The Linux Foundation unveils Akraino project
The Linux Foundation recently announced a new project, dubbed Akraino, to develop an open source software stack capable of supporting high-availability cloud services for edge computing systems and applications. To kick off the project, AT&T will contribute code made for carrier-scale edge computing applications running in virtual machines and containers.
Multi-access edge computing is a way to support the growing number of IoT devices that demand low latency. The technology involves extending cloud-computing capabilities at the edge of a cellular network, improving network congestion and application performance as a result. While several open source projects exist, The Linux Foundation noted nothing currently meets the need for an edge infrastructure solution.
Executive Director of The Linux Foundation Jim Zemlin said that Akraino will complement open source projects like ONAP “in automating services from edge to core.” ONAP is an open source community that focuses on the lifecycle management of virtual network functions (VNFs). The group is a joint effort of AT&T’s Open ECOMP and the Linux Foundation’s Open-O. A significant portion of code AT&T is contributing to the Akraino project comes from the Open ECOMP project.
“Akraino, coupled with ONAP and OpenStack, will help to accelerate progress towards development of next-generation, network-based edge services, fueling a new ecosystem of applications for 5G and IoT,” said Vice President of Advanced Technology at AT&T Labs Mazin Gilbert.
The Linux Foundation recently added ONAP to its new project, called the LF Networking Fund (LFN), which attempts to place its many open source projects under a single roof. Among the other founding projects of the LFN include FD.io, OpenDaylight, OPNFV, PNDA and SNAS, which “form the basis of collaboration across the network stack, from the data plane into the control plane, to orchestration, automation, end-to-end testing,” according to The Linux Foundation. Akraino could help advance these features.
AT&T benefits from the Akraino project in that it uses OpenStack as the basis for its Integrated Cloud Platform (AIC). With AIC, AT&T developed a cloud environment to manage network workloads that could be combined with ONAP to deploy new products and services. As the Akraino community develops, The Linux Foundation said it expects to release the open source project code in the second quarter of this year.
