A message forwarding method, message processing method and device

Abstract

The embodiment of the present application provides a method for forwarding a message, a method for processing a message, and a device for determining the network slice of the bearer network corresponding to the message, so as to transmit the message using the network slice of the corresponding bearer network. The method for forwarding a message includes the following steps: a first device obtains a first message, the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network; the first device determines network slice mapping information according to the first message; the first device generates a second message according to the first message, the second message includes the network slice mapping information; the first device sends the second message to a second device, the second device is a network device of the bearer network, and the network slice mapping information is used to determine the network slice of the bearer network for forwarding the second message.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a message forwarding method, a message processing method and a device. Background Art

[0002] Network slicing technology refers to the technology of dividing a network into multiple relatively independent networks. It is a key technology of the fifth generation mobile communication technology (5G). Through network slicing technology, a network device can have multiple isolated network slices. Different network slices can have different transmission characteristics. In this way, when transmitting data, the network device can select the appropriate network slice to transmit data according to the characteristics of the data to be transmitted, thereby providing an isolated network environment for different application scenarios, so that different application scenarios can customize network functions and characteristics according to their own needs to meet the needs of different services.

[0003] The current 5G network includes an access network (AN), a transport network (TN) and a mobile core network (CN). Network equipment includes network equipment of the access network, network equipment of the transport network and network equipment of the mobile core network. Among them, the network equipment of the access network can receive messages sent by the terminal equipment and send them to the network equipment of the mobile core network through the network equipment of the transport network. Correspondingly, the network equipment of the mobile core network can also send messages to the network equipment of the access network through the network equipment of the transport network, and then the network equipment of the access network sends them to the terminal equipment. In the case where the transport network is divided into multiple network slices, the network equipment of the transport network needs to determine the network slice corresponding to the message after receiving the message, so as to transmit the message using the network slice of the transport network that matches the message. Summary of the invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present application provide a message forwarding method, a message processing method and a device for determining a network slice of a bearer network corresponding to a message, thereby transmitting the message using the network slice of the corresponding bearer network.

[0005] In a first aspect, a method for message forwarding is provided, which is applied to a first device, wherein the first device is a network device of an access network or a network device of a mobile core network. The method specifically comprises the following steps: the first device obtains a first message through the access network or the mobile core network, wherein the first message is a message that needs to be sent to the network device of the mobile core network or the network device of the access network through the bearer network. The first device determines network slice mapping information according to the first message, and the network slice mapping information is used by the network device of the bearer network to determine the network slice of the bearer network corresponding to the first message, for example, it may include information of the access network or the mobile core network, and it may also include information related to the network slice of the bearer network. After determining the network slice mapping information, the first device may generate a second message including the network slice mapping information according to the first message and the network slice mapping information, and send the second message to the second device. The second device is a network device of the bearer network. Before the message is transmitted to the network device of the bearer network, the network device of the access network or the mobile core network may predetermine the network slice mapping information used to determine the bearer network slice of the forwarded message, and carry the network slice mapping information in the second message sent to the second device. In this way, after receiving the message, the network device of the bearer network can determine the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information, and thus use the network slice of the corresponding bearer network to transmit the second message.

[0006] As a possible design, the network slice mapping information may include a first network slice identifier, or may include any one or more of the following information: quality of service (QoS) parameters (QoS parameters), virtual private network (VPN) identifier, quality of service parameter identifier (QoS parameters ID), service slice identifier, resource slice identifier and bearer network slice identifier. Among them, the first network slice identifier is used to identify the network slice of the access network that transmits the first message, or to identify the network slice of the core network that transmits the first message. The first network slice identifier may be a single network slice selection assistance information (S-NSSAI) identifier, a network slice instance (NSI) identifier or a network slice subnet instance (NSSI) identifier, etc. The quality of service parameter is a parameter that describes the quality of service required for the access network or mobile core network or network slice network used to transmit the first message. The quality of service parameter identifier is an identifier of the quality of service parameter. The VPN identifier is an identifier of the VPN used by the first message. The bearer network slice identifier is used to identify the network slice of the bearer network corresponding to the first message. A service slice identifier is used to identify the service slice of the bearer network for transmitting the second message. A resource slice identifier is used to identify the resource slice of the bearer network for transmitting the second message.

[0007] The first network device may determine the network slice mapping information in the following three possible implementations:

[0008] Implementation method 1: The first device determines the network slice mapping information according to the first network slice identifier. The first network slice identifier is used to identify the network slice of the access network that transmits the first message, or is used to identify the network slice of the core network that transmits the first message. Specifically, the first device first determines the first network slice identifier according to the first message, and then determines the network slice mapping information according to the first network slice identifier.

[0009] Optionally, in implementation mode 1, the first device determines the first network slice identifier as follows: the first network device determines the first network slice identifier according to one or more of the service identifier, flow identifier, and user identifier of the first message. The first device may also determine the first network slice identifier according to attribute information or requirement information of the first message.

[0010] Optionally, the first network device stores a correspondence between a first network slice identifier and the network slice mapping information. In implementation method one, the first device determines the network slice mapping information according to the network slice identifier, which can be specifically as follows: the first device determines the network slice mapping information according to the first network slice identifier and the correspondence.

[0011] Implementation method 2: The first device determines the network slice mapping information according to the attribute information of the first message. The attribute information of the first message reflects the attributes of the first message, for example, it may include any one or more of the QoS level of the first message, the port number of the network port of the first device receiving the first message, and the network segment to which the first message belongs.

[0012] Implementation method three: The first device determines the network slice mapping information according to the requirement information for transmitting the first message. The requirement information of the first message indicates the quality of service required by the first message, for example, it may include information such as the bandwidth required for transmitting the first message, the maximum delay corresponding to transmitting the first message, and the maximum packet loss rate corresponding to the first message.

[0013] The above three possible implementation methods do not constitute a limitation on the embodiments of the present application, and those skilled in the art may design them according to actual conditions.

[0014] As a possible design, the second message includes any one or more of an Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) extension header, an IPv6 basic header, an Ethernet header, and a Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) header, and any one or more of the IPv6 extension header, the IPv6 basic header, the Ethernet header, and the MPLS header carries the network slice mapping information.

[0015] As a possible design, the IPv6 extension header includes one or more of the following: a hop-by-hop options header, a destination options header, a routing header, and a segment routing header.

[0016] As a possible design, the network slice mapping information is carried in the type-length-value (TLV) field of the IPv6 extension header.

[0017] As a possible design, the network slice mapping information is carried in any one or more of the source address (SA) field, destination address (DA) field or flow label (flowlabel) field of the IPv6 basic header.

[0018] As a possible design, the Ethernet header includes a virtual local area network (VLAN) identifier (VLAN ID) field, and the slice mapping information is carried in the VLAN ID field.

[0019] As a possible design, when the first device is a network device of an access network, the first device is a base station or customer premises equipment (Customer Premises Equipment, CPE), and the second device is a router or a switch.

[0020] In a second aspect, a message processing method is provided, which is applied to a second device, and the second device may be a network device of a bearer network. The method comprises the following steps: the second device receives a second message from a first device, the second message includes network slice mapping information, the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network, and the second device is a network device of a bearer network. The network slice mapping information is generated by the first device according to the first message, and the second message is generated by the first device according to the first message and the network slice mapping information. The second device may determine the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information, that is, the network slice of the bearer network that transmits the second message. After determining the network slice of the bearer network, the second device uses the network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network to send the second message. In this way, the second message received by the second device as a bearer network device already includes the network slice mapping information for determining the network slice of the bearer network. After receiving the message, the network device of the bearer network may determine the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information, thereby transmitting the second message using the network slice of the corresponding bearer network.

[0021] For possible implementation methods of the content of the network slice mapping information and the location carried in the second message, please refer to the above description and will not be repeated here.

[0022] As a possible design, the first device is a base station or a user premises equipment, and the second device is a router or a switch.

[0023] As a possible design, the network resources include any one or more of bandwidth resources, cache resources and queue resources.

[0024] According to a third aspect, a device is provided for a network system including multiple devices, wherein the multiple network devices include a first device and a second device, and the device is the first device, and the device includes: an acquisition unit, used to obtain a first message, and the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network; a processing unit, used to determine network slice mapping information according to the first message; a second message is generated according to the first message, and the second message includes the network slice mapping information; a sending unit, used to send the second message to a second device, and the second device is a network device of a bearer network, and the network slice mapping information is used to determine a network slice of the bearer network that forwards the second message.

[0025] In one possible design, the network slice mapping information includes one or more of the following information: quality of service parameters, virtual private network identifier, quality of service parameter identifier, business slice identifier, resource slice identifier and bearer network slice identifier.

[0026] In one possible design, the network slice mapping information includes a first network slice identifier, which is used to identify a network slice of an access network that transmits the first message, or to identify a network slice of a core network that transmits the first message.

[0027] In a possible design, the processing unit is used to determine a first network slice identifier based on the first message, where the first network slice identifier is used to identify a network slice of an access network that transmits the first message, or is used to identify a network slice of a core network that transmits the first message; and determine the network slice mapping information based on the first network slice identifier.

[0028] In one possible design, the first network device stores a correspondence between a first network slice identifier and the network slice mapping information; and the processing unit is used to determine the network slice mapping information based on the first network slice identifier and the correspondence.

[0029] In one possible design, the processing unit is used to determine the network slice mapping information based on attribute information of the first message, or to determine the network slice mapping information based on requirement information for transmitting the first message.

[0030] In one possible design, the processing unit is used to determine the first network slice identifier based on one or more of the service identifier, flow identifier and user identifier of the first message.

[0031] For possible implementation methods of the location where the network slice mapping information is carried in the second message, please refer to the above description and will not be repeated here.

[0032] In a fourth aspect, a device is provided for a network system including multiple devices, wherein the multiple network devices include a first device and a second device, and the device is the second device, and the device includes: a receiving unit, used to receive a second message from the first device, the second message including network slice mapping information; the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network, and the second device is a network device of a bearer network; a processing unit, used to determine the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information; and a sending unit, used to send the second message using network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network.

[0033] In one possible design, the network slice mapping information includes one or more of the following information: VPN identifier, service quality parameter identifier, business slice identifier, resource slice identifier and bearer network slice identifier.

[0034] In one possible design, the network slice mapping information includes one or more of the following information: a first network slice identifier and a quality of service parameter, wherein the first network slice identifier is used to identify a network slice of an access network that transmits the first message, or is used to identify a network slice of a core network that transmits the first message.

[0035] In a possible design, the processing unit is used to determine the slice identifier of the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information and the corresponding relationship, wherein the corresponding relationship is the corresponding relationship between the network slice mapping information and the bearer network slice identifier, and the bearer network slice identifier is the slice identifier of the network slice of the bearer network; the sending unit is used to send the second message using the network resources corresponding to the bearer network slice identifier.

[0036] For possible implementation methods of the location where the network slice mapping information is carried in the second message, please refer to the above description and will not be repeated here.

[0037] In one possible design, the first device is a base station or a user premises equipment, and the second device is a router or a switch.

[0038] In one possible design, the network resources include any one or more of bandwidth resources, cache resources, and queue resources.

[0039] In a fifth aspect, a device is provided, which is applied to a network system including multiple devices, wherein the multiple devices include a first device and a second device, the device is the first device, and the first device includes: a processor and a network interface. The network interface is used to receive and send messages. The processor is used to execute the method in the aforementioned first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

[0040] In a possible design, the first device further includes a memory, which can be used to store instructions or program codes. The processor is used to call the instructions or program codes in the memory to execute the method in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

[0041] In a sixth aspect, a device is provided, which is applied to a network system including multiple devices, wherein the multiple devices include a first device and a second device, the device is the second device, and the second device includes: a processor and a network interface. The network interface is used for receiving and sending messages. The processor is used to execute the method in the aforementioned second aspect or any possible design of the second aspect.

[0042] In a possible design, the second device further includes a memory, which can be used to store instructions or program codes. The processor is used to call the instructions or program codes in the memory to execute the method in the aforementioned second aspect or any possible design of the second aspect.

[0043] In a seventh aspect, a network system is provided, comprising the first device as described in the third aspect and the second device as described in the fourth aspect, or comprising the first device as described in the fifth aspect or the second device as described in the sixth aspect.

[0044] In an eighth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, comprising instructions, a program or a code, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute a method as described in any possible implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0045] In a ninth aspect, a computer program product comprising computer instructions is provided. When the computer program product runs on a network device, the network device executes a method provided by any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0046] In a tenth aspect, a chip is provided, comprising a memory and a processor. The memory is used to store instructions or program codes. The processor is used to call and run the instructions or program codes from the memory to execute the method in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect; or the processor executes the method in the second aspect or any possible design of the second aspect.

[0047] In the eleventh aspect, a chip is provided, which includes a processor but does not include a memory, and the processor is used to read and execute instructions or program codes stored in the memory outside the chip. When the instructions or program codes are executed, the processor executes the method in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect; or, the processor executes the method in the second aspect or any possible design of the second aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0048] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of the system 100 provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0049] Figure 2 A signaling interaction diagram of a message forwarding method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] Figure 3 A possible format diagram of a message header not including an MPLS header provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0051] Figure 4 A possible format diagram of a message header including an MPLS header provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0052] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the structure of a first device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the structure of a second device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0054] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the structure of a network system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0055] Figure 8 It is a structural schematic diagram of a device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0056] Fig. 9 It is a structural schematic diagram of a device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0057] The following introduces a message forwarding method and a message processing method provided by conventional technology and an embodiment of the present application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0058] First combine Figure 1 Introduce the access network, bearer network and mobile core network.

[0059] See also Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of a system 100 provided in an embodiment of the present application. In the system 100, terminal devices 111, 112, 113, base stations 121, 122, network devices 131, 132, 133, 134, gateway devices 141, 142 and servers 150 are included. Among them, the base station 121 is connected to the terminal device 111 and the network device 131 respectively, the base station 122 is connected to the terminal device 112, the terminal device 113 and the network device 133 respectively, the network device 131 is connected to the network device 132, the network device 133 is connected to the network device 134, the gateway device 141 is connected to the network device 132, the network device 134 and the network device 142 respectively, and the server 150 is connected to the network device 142.

[0060] In the embodiment of the present application, the base station 121 and the base station 122 are network devices of the access network, the network devices 131, 132, 133 and 134 are network devices of the bearer network, and the gateway device 141 and the network device 142 are network devices of the mobile core network. Accordingly, in the embodiment of the present application, the access network 120 includes the network between the base station 121 and the terminal device 111, the network between the base station 122 and the terminal device 112, and the network between the base station 122 and the terminal device 113, the bearer network 130 includes the network between the network device 131 and the network device 132, and the network between the network device 133 and the network device 134, and the mobile core network 140 includes the network between the gateway device 141 and the network device 142. Optionally, when any one of the terminal devices 111, 112 and 113 is connected to the network device of the access network through a wireless network, the network between the terminal device and the network device of the access network can be called a radio access network (RAN).

[0061] The following takes the example of the terminal device 111 sending a message to the server 150 to introduce the message in Figure 1 The forwarding process in the network shown. The terminal device 111 first sends a message to the base station 121 through the access network 120, and the base station 121 forwards the message to the network device 131. The network device 131 can send the message to the network device 132 through the bearer network 130, and the network device 132 forwards the message to the gateway device 141. The gateway device 141 can send the message to the network device 142 through the mobile core network 140, and finally the network device 142 sends the message to the server 150. Similarly, when the server 150 needs to send a message to the terminal device 111, the message can pass through the network device of the mobile core network, the network device of the bearer network, and the network device of the access network in sequence.

[0062] It can be seen that the bearer network is located between the access network and the mobile core network, and is used to transmit messages between the access network and the mobile core network. The network equipment of the bearer network that communicates with the network equipment of the access network can receive messages sent by the network equipment of the access network, and send the messages to the network equipment of the mobile core network; the network equipment of the bearer network that communicates with the network equipment of the mobile core network can receive messages sent by the network equipment of the mobile core network, and send the messages to the network equipment of the access network. Among them, the network equipment connected to the network equipment of the access network and the network equipment connected to the network equipment of the mobile core network in the bearer network can be called the edge network equipment of the bearer network, and the edge network devices can communicate with each other through other network equipment. For example Figure 1 In the embodiment, network devices 131, 132, 133 and 134 are edge network devices of the bearer network. Network devices 131 and 132, and network devices 133 and 134 can communicate with each other through other network devices. Figure 1 Not shown.

[0063] In technologies such as 5G, in order to ensure the normal transmission of data in the network, network slicing technology can be used to divide the network into multiple network slices. Different network slices can have different transmission characteristics to meet the needs of different services. For example, network slice A may have the characteristics of low latency, but relatively small bandwidth. Then network slice A can be used to transmit data of services that have high latency requirements but low bandwidth requirements, such as data generated by services such as financial services and Internet of Vehicles services. Network slice B has the characteristics of large bandwidth, but the data latency may be high. Then network slice B can be used to transmit data of services that have high bandwidth requirements but low latency requirements, such as data generated by services such as file transfer services. In this way, the network is divided into multiple network slices according to the characteristics of network transmission, and the most appropriate network slice can be selected according to the characteristics of the service to transmit the data of the service, thereby improving the quality of service.

[0064] When the bearer network is divided into multiple network slices, the bearer network device can select the network slice of the bearer network to forward the message, thereby using appropriate network resources to forward the message. However, when the edge network device of the bearer network receives the message sent by the network device of the access network (or mobile core network), the edge network device cannot determine which network slice of the bearer network needs to be used to send the message.

[0065] In order to solve the above problem, an embodiment of the present application provides a message processing method, where a network device or a mobile core device of an access network can determine the network slice mapping information of the first message after receiving the first message, and send a second message including the network slice mapping information to a network device of a bearer network. In this way, the network device of the bearer network can determine the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information, thereby using the network slice of the corresponding bearer network to transmit the second message.

[0066] The message processing method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to Figure 1 The network architecture shown.

[0067] In the embodiments of the present application, terminal devices such as terminal device 111, terminal device 112 or terminal device 113, which may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), terminal, etc., are devices that provide voice and / or data connectivity to users, or chips set in the device, such as handheld devices and vehicle-mounted devices with wireless connection functions. At present, some examples of terminal devices are: mobile phones, desktop computers, tablet computers, laptops, PDAs, mobile Internet devices (MID), wearable devices, virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving, wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, home gateway devices supporting 5G access (5G→residential gateway, 5G→RG), etc.

[0068] exist Figure 1In the illustrated embodiment, the network devices of the access network include base stations 121 and 122. In some other implementations, the network devices of the access network may also be other devices, such as user premises equipment. Network devices 131, 132, 133 or 134 are network devices of the bearer network, such as physical devices supporting routing functions such as routers and switches, or servers deploying virtual routers or virtual switches. The network devices of the mobile core network include gateway devices 141 and 142. Among them, the gateway device can also be called an internetwork connector or a protocol converter, which can be a computer system or device that provides data conversion services between the bearer network and the mobile core network. The network device 142 can be a router switch or other devices. The server 150 can be, for example, a server in a data center (DC).

[0069] See also Figure 2 , which is a signaling interaction diagram of a message forwarding method provided in an embodiment of the present application. The message forwarding method provided in an embodiment of the present application may include the following steps:

[0070] S201: A first device obtains a first message.

[0071] In the embodiment of the present application, the first device may be a network device of an access network or a network device of a mobile core network, for example, Figure 1 The first message may be any one of the network devices 121, 122, gateway device 141 or 142 in the network device 121, 122, gateway device 141 or 142 in the network device 121. The first message may be a message that needs to be sent to the network device of the bearer network through the first device. For example, when the first device is a network device of the access network, the first message may be a message sent by the terminal device to the first device, and then sent to the network device of the bearer network through the first device; when the first device is a network device of the mobile core network, the first message may be a message sent by other network devices or servers of the mobile core network to the first device, and then sent to the network device of the bearer network through the first device.

[0072] by Figure 1 Take the example for explanation. Assume that the terminal device 111 sends a request message to the server 150. The request message may pass through the base station 121, the network device 131, the network device 132, the gateway device 141 and the network device 142 in sequence, and finally reach the server 150. After receiving the request message, the server 150 may generate a response message and send the response message to the network device 142. The response message is forwarded by the gateway device 141, the network device 132, the network device 131 and the base station 131, and finally reaches the server 150.

[0073] It can be seen that in the process of transmitting the request message, the base station 121 can send the request message to the network device 131 as the network device of the bearer network, and the base station 121 can obtain the request message as the first message as the first device. In the process of transmitting the response message, the gateway device 141 can send the response message to the network device 132 as the network device of the bearer network, and the gateway device 141 can obtain the response message as the first message as the first device.

[0074] S202: The first device determines the network slice mapping information of the first message.

[0075] After obtaining the first message, the first device can determine the network slice mapping information of the first message, and the network slice mapping information is used to determine the network slice of the bearer network corresponding to the first message. In an embodiment of the present application, the network slice mapping information may include information of the access network or the mobile core network, and may also include information related to the network slice of the bearer network. The following introduces these two situations respectively.

[0076] First, the situation where the network slice mapping information includes information of the access network or the mobile core network is introduced. Specifically, the information of the access network or the mobile core network can be a first network slice identifier and / or a quality of service parameter.

[0077] Among them, the first network slice identifier is used to identify a network slice of an access network or a network slice of a core network. When the first device is a network device of an access network, the first network slice identifier is used to identify a network slice of the access network that transmits the first message. When the first device is a network device of a mobile core network, the first network slice identifier is used to identify a network slice of the mobile core network that transmits the first message. In an embodiment of the present application, the first network slice identifier can be a single network slice selection assistance information (Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information, S-NSSAI) identifier, a network slice instance (NSI) identifier, a network slice subnet instance (NSSI) identifier, etc.

[0078] The quality of service parameters are parameters that describe the quality of service required by the network or network slice used to transmit the first message. In an embodiment of the present application, the quality of service parameters of the first message may include parameters such as isolation level, theoretical packet delay (Packet Delay Budget, PDB), jitter, and maximum packet loss rate. The quality of service parameters may also be quality of service profile parameters. The above-mentioned quality of service parameters are introduced in detail below.

[0079] The isolation level of the first message indicates the isolation status between the network slice corresponding to the first message and other network slices. Take an example. If the isolation level value of the first message is 2, it means that the isolation status between the network slice corresponding to the first message and other network slices is logical isolation (Logical Isolation); if the isolation level value is 1, it means that the isolation status between the network slice corresponding to the first message and other network slices is physical isolation (PhysicalIsolation). The value of the theoretical packet delay of the first message is the upper limit of the delay of the data packet transmitted in the network slice corresponding to the first message, that is, the total time from the first message being sent by the terminal device to the destination device of the first message receiving the message. The jitter value of the first message is the maximum value of the difference in delay between any two adjacent data frames transmitted by the network slice corresponding to the first message. The maximum packet loss rate of the first message is the proportion of messages that can be discarded by the network slice corresponding to the first message when transmitting data streams to the total messages.

[0080] For a detailed introduction to each parameter in the service quality parameter, please refer to the Generic Network Slice Template protocol of the Global System for Mobile Communications Alliance (GSMA), which will not be repeated here.

[0081] The above introduces the definitions of the first network slice identifier and the service quality parameters. The following introduces a method for the first device to determine the network slice mapping information when the network slice mapping information includes the first network slice identifier and the network slice mapping information includes the service quality parameters.

[0082] When the network slice mapping information includes a first network slice identifier, the first device can use two different methods to obtain the network slice mapping information.

[0083] In a first possible implementation, the first message includes a first network slice identifier. Then, when determining the network slice mapping information, the first device can parse the first message and extract the first network slice identifier carried in the first message, that is, obtain the network slice mapping information.

[0084] In a second possible implementation, the first message does not include the first network slice identifier. Then, when determining the network slice mapping information, the first device may determine the first network slice identifier based on any one or more of the attribute information of the first message, the requirement information for transmitting the first message, the service identifier of the first message, the flow identifier of the first message, and the user identifier of the first message. This is described in detail below.

[0085] The attribute information of the first message reflects the attributes of the first message, and may include, for example, any one or more of the QoS level of the first message, the port number of the network port on which the first device receives the first message, and the network segment to which the first message belongs. When the first message includes the attribute information of the first message, the first device may pre-store the correspondence between the attribute information of the message and the first network slice identifier. After receiving the first message, the first device may determine the attribute information of the first message, and determine the first network slice identifier based on the attribute information of the first message and the correspondence, thereby obtaining the network slice mapping information.

[0086] The requirement information for transmitting the first message indicates the quality of service required by the first message, and may include, for example, the bandwidth required for transmitting the first message, the maximum delay corresponding to transmitting the first message, the maximum packet loss rate corresponding to the first message, and other information. When the first message includes the requirement information for transmitting the first message, the first device may pre-store the correspondence between the requirement information and the first network slice identifier. After receiving the first message, the first device may determine the requirement information for transmitting the first message, and determine the first network slice identifier based on the requirement information for transmitting the first message and the correspondence, thereby obtaining the network slice mapping information.

[0087] The service identifier of the first message may be an identifier of the service instance to which the first message belongs, reflecting which service instance the first message is generated by. The service instance is a service type running in a terminal device, for example, it may include audio and video services, non-audio and video services and other service types. Optionally, the service identifier of the first message may be added to the first message by a device that generates the first message according to the service instance to which the first message belongs. When the first message includes the service identifier of the first message, the first device may pre-store the correspondence between the service identifier of the message and the first network slice identifier. After receiving the first message, the first device may determine the service identifier of the first message, and determine the first network slice identifier based on the service identifier of the first message and the correspondence, thereby obtaining network slice mapping information.

[0088] The flow identifier of the first message is the identifier of the data flow to which the first message belongs, reflecting which data flow the first message belongs to. Optionally, the flow identifier of the first message may be added to the first message by the device that generates the first message according to the service flow to which the first message belongs. When the first message includes the flow identifier of the first message, the first device may pre-store the correspondence between the flow identifier of the message and the first network slice identifier. After receiving the first message, the first device may determine the flow identifier of the first message, and determine the first network slice identifier based on the flow identifier of the first message and the correspondence, thereby obtaining the network slice mapping information.

[0089] The user identifier of the first message may be an identifier of a device that generates the first message, for example, it may be an IP address, a Media Access Control (MAC) address, or other identifiers of a terminal device that generates the first message, reflecting which device generated the first message. The user identifier of the first message may also be a user identifier of an application that generates the first message, and the application may be installed on a device that generates the first message. Optionally, the user identifier of the first message may be added to the first message by a device that generates the first message when generating the first message. When the first message includes the user identifier of the first message, the first device may pre-store a correspondence between the user identifier and the first network slice identifier. After receiving the first message, the first device may determine the user identifier of the first message, and determine the first network slice identifier based on the user identifier of the first message and the correspondence, thereby obtaining network slice mapping information.

[0090] It should be noted that the reason why the first message does not include the first network slice identifier may be that the network device of the access network (or the network device of the mobile core network) does not add the identifier of the network slice of the access network (or the mobile core network) to the first message, or the access network (or the mobile core network) does not divide the network slice.

[0091] The above introduces a method for the first device to determine the network slice mapping information when the network slice mapping information includes a first network slice identifier. The following introduces a method for the first device to determine the network slice mapping information when the network slice mapping information includes a service quality parameter.

[0092] When the network slice mapping information includes service quality parameters, the first device can use two different methods to determine the network slice mapping information.

[0093] In a first possible implementation, the first device may determine the service quality parameters based on the first network slice identifier. Specifically, the first device may pre-store the correspondence between the first network slice identifier and the service quality parameters. After receiving the first message, when the first message includes the first network slice identifier, the first device may parse the first message and obtain the first network slice identifier, and then determine the service quality parameters corresponding to the first network slice identifier according to the pre-stored correspondence; when the first message does not include the first network slice identifier, the first device may determine the first network slice identifier according to one or more of the service identifier, flow identifier, user identifier, attribute information, demand information, etc. in the first message, and then determine the service quality parameters corresponding to the first network slice identifier according to the pre-stored correspondence. The specific method for the first device to determine the first network slice identifier can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0094] In a second possible implementation, the first device may determine the quality of service parameter according to the attribute information of the first message or the requirement information for transmitting the first message. The description of the attribute information and the requirement information can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0095] When determining the service quality parameters based on the attribute information of the first message, the first device can parse the attribute information of the first message, determine the service quality required for transmitting the first message based on the attribute information of the first message, obtain the service quality parameters, and thus obtain the network slice mapping information.

[0096] When determining the service quality parameters based on the requirement information for transmitting the first message, the first device can organize the requirement information for transmitting the first message to determine the service quality required for transmitting the first message, obtain the service quality parameters, and thus obtain the network slice mapping information.

[0097] The above introduces the case where the network slice mapping information includes information of the access network or the mobile core network. The following introduces the case where the network slice mapping information includes information related to the network slice of the bearer network.

[0098] In an embodiment of the present application, the information related to the network slice of the bearer network may include any one or more of a quality of service parameter identifier, a VPN identifier, a network slice identifier of the bearer network, a business slice identifier, and a resource slice identifier, etc. These information are introduced below.

[0099] The quality of service parameter identifier is an identifier of the above-mentioned quality of service parameter. A quality of service parameter identifier can be used to identify a set of quality of service parameters, which can include one or more quality of service parameters. The quality of service parameter identifier corresponds to a network slice of the bearer network and can represent the service quality level of the network slice of the bearer network. When the quality of service parameter is a quality of service overview parameter, the quality of service parameter identifier is a quality of service overview identifier.

[0100] Let's take an example. Assume that the bearer network includes three bearer network slices, namely, bearer network slice 1, bearer network slice 2 and bearer network slice 3. The theoretical packet delay of bearer network slice 1 and bearer network slice 2 is 1 millisecond, and the theoretical packet delay of bearer network slice 3 is 2 milliseconds. Then the service quality parameter identifier corresponding to bearer network slice 1 and bearer network slice 2 can be A, indicating that the bearer network slice 1 and the bearer network slice 2 are bearer network slices with higher service quality levels; the service quality parameter identifier corresponding to bearer network slice 3 can be B, indicating that the bearer network slice 1 and the bearer network slice 2 are bearer network slices with lower service quality levels. Then, if the theoretical packet delay of the first message is 1 millisecond, the service quality parameter identifier of the first message is A. If the theoretical packet delay of the first message is 2 milliseconds, the service quality parameter identifier of the first message is B.

[0101] When the first message is a message transmitted through a VPN, the first message may include a VPN identifier for transmitting the first message, where the VPN identifier is an identifier of the VPN used by the first message.

[0102] When dividing a bearer network into multiple network slices, the bearer network can be divided into multiple service slices according to the service types corresponding to the network slices, or divided into multiple resource slices according to the network resources occupied by the network slices, or divided into multiple network slices of the bearer network according to other principles other than service types and network resources.

[0103] When the bearer network is not divided into service slices and resource slices, the network slice mapping information corresponding to the first message may include a bearer network slice identifier. The bearer network slice identifier is used to identify the network slice of the bearer network corresponding to the first message. When the bearer network is divided into multiple service slices, the network slice mapping information may include a service slice identifier, indicating through which service slice the second message corresponding to the first message needs to be transmitted; when the bearer network is divided into multiple resource slices, the network slice mapping information may include a resource slice identifier, indicating through which resource slice the second message corresponding to the first message needs to be transmitted. Optionally, the resource slice identifier is used to specify the underlay network of the bearer network corresponding to the first message.

[0104] The above introduces the information related to the network slice of the bearer network. The following introduces a method for the first device to determine the network slice mapping information when the network slice mapping information includes information related to the network slice of the bearer network.

[0105] When the network slice mapping information includes information related to the network slice of the bearer network, the first device can use two different methods to determine the network slice mapping information.

[0106] In a first possible implementation, the first device may determine the network slice mapping information according to the first network slice identifier. Specifically, the first device may pre-store the correspondence between the first network slice identifier and the network slice mapping information, and determine the network slice mapping information in combination with the correspondence.

[0107] Take the example that the network slice mapping information includes a bearer network slice identifier. The first device can pre-store the correspondence between the bearer network slice identifier and the first network slice identifier, that is, the correspondence between the identifier of the network slice of the bearer network and the identifier of the network slice of the access network (or mobile core network). After receiving the first message, the first device can determine the bearer network slice identifier corresponding to the first network slice identifier based on the pre-stored correspondence. The specific method for the first device to obtain the first network slice identifier can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0108] In a second possible implementation, the first device may determine the network slice mapping information based on the attribute information of the first message or the requirement information for transmitting the first message. The description of the attribute information and the requirement information can be found above and will not be repeated here. Optionally, the first device may pre-store the correspondence between the attribute information of the first message and the network slice mapping information, or the correspondence between the requirement information for transmitting the first message and the network slice mapping information. After receiving the first message, the attribute information of the first message or the requirement information for transmitting the first message may be determined, and then the network slice mapping information may be obtained in combination with the correspondence.

[0109] The above possible implementation methods do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and those skilled in the art can design them according to actual conditions.

[0110] S203: The first device generates a second message according to the first message.

[0111] After determining the network slice mapping information of the first message, the first device can generate a second message based on the first message. The second message includes the network slice mapping information. Optionally, the first device can add the network slice mapping information to the message header of the first message and use the new message as the second message. Of course, the first device can also generate a new message header and encapsulate the data carried in the first message and the new message header into a second message. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific method for the first device to generate the second message based on the first message.

[0112] In an embodiment of the present application, the network slice mapping information can be carried in one or more of the IPv6 extension header, IPv6 basic header, Ethernet extension header or MPLS header of the second message.

[0113] The following four situations are introduced respectively.

[0114] In a first possible implementation, the network slice mapping information is carried in the IPv6 extension header of the second message. The IPv6 extension header may include any one or more of a Hop by Hop Options Header, a Destination Options Header, a Routing Header, and a Segment Routing Header.

[0115] In an embodiment of the present application, the network slice mapping information may be carried in any of the above-mentioned IPv6 extension headers. Optionally, if the network slice mapping information is carried in the IPv6 extension header of the second message, the network slice mapping information may be carried in the TLV field of the IP extension header.

[0116] In a second possible implementation, the network slice mapping information is carried in the IPv6 basic header of the second message. The IPv6 basic header may include a source address (SA) field, a destination address (DA) field, and a flow label (flow label) field, and the network slice mapping information may be carried in one or more of these three fields.

[0117] In a third possible implementation, the network slice mapping information is carried in the Ethernet header. Specifically, the Ethernet header may include a VLAN ID field for carrying the network slice mapping information. Optionally, if the length of the network slice mapping information is greater than the length of the VLAN ID field, the network slice mapping information may be carried in multiple adjacent VLAN ID fields. For example, assuming that the network slice mapping information is S-NSSAI, the S-NSSAI includes an 8-bit slice service type (slice service type) and a 24-bit slice differentiator (slice differentiator, SD), that is, the length of the S-NSSAI is 32 bits in total. Since the length of each VLAN ID field is 12 bits, the network slice mapping information can be carried in three adjacent VLAN ID fields. Since the total length of the three VLAN ID fields is 36 bits, which is greater than the length of the network slice mapping information, the three VLAN ID fields can accommodate the network slice mapping information.

[0118] In a fourth possible implementation, the network slice mapping information is carried in the MPLS header. The MPLS header is an area in the packet header used to carry the MPLS label.

[0119] In an embodiment of the present application, if the network slice mapping information is carried in the MPLS header of the second message, the MPLS header may include multiple MPLS labels for carrying the network slice mapping information. Optionally, if the length of the network slice mapping information is greater than the length of an MPLS label, the network slice mapping information may be carried in multiple adjacent MPLS labels. For example, assuming that the length of the network slice mapping information is 32 bits (bit) and the length of each MPLS label is 20 bits. Since the total length of the two MPLS labels is 40 bits, which is greater than the length of the network slice mapping information, the network slice mapping information may be carried in two adjacent MPLS labels.

[0120] The above introduces the IPv6 extension header, IPv6 basic header, Ethernet header, and MPLS header respectively. The following introduces the possible positions of the fields corresponding to the IPv6 extension header, IPv6 basic header, Ethernet header, and MPLS header in the message.

[0121] See also Figure 3 , Figure 3A possible format diagram of a message header excluding an MPLS header. As can be seen from the figure, the message header may include an application protocol (Application Protocols) extension header, an IP (User) basic header, a general packet radio service (General Packet Radio Service, GPRS) tunneling protocol (GPRS Tunneling Protocol) extension header, a user datagram protocol (User Datagram Protocol, UDP) extension header, an IPv6 extension header, and an Ethernet extension header. Among them, the IP basic header refers to the IPv6 basic header.

[0122] See also Figure 4 , Figure 4 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a possible format of a message header including an MPLS header. From the figure, it can be seen that the MPLS header can be located between the UDP extension header and the IPv6 extension header.

[0123] S204: The first device sends a second message to the second device.

[0124] After generating the second message, the first device may send the second message to the second device. The second device is a network device of the bearer network, for example, Figure 1 Any one of network device 131, network device 132, network device 133 and network device 134.

[0125] S205: The second device determines the network slice of the bearer network according to the network slice mapping information.

[0126] After receiving the second message, the second device can determine the network slice of the bearer network corresponding to the first message according to the network slice mapping information. Optionally, the second device can determine the identifier of the network slice of the bearer network, i.e., the transport network slice identifier (TNSI), according to the network slice mapping information, thereby determining the network slice of the bearer network corresponding to the first message.

[0127] According to the foregoing introduction, the network slice mapping information may include information of the access network (or mobile core network), and may also include information related to the network slice of the bearer network. The method for the second device to determine the network slice of the bearer network is described in detail below.

[0128] In a first possible implementation, the network slice mapping information includes information of the access network or the mobile core network, that is, the network slice mapping information includes a first network slice identifier and / or a quality of service parameter. Then, when determining the network slice of the bearer network, the second device can determine the network slice of the bearer network according to a pre-stored correspondence.

[0129] Take the example that the network slice mapping information includes the service quality parameters. The second device can store the correspondence between the service quality parameters and the bearer network slice identifier in advance. In this way, after receiving the second message, the second device can parse the second message and extract the service quality parameters, and then determine the bearer network slice identifier corresponding to the second message according to the correspondence, thereby determining the network slice of the bearer network corresponding to the bearer network slice identifier.

[0130] In a second possible implementation, the network slice mapping information includes information related to the network slice of the bearer network, that is, the network slice mapping information includes any one or more of a quality of service parameter identifier, a VPN identifier, a bearer network slice identifier, a business slice identifier, and a resource slice identifier. The second device can directly determine the network slice of the corresponding bearer network based on the network slice mapping information.

[0131] Take the network slice mapping information including the service quality parameter identifier as an example for explanation. When dividing the network slices of the bearer network, the second device can analyze the service quality parameters of the network slice of each bearer network and determine the service quality parameter identifier corresponding to the network slice of each bearer network. In this way, after receiving the second message, the second device can parse the second message and extract the service quality parameter identifier, and then determine the network slice of the bearer network corresponding to the service quality parameter identifier in the second message from the network slices of multiple bearer networks.

[0132] S206: The second device sends a second message to the third device according to the network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network.

[0133] After determining the network slice of the bearer network, the second device may send the second message to the third device according to the network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network. The third device may be a network device connected to the second device through the bearer network, for example, other network devices in the bearer network. In the embodiment of the present application, when the second device is Figure 1 When the second device is network device 131 , the third device may be network device 132 ; when the second device is network device 134 , the third device may be network device 133 .

[0134] After determining the network slice of the bearer network, the second device can use the network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network to send the second message to the third device. The network resources may include any one or more of bandwidth resources, cache resources and queue resources.

[0135] In the message forwarding method provided in the embodiment of the present application, the first device, which is a network device of the access network or a network device of the mobile core network, can first determine the network slice mapping information of the message and carry it in the message before sending the message to the second device, which is a network device of the bearer network. In this way, before the network device of the bearer network receives the message, the conditions that the network slice of the bearer network that transmits the message needs to meet (i.e., the network slice mapping information) can be determined in advance, and these conditions can be carried in the message and sent to the network device of the bearer network. After receiving the message, the network device of the bearer network can determine the conditions that the network slice of the bearer network that transmits the message needs to meet based on the network slice mapping information carried in the message. In this way, the network device of the bearer network can select the network slice of the bearer network that meets the network slice mapping information to forward the message.

[0136] Figure 5 A possible structural diagram of the first device involved in the above embodiment is shown. The device 500 can be implemented Figure 2 The function of the first device in the example shown. Figure 5 The network device 500 includes: an acquisition unit 501, a processing unit 502 and a sending unit 503. These units can perform the corresponding functions of the first device in the above method example. The acquisition unit 501 is used to support the device 500 to perform Figure 2 S201; processing unit 502, used to support the network device 500 to execute Figure 2 S202 and S203 in; sending unit 503, used to support the network device 500 to execute Figure 2 S204. For example, the receiving unit 501 is used to obtain a first message, and the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network; the processing unit 502 is used to determine network slice mapping information according to the first message; a second message is generated according to the first message, and the second message includes the network slice mapping information; the sending unit 503 is used to send the second message to a second device, and the second device is a network device of a bearer network, and the network slice mapping information is used to determine the network slice of the bearer network that forwards the second message. For the specific execution process, please refer to the above Figure 2 The detailed description of the corresponding steps in the illustrated embodiment will not be repeated here one by one.

[0137] Figure 6 A possible structural diagram of the second device involved in the above embodiment is shown. The device 600 can be implemented Figure 2 The function of the second device in the example shown. Figure 6, the network device 600 includes: an acquisition unit 601, a processing unit 602 and a sending unit 6033. These units can perform the corresponding functions of the second device in the above method example. For example, the receiving unit 601 is used to receive a second message from a first device, and the second message includes network slice mapping information; the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network, and the second device is a network device of a bearer network; the processing unit 602 is used to determine the corresponding network slice of the bearer network according to the network slice mapping information; the sending unit is used to send the second message using network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network. For the specific execution process, please refer to the above Figure 2 The detailed description of the corresponding steps in the illustrated embodiment will not be repeated here one by one.

[0138] It should be noted that the division of units in the embodiments of the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. The functional units in the embodiments of the present application may be integrated into a processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. For example, in the above embodiments, the acquisition unit and the processing unit may be the same unit or different units. The above integrated units may be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional units.

[0139] See also Figure 7 As shown, the embodiment of the invention provides a network system 700, which is used to implement the message forwarding method and message processing method in the above method embodiment. The system 700 includes a device 701 and a device 702. The device 701 can implement Figure 2 In the embodiment shown, the device 702 can implement the functions of the first device. Figure 2 The function of the second device in the embodiment shown. For the specific execution process, please refer to the above Figure 2 The detailed description of the corresponding steps in the illustrated embodiment will not be repeated here one by one.

[0140] Figure 8 It is a structural diagram of a device 800 provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 5 The network device 500, Figure 6 The network device 600 in the Figure 8 See the device shown in Figure 8 The device 800 includes at least one processor 801 , a communication bus 802 and at least one network interface 804 . Optionally, the device 800 may also include a memory 803 .

[0141] The processor 801 may be a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits (ICs) for controlling the execution of the program of the present application. The processor may be used to process the message to implement the message forwarding method and message processing method provided in the embodiments of the present application. For example, when Figure 2 The first device in Figure 8 When implemented by the device shown in the figure, the processor can be used to obtain a first message; determine network slice mapping information according to the first message; generate a second message according to the first message, the second message including the network slice mapping information; send the second message to a second device, the second device is a network device of the bearer network, and the network slice mapping information is used to determine the network slice of the bearer network for forwarding the second message. For another example, when Figure 2 The second device in Figure 8 When implemented by the device shown in the figure, the processor can be used to receive a second message from a first device, the second message including network slice mapping information; the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network; determine the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information; and use the network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network to send the second message. For specific functional implementation, please refer to the processing part of the second device in the method embodiment.

[0142] The communication bus 802 is used to transmit information between the processor 801 , the network interface 804 , and the memory 803 .

[0143] The memory 803 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions. The memory 803 may also be a random access memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and instructions. It may also be a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by the computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory 803 may exist independently and be connected to the processor 801 via the communication bus 802. The memory 803 may also be integrated with the processor 801.

[0144] Optionally, the memory 803 is used to store program codes or instructions for executing the solution of the present application, and the execution is controlled by the processor 801. The processor 801 is used to execute the program codes or instructions stored in the memory 803. The program code may include one or more software modules. Optionally, the processor 801 may also store program codes or instructions for executing the solution of the present application, in which case the processor 801 does not need to read the program codes or instructions from the memory 803.

[0145] The network interface 804 may be a device such as a transceiver, used to communicate with other devices or communication networks, and the communication network may be Ethernet, a radio access network (RAN), or a wireless local area network (WLAN), etc. In an embodiment of the present application, the network interface 804 may be used to receive messages sent by other nodes in the segment routing network, and may also send messages to other nodes in the segment routing network. The network interface 804 may be an Ethernet interface, a fast Ethernet (FE) interface, or a gigabit Ethernet (GE) interface, etc.

[0146] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the device 800 may include multiple processors, such as Figure 8 801 and processor 405 shown in . Each of these processors can be a single-core (single-CPU) processor or a multi-core (multi-CPU) processor. The processor here can refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores for processing data (such as computer program instructions).

[0147] Fig. 9 It is a structural diagram of a device 900 provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 2 The first device and the second device can be Fig. 9 See the device shown in Fig. 9In the device structure diagram shown, the device 900 includes a main control board and one or more interface boards. The main control board is connected to the interface board in communication. The main control board is also called a main processing unit (MPU) or a route processing card. The main control board includes a CPU and a memory. The main control board is responsible for controlling and managing various components in the device 900, including routing calculation, device management and maintenance functions. The interface board is also called a line processing unit (LPU) or a line card, which is used to receive and send messages. In some embodiments, the main control board and the interface board or the interface board and the interface board communicate through a bus. In some embodiments, the interface boards communicate through a switching fabric board. In this case, the device 900 also includes a switching fabric board, which is connected to the main control board and the interface board in communication. The switching fabric board is used to forward data between the interface boards. The switching fabric board can also be called a switch fabric unit (SFU). The interface board includes a CPU, a memory, a forwarding engine and an interface card (IC), wherein the interface card may include one or more network interfaces. The network interface may be an Ethernet interface, a FE interface, or a GE interface, etc. The CPU is connected to the memory, the forwarding engine, and the interface card in communication with each other. The memory is used to store the forwarding table. The forwarding engine is used to forward the received message based on the forwarding table stored in the memory. If the destination address of the received message is the IP address of the device 900, the message is sent to the CPU of the main control board or the interface board for processing; if the destination address of the received message is not the IP address of the device 900, the forwarding table is checked according to the destination. If the next hop and the outgoing interface corresponding to the destination address are found in the forwarding table, the message is forwarded to the outgoing interface corresponding to the destination address. The forwarding engine may be a network processor (NP). The interface card is also called a daughter card, which can be installed on the interface board and is responsible for converting the photoelectric signal into a data frame, and forwarding the data frame to the forwarding engine for processing or the interface board CPU after checking the legitimacy of the data frame. In some embodiments, the CPU may also perform the functions of the forwarding engine, such as realizing soft forwarding based on a general-purpose CPU, so that the forwarding engine is not required in the interface board. In some embodiments, the forwarding engine may be implemented by an ASIC or a field programmable gate array (FPGA). In some embodiments, the memory storing the forwarding table may also be integrated into the forwarding engine as a part of the forwarding engine.

[0148] The embodiment of the present application also provides a chip system, comprising: a processor, the processor is coupled to a memory, the memory is used to store programs or instructions, when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, the chip system realizes the above Figure 2 The method of the first device or the second device in the illustrated embodiment.

[0149] Optionally, the processor in the chip system may be one or more. The processor may be implemented by hardware or by software. When implemented by hardware, the processor may be a logic circuit, an integrated circuit, etc. When implemented by software, the processor may be a general-purpose processor implemented by reading software code stored in a memory.

[0150] Optionally, the memory in the chip system may be one or more. The memory may be integrated with the processor or may be separately provided with the processor, which is not limited in the present application. Exemplarily, the memory may be a non-transient processor, such as a read-only memory ROM, which may be integrated with the processor on the same chip or may be provided on different chips. The present application does not specifically limit the type of memory and the arrangement of the memory and the processor.

[0151] Exemplarily, the chip system can be an FPGA, an ASIC, a system on chip (SoC), a CPU, an NP, a digital signal processor (DSP), a microcontroller unit (MCU), a programmable logic device (PLD), or other integrated chips.

[0152] It should be understood that each step in the above method embodiment can be completed by an integrated logic circuit of hardware in a processor or by instructions in the form of software. The method steps disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware processor, or by a combination of hardware and software modules in a processor.

[0153] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, including instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enable the computer to execute the method in the aforementioned embodiment.

[0154] The terms "first", "second", "third", "fourth", etc. in the specification and claims of the present application and the above-mentioned drawings are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the data used in this way can be interchangeable where appropriate, so that the embodiments described herein can be implemented in an order other than that illustrated or described herein. In addition, the terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions, for example, a process, method, system, product or device that includes a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units that are clearly listed, but may include other steps or units that are not clearly listed or inherent to these processes, methods, products or devices.

[0155] In this application, "at least one item" means one or more, and "plurality" means two or more. "At least one of the following items" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can be represented by: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, c can be single or multiple. In this application, "A and / or B" is considered to include A alone, B alone, and A+B.

[0156] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0157] In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic. For example, the division of the units is only a logical module division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0158] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be obtained according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

[0159] In addition, each module unit in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated into a processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated unit can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software module units.

[0160] If the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software module unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application is essentially or the part that contributes to the prior art or all or part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product, and the computer software product is stored in a storage medium, including a number of instructions to enable a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: U disk, mobile hard disk, read-only memory (ROM, Read-Only Memory), random access memory (RAM, Random Access Memory), disk or optical disk and other media that can store program code.

[0161] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that in one or more of the above examples, the functions described in the present invention may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, the functions may be stored in a computer-readable medium or transmitted as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media and communication media, wherein communication media include any media that facilitates the transmission of a computer program from one place to another. The storage medium may be any available medium that a general or special-purpose computer can access.

[0162] The specific implementation methods described above further illustrate the objectives, technical solutions and beneficial effects of the present invention in detail. It should be understood that the above descriptions are only specific implementation methods of the present invention.

[0163] As described above, the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, rather than to limit them. Although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the aforementioned embodiments, or make equivalent replacements for some of the technical features therein. However, these modifications or replacements do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A method for forwarding a message, characterized in that: include: A first device obtains a first message, where the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network, and the first message is sent by a terminal device to the first device, or is sent by a network device or a server of another mobile core network to the first device; The first device determines network slice mapping information according to the first message; The first device generates a second message according to the first message, where the second message includes the network slice mapping information; The first device sends the second message to the second device, the second device is a network device of the bearer network, and the network slice mapping information is used by the second device to determine the network slice of the bearer network for forwarding the second message.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The network slice mapping information includes one or more of the following information: Quality of service parameters, virtual private network VPN identifier, quality of service parameter identifier, business slice identifier, resource slice identifier and bearer network slice identifier.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The network slice mapping information includes a first network slice identifier, which is used to identify a network slice of an access network that transmits the first message, or to identify a network slice of a core network that transmits the first message.

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The first device determines the network slice mapping information including: The first device determines a first network slice identifier according to the first message, where the first network slice identifier is used to identify a network slice of an access network that transmits the first message, or is used to identify a network slice of a core network that transmits the first message; The first device determines the network slice mapping information based on the first network slice identifier.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that The first network device stores a correspondence between a first network slice identifier and the network slice mapping information, and the first device determines the network slice mapping information according to the first network slice identifier, including: The first device determines the network slice mapping information based on the first network slice identifier and the corresponding relationship.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The first device determines the network slice mapping information including: The first device determines the network slice mapping information according to the attribute information of the first message, or, The first device determines the network slice mapping information based on the requirement information for transmitting the first message.

7. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The first device determines the network slice mapping information according to the first message, including: The first network device determines the first network slice identifier based on one or more of the service identifier, flow identifier and user identifier of the first message.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The second message includes any one or more of an Internet Protocol version 6 IPv6 extension header, an IPv6 basic header, an Ethernet header, and a Multi-Protocol Label Switching MPLS header, and any one or more of the IPv6 extension header, the IPv6 basic header, the Ethernet header, and the MPLS header carry the network slice mapping information.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The IPv6 extension header includes one or more of the following: Hop by Hop Options Header, Destination Options Header, Routing Header, and Segment Routing Header.

10. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The network slice mapping information is carried in the type-length-value TLV field of the IPv6 extension header.

11. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The network slice mapping information is carried in any one or more of the source address field, destination address field or flow label field of the IPv6 basic header.

12. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The Ethernet header includes a virtual local area network identification VLANID field, and the slice mapping information is carried in the VLAN ID field.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The first device is a base station or a customer premises equipment, and the second device is a router or a switch.

14. A message processing method, characterized in that: include: The second device receives a second message from the first device, where the second message includes network slice mapping information; The first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network, the second device is a network device of a bearer network, and the network slice mapping information is determined according to a first message, and the first message is sent by a terminal device to the first device, or is sent by a network device or server of another mobile core network to the first device; The second device determines the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information; The second device uses network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network to send the second message.

15. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that The network slice mapping information includes one or more of the following information: Virtual private network VPN identifier, service quality parameter identifier, business slice identifier, resource slice identifier and bearer network slice identifier.

16. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that The network slice mapping information includes one or more of the following information: A first network slice identifier and a quality of service parameter, wherein the first network slice identifier is used to identify a network slice of an access network that transmits the first message, or is used to identify a network slice of a core network that transmits the first message.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that The second device determines the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information, including: The second device determines a slice identifier of a network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information and the corresponding relationship, wherein the corresponding relationship is a corresponding relationship between the network slice mapping information and the bearer network slice identifier, and the bearer network slice identifier is a slice identifier of the network slice of the bearer network; The second device sending the second message using the network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network includes: The second device uses network resources corresponding to the bearer network slice identifier to send the second message.

18. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 17, characterized in that: The second message includes any one or more of an Internet Protocol version 6 IPv6 extension header, an IPv6 basic header, an Ethernet header and an MPLS header, and any one or more of the IPv6 extension header, the IPv6 basic header, the Ethernet header or the MPLS header carries the network slice mapping information.

19. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that The IPv6 extension header includes one or more of the following: Hop by Hop Options Header, Destination Options Header, Routing Header, and Segment Routing Header.

20. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that The network slice mapping information is carried in the type-length-value TLV field of the IPv6 extension header.

21. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that The network slice mapping information is carried in any one or more of the source address field, destination address field or flow label field of the IPv6 basic header.

22. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that The Ethernet header includes a virtual local area network identification VLANID field, and the slice mapping information is carried in the VLAN ID field.

23. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 17, characterized in that: The first device is a base station or a customer premises equipment, and the second device is a router or a switch.

24. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 17, characterized in that: The network resources include any one or more of bandwidth resources, cache resources and queue resources.

25. A device, characterized in that A network system comprising a plurality of devices, wherein the plurality of network devices include a first device and a second device, the device is the first device, and the device comprises: an acquiring unit, configured to acquire a first message, wherein the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network, and the first message is sent by a terminal device to the first device, or is sent by a network device or a server of another mobile core network to the first device; A processing unit, configured to determine network slice mapping information according to the first message; and generate a second message according to the first message, wherein the second message includes the network slice mapping information; A sending unit is used to send the second message to a second device, where the second device is a network device of a bearer network, and the network slice mapping information is used by the second device to determine the network slice of the bearer network for forwarding the second message.

26. The device according to claim 25, characterized in that The network slice mapping information includes one or more of the following information: Quality of service parameters, virtual private network VPN identifier, quality of service parameter identifier, business slice identifier, resource slice identifier and bearer network slice identifier.

27. The device according to claim 25, characterized in that The network slice mapping information includes a first network slice identifier, which is used to identify a network slice of an access network that transmits the first message, or to identify a network slice of a core network that transmits the first message.

28. The device according to claim 25 or 26, characterized in that The processing unit is used to determine a first network slice identifier according to the first message, where the first network slice identifier is used to identify a network slice of an access network that transmits the first message, or is used to identify a network slice of a core network that transmits the first message; Determine the network slice mapping information according to the first network slice identifier.

29. The device according to claim 28, characterized in that The first network device stores a correspondence between a first network slice identifier and the network slice mapping information; The processing unit is used to determine the network slice mapping information based on the first network slice identifier and the corresponding relationship.

30. The device according to any one of claims 25 to 27, characterized in that The processing unit is used to determine the network slice mapping information according to the attribute information of the first message, or to determine the network slice mapping information according to the requirement information for transmitting the first message.

31. The device according to claim 27, characterized in that The processing unit is used to determine the first network slice identifier based on one or more of the service identifier, flow identifier and user identifier of the first message.

32. The device according to any one of claims 25 to 27, characterized in that The second message includes any one or more of an Internet Protocol version 6 IPv6 extension header, an IPv6 basic header, an Ethernet header, and a Multi-Protocol Label Switching MPLS header, and any one or more of the IPv6 extension header, the IPv6 basic header, the Ethernet header, and the MPLS header carry the network slice mapping information.

33. The device according to claim 32, characterized in that The IPv6 extension header includes one or more of the following: Hop by Hop Options Header, Destination Options Header, Routing Header, and Segment Routing Header.

34. The device according to claim 32, characterized in that The network slice mapping information is carried in the type-length-value TLV field of the IPv6 extension header.

35. The device according to claim 32, characterized in that The network slice mapping information is carried in any one or more of the source address field, destination address field or flow label field of the IPv6 basic header.

36. The device according to claim 32, characterized in that The Ethernet header includes a virtual local area network identification VLANID field, and the slice mapping information is carried in the VLAN ID field.

37. A device, characterized in that A network system comprising a plurality of devices, wherein the plurality of network devices include a first device and a second device, the device being the second device, and the device comprising: A receiving unit, configured to receive a second message from a first device, where the second message includes network slice mapping information; the first device is a network device of an access network or a mobile core network, the second device is a network device of a bearer network, and the network slice mapping information is determined according to the first message, where the first message is sent by a terminal device to the first device, or is sent by a network device or server of another mobile core network to the first device; A processing unit, configured to determine a network slice of a corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information; A sending unit is used to send the second message using network resources corresponding to the network slice of the bearer network.

38. The device according to claim 37, characterized in that The network slice mapping information includes one or more of the following information: Virtual private network VPN identifier, service quality parameter identifier, business slice identifier, resource slice identifier and bearer network slice identifier.

39. The device according to claim 37, characterized in that The network slice mapping information includes one or more of the following information: A first network slice identifier and a quality of service parameter, wherein the first network slice identifier is used to identify a network slice of an access network that transmits the first message, or is used to identify a network slice of a core network that transmits the first message.

40. The device according to claim 39, characterized in that The processing unit is used to determine the slice identifier of the network slice of the corresponding bearer network according to the network slice mapping information and the corresponding relationship, wherein the corresponding relationship is the corresponding relationship between the network slice mapping information and the bearer network slice identifier, and the bearer network slice identifier is the slice identifier of the network slice of the bearer network; The sending unit is used to send the second message using network resources corresponding to the bearer network slice identifier.

41. Apparatus according to any one of claims 37 to 40, characterised in that The second message includes any one or more of an Internet Protocol version 6 IPv6 extension header, an IPv6 basic header, an Ethernet header and an MPLS header, and any one or more of the IPv6 extension header, the IPv6 basic header, the Ethernet header or the MPLS header carries the network slice mapping information.

42. The device according to claim 41, characterized in that The IPv6 extension header includes one or more of the following: Hop by Hop Options Header, Destination Options Header, Routing Header, and Segment Routing Header.

43. The device according to claim 41, characterized in that The network slice mapping information is carried in the type-length-value TLV field of the IPv6 extension header.

44. The device according to claim 41, characterized in that The network slice mapping information is carried in any one or more of the source address field, destination address field or flow label field of the IPv6 basic header.

45. The device according to claim 41, characterized in that The Ethernet header includes a virtual local area network identification VLANID field, and the slice mapping information is carried in the VLAN ID field.

46. ​​A network system, characterized in that: The network system comprises a first device as described in any one of claims 25 to 36 and a second device as described in any one of claims 37 to 45.

47. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that The method comprises instructions, programs or codes, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 24.

48. A chip, characterized in that: The method comprises a memory and a processor, wherein the memory is used to store instructions or program codes, and the processor is used to call and run the instructions or program codes from the memory to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 24.

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