Message handling in fifth generation network

Abstract

To provide a method for processing a message in a fifth generation network, and a node that operates in conformity with the method.SOLUTION: A method is performed by a first service communication proxy (SCP) node 10 of a service consumer, and configured to receive a message from a second network node 30. The message includes an indication that a second NF node is under testing in the network. The indication signals that the second NF node is a candidate for selection when selecting at least one second NF node towards which network traffic is to be transmitted, and the message includes load information for the second NF node. The indication signals that the load information represents a predefined amount of network traffic that the second NF node is required to receive.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a method for processing messages in a fifth-generation network and a node configured to operate according to the method.

Background Art

[0002] There are various techniques for processing requests for services within a network. Service requests generally go from a consumer of the service (“service consumer”) to a producer of the service (“service producer”). For example, a service request can go from a network function (NF) node of a service consumer to an NF node of a service producer. The NF node of the service consumer and the NF node of the service producer can communicate directly or indirectly. These are referred to as direct communication and indirect communication, respectively. In the case of indirect communication, the NF node of the service consumer and the NF node of the service producer can communicate via a service communication proxy (SCP) node.

[0003] Figures 1A - 1D show different existing systems for processing service requests as described in 3GPP TS 23.501 v16.4.0. More specifically, Figures 1A and 1B show systems using direct communication, and Figures 1C and 1D show systems using indirect communication.

[0004] In the systems shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, a service request is sent directly from the NF node of the service consumer to the NF node of the service producer. The response to the service request is sent directly from the NF node of the service producer to the NF node of the service consumer. Similarly, any subsequent service request is sent directly from the NF node of the service consumer to the NF node of the service producer. The system shown in FIG. 1B also includes a Network Repository Function (NRF) node. Therefore, in the system shown in FIG. 1B, the NF node of the service consumer can query the NRF node to discover the appropriate NF node of the service producer that will be the destination of the service request. In response to such a query, the NF node of the service consumer can receive NF profiles for one or more NF nodes of the service producer and can select the NF node of the service producer that will be the destination of the service request based on the received NF profile(s). In the system shown in FIG. 1A, the NRF node is not used. Instead, the NF profile(s) of the NF node(s) of the service producer can be configured in the NF node of the service consumer.

[0005] In the systems shown in FIGS. 1C and 1D, a service request is sent indirectly from the NF node of the service consumer to the NF node of the service producer via a Service Communication Proxy (SCP) node. The response to the service request is sent indirectly from the NF node of the service producer to the NF node of the service consumer via the SCP node. Similarly, any subsequent service request is sent indirectly from the NF node of the service consumer to the NF node of the service producer via the SCP node. The systems shown in FIGS. 1C and 1D also include an NRF node.

[0006] In the system shown in FIG. 1C, the NF node of the service consumer can query the NRF node to discover the appropriate NF node of the service producer that is the destination of the service request. In response to such a query, the NF node of the service consumer can receive an NF profile for one or more NF nodes of the service producer, and based on the received (one or more) NF profiles, can select the NF node of the service producer that is the destination of the service request. In this case, the service request sent from the NF node of the service consumer to the SCP node includes the address of the selected NF node of the service producer. The NF node of the service consumer can forward the service request without performing further discovery or selection. If the selected NF node of the service producer is not accessible for some reason, it may be up to the NF node of the service consumer to find an alternative. In other cases, the SCP node may communicate with the NRF node to obtain selection parameters (e.g., location, capacity, etc.), and the SCP node may select the NF node of the service producer that is the destination of the service request.

[0007] In the system shown in FIG. 1D, the NF node of the service consumer does not perform a discovery or selection process. Instead, the NF node of the service consumer adds any necessary discovery and selection parameters (required to find the appropriate NF node of the service producer) to the service request being sent via the SCP node. The SCP node uses the request address within the service request and the discovery and selection parameters to route the service request to the appropriate NF node of the service producer. The SCP node can perform discovery using the NRF node.

[0008] In the case of the 5th generation core (5GC), since Release 16, the SCP node is included as a network element that enables indirect communication between the NF nodes of the service consumer and the NF nodes of the service producer. The indirect communication used can be either of the two indirect communication options described above with reference to FIGS. 1C and 1D.

[0009] According to the system described above, the NF node of the service consumer or the SCP node needs to initially select (or, for example, re - select) the NF node of the service producer among, for example, a plurality of functionally equivalent instances of the NF node of the service producer. Generally, this selection (or re - selection) is based on one or more characteristics (or attributes) of the NF node of the service producer, such as those defined in the profile of the NF node of the service producer. Examples of characteristics include the priority assigned to the NF node of the service producer, the locality of the NF node of the service producer, the capacity of the NF node of the service producer, and the load on the NF node of the service producer. In some cases, the selection (or re - selection) can take into account other information from the NF node of the service producer, such as load information received in a response from the NF node of the service producer, and / or any configured policies, such as which locality should be prioritized over another.

[0010] 3GPP TS 29.500 v17.1.0 defines two load control mechanisms. The first load control mechanism relies on the NF node of the service producer updating the load information in its profile stored in the NRF node, such that the NF node of the service consumer or SCP node can discover this NF profile containing the load information. The second load control mechanism relies on the NF node of the service producer signaling the load information to the NF node of the service consumer or SCP node. Generally, the load information in both mechanisms includes values from 0 (minimum) to 100 (maximum), which provides an indication of resource usage at the NF node of the service producer. For example, if the load information of the NF node of the service producer contains a value of 100, the NF node of the service consumer or SCP node interprets this as indicating that no new requests should be sent towards the NF node of the service producer. On the other hand, if the load information of the NF node of the service producer contains a value of 0, the NF node of the service consumer or SCP node interprets this as indicating that the NF node of the service producer is not processing network traffic (i.e., there is no load on the NF node of the service producer). As a result, based on the load information, the NF node of the service consumer or SCP node can select a less loaded target.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0011] In a network, it may be necessary to introduce new resources and / or new upgrades (e.g., features). For example, there may be several situations where a customer may request this. However, this currently requires specific implementations and / or settings at the NF node of the service consumer or SCP node, and there is currently no mechanism defined in the art to support this.

[0012] In 5GC, it is defined that an Application Programming Interface version (API version) can be included in the profile of the NF node of the service producer. With this API version, the NF node of the service consumer can only select instances of NF nodes that have this specific API version. In some cases, a new API version or even a dummy API version can be defined for testing purposes. However, the use of the API version in the case of including upgraded software (e.g., tested before final introduction in the network) requires that the NF node of the service consumer must select a specific API version (e.g., API version X). For this reason, specific logic is required in the NF node of the service consumer. This can be a problem because it may only be possible to include specific logic for instances of the same vendor or based on an integration project.

[0013] An object of the present disclosure is to prevent or remove at least some of the above-mentioned drawbacks related to the existing technology.

[0014] Accordingly, according to one aspect of the present disclosure, a method for processing messages in a fifth-generation network is provided. The method is executed by a first network node. The first network node is a first network function (NF) node of a service consumer or a first service communication proxy (SCP) node configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node and one or more second NF nodes of a service producer. The method includes receiving a message from a second network node. The message includes an indication that a second NF node among one or more second NF nodes is in a test in the network. The indication informs the first network node that the second NF node is a selection candidate when the second NF node selects at least one second NF node among one or more second NF nodes as a destination of network traffic, and / or the message includes load information about the second NF node, and the indication informs the first network node that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node needs to receive.

[0015] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a first network node is also provided that includes a processing circuit configured to operate according to this method described with respect to the first network node. In some embodiments, the first network node may include at least one memory for storing instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit, cause the first network node to operate according to this method described with respect to the first network node.

[0016] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, other methods for processing messages in a fifth-generation network are also provided. The method is executed by a second network node. The method includes initiating transmission of a message to a first network node. The first network node is either a first network function (NF) node of a service consumer or a first service communication proxy (SCP) node configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node and one or more second NF nodes of a service producer. The message includes an indication that a second NF node among the one or more second NF nodes is under test in the network. The indication signals to the first network node that the second NF node is a selection candidate when the second NF node selects at least one second NF node among the one or more second NF nodes as a destination for network traffic, and / or the message includes load information about the second NF node, and the indication signals to the first network node that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node needs to receive.

[0017] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a second network node is provided that includes a processing circuit configured to operate according to this method described with respect to the second network node. In some embodiments, the second network node may include at least one memory for storing instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit, cause the second network node to operate according to this method described with respect to the second network node.

[0018] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a method executed by a system is provided. The method includes the method described with respect to the first network node and the method described with respect to the second network node.

[0019] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a system is provided that includes at least one of the foregoing first network nodes and at least one of the foregoing second network nodes.

[0020] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer program including instructions that, when executed by a processing circuit, cause the processing circuit to execute the method described for the first network node and / or the method described for the second network node.

[0021] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer program product embodied on a non-transitory machine-readable medium including instructions executable by a processing circuit to cause the processing circuit to execute the method described for the first network node and / or the method described for the second network node.

[0022] Accordingly, improved techniques for processing messages in a fifth-generation network are provided.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0023] For a better understanding of the present technology and to show how they may be implemented, reference is now made to the following accompanying drawings, by way of example only.

[0024]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

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Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

[0025] Hereinafter, some embodiments considered in this specification will be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, other embodiments are within the scope of the subject matter disclosed herein, and the disclosed subject matter should not be construed as limited to only the embodiments described herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided as examples to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled in the art.

[0026] As described above, advantageous techniques for processing messages in a fifth-generation network are described herein. The techniques described herein can be used with any 5G network, such as any fifth-generation (5G) communication or telecommunications network (e.g., a cellular network). In some embodiments, the network can be a core network or a radio access network (RAN). The techniques described herein are implemented by a first network node and a second network node. The first network node is either a first network function (NF) node of a service consumer or a first service communication proxy (SCP) node configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node and one or more second NF nodes of a service producer. The second network node is either a second NF node of a service producer or a network repository function (NRF) node.

[0027] The present technology is described herein in relation to one or more NF nodes of one or more service consumers and one or more NF nodes of one or more service producers, but it should be understood that an NF node can act (e.g., operate) as an NF node of a service consumer and / or as an NF node of a service producer.

[0028] NF is a processing function within a network that is adopted by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP (registered trademark)) or defined by 3GPP, which has defined functional behavior and interfaces defined by 3GPP. An NF can be implemented as a network element on dedicated hardware, as a software instance executed on dedicated hardware, or as a virtualized function instantiated on a suitable platform (e.g., on a cloud infrastructure). In this specification, the term "node" with respect to an "NF node" is to be understood to cover each of these scenarios. In this specification, a reference to multiple NF nodes of a service producer can refer to, for example, functionally equivalent instances of NF nodes of a service producer.

[0029] FIG. 2 shows second network nodes 30, 60 according to one embodiment. The second network nodes 30, 60 are for processing messages in a 5th generation network. In some embodiments, the second network nodes 30, 60 can be, for example, a physical machine (e.g., a server) or a virtual machine (VM). The second network nodes 30, 60 can be a second NF node 30 of a service producer or an NRF node 60.

[0030] As shown in FIG. 2, the second network nodes 30, 60 comprise a processing circuit (or logic) 32. The processing circuit 32 controls the operation of the second network nodes 30, 60 and can implement the methods described herein with respect to the second network nodes 30, 60. The processing circuit 32 can be configured or programmed to control the second network nodes 30, 60 according to the methods described herein. The processing circuit 32 can comprise one or more hardware components such as one or more processors, one or more processing units, one or more multi-core processors and / or one or more modules. In certain implementations, each of the one or more hardware components can be configured to execute, or be for executing, individual steps or multiple steps of the methods described herein with respect to the second network nodes 30, 60. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 32 can be configured to execute software to perform the methods described herein with respect to the second network nodes 30, 60. The software can be stored according to some embodiments. For this reason, in some embodiments, the processing circuit 32 can be configured to execute a container to perform the methods described herein with respect to the second network nodes 30, 60.

[0031] Briefly stated, the processing circuits 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60 are configured to initiate transmission of a message to the first network node. The first network node is either a first NF node of a service consumer or a first SCP node configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node and one or more second NF nodes of a service producer. The message includes an indication that a second NF node among the one or more second NF nodes is being tested in the network. The indication signals to the first network node that the second NF node is a selection candidate when the second NF node selects at least one second NF node among the one or more second NF nodes to be a destination of network traffic, and / or the message includes load information about the second NF node, and the indication signals to the first network node that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node needs to receive.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 2, in some embodiments, the second network nodes 30, 60 may optionally include a memory 34. The memory 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60 may include volatile memory or non-volatile memory. In some embodiments, the memory 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60 may include a non-transitory medium. Examples of the memory 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60 include, but are not limited to, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), mass storage media such as hard disks, removable storage media such as compact discs (CDs) or digital video discs (DVDs), and / or any other memory.

[0033] The processing circuits 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60 can be communicatively coupled (e.g., connected) to the memories 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60. In some embodiments, the memory 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60 can be for storing program code or instructions that, when executed by the processing circuits 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60, cause the second network nodes 30, 60 to operate in the manner described herein with respect to the second network nodes 30, 60. For example, in some embodiments, the memory 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60 is configured to store program code or instructions that, when executed by the processing circuits 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60, can cause the second network nodes 30, 60 to operate according to the methods described herein with respect to the second network nodes 30, 60. Alternatively or additionally, the memory 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60 can be configured to store any information, data, messages, requests, responses, indications, notifications, signals, or the like, described herein. The processing circuits 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60 can be configured to control the memory 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60 to store the information, data, messages, requests, responses, indications, notifications, signals, or the like, described herein.

[0034] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 2, the second network nodes 30, 60 may optionally include a communication interface 36. The communication interface 36 of the second network nodes 30, 60 may be communicatively coupled (e.g., connected) to the processing circuitry 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60 and / or the memory 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60. The communication interface 36 of the second network nodes 30, 60 may be operable to enable the processing circuitry 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60 to communicate with the memory 34 of the second network nodes 30, 60 and / or vice versa. Similarly, the communication interface 36 of the second network nodes 30, 60 may be operable to enable the processing circuitry 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60 to communicate with the first network node and / or any other node mentioned herein. The communication interface 36 of the second network nodes 30, 60 may be configured to transmit and / or receive information, data, messages, requests, responses, indications, notifications, signals, or the like described herein. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60 may be configured to control the communication interface 36 of the second network nodes 30, 60 to transmit and / or receive information, data, messages, requests, responses, indications, notifications, signals, or the like described herein.

[0035] The second network nodes 30, 60 are shown in FIG. 2 as having a single memory 34, but it will be understood that the second network nodes 30, 60 may comprise at least one memory (i.e., a single memory or multiple memories) 34 that operates in the manner described herein. Similarly, the second network nodes 30, 60 are shown in FIG. 2 as having a single communication interface 36, but it will be understood that the second network nodes 30, 60 may comprise at least one communication interface (i.e., a single communication interface or multiple communication interfaces) 36 that operates in the manner described herein. Also, FIG. 2 shows only the components necessary to illustrate an embodiment of the second network nodes 30, 60, and it will be understood that in an actual implementation, the second network nodes 30, 60 may comprise additional or alternative components to those shown.

[0036] FIG. 3 shows a method executed by a second network node 30, 60, according to one embodiment. The method is for processing messages in a fifth generation network. The second network nodes 30, 60 described above with reference to FIG. 2 may be configured to operate according to the method of FIG. 3. In some embodiments, the method may be executed by, or under the control of, the processing circuitry 32 of the second network node 30, 60. As described above, the second network node may be a second NF node or an NRF node of a service producer.

[0037] As shown in block 302 of FIG. 3, the transmission of a message is initiated towards a first network node. As described above, the first network node is either a first NF node of a service consumer or a first SCP node configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node and one or more second NF nodes of a service producer. In this specification, the term "initiate" may mean, for example, "cause" or "establish". Thus, the second network nodes 30, 60 (e.g., the processing circuit 32 of the second network nodes 30, 60) may be configured to transmit a message themselves or to cause a message to be transmitted to another node (e.g., via the communication interface 36 of the second network nodes 30, 60).

[0038] The message includes an indication that a second NF node among one or more second NF nodes is under test in the network. The indication signals to the first network node that the second NF node is a selection candidate when selecting at least one of the one or more second NF nodes that will be the destination of network traffic, and / or the message includes load information about the second NF node. Advantageously, the indication signals to the first network node that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node needs to receive.

[0039] In existing load control mechanisms, the load information indicates the load (e.g., resource usage) on the second NF node. However, by the indication referred to in this specification, these standard load control mechanisms can be updated such that the load information does not refer to the load on the second NF node, but instead advantageously refers to the expected load to be transmitted to the second NF node. In the art, load information may also be referred to as load control information.

[0040] In this specification, an update (such as software, e.g., a new service, an update) to a second NF node, or to a second NF node among one or more second NF nodes that is being tested in the network, may be fully or partially tested separately from the network in a lab (e.g., within a vendor's premises) etc. before being tested in the network. In some situations, for example, the second NF node may be tested separately from the network, but the interaction of the second NF node with other NF nodes may need to be tested in the network. Similarly, for example, a service newly introduced to the second NF node (or any other update to the second NF node) may be tested separately from the network, but the interaction of this newly introduced service with other services may need to be tested in the network. These interactions may cause errors. Therefore, in this specification, an indication that refers to signaling (signaling) to a first network node that the second NF node is a selection candidate when the second NF node selects at least one second NF node that is a destination of network traffic among one or more second NF nodes allows the second NF node to be deployed in the network in a controlled manner. This control enables errors to be identified and actions to be taken (e.g., by a network operator) to avoid errors occurring in a wider network.

[0041] For example, if it is found that an error occurs when testing a second NF node in a network, can the second NF node be removed from the network, or can any upgrade (e.g., software upgrade) or modification to the second NF node be removed or discarded? The second NF node being tested in the network can be, for example, a second NF node newly introduced into the network, or a second NF node already included in the network but upgraded or modified (e.g., itself being upgraded or modified, and / or one or more services it can provide being upgraded or modified), or the second NF node can be under test in the network for any other reason. Therefore, in the method described herein, it is possible to limit the impact of newly introduced NF nodes and / or newly introduced upgrades or modifications that may not be operating properly, because actions can be taken before extending the use of this NF node and / or upgrade or modification in the network (e.g., to the entire network).

[0042] In some embodiments, the profile of the second NF node 30 can include the indications and / or load information referred to herein. In some embodiments, the profile may include one or more attributes about the second NF node 30, and some of the one or more attributes about the second NF node 30 may be set as indications. Although not shown in FIG. 3, in some embodiments, the method can include setting an attribute as an indication. The attribute can be, for example, a local attribute indicating the location of the second NF node 30, or any other attribute about the second NF node 30. In some embodiments, the attribute can be an attribute that is prioritized (e.g., considered first) when selecting at least one second NF node 30.

[0043] In some embodiments, the attribute can be an attribute that matches or at least partially matches the corresponding attribute of the first NF node. In some embodiments, for example, the attribute can be set to a certain value, and when the value of the attribute is the same as the value of the corresponding attribute, the attribute can match the corresponding attribute. Similarly, for example, the attribute can be set to a plurality of values, and when the value of the attribute is the same as the value of the corresponding attribute, the attribute can match the corresponding attribute, or when one or more (or a predetermined percentage) of the values of the attribute are the same as one or more of the values of the corresponding attribute, the attribute can partially match the corresponding attribute. In some embodiments, the first NF node can further be under test in the network.

[0044] In some embodiments where the second network node is the second NF node, the message can be a response to a service request. The service request is a request asking the second NF node to provide a service requested by the first NF node of the service consumer. Generally, a service is software that is intended to be managed for the user. In this specification, a service can be any type of service, such as a communication service (e.g., a notification service or a callback service), a context management (e.g., user equipment context management (UECM)) service, a data management (DM) service, or any other type of service. In this specification, a reference to providing a service can refer to, for example, executing or operating the service.

[0045] In other embodiments where the second network node is the NRF node, the message may include the profile of the second NF node as described above. In some of these embodiments, the transmission of the message may be initiated in response to a change in load information (e.g., included in the profile) and / or in response to a discovery request. A discovery request is a request for information indicating one or more second NF nodes for providing the service requested by the first NF node. In some embodiments, the first network node may be subscribed to receive notifications about changes in load information.

[0046] In some embodiments, the message may include a load control information (LCI) header, and the LCI header may include an indication. In some embodiments, the predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node needs to receive may be a predetermined percentage of the total amount of network traffic available for transmission.

[0047] In some embodiments, selecting at least one second NF node 30 out of one or more second NF nodes may be for at least one second NF node 30 to provide the service requested by the first NF node 20, and / or the network traffic may include a service request that is a request for the service to be provided (requested by the first NF node 20).

[0048] Although not shown in FIG. 3, in some embodiments where the second network node is the second NF node 30, the method may include receiving network traffic, such as a predetermined amount of network traffic (e.g., via the communication interface 36 of the second NF node 30). In some embodiments, the network traffic, such as a predetermined amount of network traffic, may be of the same type as the second NF node 30 (e.g., in the case of an initial selection) and / or may also be received by at least one other second NF node within the same group of second NF nodes as the second NF node 30 (e.g., in the case of a reselection). In some embodiments, network traffic, such as a remaining amount of network traffic available for transmission (or remaining traffic), may be received by at least one other second NF node among one or more second NF nodes. In some embodiments, at least two other second NF nodes among one or more second NF nodes may receive network traffic (e.g., the remaining amount of network traffic). In these embodiments, the network traffic may be distributed among the at least two other second NF nodes in order to balance the load on the at least two other second NF nodes.

[0049] As described above, in existing load control mechanisms, the load information may indicate the load (e.g., resource usage) on the second NF node. However, with the indication referred to herein, these standard load control mechanisms can be updated such that the load information does not refer to the load on the second NF node, but instead advantageously refers to the expected load to be sent to the second NF node. In some embodiments, the load information described herein may include a value that normally indicates the load on the second NF node, such as a value between 0 and 100. For example, in existing control mechanisms, a value of 0 indicates that there is no load on the second NF node (e.g., no resources are in use at the second NF node), and a value of 100 indicates that the second NF node has a full load (e.g., all resources are in use at the second NF node). However, with the indication referred to herein, the first network node can be notified that the expected load to be sent to the second NF node is what this value actually represents. For example, if the load information includes a value of 30, the first network node can be notified by an indication that 30% of the total network traffic needs to be sent towards the second NF node. The remaining network traffic (i.e., 70%) can be distributed among other second NF nodes (e.g., the load can be balanced).

[0050] Figure 4 shows first network nodes 10, 20 according to one embodiment. The first network nodes 10, 20 are for processing messages in a fifth generation network. In some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 can be, for example, a physical machine (e.g., a server) or a virtual machine (VM). The first network nodes 10, 20 are either the first NF node 20 of a service consumer or the first SCP node 10 configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node 20 and one or more second NF nodes of a service producer.

[0051] As shown in FIG. 4, the first network nodes 10, 20 include a processing circuit (or logic) 12. The processing circuit 12 controls the operation of the first network nodes 10, 20 and may implement the methods described herein with respect to the first network nodes 10, 20. The processing circuit 12 may be configured or programmed to control the first network nodes 10, 20 according to the methods described herein. The processing circuit 12 may include one or more hardware components such as one or more processors, one or more processing units, one or more multi-core processors, and / or one or more modules. In certain implementations, each of the one or more hardware components may be configured to perform, or be for performing, individual steps or multiple steps of the methods described herein with respect to the first network nodes 10, 20. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 12 may be configured to execute software to perform the methods described herein with respect to the first network nodes 10, 20. The software may be stored according to some embodiments. For this reason, in some embodiments, the processing circuit 12 may be configured to execute a container to perform the methods described herein with respect to the first network nodes 10, 20.

[0052] Briefly stated, the processing circuit 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20 is configured to receive a message from a second network node. The message includes an indication that a second NF node among one or more second NF nodes is in a test in the network. The indication signals to the first network node that the second NF node is a selection candidate when the second NF node selects at least one second NF node among the one or more second NF nodes to be a destination of network traffic, and / or the message includes load information about the second NF node, and the indication signals to the first network node that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node needs to receive.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 4, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may optionally include a memory 14. The memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may include volatile memory or non-volatile memory. In some embodiments, the memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may include a non-transitory medium. Examples of the memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20 include, but are not limited to, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), mass storage media such as hard disks, removable storage media such as compact discs (CDs) or digital video discs (DVDs), and / or any other memory.

[0054] The processing circuit 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may be communicatively coupled (e.g., connected) to the memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20. In some embodiments, the memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may be for storing program code or instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20, cause the first network nodes 10, 20 to operate in the manner described herein with respect to the first network nodes 10, 20. For example, in some embodiments, the memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20 is configured to store program code or instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20, can cause the first network nodes 10, 20 to operate according to the methods described herein with respect to the first network nodes 10, 20. Alternatively or additionally, the memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may be configured to store any information, data, messages, requests, responses, indications, notifications, signals, or the like described herein. The processing circuit 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may be configured to control the memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20 to store the information, data, messages, requests, responses, indications, notifications, signals, or the like described herein.

[0055] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 4, the first network nodes 10, 20 may optionally include a communication interface 16. The communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may be communicatively coupled (e.g., connected) to the processing circuitry 12 and / or the memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20. The communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may be operable to enable the processing circuitry 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20 to communicate with the memory 14 of the first network nodes 10, 20 and / or vice versa. Similarly, the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may be operable to enable the processing circuitry 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20 to communicate with the second network nodes 30, 60 and / or any other node mentioned herein. The communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may be configured to transmit and / or receive information, data, messages, requests, responses, indications, notifications, signals, or the like described herein. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20 may be configured to control the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20 to transmit and / or receive information, data, messages, requests, responses, indications, notifications, signals, or the like described herein.

[0056] The first network nodes 10, 20 are shown in FIG. 2 as having a single memory 14, but it will be understood that the first network nodes 10, 20 may comprise at least one memory (i.e., a single memory or multiple memories) 14 that operates in the manner described herein. Similarly, the first network nodes 10, 20 are shown in FIG. 4 as having a single communication interface 16, but it will be understood that the first network nodes 10, 20 may comprise at least one communication interface (i.e., a single communication interface or multiple communication interfaces) 16 that operates in the manner described herein. Further, FIG. 4 shows only the components necessary to illustrate an embodiment of the first network nodes 10, 20, and it will be understood that in an actual implementation, the first network nodes 10, 20 may comprise additional or alternative components to those shown.

[0057] FIG. 5 shows a method executed by the first network nodes 10, 20 according to one embodiment. This method is for processing messages in a fifth-generation network. The first network nodes 10, 20 described above with reference to FIG. 4 may be configured to operate according to the method of FIG. 5. In some embodiments, this method may be executed by, or under the control of, the processing circuitry 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20.

[0058] As shown in block 102 of FIG. 5, a message is received from a second network node (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20). The message includes an indication that a second NF node among one or more second NF nodes is being tested in the network. The indication signals to the first network node that it is a selection candidate when the second NF node selects at least one second NF node among one or more second NF nodes to be the destination of network traffic, and / or the message includes load information about the second NF node. Advantageously, the indication signals to the first network node that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node needs to receive.

[0059] In some embodiments, the profile of the second NF node 30 may include an indication and / or load information. In some embodiments, the profile may include one or more attributes about the second NF node 30, and an attribute among the one or more attributes about the second NF node 30 may be set as the indication. The attribute can be, for example, a local attribute indicating the location of the second NF node 30, or any other attribute about the second NF node 30. In some embodiments, the attribute can be an attribute that is prioritized when selecting at least one second NF node 30. In some embodiments, for example, as described above, the attribute can be an attribute that matches or at least partially matches the corresponding attribute of the first NF node. In some embodiments, the first NF node may be being tested in the network.

[0060] As described above, the second network node can be the second NF node 30 or the NRF node 60. In some embodiments where the second network node is the second NF node 30, the message can be a response to a service request. The service request is a request asking the second NF node 30 to provide the service requested by the first NF node 20. In other embodiments where the second network node is the NRF node 60, the message can include the profile of the second NF node described above.

[0061] In some embodiments, the message can be received in response to a change in load information (e.g., included in the profile) and / or in response to a discovery request. The discovery request is a request asking for information indicating one or more second NF nodes for providing the service requested by the first NF node 20. In some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 can be subscribed to receive notifications about changes in load information.

[0062] In some embodiments, the message may include a Load Control Information (LCI) header, and the LCI header may include an indication. In some embodiments, the predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node 30 needs to receive can be a predetermined percentage of the total amount of network traffic available for transmission.

[0063] Although not shown in FIG. 5, in some embodiments, the method may include selecting at least one second NF node 30 that is the destination of the network traffic among one or more second NF nodes. In these embodiments, the selection may be based on an indication. For example, at least one second NF node 30 indicated as a selection candidate by such an indication may be selected from among the one or more second NF nodes. In some cases, there may be only one second NF node signaled as a selection candidate, in which case this second NF node may be selected. In other cases, there may be a plurality of second NF nodes signaled as selection candidates, in which case at least one of these second NF nodes may be selected based on, for example, one or more criteria. The one or more criteria may include, for example, load (e.g., a second NF node that requires a predetermined load and / or has the lowest current load may be selected), locality (e.g., a second NF node closest to the first NF node may be selected), priority (e.g., a second NF node with the highest priority may be selected), capacity (e.g., a second NF node with the largest capacity or the largest available capacity may be selected), and / or any other criteria. In some embodiments, selecting at least one second NF node 30 among one or more second NF nodes may be such that at least one second NF node is for providing the service requested by the first NF node 20, and / or the network traffic may include a service request that is a request for the service 40 to be provided (requested by the first NF node 20).

[0064] Although not shown in FIG. 5, in some embodiments, the method may include initiating transmission of network traffic (e.g., a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node needs to receive) towards a second NF node. For example, the first network nodes 10, 20 (e.g., the processing circuitry 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20) may be configured to transmit this network traffic themselves, or to cause this network traffic to be transmitted to another node (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20). Alternatively or additionally, in some embodiments, the method may include initiating transmission of network traffic, e.g., a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node needs to receive, towards at least one other second NF node of the same type as the second NF node (e.g., in the case of an initial selection), and / or towards at least one other second NF node within the same group as the second NF node (e.g., in the case of a reselection).

[0065] Although not shown in FIG. 5, in some embodiments, the method may include initiating transmission of network traffic, e.g., the remaining amount of network traffic available for transmission (or the traffic remainder), to at least one other second NF node among one or more second NF nodes. For example, the first network nodes 10, 20 (e.g., the processing circuitry 12 of the first network nodes 10, 20) may be configured to transmit this network traffic themselves or to cause this network traffic to be transmitted to another node (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20). In some of these embodiments, the transmission of network traffic, e.g., the remaining amount of network traffic, may be initiated to at least two other second NF nodes among one or more second NF nodes. In these embodiments, the network traffic may be distributed among the at least two other second NF nodes to balance the load on the at least two other second NF nodes.

[0066] A method executed by a system is also provided. The method includes the method described herein with respect to the first network nodes 10, 20 and the method described herein with respect to the second network nodes 30, 60. A system is also provided that includes at least one first network node 10, 20 described herein and at least one second network node 30, 60 described herein.

[0067] FIG. 6 is a signaling diagram showing the signal exchange in a system according to an embodiment. The system shown in FIG. 6 includes first network nodes 10, 20 and one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 ( "NFp1", "NFp2") of service producers. The system of FIG. 6 shows an embodiment in which the aforementioned second network node is the second NF node 30 among one or more second NF nodes 30, 50. For this reason, the second NF node 30 can be as described above with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. The first network nodes 10, 20 can be as described above with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. The first network nodes 10, 20 can be the first SCP node 10 ( "SCP") or the first NF node 20 ( "NFc") of the first service consumer. Although not shown in FIG. 6, in some embodiments where the first network node 10 is the first SCP node 10, the system can further include the first NF node 20. The first SCP node 10 can be configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node 20 and one or more second NF nodes 30, 50.

[0068] One or more second NF nodes 30, 50 can each be for providing service 40 ( "Service A") (e.g., can be configured to provide). In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 6, a group (or set) 402 ( "Set 1") of second NF nodes can include one or more second NF nodes 30, 50. Although two second NF nodes 30, 50 are shown in FIG. 6, it will be understood that the group 402 of second NF nodes can include a single second NF node according to some embodiments, or multiple (e.g., two, three, or more) second NF nodes according to other embodiments.

[0069] Although not shown in FIG. 6, in some embodiments, the system may further include an NRF node. In some of these embodiments, if the system also includes a first SCP node 10, the entity may include the first SCP node 10 and the NRF node. That is, in some embodiments, the first SCP node 10 may be merged with the NRF node within a composite entity. Generally, an NRF node is a node that provides NF service registration and discovery. For this reason, the NRF node enables an NF node to identify the services provided by other NF nodes.

[0070] Only one of the first network nodes 10, 20 (e.g., one first SCP node 10 or one first NF node 20) is shown in FIG. 6, but the system may include one or more first network nodes (e.g., one or more first SCP nodes 10 and / or one or more first NF nodes 20). Similarly, only one group (or set) 402 of the second NF nodes 30, 50 is shown in FIG. 6, but the system may include one or more groups (or sets) of the second NF nodes. In some embodiments, one or more of the second NF nodes 30, 50 may be grouped according to the type of NF node and / or according to the services they can provide. For example, second NF nodes 30, 50 of the same type and / or capable of providing the same service 40 may be part of the same group 402.

[0071] In some embodiments, the first SCP node 10 and the first NF node 20 can be disposed within an independent placement unit, and / or at least one of the first SCP node 10 and one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 can be disposed within an independent placement unit. For this reason, there can be an SCP node based on an independent placement unit as described in 3GPP TS 23.501 v16.4.0. In other embodiments, the first SCP node 10 can be disposed as a distributed network element. For example, in some embodiments, a part of the first SCP node 10 (e.g., a service agent) can be disposed within the same placement unit as the first NF node 20, and / or a part of the first SCP node 10 (e.g., a service agent) can be disposed within the same placement unit as at least one of one or more second NF nodes 30, 50. For this reason, there can be an SCP node based on a service mesh as described in 3GPP TS 23.501 v16.4.0.

[0072] In some embodiments, at least one second SCP node can be configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node 20 and the first SCP node 10, and / or at least one third SCP node can be configured to operate as an SCP between the first SCP node 10 and at least one of one or more second NF nodes 30, 50. For this reason, there can be a multi-path of SCP nodes. In some of these embodiments, the first SCP node 10 and one or more of at least one second SCP node and at least one third SCP node can be disposed within an independent placement unit. In some embodiments, at least one second SCP node and / or at least one third SCP node can be disposed as a distributed network element.

[0073] As shown by block 600 in FIG. 6, the first network nodes 10, 20 select a second NF node 50 (or an instance of the second NF node 50) to provide the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. For this purpose, in some embodiments, the first NF node 20 itself may select the second NF node 50 to provide the service 40. In other embodiments, the first SCP node 10 may select the second NF node 50 to provide the service 40. For example, although not shown in FIG. 6, in some of these other embodiments, the first NF node 20 may initiate transmission of a service request to the first SCP node 10 (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first NF node 20, which it may transmit itself or cause to be transmitted by another node). For this reason, the first SCP node 10 may receive this service request (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first SCP node 10). The service request received by the first SCP node 10 may be a request asking the second NF node 50 to provide the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. In some embodiments, this service request may include discovery and / or selection parameters. For example, the first NF node 20 may provide the first SCP node 10 with any functional parameters required to find a suitable second NF node to provide the service 40. In other embodiments, the first NF node 20 itself plays the role of selecting the second NF node 50 to provide the service 40, and it is the first NF node 20 that finds a suitable second NF node.

[0074] The first network nodes 10, 20 may find an appropriate second NF node using a discovery process. For example, although not shown in FIG. 6, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may initiate the transmission of a discovery request towards the NRF node (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20, which it may transmit itself or cause to be transmitted by another node). For this reason, the NRF node receives this discovery request. The discovery request is a request for information indicating one or more second NF nodes of one or more service producers for providing the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. The discovery request may include discovery and / or (one or more) selection parameters. The NRF node may discover the profiles of the possible destination second NF nodes among one or more service producers based on the received (one or more) discovery parameters.

[0075] In block 600 of FIG. 6, the first network nodes 10, 20 may then select a second NF node 50 (or an instance of the second NF node 50) from the (one or more) corresponding profiles. That is, in block 600 of FIG. 6, the first network nodes 10, 20 may select one second NF node 50 from among those provided (i.e., from the available candidates 30, 50). One skilled in the art will recognize various criteria, as in any of the foregoing, based on which selection can be made. Since this is the first service request, the first network nodes 10, 20 do not have load information about the one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 from which the second NF node 50 is selected. Therefore, the first network nodes 10, 20 may assume that each of the one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 has zero load.

[0076] Returning to FIG. 6, as indicated by arrow 602, the first network nodes 10, 20 may initiate transmission of a service request towards the selected second NF node 50 (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20, which may be transmitted by itself or caused to be transmitted by another node). This service request 602 is referred to herein as the "first service request". In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 may directly transmit the first service request 602 to the selected second NF node 50, or may indirectly transmit the first service request 602 to the selected second NF node 50 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node towards the selected second NF node 50. The selected second NF node 50 receives the first service request 602 (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 50). The first service request 602 is a request asking the selected second NF node 50 to provide the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. The service 40 may be requested by the first NF node 20, for example, for a subscriber (e.g., a user or a user equipment (UE)).

[0077] As indicated by arrow 604 in FIG. 6, the selected second NF node 50 may initiate transmission of a first response to the first service request 602 towards the first network nodes 10, 20 (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 50, either by itself or by causing another node to transmit). For this reason, the first network nodes 10, 20 receive this first response 604 from the second NF node 50 selected to provide the service 40. In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 may receive the first response 604 directly from the selected second NF node 50, or may receive the first response 604 indirectly from the selected second NF node 50 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node. The first response 604 includes load information about the selected second NF node among one or more second NF nodes 30, 50. In some embodiments, the first response 604 may include a load control information (LCI) header, which may include the load information.

[0078] The first network nodes 10, 20 may need to send other requests to the second NF node asking it to provide the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. In this case, as shown by block 606 in FIG. 6, the first network nodes 10, 20 check the load on one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 and may select a second NF node 30 (or an instance of the second NF node 30) among the one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 to provide the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. This selection can be a new initial selection. In some embodiments, the one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 can be one or more candidate second NF nodes 30, 50 discovered in the discovery process described above. The selected second NF node 30 can be the same second NF node as the previously selected one, or a second NF node different from the previously selected one. For the sake of explanation, assume that a different second NF node 30 is selected. At this time, the selection can be based on load information. For example, if the load information about the second NF node 30 indicates that the load on this second NF node 30 is zero, this second NF node 30 can be selected. In other examples, when load information is received for at least two second NF nodes, the second NF node 30 that is known from the load information to have the lowest load among the at least two second NF nodes can be selected.

[0079] Although not shown in FIG. 6, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may check one or more other criteria before considering load information. For example, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may first check the locality of one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 and / or the priority assigned to one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 before checking the load on the one or more second NF nodes 30, 50. Thus, in some embodiments, the selection of the second NF node to provide the service requested by the first NF node 20 can be performed based on load and, optionally, also based on one or more other criteria. In some embodiments, if there are multiple candidate second NF nodes, the first network nodes 10, 20 may make a selection based on the relative load for each candidate second NF node, in which case the relative load is based on the absolute (or actual) load on the second NF node and the capacity of the second NF node.

[0080] As indicated by arrow 608 in FIG. 6, the first network nodes 10, 20 initiate the transmission of a service request to the selected second NF node 30 (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20, either by itself or by causing another node to transmit). This service request 608 is referred to herein as the "second service request". In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 can transmit the second service request 608 directly to the selected second NF node 30, or can transmit the second service request 608 indirectly to the selected second NF node 30 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node towards the selected second NF node 30. The selected second NF node 30 receives the second service request 608 (e.g., via the communication interface 36 of the selected second NF node 30). The second service request 608 is a request asking the selected second NF node 30 to provide the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. The service 40 can be requested by the first NF node 20, for example, for a subscriber (e.g., a user or a user equipment (UE)).

[0081] As indicated by arrow 610 in FIG. 6, the selected second NF node 30 initiates the transmission of a second response towards the first network nodes 10, 20 (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 50, either by itself or by causing another node to transmit). For this purpose, the first network nodes 10, 20 receive this second response 610 from the selected second NF node 30 to provide the service 40. This second response 610 can also be referred to herein as a "message". In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 can receive the second response 610 directly from the selected second NF node 30, or can receive the second response 610 indirectly from the selected second NF node 30 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node.

[0082] The second response includes an indication (e.g., a flag) that a selected second NF node 30 among one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 is under test in the network. The second response further includes load information about the selected second NF node 30. Advantageously, the indication signals (e.g., flags) to the first network nodes 10, 20 that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load) that the second NF node 30 needs to receive. That is, the second response advantageously includes an indication that signals (e.g., flags) that the load information should be interpreted as the expected amount of network traffic (or load) to be received by the second NF node 30. The second NF node 30 may require a predetermined amount of network traffic, for example, to undergo a test (e.g., a canary test) in the network. In some embodiments, the second response 610 may include an LCI header, which may include load information and / or an indication. In some embodiments, the profile of the selected second NF node 30 may include load information and / or an indication.

[0083] For this reason, the first network nodes 10, 20 advantageously have the knowledge that the selected second NF node 30 requires a predetermined amount of traffic (or load). In some embodiments, the predetermined amount of network traffic that the selected second NF node 30 needs to receive may be a predetermined percentage of the total amount of network traffic available for transmission. For example, if the load information includes a value of 20, this may indicate that the selected second NF node 30 needs to receive 20% of the total amount of network traffic available for transmission.

[0084] As indicated by arrow 612 in FIG. 6, the method may be repeated one or more times, for example, by the first network nodes 10, 20 re-checking the load of one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 as previously described with reference to block 606. However, at this time, the first network nodes 10, 20 know that the load information checked in block 606 of FIG. 6 represents a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load) that the second NF node 30 needs to receive, and thus, this may be considered when selecting the second NF nodes 30, 50 as the destinations of the network traffic.

[0085] For example, although not shown in FIG. 6, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may initiate the transmission of a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load) that the second NF node 30 needs to receive towards the second NF node 30 (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20, such that it can transmit itself or cause another node to transmit). In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 may directly transmit a predetermined amount of network traffic to the selected second NF node 30, or indirectly transmit a predetermined amount of network traffic towards the selected second NF node 30 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node. The selected second NF node 30 receives a predetermined amount of network traffic (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 30).

[0086] Although not shown in FIG. 6, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may initiate transmission of the remaining amount of network traffic (or load) available for transmission to at least one other second NF node 50 among one or more second NF nodes. For example, if a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load) that the second NF node 30 needs to receive is 10% of the total amount of network traffic available for transmission, the first network nodes 10, 20 may initiate transmission of 10% of the total amount of network traffic to this second NF node 30 and transmission of the remaining 90% of the total amount of network traffic to at least one other second NF node 50.

[0087] In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 may directly transmit the remaining amount of network traffic to at least one other second NF node 50, or may indirectly transmit the remaining amount of network traffic to at least one other second NF node 50 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node. At least one other second NF node 50 receives the remaining amount of network traffic (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 30). At least one other second NF node 50 may be at least one other second NF node 50 that does not provide any indication (e.g., a flag) as described above (i.e., at least one other second NF node 50 does not indicate that it needs to receive a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load)).

[0088] In some embodiments, the transmission of the remaining amount of network traffic (or load) can be initiated, for example, in the manner described above, towards at least two other second NF nodes among one or more second NF nodes. The at least two other second NF nodes can be at least two other second NF nodes that do not provide any indication (e.g., a flag) as described above (i.e., the at least two other second NF nodes do not indicate that they need to receive a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load)).

[0089] In some of these embodiments, the remaining amount of network traffic can be distributed among the at least two other second NF nodes, for example, to balance the load on the at least two other second NF nodes. For example, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 can perform load distribution for the remaining amount of network traffic among the at least two other second NF nodes by considering the relative load on the at least two other second NF nodes 50.

[0090] The network traffic referred to herein can be any type of network traffic (e.g., any network traffic transmitted by the first network nodes 10, 20 towards one or more second NF nodes 30, 50). For example, the network traffic can include one or more requests for a service 40 to be provided by one or more second NF nodes 30, 50, one or more other requests, data associated with one or more of these requests, and / or any other data.

[0091] In some embodiments where the network traffic includes one or more requests for a service 40 to be provided by one or more second NF nodes 30, 50, the first network nodes 10, 20 may determine, at block 612 of FIG. 6, which of the potential candidate second NF nodes 30, 50 is to receive the one or more requests based on the load information. For example, if one of the candidate second NF nodes 30 needs to receive a certain amount of additional network traffic in order to reach a predetermined amount of network traffic that it needs to receive, the one or more requests may be sent towards this candidate second NF node 30. Otherwise, the one or more requests may be sent to one or more of the other candidate second NF nodes 50. In some embodiments, the method described with reference to block 612 and later in FIG. 6 may be repeated each time a service needs to be requested by the first NF node 20.

[0092] FIG. 7 is a signaling diagram showing the signal exchange in a system according to an embodiment. The system shown in FIG. 7 includes the first network nodes 10, 20, one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 of service producers (“NFp1”, “NFp2”), and an NRF node 60. The system of FIG. 7 shows an embodiment where the aforementioned second network node is the NRF node 60. Thus, the NRF node 60 may be as described above with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. The first network nodes 10, 20 may be as described above with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. The first network nodes 10, 20 may be the first SCP node 10 (“SCP”) or the first NF node 20 (“NFc”) of the first service consumer. Although not shown in FIG. 7, in some embodiments where the first network node 10 is the first SCP node 10, the system may further include the first NF node 20. The first SCP node 10 may be configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node 20 and one or more second NF nodes 30, 50.

[0093] One or more second NF nodes 30, 50 may each be for providing service 40 ( "Service A") (e.g., may be configured to provide). In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 7, a group (or set) 402 of second NF nodes ( "Set 1") may include one or more second NF nodes 30, 50. Although two second NF nodes 30, 50 are shown in FIG. 7, it will be understood that the group 402 of second NF nodes may include a single second NF node according to some embodiments, or multiple (e.g., two, three, or more) second NF nodes according to other embodiments.

[0094] In some of the embodiments, when the system includes the first SCP node 10, the entity may include the first SCP node 10 and the NRF node 60. That is, in some embodiments, the first SCP node 10 may be merged with the NRF node 60 within the composite entity. Generally, the NRF node 60 is a node that provides NF service registration and discovery. For this reason, the NRF node 60 enables NF nodes to identify services provided by other NF nodes.

[0095] Only one of the first network nodes 10, 20 (e.g., one first SCP node 10 or one first NF node 20) is shown in FIG. 7, but the system may include one or more first network nodes (e.g., one or more first SCP nodes 10 and / or one or more first NF nodes 20). Similarly, only one group (or set) 402 of the second NF nodes 30, 50 is shown in FIG. 7, but the system may include one or more groups (or sets) of the second NF nodes. In some embodiments, one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 may be grouped according to the type of NF node. For example, second NF nodes 30, 50 of the same type and / or capable of providing the same service 40 may be part of the same group 402.

[0096] In some embodiments, the first SCP node 10 and the first NF node 20 can be arranged within an independent arrangement unit, and / or at least one of the first SCP node 10 and one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 can be arranged within an independent arrangement unit. For this reason, there can be an SCP node based on an independent arrangement unit as described in 3GPP TS 23.501 v16.4.0. In other embodiments, the first SCP node 10 can be arranged as a distributed network element. For example, in some embodiments, a part of the first SCP node 10 (e.g., a service agent) can be arranged within the same arrangement unit as the first NF node 20, and / or a part of the first SCP node 10 (e.g., a service agent) can be arranged within the same arrangement unit as at least one of one or more second NF nodes 30, 50. For this reason, there can be an SCP node based on a service mesh as described in 3GPP TS 23.501 v16.4.0.

[0097] In some embodiments, at least one second SCP node can be configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node 20 and the first SCP node 10, and / or at least one third SCP node can be configured to operate as an SCP between the first SCP node 10 and at least one of one or more second NF nodes 30, 50. For this reason, there can be a multi-path of SCP nodes. In some of these embodiments, the first SCP node 10 and one or more of at least one second SCP node and at least one third SCP node can be arranged within an independent arrangement unit. In some embodiments, at least one second SCP node and / or at least one third SCP node can be arranged as a distributed network element.

[0098] As indicated by arrow 700 in FIG. 7, the second NF node 30 among one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 may initiate the transmission of a message to the NRF node 60 (e.g., via the communication interface of the second NF node 30, either by itself or by causing another node to transmit. The message 700 includes an indication (e.g., a flag) that the second NF node 30 is in the process of being tested in the network. The message 700 further includes load information about the second NF node 30. Advantageously, the indication signals (e.g., flags) to the NRF node that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load) that the second NF node 30 needs to receive. That is, the message advantageously includes an indication (e.g., a flag) that signals that the load information should be interpreted as the expected amount of network traffic (or load) to be received by the second NF node 30. The second NF node 30 may require a predetermined amount of network traffic, for example, to undergo a test (e.g., a canary test) in the network.

[0099] In some embodiments, the second NF node 30 may initiate the transmission of such a message towards the NRF node 60 in response to a change in the load information about the second NF node 30. That is, according to some embodiments, the message may notify the NRF node 60 of a change in the load information about the second NF node 30. The NRF node 60 receives the message (e.g., via the communication interface 36 of the NRF node 60).

[0100] As indicated by arrow 702 in FIG. 7, in some embodiments, the NRF node 60 may initiate sending a response to the message towards the second NF node 30 (e.g., via the communication interface of the second NF node 30, it may send itself or cause another node to send). The response may acknowledge receipt of the message 700. In some embodiments, the profile of the second NF node 30 stored in the NRF node 60 may include load information about the second NF node 30. In these embodiments, the NRF node 60 may update the load information of the profile of the second NF node 30 with the load information received by the message 700. In these embodiments, the above response to the message may include information indicating that the profile has been updated with the received load information. In some embodiments, the profile of the second NF node 30 may include an indication signaling that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node 30 needs to receive.

[0101] As indicated by arrow 704 in FIG. 7, the NRF node 60 starts to send a message towards the first network nodes 10, 20 (e.g., via the communication interface of the second NF node 30, either by itself or by causing another node to send). The message 704 includes an indication (e.g., a flag) that the second NF node 30 is being tested in the network. The message 704 further includes load information about the second NF node 30. Advantageously, the indication signals (e.g., by a flag) to the first network nodes 10, 20 that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node 30 needs to receive. In some embodiments, the predetermined amount of network traffic that the selected second NF node 30 needs to receive can be a predetermined percentage of the total amount of network traffic available for transmission. For example, if the load information includes a value of 20, this can indicate that the selected second NF node 30 needs to receive 20% of the total amount of network traffic available for transmission.

[0102] In embodiments where there is a change to the load information for the second NF node 30, the NRF node 60 can start to send such a message 704 to the first network nodes 10, 20 in response to the change. For this reason, the load information included in the message 704 can be the updated load information. In some embodiments, the message 704 may include the profile of the second NF node 30, and the profile may include the load information. In embodiments where the profile of the second NF node 30 is updated, the message 704 can include the updated profile of the second NF node 30.

[0103] The first network nodes 10, 20 receive a message 704 from the NRF node 60. For this reason, the first network nodes 10, 20 have the knowledge that the second NF node 30 requires a predetermined amount of traffic (or load). In embodiments where there is a change to the load information, the message 704 may be received in response to the change to the load information (which may be included in the profile of the second NF node 30, for example). In some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may be subscribed to receive a notification about the change. As shown by the arrow 706 in FIG. 7, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may initiate the transmission of a response to the message towards the NRF node 60 (for example, via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20, it may transmit itself or cause another node to transmit). The response may be an acknowledgment response that the message has been received.

[0104] In some embodiments, any one or more of the steps indicated by the arrows 700 to 706 may be performed for all second NF nodes 30, 50. For example, although FIG. 7 shows that these steps are performed for only one second NF node 30, these steps may also be performed for at least one other second NF node 50, and it will be understood that the same description of these steps applies. For at least one other second NF node 50 that does not require a predetermined amount of network traffic, these steps may still be performed for at least one other second NF node 50, but the message does not include an indication signaling that a predetermined amount of network traffic is required. In some embodiments, although not shown in FIG. 7, the steps indicated by the arrows 700 to 706 may be repeated for the second NF nodes 30, 50 when the load on the second NF nodes 30, 50 changes or needs to be updated.

[0105] Although not shown in FIG. 7, instead of or in addition to the steps indicated by arrows 704 and 706, the first network nodes 10, 20 may perform the aforementioned discovery process. Specifically, the first network nodes 10, 20 may initiate the transmission of a discovery request to the NRF node 60. As described above, the discovery request is a request for information indicating one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 for providing the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. The NRF node 60 may receive the discovery request. For this reason, in these embodiments, the NRF node 60 may initiate the transmission of a message to the first network nodes 10, 20 in response to this discovery request. The message includes load information and an indication that advantageously signals that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node 30 needs to receive.

[0106] The first network nodes 10, 20 may need to send a service request to the second NF node asking the second NF node to provide the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. In this case, as shown by block 708 in FIG. 7, the first network nodes 10, 20 check the load on one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 and may select the second NF node 30 (or an instance of the second NF node 30) among one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 to provide the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. In some embodiments, the one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 may be one or more candidate second NF nodes 30, 50 discovered in the aforementioned discovery process. The selection may be based on the load information. In this regard, the first network nodes 10, 20 know that the load information checked in block 708 of FIG. 7 represents a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load) that the second NF node 30 needs to receive, and thus this may be considered when selecting the second NF nodes 30, 50 to which the service request is to be sent.

[0107] More specifically, the first network nodes 10, 20 may determine, based on the load information, at block 708 of FIG. 7, which of the possible candidate second NF nodes 30, 50 will receive the service request. For example, if one of the candidate second NF nodes 30 needs to receive a certain amount of network traffic to reach a predetermined amount of network traffic it needs to receive, the service request may be sent towards this candidate second NF node 30. Otherwise, the service request may be sent to another candidate second NF node 50.

[0108] Although not shown in FIG. 7, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may check one or more other criteria before considering the load information. For example, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may first check the locality of one or more of the second NF nodes 30, 50 and / or the priority assigned to one or more of the second NF nodes 30, 50 before checking the load on one or more of the second NF nodes 30, 50. Thus, in some embodiments, the selection of the second NF node to provide the service requested by the first NF node 20 may be performed based on the load and, optionally, also based on one or more other criteria. In some embodiments, when there are multiple candidate second NF nodes, the first network nodes 10, 20 may make a selection based on the relative load for each candidate second NF node, in which case the relative load is based on the absolute (or actual) load on the second NF node and its capacity.

[0109] As indicated by arrow 710 in FIG. 7, the first network nodes 10, 20 initiate the transmission of a service request to the selected second NF node 30 (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20, either by itself or by causing another node to transmit). In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 may transmit the service request 710 directly to the selected second NF node 30, or may transmit the service request 710 indirectly to the selected second NF node 30 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node towards the selected second NF node 30. The selected second NF node 30 receives the service request 710 (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 30). The service request 710 is a request asking the selected second NF node 30 to provide the service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. The service 40 may be requested by the first NF node 20, for example, for a subscriber (e.g., a user or a user equipment (UE)).

[0110] As indicated by arrow 712 in FIG. 7, the selected second NF node 30 initiates the transmission of a second response towards the first network nodes 10, 20 (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 50, either by itself or by causing another node to transmit). For this reason, the first network nodes 10, 20 receive this response 712 from the selected second NF node 30 for providing the service 40. In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 may receive the response 712 directly from the selected second NF node 30, or may receive the response 712 indirectly from the selected second NF node 30 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node.

[0111] The method shown in FIG. 7 is described with reference to service requests, but it will be understood that the method can be applied to any other network traffic. As described above, the network traffic referred to herein can be any type of network traffic (e.g., any network traffic transmitted by one or more first network nodes 10, 20 towards one or more second NF nodes 30, 50). For example, the network traffic can include one or more requests for a service 40 to be provided by one or more second NF nodes 30, 50, one or more other requests, data associated with one or more of these requests, and / or any other data.

[0112] For this reason, more generally, although not shown in FIG. 7, the first network nodes 10, 20 can initiate the transmission of a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load) that the second NF node 30 needs to receive towards the second NF node 30 (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first network nodes 10, 20, either by itself or by causing it to be transmitted to another node). In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 can directly transmit a predetermined amount of network traffic to a selected second NF node 30, or indirectly transmit a predetermined amount of network traffic towards a selected second NF node 30 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node. For this reason, the selected second NF node 30 receives a predetermined amount of network traffic (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 30).

[0113] Although not shown in FIG. 7, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 may initiate the transmission of the remaining amount of network traffic (or load) available for transmission to at least one other second NF node 50 among one or more second NF nodes. For example, if a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load) that the second NF node 30 needs to receive is 10% of the total amount of network traffic available for transmission, the first network nodes 10, 20 may initiate the transmission of 10% of the total amount of network traffic to this second NF node 30 and the transmission of the remaining 90% of the total amount of network traffic to at least one other second NF node 50.

[0114] In an embodiment where the first network node 10, 20 is the first NF node 20, the first NF node 20 may directly transmit the remaining amount of network traffic to at least one other second NF node 50, or may indirectly transmit the remaining amount of network traffic to at least one other second NF node 50 via the first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node. At least one other second NF node 50 receives the remaining amount of network traffic (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 30). At least one other second NF node 50 may be at least one other second NF node 50 that does not provide any indication (e.g., a flag) as described above (i.e., at least one other second NF node 50 does not indicate that it needs to receive a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load)).

[0115] In some embodiments, the transmission of the remaining amount of network traffic (or load) can be initiated towards at least two other second NF nodes among one or more second NF nodes, for example, in the manner described above. The at least two other second NF nodes can be at least two other second NF nodes that do not provide any indication (e.g., a flag) as described above (i.e., the at least two other second NF nodes do not indicate that they need to receive a predetermined amount of network traffic (or load)). In some of these embodiments, the remaining amount of network traffic can be distributed among the at least two other second NF nodes, for example, to balance the load on the at least two other second NF nodes. For example, in some embodiments, the first network nodes 10, 20 can distribute the remaining amount of network traffic among the at least two other second NF nodes by considering the relative load on the at least two other second NF nodes 50.

[0116] As shown by arrow 714 in FIG. 7, the method can be repeated one or more times, for example, by the first network nodes 10, 20 re-checking the load of one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 as described above with reference to block 708 in FIG. 7. In some embodiments, the method described with reference to after block 708 in FIG. 7 can be repeated each time a service is requested by the first NF node 20.

[0117] FIG. 8 is a signaling diagram showing the signal exchange in a system according to an embodiment. The system shown in FIG. 8 includes a plurality of NF nodes 20, 30, 50. The plurality of NF nodes 20, 30, 50 includes a first NF node (“NF1”) 20, a second NF node (“NF3”) 30, and a third NF node (“NF5”) 50. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the first NF node 20, the second NF node 30, and the third NF node 50 are under test in the network. For example, they can be newly upgraded, newly introduced into the system, and / or under test in the network for any other reason.

[0118] As shown in FIG. 8, the plurality of NF nodes 20, 30, 50 may also include one or more other NF nodes (“NF2”, “NF4”, “NF6”). In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the first NF node 20 functions as a first service consumer NF node, the second NF node 30 functions as a second service producer NF node and also functions as a first service consumer NF node, and the third NF node 50 functions as a second service producer NF node. The first service consumer can be the same service consumer as the second service consumer, or the first service consumer can be a different service consumer from the second service consumer. Similarly, the first service producer can be the same service producer as the second service producer, or the first service producer can be a different service producer from the second service producer.

[0119] The system of FIG. 8 shows an embodiment in which the aforementioned first network node is an NF node of a service consumer and the aforementioned second network node is an NF node of a service producer. Specifically, the first NF node 20 may be the one described above with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, and the second NF node 30 and / or the third NF node 50 may be the ones described above with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. Although the first network node in the embodiment shown in FIG. 8 is the first NF node 20 of the first service consumer, it will be understood that the first network node may alternatively be the first SCP node according to other embodiments. For this reason, the steps of FIG. 8 described in relation to the first NF node 20 will be understood to be steps that may alternatively be performed by the first SCP node. For example, although not shown in FIG. 8, in some embodiments where the first network node is the first SCP node, the system may further include the first NF node 20. In embodiments where the system includes the first SCP node, the first SCP node may be configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node 20 and any one or more other NF nodes among the plurality of NF nodes 30, 50.

[0120] The plurality of NF nodes 20, 30, 50 can each be for providing a service (e.g., can be configured to provide a service). For example, the first NF node 20 can be for providing a first service 40 (“Service A”), the second NF node 30 can be for providing a second service 60 (“Service B”), and the third NF node 50 can be for providing a third service 80 (“Service C”). In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 8, there can also be at least one other NF node for providing the first service 40, at least one other NF node for providing the second service 60, and at least one other NF node for providing the third service 80. Any two or more of the first service 40, the second service 60, and the third service 80 (e.g., all of the services) can be the same service, or any two or more of the first service 40, the second service 60, and the third service 80 (e.g., all of the services) can be different services.

[0121] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 8, the NF nodes can be grouped. That is, the NF nodes can be divided into a plurality of groups (or sets) 402, 404, 406. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, a first group (or set) 402 (“set X”) of NF nodes includes a first NF node 20 and one or more other optional NF nodes, a second group (or set) 404 (“set Y”) of NF nodes includes a second NF node 30 and one or more other optional NF nodes, and a third group (or set) 406 (“set Z”) of NF nodes can include a third NF node 50 and one or more other optional NF nodes. Although each of the groups 402, 404, 406 of NF nodes is shown in FIG. 8 as including two NF nodes, it will be understood that each of these groups 402, 404, 406 of NF nodes may include a single NF node according to some embodiments, or a plurality (e.g., two, three, or more) of NF nodes according to other embodiments. Also, the NF nodes are considered to be arranged within the groups (or sets) 402, 404, 406 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 8 (e.g., so that one particular NF node 20, 30, 50 within the groups 402, 404, 406 can be under test in the network), but this is not necessarily the case. For example, in other embodiments, individual NF nodes can be arranged, or combinations of one or more groups of NF nodes and one or more individual NF nodes can be arranged.

[0122] Although a specific number of NF nodes are shown in FIG. 8, it will be understood that the system can include any other number (e.g., one or more) of NF nodes. Similarly, although three groups (or sets) 402, 404, 406 of NF nodes are shown in FIG. 8, it will be understood that the system can include any other number (e.g., one or more) of groups of NF nodes. In some embodiments, the NF nodes can be grouped according to the type of NF node. For example, NF nodes of the same type and / or capable of providing the same service 40, 60, 80 can be part of the same group 402, 404, 406.

[0123] In some embodiments where the system includes a first SCP node (not shown in FIG. 8), the first SCP node and at least one of the plurality of NF nodes 20, 30, 50 can be arranged within an independent placement unit. For this reason, there can be an SCP node based on an independent placement unit as described in 3GPP TS 23.501 v16.4.0. In other embodiments where the system includes a first SCP node (not shown in FIG. 8), the first SCP node can be arranged as a distributed network element. For example, in some embodiments, a part of the first SCP node (e.g., a service agent) can be arranged within the same placement unit as at least one of the plurality of NF nodes 20, 30, 50. For this reason, there can be an SCP node based on a service mesh as described in 3GPP TS 23.501 v16.4.0.

[0124] In some embodiments (not shown in FIG. 8), at least one second SCP node can be configured to operate as an SCP between the first SCP node and at least one of the plurality of NF nodes 20, 30, 50. For this reason, there can be a multi-path of SCP nodes. In some of these embodiments, the first SCP node and one or more of the at least one second SCP node can be arranged within an independent placement unit. In some embodiments, the first SCP node and one or more of the at least one second SCP node can be arranged as distributed network elements.

[0125] The method shown in FIG. 8 may be performed following (e.g., in response to) the method described above with reference to FIGS. 3 and 5. More specifically, although not shown in FIG. 8, as described above with reference to FIGS. 3 and 5, a second network node (e.g., a second NF node 30 or an NRF node), which is operable as the first network node described above, starts transmitting a message towards the first NF node 20, and the first NF node 20 receives the message. The message includes an indication that a certain NF node among a plurality of NF nodes is being tested in the network. For the purpose of the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, it is assumed that the message includes an indication that the second NF node 30 is being tested in the network. For this reason, the following method may be performed following (e.g., in response to) the first NF node 20 receiving the message including this indication. The indication signals to the first NF node 20 that the second NF node 30 is a selection candidate when selecting at least one second NF node among one or more second NF nodes 30, 50 for providing the service required by the first NF node 20.

[0126] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the first NF node 20 functions as a service consumer NF node. As shown by the arrow 800 in FIG. 8, the first NF node 20 selects at least one other NF node among a plurality of NF nodes to provide a first service 40 (e.g., an instance thereof) required by the first NF node 20. In some embodiments, the at least one other NF node can be one or more (e.g., available) NF nodes found in the discovery process, such as those described above. The above selection is based on an indication. Thus, since the indication signals to the first NF node 20 that the second NF node 30 is a selection candidate, the first NF node 20 can select the second NF node 30 to provide the first service 40 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 8. For the sake of explanation, it is assumed that the second NF node 30 is selected. However, it will be understood that any other NF node of the service producer that the indication signals as a selection candidate may be selected.

[0127] Although not shown in FIG. 8, in some embodiments, the first NF node 20 can check one or more attributes of other NF nodes 30, 50 to make a selection. The attributes of an NF node can indicate the characteristics of the NF node. For example, the locality attribute of an NF node can indicate the locality (or location) of the NF node. Thus, in some embodiments, the first NF node 20 can first check the locality attribute and / or any other attribute(s) of other NF nodes 30, 50. Therefore, in some embodiments, the selection of at least one other NF node among a plurality of NF nodes to provide the first service 40 requested by the first NF node 20 can be performed based on one or more attributes of the at least one other NF node.

[0128] In some embodiments, the profile of an NF node may include an indication and / or one or more attributes about that NF node. For example, of the one or more attributes about the NF node, an attribute may be set in the indication (e.g., Locality = "testing"). In some embodiments, the attribute may be a value. Thus, for example, a specific value may be defined to indicate "during testing". The indication may be in any other format, provided that, for example, it is the same indication used by all NF nodes. Thus, if an NF node is in testing in the network, it can be easily implemented as such by simply changing an attribute to indicate that it is in testing in the network. In some embodiments, the attribute may be an attribute that should be (or must be) prioritized (i.e., considered first and / or always used) when selecting at least one NF node to provide the service required by the NF node. In this way, it can be guaranteed that the indication is always considered, whereby an NF node in testing in the network is selected, and as a result, testing in the network can be carried out.

[0129] In some embodiments, the attribute can be an attribute that matches (i.e., is the same as) or at least partially matches (i.e., is at least partially the same as) the corresponding attribute of the NF node requesting the first service 40. Thus, referring to the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the attribute can be an attribute that matches or at least partially matches the corresponding attribute of the first NF node 20. The first NF node 20 can also be under test in the network. Thus, when the attribute is set to the above indication, the first NF node 20 under test in the network can directly select the second NF node 30 also under test in the network. For example, the first NF node 20 can use a certain (e.g., locality) attribute as the first selection criterion to find other NF nodes having the same (e.g., locality) attribute. When this attribute is set to the above indication (e.g., "under test"), this means that the first NF node 20 will select an NF node that is also under test simultaneously in the network, such as the second NF node 30. In this case, the selected second NF node 30 operates as a service producer NF node. However, as will be described in more detail later, this selected second NF node 30 can also operate as a service consumer of other service producers, and thus can perform the same steps as the first NF node 20, thereby obtaining an end-to-end path of the NF nodes under test in the network.

[0130] As indicated by arrow 802 in FIG. 8, the first NF node 20 may initiate the transmission of a service request to the selected second NF node 30 (e.g., via the communication interface 16 of the first NF node 20, either by itself or by causing another node to transmit). This service request 802 is referred to herein as the "first service request". The first NF node 20 may transmit the first service request 802 directly to the selected second NF node 30, or may transmit the first service request 802 indirectly to the selected second NF node 30 via the aforementioned first SCP node and / or any other SCP node (not shown in FIG. 8) towards the selected second NF node 30. The selected second NF node 30 receives the first service request 802 (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 30). The first service request 802 is a request asking the selected second NF node 30 to provide the first service 40 requested by the first NF node 20. The first service 40 may be requested by the first NF node 20, for example, for a subscriber (e.g., a user or a user equipment (UE)).

[0131] As indicated by arrow 804 in FIG. 8, the selected second NF node 30 may start transmitting a first response to the first service request 802 towards the first NF node 20 (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected second NF node 30, it may transmit itself or cause another node to transmit). For this reason, the first NF node 20 receives this first response 804 from the second NF node 30 selected to provide the first service 40. The first NF node 20 may receive the first response 804 directly from the selected second NF node 30, or may receive the first response 804 indirectly from the selected second NF node 30 via the aforementioned first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node (not shown in FIG. 8). In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the first request 802 and the second response 804 are between two NF nodes 10, 30 being tested in the network (e.g., by different vendors in some cases). However, in other embodiments, only the second NF node 30 of the two NF nodes may be under test in the network.

[0132] In some embodiments, such as those shown in FIG. 8, the second NF node 30 itself may need to send a request asking the NF node to provide a service. For example, the second NF node 30 may need to send a request asking the NF node to provide a third service 80. In this case, the second NF node 30 operates as a service consumer NF node. As described above, the method shown in FIG. 8 may be executed following (e.g., in response to) the method described above with reference to FIGS. 3 and 5. More specifically, although not shown in FIG. 8, as described above with reference to FIGS. 3 and 5, a second network node (e.g., a third NF node 50 or an NRF node) starts sending a message towards the second NF node 30 (which can operate as the first network node described above), and the second NF node 30 receives the message. The above message includes an indication that a certain NF node among a plurality of NF nodes is under test in the network. For the purposes of the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, it is assumed that the above message includes an indication that the third NF node 50 is under test in the network. Therefore, the following method may be executed following (e.g., in response to) the second NF node 30 receiving a message including this indication. The above indication signals to the second NF node 30 that the third NF node 50 is a selection candidate when selecting at least one second NF node among one or more second NF nodes 20, 50 for providing the service required by the second NF node 30.

[0133] In this case, the second NF node 30 functions as a service consumer NF node, and the third NF node 50 functions as a service producer NF node. As shown by block 806 in FIG. 8, the second NF node 30 selects at least one other NF node among a plurality of NF nodes to provide a third service 80 (e.g., an instance thereof) required by the second NF node 30. The selection is based on an indication. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the second NF node 30 selects the third NF node 50 for providing the third service 80, such as an indication that signals that it is a selection candidate. However, it will be understood that any other NF node of the service producer that the indication signals as being a selection candidate may be selected.

[0134] Although not shown in FIG. 8, in some embodiments, the second NF node 30 may check one or more attributes of the NF nodes 20, 50 to make a selection, as in any of the foregoing. Thus, in some embodiments, the selection of at least one other NF node among a plurality of NF nodes for providing the third service 80 requested by the second NF node 30 may be performed based on one or more attributes of the at least one other NF node.

[0135] As described above, in some embodiments, the profile of an NF node may include an indication and / or one or more attributes for that NF node. For example, of the one or more attributes for an NF node, a certain attribute may be set as an indication. In some embodiments, the attribute may be an attribute that should be prioritized when selecting at least one NF node to provide the service required by the NF node. In this way, it can be guaranteed that the indication is always considered, whereby the NF node under test in the network is selected, and as a result, the test in the network can be performed. In some embodiments, the attribute may be an attribute that matches (i.e., is the same as) or at least partially matches (i.e., is at least partially the same as) the corresponding attribute of the NF node that requests the third service 80. For this reason, referring to the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the attribute may be an attribute that matches or at least partially matches the corresponding attribute of the second NF node 30. The second NF node 30 may also be under test in the network. For this reason, when the attribute is set as the above indication, the second NF node 30 under test in the network may also select the third NF node 50 under test in the network as it is.

[0136] As indicated by arrow 808 in FIG. 8, the second NF node 30 may initiate the transmission of a service request to the selected third NF node 50 (e.g., via the communication interface 36 of the second NF node 30, which it may transmit itself or cause to be transmitted by another node). This service request 808 is referred to herein as the "second service request". The second NF node 30 may transmit the second service request 808 directly to the selected third NF node 50 or may transmit the second service request 808 indirectly to the selected third NF node 50 via the aforementioned first SCP node and / or any other SCP node (not shown in FIG. 8) towards the selected third NF node 50. The selected third NF node 50 receives the second service request 808 (e.g., via the communication interface of the selected third NF node 50). The second service request 808 is a request asking the selected third NF node 50 to provide the third service 80 requested by the second NF node 30. The third service 80 may be requested by the second NF node 30, for example, for a subscriber (e.g., a user or a user equipment (UE)).

[0137] As indicated by arrow 810 in FIG. 8, the selected third NF node 50 can start transmitting a second response to the second service request 808 towards the second NF node 30 (e.g., it can transmit itself via the communication interface of the selected third NF node 50 or cause another node to transmit). For this reason, the second NF node 30 receives this second response 810 from the third NF node 50 selected to provide the third service 80. The second NF node 30 can receive the second response 810 directly from the selected third NF node 50 or receive the second response 810 indirectly from the selected third NF node 50 via the aforementioned first SCP node 10 and / or any other SCP node (not shown in FIG. 8). In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the second request 808 and the second response 810 are between two NF nodes 30, 50 (e.g., by different vendors in some cases). However, in other embodiments, only the third NF node 50 of the two NF nodes may be under test in the network according to other embodiments.

[0138] Although not shown in FIG. 8, the method may be repeated any number of times, one or more, for example, by the same NF node and / or by other NF nodes, for example, each time an NF node needs to send network traffic (e.g., other service requests) to other NF nodes. As described with reference to FIG. 8, it is advantageous for an NF node to have knowledge of which other NF nodes to select to ensure reception of the network traffic necessary for a test NF node in the network to be able to receive its test in the network. This enables end-to-end testing in the network. Further, the method enables an upgraded or newly introduced NF node (or instance of an NF node), for example, for different NF types and / or from different vendors, to be tested in the network without affecting the rest of the network and without requiring any specific configuration changes for its implementation.

[0139] Although the method shown in FIG. 8 is described with reference to service requests, it will be understood that the method may be applied to any other network traffic. As noted above, the network traffic referred to herein can be any type of network traffic (e.g., any network traffic to be sent by a first network node (e.g., a first NF node 10, a second NF node 30, or a first SCP node) towards one or more NF nodes (e.g., a second NF node 30 or a third NF node 50) among one or more service producers). For example, network traffic can include one or more requests for services 40, 60, 80 to be provided by one or more NF nodes 20, 30, 50, one or more other requests, data associated with one or more of these requests, and / or any other data.

[0140] While the present technique has been described herein with respect to the selection of the second NF nodes 30, 50, it will be appreciated that the present technique is also applicable to the reselection of the second NF nodes 30, 50 (e.g., following a failure with respect to a previously selected second NF node).

[0141] Other embodiments include those defined by the following numbered descriptions:

[0142] Embodiment 1. A method for processing messages in a fifth generation network, the method being executed by a first network node (10, 20), the first network node (10, 20) being a first SCP node (10) configured to operate as a first NF (network function) node (20) of a service consumer or as an SCP (service communication proxy) between the first NF node (20) and one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) of a service producer, the method comprising: receiving (102, 610, 704) a message from a second network node (30, 60), the message comprising: an indication that a second NF node (30) of the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) is being tested in the network, and the indication signaling to the first network node (10, 20) that the second NF node (30) is a selection candidate when the second NF node (30) selects at least one second NF node (30) to be a destination of network traffic among the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50), and / or the message comprising load information about the second NF node (30), the indication signaling to the first network node (10, 20) that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive, a method.

[0143] Embodiment 2. The method according to Embodiment 1, wherein the second network node (30, 60) is the second NF node (30), or a network repository function node (60).

[0144] Embodiment 3. The method according to Embodiment 1 or 2, wherein the profile of the second NF node (30) includes the indication and / or the load information.

[0145] Embodiment 4. The method according to Embodiment 3, wherein the profile includes one or more attributes of the second NF node (30), and a certain attribute among the one or more attributes of the second NF node (30) is set as the indication.

[0146] Embodiment 5. The method according to Embodiment 4, wherein the attribute is a locality attribute indicating the location of the second NF node (30).

[0147] Embodiment 6. The method according to Embodiment 4 or 5, wherein the attribute is an attribute that should be prioritized when selecting the at least one second NF node (30).

[0148] Embodiment 7. The method according to any one of Embodiments 4 to 6, wherein the attribute is an attribute that matches or at least partially matches the corresponding attribute of the first NF node (20).

[0149] Embodiment 8. The method according to any one of Embodiments 3 to 7 when Embodiment 3 is dependent on Embodiment 2, wherein the second network node is the network repository function node (60), and The method, wherein the message includes the profile of the second NF node (30).

[0150] Embodiment 9. The method according to embodiment 8, wherein the message is received in response to a change to the load information and / or a discovery request, the discovery request being a request for information identifying one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) for providing a service requested by the first NF node (20).

[0151] Embodiment 10. The method according to embodiment 9, wherein the first network node (10, 20) is subscribed to receive the change.

[0152] Embodiment 11. The method according to embodiment 2, or, if embodiment 3 depends on embodiment 2, any of embodiments 3 to 7, wherein the second network node is the second NF node (30), and the message is a response to a service request, the service request being a request for the second NF node (30) to provide a service (40) requested by the first NF node (20).

[0153] Embodiment 12. The method according to any of embodiments 1 to 11, wherein the message includes an LCI (Load Control Information) header, the LCI header including the indication.

[0154] Embodiment 13. The method according to any of embodiments 1 to 12, wherein the first NF node (20) is in test in the network.

[0155] Embodiment 14. The method according to any of embodiments 1 to 13, the method comprising Selecting at least one second NF node (30) of the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) that is a destination of network traffic, the selection being based on the indication, a method.

[0156] Embodiment 15. The method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 14, wherein the selection of at least one second NF node (30) of the one or more second NF nodes is for the at least one second NF node (30) to provide a service (40) requested by the first NF node (20), and / or wherein the network traffic includes a service request, and the service request is a request for providing the service (40) requested by the first NF node (20), a method.

[0157] Embodiment 16. The method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 15, wherein the predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive is a predetermined percentage of the total amount of network traffic available for transmission, a method.

[0158] Embodiment 17. The method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 16, wherein the method includes starting to transmit a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive, towards the second NF node (30).

[0159] Embodiment 18. The method according to Embodiment 17, wherein the method includes starting to transmit the remaining amount of network traffic available for transmission, towards at least one other second NF node of the one or more second NF nodes.

[0160] Embodiment 19. The method according to Embodiment 18, The transmission of the remaining amount of network traffic is initiated towards at least two other second NF nodes among the one or more second NF nodes, and the network traffic is distributed among the at least two other second NF nodes to balance the load on the at least two other second NF nodes, a method.

[0161] Embodiment 20. A method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 19, wherein the first SCP node (10) and the first NF node (20) are arranged in independent arrangement units, and / or wherein the first SCP node (10) and the second NF node (30) are arranged in independent arrangement units, a method.

[0162] Embodiment 21. A method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 19, wherein the first SCP node (10) is arranged as a distributed network element, a method.

[0163] Embodiment 22. A method according to Embodiment 21, wherein a part of the first SCP node (10) is arranged in the same arrangement unit as the first NF node (20), and / or wherein a part of the first SCP node (10) is arranged in the same arrangement unit as the second NF node (30), a method.

[0164] Embodiment 23. A method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 22, wherein at least one second SCP node is configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node (20) and the first SCP node (10), and / or wherein at least one third SCP node is configured to operate as an SCP between the first SCP node (10) and the second NF node (30), a method.

[0165] Embodiment 24. The method according to Embodiment 23, wherein one or more of the first SCP node (10) and one or more of the at least one second SCP node and the at least one third SCP node are arranged in an independent arrangement unit.

[0166] Embodiment 25. The method according to Embodiment 23, wherein the at least one second SCP node and / or the at least one third SCP node are arranged as distributed network elements.

[0167] Embodiment 26. The method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 25, wherein the entity includes the first SCP node (10) and an NRF (Network Repository Function) node (60).

[0168] Embodiment 27. A first network node (10, 20), comprising a processing circuit (12) configured to operate according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 26.

[0169] Embodiment 28. The first network node (10, 20) according to Embodiment 27, wherein the first network node (10, 20) comprises at least one memory (14) for storing instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit (12), cause the first network node (10, 20) to operate according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 26.

[0170] Embodiment 29. A method for processing messages in a fifth-generation network, the method being executed by a second network node (30, 60), the method comprising Starting to send a message towards a first network node (10, 20) (302, 610, 704), wherein the first network node (10, 20) is a first NF (Network Function) node (20) of a service consumer, or a first SCP (Service Communication Proxy) node (10) configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node (20) and one or more second NF nodes of a service producer, the message comprises an indication that a second NF node (30) among the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) is under test in the network, and the indication signals to the first network node (10, 20) that the second NF node (30) is a selection candidate when the second NF node (30) selects at least one second NF node (30) among the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) to be a destination of network traffic, and / or the message comprises load information about the second NF node (30), and the indication signals to the first network node (10, 20) that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive, a method.

[0171] Embodiment 30. The method according to embodiment 29, wherein the second network node (30, 60) is the second NF node (30), or a network repository function node (60), a method.

[0172] Embodiment 31. The method according to embodiment 29 or 30, wherein the profile of the second NF node (30) comprises the indication and / or the load information, a method.

[0173] Embodiment 32. The method according to Embodiment 31, wherein the profile includes one or more attributes for the second NF node (30), a method in which a certain attribute among the one or more attributes for the second NF node (30) is set to the indication.

[0174] Embodiment 33. The method according to Embodiment 32, wherein the method includes setting the attribute to the indication.

[0175] Embodiment 34. The method according to Embodiment 32 or 33, wherein the attribute is a locality attribute indicating the location of the second NF node (30).

[0176] Embodiment 35. The method according to any one of Embodiments 32 to 34, wherein the attribute is an attribute that should be prioritized when selecting the at least one second NF node (30).

[0177] Embodiment 36. The method according to any one of Embodiments 32 to 35, wherein the attribute is an attribute that matches or at least partially matches the corresponding attribute for the first NF node (20).

[0178] Embodiment 37. The method according to any one of Embodiments 31 to 36 when Embodiment 31 is dependent on Embodiment 30, wherein the second network node is the network repository function node (60), the message includes the profile of the second NF node (30).

[0179] Embodiment 38. The method according to Embodiment 37, wherein the transmission of the message is based on a change to the load information, and / or A method that is initiated in response to a discovery request, the discovery request being a request for information indicating one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) for providing a service requested by the first NF node (20).

[0180] Embodiment 39. The method according to embodiment 38, wherein the first network node (10, 20) is subscribed to receive the change.

[0181] Embodiment 40. The method according to any one of embodiments 31 to 36 when embodiment 30 or embodiment 31 depends on embodiment 30, wherein the second network node is the second NF node (30), the message is a response to a service request, the service request being a request for the second NF node (30) to provide a service (40) requested by the first NF node (20).

[0182] Embodiment 41. The method according to any one of embodiments 29 to 40, wherein the message includes an LCI (Load Control Information) header, and the LCI header includes the indication.

[0183] Embodiment 42. The method according to any one of embodiments 29 to 41, wherein the first NF node (20) is under test in the network.

[0184] Embodiment 43. The method according to any one of embodiments 29 to 42, wherein the selection of at least one second NF node (30) among the one or more second NF nodes is for the at least one second NF node (30) to provide the service (40) requested by the first NF node (20), and / or The network traffic includes a service request, and the service request is a request for providing the service (40) requested by the first NF node (20). Method.

[0185] Embodiment 44. The method according to any one of Embodiments 29 to 43, The predetermined amount of the network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive is a predetermined percentage of the total amount of the network traffic available for transmission. Method.

[0186] Embodiment 45. The method according to any one of Embodiments 29 to 44, The first SCP node (10) and the first NF node (20) are arranged in independent arrangement units, and / or The first SCP node (10) and the second NF node (30) are arranged in independent arrangement units. Method.

[0187] Embodiment 46. The method according to any one of Embodiments 29 to 44, The first SCP node (10) is arranged as a distributed network element. Method.

[0188] Embodiment 47. The method according to Embodiment 46, A part of the first SCP node (10) is arranged in the same arrangement unit as the first NF node (20), and / or A part of the first SCP node (10) is arranged in the same arrangement unit as the second NF node (30). Method.

[0189] Embodiment 48. The method according to any one of Embodiments 29 to 47, At least one second SCP node is configured to operate as an SCP between the first NF node (20) and the first SCP node (10), and / or A method in which at least one third SCP node is configured to operate as an SCP between the first SCP node (10) and the second NF node (30).

[0190] Embodiment 49. The method according to embodiment 48, wherein the first SCP node (10) and one or more of the at least one second SCP node and the at least one third SCP node are arranged in an independent arrangement unit.

[0191] Embodiment 50. The method according to embodiment 48, wherein the at least one second SCP node and / or the at least one third SCP node are arranged as distributed network elements.

[0192] Embodiment 51. The method according to any one of embodiments 29 to 50, wherein the entity includes the first SCP node (10) and an NRF (Network Repository Function) node (60).

[0193] Embodiment 52. A second network node (30, 60), wherein the second network node (30, 60) comprises a processing circuit (32) configured to operate according to any one of embodiments 29 to 51.

[0194] Embodiment 53. The second network node (30, 60) according to embodiment 52, wherein the second network node (30, 60) comprises at least one memory (34) for storing instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit (32), cause the second network node (30, 60) to operate according to any one of embodiments 29 to 51.

[0195] Embodiment 54. A method executed by a system, wherein The method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 26, and The method according to any one of Embodiments 29 to 51, and A method comprising the same.

[0196] Embodiment 55. A system comprising: At least one first network node (10, 20) according to Embodiment 27 or 28, and At least one second network node (30, 60) according to Embodiment 52 or 53, and A system comprising the same.

[0197] Embodiment 56. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by a processing circuit, cause the processing circuit to execute the method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 26 and / or any one of Embodiments 29 to 51.

[0198] Embodiment 57. A computer program product embodied on a non-transitory machine-readable medium, the computer program product comprising instructions executable by a processing circuit to cause the processing circuit to execute the method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 26 and / or any one of Embodiments 29 to 51.

[0199] When executed by a processing circuit (such as the processing circuit 12 of the aforementioned first network nodes 10 and 20 and / or the processing circuit 32 of the aforementioned second network nodes 30 and 60), a computer program is also provided that includes instructions for causing the processing circuit to execute at least a part of the method described herein. A computer program product embodied on a non-transitory machine-readable medium is provided. The computer program product includes instructions executable by the processing circuit (such as the processing circuit 12 of the aforementioned first network nodes 10 and 20 and / or the processing circuit 32 of the aforementioned second network nodes 30 and 60) to cause the processing circuit to execute at least a part of the method described herein. A computer program product is provided that includes a carrier comprising instructions for causing a processing circuit (such as the processing circuit 12 of the aforementioned first network nodes 10 and 20 and / or the processing circuit 32 of the aforementioned second network nodes 30 and 60) to execute at least a part of the method described herein. In some embodiments, the carrier can be any one of an electronic signal, an optical signal, an electromagnetic signal, an electrical signal, a wireless signal, a microwave signal, or a computer-readable storage medium.

[0200] In some embodiments, the functions of the first network node and / or the functions of the second network node described herein may be executed by hardware. Thus, in some embodiments, any one or more of the first network nodes 10, 20 and the second network nodes 30, 60 described herein may be hardware nodes. However, optionally, it will also be understood that at least some or all of the functions of the first network node and / or the functions of the second network node described herein may be virtualized. For example, the functions executed by any one or more of the first network nodes 10, 20 and the second network nodes 30, 60 described herein may be implemented by software operating on general-purpose hardware configured to orchestrate the functions of the nodes. Thus, in some embodiments, any one or more of the first network nodes 10, 20 and the second network nodes 30, 60 described herein may be virtual nodes. In some embodiments, at least some or all of the functions of the first network node and / or the functions of the second network node described herein may be executed in a network-enabled cloud. All of the functions of the first network node and / or the functions of the second network node described herein may be in the same location, or at least some of the functions of the nodes may be distributed.

[0201] It will be understood that at least some or all of the method steps described herein may be automated in some embodiments. That is, in some embodiments, at least some or all of the method steps described herein may be automatically executed. The methods described herein may be computer-implemented methods.

[0202] Therefore, the method described in this specification advantageously provides an improved technique for processing messages in a fifth-generation network. This technique can provide a mechanism for supporting tests (e.g., canary tests) within the network at one or more NF nodes 30, 50 of one or more service producers.

[0203] For example, this technique enables one or more NF nodes 30, 50 of one or more service producers to be tested within the network when newly introduced into and / or upgraded (e.g., with new software and / or functionality) in the network. This technique realizes an end-to-end signaling path within the network for an NF node being tested (e.g., isolated) within the network, which does not affect the rest of the NF nodes. It is possible to test interactions between NF nodes within the network, such as those not previously tested in a lab before being included in the network and / or not previously tested in the network, (e.g., for different vendors). This can be particularly beneficial as it is often the case that new NF nodes and / or (e.g., software) upgrades to existing NF nodes need to be introduced into the network in a controlled manner to enable them to be tested within the network before being fully included in the network. For example, a new upgrade can be tested on a single NF node of a service producer within the network before upgrades are considered for all NF nodes of the service producer within the network.

[0204] This technology is further advantageously compatible with existing load control mechanisms. Further, this technology enables the second NF node 30 to inform (e.g., in its profile) of its expected behavior by itself, so that no specific setting (or modification) in the first network nodes 10, 20 is required. The first network nodes 10, 20 can identify which second NF nodes 30, 50 need network traffic and / or the amount of network traffic that needs to be sent thereto (e.g., due to them being under test in the network).

[0205] It should be noted that the above-described embodiments are illustrative rather than limiting concepts, and those skilled in the art can design many alternative embodiments without departing from the scope of the appended claims. The word "comprising" does not exclude the existence of elements or steps other than those listed in the claims, "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality, and a single processor or other unit may perform the functions of several units described in the claims. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting their scope.

Claims

1. A method for processing messages in a fifth generation network, the method being executed by a first network node (10, 20), the first network node (10, 20) being a first Network Function (NF) node (20) of a service consumer or a first SCP node (10) configured to act as a Service Communication Proxy (SCP) between the first NF node (20) and one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) of a service producer, the method comprising: receiving (102, 610, 704) a message from a second network node (30, 60), the message comprising: an indication that a second NF node (30) of the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) is under test in the network; and and / or the indication signals to the first network node (10, 20) that the second NF node (30) is a candidate for selection when selecting at least one second NF node (30) among the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) to which network traffic is to be sent; and / or The method, wherein the message includes load information about the second NF node (30), and the indication signals to the first network node (10, 20) that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive.

2. 2. The method of claim 1 , The second network node (30, 60) the second NF node (30); or The method includes a network repository function node (60).

3. 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, A method, comprising: a profile of the second NF node (30) including the indication and / or the load information.

4. 4. The method of claim 3, the profile includes one or more attributes for the second NF node (30); A method wherein an attribute of the one or more attributes for the second NF node (30) is set in the indication.

5. 5. The method of claim 4, The attribute is: a locality attribute indicating the location of the second NF node (30); attributes to be prioritized in selecting said at least one second NF node (30); attributes that match or at least partially match corresponding attributes for the first NF node (20); The method of any one or more of the following:

6. A method according to any one of claims 3 to 5, when claim 3 is dependent on claim 2, comprising the second network node is the network repository functional node (60); The message includes the profile of the second NF node (30).

7. 7. The method of claim 6, The message may include: changes to the load information; and / or A method comprising: receiving, in response to a discovery request, the discovery request being a request for information indicating one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) for providing a service requested by the first NF node (20).

8. A method according to claim 2 or any one of claims 3 to 5 when claim 3 is dependent on claim 2, comprising the second network node is the second NF node (30); The method, wherein the message is a response to a service request, the service request being a request for the second NF node (30) to provide a service (40) requested by the first NF node (20).

9. 9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, comprising: The method, wherein the message includes a Load Control Information (LCI) header, the LCI header including the indication.

10. 10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, comprising the steps of: selecting at least one second NF node (30) of the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) to which to send network traffic, the selection being based on the indication.

11. 11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, the selection of at least one second NF node (30) of the one or more second NF nodes is for the at least one second NF node (30) to provide a service (40) requested by the first NF node (20); and / or The method of claim 1, wherein the network traffic includes a service request, the service request being a request for the requested service (40) to be provided by the first NF node (20).

12. 12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive is a predetermined percentage of a total amount of network traffic available for transmission.

13. 13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, comprising: and commencing transmission, toward the second NF node (30), of a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive.

14. 14. The method of claim 13, comprising: commencing transmission of a remaining amount of network traffic available for transmission toward at least one other second NF node of the one or more second NF nodes.

15. 15. The method of claim 14, transmission of the remaining amount of network traffic is initiated toward at least two other second NF nodes of the one or more second NF nodes, and the network traffic is distributed between the at least two other second NF nodes to balance the load on the at least two other second NF nodes.

16. A first network node (10, 20), A first network node comprising processing circuitry (12) configured to operate according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

17. A method for processing messages in a fifth generation network, the method being executed by a second network node (30, 60), the method comprising: Initiating (302, 610, 704) a transmission of a message towards a first network node (10, 20), the first network node (10, 20) being a first Network Function (NF) node (20) of a service consumer or a first SCP node (10) configured to act as a Service Communication Proxy (SCP) between the first NF node (20) and one or more second NF nodes of a service producer; The message may include: an indication that a second NF node (30) of the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) is under test in the network; and and / or the indication signals to the first network node (10, 20) that the second NF node (30) is a candidate for selection when selecting at least one second NF node (30) among the one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) to which network traffic is to be sent; and / or The method, wherein the message includes load information about the second NF node (30), and the indication signals to the first network node (10, 20) that the load information represents a predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive.

18. 20. The method of claim 17, The second network node (30, 60) the second NF node (30); or The method includes a network repository function node (60).

19. 19. The method of claim 17 or 18, A method according to claim 1, wherein the profile of the second NF node (30) includes the indication and / or load information.

20. 20. The method of claim 19, the profile includes one or more attributes for the second NF node (30); A method wherein an attribute of the one or more attributes for the second NF node (30) is set in the indication.

21. 21. The method of claim 20, The attribute is: a locality attribute indicating the location of the second NF node (30); attributes to be prioritized in selecting said at least one second NF node (30); attributes that match or at least partially match corresponding attributes for the first NF node (20); The method of any one or more of the following:

22. 22. A method according to any one of claims 19 to 21 when claim 19 is dependent on claim 18, comprising the steps of: the second network node is the network repository functional node (60); The message includes the profile of the second NF node (30).

23. 23. The method of claim 22, The sending of the message includes: changes to the load information; and / or The method of claim 1, wherein the discovery request is initiated in response to a discovery request, the discovery request being a request for information indicating one or more second NF nodes (30, 50) for providing a service requested by the first NF node (20).

24. A method according to claim 18 or any one of claims 19 to 21 when claim 19 is dependent on claim 18, comprising the second network node is the second NF node (30); The method, wherein the message is a response to a service request, the service request being a request for the second NF node (30) to provide a service (40) requested by the first NF node (20).

25. 25. The method of any one of claims 17 to 24, comprising: The method, wherein the message includes a Load Control Information (LCI) header, the LCI header including the indication.

26. 26. The method of any one of claims 17 to 25, comprising: said selection of at least one second NF node (30) of said one or more second NF nodes is for said at least one second NF node (30) to provide a service (40) requested by said first NF node (20); and / or The method of claim 1, wherein the network traffic includes a service request, the service request being a request for the requested service (40) to be provided by the first NF node (20).

27. 27. The method of any one of claims 17 to 26, comprising: The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined amount of network traffic that the second NF node (30) needs to receive is a predetermined percentage of a total amount of network traffic available for transmission.

28. A second network node (30, 60), said second network node (30, 60) comprising: A second network node comprising processing circuitry (32) configured to operate according to any one of claims 17 to 27.

29. A method performed by a system, comprising: A method according to any one of claims 1 to 15, A method according to any one of claims 17 to 27; A method comprising:

30. 1. A system comprising: At least one first network node (10, 20) according to claim 16, At least one second network node (30, 60) according to claim 28, Including, the system.

31. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by a processing circuit, cause the processing circuit to perform a method according to any one of claims 1 to 15 and / or a method according to any one of claims 17 to 27.

32. A computer program product embodied on a non-transitory machine-readable medium, comprising instructions executable by a processing circuit to cause the processing circuit to perform a method according to any one of claims 1 to 15 and / or any one of claims 17 to 27.

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