Feb 10, 2022
Network slicing – Understanding Network and Security for Far-Edge Computing
Network slicing is a technique in 5G that can be thought of as a combination of VLANs and QoS mechanisms seen in enterprise data networks. Some aspects of them could be looked at as analogous to VPCs and SGs in AWS.
Regardless of how you conceptualize them, 5G slices allow multiple virtual networks to coexist on the same physical infrastructure. This allows for very fine-grained control of security and performance parameters down to a per-slice basis. MNOs often have the average user on general use public slices, while carving off per-customer slices for their B2B customers. Sometimes, mobile devices are given access to multiple slices from one device, each one mapping to a different application.
The Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has defined three network slice categories:
Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB): Designed to ensure high data rates to mobile devices, with SLA targets of >100 Mbit/s average and >10 Gbit/s peak throughput.
Ultra-Reliable Machine Type Communication (uMTC): Focuses on the reliability and deterministic latency aspects of 5G. SLAs target 3 9’s service availability and <1ms RAN latency. Sometimes, this is called Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication (URLLC).
Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC): Concentrates on the density of devices with lots of small conversations. This is also known as massive Internet of Things (mIoT).
3GPP also defines dozens of application-specific network slice templates such as those for all subcategories of V2X. In addition to these standard categories, MNOS can engineer custom slice types in response to customer demand.
Network function virtualization (NFV)
NFV uses proven hypervisor and/or container platforms to eliminate the 1:1 mapping between hardware and function that was seen in 4G/LTE EPC. 5G components, on the other hand, are deployed as virtual machines or containers on commodity compute hardware:
Figure 3.26 – 5G functions via NFV on commodity servers
This allows 5G service providers to deploy, manage, and scale the critical components of their network in an automated way. This not only reduces cost and time-to-market, it improves reliability and SLA adherence – which are critical to an MNO’s business.
While NFV was possible in 4G/LTE EPC, 5GC was built from the ground up with it in mind. All functions of 5GC can be virtualized – AMF, SMF, UPF, and network slicing can all be deployed as virtual constructs from the 5G management plane and operated transparently by the 5G control plane.
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