Patent Publication Number: US-9853869-B1

Title: System, method, and computer program for automatically instructing a virtual network function (VNF) to operate in accordance with one of a plurality of function definitions

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to telecommunications and/or data communications and, more particularly to network function virtualization (NFV) of telecommunications networks. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Network Function Virtualization is a term or a name of a proposed architecture of telecom services as published by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) in a series of documents available from the ETSI website. NFV uses generic hardware platform and generic software deployable over any Virtualized environment (i.e. Virtual Machine). Thus, NFV enables creating a network much more flexible and dynamic than a legacy communication network where HW and SW where tightly coupled. In NFV-based networks, a Virtual Network Function (VNF) decouples the software implementation of the network function from the infrastructure resources it runs on. A network service is based on one or more VNFs and/or Physical Network Functions (PNFs), their interconnections, and chaining definitions. The VNFs can be executed on almost any generic hardware processing facility. Therefore, VNFs may be installed, removed, and moved between hardware facilities, much more easily, less costly and thus, more frequently. 
     The flexibility of the NFV-based network enhances the means available for optimizing the network&#39;s capacity and performance. In accordance with such flexibility, it may be desirable to instruct VNFs to operate in accordance with various function definitions. 
     There is thus a need for addressing these and/or other issues associated with the prior art. 
     SUMMARY 
     A system, method, and computer program product are provided for instructing a virtual network function (VNF) to operate in accordance with one of a plurality of function definitions. In use, a virtual service including a plurality of VNFs is identified, the virtual service being a virtual service in a Network Function Virtualization (NFV-based) communication network, and at least one of the plurality of VNFs being capable of operating based on any one of a plurality of function definitions. Additionally, information associated with a current operation of the virtual service is received. Furthermore, it is determined which one of the plurality of function definitions the at least one of the plurality of VNFs is to operate, based on at least one of a plurality of policies and the information. Moreover, the at least one of the plurality of VNFs is automatically instructed to operate in accordance with the determined one of the plurality of function definitions. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a method for instructing a virtual network function (VNF) to operate in accordance with one of a plurality of function definitions, in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates a simplified diagram of a system associated with an NFV-based communication network, in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates a simplified block diagram of a hardware unit of an NFV-based network, in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a simplified diagram of an NFV management system, in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a simplified diagram of a deployed NFV-based network, in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 6  illustrates a simplified diagram of a VNF capable of operating utilizing various function definitions, in accordance with one embodiment. 
         FIG. 7  illustrates a network architecture, in accordance with one possible embodiment. 
         FIG. 8  illustrates an exemplary system, in accordance with one embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 1  illustrates a method  100  for instructing a virtual network function (VNF) to operate in accordance with one of a plurality of function definitions, in accordance with one embodiment. 
     As shown, a virtual service including a plurality of virtual network functions (VNFs) is identified. See operation  102 . The virtual service is a virtual service in a Network Function Virtualization (NFV-based) communication network. Additionally, at least one of the plurality of VNFs is capable of operating based on any one of a plurality of function definitions. The various function definitions may allow the VNF to operate in a different manner depending on the function definitions being used. 
     As shown further in  FIG. 1 , information associated with a current operation of the virtual service is received. See operation  104 . Furthermore, it is determined which one of the plurality of function definitions the at least one of the plurality of VNFs is to operate, based on at least one of a plurality of policies and the information. See operation  106 . 
     Moreover, the at least one of the plurality of VNFs is automatically instructed to operate in accordance with the determined one of the plurality of function definitions. See operation  108 . 
     The information associated with the current operation of the virtual service that is received may include any information capable of being utilized to determine which function to utilize. For example, in various embodiments, the information may be associated with a workload, a capacity, a network event, a type of processing required, input to the virtual service, and/or various other information. 
     Further, the policies may include any number of policies and may be associated with a variety of criteria. For example, in one embodiment, the policy may be associated with cost. In this case, it may be determined that the VNF is to operate in accordance with the policy associated with cost. In some cases, determining that the VNF is to operate in accordance with the policy associated with cost may function to optimize operation of the NFV-based communication network according to cost, from a perspective of the VNF. In other words, operating in accordance with the cost policy may ensure that the VNF is operating in a cost efficient manner. 
     As another example, the policy may be associated with a location corresponding to the virtual service. For example, the policy may recommend or dictate a functional location associated with one or more virtual services and/or VNFs. In this case, determining that the VNF is to operate in accordance with the policy associated with location may function to optimize operation of the NFV-based communication network according to a location of the virtual service, from a perspective of the VNF. 
     As another example, the policy may be associated with a throughput corresponding to the virtual service. In this case, determining that the VNF is to operate in accordance with the policy associated with throughput may function to optimize operation of the NFV-based communication network according to a throughput of the virtual service, from a perspective of the VNF. 
     As another example, the policy may be associated with a latency corresponding to the virtual service. In this case, determining that the VNF is to operate in accordance with the policy associated with latency may function to optimize operation of the NFV-based communication network according to a latency of the virtual service, from a perspective of the VNF. 
     Still yet, in one embodiment, the policy may be associated with a variety of policies and/or factors such as cost, location, throughput, latency, electric consumption, licensing considerations, and/or cloud resource load. In this case, in one embodiment, the various policies and/or factors may be weighted, and the weighted result may be used to determine the function definition in which to operate. 
     Further, in one embodiment, the weighting of the policies may include a dynamic weighting. In this case, the dynamic weighting may be automatically determined based on conditions associated with the NFV-based network. In various embodiments, the dynamic weighting may be automatically determined based on a time (e.g. time of day, time of year, etc.), network feedback (e.g. associated with congestion, load, etc.), external/internal analytics engine feed (e.g. forecasted workload on an entire service, or on a specific VNF, or on a specific VNF sub-component, based on load trending analysis) and/or manual intervention of an operator. The dynamic weighting may be determined periodically and/or repeatedly, etc. 
     Additionally, any VNF and/or virtual service in the network may be utilized to determine which of the function definitions to utilized. Furthermore, any VNF and/or virtual service in the network may be utilized to send a function definition instruction. Still yet, in one embodiment, a dedicated module may be utilized to perform some or all of this functionality. In this case, the dedicated module may include any number of VNFs and/or virtual services. As described below, such module may generally be described as a function determination module. 
     As an example implementation, at design time, when a service designer designs the service, the service designer may decide to define one of its functions to be any of several valid options. From a service functional point of view, all of these option serve the exact functionality (i.e., can substitute each other, etc.). But from other points of view, there are conditions where some option may be preferred over the other. These conditions are expressed as ‘selection policy’ by the service designer. 
     As one example, a security service may contain two functions: F 1  and F 2 . In this example, the service designer decides to use for the F 2  function a Product  1 . For the F 1  function, there are two valid options: either to use Product  2  or to use Product  3 —for the desired service they both provide the same functionality and can substitute each other. So, the service designer may decide that it will define them both in the service, under the F 1  function, as alternatives to each other with selection policy that will direct the orchestration system to make the selection decision at runtime according to current licensing cost of each option. 
     At run time, the orchestrator receives an order from customer to instantiate this security service, so it takes the service model and decompose the service to its components. It finds that it has to install Product  1  as the F 2  function and when it reaches the F 1  component it realizes that there are two options here, and that it has to evaluate the valid option according to the selection policy. So, the orchestrator queries the licensing repository and determines that currently it is more economical to use Product  2  F 1 , rather than using Product  3  F 1 . Thus, the orchestrator chooses to use Product  2 . 
     These selection policies can be of course other than the one in the example above. For example, there may be two function options that are different versions of the same product and a policy may select the right option according to the service customer preferences. One customer may prefer to stay with the same version that was initially installed and another may prefer to modify it to the latest version on every service modification. 
     As another example, there may be two function options that each require some infrastructure accelerator that (for this example) is provided from two different vendors. The policy here may be to install the right option according to the infrastructure that exists in the location where the function should be deployed. 
     In the context of the present description, the terms “network” and “communication network” refer to the hardware and software connecting one or more communication elements including wireline networks, wireless networks, and/or combinations thereof. 
     The terms “network function virtualization” (NFV) and virtual network function (NFV) are described in a series of documents published by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and available from the ETSI website. The term “virtual network function or feature” (VNF) refers to a particular implementation of a function, a feature, or a service provided by the network, internally within the network, or externally to a customer, subscriber, end-user, a terminal or a server. A VNF may include the software program implementation of the function or feature or service. The term VNF instance (VNF-I) refers to a particular process or task executing the VNF program by a particular virtual machine or processor or computing facility and/or used by a particular customer (or subscriber, end-user, terminal or server, etc.). 
     The term “service” refers to any type of use (such as a use case) that a NFV-based communication network may offer or provide to one or more communication elements. A service may include switching data or content between any number of elements, providing content from a server to a communication element or between servers, securing and protecting communication and content, processing content provided by the customer or by a third party, providing backup and redundancy, etc. A service may be using partial functionality of a VNF or may include one or more VNFs and/or one or more VNF instances forming a service sub-network (or interconnection model). In the context of the present description, the term “chain” may refer to such service sub-network, such as a particular plurality of VNFs and/or VNF instances associated with a particular service type or a service instance. 
     The term “deployment”, when referring to hardware elements, including processing elements, memory elements, storage elements, connectivity (communication) elements, etc., refer to the configuration or topology of these hardware elements creating the NFV-based network. The term “deployment”, when referring to software elements, such a VNFs and VNF instances, refers to the association between such software elements and hardware elements. 
     The term “deployment optimizations” refers to association of software and hardware elements in a manner that satisfies a particular set of requirements and/or rules, such as load-related and performance-related requirements, or a manner that makes a better use of a particular hardware deployment, such as by reducing operational cost. 
     The terms “service deployment optimization”, or “service optimization” or “chain optimization” refer to optimizing the deployment of a service chain, i.e., optimizing the deployment of one or more VNF instances making a particular service. The terms chain optimization and service optimization may thus be used interchangeably. 
     The term “session” refers to a communication connection between two or more entities that persists for a period of time during which data may be exchanged there between. A session may be implemented and managed by a session layer in the corresponding network protocol. The term session may include a network session and a logical session. The network session may be associated with the devices used to communicate, while the logical session may be associated with the communicating parties (users) and may persist regardless of the communication means that the parties are using. 
     The term “service continuity” includes and applies to the terms “session continuity” and “streaming continuity”. Streaming refers to streaming media, session or service, such as sound (including voice), video, multimedia, animation, etc. The term service usually applies to a group of VNFs (or the functionality provided by the group of VNFs) but may also apply to a single VNF (or the functionality provided by the VNF). The term “continuity” indicates that the session or the service is not interrupted, or that an interruption is short enough that a user is not aware of such interruption, or that the interruption does not cause any loss of data, or that the loss is handled in acceptable manner (e.g. a few packets of speech lost, but the conversation can continue, etc.). 
     The term “availability” or “service availability” refers to a level of the service, or a characteristic of the service, in which the service provider should provide the service, albeit possible hardware or software faults. For example, the service provider may obligate to the customer to provide a particular level of processing power, communication features such as bandwidth, latency, and jitter, database consistency, etc. Such level or characteristic of the service should be available to the customer even when a hardware component or a software component providing the service do not function properly. Providing availability may therefore require additional resources such as backup resources and/or mirroring. Hence “availability” may also refer to the terms “fault recovery” and “redundancy”. 
     The term “fault recovery” refers to the process of recovering one or more of the network&#39;s services, functions, and features after a fault, whether caused by a hardware malfunction, a system crash, a software bug or a security breech or fault. A hardware malfunction includes, but is not limited to, any type of inadequate performance associated with, for example, power supply, processing units, memory, storage, transmission line, etc. The term “fault recovery” also applies to recovering the functionality of one or more VNFs or VNF instances with respect to any of the above. The terms security breech or security fault may be used interchangeably. 
     The term “redundancy” refers to any type of component of the network that is fully or partly duplicated, provided in standby mode, or otherwise available, to replace another component of the network when that other component stops functioning properly or otherwise indicates some kind of fault. Redundancy may apply, but is not limited to, hardware, software, data and/or content. 
     More illustrative information will now be set forth regarding various optional architectures and uses in which the foregoing method may or may not be implemented, per the desires of the user. It should be strongly noted that the following information is set forth for illustrative purposes and should not be construed as limiting in any manner. Any of the following features may be optionally incorporated with or without the exclusion of other features described. 
     The principles and operation of a system, method, and computer program product for instructing a VNF to operate in accordance with one of a plurality of function definitions according to various embodiments may be further understood with reference to the following drawings and accompanying description. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates a simplified diagram of a system  200  associated with an NFV-based communication network  210 , in accordance with one embodiment. As an option, the system  200  may be implemented in the context of the details of  FIG. 1 . Of course, however, system  200  may be implemented in the context of any desired environment. Further, the aforementioned definitions may equally apply to the description below. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , at least one NFV-based network  210  is provided. The NFV-based communication network  210  includes an NFV management system  2111 , an NFV-orchestration (NFV-O) module  212 , and a function determination module  213 , according to one embodiment. 
     In the context of the present network architecture, the NFV-based network  210  may take any form including, but not limited to a telecommunications network, a local area network (LAN), a wireless network, a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, peer-to-peer network, cable network, etc. While only one network is shown, it should be understood that two or more similar or different NFV-based networks  210  may be provided. 
     The NFV-based network  210  may include one or more computation facilities  214 , each including one or more hardware units and being interconnected by communication links to form the NFV-based network  210 . At least one of the computation facilities  214  may include the NFV management system  211 . The NFV management system  211  may include the NFV-O module  212  and the function determination module  213 . 
     The NFV-O module  212  may be executed by one or more processors, or servers, such as computation facilities  214 , of the NFV-based network  210 . The NFV-O module  212  may be executed as an NFV-O instance or component. The NFV-O module  212  may therefore include a plurality of NFV-O instances or components as will be further explained below. 
     The function determination module  213  may be a part or a component of the NFV-O module  212 . However, the function determination module  213 , the NFV-O module  212  and the NFV management system  211  may be separate software programs provided by different vendors. In one embodiment, the NFV-based network  210  may even have a plurality of any of the NFV management systems  211 , the NFV-O modules  212 , and/or the function determination module  213 . 
     A plurality of devices  215  are communicatively coupled to the NFV-based network  210 . For example, a server computer  216  and a computer or terminal  217  may be coupled to the NFV-based network  210  for communication purposes. Such end-user computer or terminal  217  may include a desktop computer, a lap-top computer, a tablet computer, and/or any other type of logic or data processing device. Still yet, various other devices may be coupled to the NFV-based network  210  including a personal digital assistant (PDA) device  218 , a mobile phone device  219 , a television  220  (e.g. cable, aerial, mobile, or satellite television, etc.)2, etc. These devices  215  may be owned and/or operated by end-users, subscribers and/or customers of the NFV-based network  210 . Others of the devices  215 , such as administration station  221 , may be owned and/or operated by the operator of the NFV-based network  210 . 
     A network administrator  222  may supervise at least some aspects of the operation of the NFV-based network  210  by controlling an NFV infrastructure including the NFV management system  211 , the NFV-O  212 , and the function determination module  213 . 
       FIG. 3  illustrates a simplified block diagram  300  of a hardware unit  323  of an NFV-based network, in accordance with one embodiment. As an option, the block diagram  300  may be viewed in the context of the details of the previous Figures. Of course, however, block diagram  300  may be viewed in the context of any desired environment. Further, the aforementioned definitions may equally apply to the description below. 
     In one embodiment, the hardware unit  323  may represent a computing facility  214  of  FIG. 2 , or a part of a computing facility  214 . The hardware unit  323  may include a computing machine. The term computing machine relates to any type or combination of computing devices, or computing-related units, including, but not limited to, a processing device, a memory device, a storage device, and/or a communication device. 
     The hardware unit  323  may therefore be a network server, and the computing facility  214  may be a plurality of network servers, or a data-center, including cloud-based infrastructure. As an option, the hardware unit  323  may be implemented in the context of any of the devices of the NFV-based network  210  of  FIG. 2  and/or  FIG. 5  and in any desired communication environment. 
     Each hardware unit  323  (or computing machine, computing device, computing-related unit, and/or hardware component, etc.), including each communication link between such hardware units, may be associated with one or more performance type and a respective performance rating or value, where the hardware unit and/or communication link is operative to provide the performance value. Performance types are, for example, processing power, cash memory capacity, regular memory capacity (e.g. RAM, dynamic, or volatile memory, etc.), non-volatile memory (e.g. such as flash memory, etc.) capacity, storage capacity, power, cooling, bandwidth, bitrate, latency, jitter, bit error rate, and packet loss, etc. Virtual machines may run on top of the hardware unit  323  and a VNF may be run on one or more of such virtual machines. 
     The hardware unit  323  may be operative to provide computing infrastructure and resources for any type and/or instance of software component executed within the NFV-based network  210  of  FIG. 2 . In this regard, the hardware unit  323  may be operative to process any of the processes described herein, including but not limited to, any NFV-related software component and/or process. The hardware unit  323  is operative to process virtual network functions (VNFs), VNF instances, network function virtualization orchestration (NFV-O) software, modules and functions, data center management software, and/or cloud management systems (CMS), etc. 
     In various embodiments, the hardware unit  323  may include at least one processor unit  324 , one or more memory units  325  (e.g. random access memory (RAM), a non-volatile memory such as a Flash memory, etc.), one or more storage units  326  (e.g. including a hard disk drive and/or a removable storage drive, representing a floppy disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, a compact disk drive, etc.), one or more communication units  327 , one or more graphic processors  328  and displays  329 , and one or more communication buses  330  connecting the various units/devices. 
     The hardware unit  323  may also include one or more computer programs  331 , or computer control logic algorithms, which may be stored in any of the memory units  325  and/or storage units  326 . Such computer programs, when executed, enable the hardware unit  323  to perform various functions (e.g. as set forth in the context of  FIG. 1 , etc.). The memory units  325  and/or the storage units  326  and/or any other storage are possible examples of tangible computer-readable media. 
     It is appreciated that computer program  331  may include any of the NFV management system  211 , the NFV-O  212 , and/or the function determination module  213  of  FIG. 2 . 
       FIG. 4  illustrates a simplified diagram of an NFV management system  411 , in accordance with one embodiment. As an option, the NFV management system  411  may be implemented in the context of the details of the previous Figures. For example, in one embodiment, the NFV management system  411  may represent the NFV management system  211  of  FIG. 2 . Of course, however, the NFV management system  411  may be implemented in the context of any desired environment. Further, the aforementioned definitions may equally apply to the description below. 
     In one embodiment, the NFV management system  411  may include an NFV-O module  412 , and a function determination module  413 . The NFV management system  411  may include one or more NFV-O modules  412 . In various embodiments, each of the NFV-O modules  412  may include orchestration and workflow management  432  that is responsible for managing (i.e. orchestrating) and executing all NFV-O processes, including inbound and/or outbound communication and interfaces. 
     The NFV management system  411  may include a deployment optimization module  433  that enables a user to devise automatic mechanisms for network optimizations. The deployment optimization module  433  may operate these mechanisms automatically and continuously to optimize the distribution of VNFs  450  and their VNF instances in real-time (or near-real-time) by migrating VNFs  450  and VNF instances (e.g. VNF instances  551  of  FIG. 5 , etc.) between hardware units (e.g. hardware units  551  of  FIG. 5 , etc.). 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include a chain optimization module  434 . The chain optimization module  434  may be a part of deployment optimization module  433  and may enable a user to devise automatic mechanisms for optimizing the deployment of chains or groups of VNFs  450  and VNF instances. A service provided by an NFV-based network is typically made of a particular chain or group of particular VNFs  450  and their respective VNF instances. The chain optimization module  434  optimizes the deployment of chains or groups of services between hardware units according to the requirements and specifications associated with and/or adapted to the particular service, or chain, or a group. 
     The chain optimization module  434  may operate these mechanisms automatically and continuously to optimize in real-time the operation of chains or groups of the VNFs  450  and their VNF instances by re-planning their distribution among hardware units and optionally also by migrating the VNFs  450  and associated VNF instances between hardware units. 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include a service fulfillment module  435  that manages service and resource (e.g. VNF) instance lifecycle activities as part of the process and orchestration activities. This may include on boarding, initiation (e.g. instantiation), installation and configuration, scaling, termination, software update (e.g. of a running VNF, etc.), test environment, and/or rollback procedure. Additionally, the service fulfillment module  435  may also provide decomposition of an order to multiple network services, and the activation of such network service as a single VNF instance, or as a chain of VNF instances. 
     Order decomposition includes translating business orders into a network oriented service implementation plan. For example, a business order may be decomposed into a plurality of functions, some of which may be provided by different software programs or modules (e.g. such as various VNFs) instantiated as a plurality of VNF instances across one or more data centers. Performing order decomposition, the service fulfillment module  435  may consult the deployment optimization module  433  for the best deployment option to customer order in a given network and resource condition. Performing order decomposition, the service fulfillment module  435  may then initiate the service including all its components. Order decomposition may be performed in several locations across an NFV-O hierarchy. For example, initial decomposition may be performed in the root of the NFV-O, and then further decomposition may be performed in the relevant data centers. 
     In one embodiment, an activation and provisioning module may provide the plan for activation and provisioning of the service to the orchestration and workflow management  432 . The activation and provisioning module may also provide feedback on fulfillment status to an upper layer. This upper layer may include the business support services (BSS). 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include an assurance module  436  and a service management module  452  capable of gathering real time data on network elements&#39; status and creating a consolidated view of services and network health. The assurance module  436  includes assurance functionality and may interact with the service management module  452  to perform assurance related lifecycle management procedures. Lifecycle management can be also triggered by other modules, policies, manual intervention, or from the VNFs themselves, etc. The assurance module  436  and the service management module  452  may also trigger events associated with lifecycle management and faults. The assurance module  436  and the service management module  452  may monitor the health of the network and may execute fault recovery activities. 
     The assurance module  436  and the service management module  452  provide the ability to monitor services&#39; status and performance according to the required criteria. The assurance module  436  and the service management module  452  may also interact with the network infrastructure (e.g. including computing, storage, and networking, etc.) to receive the required information, analyze the information, and act upon each incident according to the defined policy. The assurance module  436  and the service management module  452  are able to interact with analytics to enrich a policy assurance module. Interfaces may also be provided for implementation by an external system. 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include a policy management module  437  that enables a user to define and configure offline and/or real-time policy for controlling VNF and service related rules. The policy management module  437  may contain the preconfigured policies and activities as well as selection rules for the NFV-O process to determine the preferred policy or activity to be performed for a particular process event. The policy management may be multi-layered, including vendor policy, service policy, and operator policy, etc. The policy mechanism may trigger the suitable policy layer (vendor/service/operator). 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include an administration module  438  that provides an overall view of the network, manual lifecycle management and intervention, and manual system administration and configuration. The administration module  438  may be operable to enable a user such as an administrator (e.g. administrator  222  of  FIG. 2 , etc.) to manage, view, and operate the NFV-O system. The administration module  438  may also provide a view of the network topology and services, the ability to perform specific activities such as manual lifecycle management, and changing service and connectivity configuration. 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include an inventory management module  439  that maintains a distributed view of deployed services and hardware resources. Inventory catalogues may reflect the current instantiation and allocation of the resources and services within the network mapped into products and/or customer entities. 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include a big data analytics module  440  that analyzes network and service data to support network decisions involving services and subscribers to improve network performance based on actual usage patterns. The big data analytics module  440  may also generate what-if scenarios to support business-oriented planning processes. Additionally, the big data analytics module  440  may function to analyze and evaluate the information for various planning aspects (e.g. Virtual Network Capacity Planning, Data Center Capacity Planning, Value based planning, Cost analysis for network deployment alternatives, etc.), deployment and management (e.g. Guided Operator Recommendations, What-if scenario analysis and simulation, application rapid elasticity and resource usage optimization, etc.), and may support business-oriented planning processes. 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include a catalog module  441  may include records defining various aspects of the network, such as products, services, and resources such as hardware units and VNFs (e.g. a VNF directory, etc.). The catalog module  441  may include a collection of centralized, hierarchical information repositories containing resource, service and product definitions with their relationship, versioning, and/or descriptors, etc. Such records may include templates enabling a user, such as an administrator, to define particular network components such as resources, products, services, etc. A resource template may define resources descriptors, attributes, activities, procedures, and/or connectivity, etc. A service template may define a service variation from resource building blocks. A product template may define parameters of a sellable product (e.g. prices, rating, etc.) based on service composition (e.g. in one embodiment, this may be part of a BSS catalogue). 
     The inventory management module  439 , the big data analytics module  440 , and/or the catalog module  441  may support multiple data centers, multiple CMSs and provide a centralized view across the infrastructure. The inventory management module  439 , the big data analytics module  440 , and/or the catalog module  441  may also support hybrid networks and services maintaining both physical and virtual resources. 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include an accounting and licensing module  442  that may be operable to record and manage network software usage data for commercial purposes including licensing, accounting, billing, and reconciliation of services with subscribers and providers. The accounting and licensing module  442  may manage licensing and usage of virtual network applications, including the ability to support complex rating schemes, based on various parameters such as CPU, memory, data, etc. The accounting and licensing module  442  may enable users to define the pricing of particular VNF modules and provide settlement with vendors. The accounting and licensing module  442  may also enable the evaluation of internal costs of services provided within the network for calculating return on investment (ROI). 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include a fault recovery module  443  (otherwise named disaster recovery planning module or DRP, etc.) that enables a user to plan and manage disaster recovery procedures for the NFV-O and/or the entire network. 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include a security management module  444  that provides the authentication authorization and accounting services of application security across the network. The security management module  444  may include, for example, an authentication module and function. In one embodiment, the authentication module and function (e.g. including identity management, etc.) may authenticate the identity of each user defined in the system. Each user may have a unique user identity and password. The system may support password based authentication with flexible password policy. Integration with external authentication providers may be done via additional system enhancements. The authorization module and function may support a role-based access control (RBAC) mechanism, where each user is assigned with one or more roles according to the business needs based on the least privileges concept (e.g. standard or administrator roles). In one embodiment, the accounting and licensing module  442  may provide an audit of security events such as authentication or login events. 
     As an option, the security management module  444  may use rules to protect sensitive information. For example, such rules may be used to ensure the data accessed is used for the specific purposes for which it was collected, sensitive information is encrypted when in storage/transit and masked/truncated on display and logs, and that the entire security system is deployed in the customer&#39;s intranet network (i.e. behind network/infrastructure measures), in an independent domain, etc. 
     In one embodiment, the NFV management system  411  may further include a Secure Development Life Cycle (SDLC) module that ensures that security aspects are handled during a project&#39;s life cycle, such as security design, security testing, etc. 
     As shown further in  FIG. 4 , the NFV management system  411  may include a service planning module  445 . The service planning module  445  may be used by a communication service provider (CSP) sales representative, enterprise, and/or technician, as part of selling engagement process with enterprise/SMB customers. 
     The service planning module  445  may also provide the ability to interact with catalogues, customer data, network and ordering systems to provide online network service proposals for the enterprise customers with ability to quote update the proposal, validate the serviceability and network inventory, and once done, provide the service order for activation using the northbound interface. 
     The function determination module  413  may also be part of the NFV-O module  412 . The function determination module  413  is operable to: identify a virtual service including a plurality of VNFs, where at least one of the plurality of VNFs are capable of operating based on any one of a plurality of function definitions; receive information associated with a current operation of the virtual service; determine which one of the plurality of function definitions the VNF is to operate, based on at least one of a plurality of policies and the information; and automatically instruct the VNF to operate in accordance with the determined function definition. Moreover, the function determination module  413  may operable to implement any functionality described in the context of  FIG. 1 . 
     The NFV management system  411  may also include east/west APIs  446  that include various domains/activities interfaces, including an information source to a big data repository, and interaction capability with a physical network system (OSS). 
     Northbound APIs  447  provides application programming interfaces (APIs) to various external software packages, such as business support system (BSS) for service order fulfillment, cancel and update activities, status notification, resource inventory view, monitoring system, assurance system, service planning tool, administration tool for system view and configuration, and big data repository, etc. 
     Further, the southbound APIs  448  may provide APIs for external software packages, such as CMS (including service and VNFs lifecycle activities—receiving from the infrastructure status and monitoring information for upstream system and activities [e.g. assurance]), an SDN Controller (or other connectivity system) to configure inter and intra data center connectivity, an EMS to configure the VNF, and a VNF for a direct configuration. 
       FIG. 5  illustrates a simplified diagram  500  of a deployed NFV-based network  510 , in accordance with one embodiment. As an option, the diagram  500  may be viewed in the context of the details of the previous Figures. For example, in one embodiment, the deployed NFV-based network  510  and associated elements may represent the NFV-based networks and associated elements described in the context of the previous Figures. Of course, however, the diagram  500  may be viewed in the context of any desired environment. Further, the aforementioned definitions may equally apply to the description below. 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , the NFV-based network  510  may include hardware units  523  connected via transmission lines  549 , and VNFs implemented as software programs  550  installed in hardware units  523 . Some of the hardware units  523  may be directly connected to a customer. The customer may be a subscriber, an end-user, or an organization, represented herein as a terminal or a server  552 , or a plurality of terminals and/or servers  552 . The NFV-based network  510  may also include a NFV management system  511 , an NFV-orchestration (NFV-O)  512 , and a function determination module  513  (which may all represent elements described in the context of the previous figures, etc.). 
     As shown further in  FIG. 5 , several, typically different, VNFs  550  may be installed in the same hardware unit  523 . Additionally, the same VNF  550  may be installed in different hardware units  523 . 
     A VNF  550  may be executed by a processor of the hardware unit  523  in the form of a VNF instance  551 . Therefore, a particular VNF  550  installed in a particular hardware unit  523  may be “incarnated” in (e.g. initiated, executed as, etc.) any number of VNF instances  551 . The VNF instances  551  may be independent of each other. Additionally, each VNF instance  551  may serve different terminals and/or servers  552 . The NFV-based network  510  connects to and between communication terminal devices  552  that may be operated by one or more customers, subscribers, and/or end-users. 
     It is appreciated that a network operator may manage one or more services deployed in the customer&#39;s premises. Therefore, some of the hardware units  523  may reside within the premises of the network operator, while other hardware units  523  may reside in the customer&#39;s premises. Similarly, a server, such as server computer  216  of  FIG. 2 , may reside in the premises of the network operator or in the customer&#39;s premises. Consequently, when the network operator provides and/or manages one or more services for a customer&#39;s terminal devices  552  such as a server computer, the NFV-based network  510  of the network operator may directly manage the VNFs  550 , providing the services and their VNF instances  551 . 
     In such situation, the NFV-based network  510  may manage the services irrespectively of the location of the terminal devices  552  (e.g. the server computer  216 , etc.), whether in the premises of the network operator or in the customer&#39;s premises. In other words, the NFV-based network  510  may be managing the VNFs  550  and the VNF instances  551  providing the services, as well as the terminal devices  552  (e.g. the server computer  216 , etc.) being co-located within the same computing device (e.g. the hardware unit  523 , etc.), whether in the premises of the network operator or in the customer&#39;s premises or in a commercial cloud or any other place. 
     A service provided by the communication network may be implemented using one or more VNFs. For example, the service may be a group, or a chain of interconnected VNFs. The VNFs making the group, or the service, may be installed and executed by a single processor, by several processors on the same rack, within several racks in the same data-center, or by processors distributed within two or more data-centers. In some cases, chain optimization may be employed by optimizing the deployment of a service in a communication network using network function virtualization, and to optimizing the deployment of a group, or a chain, of virtual network functions in the NFV-based network  510 . Therefore, the term “chain optimization” refers to the planning and/or managing of the deployment of VNFs making a chain, or a group, of VNFs providing a particular service. 
     For example,  FIG. 5  shows a first service  553 , including the VNFs  550  and their respective VNF instances  554 ,  555 ,  556 , and  557 , and a thick line. In this example, the group or chain of the VNFs  550  making first service  553  are connected as a chain of VNFs  550 . However, the VNFs  550  making a service may be connected in any conceivable form such as a star, tree-root, tree-branch, mesh, etc., including combinations thereof. It is noted that the VNFs  550  may be executed by two or more VNF instances  551 , such as VNF  554 . 
     The deployment of the group or chain of the VNFs  550  making the first service  553  is therefore limited by constraints such as the capacity of the communication link  549  bandwidth and/or latency (delay). 
     A VNF may have a list of requirements, or specifications, such as processing power, cash memory capacity, regular memory capacity (e.g. RAM, dynamic, or volatile memory, etc.), non-volatile memory (e.g. such as flash memory, etc.) capacity, storage capacity, power requirements, cooling requirements, etc. A particular VNF instance  551  providing a particular function (e.g. to a particular customer, entity, etc.) may have further requirements, or modified requirements, for example, associated with a particular quality of service (QoS) or service level agreement (SLA). Such requirements may include maximum latency or delay, average latency and maximum variance (latency jitter), maximal allowed packet loss, etc. Other requirements may include service availability, redundancy, backup, provisions for roll-back and/or recovery, fault-tolerance, and/or fail-safe operation, etc. 
     A service made of a chain or a group of VNFs  550  and their VNF instances  551  may have a similar list of requirements, or specifications, covering the service as a whole. Therefore, such requirements, or specifications, may imply, affect, or include, requirements, or specifications, regarding communication links between the VNFs  550  and/or the VNF instances  551 . Such requirements, or specifications, may include bandwidth, latency, bit-error rate, and/or packet loss, etc. Such communication requirements or specifications may further impose deployment limitations, or constraints, requiring particular VNFs  550  and/or VNF instances  551  to reside in the same data-center, or within the same rack, or even in the same computing device, for example, sharing memory or being executed by the same processor. Security measures may add further requirements, or specifications, such as co-location of some of the VNFs  550  and/or the VNF instances  551 . 
     In the context of  FIG. 5 , the NFV-based network  510  has a hierarchical structure. There may be at least four aspects of the hierarchical structure of the NFV-based network  510 . The networking or traffic aspect refers to the arrangement of the transmission lines between the hardware units  523 . The processing aspect refers to the arrangement of the hardware units  523 . The software aspect refers to the arrangement of the VNFs  550 . The operational aspect refers to the arrangement of the VNF instances  551 . 
     One aspect of the optimization process in an NFV-based network is that it may be based on real-time needs, rather than long-term, statistically anticipated, needs. One potential limitation on network reconfiguration in NFV-based networks is that network configuration must not result in a deterioration beyond acceptable level of any of the current services. The NFV deployment module (e.g. module  433  of  FIG. 4 , etc.) may function to enable and manage migration of services between the hardware units  523 , the VNFs  550 , and the VNF instances  551  in real-time, without affecting or with a minimal effect on the availability of a service, and while securing service and session continuity. 
     In the context of the current description, the term “continuous” means that the deployment optimization module and/or a chain optimization module (e.g. the chain optimization module  434  of  FIG. 4 , etc.) performs the relevant optimization task or process in run-time, or real-time, or online, or on-the-fly, or repetitively and without adversely affecting the network&#39;s functionality and its services. 
     Unlike a legacy network, the NFV-based network may have two topologies: the topology of the hardware devices, and the topology of the VNFs (the distribution of VNFs among the hardware devices). The topology of the hardware network is relatively stable, while the VNF topology can be optimized in real-time. Another benefit of the NFV-based network is that modifying the software topology (e.g. the distribution of VNFs among the hardware devices) is much less costly than any modification of the hardware topology. However, any modification of the network has its cost, including the cost of making such modification possible. Added cost may result from the need to process the modification of the topology and the re-distribution of VNF instances and to maintain excess resources for such purpose. 
     Thus, in some cases, it may be desired to localize the NFV-O  512 , and particularly the deployment optimization processes associated with the deployment optimization module and the chain optimization module to reduce the cost, and simultaneously to secure the possibility to expand the scope of the network managed by these processes, if needed. 
       FIG. 6  illustrates a simplified diagram  600  of a VNF  602  capable of operating utilizing various function definitions  604 , in accordance with one embodiment. As an option, the diagram  600  may be viewed in the context of the details of the previous Figures. Of course, however, the diagram  600  may be viewed in the context of any desired environment. Further, the aforementioned definitions may equally apply to the description below. 
     As shown, the VNF  602  may operate utilizing a plurality of function definitions  604 . In various embodiments, the VNF  602  may be part of, or associated with, a one or more virtual services  606 . In operation, information associated with a current operation of the virtual service  606  may be received. Further, it may be determined which one of the plurality of function definitions  604  the VNF  602  is to operate, based on at least one of a plurality of policies and the information. Additionally, the VNF  602  is instructed to operate in accordance with the determined function definition. 
     In various embodiments, the determination of which one of the plurality of function definitions  604  to utilize may be made by the VNF  602 , the virtual service  606 , and/or another virtual service  608  (e.g. which in one embodiment may represent the function determination module  413 , etc.). 
     The operation instruction is made by the orchestrator as part of the runtime planning phase. In this phase, the orchestrator, according to a selection policy, determines which function option it should install. The trigger for this operation (planning or re-planning) is following receiving new service order request (first time the service is instantiated), receiving service order modification, or receiving of any internal or external event directly or indirectly from the monitored VNF, monitored service, or any other related affecting monitored service. 
       FIG. 7  illustrates a network architecture  700 , in accordance with one possible embodiment. As shown, at least one network  702  is provided. In the context of the present network architecture  700 , the network  702  may take any form including, but not limited to a telecommunications network, a local area network (LAN), a wireless network, a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, peer-to-peer network, cable network, etc. While only one network is shown, it should be understood that two or more similar or different networks  702  may be provided. 
     Coupled to the network  702  is a plurality of devices. For example, a server computer  704  and an end user computer  706  may be coupled to the network  702  for communication purposes. Such end user computer  706  may include a desktop computer, lap-top computer, and/or any other type of logic. Still yet, various other devices may be coupled to the network  702  including a personal digital assistant (PDA) device  708 , a mobile phone device  710 , a television  712 , etc. 
       FIG. 8  illustrates an exemplary system  800 , in accordance with one embodiment. As an option, the system  800  may be implemented in the context of any of the devices of the network architecture  700  of  FIG. 7 . Of course, the system  800  may be implemented in any desired environment. 
     As shown, a system  800  is provided including at least one central processor  801  which is connected to a communication bus  802 . The system  800  also includes main memory  804  [e.g. random access memory (RAM), etc.]. The system  800  also includes a graphics processor  806  and a display  808 . 
     The system  800  may also include a secondary storage  810 . The secondary storage  810  includes, for example, a hard disk drive and/or a removable storage drive, representing a floppy disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, a compact disk drive, etc. The removable storage drive reads from and/or writes to a removable storage unit in a well-known manner. 
     Computer programs, or computer control logic algorithms, may be stored in the main memory  804 , the secondary storage  810 , and/or any other memory, for that matter. Such computer programs, when executed, enable the system  800  to perform various functions (as set forth above, for example). Memory  804 , storage  810  and/or any other storage are possible examples of tangible computer-readable media. 
     While various embodiments have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not limitation. Thus, the breadth and scope of a preferred embodiment should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims and their equivalents.