A Cloud-Native Approach to 5G Network Slicing
Sameerkumar Sharma, Raymond Miller, Andrea Francini · IEEE Communications Magazine · 2017
5G networks will support very diverse and challenging requirements. Network slicing offers an effective way to unlock the full potential of 5G networks and meet those requirements using a common network infrastructure. This article presents a cloud-native approach to network slicing that advances a fundamental rethinking of the mobile network to shift its architectural vision from a network of entities to a network of capabilities, and its driving purpose from a network for connectivity to a network for services. The approach covers the entire life cycle of network slices, encompassing their design, creation, deployment, customization, and optimization. We provide an overview of our cloud-native approach to network slicing and describe a proof-of-concept implementation that demonstrates its key principles.