Virtualization achieves

extreme flexibility and

efficiency in open core networks

White Paper

Executive summary: Open core networks deploy virtualization to flexibly meet changing demand
Contents Open core networks deploy virtualization to flexibly meet changing demand Accelerating changes in communications markets affect the development of core networks Why core networks need a rethink Openness and core virtualization answer the challenges The Nokia Siemens Networks Open Core System Conclusion Abbreviations Openness and virtualization are fundamental to improve the efficiency of the core network and lower its Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). Openness based on common platforms reverses the trend of growing network complexity caused by adding systems with software and purpose-built hardware for each new function. Virtualization allows the entire core network to run on a common resource pool of generic multipurpose hardware, assuring the efficient use of network resources as they are needed, while tapping into almost unlimited processing power. Adopting an evolutionary approach to increase network efficiency has the advantages of incremental investments and a reduced risk of such investments failing to be future-proof. This approach is best supported by opening up the core network to decouple the evolution of hardware and software. Virtualization ensures maximum flexibility from the open hardware approach. It creates a system in which hardware and software are decoupled by an abstraction layer to ensure adaptability without disrupting core network evolution. This approach also ensures that existing applications run on legacy, as well as on new hardware. The independent evolution of the hardware layer also enables operators to tap into industry-wide developments and make use of the most innovative hardware commercially available. Advanced Telecommunications Computing Architecture (ATCA) is the specification favored across the telecommunications industry and with ecosystem support, delivers carrierclass performance and reliability. Building a core network using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) ATCA hardware and other generic multipurpose hardware ultimately provides superior scalability, flexibility and reliability. With virtualization and an open hardware and software strategy, operators can evolve their networks smoothly and benefit from new functionality to efficiently support a greater number of subscribers and more advanced services. They can also benefit from a smaller equipment footprint and lower operational costs from low energy consumption and simplified operations and maintenance. As networks and services move to an all-IP mobile broadband environment, an adaptable core network provides the means by which operators can build greater profitability in increasingly competitive communications markets.

Open Core System White Paper

Accelerating changes in communications markets affect the development of core networks

While voice and messaging services remain significant for most operators, revenues are threatened by intense competition from over-the-top (OTT) service providers. Mobile broadband and the shift to all-IP networks is driving up data traffic, as illustrated in figure 1, and changing the nature and volume of the applications that networks must support. The highly unpredictable nature of this growing traffic demand is often overlooked. Demand fluctuates as people use broadband and voice services at home, at work and on the move, and as they switch between services and applications. According to Nokia Siemens Networks Broadband Wireless Traffic Forecast (April 2011) the global traffic volume in cellular data networks in 2015 is now expected to be 43 ExaBytes, compared to 24 ExaBytes in its earlier forecast. If we look at the total traffic volume, then we can expect another ten-fold increase in the next few years, at a CAGR of around 60%. Although flat-rate tariffs are no longer seen as viable for most operators, they are being extended into policy-based segmented value offerings. However, it is vital that revenues can support the level of investment required. In summary, the key considerations for core networks now and in the future are their TCO, unlimited scalability and adaptability without disrupting or endangering the existing customer experience. A core strategy that achieves this combination will help to keep network costs under control while protecting current revenue streams. It will also evolve seamlessly to support new applications and services while optimizing any future investments.

OTT players are gaining market share

New services and devices

Declining voice ARPU* (US$)

45.00 40.00 35.00 30.00 25.00 20.00 15.00 10.00 5.00 0.00 Fixed Enterprise Mobile Enterprise

Global Mobile Traffic Forecast*

50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 0
Mobile voice (16kbps) Mobile tablet Mobile laptop Mobile handheld

60% CAGR 10x

Fixed Consumer
Mobile Consumer 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Intense competition between CSPs

*Broadband Wireless Traffic Forecast, Nokia Siemens Networks, April 2011

Broadband flat rates

Figure 1: Operators face intense competition from a variety of providers while having to cope with rapidly growing traffic and other demands on their networks and businesses.

Open Core System White Paper

Why core networks need a rethink

A new way of building core networks is needed to address the four key issues facing operators that can lead to high TCO (see figure 2). data over LTE and the Multimedia Subsystem (IMS domain) for voice over LTE .Each of these elements must be integrated, creating new requirements for operations, administration and maintenance (OAM) and back end systems. The result is rapidly growing complexity within the core network. A key requirement for improving network efficiency is thus to address network complexity and to take an innovative approach to the evolution of hardware and software, while protecting existing assets and minimizing any risk of degrading the existing user experience. maximum size of a network element as some of these conventional network elements do not scale up efficiently. This requires network planning, installation and integration of new network elements, which is a lengthy and costly process. In addition, unpredictability of traffic volume and variety (type, time and location) makes individual network element planning increasingly imprecise. Consequently, overprovisioning of each network element provides a safe, but costly route. For example, an operator planning to introduce VoLTE while also needing to plan for voice subscriber growth may find that the timing for the introduction and take-up of VoLTE is impossible to predict precisely. The operator must therefore separately invest in mobile softswitching and IMS and voice application servers without a reliable basis for that investment. This requires that scalability problems, for both expansion as well as the introduction of new services, need to

Network complexity creates operational inefficiencies

A typical core network today is home to Circuit Switched (CS) and Packet Switched (PS) domains as a minimum. It is built using purpose-built software and hardware for each network element, such as the MSS for switching traffic in the CS domain; PCS for setting policies to assign resources; and GGSN for the interworking between the mobile packet data and external packet networks. Many operators face the prospect of renewing their core networks as they undergo changes elsewhere in their operations, such as the introduction of LTE, which is expected to co-exist with 2G/3G for some considerable time. In a conventional network, such changes often trigger the introduction of new network elements such as MME for

Inefficient scalability to meet growing demand

To meet rapidly growing data and signaling traffic demand, the capacity of each network element needs to be extended. As well as the sheer investment required, the necessary capacity may also exceed the

VolP CSCF MSS MGCF IMS-MGW HSS GGSN PCRF VoIP Server CS-MGW HLR SGSN IBrowsing GW I-BGF Serving GW MME PDN GW

High complexity with dedicated hardware/ software for each function

Do not scale up efficiently in line with traffic (data and signalling) demand

Propietary built hardware limits gains from industry-wide innovation

Difficult to evolve seamlessly to meet new demands

High Total Cost of Ownership

Figure 2: Four key issues that drive up an operators TCO for the core network high complexity, inefficient scalability, limited access to technology innovation and difficult network evolution

Open Core System White Paper

be solved not just at the level of individual network elements. A more flexible and self-adaptive sharing of resources across several functions is needed.

potential innovators. Since innovative technologies are available to all players in the industry, they provide an advantage only to those operators able to minimize the time and costs of deploying them. This creates requirements for shorter product development life-cycles and reduced deployment times as well as for the use of open standard platforms.

Proprietary systems make rapid innovation difficult

Telecommunications network elements are often based on dedicated proprietary platforms developed by equipment suppliers. The consequence is that proprietary hardware cuts operators off from innovations taking place elsewhere in the industry. On the other hand, technology based on open standards gives access to a wider community of vendors and

services, features and customization developed over years, as well as much work to integrate the software with the network and its systems, to provide functions such as lawful interception or business support systems. Furthermore, in order to scale up the core network in many systems, new hardware and associated software is needed, potentially creating a discontinuity in the user experience. This creates requirements for evolutionary network renewal for both hardware and software which protects existing assets and therefore minimizes the risk of degrading the user experience.

Managing network evolution and the value of software assets

The software underpinning core network applications is an important asset for operators. It includes

Openness and core virtualization answer the challenges

The introduction of new technologies, such as open standards-based common platforms and virtualization allow operators to meet the extensive requirements discussed above. Opening up the core network by decoupling software-based functions and applications from the underlying hardware enables core systems to adapt easily as new services, applications and technologies arrive on the scene. Even major changes could be implemented primarily using software upgrades, minimizing the disruption and extra investment needed in core hardware. Existing applications can run on both new and legacy hardware platforms with minimal integration and implementation effort. Core virtualization enables the entire core network to run on the same COTS hardware, tapping into almost unlimited processing power. With core applications using the networks resources as they need them, the total available capacity within the network is used as efficiently as possible. Consolidating hardware platforms will also reduce the energy used by core network elements, as well as cutting other costs such as spare parts management because a smaller variety of hardware components is used. Common configuration, monitoring and alarming for the consolidated COTS hardware simplifies its operation and administration. In terms of flexibility, a common hardware platform enables the colocation of multiple network elements within a single hardware enclosure - be it at a site, cabinet, shelf or even blade level. When introducing new services on a common hardware platform, operators can thus benefit from economies of scale right from the beginning.

Hardware consolidation reduces network complexity

By consolidating the core network on a common hardware platform based on COTS equipment, operators can benefit from higher performance network elements that reduce the amount of hardware and footprint needed to provide the same capacity. For example, doubling the capacity per cabinet halves the costs of hardware installation with lower delivery costs and reduced installation, commissioning, integration and acceptance tests.

Open Core System White Paper

Core application

Virtualization Legacy HW Open COTS HW

Figure 3: The same core application software on legacy and open COTS hardware For core network applications that may run on proprietary hardware and operating systems today, the process of hardware consolidation can be supported by virtualization, which provides the benefit of hardware abstraction. No matter what the underlying physical hardware really is, it appears exactly the same to the application, including the legacy operating system. Virtualization increases the lifecycle of existing application software by enabling applications to run on both open COTS and legacy hardware (Figure 3). It also helps to speed up the introduction of the latest processors, offering enhanced energy efficiency and greater processing capabilities, without the need to adapt the application software. Core applications that run on new open COTS and legacy hardware platforms bring significant benefits to operators in terms of using existing assets with minimal integration and implementation effort and without compromising the user experience.

pool and helps operators to scale the core network up and down efficiently in line with rapidly growing traffic, which may fluctuate unpredictably according to peoples use of mobile broadband and voice services. The demand planning for the overall open hardware resource pool becomes more reliable and precise, and results in less overprovisioning than traditional demand planning for individual network elements. Virtualization Infrastructure Management (VIM) is used to manage the whole virtualization infrastructure and to flexibly assign and distribute available hardware resources to multiple applications as required. It provides external interfaces to operational support system (OSS) and other functions, for example, automated network configuration and optimization. The common virtualization infrastructure with the consolidated open hardware resource pool also allows operators to maximize hardware utilization with the highest possible energy efficiency. It allows available resources to be shared among multiple core applications with different peak times. In a multi-operator deployment case, in which the common resource pool serves, for example, three operators in different time zones (assume +/- 2 hours), about 20% infrastructure savings can be achieved. During off-peak times, more hardware resources (blades) can be switched off, which results in energy savings of about 35%. In addition, operators could

Seamless scalability to meet rising and unpredictable demand

While virtualization allows a decoupling of software from hardware for evolutionary hardware consolidation, it does not relieve the core network of its existing scalability limitations. Each application still runs on dedicated hardware resources, which still have to be planned, installed and configured, based on imprecise and unpredictable traffic forecasts. The introduction of a common virtualization infrastructure (Figure 4) enables the core applications to access and share a common hardware

Core application A

Core application B

Core application X

Common Virtualization Infrastructure Open COTS HW Resource Pool

Figure 4: With a common virtualization infrastructure, resources are shared across applications

Open Core System White Paper

provide pooled core processing capacity for special short-term events, without needing to invest in additional spare capacity that is left unused for long periods. Higher hardware utilization further reduces the amount of hardware and thus the footprint needed to accommodate the same capacity. At the same time it lowers delivery costs and reduces the installation, commissioning, integration and acceptance testing associated with the hardware.

ecosystem for open source virtualization components is still emerging, with a focus on IT / enterprise deployments. Virtualization is well established in the IT / enterprise markets, enabling operators to benefit from the experience and functionality gained in these segments. With COTS hardware and application software based on the open source Linux platform and open source virtualization infrastructure components, operators can tap into major industry ecosystems. An open ecosystem promotes faster innovation, enables the adoption of best practice across industries and speeds up network building, thus offering faster time to market.

minimizing network capacity planning. At the same time it lowers delivery costs and reduces installation, commissioning, and integration costs. Capital expenditure (CAPEX) falls as core network applications are consolidated on common platforms and hardware investments are rationalized. This also enables operators to modernize their networks with the highest performance and most energy-efficient hardware, while reducing complexity. The capacity and functionality of the existing installed base can be upgraded smoothly, while new state-ofthe-art, energy-efficient hardware can be implemented easily to bring added cost benefits. In a market as fluid and constantly changing as communications, a flexible and adaptable core network also helps to mitigate investment risks for operators. Networks can adapt and evolve stepby-step, in line with market demands and traffic increase to support an operators business strategy. This enables the core to be re-tuned rapidly and with minimal cost to meet traffic increases and changing market demands. For example, when 2G/3G data traffic moves to LTE or CS voice migrates to VoLTE, more hardware resources can be re-allocated, fully protecting investments in the open hardware resource pool.

Taking advantage of industry innovation

A range of industries that rely on complex systems have already adopted the COTS hardware approach. COTS technology is designed with interoperability in mind. It reduces the costs and risks associated with development and speeds up the time to market for new ideas. Developers and users can benefit from economies of scale when using COTS hardware, even when theyre introducing new services. In telecommunications, COTS hardware allows network equipment providers to focus on software platforms and application software development. The open source Linux operating system is mature, supported by a broad ecosystem and is widely used in telecom infrastructure equipment. The

Smooth and cost-effective evolution

Software and hardware decoupling and virtualization make it easier to optimize and evolve networks. Operational expenditure (OPEX) is reduced because consolidation on COTS hardware allows for common management of hardware configuration, monitoring and alarming. There is also high potential for automation. The highest hardware utilization of a common COTS hardware resource pool minimizes the amount of hardware and thus footprint and power consumption needed to provide the same capacity, while

Open Core System White Paper

The Nokia Siemens Networks Open Core System

Adaptable core network configurations meet demand
The Nokia Siemens Networks Open Core System delivers on all the promises of core virtualization and an open hardware and software architecture using a holistic approach throughout the core network comprising the PS, CS and IMS domains. Core virtualization provides a clear evolutionary path that makes the Open Core System substantially more flexible and cost effective. It is implemented in stages: Hardware consolidation Nokia Siemens Networks has selected COTS ATCA as the hardware platform for its Open Core System, to take advantage of ATCAs support for telecom-specific requirements, such as long-life hardware, high availability and regulatory compliance. Combining ATCA with the easy introduction of the latest processor and Ethernet switching technology offers a future-proof hardware platform with high capacity and a small footprint providing all advantages described in previous chapter. Using virtualization technology in the Open Core System enables the Open Core software application to run on legacy equipment, on the latest state-of-the-art COTS ATCA platforms (see figure 5) and ultimately on other generic multipurpose hardware. To provide this hardware independence to the Open Core System, Nokia Siemens Networks selected the Linux operating system, with Kernel Virtual Machine (KVM) extension to provide the virtualization layer. Common virtualization infrastructure As described earlier a common virtualization infrastructure enables core applications to share a common hardware pool for extreme scalability and hardware utilization. This allocation of automatic and selfoptimized control and supervision of common hardware resources is achieved by Nokia Siemens Networks Self Organizing Networks (SON) for Core By following this evolutionary roadmap for the Open Core System, operators are able to achieve greater hardware utilization by dynamically allocating network resources to the various core applications in order to handle differing traffic and service needs.

Core network elements

Core virtualization

MSS MGCF

Simplification and consolidation of core network

VolP

CSCF

Decoupling hardware and software Open Core software in cloud environment

GGSN

Virtualization layer

SGSN
n
Legacy hardware COTS ATCA multi-purpose hardware Other multi-purpose hardware

Figure 5: Open Core application software runs on legacy, COTS ATCA and other multipurpose hardware

Open Core System White Paper

The Open Core System offers flexibility and scalability as networks grow and change, with no impact on the enduser experience. Network evolution becomes smoother and simpler, since network integration work is minimized. The Open Core System simplifies planning at the network element level and eliminates wasteful overprovisioning of each network element. Operators can enjoy economies of scale for new applications without the need to increase the operation and maintenance effort to manage new software. Capital and operating costs are reduced, with savings of up to 80% in footprint and up to 65% of energy possible, both of which significantly downsize the environmental footprint of the network, with future evolution improving on even these figures. The use of common hardware reduces engineering time and simplifies network building, thus delivering a faster time to market. The system combines with Nokia Siemens Networks strong global customer services capabilities and Nokia Siemens Networks NetAct O&M support system to deliver additional cost savings for operators. Furthermore, operators can benefit from the rich features developed for Open Core Applications in hundreds of core network implementation deployments worldwide. Applications are among an operators most valuable assets, so retaining this software is a huge benefit. The Open Core System enables existing application assets to run on current and new hardware. This means that existing features are automatically supported with no discontinuity in the user experience. The Open Core System can scale from one application running on a single

ATCA blade, to an entire core network in one ATCA system. The system uses simple building blocks, including hardware cabinets, shelves and blades, with software applications that can be combined in almost limitless ways to create any core network scenario.

Maintaining voice services as networks shift to all-IP

The Open Core System helps operators to cost-effectively and reliably deliver voice services by modernizing or expanding the capacity of their existing networks while maintaining the same user experience. CS voice services have developed over many years and users expect usability and experience of voice and SMS on LTE packet switched networks that is equal to or better than with current CS networks. Operators expect to re-use as much of their existing voice service assets as possible. Systems must be ready for add-on voice services (Rich Voice) with minimal investment risk, because of uncertainties in VoLTE or Rich Voice adoption rate. Due to the Open Core System software being decoupled from the underlying hardware, the system adapts easily as new services and technologies arrive on the scene. A Nokia Siemens Networks MSS system software evolution towards a Telecom Application Server for VoLTE provides CS voice features to VoLTE users with no discontinuity in their experience. Operators benefit from software asset protection, minimal investment risks and the reuse of existing value-added services and support systems. The Open Core Systems common virtualization layer gives operators

extensive flexibility in allocating network resources according to changing traffic and unpredictable service demands. An operator can simply plan hardware investments for the expected overall voice subscriber growth, regardless of when and how many subscribers will move from CS voice to VoLTE in the future. As VoLTE is introduced and its use grows, resources can gradually be reallocated from CS voice to VoLTE, providing continuous protection of hardware investments.

Managing the demands of mobile broadband

Consumer behavior has changed with many people considering mobile broadband to be a practical alternative to fixed broadband. The result is booming and unpredictable traffic load in mobile networks. Smart devices flood mobile packet core gateways with signaling traffic that generates no revenue for the operator, but must be handled efficiently to avoid congestion that can impair network performance and affect service availability and the customer experience. By adopting an Open Core System, operators will be prepared for future data traffic growth. The flexibility of the architecture enables them to scale up the core to meet rising demand and they will be ready to introduce full LTE functionality into existing hardware via a simple software upgrade. Furthermore, as traffic volumes grow and more subscribers migrate from 2G/3G to LTE, the Open Core System can be dynamically rebalanced to meet changing capacity and signaling demand.

Open Core System White Paper

Conclusion: Open Core System safeguards investments and achieves extreme flexibility and efficiency
The communications market is driving operators towards open platforms to provide a secure evolution path and create more value. An open core approach enables all the components of a core network to be installed and scaled up using a common hardware platform built from standardized COTS components, tapping into almost unlimited processing power and ecosystem innovation. An open core architecture, which in addition uses a common virtualization infrastructure for all core applications, offers flexibility, hardware re-usability and scalability, simplified operations, configuration and maintenance, lowers the TCO and even helps to extend economies of scale to new and emerging applications. Following this open core architecture strategy, Nokia Siemens Networks Open Core System can run the same core application software on both existing and new hardware platforms, where the common virtualization infrastructure enables the different core applications to share a common hardware pool, flexibly assigning and distributing hardware resources to multiple applications as required. Core network load can be balanced across applications, ensuring that network capacity is used as efficiently as possible as demands change. This smooth evolution enables operators to renew their networks in phases, allowing existing equipment and new investments to work together to capture value, while simultaneously introducing state-of-the-art hardware platforms and prolonging their existing software investments as key assets. Nokia Siemens Networks uses a COTS platform compliant with the ATCA standards to create a carrierclass Open Core System that combines a small footprint with high capacity and energy efficiency. The Nokia Siemens Networks Open Core System complies with all core network standard interfaces. It is a highly effective evolutionary step from all aspects towards a simple, flexible and adaptable, future-proof and environmentally sustainable communications business with the lowest TCO.

Why COTS ATCA hardware? The Advanced Telecommunications Computing Architecture (ATCA) is the specification favored across the telecoms industry, since it supports the overriding telco network requirements of long life and high availability; it has matured in recent years and now offers the level of functionality and quality expected from a future-proof telcograde telecom platform. To fully leverage the benefits of ATCA, the platform needs to comply with the commercial-of-the-shelf (COTS) ATCA ecosystem. According to Heavy Reading, the ATCA market will be worth USD 4.3 billion by 2015, representing

a CAGR of 31% over that period. The market for COTS solutions will also grow significantly to USD 3.4 billion, including chassis, blades and system integration. ATCA has already achieved scale among Tier 1 equipment vendors, and also has a large base of Tier 2/Tier 3 vendors. Heavy Reading states that the COTS ATCA market share was less than 70% in 2009, and this will grow to more than 80% in 2015. By using COTS ATCA as the common hardware platform for the Open Core System, Nokia Siemens Networks is able to simplify the network in terms of operability and the number of physical elements while significantly reducing time to market for new systems.

The COTS ATCA ecosystem includes over 50 companies, enabling Nokia Siemens Networks to access innovations from some of the best embedded design teams in the world. The implementation of the COTS ATCA ecosystem in the Nokia Siemens Networks Open Core System is fully compliant with ATCA standards and interoperable with a wide range of products. The architecture consolidates 30 hardware plug-in variants into fewer than 10 ATCA blades for all core network elements. This simplifies spare parts management and reduces installation, commissioning, operation and maintenance costs.

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Open Core System White Paper

Abbreviations

ATCA CAGR CAPEX COTS CS CSCF GGSN GPRS GW HLR HSS I-BGF IMS IP KVM LTE MGCF MGW MME MSS OAM OPEX OSS OTT PCRF PCS PDN PS SGSN SMS SON TCO VIM VoIP VoLTE

Advanced Telecommunications Computing Architecture Compound Annual Growth Rate Capital expenditure Commercial Off-The-Shelf Circuit Switched Call Session Control Function Gateway GPRS Support Node General Packet Radio Service Gateway Home Location Register Home Subscriber Server Interconnect Border Gateway Function IP Multimedia Subsystem Internet Protocol Kernel Virtual Machine Long Term Evolution Media Gateway Control Function Media Gateway Mobility Management Entity Mobile Switching Centre Server Operations, Administration and Maintenance Operational expenditure Operational Support System Over-The-Top Policy Charging and Rules Function Policy Control Server Packet Data Networks Packet Switched Serving GPRS Support Node Short Message Service Self Organizing Networks Total Cost of Ownership Virtualization Infrastructure Management Voice over IP Voice over LTE

Open Core System White Paper

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Nokia Siemens Networks P.O. Box 1 FI-02022 NOKIA SIEMENS NETWORKS Finland Visiting address: Karaportti 3, ESPOO, Finland Switchboard +358 71 400 4000 (Finland) Switchboard +49 89 5159 01 (Germany)
Product code: C401-00750-WP-201202-1-EN Copyright 2012 Nokia Siemens Networks. All rights reserved. Nokia is a registered trademark of Nokia Corporation, Siemens is a registered trademark of Siemens AG. The wave logo is a trademark of Nokia Siemens Networks Oy. Other company and product names mentioned in this document may be trademarks of their respective owners, and they are mentioned for identification purposes only. This publication is issued to provide information only and is not to form part of any order or contract. The products and services described herein are subject to availability and change without notice.

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