SDN Controller Service Chain Orchestration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current SDN technologies lack service awareness, leading to inefficient service chaining where application order and interactions result in performance issues, resource wastage, and interference between applications, making it difficult for developers to create new applications without considering interactions with existing ones.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a service-aware SDN controller with a service data table that associates applications with types, allowing for optimized chaining by defining application orders and using synergies, and providing a standardized API for integration and information sharing to avoid interferences and leverage synergies between applications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If naive chaining of applications is used in SDN, then service chain configuration is simplified and can be administered all in software, but application order and interactions cause interference, performance degradation, and resource wastage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary layer (service chain manager and application registry) between the SDN controller and applications. This intermediary manages application registration, type identification, and optimal ordering, allowing naive software-based configuration to maintain ease of operation while preventing application interference through controlled orchestration, thereby resolving the performance degradation issue
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple applications are chained together without type awareness, then service chain flexibility is improved, but computation resources are wasted due to duplicated functions across applications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where applications register their types and capabilities with the SDN controller, which maintains an application registry. The controller uses this feedback information to identify duplicate functions across applications and optimize the service chain configuration, preventing resource wastage while maintaining flexibility through informed application selection and ordering
3Ease of operation
If application order in service chain is not optimized, then ease of configuration is maintained, but harmful interferences occur between applications (e.g., encryption prohibiting DPI, NAT preventing stateful inspection)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by requiring applications to register their types and requirements with the SDN controller before being chained. The controller proactively analyzes application compatibility and determines the optimal ordering to prevent harmful interferences (such as placing decryption before DPI or stateful inspection before NAT), thereby eliminating application conflicts while maintaining configuration simplicity through automated orchestration
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
The present invention relates to a method and a software defined network, SDN, controller (1) for chaining applications (4) in a SDN. A service data table (2) is created in the SDN controller (1). In the service data table (2) a plurality of applications (4) are associated with a plurality of application types (5). Furthermore, at least one service chain is created in the SDN controller (1). The at least one service chain (3) defines an order of application types (5) running on the SDN controller (1). At least one application is registered to the service chain (3) based on its application type (5) as associated with the application (4) in the service data table (2).