Service Edge Node Redundancy via State Sync
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional broadband access network central office point of delivery designs have a single point of failure at the service edge node, which terminates subscriber sessions and layer 2 tunnels, making them inefficient and unreliable.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method where state information from a primary service edge network node is continuously synced to a secondary node, allowing the secondary node to take over functionality in case of failure, with prioritized traffic routed through the control hardware module to ensure redundancy and minimize downtime.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If service edge node is used to terminate subscriber sessions and layer 2 tunnels, then network functionality is achieved, but single point of failure occurs reducing reliability
Solution Approach 1:
The service edge node is segmented into two separate functional components: a control hardware part/module that terminates subscriber sessions and layer 2 tunnels, and a forwarding hardware part/module that handles data forwarding. This segmentation allows the control functions to be replicated across multiple nodes for redundancy while forwarding operations continue independently, eliminating the single point of failure.
Solution Approach 2:
A secondary service edge network node is pre-configured with all necessary control hardware and state information before any failure occurs. The secondary node maintains synchronized state information from the primary node through continuous syncing, so that upon primary node failure, the secondary node can immediately take over without interruption to service termination functions.
2Reliability
If state information is continuously synced to secondary node, then redundancy is improved, but data synchronization complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A state information database acts as an intermediary component that both the primary and secondary service edge network nodes access. The primary node writes state information to this database, and the secondary node reads and synchronizes from it. This intermediary mechanism simplifies the synchronization process compared to direct node-to-node communication, reducing the complexity of maintaining real-time state consistency.
3Reliability
If prioritized traffic is routed via control hardware module during failure, then service reliability is maintained, but traffic routing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Different traffic types are handled with different routing qualities: prioritized traffic (such as voice and control plane traffic) is routed through the control hardware part/module of the secondary node to ensure high reliability, while non-prioritized data traffic continues to be handled by the forwarding hardware part/module. This local quality differentiation ensures critical services maintain reliability without requiring complete reconfiguration of all traffic paths.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method for an improved operation of a broadband access network of a telecommunications network and/or for an improved and/or more reliable operation of the broadband access network, the broadband access network comprising a central office point of delivery with a plurality of service edge network nodes, each one of the service edge network nodes realizing at least one service edge instance or functionality, terminating a customer communication link towards a customer premises equipment or an access node, wherein a first service edge network node and a second service edge network node comprises, respectively, a forwarding hardware part or module, and a control hardware part or module, wherein the at least one service edge instance or functionality, realized within or by the first service edge network node and being operational at a point in time, corresponds to a state information, at or for that point in time, both in the forwarding hardware part or module, and in the control hardware part or module of the first service edge network node, wherein in order for an improved and/or more reliable operation of the central office point of delivery, the method comprises the following steps: -- in a first step, the state information regarding the at least one service edge instance or functionality realized within or by the first service edge network node is continuously synced at least to the control hardware part or module of the second service edge network node, -- in a second step, subsequent to the first step and in case of failure of the first service edge network node, the second service edge network node realizes the at least one service edge instance or functionality - previously realized within or by the first service edge network node - by means of using the continuously synced state information.