CN111385181B

CN111385181B - Instantiation method and device

Info

Publication number: CN111385181B
Application number: CN201811642458.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 黄骋; 王耀光; 于益俊; 曹龙雨
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-12-29
Filing date: 2018-12-29
Publication date: 2021-05-04
Anticipated expiration: 2038-12-29
Also published as: WO2020134931A1; CN111385181A

Abstract

An instantiation method and device are provided, wherein the method comprises the following steps: the network function virtualization orchestrator NFVO sends condition information to a first network element; the NFVO receives attribute information of N PNF network elements described by the condition information from the first network element, wherein N is an integer greater than 0; and the NFVO instantiates at least one Virtual Network Function (VNF) network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

Description

Instantiation method and device

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to an instantiation method and apparatus.

Background

Currently, the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) Network Function Virtualization (NFV) standard organization sets a detailed management architecture for VNF management, wherein it is clear that a management and organization (MANO) architecture needs to support management of Network Services (NS), and the NFV standard organization defines a Network Service Descriptor (NSD) to describe the network services.

However, an NS may be composed entirely of a Virtual Network Function (VNF) network element, and may also be composed of a VNF network element and a Physical Network Function (PNF) network element together. The NS, which is a mixture of PNF and VNF network elements, is not fully considered when the NFV standard formulates a MANO architecture. Therefore, when the NS includes both the PNF network element and the VNF network element, the current MANO architecture cannot separately support an NS management method in which the PNF network element and the VNF network element exist at the same time, and in this case, how to instantiate the VNF network element makes the instantiated VNF network element and the PNF network element work cooperatively is an urgent problem to be solved.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides an instantiation method and device, and is used for providing a method for instantiating a VNF network element.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an instantiation method, including: the network function virtualization orchestrator NFVO sends condition information to a first network element; the NFVO receives attribute information of N PNF network elements described by the condition information from the first network element, wherein N is an integer greater than 0; and the NFVO instantiates at least one Virtual Network Function (VNF) network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

By the method, the NFVO obtains the attribute information of the PNF network elements meeting the screening condition before instantiating the VNF network elements, so that the VNF network elements are instantiated according to the attribute information of the PNF network elements, the instantiation process of the VNF network elements is optimized, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, N is equal to 1, and the attribute information includes geographic location information; the NFVO instantiates at least one virtual network function VNF network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, including: the NFVO determines a first NFVI network element according to the geographic position information and the attribute information of at least one network function virtualization base NFVI network element, wherein the distance between the first NFVI network element and the PNF network element is minimum; the NFVO instantiates a first VNF network element through a virtual resource provided by the first NFVI network element.

In the method, the NFVO can obtain the geographical location information of the PNF network element, and select the NFVI network element closer to the PNF network element from the at least one NFVI network element to instantiate the VNF network element, so that the distance between the instantiated VNF network element and the PNF network element can be reduced, thereby reducing the time delay between the VNF network element and the PNF network element and improving the system efficiency.

In one possible design, N is greater than 1, and the attribute information includes geographic location information; the NFVO instantiates at least one virtual network function VNF network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, including: the NFVO determines a second NFVI network element according to the geographic position information of at least one NFVI network element and the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, wherein the average distance between the second NFVI network element and the N PNF network elements is the minimum; and the NFVO instantiates the first VNF network element through the virtual resource provided by the second NFVI network element.

In one possible design, the NFVO determining, according to the geographic location information of the at least one NFVI network element and the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, a second NFVI network element, including: for any NFVI network element in the at least one NFVI network element, the NFVO determines an average distance between the NFVI network element and the N PNF network elements according to the geographic location information of the NFVI network element and the geographic location information of the N PNF network elements; and the NFVO takes the NFVI network element with the minimum average distance to the N PNF network elements among the at least one NFVI network element as the second NFVI network element.

In the method, when the NFVO is corresponding to the at least one NFVI network element, the geographical location information of the PNF network element may be obtained, and the NFVI network element closer to the PNF network element is selected from the at least one NFVI network element to instantiate the VNF network element, so that the distance between the instantiated VNF network element and the PNF network element may be reduced, thereby reducing the time delay between the VNF network element and the PNF network element, and improving the system efficiency.

In one possible design, N is greater than 1, the attribute information includes vendor information and priority information; the priority information is used for indicating the supplier information associated with the supplier information; the NFVO instantiates at least one virtual network function VNF network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, including: the NFVO is a VNF network element instantiated by the PNF network element with the same provider information among the N PNF network elements, and the provider information of the VNF network element is the same as the PNF network element with the same provider information, or the provider information indicated by the priority information of the PNF network element with the same provider information is the same as the provider information of the VNF network element with the same provider information.

In the method, when the NFVO is in response to a scenario of mixed deployment of multi-vendor PNF network elements, the VNF network element instantiation process can be arranged and decided according to the provider of the PNF network element and the priority information, and a VNF network element of the same provider as the PNF network element is instantiated for the PNF network element as much as possible, so that system compatibility is improved, and system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, the method further includes: for K PNF network elements with the same provider information among the N PNF network elements, if a second VNF network element exists in the at least one VNF network element, the NFVO establishes service connections between all PNF network elements of the K PNF network elements and the second VNF network element; the provider information of the second VNF network element is the same as the provider information of the K PNF network elements; k is an integer greater than 0 and less than or equal to N; or, if the second VNF network element does not exist in the at least one VNF network element, the NFVO establishes service connection between all PNF network elements in the K PNF network elements and a third VNF network element in the at least one VNF network element; the vendor information of the third VNF network element is the same as the vendor information indicated by the priority information of the K PNF network elements.

In the method, when the NFVO deals with a scene of mixed deployment of PNF network elements of multiple manufacturers, the PNF network elements and the VNF network elements of the same suppliers can establish service connection as much as possible according to the suppliers and the priority information of the PNF network elements, so that the system compatibility is improved, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, N is greater than 1, and the attribute information includes access format information; the NFVO instantiates at least one virtual network function VNF network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, including: and the NFVO instantiates a VNF network element for the PNF network elements with the same access system information in the N PNF network elements according to the access system information.

In the method, when the NFVO deals with a scene of mixed deployment of the multiple access systems PNFs, the access system information of the corresponding PNFs can be referred to, the VNF instantiation process is arranged and decided, and all the PNFs can establish service connection with the VNFs of the same access system, so that the system compatibility is improved, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, the method further includes: the NFVO receives provider information and access system information of a first PNF network element from a first network element; the first PNF network element is a PNF network element which needs to establish service connection with a VNF network element in a first network service NS; the NFVO determines that an access system type supporting the access system information indication of the first PNF exists in the first NS, and the provider information is the same as that of the first PNF, and the load rate is smaller than a fourth VNF network element of a preset load rate; and the NFVO establishes service connection between the first PNF network element and the fourth VNF network element.

In one possible design, the method further includes: the NFVO receives provider information and access system information of a first PNF network element from a first network element; the NFVO determines that no VNF network element supporting the access system type indicated by the access system information of the first PNF exists in the first NS, or no VNF network element with provider information identical to the provider information of the first PNF exists, or no VNF network element with a load rate smaller than a preset load rate exists; the NFVO instantiates a fifth VNF network element in the first NS; and the NFVO establishes service connection between the first PNF network element and the fifth VNF network element.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, where the communication device has a function of implementing NFVO in the above method. The functions can be realized by hardware, and the functions can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-described functions. In one possible design, the communication device includes a processor and a transceiver in its structure, and the processor is configured to process the communication device to perform the corresponding functions of the above method. The transceiver is used for realizing the communication between the communication device and the first network element. The communication device may also include a memory, coupled to the processor, that retains program instructions and data necessary for the communication device.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, where the communication device has a function of implementing NFVO in the foregoing method. The communication device may include corresponding functional modules, for example, a processing module, a sending module, a receiving module, and the like, which are respectively used for implementing the steps in the above method.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an instantiation method, including: a first network element receives condition information from a network function virtualization orchestrator NFVO; the first network element determines attribute information of N Physical Network Function (PNF) network elements meeting the condition information description, and sends the attribute information of the N PNF network elements to the NFVO, wherein the attribute information of the PNF network elements is used for instantiating at least one Virtual Network Function (VNF) network element, and N is an integer greater than 0.

By the method, the first network element sends the attribute information of the PNF network elements meeting the condition information, so that the NFVO instantiates the VNF network elements according to the attribute information of the PNF network elements, the instantiation process of the VNF network elements is optimized, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, the first network element is an element management system EMS network element; the method further comprises the following steps: the first network element receives attribute information of a PNF network element from the PNF network element.

In one possible design, the first network element is a physical network function manager, PNFM, network element; the method further comprises the following steps: and the first network element receives at least one attribute message sent by the EMS network element.

In one possible design, before the first network element receives the at least one attribute information sent by the EMS network element, the method further includes: and the first network element sends a resource information request message to the EMS network element, wherein the resource information request message is used for requesting the attribute information of the PNF network element.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, where the communication apparatus has a function of implementing the first network element in the foregoing method. The functions can be realized by hardware, and the functions can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-described functions. In one possible design, the communication device includes a processor and a transceiver in its structure, and the processor is configured to process the communication device to perform the corresponding functions of the above method. The transceiver is used for realizing communication between the communication device and the NFVO. The communication device may also include a memory, coupled to the processor, that retains program instructions and data necessary for the communication device.

In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, where the communication apparatus has a function of implementing the first network element in the foregoing method. The communication device may include corresponding functional modules, for example, a processing module, a sending module, a receiving module, and the like, which are respectively used for implementing the steps in the above method.

Embodiments of the present application further provide a communication device, including a processor, coupled to a memory, for reading and executing instructions in the memory to implement the method in any one of the possible designs as described above.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a readable storage medium comprising a program or instructions that, when executed, cause a communication device to perform the method of any of the above possible designs.

Embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program product, which includes computer readable instructions, when read and executed by a communication device, causes the communication device to perform the method of any one of the above possible designs.

The embodiment of the present application further provides a chip, where the chip is connected to a memory, and is configured to read and execute a software program stored in the memory, so as to implement the method in any one of the above possible designs.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a diagram of a MANO architecture suitable for use in embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of a MANO architecture suitable for use in embodiments of the present application;

fig. 3 is a schematic flowchart of an instantiation method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 4 is a schematic flowchart of instantiating a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a schematic flowchart of instantiating a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a schematic flowchart of instantiating a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a schematic flowchart of instantiating a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a schematic flowchart of instantiating a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a schematic flowchart of instantiating a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a schematic flowchart illustrating an instantiation process of a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is a schematic flowchart of instantiating a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 12 is a schematic flowchart of instantiating a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 13 is a schematic flowchart of instantiating a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 14 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings attached hereto. In the description of the present application, "/" indicates an OR meaning, for example, A/B may indicate A or B; "plurality" in this application means two or more; in this application "at least one" means one or more than one.

The embodiment of the application can be applied to various mobile communication systems, such as: a New Radio (NR) system, a global system for mobile communication (GSM) system, a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) system, a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) system, a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, an advanced long term evolution (LTE-a) system, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), an evolved Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, a future communication system, and other communication systems, and is not limited herein.

The embodiment of the application is suitable for the MANO architecture established by the NFV standard, and the MANO architecture can be seen in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2.

In the architecture shown in fig. 1, an Operation Support System (OSS)/service support system (BSS) is an integrated and information resource sharing support system for a telecommunications carrier, and is mainly composed of parts such as network management, system management, charging, business, accounting, and customer service, and the systems are organically integrated together through a unified information bus.

Network Function Virtualization Orchestrators (NFVOs) orchestrate the entire Network Service (NS) in the MANO architecture. In the framework of fig. 1, the function of the NFVO is enhanced, and the enhanced NFVO supports querying a Physical Network Function Manager (PNFM) for PNF information of a PNF network element, and supports making an NS arrangement decision with reference to the PNF information.

A Virtual Network Function Manager (VNFM) manages each VNF network element instance according to an orchestration instruction issued by the NFVO in the MANO architecture.

And VIM, performing management operation on the virtual resources corresponding to each VNF instance according to the scheduling instruction issued by the NFVO in the MANO architecture.

A Network Function Virtualization Infrastructure (NFVI) for providing virtual resources to instantiate VNF network elements, and the like.

The PNFM, which is a newly added functional module in the embodiment of the present application, has a main function of collecting attribute information of the PNF network element, responding to the query request of the NFVO, screening a suitable PNF network element according to the query request of the NFVO, and uploading corresponding attribute information.

An Element Management System (EMS) element is a system that manages one or more telecommunication network elements of a specific type and is responsible for managing a PNF element and a VNF element.

In contrast to FIG. 1, embodiments of the present application may not include a PNFM in the MANO architecture shown in FIG. 2. In fig. 2, the EMS network element collects attribute information of the PNF network element, responds to the query request of the NFVO, and screens a suitable PNF network element and uploads corresponding attribute information according to the query request of the NFVO, and other network elements may refer to the description in fig. 1, which is not described herein again.

The network architecture and the service scenario described in the embodiment of the present application are for more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application, and do not form a limitation on the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application, and as a person of ordinary skill in the art knows that along with the evolution of the network architecture and the appearance of a new service scenario, the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application is also applicable to similar technical problems.

Referring to fig. 3, a schematic flowchart of an instantiation method provided in the embodiment of the present application is shown. The method comprises the following steps:

step 301: the NFVO sends the condition information to the first network element.

The condition information is used for describing preset screening conditions.

Step 302: the first network element receives the condition information from the NFVO.

Step 303: and the first network element determines the attribute information of the N physical network function PNF network elements meeting the condition information description, and sends the attribute information of the N PNF network elements to the NFVO.

Wherein the attribute information of the PNF network element is used to instantiate at least one virtual network function VNF network element, N being an integer greater than 0. N is an integer greater than 0.

Step 304: and the NFVO receives the attribute information of the N PNF network elements described by the condition information from the first network element.

Step 305: and the NFVO instantiates at least one VNF network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

By the method, before the NFVO instantiates the VNF network element, the attribute information of the PNF network element meeting the screening condition is obtained through the condition information, so that the VNF network element is instantiated according to the attribute information of the PNF network element, the instantiation of the VNF network element is optimized, and the system efficiency is improved.

Before step 301, the first network element needs to acquire attribute information of the PNF network element. In this embodiment of the present application, the first network element may be a PNFM, and at this time, the first network element may collect the attribute information of the PNF network element through the EMS network element, and report the collected attribute information to the NFVO. The first network element may also be implemented by an EMS network element, and at this time, the EMS network element may collect the attribute information of the PNF network element and report the collected attribute information to the NFVO. Further optionally, the PNFM may be a stand-alone device, or may be an enhanced function module of the EMS, that is, integrated on the EMS.

It should be noted that, in the embodiment of the present application, the attribute information of the PNF network element includes, but is not limited to, the contents shown in table 1.

TABLE 1

In the embodiment of the present application, the attribute information may be any one of the information in table 1 or a combination of any plurality of information. For example, the attribute information may be geographical location information, access system information, and the like.

It should be noted that table 1 is only an example, and the PNF network element may also have other attribute information, which is not illustrated herein one by one.

For example, when the first network element is a PNFM, the attribute information of the PNF network element may be obtained through the flow shown in fig. 4.

Step 401: and the PNF network element sends a registration request message to the EMS network element.

The registration request message includes attribute information of the PNF network element and the like.

After the PNF network element is powered on and before the PNF network element is accessed to the network, the PNF network element needs to register to the EMS network element, and the PNF network element can initiate registration through a registration request message.

Step 402: the EMS network element sends a registration reply message to the PNF network element.

The registration reply message may carry information such as whether the PNF network element is successfully registered, which is not described herein again.

After acquiring the attribute information of one PNF network element each time, the EMS network element may upload the acquired attribute information to the PNFM, which further includes step 403 and step 404.

Step 403: and the EMS network element sends a resource reporting message to the PNFM, wherein the resource reporting message comprises the attribute information of the PNF network element.

Step 404: the PNFM sends a confirmation message to the EMS network element.

Optionally, after receiving the attribute information of the plurality of PNF network elements, the EMS network element may upload the acquired attribute information of the plurality of PNF network elements to the PNFM in batch, where steps 403 and 404 may be replaced with steps 405a and 406 a.

Step 405 a: the EMS network element sends a resource reporting message to the PNFM, wherein the resource reporting message comprises at least one attribute message of the PNF.

Step 406 a: the PNFM sends a confirmation message to the EMS network element.

Optionally, the EMS network element may not actively report the attribute information of the PNF network element, but after receiving the resource information request message, batch upload the acquired attribute information of the plurality of PNF network elements to the PNFM, where steps 403 and 404 may be replaced with steps 405b and 406 b.

Step 405 b: and the PNFM sends a resource information request message to the EMS network element, wherein the resource information request message is used for requesting the attribute information of the PNF network element.

Step 406 b: the EMS network element sends a resource reporting message to the PNFM, wherein the resource reporting message comprises at least one attribute message of the PNF.

For example, when the first network element is implemented by an EMS network element, the attribute information of the PNF network element may be obtained through the process shown in fig. 5.

Step 501: and the PNF network element sends a registration request message to the EMS network element.

Step 502: the EMS network element sends a registration reply message to the PNF network element.

For example, the registration reply message may carry information about whether the PNF network element is successfully registered, and the like, which is not described herein again.

Step 503: and the PNF network element sends the attribute information of the PNF network element to the EMS network element.

Step 504: the EMS network element sends a confirmation message to the PNF network element.

By the method, the reporting mode of the attribute information of the PNF network element is simplified, the operation and maintenance efficiency of managing the attribute information of the PNF network element is improved, and the operation and maintenance complexity is reduced.

In the flows of fig. 4 and fig. 5, how the first network element obtains the attribute information of the PNF network element is described. It should be noted that the first network element does not report the acquired attribute information of all PNF network elements to the NFVO. The first network element needs to determine which attribute information of the PNF network element to report according to the condition information sent by the NFVO, which will be further described below.

Currently, before instantiating the VNF network element, the OSS/BSS network element may send a request message to the NFVO, where the request message includes information such as an Identifier (ID) of a Network Service Descriptor (NSD). NSD is used to describe relevant information for the entire NS. The NFVO determines a corresponding NSD according to the identifier of the NSD, where the NSD includes a Virtual Network Function Descriptor (VNFD) and a Physical Network Function Descriptor (PNFD). The VNFD is used to describe relevant information of the VNF network element included in the NS, for example, virtual resource requirements and deployment requirements of VNF network element deployment are included. The virtual resource requirements comprise the virtual computing resources needed by the VNF network elements, and the deployment requirements comprise the requirements of the geographical positions of the instantiated VNF network elements; the PNFD is used to describe the relevant information of the PNF network element included in the NS, including the functional description and the geographical location information description of the PNF.

In the prior art, when the NFVO instantiates the VNF network element, only the VNFD is considered, which may result in incomplete compatibility between the instantiated VNF network element and the PNF network element, and thus cause the VNF network element or a part of functions of the PNF network element to fail to operate. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, the NFVO may instantiate the VNF network element according to the attribute information of the VNFD and the PNF network element, so as to improve compatibility between the instantiated VNF network element and the PNF network element. In this embodiment of the application, how the NFVO instantiates the VNF network element according to the attribute information of the PNF network element may have a variety of possible scenarios, which will be described below respectively.

In a first possible scenario, there are multiple VIM & NFVI network elements that may be used to instantiate a VNF network element, in which scenario the attribute information may include geographical location information of the PNF network element. Accordingly, the NFVO may instantiate the VNF network element according to the geographical location information of the PNF network element, as described in detail below.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an instantiation of a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application. In the flow shown in fig. 6, the first network element is described as PNFM.

Step 601: the NFVO sends a virtual resource query request message to at least one VIM.

The virtual resource query request message is used to query whether the NFVI network element managed by the VIM can provide the virtual resource that meets the virtual resource requirement and deployment requirement described by the VNFD.

After receiving the virtual resource query request message of the NFVO, the VIM determines whether the virtual resource satisfying the above conditions can be provided according to the virtual resource demand and the deployment requirement described by the VNFD in the virtual resource query request message. When the VIM determines that virtual resources meeting the virtual resource requirements and deployment requirements described by the VNFD can be provided, the VIM may send a virtual resource query reply message to the NFVO, i.e., perform step 602.

Step 602: the VIM sends a virtual resource query reply message to the NFVO.

It should be noted that the VIM that cannot provide the virtual resource that meets the requirement of the NFVO may no longer reply to the virtual resource query request message sent by the NFVO. When the NFVO does not receive the reply from the VIM within the preset time length, the VIM may be considered as unable to provide the virtual resource meeting the NFVO requirement.

The NFVO receives the virtual resource query reply message sent by the VIM, and may determine that the VIM can provide the virtual resource meeting the NFVO requirements. Further, the NFVO may determine information such as geographical location information of the NFVI network element managed by the VIM, the number of virtual resources that can be provided, and how to determine the information specifically, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present application and is not described herein again.

It should be noted that, multiple VIMs may send reply messages to the NFVO, and only one VIM is described herein as an example, and the other VIM reply messages may refer to the description in step 602 and are not described herein again. Further, the NFVO receives the reply message sent by the at least one VIM, so that information such as geographical location information of the at least one NFVI network element can be determined.

Step 603: NFVO sends a physical resource query request message to PNFM; the physical resource query request message includes condition information, and the physical resource query request message is used for requesting attribute information of a PNF network element that satisfies the condition information.

The condition information is used for describing preset screening conditions. In this embodiment of the present application, the preset screening condition described in the condition information may exist in various forms, for example, the preset screening condition may be a condition that describes a required PNF network element in the PNFD, or may be other information. For example, the preset filtering condition described in the condition information may be as shown in table 2.

TABLE 2

Note that before step 603, the PNFM has collected the attribute information of the PNFM accessing it.

Step 604: PNFM sends physical resource inquiry reply message to NFVO; and the physical resource query reply message comprises the attribute information of the N PNF network elements meeting the condition information.

After receiving the physical resource query request message, the PNFM selects a PNF network element meeting the preset screening condition described by the condition information according to the condition information in the physical resource query request message. For example, the preset screening condition described in the condition information is that attribute information of a PNF network element whose geographical location information is in the area a needs to be provided. The PNFM may send attribute information of all PNF network elements whose geographical location information is located within the area a to the NFVO.

For example, the attribute information of the PNF network element received by the NFVO from the PNFM may be as shown in table 3.

TABLE 3

It should be noted that, in this scenario, the attribute information of the PNF network element received by the NFVO includes the geographic location information, and of course, the attribute information may also include other contents, which is not described herein again.

Step 605: and the NFVO instantiates at least one VNF network element according to the geographical location information of the N PNF network elements.

For example, when N is equal to 1, the NFVO may determine the first NFVI network element according to the geographic location information of the at least one NFVI network element and the attribute information. Further, the NFVO may use, as the first NFVI network element, the NFVI network element with the smallest distance between the at least one NFVI network element and the obtained geographic location information of the PNF network element, and instantiate the first VNF network element through the virtual resource provided by the first NFVI network element.

It should be noted that, a specific process of instantiating the first VNF network element is not limited in this embodiment, and specific reference may be made to description in the prior art, which is not described herein again.

For example, when N is greater than 1, for any NFVI network element of the at least one NFVI network element, the NFVO may determine, according to the geographic location information of the NFVI network element and the geographic location information of the N PNF network elements, an average distance between the NFVI network element and the N PNF network elements. Further, the NFVO may use, as the second NFVI network element, an NFVI network element having a smallest average distance to the N PNF network elements among the at least one NFVI network element, so that the NFVO may instantiate the first VNF network element through the virtual resource provided by the second NFVI network element.

After the NFVO completes the VNF instantiation, the NFVO may initiate a configuration flow of the VNF network element and the PNF network element, and establish a service connection between the VNF network element and the PNF network element, where the configuration flow of the VNF network element is consistent with the definition in the current standard, and may include the following steps.

Step 605: the NFVO sends the configuration information to the PNFM.

The configuration information includes information such as an IP address of a VNF network element that establishes a service connection with the PNF network element.

Step 606: and the PNFM sends the configuration information to the EMS network element.

For each PNF network element, the EMS network element may send, to the PNF network element, an IP address of a VNF network element that establishes service connection with the PNF network element, and the PNF network element may send, to the VNF network element, service data from the IP address of the VNF network element.

In the flow shown in fig. 6, when the NFVO is in a scenario of multi-VIM & NFVI network element selection, the NFVO may obtain geographic location information of the PNF network element, and select, from the multiple NFVI network elements, an NFVI network element closer to the PNF network element to instantiate the VNF network element, so that a distance between the instantiated VNF network element and the PNF network element may be reduced, thereby reducing a time delay between the VNF network element and the PNF network element, and improving system efficiency.

In this embodiment of the application, the first network element may also be implemented by an EMS, and at this time, the process of instantiating the VNF network element may also be shown in fig. 7.

Step 701: the NFVO sends a virtual resource query request message to at least one VIM.

Step 702: the VIM sends a virtual resource query reply message to the NFVO.

It should be noted that the VIM that cannot provide the virtual resource that meets the requirement of the NFVO may no longer reply to the virtual resource query request message sent by the NFVO.

The NFVO receives the virtual resource query reply message sent by the VIM, and may determine that the VIM can provide the virtual resource meeting the NFVO requirements.

It should be noted that, when receiving the virtual resource query reply message sent by at least one VIM, the NFVO may determine that the reply message sent by at least one VIM is received, so as to determine information such as geographic location information of at least one NFVI network element, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present application.

Step 703: the NFVO sends a physical resource query request message to an EMS network element; the physical resource query request message includes condition information, and the physical resource query request message is used for requesting attribute information of a PNF network element that satisfies the condition information. The condition information may refer to the description in step 603, and is not described herein again.

It should be noted that in this process, the NFVO may send a physical resource query request message to multiple EMS network elements.

Step 704: the EMS network element sends a physical resource query reply message to the NFVO; and the physical resource inquiry reply message comprises the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

The attribute information of the PNF network element may include geographical location information and the like, which may specifically refer to the description in step 604 and is not described herein again.

Step 705: and the NFVO instantiates at least one VNF network element according to the geographical location information of the N PNF network elements.

In this scenario, the NFVO may determine, according to the geographic location information of the at least one NFVI network element and the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, the NFVI network element that provides virtual resources for instantiating the VNF network element, which may specifically refer to the description in step 605, and is not described herein again.

After the NFVO completes the VNF instantiation, initiating a configuration flow of a VNF network element and a PNF network element, and establishing a service connection between the VNF network element and the PNF network element, where the configuration flow of the VNF network element is consistent with the definition in the current standard, which may include the following steps.

Step 706: and the NFVO sends the configuration information to the EMS network element.

The configuration information includes information such as an IP address of a VNF network element that establishes a service connection with the PNF network element. For each PNF network element, the EMS network element may send, to the PNF network element, an IP address of a VNF network element that establishes service connection with the PNF network element, and the PNF network element may send, to the VNF network element, service data from the IP address of the VNF network element.

It should be noted that the NFVO may send the configuration information to multiple EMS network elements, which is not limited in this embodiment of the application.

In the flow shown in fig. 7, when the NFVO is in a scenario of multi-VIM & NFVI network element selection, the NFVO may obtain geographic location information of the PNF network element, and select, from the multiple NFVI network elements, an NFVI network element closer to the PNF network element to instantiate the VNF network element, so that a distance between the instantiated VNF network element and the PNF network element may be reduced, thereby reducing a time delay between the VNF network element and the PNF network element, and improving system efficiency.

In a second possible scenario, there may be multiple providers of the PNF network element, and when there are multiple PNF network elements of different providers for mixed deployment, when instantiating the VNF network element, the provider information of the PNF network element may also be considered, so as to ensure that each PNF network element can establish service connection with the most suitable VNF network element as far as possible, and therefore in this scenario, the attribute information may include the provider information of the PNF network element and the provider information of a provider matching the provider of the PNF network element, which is described in detail below.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating an instantiation of a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application. In the flow shown in fig. 8, the first network element is described as PNFM.

Step 801: the NFVO sends a virtual resource query request message to at least one VIM.

Step 802: the VIM sends a virtual resource query reply message to the NFVO.

It should be noted that the NFVO may receive the virtual resource query reply message sent by the at least one VIM, so as to determine that at least one NFVI network element is capable of providing the virtual resource meeting the virtual resource demand and deployment requirement described by the VNFD.

Step 803: NFVO sends a physical resource query request message to PNFM; the physical resource query request message includes condition information, and the physical resource query request message is used for requesting attribute information of a PNF network element that satisfies the condition information. The condition information may refer to the description in step 603, and is not described herein again.

Step 804: PNFM sends physical resource inquiry reply message to NFVO; and the physical resource inquiry reply message comprises the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

As previously mentioned, in this scenario, the attribute information may include the provider information of the PNF network element as well as the priority information. The provider information is the provider information of the PNF network element, and the priority information is used for indicating the provider information associated with the provider information of the PNF network element.

Step 805: and the NFVO instantiates at least one VNF network element according to the information of the providers of the N PNF network elements and the priority information.

In this scenario, the NFVO may instantiate, by the NFVO, one VNF network element for a PNF network element of the N PNF network elements whose vendor information is the same as the PNF network element of the PNF network element whose vendor information is the same as the vendor information, or the vendor information indicated by the priority information of the PNF network element whose vendor information is the same as the vendor information of the VNF network element.

For example, in the case that the virtual resources are sufficient, the NFVO may instantiate one VNF network element for PNF network elements having the same vendor information, thereby instantiating at least one VNF network element. At this time, the NFVO preferentially instantiates a VNF network element of provider information that is specifically the same as the PNF network element; and if the VNF network element of the provider information is not specifically the same as the PNF network element, preferentially instantiating the VNF network element of the provider information indicated by the priority information of the PNF network element.

For example, of the N PNF network elements, 3 PNF network elements have the same vendor information: HW, the provider information indicated by the priority information is ER. When the NFVO instantiates the VNF network element for the 3 PNF network elements, the VNF network element whose provider information is HW is preferentially instantiated. If no VNF network element with provider information of HW exists, the VNF network element with provider information of ER is preferentially instantiated.

For example, in the case of insufficient virtual resources, the PNF network elements with the same vendor information may be taken as one set, and the NFVO may instantiate the VNF network elements according to the number of PNF network elements included in each set, preferably as the PNF network elements in the set with the largest number. Similarly, the NFVO preferentially instantiates the VNF network element of the provider information specifically the same as the PNF network element; and if the VNF network element of the provider information is not specifically the same as the PNF network element, preferentially instantiating the VNF network element of the provider information indicated by the priority information of the PNF network element.

For example, N PNF network elements are provided by 3 providers, and may be regarded as 3 sets, where set 1 includes 5 PNF network elements, set 2 includes 3 PNF network elements, and set 3 includes 2 PNF network elements. The NFVO preferentially instantiates VNF network elements for PNF network elements in set 1. And when the virtual resource exists, instantiating the VNF network element for the PNF network element in the set 2. If there are no virtual resources that can instantiate a VNF network element at this point, the VNF network element is no longer instantiated for the PNF network elements in set 3.

After the NFVO instantiates at least one VNF network element, the service connection between the N PNF network elements and the at least one VNF network element may be established.

For example, for K PNF network elements with the same provider information in the N PNF network elements, when a second VNF network element exists in the at least one VNF network element, the NFVO establishes service connections between all PNF network elements in the K PNF network elements and the second VNF network element; the provider information of the second VNF network element is the same as the provider information of the K PNF network elements; k is an integer greater than 0 and less than or equal to N.

Further, when the second VNF network element does not exist in the at least one VNF network element, the NFVO establishes traffic connection between all PNF network elements in the K PNF network elements and a third VNF network element in the at least one VNF network element; the vendor information of the third VNF network element is the same as the vendor information indicated by the priority information of the K PNF network elements.

Step 806: the NFVO sends the configuration information to the PNFM.

Step 807: and the PNFM sends the configuration information to the EMS network element.

The EMS network element may send an IP address of the VNF network element that establishes service connection with the PNF network element to the PNF network element, and the PNF network element may send service data to the VNF network element from the IP address of the VNF network element.

In the process shown in fig. 8, when the NFVO is dealing with a scenario of mixed deployment of PNF network elements of multiple vendors, the VNF network element instantiation process may be arranged and decided according to the provider of the PNF network element and the priority information, so that the PNF network element and the VNF network element of the same provider establish service connection as much as possible, thereby improving system compatibility and system efficiency.

The first network element may also be implemented by an EMS network element, as shown in fig. 9, which is a schematic diagram illustrating an instantiation of a VNF network element provided in the embodiment of the present application. In the flow shown in fig. 9, the first network element is taken as an EMS network element for example.

Step 901: the NFVO sends a virtual resource query request message to at least one VIM.

Step 902: the VIM sends a virtual resource query reply message to the NFVO.

Step 903: the NFVO sends a physical resource query request message to an EMS network element; the physical resource query request message includes condition information, and the physical resource query request message is used for requesting attribute information of a PNF network element that satisfies the condition information. The condition information may refer to the description in step 603, and is not described herein again.

Step 904: the EMS network element sends a physical resource query reply message to the NFVO; and the physical resource inquiry reply message comprises the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

As previously mentioned, in this scenario, the attribute information may include the provider information of the PNF network element and the priority information. Accordingly, step 905: and the NFVO instantiates at least one VNF network element according to the information of the providers of the N PNF network elements and the priority information.

The details of this step can refer to the description in step 805, and are not described herein again.

Step 906: and the NFVO sends the configuration information to the EMS network element.

In the process shown in fig. 9, when the NFVO is dealing with a scenario of mixed deployment of PNF network elements of multiple vendors, the VNF network element instantiation process may be arranged and decided according to the provider of the PNF network element and the priority information, so that the PNF network element and the VNF network element of the same provider establish service connection as much as possible, thereby improving system compatibility and system efficiency.

In a third possible scenario, the access system types supported by the PNF network element may be different, and when there is a mixed deployment of a plurality of PNF network elements of different access system types, when the VNF network element is instantiated, the access system type of the PNF network element may also be considered, so that it is ensured that each PNF network element can establish service connection with the VNF network element supporting the same access system type, and therefore in this scenario, the attribute information may include access system information of the PNF network element, which is described in detail below.

Fig. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating an instantiation of a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application. In the flow shown in fig. 10, the first network element is described as PNFM.

Step 1001: the NFVO sends a virtual resource query request message to at least one VIM.

The virtual resource query request message is used to query whether the NFVI network element managed by the VIM can provide the virtual resource meeting the virtual resource demand and deployment requirement described by the NFVD.

Step 1002: the VIM sends a virtual resource query reply message to the NFVO.

Step 1003: NFVO sends a physical resource query request message to PNFM; the physical resource query request message includes condition information, and the physical resource query request message is used for requesting attribute information of a PNF network element that satisfies the condition information. The condition information may refer to the description in step 603, and is not described herein again.

Step 1004: PNFM sends physical resource inquiry reply message to NFVO; and the physical resource inquiry reply message comprises the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

In the scenario, the attribute information includes access system information of the PNF network element, and the access system information indicates an access system type supported by the PNF network element. In the embodiment of the present application, the types of access systems include, but are not limited to, NR systems, GSM systems, CDMA systems, WCDMA systems, GPRS systems, LTE-a systems, and other communication systems such as future communication systems, and the like, and are not limited herein.

Step 1005: and the NFVO instantiates at least one VNF network element according to the access system information of the N PNF network elements.

For example, the NFVO may instantiate a VNF network element for the PNF network element with the same access standard information among the N PNF network elements according to the access standard information. For example, for a PNF network element whose access type indicated by the access type information is LTE, the NFVO is that the access indication information of the instantiated VNF network element of the PNF network element is the same, that is, the access type supported by the instantiated VNF network element is LTE.

After the NFVO instantiates at least one VNF, the service connection between the PNF network elements and the VNF network elements supporting the same access standard type may be established in the N PNF network elements and the at least one VNF network element, which may specifically include the following steps.

Step 1006: the NFVO sends the configuration information to the PNFM.

Step 1007: and the PNFM sends the configuration information to the EMS network element.

The first network element may also be implemented by an EMS network element, as shown in fig. 11, which is a schematic diagram illustrating an instantiation of a VNF network element provided in the embodiment of the present application.

Step 1101: the NFVO sends a virtual resource query request message to at least one VIM.

Step 1102: the VIM sends a virtual resource query reply message to the NFVO.

Step 1103: the NFVO sends a physical resource query request message to an EMS network element; the physical resource query request message includes condition information, and the physical resource query request message is used for requesting attribute information of a PNF network element that satisfies the condition information. The condition information may refer to the description in step 603, and is not described herein again.

Step 1104: the EMS network element sends a physical resource query reply message to the NFVO; and the physical resource inquiry reply message comprises the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

In this scenario, the attribute information includes access standard information of the PNF network element, which may specifically refer to the description in step 1004 and is not described herein again.

Step 1105: and the NFVO instantiates at least one VNF network element according to the access system information of the N PNF network elements.

Specifically, reference may be made to the description in step 1005, which is not described herein again.

After the VNF instantiation is completed, the NFVO initiates a configuration flow of the VNF network element and the PNF network element, establishes a service connection between the VNF network element and the PNF network element, and the configuration flow of the VNF network element is consistent with the definition in the current standard, which may include the following steps.

Step 1106: and the NFVO sends the configuration information to the EMS network element.

In the flows shown in fig. 10 and fig. 11, when the NFVO is dealing with a scenario of mixed deployment of multiple access systems PNF, the VNF instantiation process may be arranged and decided by referring to access system information of a corresponding PNF, so as to ensure that all PNFs can establish service connection with VNFs of the same access system, thereby improving system compatibility and system efficiency.

In this embodiment, the NS may include a plurality of PNF network elements, and if a new PNF network element needs to be added, the NFVO may query attribute information of the PNF network element, and according to the attribute information of the PNF network element, the NFVO determines whether the newly added PNF network element can establish a service connection with an existing VNF network element, which will be described in detail below.

Fig. 12 is a schematic diagram illustrating an instantiation of a VNF network element according to an embodiment of the present application. In the flow shown in fig. 12, the first network element is described as PNFM. In the flow shown in fig. 12, the first PNF network element is a PNF network element that needs to establish a service connection with the VNF network element in the first NS.

Step 1201: and NS access request message sent by PNFM to NFVO.

The NS access request message is used for requesting the first PNF network element to be accessed into the first NS; the connection establishment request message includes at least one of provider information and access system information of the first PNF network element.

Before the PNFM sends the NS access request message, the attribute information of the first PNF network element may be acquired by the EMS network element, and this process may refer to the flow illustrated in fig. 4, which is not described herein again.

Step 1202: the NFVO sends a load rate query request message to at least one VIM in the NS.

The load rate query request message is used for querying the load rate of the VNF network element managed by the VIM.

It should be noted that the load rate may refer to a bandwidth usage rate, a storage resource usage rate, and the like of the VNF network element, which is not limited in this embodiment of the application.

Step 1203: and the NFVO receives the load rate query reply message sent by the at least one VIM.

The load rate query reply message includes a load rate of the VNF network element managed by the VIM.

Step 1204: the NFVO determines whether a VNF network element capable of establishing a service connection with the first PNF network element exists in the first NS, if so, step 1206 is executed, otherwise, step 1205 is executed.

For example, when the NFVO determines that a fourth VNF network element exists in the first NS, where the fourth VNF network element is an access standard type that supports the access standard information indication of the first PNF, and the provider information is the same as the provider information of the first PNF, and the load rate is smaller than a preset load rate, it is determined that the fourth VNF network element may establish service connection with the first PNF network element. The NFVO may thereby establish a traffic connection between the first PNF network element and the fourth VNF network element.

Correspondingly, when the NFVO determines that, in the first NS, there is no VNF network element supporting the access type indicated by the access type information of the first PNF, or there is no VNF network element whose provider information is the same as the provider information of the first PNF, or there is no VNF network element whose load rate is smaller than a preset load rate, it is determined that there is no VNF network element that can establish service connection with the first PNF network element. The NFVO may instantiate a fifth VNF network element in the first NS at this time.

It should be noted that the fifth VNF network element supports the access scheme type indicated by the access scheme information of the first PNF, and the provider information is the same as the provider information of the first PNF.

Step 1205: the NFVO instantiates a fifth VNF network element in the first NS.

And the provider of the fifth VNF network element is the same as the provider of the first PNF, and the access system type indicated by the access system information of the first PNF is supported.

Step 1206: the NFVO sends the configuration information to the PNFM.

The configuration information includes information such as an IP address of a VNF network element that establishes a service connection with the first PNF network element.

Step 1207: and the PNFM sends the configuration information to the EMS network element.

The EMS network element may send, to the first PNF network element, an IP address of a VNF network element that establishes a service connection with the first PNF network element, and the first PNF network element may send, to the VNF network element, service data from the IP address of the VNF network element.

The first network element may also be implemented by an EMS network element, as shown in fig. 13, which is a schematic diagram illustrating an instantiation of a VNF network element provided in the embodiment of the present application.

Step 1301: and the EMS network element sends an NS access request message to the NFVO.

Before the EMS network element sends the NS access request message, the attribute information of the first PNF network element may be acquired, and this process may refer to the flow illustrated in fig. 5, which is not described herein again.

Step 1302: the NFVO sends a load rate query request message to at least one VIM in the NS.

Step 1303: and the NFVO receives the load rate query reply message sent by the at least one VIM.

Step 1304: the NFVO determines whether a VNF network element capable of establishing a service connection with the first PNF network element exists in the first NS, if so, performs step 1306, otherwise, performs step 1305.

Step 1305: the NFVO instantiates a fifth VNF network element in the first NS.

Step 1306: and the NFVO sends the configuration information to the EMS network element.

By the scheme, the function of the NFVO is enhanced, and the problem of how to manage the PNF network element and the VNF network element in a cooperative mode in the station expanding process is solved.

In the embodiments provided in the present application, the schemes of the communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application are introduced from the perspective of each network element itself and from the perspective of interaction between each network element. It will be appreciated that the respective network elements and devices, such as the above-described radio access network device, access and mobility management function network element, user equipment, data management function network element and network slice selection function network element, for implementing the above-described functions, comprise corresponding hardware structures and/or software modules for performing the respective functions. Those of skill in the art would readily appreciate that the various illustrative elements and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as hardware or combinations of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is performed as hardware or computer software drives hardware depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the solution. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present application.

For example, when the network element implements the corresponding functions through software modules. The communication device 1400 may comprise a receiving module 1401, a processing module 1402 and a transmitting module 1403, as shown in fig. 14 for specific reference. The communication device 1400 may execute the operations of the NFVO in the flow described above.

A sending module 1403, configured to send the condition information to the first network element;

a receiving module 1401, configured to receive attribute information of N PNF network elements described in the condition information from the first network element, where N is an integer greater than 0;

a processing module 1402, configured to instantiate at least one virtual network function VNF network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the application, before the VNF network element is instantiated, the attribute information of the PNF network element meeting the condition information description is obtained, so that the VNF network element is instantiated according to the attribute information of the PNF network element, the instantiation of the VNF network element is optimized, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, N is equal to 1, and the attribute information includes geographic location information; the processing module 1402 is specifically configured to:

determining a first Network Function Virtualization (NFVI) network element according to the geographic position information and the attribute information of at least one NFVI network element, wherein the distance between the first NFVI network element and the PNF network element is minimum;

instantiating a first VNF network element through a virtual resource provided by the first NFVI network element.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the application, the geographical position information of the PNF network element can be acquired, and the NFVI network element closer to the PNF network element is selected from the at least one NFVI network element to instantiate the VNF network element, so that the distance between the instantiated VNF network element and the PNF network element can be reduced, the time delay between the VNF network element and the PNF network element is reduced, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, N is greater than 1, and the attribute information includes geographic location information; the processing module 1402 is specifically configured to:

determining a second NFVI network element according to the geographic position information of at least one NFVI network element and the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, wherein the average distance between the second NFVI network element and the N PNF network elements is the minimum;

instantiating the first VNF network element through the virtual resource provided by the second NFVI network element.

In one possible design, the processing module 1402 is specifically configured to:

for any NFVI network element in the at least one NFVI network element, determining an average distance between the NFVI network element and the N PNF network elements according to the geographic position information of the NFVI network element and the geographic position information of the N PNF network elements;

and taking the NFVI network element with the minimum average distance to the N PNF network elements among the at least one NFVI network element as the second NFVI network element.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the application, when at least one NFVI network element is responded, the geographical location information of the PNF network element can be acquired, and the NFVI network element closer to the PNF network element is selected from the at least one NFVI network element to instantiate the VNF network element, so that the distance between the instantiated VNF network element and the PNF network element can be reduced, the time delay between the VNF network element and the PNF network element is reduced, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, N is greater than 1, the attribute information includes vendor information and priority information; the priority information is used for indicating the supplier information associated with the supplier information; the processing module 1402 is specifically configured to:

and instantiating a VNF network element for the PNF network element with the same provider information among the N PNF network elements, wherein the provider information of the VNF network element is the same as the PNF network element with the same provider information, or the provider information indicated by the priority information of the PNF network element with the same provider information is the same as the provider information of the VNF network element with the same provider information.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the application, when a scene of mixed deployment of PNF network elements of multiple manufacturers is dealt with, the instantiation process of the VNF network element can be arranged and decided according to the provider of the PNF network element and the priority information, and the VNF network element of the provider same as the PNF network element is instantiated for the PNF network element as much as possible, so that the system compatibility is improved, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, the processing module 1402 is further configured to:

for K PNF network elements with the same provider information among the N PNF network elements, if a second VNF network element exists in the at least one VNF network element, establishing service connection between all PNF network elements of the K PNF network elements and the second VNF network element; the provider information of the second VNF network element is the same as the provider information of the K PNF network elements; k is an integer greater than 0 and less than or equal to N; or, if the second VNF network element does not exist in the at least one VNF network element, establishing a service connection between all PNF network elements of the K PNF network elements and a third VNF network element of the at least one VNF network element; the vendor information of the third VNF network element is the same as the vendor information indicated by the priority information of the K PNF network elements.

In the method, when a scene of mixed deployment of the PNF network elements of multiple manufacturers is dealt with, the PNF network elements and the VNF network elements of the same suppliers can establish service connection as much as possible according to the suppliers and the priority information of the PNF network elements, so that the system compatibility is improved, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, N is greater than 1, and the attribute information includes access format information; the processing module 1402 is specifically configured to:

and instantiating a VNF network element for the PNF network elements with the same access standard information in the N PNF network elements according to the access standard information.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the application, when a scene of mixed deployment of multi-access-mode PNF network elements is dealt with, the access mode information of the corresponding PNF network elements can be referred to, the VNF instantiation process is arranged and decided, and all the PNF network elements can establish service connection with the VNF network elements of the same access mode, so that the system compatibility is improved, and the system efficiency is improved.

In one possible design, the receiving module 1401 is further configured to: receiving provider information and access system information of a first PNF network element from a first network element; the first PNF network element is a PNF network element which needs to establish service connection with a VNF network element in a first network service NS;

the processing module 1402 is further configured to determine that, in the first NS, there is an access standard type indicated by the access standard information supporting the first PNF, and the provider information is the same as the provider information of the first PNF, and the load rate is smaller than a preset load rate; and establishing service connection between the first PNF network element and the fourth VNF network element.

In one possible design, the receiving module 1401 is further configured to: receiving provider information and access system information of a first PNF network element from a first network element;

the processing module 1402 is further configured to determine that, in the first NS, there is no VNF network element of an access type that supports the access type indicated by the access type information of the first PNF, or there is no VNF network element whose provider information is the same as the provider information of the first PNF, or there is no VNF network element whose load rate is smaller than a preset load rate; instantiating a fifth VNF network element in the first NS; and establishing service connection between the first PNF network element and the fifth VNF network element.

In this embodiment, in addition, the receiving module 1401, the processing module 1402, and the sending module 1403 in the communication device 1400 may also implement other operations or functions of the NFVO in the above method, which is not described herein again.

In another embodiment, the communication apparatus shown in fig. 14 may be further configured to perform the operations of the first network element in fig. 3. For example:

a receiving module 1401, configured to receive condition information from a network function virtualization orchestrator NFVO;

a processing module 1402, configured to determine attribute information of N physical network functions PNF network elements that meet the condition information description, where the attribute information of the PNF network element is used to instantiate at least one virtual network function VNF network element, and N is an integer greater than 0;

a sending module 1403, configured to send the attribute information of the N PNF network elements to the NFVO.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the application, by sending the attribute information of the PNF network elements meeting the condition information, the NFVO instantiates the VNF network elements according to the attribute information of the PNF network elements, thereby optimizing the instantiation process of the VNF network elements and improving the system efficiency.

In one possible design, the apparatus is an element management system, EMS, element; the receiving module 1401 is further configured to:

and receiving the attribute information of the PNF network element from the PNF network element.

In one possible design, the apparatus is a physical network function manager, PNFM, network element; the receiving module 1401 is further configured to: and receiving at least one attribute message sent by the EMS network element.

In one possible design, the sending module 1403 is further configured to:

and sending a resource information request message to the EMS network element, wherein the resource information request message is used for requesting the attribute information of the PNF network element.

Fig. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication device shown in fig. 15 may be a hardware circuit implementation of the communication device shown in fig. 14. The communication device can be suitable for realizing the function of the NFVO in the method. For ease of illustration, fig. 15 shows only the main components of the communication apparatus 1500. The communication device 1500 includes a processor 1501, a memory 1502, and a transceiver 1503. The memory 1502 is used for coupling with the processor 1501 and stores computer programs necessary for the communication apparatus 1500.

For example, in one embodiment, processor 1501 is configured to other operations or functions of NFVO. The transceiver 1503 is used for enabling communication between the communication device and a first network element or EMS network element.

In another embodiment, the processor 1501 is configured as other operations or functions of the first network element. The transceiver 1503 is used for enabling communication between the communication device and the NFVO or EMS network element.

One or more of the above modules or units may be implemented in software, hardware or a combination of both. When any of the above modules or units are implemented in software, which is present as computer program instructions and stored in a memory, a processor may be used to execute the program instructions and implement the above method flows. The processor may include, but is not limited to, at least one of: various computing devices that run software, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a Microcontroller (MCU), or an artificial intelligence processor, may each include one or more cores for executing software instructions to perform operations or processing. The processor may be built in an SoC (system on chip) or an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), or may be a separate semiconductor chip. The processor may further include a necessary hardware accelerator such as a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a PLD (programmable logic device), or a logic circuit for implementing a dedicated logic operation, in addition to a core for executing software instructions to perform an operation or a process.

When the above modules or units are implemented in hardware, the hardware may be any one or any combination of a CPU, a microprocessor, a DSP, an MCU, an artificial intelligence processor, an ASIC, an SoC, an FPGA, a PLD, a dedicated digital circuit, a hardware accelerator, or a discrete device that is not integrated, which may run necessary software or is independent of software to perform the above method flows.

When the above modules or units are implemented using software, they 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 loaded and executed on a computer, cause the processes or functions described in accordance with the embodiments of the invention to occur, in whole or in part. The computer may be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a network of computers, or other programmable device. 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 transmitted from one computer, server, or data center to another computer, server, or data center by wire (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optics, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)) or wirelessly (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device, such as a server, a data center, etc., that incorporates one or more of the available media. The usable medium may be a magnetic medium (e.g., floppy Disk, hard Disk, tape), optical medium, or semiconductor medium (e.g., Solid State Disk, SSD)), among others.

The above-mentioned embodiments, objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention are further described in detail, it should be understood that the above-mentioned embodiments are only exemplary embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, and any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements and the like made on the basis of the technical solutions of the present invention should be included in the scope of the present invention.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the present application without departing from the scope of the application. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is intended to include such modifications and variations as well.

Claims

1. An instantiation method, comprising:

the network function virtualization orchestrator NFVO sends condition information to a first network element;

the NFVO receives attribute information of N PNF network elements described by the condition information from the first network element, wherein N is an integer greater than 0;

and the NFVO instantiates at least one Virtual Network Function (VNF) network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein N is equal to 1, and wherein the attribute information comprises geographic location information;

the NFVO instantiates at least one virtual network function VNF network element according to the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, including:

the NFVO determines a first NFVI network element according to the geographic position information and the attribute information of at least one network function virtualization base NFVI network element, wherein the distance between the first NFVI network element and the PNF network element is minimum;

the NFVO instantiates a first VNF network element through a virtual resource provided by the first NFVI network element.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein N is greater than 1, and wherein the attribute information includes geographic location information;

the NFVO determines a second NFVI network element according to the geographic position information of at least one NFVI network element and the attribute information of the N PNF network elements, wherein the average distance between the second NFVI network element and the N PNF network elements is the minimum;

and the NFVO instantiates the first VNF network element through the virtual resource provided by the second NFVI network element.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the NFVO determining a second NFVI network element according to the geographic location information of at least one NFVI network element and the attribute information of the N PNF network elements comprises:

for any NFVI network element in the at least one NFVI network element, the NFVO determines an average distance between the NFVI network element and the N PNF network elements according to the geographic location information of the NFVI network element and the geographic location information of the N PNF network elements;

and the NFVO takes the NFVI network element with the minimum average distance to the N PNF network elements among the at least one NFVI network element as the second NFVI network element.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein N is greater than 1, and wherein the attribute information includes vendor information and priority information; the priority information is used for indicating the supplier information associated with the supplier information;

the NFVO is a VNF network element instantiated by the PNF network element with the same provider information among the N PNF network elements, and the provider information of the VNF network element is the same as the PNF network element with the same provider information, or the provider information indicated by the priority information of the PNF network element with the same provider information is the same as the provider information of the VNF network element with the same provider information.

6. The method according to claim 1 or 5, characterized in that the method further comprises:

for K PNF network elements with the same provider information among the N PNF network elements, if a second VNF network element exists in the at least one VNF network element, the NFVO establishes service connections between all PNF network elements of the K PNF network elements and the second VNF network element; the provider information of the second VNF network element is the same as the provider information of the K PNF network elements; k is an integer greater than 0 and less than or equal to N;

or, if the second VNF network element does not exist in the at least one VNF network element, the NFVO establishes service connection between all PNF network elements in the K PNF network elements and a third VNF network element in the at least one VNF network element; the vendor information of the third VNF network element is the same as the vendor information indicated by the priority information of the K PNF network elements.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein N is greater than 1, and wherein the attribute information includes access scheme information;

and the NFVO instantiates a VNF network element for the PNF network elements with the same access system information in the N PNF network elements according to the access system information.

8. The method of any one of claims 1 to 5, 7, further comprising:

the NFVO receives provider information and access system information of a first PNF network element from a first network element; the first PNF network element is a PNF network element which needs to establish service connection with a VNF network element in a first network service NS;

the NFVO determines that an access system type supporting the access system information indication of the first PNF exists in the first NS, and the provider information is the same as that of the first PNF, and the load rate is smaller than a fourth VNF network element of a preset load rate;

and the NFVO establishes service connection between the first PNF network element and the fourth VNF network element.

9. The method of any one of claims 1 to 5, 7, further comprising:

the NFVO receives provider information and access system information of a first PNF network element from a first network element;

the NFVO determines that no VNF network element supporting the access system type indicated by the access system information of the first PNF exists in the first NS, or no VNF network element with provider information identical to the provider information of the first PNF exists, or no VNF network element with a load rate smaller than a preset load rate exists;

the NFVO instantiates a fifth VNF network element in the first NS;

and the NFVO establishes service connection between the first PNF network element and the fifth VNF network element.

10. An instantiation method, comprising:

a first network element receives condition information from a network function virtualization orchestrator NFVO;

the first network element determines attribute information of N Physical Network Function (PNF) network elements meeting the condition information description, and sends the attribute information of the N PNF network elements to the NFVO, wherein the attribute information of the PNF network elements is used for instantiating at least one Virtual Network Function (VNF) network element, and N is an integer greater than 0.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the first network element is an Element Management System (EMS) network element; the method further comprises the following steps:

the first network element receives attribute information of a PNF network element from the PNF network element.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the first network element is a Physical Network Function Manager (PNFM) network element; the method further comprises the following steps:

and the first network element receives at least one attribute message sent by the EMS network element.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein before the first network element receives the at least one attribute information sent by the EMS network element, the method further comprises:

and the first network element sends a resource information request message to the EMS network element, wherein the resource information request message is used for requesting the attribute information of the PNF network element.

14. A communications apparatus, comprising:

a receiving module, configured to receive condition information from a network function virtualization orchestrator NFVO;

the processing module is used for determining attribute information of N physical network functions PNF network elements which meet the condition information description, the attribute information of the PNF network elements is used for instantiating at least one virtual network function VNF network element, and N is an integer greater than 0;

a sending module, configured to send the attribute information of the N PNF network elements to the NFVO.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the apparatus is an Element Management System (EMS) network element; the receiving module is further configured to:

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the apparatus is a Physical Network Function Manager (PNFM) network element; the receiving module is further configured to:

and receiving at least one attribute message sent by the EMS network element.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the sending module is further configured to:

18. A communications apparatus comprising a processor coupled to a memory, configured to read and execute instructions from the memory to implement the method of any one of claims 1 to 13.

19. A readable storage medium, comprising a program or instructions which, when executed, perform the method of any of claims 1 to 13.