GlobalData and Huawei release High-Stability Core Network White Paper

Wednesday, 3 January 2024 00:30 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Initiative unveils the first core network reliability standard

During the 2023 5G Core Network Summit, GlobalData, a world-renowned consulting firm, released the High-Stability Core Network White Paper together with AIS, Entel, Sunrise, Türk Telekom, and Huawei.

The white paper is the industry’s first to systematically analyse the reliability challenges faced by cloud-native core networks and propose a core network reliability standard to classify different health states. It provides a frame and methodology for a high-stability network.

As 5G and cloud technologies evolve, services become more diversified. At the same time as the emergence of these technologies are software and hardware decoupling, multi-generation coexistence, complex inter-generation APIs, signalling surge, transport network faults, as well as data centre faults which are exerting greater pressure on operators to maintain carrier-grade reliability of the core network.

According to GlobalData, 42% of operators have experienced core network service interruptions in the past three years, and the interruption frequency increases annually.

Based on four common network metrics: traffic, latency, errors, and saturation, the white paper classifies core network health states as Normal, Pre-warning, Subhealth, Overload, Single NF Fault, and Multiple NF Fault. It proposes the core network reliability standard “STABLE”, where different measures are taken at different network phases to ensure that incidents do not accumulate or escalate, showing a systematic methodology to enhance the reliability of the core network.

In the Normal state, the Architecture Resilience solution is applied for stabilising network functions (NFs).
In the Pre-warning state, the Evaluation and Drill solution steps in to detect network statuses, predict risks, and eliminate such risks.
In the Subhealth state, the Limp Mode solution helps operators quickly detect and automatically rectify exceptions and defects of the telco cloud and NFs.
As for the Overload state, the Surge Tolerance solution is provided, which enables each single NF to withstand the signalling impact. Moreover, it coordinates traffic between NFs so that the surge cannot expand.
Thanks to the Takeover Smoothly solution, NF contexts are backed up in real time, ensuring service continuity in case of a single NF fault.
If multiple NFs are faulty at the same time, Bypass Extremes allows the system to go around them.

Furthermore, the white paper defines network reliability by three levels in descending order: Level-1 No serious accidents, Level-2 Zero interruption of mission-critical services, and Level-3 Deterministic high stability. With this, operators can better understand their network anti-risk capability and perform security hardening in a timely fashion.

Huawei will continue to work with partners to promote industry development and build a highly stable and reliable core network, laying a solid infrastructure foundation for a fully connected, intelligent world.