Network Functions Virtualization

Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) is an evolved system engineering approach for building complex applications, particularly in the telecommunications and service provider industries, by making effective use of virtualized resources. In the present scenarios, where new applications are difficult to conceptualize and more focus is on consolidation of resources to optimize the cost, NFV helps in reengineering. This mostly involves decoupling the logical network functions from the hardware platform and moving the software-only implementation of these functions to general purpose high performance servers using some virtualization framework. These software only building blocks may be connected, or chained together to create services.

The network virtualization services offered by HSC in the NFV area are given below:

• HSC can help in migration of enterprise application to a virtualization platform. Some of the sample applications are listed below:
  • Online/ Offline charging systems
  • Subscriber Management/ Service management for mobile services
  • Fault Management service
• HSC has prior experience of working on NF (aka Network Entities or Network Nodes). Good insight into architecture of these NFs is helpful HSC in migration of these NFs to virtual infrastructure (on virtualization framework or a cloud framework).
  • Evolved Packet core (Mobility Management Entity, Packet Gateway)
  • IMS NW (HSS/HLR, CSCF, Diameter Nodes, Application Server)
• HSC has good experience in base station development both on the PHY and higher layers (L2 and L3). HSC can help in re-architecting the base stations to allow migration of the higher layers to virtual platform - In case of partial-virtualization, HSC can help in evaluating, streamlining and implementing changes required in the Element Management systems
• HSC has extensive experience in setting up and managing the in-house virtualization infrastructure base on VmWare (vSphere) solutions. There are currently 80+ VMs distributed over 3 high end physical server running various intranet services. This operational experience has been helping the engineering team with network virtualization services.
• HSC is familiar with the OpenStack framework management CLI. Also HSC has extensive experience in NMS & OSS systems and GUI development. With this background, HSC can work on Management and Orchestration (MANO) for NFV.

Skillset summary

• Virtualization frameworks (VmWare, Xen etc)
• System engineer for NFs in 3GPP NW (HLR/HSS, GSN, Charging Function, Packet Gateway)
• Cloud Resource Management framework (OpenStack)