Cloud-Native architecture will define the vRANfuture

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Cloud-Native architecture will define the vRAN future

Nov, 2020Mohamed Bakry

Head of Systems Engineering - SP Segment MEA


Road to Software Defined Telco and Digitization

• Cloudification• Disaggregation• Orchestration & Automation• Open APIs


Technology shifts enable the Evolution toward Cloudification and Digital service

DecompositionRadio Equipment Controller

Decomposition, CU/DU Functional Splits

AutomationOpen APIs, Pervasive Automation, Service Assurance, Network Slicing

ConvergenceBlended SLAs Services, Traffic Steering, Dynamic Path Optimization

Software CentricVirtualization, Programmable, Flexible,

Any-to-Any Connectivity

New RadioHigh Bandwidth, High Density, Low

Latency, Precise Timing and Synchronization

Higher frequency spectrum Larger radio channels Massive MIMOIncreased network density

Radio Technology Innovation


The Evolution of Subscriber Management

The Shift The Benefits

Convergence of Mobile, Fixed & Cable

Reduced Transport CostsLower cost, higher bandwidth, simpler platforms in Aggregation/ Access.

Offload traffic at the edge of the network

Optimized OSS/BSS Integration

Single integration via centralized control plane significantly reduces OpEx

Subscriber MngSimplification

Single Subscriber view and orchestration across services. Unified Policy, new service offers

New Services & Better User Experience

Cater for low latency services and bring edge closer to end users.


The Evolution of Subscriber ManagementArchitecture

Access Tunnels

Converged SDN Access Transport

Control Plane

User Plane Telco cloud

Internet

Enterprise

Public

cloud

PeeringBackhaul

FrontHaul

Mid-Haul

PremisesDevices

5G: 5GC/EPC

Wireline: BNG

Cable: CCAP

Subscriber Management

Gateway

Converged SDN CoreNetwork

Disaggregation and

Virtualization enables edgedeployment in the access

network

(a.k.a MEC)

Access Node(s)

Wireline

5G/Mobility

Cable

IP

E2E Subscriber ExperienceMulti-Domain Orchestration & Automation

Subscriber Services

TV

IoT

CDN

API

Wireline

Cable

Mobility/5G


RAN Definitions

C-RAN: a centralized (cloud) RAN architecture based on cloud-compute; includes a centralized baseband unit (BBU), remote radio units (RRU) and fronthaul/transport


Disaggregation and Open Interfaces

• Defining multi-vendor interface within DU, between radio and baseband

• Making 3GPP defined RAN interfaces “truly” multi-vendor

O-RAN MissionAutomation/Optimization

• Defining two new control loops

• Non-RT-RIC (in SMO)- A1 interface: between

Non-RT-RIC and RAN

• Near-RT-RIC (in RAN)- E2 Interface between N-

RT-RIC and CU/DU

Virtualization & Open HW/SW

• Cloudification

• SW Ref Design

• White-Box HW (HW ref architecture)

• Orchestration of cloud infrastructure


vDUvDU

RAN Evolution and Definitions

EPCRRUBBU

Macro Site Core SiteBackhaulDRAN – Distributed RAN

(this is the traditional RAN architecture)

EPCRRUBBU

Macro Site Core SiteBackhaulCRAN – Centralised RAN BBU

RRU CPRI Fronthaul

C-RAN Hub

EPCRRUvBBU

Macro Site Core SiteBackhaul

VRAN – Virtualised RAN vBBURRU

vRAN PoolCPRI Fronthaul

EPCRUvDU

Macro Site Core Site

BackhaulORAN – Open vRAN vDURU

Edge DCOpen Fronthaul

vEPC

vCUMidhaulRegional DC

vCUMEC

Centralised RAN = BBU Hotel

Cloud RAN = BBU Pool (Elastic RAN)

GlossaryRRU = Remote Radio Unit

RU = Radio Unit

BBU – Baseband Unit

DU = Distributed Unit

CU = Centralised Unit

EPC = Evolved Packet Core

MEC = Multi-access Edge Compute


Decomposition Allows Cloudification (Virtual-RAN)

Anten

na

RU

Fronthaul

Anten

na

RU

CellSiteRouter

ToRSwServerServer

DistributedUnit

ToRSwServerServer

CentralizedUnit

midhaul Backhaul

DU

CUm/h

m/hDU

f/h

f/h

f/h

Tomobilecore

Hierarchy

Cloudification is occurs when Radio Signal Processing is implemented as software running in Cloud environments• Centralized Unit functions are non-real time and are easily virtualizable• Distributed Unit functions are real time and can be virtualized at some effort• Radio (Remote) Units are implemented as appliances


The Cloud-Native TenetsDelivery & Deployment Model

Micro-Services

Modular, loosely coupled software services

Individually deployed and lifecycle managed

Containers

Virtualization and management of Micro services

Highly portable to different deployment targets

DevOps

Automate and manage rapid deployments

Isolate production changes and deploy once validated

Continuous Delivery

Automated continuous integration, validation and availability of containers

• Lower Time to Market• Always on latest code-base

• Easy to deploy; easy to scale• Smaller impact domains

• Faster bring-up• Lower infrastructure restriction

• Faster fallback and bug-fixes• Faster Feature rollout


BHFH

Central DCs4G/5G

Small Cell

Mobile Core

MH BH

RUCellsite

COTS HW

Open vRAN and Modern Cloudified Mobile Network Infrastructure

“Modular” System Integration

Regional DCs

Automation & Multi-Domain Orchestration

Edge DCsvDU

UPFvCU

MEC Apps

COTS HW

COTS HW

PNF

Functional DecompositionFunctions Separated to Allow Flexible Placement and Optimization

Disaggregation into SW + HWSoftware-Centric Solutions Leveraging COTS Hardware

Optimize for Lower Cost OperationsAgility, Lower TCO, Increased Automation

Multi-Use Case5GNR, LTE, Small Cell, Indoor/Outdoor, mMIMO, Multi-band, mmWave, Private/Public, Enterprise/Consumer, etc.

Enable New ServicesIncreased Service Flexibility, Velocity

OpenModular, Open, Multi-vendor, More Options = Flexibility and Lower Cost Hybrid Cloud

UPF

RAN

Open Open Open

Documents

Cloud-Native architecture will define the vRANfuture