Network Function Virtualization for a Network Device

• US 20140201374A1
• Filed: 01/10/2014
• Published: 07/17/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Futurewei Technologies Incorporated (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Ashwood-Smith, Peter, Akhavain Mohammadi, Mehdi Arashmid, Roch, Evelyne
• Granted Patent: US 9,847,915 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/226
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/50 Allocation of resources, e.g. of the central processing unit [CPU]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/18 Delegation of network management function, e.g. customer network management [CNM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/70 Virtual switches

Abstract

An apparatus for performing network function virtualization (NFV), comprising: a memory, a processor coupled to the memory, wherein the memory includes instructions that when executed by the processor cause the apparatus to perform the following: receive an instruction to virtualize a network device within a network, divide, according to the instruction, the network device into a plurality of network functions (NFs) used to form a virtualized network node that corresponds to the network device, launch the NFs within one or more virtual containers, and group the virtual containers together using a group identifier (ID) that corresponds to the virtualized network node, wherein each of the NFs correspond to a network function performed by the network device prior to virtualization.

Claims

1. An apparatus for performing network function virtualization (NFV), comprising:

a memory;

a processor coupled to the memory, wherein the memory includes instructions that when executed by the processor cause the apparatus to perform the following;

receive an instruction to virtualize a network device within a network;

divide, according to the instruction, the network device into a plurality of network function units (NFs) used to form a virtualized network node that corresponds to the network device;

launch the NFs within one or more virtual containers; and

group the virtual containers together using a group identifier (ID) that corresponds to the virtualized network node,

wherein each of the NFs correspond to a network function performed by the network device prior to virtualization.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the group ID is a device ID assigned to the virtualized network node.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each of the NFs are hosted on different virtual containers.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least some of the NFs are grouped together and placed within one of the virtual containers according to network connectivity.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the at least some of the NFs that are grouped together and placed within the one of the virtual containers corresponds to a user-to-network interface (UNI) used to connect to a customer network.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein a second set of NFs are grouped within a second virtual container to implement a network-to-network (NNI) interface used to communicate with the network.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the one of the virtual containers further comprises one or more NFs that correspond to functions for a customer provider edge (CPE) node.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least some of the NFs are grouped together and placed within one of the virtual containers according to a network service provided by the network device.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the network service provided by the network device is at least one of the following:

an Internet Protocol (IP) virtual private network (VPN), a Virtual Private Wire Service (VPWS) and a Virtual Private Local Area Network (LAN) Service (VPLS).

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the virtualized network node is configured to implement a portion of the network functions performed by the network device.

11. An apparatus for performing network function virtualization (NFV), comprising:

a memory;

a processor coupled to the memory, wherein the memory includes instructions that when executed by the processor cause the apparatus to perform the following;

create a plurality of network function units (NFs) that correspond to a plurality of network functions performed by a non-virtualized network device within a network;

load the NFs within one or more virtual containers; and

group the virtual containers together using a group identifier (ID) that identifies the network functions performed by a non-virtualized network device;

monitor resource utilization for each of the virtual containers; and

adjust resource allocation according to the resource utilization of each of the virtual containers.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein a portion of the network functions performed by the non-virtualized network device are offloaded to the virtual containers.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the virtual containers are located on a plurality of hardware resource nodes, and wherein the instructions executed by the processor further cause the apparatus to trigger a move for one of the virtual containers from one of the hardware resource nodes to another hardware resource node.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the group ID is used to provide internal communication amongst the virtual containers.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the instructions executed by the processor further cause the apparatus to map the group ID to a network ID provided by the underlying network.

16. A method for performing network function virtualization (NFV), comprising:

receiving an instruction to virtualize a provider edge (PE) device participating within a network;

splitting the PE device into a plurality of network function units (NFs), wherein each of the NFs are used to perform a PE network function;

grouping the NFs based on the instruction into one or more NF groups;

placing each of the NF groups into a virtual container; and

forwarding a plurality of data packets using the virtual containers.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein one of the NF groups is used to provide provider provisioned virtual private network service functions.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the virtual container hosting one of the NF groups also provides customer provider edge (CPE) network functions.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the PE device is partially virtualized such that the one of the NF groups forwards data packets to a non-virtualized PE device within the network to implement PE core side network functions, and wherein the PE core side network functions are used to facilitate communication within the network.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein one of the NF groups is used to provide PE core side network functions that are used to facilitate communication within the network.