Saturday, March 2, 2019

5G Core Networks are Different from 4G Core Networks

5G core networks will be virtualized, all the way to the network edge, which means the last radio site, which also means to the end user device or location. That includes the multiservice edge computing location (infrastructure edge).




As Metaswitch describes three key differences of a virtualized 5G core from the 4G evolved packet core, the separation of data and control planes is key.  

* User Plane Function (UPF). Emerging from Control and User Plane Separation (CUPS) strategies defined within non-standalone 5G New Radio specifications, the 5G core UPF represents the evolution of the data plane function of the Packet Gateway (PGW). This separation allows data forwarding to be deployed and scaled independently so that packet processing and traffic aggregation can be distributed to the network edge. For more details, see our UPF reference guide.

* Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF). With the 4G EPC mobility Management Entity (MME) decomposed into two functional elements, the AMF receives all the connection and session information from end user equipment or the RAN but only handles connection and mobility management tasks. Anything to do with session management is forwarded to the Session Management Function (SMF). For more details, see our AMF reference  guide

* Session Management Function (SMF).  A fundamental component of the 5G SBA, the SMF is responsible for interacting with the decoupled data plane by creating, updating and removing Protocol Data Unit (PDU) sessions and managing session context within the UPF. Decoupling other control plane functions from the user plane, the SMF also performs the role of Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server and IP Address Management (IPAM) system. For more details, see our SMF reference guide.

No comments:

Post a Comment