested by the second management network element of operator B.

Step 402B, the CSM service network element of the operator A checks whether the operator B has the authority to perform these network management operations according to the network slice ordering agreement. If it has the authority, it can also check whether the current network management operation requested by the call and other third parties The client's network management operation conflicts. If it does not conflict, continue to execute 403B, otherwise the return call fails.

In step 403B, after the CSM service network element of operator A passes the check in step 402B, if the service identifier is NSaaS, a first request is sent to the NSLCM service network element, that is, a network management operation request. The network management operation request includes The network management operation requested to be performed, such as creating or modifying a network slice instance, and modifying the network connection of some network elements in the network slice instance.

Step 404B, the NS LCM service network element calls the NSS LCM service network element and NFV-MANO to perform network modification or redeployment of network functions.

Step 405B, the NS LCM service network element calls a transmission management system network element to perform a network modification operation. The transmission management system may be a MANO or an NSSMF of a specific transmission network.

Step 406B, the NS LCM service network element returns a network management operation response to the CSM service network element, where the network management operation response includes the network management operation result, such as the created network slice instance identifier or the modified slice parameter of the network slice instance. Wait.

Step 407B, the CSM service network element of the operator A returns a call request response to the second management network element of the operator B, where the call request response includes the execution result of the NS LCM service network element, and the execution result carries the network with the call request Management operation level and network management operation results for the specified slice instance.

Resource Management Section

Step 401C, after operator A creates a network slice instance for operator B and provides the corresponding NSaaS service, according to the network slice subscription agreement signed by the two, the second management network element of operator B can call the CSM service of operator A The network element performs resource management operations on some network slice instances (such as modifying the number of virtual resources used by some network elements in the network slice, or modifying the transmission resources used by the network slice instance, etc.), and the second management network element of operator B (including The NS LCM service network element or the NSS LCM service network element, etc.) sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator A. The call request includes the resource management operation level and operation requirements. The service identifier in the call request is NSaaS, and it also carries the network slice instance identifier. The operation request describes the resource management operation requested by the second management network element of operator B.

Step 402C, the CSM service network element of the operator A checks whether the operator B has the authority to perform these resource management operations according to the network slice ordering agreement, and if it has the authority, it can also check whether the resource management operation of the current call request and other third parties The client's resource management operation conflicts. If it does not conflict, continue to execute 403B, otherwise the return call fails.

In step 403C, after the CSM service network element of operator A passes the detection in step 402C, the first request is sent to the NS LCM service network element, that is, the resource management operation request. The resource management operation request carries the resource management operation requested to be performed. For example, modify the amount of virtual resources used by some network elements in the network slice, or modify the transmission resources used by the network slice.

Step 404C, the NS LCM service network element calls the NSS LCM service network element and NFV-MANO to modify the resources of the network function.

Step 405C, the NS LCM service network element calls the transmission management system to perform a transmission resource modification operation.

Step 406C, the NS LCM service network element returns a third response message to the CSM service network element, that is, the resource management operation response, wherein the resource management operation response carries the corresponding resource management operation result.

Step 407C, the CSM service network element of the operator A returns a call request response to the second management network element of the operator B, where the call request response includes the execution result of the NS LCM service network element, and the execution result carries the Resource management operation level and resource management operation result of the specified network slice instance.

Application scenario one

Specifically, the operator B may request the operator A to create a new network slice instance to combine to generate a slice alliance. When the operator B requests to create a network slice, the operator A and the operator B follow the process shown in FIG. 5 Creating a network slice includes the following steps.

Step 501: The second management network element of the operator B (specifically, the network slice management system or the communication service management system of the operator B) sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator A. In addition to the service request (that is, the NSaaS service) and operation requirements, the call request also includes the network management operation level.

Optionally, it may also carry a special network slice instance identifier, which indicates that the NS LCM service network element of operator A is allocated after creation.

Step 502: The CSM service network element of the operator A determines that a new network slice instance needs to be created according to the operation level and operation requirements in the call request.

Step 503: The CSM service network element of the operator A obtains the related requirements of the newly created network slice instance according to the specific service requirements of the NSaaS service in the operation requirements.

Step 504: The CSM service network element of the operator A calls the network slice instance creation service provided by the NS and LCM service network elements of the operator A, and requests to create a new network slice instance. The request for creating a network slice instance carries the information obtained in step 503. Requirements for creating a new network slice instance.

Step 505: The NS LCM service network element of the operator A calls the NSS LCM service network element of the operator A, the transmission management system network element, NFV-MANO, etc., and completes the creation of the network slice instance according to the existing technology.

Step 506: After the NS LCM service network element of the operator A completes the creation of the network slice instance, the result of the call to create the network slice instance service is returned to the CSM service network element of the operator A. If the creation is successful, it carries the NS LCM service network element. The slice instance ID assigned to the newly created network slice instance. If the creation fails, the specific failure reason is carried.

Step 507: The CSM service network element of the operator A sends a call response to the second management network element of the operator B. The call response includes the execution result of the NSLCM service network element, that is, the slice instance identifier of the successfully newly created network slice or The reason why the network slice instance failed to be created.

Step 508: If the network slice instance is successfully created, the second management network element of the operator B will call the slice instance identifier of the newly created network slice of the operator A in the response message as the subnet slice instance of the combined slice of the operator B. The ID is stored.

Application scenario two

Specifically, after the operator B requests from the operator A to the newly created network slice instance, it also needs to complete the activation process after the network slice instance is created. For details, refer to the following steps described in FIG. 5.

In step 509, the second management network element of the operator B (specifically, the network slice management system or the communication service management system) first enables the services of each subnet slice instance created by itself.

Step 510: The second management network element of the operator B sends an enable request to the CSM service network element of the operator A. The enable request is used to request the operator A to enable the NSaaS service provided by the network slice just created, except for the service identifier ( (That is, NSaaS services) and operational requirements (that is, requests to enable NSaaS services, and specific service management operation requests), the service management operation level (optional, if not carrying the default service management operation level), and The network slice instance identifier allocated by the operator stored in step 508.

In step 511, the CSM service network element of the operator A activates the service access point (Service Access Point) provided by the network slice according to the service management operation level and the network slice instance identifier and the operation requirements (even if NSaaS services are available).

Step 512: The CSM service network element of the operator A returns an enable response message to the second management network element of the operator B. The message may carry the operation level (ie, the service management operation level) specified in the enable response message, and also The network slice instance identification and service management operation result of the network slice are shown. The service management operation result indicates that the service access point is successfully activated and provides detailed information of the service access point. At this time, operator B can obtain the NSaaS service provided by operator A according to the service access point information, and combine the network slices provided by the two operators into a larger slice or slice alliance.

Application scenario three

If Carrier A has deployed a network slice instance to provide communication services, Carrier B wants to combine the network slice instances it has deployed with Carrier A ’s network slice instances to provide communication services to customers on a larger scale. You can request to modify the network slice instance that Carrier A has deployed. When Carrier B requests to modify Carrier A's network slice instance, Carrier A and Carrier B modify the network slice according to the process shown in Figure 6. Include the following steps.

Step 601: The second management network element of the operator B (specifically, the network slice management system or the communication service management system) sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator A. In addition to the existing service identification (that is, the NSaaS service) and operation requirements, it also includes the network management operation level and network slice instance identification. The operation requirements indicate that this deployed network slice instance of operator A is requested to provide the required NSaaS services. .

Step 602: The CSM service network element of the operator A determines that the deployed network slice instance needs to be modified according to the operation level and operation requirements in the call request.

Step 603: The CSM service network element of the operator A obtains the relevant requirements for modifying the network slice instance according to the operation requirements in the call request.

In step 604, the CSM service network element of the operator A sends a request for modifying the network slice instance to the NS LCM service network element of the operator A, where the request carries the related requirements for modifying the network slice instance obtained in step 603.

Step 605: Similar to the process of creating a network slice instance in the prior art, the NS LCM service network element of operator A calls the NSS LCM service network element, transmission management system network element, NFV-MANO, etc., to complete the modification of the network slice instance.

Step 606: After the NS LCM service network element of the operator A finishes modifying the slice instance, it sends a response message to modify the slice instance to the CSM service network element of the operator A, which carries the modified parameter information of the network slice instance.

Step 607: The CSM service network element of the operator A sends a call request response to the second management network element of the operator B. The call request response indicates that the request for the existing network slice instance to provide the NSaaS service is successful. The message also carries the call request message. Parameter information corresponding to the network management operation level and network slice instance ID specified in.

At this time, the operator B uses the NSaaS service provided by the existing network slice instance of the operator A to combine the network slices provided by the two operators into a larger slice or slice alliance.

Example 2

After operator A provides NSaaS services to operator B, according to the network slice subscription agreement signed by the two, operator B can obtain the service management data, network management data, and resources of the network slice instance through the CSM service network element of operator A The specific process of managing data is shown in Figure 7, including the following steps.

Step 701A: The second management network element of the operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator A. The call request includes the business management operation level and operation requirements.

If the communication service used by operator B is provided by the network slice instance of operator A, the service identifier in the call request is NSaaS, and the network slice instance identifier is also carried; if the communication service is not provided by the network slice, then the call is invoked The service identifier in the request is a specific communication service and does not carry the network slice instance identifier. The operation requirement describes the list of the second management network element of the operator B requesting to obtain the service management data. The specific requirements may be the request for obtaining the communication service alarm data, service KPI and other performance statistics, service access point information, and so on.

Step 702A: The CSM service network element of operator A detects whether these service management data can be provided to operator B according to the network slice ordering agreement. If not, it returns a call failure message; if it can provide it, it returns a successful call request response. , Where the call request response carries the business management data or the access address of the business management data corresponding to the business management operation level and the network slice instance identifier. If it is the access address of the service management data, the second management network element of the operator B can obtain the corresponding service management data from the designated access address.

Step 701B, the operator B creates a network slice instance for the customer and provides the corresponding NSaaS service. According to the network slice ordering agreement, the second management network element of the operator B can request the operator A to obtain network management data of some network slice instances. The second management network element of the operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator A. The call request includes the network management operation level and operation requirements. The service identifier in the call request is NSaaS, and it also carries the network slice instance identifier. The operation requirements describe the list of network management data that the customer's management system wants to obtain. The specific can be the network. Slicing instance alarms, performance statistics and other data.

Step 702B, the CSM service network element of the operator A checks whether these network management data can be provided to the operator B according to the agreement. If the network management data is allowed, the CSM service network element of the operator A sends a first request to the PM or FM service network element. , Which is a network management operation request.

Step 703B, the PM or FM service network element calls the transmission management system network element to obtain the fault alarm or performance statistics of the transmission network, or obtains the network element fault alarm or performance statistics from the corresponding network function instance (ie, the network element) in the network slice instance. , And then obtain and summarize the network management data for each part.

In step 704B, the PM or FM serving network element sends a fourth response message, that is, a network management operation response, to the CSM serving network element, which carries the requested network management data or obtains the address of the network management data.

Step 705B, the CSM service network element of the operator A returns a successful call request response to the second management network element of the operator B, where the call request response carries the corresponding network management operation level in the call request and the network slice instance identifier. If the access address of the network management data is the access address of the network management data, the second management network element of the operator B may obtain the corresponding network management data from the designated access address.

Step 701C, the operator A creates a network slice instance for the operator B and provides a corresponding NSaaS service. According to the network slice subscription agreement, the second management network element of the operator B can request the operator A to obtain some network slice instances used by the operator. The resource management data of NFV infrastructure (NFV infrastructure), transmission resources or network resources, the second management network element of operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of operator A. The call request includes the resource management operation level and operation requirements. The service identifier in the call request is NSaaS, and it also carries the network slice instance identifier. The operation request describes the list of resource management data that the second management network element of operator B wants to obtain. Specific may be fault alarms or performance statistics of NFV resources, transmission resources, or network resources.

Step 702C, the CSM service network element of the operator A checks whether these resource management data can be provided to the customer according to the agreement, and if not, returns a call failure message; if it can provide, then sends the first to the PM or FM service network element Request, that is, a resource management operation request.

Step 703C, the PM or FM service network element calls the transmission management system network element, or NFV-MANO to obtain the resource management data of each part and summarize it.

Step 704C, the PM or FM service network element sends a fifth response message, that is, a resource management operation response, to the CSM service network element, where the resource management operation response carries the requested resource management data or obtains the address of the resource management data.

Step 705C, the CSM service network element of the operator A returns a call request response to the operator B, where the call request response carries resource management data or resource management data corresponding to the resource management operation level in the call request and the network slice instance identifier. The access address. If it is the access address of the resource management data, the second management network element of the operator B can obtain the corresponding resource alarm or resource performance statistics data from the specified access address.

Step 701D, if the second management network element of the operator B requests the operator A to obtain the NFV resources, transmission resources, or management data of the network resources used by some network slice instances is specific NFV deployment resource information, and the transmission or network chain The second management network element of the operator B sends a call request to the CSM service network element of the operator A. The call request includes the resource management operation level and operation requirements. The service identifier in the call request is NSaaS, and it also carries the network slice instance identifier. The operation request describes the list of resource management data that the second management network element of operator B wants to obtain. The specific information is the specific information of VNF, VNFC and virtual machine VM deployed by NFV, and the specific information of transmission or network link.

Step 702D, the CSM service network element of the operator A checks whether these resource management data can be provided to the client according to the protocol, and if not, returns a call failure message; if it can provide it, sends a first request to the NS LCM service network element , Which is a resource management operation request.

Step 703D, the NS LCM service network element calls the transmission management system network element or NFV-MANO to obtain the resource management data of each part and summarizes it.

In step 704D, the NS LCM service network element sends a fifth response message to the CSM service network element, that is, the resource management operation response, wherein the resource management operation response carries the requested resource management data or obtains the address of the resource management data.

Step 705D, the CSM service network element of the operator A returns a call request response to the operator B, where the call request response carries resource management data or resource management data corresponding to the resource management operation level in the call request and the network slice instance identifier. The access address. If it is the access address of the resource management data, the second management network element of the operator B can obtain the corresponding resource alarm or resource performance statistics data from the specified access address.

Based on the same inventive concept, as shown in FIG. 8, a schematic diagram of a device provided for this application. The device 800 may be a CSM service network element, or a system on a chip or a chip. Method for serving network element by CSM in the embodiment.

The device 800 includes at least one processor 801, a transceiver 802, and optionally, a memory 803. The processor 801, the transceiver 802, and the memory 803 are connected through a communication bus.

The processor 801 may be a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a specific ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of the program of the solution of the present invention.

The communication bus may include a path to transfer information between the aforementioned devices.

The transceiver 802 is configured to communicate with other devices or a communication network. The transceiver may be a communication interface, for example, a wired interface or a wireless interface, or a wifi interface, or the transceiver includes a radio frequency circuit.

The memory 803 may be ROM or other types of static storage devices capable of storing static information and instructions, RAM or other types of dynamic storage devices capable of storing information and instructions, and may also be EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, optical disk storage (Including compact discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be used by a computer Any other media accessed, but not limited to this. The memory 803 may exist independently, and is connected to the processor 801 through a communication bus. The memory 803 may also be integrated with the processor. The memory 803 is configured to store program code that executes the solution of the present invention, and is controlled and executed by the processor 801. The processor 801 is configured to execute application program code stored in the memory 803.

In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the processor 801 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 in the device 800.

In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the apparatus 800 may include multiple processors, such as the processor 801 and the processor 808 in the apparatus 800. Each of these processors may be a single-CPU (single-CPU) processor or a multi-CPU (processor), where a processor may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or A processing core for processing data, such as computer program instructions.

It should be understood that the apparatus may be used to implement the steps performed by the CSM service network element in the communication methods in the embodiments shown in FIG. 4 to FIG. 6. For related features, reference may be made to the foregoing, and details are not described herein again.

This application may divide the functional modules of the device according to the foregoing method examples. For example, each functional module may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of the modules in this application is schematic, and is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be another division manner. For example, in a case where each functional module is divided corresponding to each function, FIG. 9 shows a schematic diagram of a device, and the device may be a CSM service network element or a system-on-chip or chip involved in the embodiment shown in FIG. 9. The device includes a processing unit 901 and a communication unit 902. The processing unit 901 may be, for example, a processor, and the communication unit 902 may be, for example, a transceiver. The transceiver includes a radio frequency circuit. Optionally, the CSM service network element further includes a storage unit. For example, the storage unit may It's memory. When the CSM service network element includes a storage unit, the storage unit stores computer execution instructions, the processing unit is connected to the storage unit, and the processing unit executes the computer execution instructions stored by the storage unit, so that the CSM service network element executes the foregoing Network slice management method.

The processing unit 901 is configured to control the communication unit 902 to perform the following processing:

Receiving a call request from a second management network element on the management service consumer side, the call request including an operation level and an operation requirement of the service; and sending a first request to the NSM service network element according to the call request, the first request It is used to instruct the NSM service network element to perform an action corresponding to the operation requirement and the operation level; and send the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element.

In a possible implementation manner, the processing unit 901 may further determine that the second management network element has a calling right according to the calling request, and / or an operation requirement in the calling request meets a non-conflicting condition.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance, the operation level is a network management operation level, and the first request is Create or modify messages for network slice instances;

The processing unit 901 is further configured to control the communication unit 902 to receive a first response message returned by the NSM service entity, where the first response message includes a newly created network slice instance identifier, or includes the second network slice instance identifier. Manage the network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance that the network element requested to modify.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation level is a resource management operation level, the operation demand is a management resource, and the first request is a resource management operation request At that time, the processor 901 receives a third response message returned by the NS LCM service network element through the communication unit 902, and the third response message includes a resource management operation result of a resource corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an FM service network element or a PM service network element, and the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a network management operation level; When the first request is requesting network management data; the processing unit 901 is further configured to control the communication unit 902: receive a fourth response message returned by the NSM service network element, where the fourth response message includes Access address for network management data or network management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, and the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation level; when the first When the request is requesting resource management data; the processing unit 901 is further configured to control the communication unit 902: receive a fifth response message returned by the NSM service network element, where the fifth response message includes resource management data or resources Access address for management data.

In a possible implementation manner, the processing unit 901 is further configured to determine that the second management network element has a right to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and then send a first request to the NSM service network element. .

In this embodiment, the device is presented in the form of dividing each function module into corresponding functions, or the CSM service network element is presented in the form of dividing into each function module. The "module" herein may refer to an ASIC, a circuit, a processor and a memory executing one or more software or firmware programs, an integrated logic circuit, and / or other devices capable of providing the above functions.

It should be understood that the apparatus may be used to implement the steps performed by the CSM service network element in the communication method according to the embodiment of the present invention. For related features, reference may be made to the foregoing, and details are not described herein again.

Based on the same inventive concept, as shown in FIG. 10, a schematic diagram of a device provided in the present application. The device 1000 may be a second management network element, or a system on a chip or a chip. The operations shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 may be performed. The method performed by the second management network element in the embodiment.

The device 1000 includes at least one processor 1001, a transceiver 1002, and optionally, a memory 1003. The processor 1001, the transceiver 1002, and the memory 1003 are connected through a communication bus.

The processor 1001 may be a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a specific ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of the program of the solution of the present invention.

The transceiver 1002 is configured to communicate with other devices or communication networks. The transceiver may be a communication interface, for example, a wired interface or a wireless interface, or a wifi interface, or the transceiver includes a radio frequency circuit.

The memory 1003 may be a ROM or other type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a RAM or other type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, or an EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, optical disk storage (Including compact discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be used by a computer Any other media accessed, but not limited to this. The memory 1003 may exist independently, and is connected to the processor 1001 through a communication bus. The memory 1003 may also be integrated with the processor. The memory 1003 is configured to store program code that executes the solution of the present invention, and is controlled and executed by the processor 1001. The processor 1001 is configured to execute application program code stored in the memory 1003.

In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the processor 1001 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 in FIG. 1000.

In specific implementation, as an embodiment, the apparatus 1000 may include multiple processors, such as the processor 1001 and the processor 10010 in FIG. 1000. Each of these processors may be a single-CPU (single-CPU) processor or a multi-CPU (processor), where a processor may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or A processing core for processing data, such as computer program instructions.

It should be understood that the apparatus may be used to implement the steps performed by the second management network element in the communication methods in the embodiments shown in FIG. 4 to FIG. 6. For related features, reference may be made to the foregoing, and details are not described herein again.

This application may divide the functional modules of the device according to the foregoing method examples. For example, each functional module may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of the modules in this application is schematic, and is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be another division manner. For example, in the case where each functional module is divided according to each function, FIG. 11 shows a schematic diagram of a device, and the device may be a second management network element or a system-on-chip or a chip involved in the embodiment shown in FIG. 11. The device includes a processing unit 1101 and a communication unit 1102. The processing unit 1101 may be, for example, a processor, and the communication unit 1102 may be, for example, a transceiver. The transceiver includes a radio frequency circuit. Optionally, the second management network element further includes a storage unit. The storage unit may be, for example, Memory. When the second management network element includes a storage unit, the storage unit stores computer execution instructions, the processing unit is connected to the storage unit, and the processing unit executes the computer execution instructions stored by the storage unit, so that the CSM service network element executes The above network slice management method.

The processing unit 1101 is configured to control the communication unit 1102 to perform the following processing:

Sending a call request to a communication service management CSM service network element on the management service production side, where the call request includes the operation level and operation requirements of the service;

Receiving an execution result sent from the CSM service network element, the execution result is an execution result obtained from the NS LCM service network element after the CSM service network element invokes the NSM service network element according to the call request, and the execution The result is generated after the NSM service network element performs an action corresponding to the operation requirement and the operation level.

The processing unit 1101 is further configured to control the communication unit to perform the following processing:

Use the newly created network slice instance to provide communication services to its own customers; or, combine the network slice instance provided by the management service generating side with the network slice instance it has created to form a slice alliance, and use the slice alliance Provide communication services to its own customers; or, use the network slice instance provided by the management service generating side as one of its own subnet slice instances, and then combine with other subnetwork slice instances created by itself to form a new network slice instance, and Use the new network slice instance to provide communication services to its own customers.

In this embodiment, the device is presented in the form of dividing each functional module corresponding to each function, or the second management network element is presented in the form of dividing each functional module in an integrated manner. The "module" herein may refer to an ASIC, a circuit, a processor and a memory executing one or more software or firmware programs, an integrated logic circuit, and / or other devices capable of providing the above functions.

It should be understood that the apparatus may be used to implement the steps performed by the second management network element in the communication method according to the embodiment of the present invention. For related features, reference may be made to the foregoing, and details are not described herein again.

An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, where the computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions, and when the instructions are run on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the foregoing method embodiments.

The embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program product containing instructions, which when run on a computer, causes the computer to execute the method embodiments described in the above aspects.

In the above embodiments, it may be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, it may be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions according to the embodiments of the present invention are wholly or partially generated. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium, for example, the computer instructions may be from a website site, a computer, a server, or a data center. Transmission via wired (such as coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) to another website site, computer, server, or data center. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server, a data center, or the like that includes one or more available medium integration. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (for example, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (for example, a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (for example, a solid state disk (Solid State Disk, SSD)), and the like.

Although the present invention is described herein in conjunction with various embodiments, in the course of implementing the claimed invention, those skilled in the art can understand and understand by looking at the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. Other variations of the disclosed embodiments are implemented. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other components or steps, and "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. Certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims, but this does not mean that these measures cannot be combined to produce good results.

Those skilled in the art should understand that the embodiments of the present application may be provided as a method, an apparatus (device), a computer-readable storage medium, or a computer program product. Therefore, this application may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects, which are collectively referred to herein as a "module" or "system".

This application is described with reference to the flowchart and / or block diagram of the method, apparatus (device) and computer program product of this application. It should be understood that each process and / or block in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams, and combinations of processes and / or blocks in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, embedded processor, or other programmable data processing device to produce a machine, so that the instructions generated by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device are used to generate instructions Means for implementing the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more blocks of the block diagrams.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory capable of directing a computer or other programmable data processing device to work in a specific manner such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce a manufactured article including an instruction device, the instructions The device implements the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more blocks of the block diagram.

These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device, so that a series of steps can be performed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, which can be executed on the computer or other programmable device. The instructions provide steps for implementing the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more blocks of the block diagrams.

Although the invention has been described in connection with specific features and embodiments thereof, it will be apparent that various modifications and combinations can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are merely exemplary illustrations of the invention as defined by the appended claims, and are deemed to have covered any and all modifications, changes, combinations, or equivalents that fall within the scope of the invention. Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various modifications and variations to the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. In this way, if these modifications and variations of the present invention fall within the scope of the claims of the present invention and their equivalent technologies, the present invention also intends to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

A method for managing a network slice is characterized in that the method includes:

The communication service management CSM service network element on the management service production side receives a call request from the second management network element on the management service consumer side, where the call request includes the operation level and operation requirements of the service;

The CSM service network element sends a first request to a network slice management NSM service network element according to the call request, and the first request is used to instruct the NSM service network element to perform the operation level and the operation requirement. Corresponding action

The CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element.
The method according to claim 1, wherein before the CSM service network element sends the first request to the NSM service network element according to the call request, further comprising:

The CSM service network element determines, according to the call request, that the second management network element has a call right, and / or an operation requirement in the call request meets a non-conflict condition.
The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the NSM service network element is a network slice life cycle management NS LCM service network element, and the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance; the operation level is Network management operation level; the first request is a message for creating or modifying a network slice instance;

Before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element, the method further includes:

Receiving, by the CSM service network element, a first response message returned by the NS LCM service entity, the first response message including a newly created network slice instance identifier, or a network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element Results of network slice parameter modification.
The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation demand is a management resource; the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first The request is a resource management operation request;

Before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element, the method further includes:

The CSM service network element receives a third response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, and the third response message includes a resource management operation result of a resource corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.
The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the NSM service network element is a fault management FM service network element or a performance management PM service network element; and the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, The operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is a request for network management data;

Before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element, the method further includes:

The CSM service network element receives a fourth response message returned by the FM service network element or PM service network element, and the fourth response message includes network management data or an access address of the network management data.
The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation Level; the first request is requesting resource management data;

Before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element, the method further includes:

The CSM service network element receives a fifth response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, and the fifth response message includes resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.
The method according to claim 5 or 6, wherein before the CSM service network element sends the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element, further comprising:

The CSM service network element determines that the second management network element has a right to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level.
A method for managing a network slice is characterized in that the method includes:

The second management network element on the management service consumer side sends a call request to the communication service management CSM service network element on the management service production side, where the call request includes the operation level and operation requirements of the service;

Receiving, by the second management network element, an execution result sent from the CSM service network element, where the execution result is that the CSM service network element calls a network slice management NSM service network element according to the call request, and An execution result obtained by a service network element, where the execution result is generated after the NSM service network element performs an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement.
The method according to claim 8, wherein the NSM service network element is a network slice life cycle management NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is creating or modifying a network slice instance, and the operation level is network management Operation level

The execution result includes a newly created network slice instance identifier, or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element;

After the second management network element receives the execution result sent from the CSM service network element, the method further includes:

The second management network element using the newly created network slice instance to provide a communication service to its own customer;

Alternatively, the second management network element combines a network slice instance provided by the management service generating side and a network slice instance that it has created to form a slice alliance, and uses the slice alliance to provide communication services to its own customers;

Alternatively, the second management network element uses the network slice instance provided by the management service generating side as a subnet slice instance of itself, and then combines with other sub network slice instances created by itself to form a new network slice instance, and Use the new network slice instance to provide communication services to its own customers.
The method according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element; the operation demand is a management resource; the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first The request is a resource management operation request; the execution result includes a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.
The method according to claim 8, wherein the NSM service network element is a fault management FM service network element or a performance management PM service network element; and the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, the The operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is a request for network management data; and the execution result includes network management data or an access address of the network management data.
The method according to claim 8 or 11, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation Level; the first request is requesting resource management data; the execution result includes resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.
A device belongs to a management service production side and is characterized in that it includes: a processing unit and a communication unit;

The processing unit is configured to control the communication unit to perform the following processing:

Receiving a call request from a second management network element of a management service consumer side, the call request including an operation level and an operation requirement of a service;

Sending a first request to a network slice management NSM service network element according to the call request, the first request being used to instruct the NSM service network element to perform an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement

Sending the execution result returned by the NSM service network element to the second management network element.
The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the processing unit is further configured to:

According to the call request, it is determined that the second management network element has a call right, and / or an operation requirement in the call request meets a non-conflict condition.
The device according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the NSM service network element is a network slice life cycle management NS LCM service network element, and the operation requirement is to create or modify a network slice instance; the operation level is Network management operation level; the first request is a message for creating or modifying a network slice instance

The processing unit is further configured to control the communication unit: receive a first response message returned by the NS LCM service entity, where the first response message includes a newly created network slice instance identifier, or includes the second management The result of modifying the network slice parameters of the network slice instance that the network element requested to modify.
The apparatus according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the operation level is a service management operation level, the operation demand is a service management operation request, and the first request is a service management operation request;

The processing unit is further configured to control the communication unit to perform the following processing:

Receiving a first response message returned by the NS LCM service entity, the first response message including a newly created network slice instance identifier, or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element .
The device according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation demand is a management resource, the operation level is a resource management operation level, and the first The request is a resource management operation request;

The processing unit is further configured to control the communication unit to perform the following processing:

Receiving a third response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, where the third response message includes a resource management operation result of a resource corresponding to a network slice instance identifier.
The device according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the NSM service network element is a fault management FM service network element or a performance management PM service network element; and the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, The operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is a request for network management data;

The processing unit is further configured to control the communication unit to perform the following processing:

Receiving a fourth response message returned by the FM service network element or the PM service network element, where the fourth response message includes network management data or an access address of the network management data.
The device according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation Level; the first request is requesting resource management data;

The processing unit is further configured to control the communication unit:

Receiving a fifth response message returned by the NS LCM service network element, where the fifth response message includes resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.
The device according to claim 18 or 19, wherein the processing unit is further configured to determine that the second management network element has a right to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level.
A device characterized by comprising a processing unit and a communication unit;

The processing unit is configured to control the communication unit to perform the following processing:

Sending a call request to a communication service management CSM service network element on the management service production side, where the call request includes the operation level and operation requirements of the service;

Receiving an execution result sent from the CSM service network element, where the execution result is an execution result obtained from the NSM service network element after the CSM service network element invokes a network slice management NSM service network element according to the call request The execution result is generated after the NSM service network element executes an action corresponding to the operation level and the operation requirement.
The device according to claim 21, wherein the NSM service network element is a network slice life cycle management NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is creating or modifying a network slice instance, and the operation level is network management Operation level

The execution result includes a newly created network slice instance identifier, or a network slice parameter modification result of the network slice instance requested to be modified by the second management network element;

The processing unit is further configured to control the communication unit to perform the following processing:

Using the newly created network slice instance to provide communication services to its own customers;

Or, combining the network slice instance provided by the management service generating side and the network slice instance that has been created by itself to form a slice alliance, and using the slice alliance to provide communication services to its own customers;

Alternatively, the network slice instance provided by the management service generating side is used as a subnet slice instance of itself, and then combined with other sub network slice instances created by itself to form a new network slice instance, and using the new network slice The instance provides communication services to its own customers.
The apparatus according to claim 21 or 22, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element; the operation demand is a management resource; the operation level is a resource management operation level; the first The request is a resource management operation request; the execution result includes a resource management operation result corresponding to the network slice instance identifier.
The device according to claim 21, wherein the NSM service network element is a fault management FM service network element or a performance management PM service network element; and the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, the The operation level is a network management operation level; the first request is a request for network management data; and the execution result includes network management data or an access address of the network management data.
The device according to claim 21 or 24, wherein the NSM service network element is an NS LCM service network element, the operation requirement is to obtain management data corresponding to an operation level, and the operation level is a resource management operation Level; the first request is requesting resource management data; the execution result includes resource management data or an access address of the resource management data.