N6 Chain Health Checks for 5G UPF Pod Failover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing 5G network architectures fail to detect and correct service downtime due to data network disruptions on the N6 chain, such as connectivity issues with Internet hosts or firewall denials, which are not addressed by current Session Management Function (SMF) systems.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method where the User Plane Function (UPF) performs proactive network health checks on N6 chains, disabling degraded pods, and notifying the SMF to stop allocating resources to these pods until corrections are made, ensuring network integrity by rerouting traffic to operational pods.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the SMF stops using a specific pod during pod selection after a failure to establish an N6 chain, then the initial connection establishment is improved, but run-time failures in the N6 chain cannot be detected or corrected
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by establishing the N6 chain during pod selection before actual data traffic flows. The SMF proactively configures the forwarding path and verifies basic connectivity before the chain is fully operational, preventing failures before they occur during runtime.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention implements feedback mechanisms where the SMF continuously monitors the N6 chain status and receives notifications from UPFs about connectivity changes. This feedback loop enables the SMF to detect failures and trigger automatic correction actions by selecting alternative pods when the current chain becomes unavailable.
2Device complexity
If the SMF selects a UPF and establishes an N6 chain without continuous monitoring, then the system complexity is reduced, but service downtime due to data network disruptions cannot be detected
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring function is segmented and distributed to multiple UPFs that independently monitor their respective N6 chains. Each UPF can detect local connectivity issues and notify the SMF, eliminating the need for a centralized complex monitoring system while maintaining reliable service continuity detection.
Solution Approach 2:
The UPFs perform self-service monitoring of their own N6 chains, autonomously detecting connectivity failures and notifying the SMF. This self-service approach reduces the complexity burden on the SMF while ensuring reliable detection of service disruptions through distributed monitoring capabilities.
3Productivity
If the SMF allocates pods for Internet Traffic without checking their operational status, then the resource allocation speed is improved, but degraded pods continue to receive traffic causing service disruptions
Solution Approach 1:
The SMF performs preliminary verification of pod operational status before allocating them for Internet traffic. By checking connectivity and health status in advance of allocation, the system ensures that only fully functional pods receive traffic, preventing service disruptions while maintaining efficient resource allocation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where UPFs continuously report the operational status of their N6 chains to the SMF. This real-time feedback enables the SMF to quickly identify and stop allocating traffic to degraded pods, maintaining high productivity by rapidly redirecting traffic to healthy pods while ensuring service continuity.
Data Source
AI summary
The present teachings involves managing network connectivity in a radio access network, such as a Fifth Generation (5G) network. This includes performing a network health check for each N6 chain towards an Internet site by a user plane function (UPF), disabling a pod managing a degraded N6 chain by the UPF in response to the health check indicating a failure, and notifying a Session Management Function (SMF) to stop allocating the disabled pod for Internet Traffic. The system includes a UPF configured to perform the health check, disable the pod, and send a notification, and an SMF configured to stop allocating the disabled pod in response to the notification.