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Nokia AirFrame edge computing meets open source

Nokia announces its AirFrame Open Edge computing server blade.

SAN JOSE, Calif.–Nokia revealed its building block for edge deployments and small data centers at the NFV World Congress yesterday. The Airframe Open Edge server is compact and uses open-source software to manage network functions.

The server is designed to cut latency by bringing computing closer to the customer in an edge cloud.

Henri Tervonen, Nokia CTO and head of its R&D foundation for mobile networks, spoke about winning on the edge at a conference devoted more to software when he slyly whipped out the new sleek server blade. The blade — either by itself or in multi-rack configuration — can be inside the datacenter or anywhere from a light pole to the factory floor, on the edge of the network.

Nokia’s Nokia ReefShark chipset — designed specifically for 5G —  sits on the server. Based on 3GPP 5G New Radio specification, ReefShark has massive Multiple Input Multiple Output antennas, radio and baseband.

Nokia CTO and head of R&D Foundation, Mobile Networks Henri Tervonen holds AirFrame Open Edge at NVF-Zero Touch, April 25, 2018. (Bad cell phone image courtesy of Susan Rambo, RCR Wireless)
Nokia CTO and head of R&D Foundation, Mobile Networks Henri Tervonen holds AirFrame Open Edge at NVF-Zero Touch, April 25, 2018. (Bad cell phone image courtesy of Susan Rambo, RCR Wireless)
Nokia AirFrame Open Edge
Nokia AirFrame Open Edge server at the Nokia booth at NFV-Zero conference in San Jose, Calif. (Source: RCR Wireless)

The Airframe uses Nokia’s real-time OpenStack distribution, compatible with Linux Open Platform for network function virtualization, which is designed to run in small data centers.  Leveraging open source is supposed to make setting up the server easier.

Deliveries of the Nokia AirFrame open edge server start in Q3 2018.

Nokia AirFrame Open Edge
Nokia AirFrame Open Edge server. Source: RCR Wireless

ABOUT AUTHOR

Susan Rambo
Susan Rambo
Susan Rambo covers 5G for RCR Wireless News. Prior to RCR Wireless, she was executive editor on EE Times, Embedded.com, EDN.com, Planet Analog and EBNOnline. She served also EE Times’ editor in chief and the managing editor for Embedded Systems Programing magazine, a popular how-to design magazine for embedded systems programmers. Her BA in fine art from UCLA is augmented with a copyediting certificate and design coursework from UC Berkeley and UCSC Extensions, respectively. After straddling the line between art and science for years, science may be winning. She is an amateur astronomer who lugs her telescope to outreach events at local schools. She loves to hear about the life cycle of stars and semiconductors alike. She is based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Follow her on Twitter @susanm_rambo.