Hardware Acceleration for Virtualized Network Functions
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Solution Overview
Problem
In cloud computing, existing architectures lack the ability to match the type and size of acceleration resources with the requirements of virtualized network functions (VNFs), leading to suboptimal performance due to random or sequential deployment of VNFs onto hosts without considering the specific acceleration needs.
Innovation Solution
A method that determines the required hardware acceleration resources for a VNF and identifies a target host with matching resources, ensuring the VNF is deployed onto a host with sufficient and compatible acceleration capabilities, thereby enhancing performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If VNFs are deployed randomly or sequentially onto hosts without considering acceleration needs, then deployment simplicity is maintained, but VNF performance deteriorates due to mismatched acceleration resources
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by determining the hardware acceleration resource requirements of VNFs before deployment. The system queries acceleration resource information from VNF descriptors and matches it with available host resources in advance, ensuring that VNFs are deployed to appropriate hosts without performance degradation while maintaining deployment simplicity through automated matching.
2Productivity
If VNFs are deployed without matching acceleration resources, then deployment speed is maintained, but resource utilization efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback by querying acceleration resource information from VNF descriptors and using this information to guide deployment decisions. The system continuously monitors and matches VNF acceleration requirements with host resource capabilities, ensuring both rapid deployment and optimal resource utilization through informed allocation decisions.
3Productivity
If hardware acceleration resources are matched with VNF requirements, then VNF performance is improved, but deployment complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies self-service by enabling VNFs to automatically provide their own acceleration resource requirements through VNF descriptors. The deployment system queries this self-provided information and automatically matches it with suitable hosts, achieving performance optimization without increasing deployment complexity since the VNFs themselves supply the necessary matching criteria.
4Measurement precision
If acceleration resource information is queried and matched before deployment, then resource allocation accuracy is improved, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by determining acceleration resource requirements upfront during the deployment preparation phase. By querying VNF descriptor information and matching resources before actual deployment, the system achieves accurate resource allocation while minimizing processing time during the deployment execution phase, as the matching work is completed in advance.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention provides a hardware acceleration method and a related device. The hardware acceleration method includes: determining, by a functional entity, a type and a size of a required hardware acceleration resource in a to-be-accelerated virtualized network function VNF in a management domain of the functional entity; determining, by the functional entity, a target virtualized infrastructure manager VIM; and deploying, by the functional entity, the to-be-accelerated VNF onto a target host in a management domain of the target VIM by using the target VIM. In this embodiment, the functional entity deploys the to-be-accelerated VNF onto the target host whose hardware matching resource has a size greater than the size of the hardware acceleration resource required in the to-be-accelerated VNF, so that the type of the hardware acceleration resource required in the to-be-accelerated VNF can match a type of the hardware matching resource of the target host, and the hardware matching resource of the target host can meet an acceleration requirement of the to-be-accelerated VNF, thereby effectively improving performance of the to-be-accelerated VNF.