Huawei launched its X-Haul platform targeted at providing connectivity for 5G networks tasked with supporting network slicing and taking advantage of cloud-based capabilities.
The firm said increased agility based on a cloud architecture can allow for greater network scaling of backhaul and fronthaul resources needed to support network slicing. This includes the ability for operators to partition portions of their network resources to specific services like enhanced mobile broadband and the Internet of Things (IoT).
X-Haul components include the use of IP, microwave, and optical transport network (OTN) access technologies. These are designed to support fronthaul, which is connectivity between telecom equipment and the transporting medium, and backhaul, which is the connectivity between telecom equipment and an IP network backbone.
The backhaul product includes Huawei’s adaptive network slicing router that can support 100-gigabit Ethernet (100GE) compatibility. If optical fiber is not available, Huawei offers a microwave product with support of up to 10 GE compatibility.
Flexible Ethernet (FlexE) technology is also used as part of the network slicing capabilities. Huawei said the technology can “divide a single physical Ethernet port into multiple Ethernet flexible hard pipes based on timeslot scheduling.” This allows for multiple services to be supported in the same network “slice” without impacting service quality.
Huawei said its Network Cloud Engine provides cloud-based centralized orchestration for the management and control plane for the IP, optical, and microwave connectivity products.
Further control of the device plane is provided by segment routing, Ethernet Virtual Private Network (EVPN), and Open Service Platform (OSP) protocols. These are designed to help automate lifecycle management of the connectivity network.
“Through the Network Cloud Engine, end-to-end coordination between FlexE-based network slices and wireless and core networks is achieved, with support for the flexible slice creation, on-demand bandwidth adjustment, on-demand service-level agreement (SLA) assurance, and rapid fault location for each network slice,” Huawei said. “This enables one network to serve multiple purposes, maximizing backhaul network value.”
Huawei earlier this year said it planned to invest up to $1 billion in a public cloud platform. The company has also been very aggressive in targeting 5G network infrastructure deals with service providers.