Abstract
Network function virtualization technology makes the deployment and management of network service more flexible and elastic by decoupling network function from dedicated hardware. The service requests of network function virtualization are usually deployed in the form of a service function chain. In order to solve the problems of load imbalance, unreasonable utilization of substrate resources, and the high delay of the service function chain deployment in operator networks, a service function chain deployment method based on the network flow theory is proposed in this paper. First, on the basis of perceiving the substrate network resources and topology with a software-defined network controller in real time, a candidate node set is determined according to the resource constraints and the locations of ingress/egress switch nodes that service flow flows in/out. Second, the candidate node set, the ingress/egress switch nodes and the connection between them are used to form a directed network, and the service function chain deployment problem is transformed into an optimal path selection problem. Then, a node disassembling method is used to transform the directed network into a capacity-flow-cost network. Finally, a minimum-cost maximum-flow algorithm is used to find the optimal deployment path and complete the service function chain deployment. Experiments show that the method proposed in this paper can guarantee the load balance of operator networks, reduce the average transmission delay of service flow, and make the utilization of substrate resources more reasonable.
Highlights
The original intention of network function virtualization technology (NFV) is to realize network functions by means of ‘‘general hardware+software’’, reduce the capital expenditure and operating expense of networks, and improve the flexibility of service deployment
Network functions can be virtualized into instances of plain software referred to virtual network function (VNF) in the NFV, which can greatly shorten the deployment cycle and
The combination of softwaredefined network (SDN) and NFV technology can significantly improve the efficiency, programmability and flexibility of networks, which is widely used in 5G networks [7], [8]
Summary
The original intention of network function virtualization technology (NFV) is to realize network functions by means of ‘‘general hardware+software’’, reduce the capital expenditure and operating expense of networks, and improve the flexibility of service deployment. Most of the studies only optimize the single performance of SFC deployment, but they have not fully considered the load balance, QoS and reasonable utilization of the substrate resource. This work proposes an SFC deployment method based on the network flow theory (SFCD-NFT) that guarantees the load balance of the substrate network, and considers the QoS and the revenue of operators. It chooses the substrate network path that has the least bottleneck links and bottleneck forwarding nodes as the optimal deployment path, and guarantees the load balance of the substrate network, greatly reduces the link transmission delay and improves the performance of SFC deployment. Taking the link transmission delay as the cost and using a minimum-cost maximum-flow algorithm to solve the optimal path selection problem can make the result closer to the optimal solution, reduce the average transmission delay of service flow and improve the resource utilization of the substrate network.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
