Management of hardware resources included in communication systems

Abstract

The present invention allows hardware resources included in a communication system to be used efficiently. A monitor function unit (72) monitors the status of use of each of a plurality of hardware resource groups included in the communication system. In response to the status of use of any of the hardware resource groups satisfying a condition associated with said hardware resource group, a configuration management unit (76) changes the affiliation of a hardware resource included in a common auxiliary resource group that differs from all of the hardware resource groups from the common auxiliary resource group to said hardware resource group.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the management of hardware resources included in a communication system.

Background Art

[0002] There is a technology for dividing and managing the hardware resources included in a communication system into a plurality of hardware resource groups. As an example of such a technology, Patent Document 1 describes adding unused hardware resources, for which a system software setup corresponding to a specific type of functional unit has been performed, to a resource pool associated with the specific type of functional unit.

[0003] In addition, Patent Document 2 and Patent Document 3 describe technologies for executing scale-out of applications operating in a communication system, such as Virtualized Network Function (VNF).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] When dividing and managing the hardware resources included in a communication system into a plurality of hardware resource groups, if a large number of hardware resources are secured in advance in each of the plurality of hardware resource groups in anticipation of the execution of scale-out of an application, waste of hardware resources will occur.

[0006] This invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and one of its objectives is to enable efficient use of hardware resources included in a communication system. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] To solve the above problems, the resource management system according to this disclosure includes: usage monitoring means for monitoring the usage status of each of a plurality of hardware resource groups included in a communication system; and resource addition means for changing the affiliation of a hardware resource included in a common reserve resource group that is different from any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups from the common reserve resource group to the hardware resource group in question, when the usage status of any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups satisfies the conditions for being associated with that hardware resource group.

[0008] Furthermore, the resource management method relating to this disclosure includes monitoring the usage status of each of the multiple hardware resource groups included in the communication system, and, in response to the usage status of any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups satisfying the conditions for being associated with that hardware resource group, changing the affiliation of a hardware resource included in a common reserve resource group that is different from any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups from the common reserve resource group to that hardware resource group. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] This figure shows an example of a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This figure shows an example of a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] This diagram schematically illustrates an example of a network service related to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of the relationships between elements constructed in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] This is a functional block diagram showing an example of a function implemented in a platform system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] This figure shows an example of the data structure of physical inventory data. [Figure 7] This diagram schematically shows an example of hardware resource allocation included in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] This diagram schematically shows an example of hardware resource allocation included in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] This diagram schematically shows an example of hardware resource allocation included in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] This diagram schematically shows an example of hardware resource allocation included in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] This diagram schematically shows an example of hardware resource allocation included in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] This diagram schematically shows an example of hardware resource allocation included in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] This diagram schematically shows an example of hardware resource allocation included in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] This diagram schematically shows an example of hardware resource allocation included in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] This diagram schematically shows an example of hardware resource allocation included in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 16] This flowchart shows an example of the processing flow performed in a platform system related to a certain model. [Figure 17] This flowchart shows an example of the processing flow performed in a platform system related to a certain model.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail based on the drawings.

[0011] FIGS. 1 and 2 are diagrams showing an example of a communication system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 focuses on the locations of the data center groups included in the communication system 1. FIG. 2 focuses on the various computer systems implemented in the data center groups included in the communication system 1.

[0012] As shown in FIG. 1, the data center groups included in the communication system 1 are classified into a central data center 10, a regional data center 12, and an edge data center 14.

[0013] The central data center 10 is, for example, distributed and several are arranged within the area covered by the communication system 1 (for example, within Japan).

[0014] The regional data center 12 is, for example, distributed and dozens are arranged within the area covered by the communication system 1. For example, if the area covered by the communication system 1 is the entire territory of Japan, one or two regional data centers 12 may be arranged in each prefecture.

[0015] The edge data center 14 is, for example, distributed and thousands are arranged within the area covered by the communication system 1. Also, each of the edge data centers 14 can communicate with communication equipment 18 equipped with an antenna 16. Here, as shown in FIG. 1, one edge data center 14 may be able to communicate with several communication equipment 18. The communication equipment 18 may include a computer such as a server computer. The communication equipment 18 according to the present embodiment performs wireless communication with a UE (User Equipment) 20 via the antenna 16. The communication equipment​

[0016] In this embodiment, the central data center 10, regional data center 12, and edge data center 14 each have multiple servers located within them.

[0017] In this embodiment, for example, the central data center 10, the regional data center 12, and the edge data center 14 are able to communicate with each other. Furthermore, the central data centers 10 can communicate with each other, the regional data centers 12 can communicate with each other, and the edge data centers 14 can communicate with each other.

[0018] As shown in Figure 2, the communication system 1 according to this embodiment includes a platform system 30, multiple radio access networks (RANs) 32, multiple core network systems 34, and multiple UEs 20. The core network systems 34, RANs 32, and UEs 20 cooperate with each other to realize a mobile communication network.

[0019] RAN32 is a computer system equipped with an antenna 16, equivalent to an eNB (eNodeB) in a fourth-generation mobile communication system (hereinafter referred to as 4G) or a gNB (NR base station) in a fifth-generation mobile communication system (hereinafter referred to as 5G). In this embodiment, RAN32 is mainly implemented by a group of servers and communication equipment 18 located in an edge data center 14. However, some parts of RAN32 (for example, DU (Distributed Unit), CU (Central Unit), vDU (virtual Distributed Unit), vCU (virtual Central Unit)) may be implemented in a central data center 10 or a regional data center 12 instead of the edge data center 14.

[0020] The core network system 34 is a system equivalent to the EPC (Evolved Packet Core) in 4G or the 5G core (5GC) in 5G. The core network system 34 according to this embodiment is mainly implemented by a group of servers located in the central data center 10 and the regional data center 12.

[0021] The platform system 30 according to this embodiment is configured, for example, on a cloud infrastructure and includes a processor 30a, a storage unit 30b, and a communication unit 30c, as shown in Figure 2. The processor 30a is a program control device such as a microprocessor that operates according to a program installed on the platform system 30. The storage unit 30b is, for example, a memory element such as ROM or RAM, or a solid-state drive (SSD) or hard disk drive (HDD). The storage unit 30b stores programs executed by the processor 30a. The communication unit 30c is, for example, a communication interface such as a NIC (Network Interface Controller) or a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) module. Software-Defined Networking (SDN) may be implemented in the communication unit 30c. The communication unit 30c exchanges data with the RAN 32 and the core network system 34.

[0022] In this embodiment, the platform system 30 is implemented by a group of servers located in the central data center 10. Alternatively, the platform system 30 may be implemented by a group of servers located in the regional data center 12.

[0023] In this embodiment, for example, in response to a purchase request for network services (NS) from a purchaser, the requested network services are built in RAN32 or the core network system 34. The built network services are then provided to the purchaser.

[0024] For example, a purchaser, who is an MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator), is provided with network services such as voice communication services and data communication services. The voice communication services and data communication services provided by this embodiment are ultimately provided to the customer (end user) of the purchaser (MVNO in the above example) who uses the UE20 shown in Figures 1 and 2. This end user can perform voice and data communication with other users via the RAN32 and the core network system 34. Furthermore, the end user's UE20 is able to access data networks such as the Internet via the RAN32 and the core network system 34.

[0025] Furthermore, in this embodiment, IoT (Internet of Things) services may be provided to end users who utilize robotic arms, connected cars, etc. In this case, for example, the end users who utilize robotic arms, connected cars, etc. may become purchasers of the network services according to this embodiment.

[0026] In this embodiment, servers located in the central data center 10, regional data center 12, and edge data center 14 have a container-type virtualization application execution environment such as Docker installed, and containers can be deployed and run on these servers. A cluster consisting of one or more containers generated by such virtualization technology may be constructed on these servers. For example, a Kubernetes cluster managed by a container management tool such as Kubernetes may be constructed. The processors on the constructed cluster may then run container-type applications.

[0027] In this embodiment, the network service provided to the purchaser consists of one or more functional units (e.g., network functions (NFs)). In this embodiment, the functional unit is implemented using an NF realized by virtualization technology. An NF realized by virtualization technology is referred to as a VNF (Virtualized Network Function). The type of virtualization technology used is irrelevant. For example, a CNF (Containerized Network Function) realized by container-type virtualization technology is also included in VNF in this description. In this embodiment, the network service is described as being implemented by one or more CNFs. Furthermore, the functional unit in this embodiment may correspond to a network node.

[0028] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a network service in operation. The network service shown in Figure 3 includes several RU40s, several DU42s, several CU44s (CU-CP (Central Unit - Control Plane) 44a and CU-UP (Central Unit - User Plane) 44b), several AMFs (Access and Mobility Management Functions) 46, several SMFs (Session Management Functions) 48, and several UPFs (User Plane Functions) 50 as software elements.

[0029] In the example shown in Figure 3, RU40, DU42, CU-CP44a, AMF46, and SMF48 correspond to elements of the control plane (C-Plane), while RU40, DU42, CU-UP44b, and UPF50 correspond to elements of the user plane (U-Plane).

[0030] Furthermore, the network service may include other types of network infrastructure (NF) as software elements. Also, the network service is implemented on multiple computer resources (hardware elements) such as servers.

[0031] In this embodiment, for example, a communication service in a certain area is provided by the network service shown in Figure 3.

[0032] In this embodiment, the multiple RU40s, multiple DU42s, multiple CU-UP44bs, and multiple UPF50s shown in Figure 3 belong to a single end-to-end network slice.

[0033] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of the relationships between elements constructed in the communication system 1 in this embodiment. The symbols M and N shown in Figure 4 represent any integer of 1 or more, indicating the relationship between the number of elements connected by a link. When both ends of a link are a combination of M and N, the elements connected by that link have a many-to-many relationship. When both ends of a link are a combination of 1 and N or 1 and M, the elements connected by that link have a one-to-many relationship.

[0034] As shown in Figure 4, the network service (NS), network function (NF), CNFC (Containerized Network Function Component), pod, and container are arranged in a hierarchical structure.

[0035] NS corresponds to, for example, a network service composed of multiple NFs. Here, NS may correspond to elements at a granularity such as 5GC, EPC, 5G RAN (gNB), 4G RAN (eNB), etc.

[0036] In 5G, NFs correspond to elements of a granularity such as RU, DU, CU-CP, CU-UP, AMF, SMF, and UPF. In 4G, NFs correspond to elements of a granularity such as MME (Mobility Management Entity), HSS (Home Subscriber Server), S-GW (Serving Gateway), vDU, and vCU. In this embodiment, for example, one NS contains one or more NFs. That is, one or more NFs are under the control of one NS.

[0037] A CNFC corresponds to a granularity element such as DU mgmt or DU Processing. A CNFC may be a microservice deployed on a server as one or more containers. For example, a CNFC may be a microservice that provides some of the functions of DU, CU-CP, CU-UP, etc. Alternatively, a CNFC may be a microservice that provides some of the functions of UPF, AMF, SMF, etc. In this embodiment, for example, one NF contains one or more CNFCs. That is, one or more CNFCs are under one NF.

[0038] A pod refers to the smallest unit for managing Docker containers in Cubanetes, for example. In this embodiment, for example, one CNFC contains one or more pods. That is, one or more pods are under one CNFC.

[0039] In this embodiment, for example, one pod contains one or more containers. That is, one or more containers are under the control of one pod.

[0040] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4, network slices (NSIs) and network slice subnet instances (NSSIs) are arranged in a hierarchical structure.

[0041] An NSI can be described as an end-to-end virtual circuit spanning multiple domains (for example, from RAN32 to core network system34). An NSI may be a slice for high-speed, high-capacity communication (e.g., for eMBB: enhanced Mobile Broadband), a slice for highly reliable and low-latency communication (e.g., for URLLC: Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communications), or a slice for connecting a large number of terminals (e.g., for mMTC: massive Machine Type Communication). An NSSI can also be described as a virtual circuit in a single domain obtained by dividing an NSI. An NSSI may be a slice in the RAN domain, a slice in a transport domain such as the MBH (Mobile Back Haul) domain, or a slice in the core network domain.

[0042] In this embodiment, for example, one NSI contains one or more NSSIs. That is, one or more NSSIs are subordinate to one NSI. In this embodiment, multiple NSIs may share the same NSSI.

[0043] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4, NSSI and NS generally have a many-to-many relationship.

[0044] Furthermore, in this embodiment, for example, one NF can belong to one or more network slices. Specifically, for example, one NF can be configured with NSSAI (Network Slice Selection Assistance Information) that includes one or more S-NSSAI (Sub Network Slice Selection Assist Information). Here, S-NSSAI is information associated with a network slice. Note that an NF does not necessarily have to belong to a network slice.

[0045] Figure 5 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the functions implemented in the platform system 30 according to this embodiment. Note that not all of the functions shown in Figure 5 are required to be implemented in the platform system 30 according to this embodiment, and other functions may also be implemented.

[0046] As shown in Figure 5, the platform system 30 according to this embodiment functionally includes, for example, an Operation Support System (OSS) unit 60, an Orchestration (E2EO: End-to-End-Orchestration) unit 62, a Service Catalog Storage Unit 64, a Big Data Platform Unit 66, a Data Bus Unit 68, an Artificial Intelligence (AI) unit 70, a Monitoring Function Unit 72, an SDN Controller 74, a Configuration Management Unit 76, a Container Management Unit 78, a Repository Unit 80, and a Bare Metal Management Unit 96. The OSS unit 60 includes an Inventory Database 82, a Ticket Management Unit 84, a Fault Management Unit 86, and a Performance Management Unit 88. The E2EO unit 62 includes a Policy Manager Unit 90, a Slice Manager Unit 92, and a Lifecycle Management Unit 94. These elements are mainly implemented as a processor 30a, a storage unit 30b, and a communication unit 30c.

[0047] The functions shown in Figure 5 may be implemented by installing them on a platform system 30, which is one or more computers, and having a processor 30a execute a program containing commands corresponding to those functions. This program may be supplied to the platform system 30 via a computer-readable information storage medium such as an optical disk, magnetic disk, magnetic tape, magneto-optical disk, or flash memory, or via the internet. The functions shown in Figure 5 may also be implemented using circuit blocks, memory, or other LSIs. Furthermore, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the functions shown in Figure 5 can be realized in various forms, such as hardware only, software only, or a combination thereof.

[0048] The container management unit 78 performs container lifecycle management. For example, processes related to container construction, such as container deployment and configuration, are included in this lifecycle management.

[0049] In this embodiment, the platform system 30 may include a plurality of container management units 78. Each of the plurality of container management units 78 may have a container management tool such as Kubernetes and a package manager such as Helm installed. Each of the plurality of container management units 78 may perform container construction, such as container deployment, on the server group (e.g., a Kubernetes cluster) associated with the container management unit 78.

[0050] The container management unit 78 does not need to be included in the platform system 30. The container management unit 78 may, for example, be located on a server managed by the container management unit 78 (i.e., RAN 32 or the core network system 34), or on another server co-located with the server managed by the container management unit 78.

[0051] In this embodiment, the repository unit 80 stores, for example, container images of containers included in a group of functional units (e.g., an NF group) that implement network services.

[0052] The inventory database 82 is a database that stores inventory information. This inventory information includes, for example, information about servers located in RAN32 and the core network system 34 and managed by the platform system 30.

[0053] In this embodiment, the inventory database 82 stores inventory data. The inventory data shows the current configuration of the elements included in the communication system 1 and the relationships between those elements. The inventory data also shows the status of resources managed by the platform system 30 (for example, resource usage). This inventory data may be physical inventory data or logical inventory data. Physical inventory data and logical inventory data will be described later.

[0054] Figure 6 shows an example of the data structure of physical inventory data. The physical inventory data shown in Figure 6 is associated with a single server. The physical inventory data shown in Figure 6 includes, for example, server ID, location data, building data, floor number data, rack data, specification data, network data, list of active container IDs, cluster ID, etc.

[0055] The server ID included in the physical inventory data is, for example, an identifier for the server associated with that physical inventory data.

[0056] Location data included in physical inventory data is, for example, data indicating the location (e.g., the address of the location) of the server associated with that physical inventory data.

[0057] The building data included in the physical inventory data is, for example, data indicating the building (e.g., building name) where the server associated with that physical inventory data is located.

[0058] The floor number data included in the physical inventory data is, for example, data indicating the floor on which the server associated with that physical inventory data is located.

[0059] The rack data included in the physical inventory data is, for example, an identifier for the rack where the server associated with that physical inventory data is located.

[0060] The specification data included in the physical inventory data is, for example, data that indicates the specifications of the server associated with that physical inventory data, and the specification data includes things like the number of cores, memory capacity, and hard disk capacity.

[0061] The network data included in the physical inventory data is, for example, data that shows information about the network of the server associated with the physical inventory data. The network data includes, for example, the NIC (Network Interface Card) that the server has, the number of ports that the NIC has, and the port IDs of those ports.

[0062] The list of operational container IDs included in the physical inventory data is, for example, data that shows information about one or more containers running on the server associated with the physical inventory data, and the list of operational container IDs shows, for example, a list of instance identifiers (container IDs) of the containers.

[0063] The cluster ID included in the physical inventory data is, for example, the identifier of the cluster (e.g., the Cubanetes cluster) to which the server associated with that physical inventory data belongs.

[0064] The logical inventory data includes topology data showing the current state of relationships between elements, as shown in Figure 4, for multiple elements included in the communication system 1. For example, the logical inventory data includes topology data that includes the identifier of a certain NS and the identifiers of one or more NFs under that NS. Also, for example, the logical inventory data includes topology data that includes the identifier of a certain network slice and the identifiers of one or more NFs belonging to that network slice.

[0065] Furthermore, the inventory data may include data indicating the current status of geographical and topological relationships between elements included in the communication system 1. As mentioned above, the inventory data includes location data indicating the locations where the elements included in the communication system 1 are operating, that is, the current locations of the elements included in the communication system 1. From this, it can be said that the inventory data indicates the current status of geographical relationships between elements (for example, geographical proximity between elements).

[0066] Furthermore, the logical inventory data may include NSI data that indicates information about network slices. NSI data indicates attributes such as the identifier of a network slice instance and the type of network slice. Additionally, the logical inventory data may include NSSI data that indicates information about network slice subnets. NSSI data indicates attributes such as the identifier of a network slice subnet and the type of network slice subnet.

[0067] Furthermore, the logical inventory data may include NS data that indicates information about NS. NS data may, for example, indicate the identifier of an NS instance and attributes such as the type of NS. The logical inventory data may also include NF data that indicates information about NF. NF data may, for example, indicate the identifier of an NF instance and attributes such as the type of NF. The logical inventory data may also include CNFC data that indicates information about CNFC. CNFC data may, for example, indicate attributes such as the identifier of an instance and the type of CNFC. The logical inventory data may also include pod data that indicates information about pods contained within a CNFC. Pod data may, for example, indicate attributes such as the identifier of a pod instance and the type of pod. The logical inventory data may also include container data that indicates information about containers contained within a pod. Container data may, for example, indicate attributes such as the container ID of a container instance and the type of container.

[0068] The container ID in the logical inventory data and the container ID in the list of active container IDs in the physical inventory data are used to associate a container instance with the server on which that instance is running.

[0069] Furthermore, data indicating various attributes such as hostnames and IP addresses may be included in the aforementioned data contained in the logical inventory data. For example, container data may include data indicating the IP address of the container corresponding to that container data. Also, for example, NF data may include data indicating the IP address and hostname of the NF indicated by that NF data.

[0070] Furthermore, the logical inventory data may include data indicating NSSAIs, which include one or more S-NSSAIs, that are set for each NF.

[0071] Furthermore, the inventory database 82 works in conjunction with the container management unit 78 to monitor the status of resources as needed. The inventory database 82 then updates the inventory data stored in it as needed based on the latest status of the resources.

[0072] Furthermore, in response to actions such as the construction of new elements included in communication system 1, the configuration of elements included in communication system 1, scaling of elements included in communication system 1, or replacement of elements included in communication system 1, the inventory database 82 updates the inventory data stored in the inventory database 82.

[0073] The service catalog storage unit 64 stores service catalog data. The service catalog data may include, for example, service template data that shows logic used by the lifecycle management unit 94. This service template data includes information necessary to build network services. For example, the service template data includes information that defines NS, NF, and CNFC, and information that shows the correspondence between NS, NF, and CNFC. Also, for example, the service template data includes a script for a workflow to build network services.

[0074] An example of service template data is an NSD (NS Descriptor). An NSD is associated with a network service and indicates the types of multiple functional units (e.g., multiple CNFs) included in that network service. The NSD may also indicate the number of each type of functional unit, such as a CNF, included in the network service. Furthermore, the NSD may indicate the filename of the CNFD related to the CNFs included in the network service, as described later.

[0075] Another example of service template data is a CNFD (CNF Descriptor). The CNFD may indicate the computer resources required by the CNF (e.g., CPU, memory, hard disk, etc.). For example, the CNFD may indicate the computer resources required by each of the multiple containers included in the CNF (CPU, memory, hard disk, etc.).

[0076] Furthermore, the service catalog data may include information about thresholds (e.g., anomaly detection thresholds) used by the policy manager unit 90 to compare with calculated performance indicator values. Performance indicator values ​​will be described later.

[0077] Furthermore, the service catalog data may also include, for example, slice template data. The slice template data contains information necessary to perform instantiation of network slices, and includes, for example, logic used by the slice manager unit 92.

[0078] Slice template data includes information on the "Generic Network Slice Template" defined by the GSMA (GSM Association) ("GSM" is a registered trademark). Specifically, slice template data includes network slice template data (NST), network slice subnet template data (NSST), and network service template data. Furthermore, slice template data includes information showing the hierarchical structure of these elements, as shown in Figure 4.

[0079] In this embodiment, the lifecycle management unit 94, for example, constructs a new network service in response to a purchase request for an NS from a purchaser.

[0080] The lifecycle management unit 94 may, for example, execute a workflow script associated with the network service to be purchased in response to a purchase request. By executing this workflow script, the lifecycle management unit 94 may instruct the container management unit 78 to deploy the containers included in the newly purchased network service. The container management unit 78 may then retrieve the container image of the container from the repository unit 80 and deploy the container corresponding to the container image to the server.

[0081] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the lifecycle management unit 94 performs scaling and replacement of elements included in the communication system 1, for example. Here, the lifecycle management unit 94 may output container deployment and deletion instructions to the container management unit 78. The container management unit 78 may then perform processing such as container deployment and container deletion in accordance with these instructions. In this embodiment, the lifecycle management unit 94 enables scaling and replacement that cannot be handled by tools such as Kubanetes of the container management unit 78.

[0082] The lifecycle management unit 94 may also output an instruction to the SDN controller 74 to create a communication path. For example, the lifecycle management unit 94 may provide the SDN controller 74 with two IP addresses at both ends of the communication path to be created, and the SDN controller 74 will create a communication path connecting these two IP addresses. The created communication path may be managed in association with these two IP addresses.

[0083] Furthermore, the lifecycle management unit 94 may output an instruction to the SDN controller 74 to create a communication path between the two IP addresses associated with those two IP addresses.

[0084] In this embodiment, the slice manager unit 92 performs, for example, the instantiation of a network slice. In this embodiment, the slice manager unit 92 performs, for example, the instantiation of a network slice by executing the logic indicated by the slice template stored in the service catalog storage unit 64.

[0085] The slice manager unit 92 includes the functions of NSMF (Network Slice Management Function) and NSSMF (Network Slice Sub-network Management Function), as described in, for example, the 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) specification "TS28 533". NSMF is a function that generates and manages network slices and provides management services for NSI. NSSMF is a function that generates and manages network slice subnets that constitute a part of a network slice and provides management services for NSSI.

[0086] Here, the slice manager unit 92 may output configuration management instructions related to the instantiation of network slices to the configuration management unit 76. The configuration management unit 76 may then perform configuration management, such as setting, in accordance with the said configuration management instructions.

[0087] The slice manager unit 92 may also present two IP addresses to the SDN controller 74 and output an instruction to create a communication path between these two IP addresses.

[0088] In this embodiment, the configuration management unit 76 performs configuration management, such as setting up groups of elements like NFs, in accordance with configuration management instructions received from, for example, the lifecycle management unit 94 or the slice manager unit 92.

[0089] In this embodiment, the SDN controller 74 creates a communication path between two IP addresses associated with a communication path creation instruction, for example, in accordance with the instruction received from the lifecycle management unit 94 or the slice manager unit 92. The SDN controller 74 may create the communication path between the two IP addresses using a known path calculation method, such as Flex Algo.

[0090] For example, the SDN controller 74 may use segment routing technology (e.g., SRv6 (Segment Routing IPv6)) to build NSIs and NSSIs for aggregation routers and servers located between communication paths. Alternatively, the SDN controller 74 may generate NSIs and NSSIs across multiple target NFs by issuing commands to configure a common VLAN (Virtual Local Area Network) for multiple target NFs, and commands to assign the bandwidth and priority indicated in the configuration information to that VLAN.

[0091] Furthermore, the SDN controller 74 may perform actions such as changing the maximum bandwidth available for communication between two IP addresses without constructing a network slice.

[0092] The platform system 30 according to this embodiment may include a plurality of SDN controllers 74. Each of the plurality of SDN controllers 74 may perform processing such as creating communication paths for a group of network devices such as AGs associated with the SDN controller 74.

[0093] In this embodiment, the monitoring function unit 72 monitors, for example, the group of elements included in the communication system 1 according to a given management policy. Here, the monitoring function unit 72 may monitor the group of elements according to a monitoring policy specified by the purchaser when purchasing the network service, for example.

[0094] In this embodiment, the monitoring function unit 72 performs monitoring at various levels, such as the slice level, NS level, NF level, CNFC level, and hardware level such as the server.

[0095] The monitoring function unit 72 may, for example, configure modules that output metric data to hardware such as a server or software elements included in the communication system 1, so that monitoring can be performed at the various levels described above. For example, an NF may output metric data to the monitoring function unit 72 that indicates metrics that can be measured (identified) in the NF. Alternatively, a server may output metric data to the monitoring function unit 72 that indicates metrics related to hardware that can be measured (identified) in the server.

[0096] Furthermore, for example, the monitoring function unit 72 may deploy a sidecar container on the server that aggregates metric data showing metrics output from multiple containers on a CNFC (microservice) basis. This sidecar container may include an agent called an exporter. The monitoring function unit 72 may repeatedly execute the process of obtaining the aggregated metric data on a microservice basis from the sidecar container at a given monitoring interval, using the mechanism of a monitoring tool such as Prometheus, which can monitor container management tools such as Cubanetes.

[0097] The monitoring function unit 72 may, for example, monitor performance indicator values ​​for performance indicators described in "TS 28.552, Management and orchestration; 5G performance measurements" or "TS 28.554, Management and orchestration; 5G end to end Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)". The monitoring function unit 72 may also acquire metric data indicating the monitored performance indicator values.

[0098] In this embodiment, the monitoring function unit 72 generates performance index value data indicating the performance index values ​​of the elements included in the communication system 1 in a predetermined aggregation unit by performing a process (enrichment) to aggregate metric data in a predetermined aggregation unit.

[0099] For example, for a single gNB, performance index data for that gNB is generated by aggregating metric data that shows the metrics of the elements under that gNB (e.g., network nodes such as DU42 and CU44). In this way, performance index data showing the communication performance in the area covered by that gNB is generated. Here, for example, performance index data showing multiple types of communication performance, such as traffic volume (throughput) and latency, may be generated for each gNB. Note that the communication performance shown by the performance index data is not limited to traffic volume or latency.

[0100] The monitoring function unit 72 then outputs the performance indicator value data generated by the enrichment described above to the data bus unit 68.

[0101] In this embodiment, the data bus unit 68 receives, for example, performance index value data output from the monitoring function unit 72. The data bus unit 68 then generates a performance index value file containing the received performance index value data (one or more). The data bus unit 68 then outputs the generated performance index value file to the big data platform unit 66.

[0102] Furthermore, elements such as network slices, NS, NF, and CNFC included in the communication system 1, as well as hardware such as servers, notify the monitoring function unit 72 of various alerts (for example, alerts triggered by the occurrence of a failure).

[0103] Then, when the monitoring function unit 72 receives, for example, the notification of the alert mentioned above, it outputs alert message data indicating the notification to the data bus unit 68. The data bus unit 68 then generates an alert file by combining the alert message data indicating one or more notifications into a single file, and outputs the alert file to the big data platform unit 66.

[0104] In this embodiment, the big data platform unit 66 stores, for example, performance indicator value files and alert files output from the data bus unit 68.

[0105] In this embodiment, the AI ​​unit 70 has, for example, several pre-trained machine learning models stored in it. The AI ​​unit 70 uses the various machine learning models stored in it to perform estimation processing, such as future prediction processing of the usage status and service quality of the communication system 1. The AI ​​unit 70 may also generate estimation result data that shows the results of the estimation processing.

[0106] The AI ​​unit 70 may perform estimation processing based on the files stored in the big data platform unit 66 and the machine learning model described above. This estimation processing is suitable when predicting long-term trends at a low frequency.

[0107] Furthermore, the AI ​​unit 70 is capable of acquiring performance indicator data stored in the data bus unit 68. The AI ​​unit 70 may perform estimation processing based on the performance indicator data stored in the data bus unit 68 and the machine learning model described above. This estimation processing is suitable when short-term predictions are made frequently.

[0108] In this embodiment, the performance management unit 88 calculates performance indicator values ​​(e.g., KPIs) based on the metrics indicated by multiple metric data, for example. The performance management unit 88 may also calculate performance indicator values ​​that are an overall evaluation of multiple types of metrics that cannot be calculated from a single metric data (e.g., performance indicator values ​​related to end-to-end network slices). The performance management unit 88 may also generate overall performance indicator value data that shows the performance indicator value which is an overall evaluation.

[0109] The performance management unit 88 may also obtain the performance indicator value file mentioned above from the big data platform unit 66. Furthermore, the performance management unit 88 may obtain estimated result data from the AI ​​unit 70. Based on at least one of the performance indicator value file or the estimated result data, it may calculate performance indicator values ​​such as KPIs. Alternatively, the performance management unit 88 may directly obtain metric data from the monitoring function unit 72. Based on this metric data, it may calculate performance indicator values ​​such as KPIs.

[0110] In this embodiment, the fault management unit 86 detects the occurrence of a fault in the communication system 1 based on, for example, at least one of the metric data, the alert notification, the estimated result data, and the overall performance index value data described above. The fault management unit 86 may, for example, detect the occurrence of a fault that cannot be detected from a single metric data or a single alert notification based on predetermined logic. The fault management unit 86 may generate detected fault data indicating the detected fault.

[0111] Furthermore, the fault management unit 86 may directly obtain metric data and alert notifications from the monitoring function unit 72. The fault management unit 86 may also obtain performance indicator value files and alert files from the big data platform unit 66. Additionally, the fault management unit 86 may obtain alert message data from the data bus unit 68.

[0112] In this embodiment, the policy manager unit 90 performs a predetermined determination process based on at least one of the above-mentioned metric data, performance indicator value data, alert message data, performance indicator value file, alert file, estimated result data, overall performance indicator value data, and detected failure data.

[0113] The policy manager unit 90 may then perform actions according to the result of the determination process. For example, the policy manager unit 90 may output instructions to the slice manager unit 92 to build a network slice. Alternatively, the policy manager unit 90 may output instructions to the lifecycle management unit 94 to scale or replace elements, depending on the result of the determination process.

[0114] The policy manager unit 90 according to this embodiment is capable of acquiring performance indicator value data stored in the data bus unit 68. The policy manager unit 90 may then perform a predetermined determination process based on the performance indicator value data acquired from the data bus unit 68. Alternatively, the policy manager unit 90 may also perform a predetermined determination process based on alert message data stored in the data bus unit 68.

[0115] In this embodiment, the ticket management unit 84 generates a ticket indicating the content to be notified to the administrator of the communication system 1. The ticket management unit 84 may also generate a ticket indicating the content of the incident data. The ticket management unit 84 may also generate a ticket indicating the values ​​of performance indicator data or metric data. The ticket management unit 84 may also generate a ticket indicating the judgment result by the policy manager unit 90.

[0116] The ticket management unit 84 then notifies the administrator of the communication system 1 of the generated ticket. The ticket management unit 84 may, for example, send an email with the generated ticket attached to the email address of the administrator of the communication system 1.

[0117] In this embodiment, the bare metal management unit 96 performs setup such as configuring the BIOS (Basic Input Output System), configuring single-root I / O virtualization (SR-IOV), and installing or replacing system software.

[0118] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the configuration management unit 76 may perform hardware or software configuration on hardware resources, such as setting a cluster ID, IP address, hostname, or label.

[0119] Furthermore, the bare metal management unit 96 may perform setup on the hardware resources according to a predetermined type of application.

[0120] For example, the configuration management unit 76 or the bare metal management unit 96 may store a script (e.g., an Ansible script) for setting up a predetermined type of application. This script may describe, for example, the installation procedure for a specific type or version of the host OS that forms the basis of the container execution environment. The script may also describe, for example, the procedure for configuring the host OS kernel, the procedure for configuring the BIOS, the procedure for configuring SR-IOV, etc.

[0121] Furthermore, the bare metal management unit 96 may execute the script to perform setup on the hardware resource according to the type of application running on that hardware resource. For example, the bare metal management unit 96 may perform setup of the host OS and BIOS of the container execution environment on the hardware resource.

[0122] Furthermore, the bare metal management unit 96 may replace the system software, such as the OS, installed on the hardware resource. That is, the bare metal management unit 96 may uninstall the system software installed on the hardware resource and install different system software on the said hardware resource.

[0123] The management of hardware resources included in the communication system 1 according to this embodiment will be further described below.

[0124] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the allocation of hardware resources included in the communication system 1 according to this embodiment.

[0125] Here, for example, suppose two buyers (buyer A and buyer B) purchase a network service. Figure 7 shows the first hardware resource group 100a and the second hardware resource group 100b on which the UPF50 included in the network service purchased by buyer A operates. Thus, in this embodiment, one type of NF included in the network service purchased by one buyer may be deployed in multiple hardware resource groups 100. Here, the hardware resource group 100 may include a group of servers.

[0126] Figure 7 also shows the third hardware resource group 100c on which the AMF46, included in the network service purchased by purchaser A, is running.

[0127] Figure 7 also shows the fourth hardware resource group 100d on which UPF50, included in the network service purchased by purchaser B, operates, and the fifth hardware resource group 100e on which AMF46, also included in the network service purchased by purchaser B, operates.

[0128] Note that the network services purchased by purchaser A or purchaser B also include NFs not shown in Figure 7 (e.g., DU42, CU44, SMF48, etc.), but these NFs have been omitted.

[0129] As shown in Figure 7, the hardware resources included in the communication system 1 according to this embodiment are managed by dividing them into multiple hardware resource groups 100. For example, the multiple servers included in the communication system 1 are managed by dividing them into multiple server groups.

[0130] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 7, the type of application that will run on each of the multiple hardware resource groups 100 may be predetermined. In the example in Figure 7, it is predetermined that UPF50 will run on the first hardware resource group 100a, the second hardware resource group 100b, and the fourth hardware resource group 100d. Also, it is predetermined that AMF46 will run on the third hardware resource group 100c and the fifth hardware resource group 100e.

[0131] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 7, an application purchased by a different buyer than the buyer of an application running on one of the multiple hardware resource groups 100 may be running on a different hardware resource group 100. In the example in Figure 7, the application purchased by buyer A runs on the first hardware resource group 100a, the second hardware resource group 100b, and the third hardware resource group 100c. The application purchased by buyer B runs on the fourth hardware resource group 100d and the fifth hardware resource group 100e.

[0132] Note that the hardware resources mentioned above are not limited to servers. Furthermore, the location of the hardware resources shown in Figure 7 is not particularly important. In the following explanation, we will assume that the hardware resources shown in Figure 7 are located in the central data center 10, but these hardware resources may also be located in the regional data center 12 or the edge data center 14.

[0133] In the following explanation, one group of hardware resources 100 (e.g., a group of servers) will be considered equivalent to one cluster (e.g., one Kubernetes cluster) managed by a container management tool. However, one group of hardware resources 100 does not necessarily have to correspond to one cluster managed by a container management tool. For example, one cluster managed by a container management tool may contain multiple groups of hardware resources 100. In this case, for example, one group of hardware resources 100 may correspond to one namespace.

[0134] In this embodiment, for example, the monitoring function unit 72 monitors the usage status of each of the multiple hardware resource groups 100 included in the communication system 1. Here, for example, the monitoring function unit 72 may also monitor the usage status of each of the multiple server groups included in the communication system 1.

[0135] Here, the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 refers to, for example, CPU usage, memory usage, storage usage, network usage, etc. Alternatively, an overall evaluation value calculated based on some or all of these indicators monitored for the hardware resource group may be monitored as a value indicating the usage status of the hardware resource group 100.

[0136] In this embodiment, for example, as described above, application scaling (scale-out or scale-in) such as NF is performed based on performance indicators such as traffic volume and latency. As a result of scaling, the number of applications running on one hardware resource group 100 changes accordingly.

[0137] Furthermore, in this embodiment, for example, the maximum amount of hardware resources expected to be used for running applications in a hardware resource group 100 can be determined based on the number of applications running on that hardware resource group 100. For example, data indicating the maximum amount of hardware resources per application for each type of application may be stored in the configuration management unit 76. The configuration management unit 76 may then determine the maximum amount of hardware resources expected to be used for running applications in each of the multiple hardware resource groups 100 (for example, multiple server groups) based on this data. In this way, the maximum amount of hardware resources expected to be used for running applications may be proportional to the number of applications running on the hardware resource group 100.

[0138] Figure 7 schematically shows the amount of hardware resources allocated to each hardware resource group 100. Figure 7 also shows a portion of the hardware resources allocated to each hardware resource group 100: the actual used resources 102, the assumed maximum used resources 104, and the standby resources 106.

[0139] Here, the actual amount of resources used 102 corresponds to the amount of hardware resources actually used by the application running on the hardware resource group 100.

[0140] Furthermore, the assumed maximum resource usage amount 104 corresponds to the maximum amount of hardware resources expected to be used for the operation of the application, as described above. In this embodiment, even when the number of applications running on the hardware resource group 100 does not change, the actual amount of hardware resources used fluctuates as appropriate. Therefore, as shown in Figure 7, the actual amount of resources used 102 is less than the assumed maximum resource usage amount 104.

[0141] Furthermore, the standby resource amount 106 corresponds to the amount of hardware resources obtained by subtracting the expected maximum resource usage amount 104 from the amount of hardware resources allocated to the hardware resource group 100.

[0142] In this embodiment, when an application running on the hardware resource group 100 is scaled out, the expected maximum resource usage amount 104 increases, and the standby resource amount 106 decreases by the amount of the increase in the expected maximum resource usage amount 104.

[0143] The amount of hardware resources allocated to the hardware resource group 100 (i.e., the sum of the expected maximum resource usage amount 104 and the standby resource amount 106) may be specified by the purchaser when purchasing the network service. For example, the higher the purchaser's purchase price for the network service, the more hardware resources may be allocated to the hardware resource group 100. In this embodiment, the purchaser may also add or remove hardware resources allocated to the hardware resource group 100 as appropriate.

[0144] Furthermore, in the communication system 1 according to this embodiment, a common reserve resource group 108 (for example, a common server group) that is different from any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups 100 is managed. In other words, in this embodiment, a hardware resource group separate from the above-mentioned multiple hardware resource groups 100 (for example, the first hardware resource group 100a to the fifth hardware resource group 100e) is managed as the common reserve resource group 108.

[0145] As shown in Figure 7, the common reserve resource group 108 includes multiple reserve resources 110 (110a, 110b, 110c, ...). Each reserve resource 110 corresponds to, for example, one or more servers.

[0146] Then, in this embodiment, the configuration management unit 76 changes the affiliation of a hardware resource included in the common reserve resource group 108 from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100 when, for example, the usage status of any hardware resource group 100 satisfies a first condition (hereinafter referred to as the resource addition condition) that associates the hardware resource group 100 with that hardware resource group 100. In this way, a hardware resource is added to the hardware resource group 100, and the amount of hardware resources allocated to the hardware resource group 100 increases.

[0147] Here, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of a server belonging to a common reserve server group that is different from any of the server groups, from the common reserve server group to the server group in question, depending on whether the usage status of any of the server groups satisfies the conditions for being associated with that server group.

[0148] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the configuration management unit 76 changes the affiliation of a hardware resource that is part of the hardware resource group 100 from the hardware resource group 100 to the common reserve resource group 108 when, for example, the usage status of any hardware resource group 100 satisfies a second condition (hereinafter referred to as the resource deletion condition) that associates the hardware resource group 100 with the hardware resource group 100. In this way, the hardware resource is deleted from the hardware resource group 100, and the amount of hardware resources allocated to the hardware resource group 100 decreases.

[0149] In this embodiment, if the hardware resources allocated to the hardware resource group 100 do not include the reserve resource 110, the hardware resources may not be deleted from the hardware resource group 100 even if the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 satisfies the resource deletion conditions associated with the hardware resource group 100.

[0150] In this embodiment, for example, the configuration management unit 76 changes the affiliation of a hardware resource by setting a cluster ID, IP address, hostname, or label.

[0151] For example, as shown in Figure 8, suppose the ratio of the amount of hardware resources actually used 102 to the amount of hardware resources allocated to the first hardware resource group 100a exceeds a predetermined ratio p1.

[0152] Then, for example, the affiliation of one of the spare resources 110 (hereinafter referred to as the selected hardware resource) selected from the common spare resource group 108 is changed from the common spare resource group 108 to the first hardware resource group 100a. Here, for example, spare resource 110a corresponds to the selected hardware resource.

[0153] Then, as shown in Figure 9, assume that the ratio of the amount of hardware resources actually used 102 to the amount of hardware resources allocated to the first hardware resource group 100a falls below a predetermined ratio p2. Here, the value of p2 may be smaller than the value of p1.

[0154] Then, for example, the affiliation of the selected hardware resource mentioned above is changed from the first hardware resource group 100a to the common reserve resource group 108.

[0155] Then, as shown in Figure 10, assume that the ratio of the actual used resources 102 to the amount of hardware resources allocated to the fourth hardware resource group 100d exceeds a predetermined ratio p3. Here, the value of p3 may be the same as or different from the value of p1.

[0156] As a result, the affiliation of the selected hardware resource mentioned above is changed from common reserve resource group 108 to the fourth hardware resource group 100d.

[0157] Thus, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of a hardware resource whose affiliation has been changed from the first hardware resource group 100a to the common reserve resource group 108, from the common reserve resource group 108 to the fourth hardware resource group 100d, depending on whether the usage status of the fourth hardware resource group 100d satisfies the resource addition conditions associated with the fourth hardware resource group 100d.

[0158] In this way, the spare resources 110 used by one group of hardware resources 100 will be used by another group of hardware resources 100.

[0159] Furthermore, as described above, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of a selected hardware resource selected from the common reserve resource group 108 from the common reserve resource group 108 to the first hardware resource group 100a when the usage status of the first hardware resource group 100a satisfies the resource addition conditions associated with the first hardware resource group 100a.

[0160] Furthermore, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of the selected hardware resource from the first hardware resource group 100a to the common reserve resource group 108 when the usage status of the first hardware resource group 100a satisfies the resource deletion conditions associated with the first hardware resource group 100a.

[0161] Furthermore, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of the selected hardware resource, which has been transferred from the first hardware resource group 100a to the common reserve resource group 108, from the common reserve resource group 108 to the fourth hardware resource group 100d, depending on whether the usage status of the fourth hardware resource group 100d satisfies the resource addition conditions associated with the fourth hardware resource group 100d.

[0162] In this way, a specific spare resource 110 (selected hardware resource) will be used interchangeably across multiple hardware resource groups 100.

[0163] Furthermore, resource addition and resource deletion conditions may also relate to the actual amount of hardware resources used or the actual utilization rate of hardware resources. For example, resource addition and resource deletion conditions may be thresholds related to the actual amount of resources used (102).

[0164] Furthermore, resource addition and resource deletion conditions may relate to the actual available amount of hardware resources or the actual available percentage of hardware resources. Here, the actual available amount of hardware resources corresponds, for example, to the amount of hardware resources allocated to hardware resource group 100 minus the amount of resources actually used 102. The actual available percentage of hardware resources corresponds, for example, to the ratio of the amount of hardware resources allocated to hardware resource group 100 minus the amount of resources actually used 102 to the amount of hardware resources allocated to hardware resource group 100. Note that weighting may be applied when calculating the available amount and percentage, or additional calculations such as applying further weights to the calculated values ​​may be performed. Also, for example, resource addition and resource deletion conditions may relate to the value obtained by subtracting the amount of resources actually used 102 from the amount of hardware resources allocated to hardware resource group 100.

[0165] Furthermore, resource addition and deletion conditions may also relate to the maximum amount of hardware resources expected to be used for application operation on the hardware resource group 100, or the maximum hardware resource ratio expected to be used for application operation on the hardware resource group 100. In other words, resource addition and deletion conditions may also relate to the expected maximum resource usage amount 104. For example, if the expected maximum resource usage amount 104 exceeds a predetermined threshold, the ownership of hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group 108 may be changed from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100.

[0166] Furthermore, resource addition and deletion conditions may be conditions that correspond to the number of applications running on the hardware resource group 100. For example, if the number of applications running on the hardware resource group 100 becomes 3 due to scaling out, the ownership of the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group 108 may be changed from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100. Similarly, if the number of applications running on the hardware resource group 100 becomes 1 due to scaling in, the ownership of the hardware resources included in the hardware resource group 100 may be changed from the hardware resource group 100 to the common reserve resource group 108.

[0167] When managing the hardware resources included in communication system 1 by dividing them into multiple hardware resource groups 100, if a large amount of hardware resources are pre-allocated in each of the multiple hardware resource groups 100 in anticipation of application scaling out, then hardware resources will be wasted.

[0168] In this embodiment, as described above, when the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 satisfies the conditions for being associated with the hardware resource group 100, the affiliation of the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group 108 is changed from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100.

[0169] In this way, according to this embodiment, the hardware resources included in the communication system 1 can be used efficiently.

[0170] Furthermore, the time required to deploy an application to the hardware resources already allocated to the hardware resource group 100 during a scale-out is less than the time required to change the affiliation of the reserve resource 110 from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100 and then deploy an application to the reserve resource 110 during a scale-out. Therefore, in order to ensure a smooth scale-out, it is desirable to have as many hardware resources as possible always available in the hardware resource group 100.

[0171] However, in a situation where the more hardware resources allocated to hardware resource group 100, the more the purchaser pays, it is desirable to keep the amount of hardware resources constantly reserved for hardware resource group 100 as small as possible.

[0172] On the other hand, in the event of an unexpected surge in load due to unforeseen circumstances, or when an event attracting a large number of people is scheduled, the hardware resources allocated to hardware resource group 100 may not be sufficient to provide adequate service.

[0173] In this embodiment, as described above, the temporary addition of the reserve resource 110 to the hardware resource group 100 allows for flexible adjustment of the hardware resources reserved in the hardware resource group 100, thus enabling the provision of sufficient services even in the cases described above.

[0174] Furthermore, if the hardware resource group 100 corresponds to a cluster managed by a container management tool, this embodiment makes it possible to change the affiliation of the backup resource 110 across clusters, which is not possible with the container management tool.

[0175] Furthermore, the present invention is also applicable to the hardware resource group 100 on which other applications (such as SMF48) included in the core network system 34 run.

[0176] Furthermore, the present invention is also applicable to the group of hardware resources 100 on which applications included in RAN32 (DU42, CU-CP44a, CU-UP44b, etc.) run.

[0177] Furthermore, resource addition and resource deletion conditions may be conditions that correspond to the types of applications running on the hardware resource group 100. For example, if the resource addition condition is a threshold related to the ratio of the actual amount of resources used 102 to the amount of hardware resources allocated to the hardware resource group 100, the resource addition condition may be set so that the threshold becomes smaller the larger the expected maximum amount of resources used 104 that increases due to scale-out is for the application.

[0178] Furthermore, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of a hardware resource included in the common reserve resource group 108 from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100 when the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 satisfies the resource addition conditions associated with the type of application running on the hardware resource group 100.

[0179] Furthermore, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of the hardware resources included in the hardware resource group 100 from the hardware resource group 100 to the common reserve resource group 108 when the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 satisfies the resource deletion conditions associated with the type of application running on the hardware resource group 100.

[0180] For example, for the first hardware resource group 100a, the second hardware resource group 100b, and the fourth hardware resource group 100d, where UPF50 is running, at least one of the resource addition conditions or resource deletion conditions may be the same. Similarly, for the third hardware resource group 100c and the fifth hardware resource group 100e, where AMF46 is running, at least one of the resource addition conditions or resource deletion conditions may be the same.

[0181] By associating resource addition and removal conditions with application types in this way, it becomes possible to add or remove hardware resources at the appropriate timing for each of the multiple application types.

[0182] Additionally, the application may be allowed to set conditions for adding or removing resources.

[0183] For example, resource addition and deletion conditions may be conditions selected by the purchaser of the application from a range that can be associated with the types of applications running on the hardware resource group 100, or conditions selected by the purchaser of the application from among multiple options that can be associated with the types of applications running on the hardware resource group 100. In this way, it is possible to allow the purchaser of the application to set resource addition and deletion conditions, while also imposing restrictions on those settings that can be associated with the types of applications.

[0184] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the amount of hardware resources of the spare resources 110 whose affiliation is changed from the common spare resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100 may correspond to the amount of hardware resources allocated to the hardware resource group 100. For example, the more hardware resources allocated to the hardware resource group 100, the more spare resources 110 may be changed.

[0185] Furthermore, the addition of reserve resources 110 to the hardware resource group 100 (change of affiliation from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100) may be performed multiple times. That is, after one reserve resource 110 is added to the hardware resource group 100, another reserve resource 110 may be added to the hardware resource group 100 if the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 meets the resource addition conditions. In this case, the resource addition conditions may be conditions corresponding to the number of reserve resources 110 added to the hardware resource group 100.

[0186] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the bare metal management unit 96 may perform setup according to the type of application running on the hardware resource group 100 for hardware resources whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group 108 to one of the hardware resource groups 100. Then, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of the hardware resource on which the setup has been performed from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100.

[0187] The following describes the setup process for different types of applications, referring to Figures 11 through 15.

[0188] In the following explanation, we will assume that, as shown in Figure 11, the UPF50 purchased by purchaser C is running in the 6th hardware resource group 100f. We will also assume that the AMF46 purchased by purchaser C is running in the 7th hardware resource group 100g. And we will assume that the DU42 purchased by purchaser C is running in the 8th hardware resource group 100h.

[0189] Note that the network services purchased by buyer C also include NFs not shown in Figure 11 (e.g., CU44, SMF48, etc.), but these NFs have been omitted from the description.

[0190] Furthermore, the spare resources 110 (110a, 110b, 110c, ...) included in the common spare resource group 108 are hardware resources that do not require additional setup according to the type of application in order to run an application of a type other than a predetermined type. For example, spare resource 110 is a hardware resource that does not require additional setup according to the type of application in order to run an application that is different from both UPF50 and DU42.

[0191] Furthermore, in order to run a predetermined type of application (for example, UPF50 or DU42) on the spare resource 110, it is necessary to perform a setup on the spare resource 110 that is appropriate for that type. Depending on the type of application, it may not be possible to run the application on general-purpose hardware resources (for example, a general-purpose server), and a setup appropriate for that type may be required. In this embodiment, for example, UPF50 and DU42 are examples of such types of applications.

[0192] In the situation shown in Figure 11, for example, let's assume that the usage status of the 7th hardware resource group 100g, in which AMF46 is running as shown in Figure 12, satisfies the resource addition conditions.

[0193] In this case, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of the selected hardware resource, which is a spare resource 110 selected from the common spare resource group 108, from the seventh hardware resource group 100g without performing any special setup on the selected hardware resource. Here, for example, spare resource 110a corresponds to the selected hardware resource.

[0194] Furthermore, in the situation shown in Figure 11, for example, as shown in Figure 13, the usage status of the sixth hardware resource group 100f, in which UPF50 is running, satisfies the resource addition conditions.

[0195] In this case, the bare metal management unit 96 may perform a setup according to the UPF 50 for the selected hardware resource whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100. Here, for example, the reserve resource 110a corresponds to the selected hardware resource. Then, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of the selected hardware resource on which the setup has been performed from the common reserve resource group 108 to the sixth hardware resource group 100f.

[0196] Furthermore, in the above case, the bare metal management unit 96 may, depending on whether the usage status of any of the hardware resource groups 100 satisfies the resource addition conditions associated with that hardware resource group 100, perform setup on the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group 108 (for example, the selected hardware resources mentioned above) according to the type of application running on that hardware resource group 100.

[0197] In this embodiment, the bare metal management unit 96 may also change the affiliation of a hardware resource from one of the hardware resource groups 100 to the common reserve resource group 108, thereby restoring the hardware resource on which the above setup has been performed to its state before the setup was executed. Hereinafter, the process of restoring a hardware resource on which the above setup has been performed to its state before the setup was executed will be referred to as un-setup.

[0198] For example, in the situation shown in Figure 13, let's assume that the usage status of the sixth hardware resource group 100f, where UPF50 is running, meets the resource deletion conditions, as shown in Figure 14.

[0199] In this case, the bare metal management unit 96 may perform an uninstallation on the selected hardware resource that has been set up according to UPF50, so that its affiliation is changed from the sixth hardware resource group 100f to the common reserve resource group 108. Then, the configuration management unit 76 may change the affiliation of the uninstalled selected hardware resource from the sixth hardware resource group 100f to the common reserve resource group 108.

[0200] Furthermore, in the above case, the bare metal management unit 96 may, depending on whether the usage status of any of the hardware resource groups 100 satisfies the resource deletion conditions associated with that hardware resource group 100, restore the hardware resource on which the above setup was performed (for example, the selected hardware resource described above) to its state before the setup was performed.

[0201] Then, in the situation shown in Figure 14, let's assume that, for example, as shown in Figure 15, the usage status of the 8th hardware resource group 100h, on which DU42 is running, meets the resource addition conditions.

[0202] In this case, the bare metal management unit 96 may perform the setup according to DU42 for the selected hardware resource mentioned above. The configuration management unit 76 may then change the affiliation of the selected hardware resource to which the setup has been performed from the common spare resource group 108 to the eighth hardware resource group 100h.

[0203] Thus, in this embodiment, the spare resources 110 included in the common spare resource group 108 are in a general-purpose state that allows many types of applications to run without having to perform additional setup according to the type of application.

[0204] Furthermore, when transferring a spare resource 110 to a group of hardware resources 100 on which a specific type of application runs, the spare resource 110 will be set up according to that type. However, when transferring a spare resource 110 to a group of hardware resources 100 on which many of the aforementioned types of applications run, no additional setup is required.

[0205] This allows for more efficient use of the hardware resources included in communication system 1.

[0206] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the affiliation of the spare resource 110 may be changed from the common spare resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100 on which the application purchased by the network service purchaser runs, in response to the purchaser's request.

[0207] Furthermore, the purchaser of the network service may configure whether or not the affiliation of the reserve resource 110 is changed when the pre-configured resource addition conditions described above are met.

[0208] Furthermore, depending on whether the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 meets the resource addition conditions, the purchaser of the network service may be notified of the need for additional hardware resources. Then, depending on whether the purchaser approves the addition of resources, the affiliation of the reserve resource 110 may be changed from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100 on which the application purchased by the purchaser runs.

[0209] Similarly, when the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 meets the resource deletion conditions, the purchaser of the network service may be notified of whether or not the hardware resources need to be deleted. Then, when the purchaser approves the deletion of the resources, the affiliation of the reserve resource 110 may be changed from the hardware resource group 100 on which the application purchased by the purchaser runs to the common reserve resource group 108.

[0210] Furthermore, resource addition and deletion conditions may also relate to the number of servers on which the application is running, or the number of available servers. For example, if the number of available servers included in the hardware resource group 100 falls below a predetermined number, the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group 108 may be transferred from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100.

[0211] Furthermore, resource addition and deletion conditions may also relate to the number of virtual machines (VMs) on which the application is running, or the number of available VMs. For example, if the number of available VMs in the hardware resource group 100 falls below a predetermined number, the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group 108 may be transferred from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100.

[0212] Here, an example of the processing flow for adding hardware resources to the hardware resource group 100, performed in the platform system 30 according to this embodiment, will be explained with reference to the flowchart illustrated in Figure 16.

[0213] The process illustrated in Figure 16 is executed on all hardware resources 100 included in the communication system 1 on which the aforementioned predetermined type of application (e.g., UPF50 or DU42) is running.

[0214] In this example, the policy manager unit 90 monitors whether the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 meets the resource addition conditions (S101).

[0215] Here, when the policy manager unit 90 determines that the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 satisfies the resource addition conditions (S101:Y), the bare metal management unit 96 performs setup on the selected hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group 108 according to the type of application running on the hardware resource group 100 (S102).

[0216] Then, the configuration management unit 76 changes the affiliation of the selected hardware resource whose setup was performed in the process shown in S102 from the common reserve resource group 108 to the said hardware resource group 100 (S103), and returns to the process shown in S101.

[0217] For all hardware resource groups 100 running applications other than the specified types of applications mentioned above (for example, UPF50 or DU42), the process shown in S102 is not executed. When it is determined that the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 satisfies the resource addition conditions, the configuration management unit 76 changes the affiliation of the selected hardware resource from the common reserve resource group 108 to the hardware resource group 100 and returns to the process shown in S101.

[0218] Next, an example of the processing flow for deleting hardware resources from the hardware resource group 100 performed in the platform system 30 according to this embodiment will be explained with reference to the flowchart illustrated in Figure 17.

[0219] The process illustrated in Figure 17 is executed on all hardware resources 100 included in the communication system 1 on which the aforementioned predetermined type of application (e.g., UPF50 or DU42) is running.

[0220] In this example, the policy manager unit 90 monitors whether the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 meets the resource deletion conditions (S201).

[0221] If the policy manager unit 90 determines that the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 meets the resource deletion conditions (S201:Y), the bare metal management unit 96 performs an uninstallation on the selected hardware resource (S202).

[0222] Then, the configuration management unit 76 changes the affiliation of the selected hardware resource whose uninstallation was performed in the process shown in S202 from the hardware resource group 100 to the common reserve resource group 108 (S203), and returns to the process shown in S201.

[0223] For all hardware resource groups 100 running applications other than the specified types of applications mentioned above (for example, UPF50 or DU42), the process shown in S202 is not executed. When it is determined that the usage status of the hardware resource group 100 meets the resource deletion conditions, the configuration management unit 76 changes the affiliation of the selected hardware resource from the hardware resource group 100 to the common reserve resource group 108 and returns to the process shown in S201.

[0224] However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above.

[0225] For example, the processing performed by the bare metal management unit 96 in the above description may be performed by the configuration management unit 76, for example. Conversely, the processing performed by the configuration management unit 76 in the above description may be performed by the bare metal management unit 96, for example.

[0226] Furthermore, the functional unit according to this embodiment is not limited to that shown in Figure 3.

[0227] Furthermore, the functional unit according to this embodiment does not need to be an NF in 5G. For example, the functional unit according to this embodiment may be a network node in 4G, such as an eNodeB, vDU, vCU, P-GW (Packet Data Network Gateway), S-GW (Serving Gateway), MME (Mobility Management Entity), or HSS (Home Subscriber Server).

[0228] Furthermore, the functional unit according to this embodiment may be implemented using hypervisor-type or host-type virtualization technology instead of container-type virtualization technology. Also, the functional unit according to this embodiment does not need to be implemented by software, but may be implemented by hardware such as electronic circuits. Furthermore, the functional unit according to this embodiment may be implemented by a combination of electronic circuits and software.

[0229] The technology described in this disclosure can also be expressed as follows: [1] A usage monitoring means for monitoring the usage status of each of the multiple hardware resource groups included in the communication system, Resource addition means for changing the affiliation of a hardware resource included in a common reserve resource group different from any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups from the common reserve resource group to the aforementioned hardware resource group, in response to the usage status of any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups satisfying the conditions for being associated with that hardware resource group, A resource management system characterized by including the following: [2] Each of the aforementioned sets of hardware resources has a predetermined type of application that runs on it. The resource addition means changes the affiliation of a hardware resource included in the common reserve resource group from the common reserve resource group to the hardware resource group in question, depending on whether the usage status of the hardware resource group satisfies the conditions for being associated with the type of application running on the hardware resource group. The resource management system described in [1], characterized in that [3] The system further includes a setup execution means that performs setup according to the type of application running on a hardware resource whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group to any of the hardware resource groups, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the hardware resource on which the setup has been performed from the common reserve resource group to the said hardware resource group. The resource management system described in [2], characterized in that [4] The setup execution means, in response to the usage status of any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups satisfying the conditions for associating with said hardware resource group, performs setup on the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group according to the type of application running on said hardware resource group. The resource management system described in [3], characterized in that [5] The resource addition means changes the affiliation of a hardware resource included in the common reserve resource group from the common reserve resource group to the hardware resource group in question, depending on whether the usage status of any of the hardware resource groups satisfies the first condition for being associated with that hardware resource group. The system further includes a resource deletion means that, in response to the usage status of any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups satisfying a second condition for being associated with the hardware resource group, changes the affiliation of a hardware resource that is part of the hardware resource group from the hardware resource group to the common reserve resource group, The resource management system according to [1] or [2], characterized in that [6] The system further includes a setup execution means that performs setup according to the type of application running on a hardware resource whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group to any of the hardware resource groups, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the hardware resource on which the setup has been performed from the common reserve resource group to the said hardware resource group. The following means further includes an unsetup execution means that changes the affiliation of the hardware resources from the said hardware resource group to the said common reserve resource group, and returns the hardware resources on which the setup was performed to the state before the setup was performed: The resource management system described in [5], characterized in that [7] The setup execution means, in response to the usage status of any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups satisfying the first condition associated with that hardware resource group, performs setup on the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group according to the type of application running on that hardware resource group. The uninstallation execution means, in response to the usage status of any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups satisfying the second condition associated with said hardware resource group, restores the hardware resource on which the setup was performed to the state before the setup was performed. The resource management system described in [6], characterized in that [8] The plurality of hardware resource groups includes a first hardware resource group and a second hardware resource group different from the first hardware resource group, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of a hardware resource whose affiliation has been changed from the first hardware resource group to the common reserve resource group, from the common reserve resource group to the second hardware resource group, in accordance with the conditions that the usage status of the second hardware resource group satisfies for it to be associated with the second hardware resource group. The resource management system described in [5], characterized in that [9] The plurality of hardware resource groups includes a first hardware resource group and a second hardware resource group different from the first hardware resource group, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of a selected hardware resource selected from the common reserve resource group from the common reserve resource group to the first hardware resource group in response to the usage status of the first hardware resource group satisfying a first condition associated with the first hardware resource group. The system further includes a resource deletion means for changing the affiliation of the selected hardware resource from the first hardware resource group to the common reserve resource group, in response to the usage status of the first hardware resource group satisfying a second condition for being associated with the first hardware resource group. The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the selected hardware resource, which has been transferred from the first hardware resource group to the common reserve resource group, from the common reserve resource group to the second hardware resource group when the usage status of the second hardware resource group satisfies the conditions for it to be associated with the second hardware resource group. The resource management system according to [1] or [2], characterized in that

[10] The system further includes setup execution means for performing setup according to the type of application running on the first hardware resource group for hardware resources whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group to the first hardware resource group, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the hardware resource on which the setup has been performed from the common reserve resource group to the first hardware resource group. The system further includes an unsetup execution means that changes the affiliation of the hardware resources on which the setup was performed back to the state before the setup was performed, thereby changing their affiliation from the first group of hardware resources to the common reserve resource group, The setup execution means performs setup on hardware resources whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group to the second hardware resource group, according to the type of application running on the second hardware resource group. The resource management system according to [8] or [9], characterized in that

[11] The setup execution means, in response to the usage status of the first group of hardware resources satisfying a first condition associated with the first group of hardware resources, performs setup on the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group according to the type of application running on the first group of hardware resources. The uninstallation execution means, in response to the usage status of the first group of hardware resources satisfying the second condition associated with the first group of hardware resources, restores the hardware resources on which the setup was performed to the state before the setup was performed. The setup execution means, in response to the usage status of the second group of hardware resources satisfying the conditions for associating it with the second group of hardware resources, executes a setup on the hardware resources that have returned to the state before the setup was executed, according to the type of application running on the second group of hardware resources. The resource management system described in

[10] , characterized in that

[12] The aforementioned conditions relate to the actual amount of hardware resources used, the actual utilization rate of hardware resources, the actual available capacity of hardware resources, or the actual available capacity of hardware resources. A resource management system according to any one of the items [1] to

[11] , characterized in that

[13] The aforementioned conditions relate to the maximum amount of hardware resources expected to be used for running the application on the hardware resource group, or the maximum percentage of hardware resources expected to be used for running the application on the hardware resource group. A resource management system according to any one of the items [1] to

[11] , characterized in that

[14] The aforementioned condition is a condition that corresponds to the number of applications running on the aforementioned hardware resource group. A resource management system according to any one of the items [1] to

[13] , characterized in that

[15] The aforementioned conditions are conditions selected by the purchaser of the application from a range corresponding to the types of applications running on the hardware resource group, or conditions selected by the purchaser of the application from among a plurality of options corresponding to the types of applications running on the hardware resource group. A resource management system according to any one of the items [1] to

[14] , characterized in that

[16] An application purchased by a different buyer than the buyer of an application running on one of the aforementioned sets of hardware resources is running on a different set of hardware resources. A resource management system according to any one of the items [1] to

[15] , characterized in that

[17] The aforementioned usage monitoring means monitors the usage status of each of the multiple server groups included in the communication system, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of a server belonging to a common reserve server group that is different from any of the aforementioned server groups, from the common reserve server group to the aforementioned server group, depending on whether the usage status of any of the aforementioned server groups satisfies the conditions for being associated with that server group. A resource management system according to any one of the items [1] to

[16] , characterized in that

[18] The aforementioned group of hardware resources corresponds to a cluster managed by a container management tool. A resource management system according to any one of the items [1] to

[17] , characterized in that

[19] This involves monitoring the usage status of each of the multiple hardware resources included in the communication system, In response to the usage status of any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups satisfying the conditions for being associated with that hardware resource group, the affiliation of hardware resources included in a common reserve resource group that is different from any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups is changed from the common reserve resource group to that hardware resource group, A resource management method characterized by including the following.

Claims

1. A scaling means that performs scaling of applications running on each of the multiple hardware resource groups included in the communication system, based on performance indicator values ​​that show the communication performance, A modification means for changing the expected amount of hardware resources or the expected hardware resource ratio expected to be used in the operation of an application, based on the number of applications running on a specific group of hardware resources, which is one of the aforementioned multiple groups of hardware resources, after scaling has been performed on the specific group of hardware resources, and the type of application; Resource addition means for changing the affiliation of hardware resources included in a common reserve resource group different from any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups from the common reserve resource group to the aforementioned specific hardware resource group, depending on whether the changed assumed amount of hardware resources or the changed assumed hardware resource rate satisfies the conditions for being associated with the said specific hardware resource group, A resource management system that includes [this].

2. Each of the aforementioned sets of hardware resources has a predetermined type of application that runs on it. The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group from the common reserve resource group to the specific hardware resource group, depending on whether the modified assumed hardware resource amount or modified assumed hardware resource rate of the specific hardware resource group satisfies the conditions for associating with the type of application running on the specific hardware resource group. The resource management system according to claim 1.

3. The system further includes a setup execution means that performs setup according to the type of application running on a hardware resource whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group to the specific hardware resource group, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the hardware resource on which the setup has been performed from the common reserve resource group to the specific hardware resource group. The resource management system according to claim 2.

4. The setup execution means, in response to whether the assumed amount of hardware resources or the assumed hardware resource ratio of the specific hardware resource group satisfies the conditions for associating the specific hardware resource group, performs setup on the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group according to the type of application running on the specific hardware resource group. The resource management system according to claim 3.

5. The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group from the common reserve resource group to the specific hardware resource group, depending on whether the modified assumed hardware resource amount or modified assumed hardware resource rate of the specific hardware resource group satisfies the first condition associated with the specific hardware resource group. The system further includes a resource deletion means that, in response to the usage status of the aforementioned specific hardware resource group satisfying a second condition associated with the said specific hardware resource group, changes the affiliation of a hardware resource that is part of the said specific hardware resource group from the said specific hardware resource group to the said common reserve resource group, The resource management system according to claim 1.

6. The system further includes a setup execution means that performs setup according to the type of application running on a hardware resource whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group to the specific hardware resource group, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the hardware resource on which the setup has been performed from the common reserve resource group to the specific hardware resource group, The following means further includes an unsetup execution means that changes the affiliation of the hardware resource from the specific hardware resource group to the common reserve resource group, and restores the hardware resource on which the setup was performed to the state before the setup was performed: The resource management system according to claim 5.

7. The setup execution means, in response to whether the assumed amount of hardware resources or the assumed hardware resource ratio of the specific hardware resource group satisfies the first condition associated with the specific hardware resource group, performs setup on the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group according to the type of application running on the specific hardware resource group. The uninstallation execution means, in response to the usage status of the specific group of hardware resources satisfying the second condition associated with the specific group of hardware resources, restores the hardware resources on which the setup was performed to the state before the setup was performed. The resource management system according to claim 6.

8. The plurality of hardware resource groups includes a first hardware resource group and a second hardware resource group different from the first hardware resource group, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of a hardware resource whose affiliation has been changed from the first hardware resource group to the common reserve resource group, in accordance with the conditions that the assumed hardware resource amount or assumed hardware resource rate of the second hardware resource group satisfies for association with the second hardware resource group. The resource management system according to claim 5.

9. The plurality of hardware resource groups includes a first hardware resource group and a second hardware resource group different from the first hardware resource group, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of a selected hardware resource selected from the common reserve resource group to the first hardware resource group, depending on whether the assumed amount of hardware resources or the assumed hardware resource ratio of the first hardware resource group satisfies the first condition associated with the first hardware resource group. The system further includes a resource deletion means for changing the affiliation of the selected hardware resource from the first hardware resource group to the common reserve resource group, in response to the usage status of the first hardware resource group satisfying a second condition for being associated with the first hardware resource group. The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the selected hardware resource, which has been transferred from the first hardware resource group to the common reserve resource group, from the common reserve resource group to the second hardware resource group, depending on whether the assumed hardware resource amount or assumed hardware resource rate of the second hardware resource group satisfies the conditions for being associated with the second hardware resource group. The resource management system according to claim 1.

10. The system further includes setup execution means for performing setup according to the type of application running on the first hardware resource group for hardware resources whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group to the first hardware resource group, The resource addition means changes the affiliation of the hardware resource on which the setup has been performed from the common reserve resource group to the first hardware resource group. The system further includes an unsetup execution means that changes the affiliation of the hardware resources on which the setup was performed back to the state before the setup was performed, thereby changing their affiliation from the first group of hardware resources to the common reserve resource group, The setup execution means performs setup on hardware resources whose affiliation is changed from the common reserve resource group to the second hardware resource group, according to the type of application running on the second hardware resource group. The resource management system according to claim 8.

11. The setup execution means, in response to whether the assumed amount of hardware resources or the assumed hardware resource ratio of the first hardware resource group satisfies the first condition associated with the first hardware resource group, performs setup on the hardware resources included in the common reserve resource group according to the type of application running on the first hardware resource group. The uninstallation execution means, in response to the usage status of the first group of hardware resources satisfying the second condition associated with the first group of hardware resources, restores the hardware resources on which the setup was performed to the state before the setup was performed. The setup execution means, in response to the assumption amount of hardware resources or assumption hardware resource ratio of the second hardware resource group satisfying the conditions for associating with the second hardware resource group, executes a setup on the hardware resources that have returned to the state before the setup execution, according to the type of application running on the second hardware resource group. The resource management system according to claim 10.

12. An application purchased by a different buyer than the buyer of an application running on one of the aforementioned sets of hardware resources is running on a different set of hardware resources. The resource management system according to claim 1.

13. The scaling means performs scaling of the applications running on each of the plurality of server groups included in the communication system, based on a performance index value indicating communication performance. The modification means modifies the expected amount of hardware resources or the expected hardware resource ratio expected to be used in the operation of an application, based on the number of applications running on a specific server group, which is one of the multiple server groups, after the scaling has been performed on the specific server group, and the type of application. The resource addition means changes the affiliation of a server belonging to a common reserve server group, which is different from any of the aforementioned server groups, from the common reserve server group to the aforementioned specific server group, depending on whether the changed assumed hardware resource amount or the changed assumed hardware resource rate satisfies the conditions for associating with the specific server group. The resource management system according to claim 1.

14. The aforementioned group of hardware resources corresponds to a cluster managed by a container management tool. The resource management system according to claim 1.

15. For each of the multiple hardware resource groups included in the communication system, scaling of the applications running on that hardware resource group is performed based on performance indicator values ​​that show the communication performance. In response to scaling being performed on a specific group of hardware resources, which is one of the aforementioned multiple groups of hardware resources, the expected amount of hardware resources or the expected hardware resource ratio expected to be used by the application is changed based on the number of applications running on that specific group of hardware resources after the scaling is performed, and the type of application. Depending on whether the revised assumed hardware resource quantity or the revised assumed hardware resource rate satisfies the conditions for associating with the hardware resource group, the affiliation of hardware resources included in a common reserve resource group different from any of the aforementioned hardware resource groups will be changed from the common reserve resource group to the specific hardware resource group. Resource management methods including

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