Nokia unveiled a “templating system” it said is based on ETSI NFV, TOSCA and OpenStack specs designed to simplify VNF management and orchestration.
The exceedingly complicated process of virtual network function lifecycle management could be gaining some help with Nokia publishing what it claims to be the first complete “templating system.”
The system is based on the European Telecommunications Standards Institute’s network functions virtualization specifications; topology and orchestration specifications for cloud application; and OpenStack tools. The vendor said the platform is designed to streamline and automate VNF onboarding, integration and lifecycle management processes.
For service providers, Nokia said the service offers VNF definitions to help with integration and “added support for complex structures, and eliminates the need for customization when providing VNF information to a generic VNF manager and NFV orchestrator.”
“By supporting both Nokia and third-party VNFs, the system gives service providers a much wider selection of virtualized network services they can offer subscribers,” the company noted in a statement.
The platform is also touted for its use of open source protocols and support for multivendor environments designed to allow for interoperability across various NFV deployment models.
“One of the goals of NFV has been to foster an open ecosystem of VNF suppliers to give service providers maximum choice in the capabilities they integrate and to offer subscribers the best available services,” explained Ron Haberman, head of Nokia’s CloudBand product unit, in a statement. “By creating an open system that improves the management of VNFs, we aim to make it easier for service providers to quickly add new value-added services to differentiate their offerings, generate new revenue opportunities and deliver better user experiences.”
RCR Wireless News recently spoke with Haberman as part of our weekly NFV/SDN Reality Check video show on the integration of the CloudBand portfolio following Nokia’s acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent.
“VNF onboarding is one of the major challenges the industry must solve to ensure the long-term success of NFV,” said Caroline Chappell, principal analyst at Analysys Mason, in a statement. “This will require a standards-based approach that automates the onboarding process and minimizes its complexity. Publicly available guidelines that build upon ETSI NFV ISG and OASIS TOSCA work are an important resource for the market. They provide an exemplar for VNF onboarding that can help harmonize the fragmented vendor approaches we’ve seen so far.”
Telecom operators have been somewhat critical of the vendor community in terms of providing interoperable orchestration platforms that can tie together management of VNFs from various providers.
Verizon Communications was recently cited in a Technology Business Research report as being tough on vendors for “incomplete orchestrators, not delivering on multitenant solutions capabilities, providing ‘gray’ boxes (ones that still contain proprietary designs) rather than true commodity white boxes and not fully addressing service assurance.” The carrier has also been critical of suppliers charging for “every increment of new software functionality added to” a solution rather than business value from end-customer benefits; and “to understand that delivery options for the solution must be aligned to the service provider’s needs, not the vendor’s.”
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