Implementation of an Intent Layer for SDN-enabled and QoS-Aware Network Slicing
Molka Gharbaoui, Barbara Martini, P. Castoldi · 2021
Vertical industries are attracted by the flexibility and customization offered by network operators through network slicing to run their application platforms in virtual infrastructure assets tailored to their needs. On the other hand, in addition to the desired virtual capacity and component network functions into the slice, verticals may also want to specify connectivity and QoS slice requirements in abstract terms and without dealing with details of network service descriptors and technicalities of the underlying infrastructure.In this work, we propose an intent-based QoS-aware and SDN-enabled slicing implementation that allows customized specifications and establishment of network slices toward flexible delivery of vertical services. The aim is to simplify and automate the deployment of the network slices through a declarative approach while unburdening verticals to deal with technology-specific low-level networking directives. The paper focuses on the implementation of the intent layer using an ETSI NFV MANO platform and presents preliminary experimental results assessing the feasibility and effectiveness of our approach.