CN2F: A Cloud-Native Cellular Network Framework

Abstract

Upcoming cellular networks aim to improve the efficiency and flexibility of mobile networks by incorporating various technologies, such as Software-Defined Networking (SDN), Network Function Virtualization (NFV), and Network Slicing (NS). There exist open-source projects that implement components of different cellular generations. In this paper, we elaborate on how to use these open-source projects to realize a flexible and extendable testbed for conducting experiments on the future generation of cellular networks. In particular, a Cloud-Native Cellular Network Framework (CN2F) is presented, which uses OpenAirInterface's codebase to generate cellular Virtual Network Functions (VNFs) and deploys Kubernetes to disperse and manage them among multiple worker nodes. Moreover, CN2F leverages ONOS and Mininet to emulate the effect of the IP transport networks in the fronthaul and backhaul of real-world cellular networks. Using CN2F, we implement different network scenarios, including Edge Computing (EC), Cloud Computing (CC), and Radio Access Network (RAN) slicing, to showcase the effectiveness of the proposed testbed for academia and industrial Research and Development (R&D) activities.