Patent Description:
A concept of network slicing is introduced when a future mobile communications system is studied. A network slice may be understood as an on-demand network. A physical network may be logically divided into a plurality of network slices, and different network slices may be used to carry different services. For example, an electric power company needs to provide a smart meter service, and this service can be implemented by using a network slice connecting a series of machine-to-machine (Machine-to-Machine, M2M) devices.

In an existing network slice management process, one network slice may include a plurality of subnets, and different subnets are required to support some requirements of the network slice. However, for a subnet, due to a network status change or another reason, during operation of the network slice, the subnet may fail to continue satisfying a preset requirement. As a result, a management fault of the entire network slice may occur.

Document <CIT> refers to a network slicing management method comprising the steps of: determining, by a first management unit, subnet requirement information based on network slice requirement information, where a network slice includes at least one subnet; sending, by the first management unit, a first negotiation request to a second management unit, where the first negotiation request carries the subnet requirement information, and the first negotiation request is used to query for a support status of the second management unit for the subnet requirement information; and correspondingly, determining, by the second management unit, that the second management unit can support the subnet requirement information, or determining, by the second management unit, that the second management unit cannot support the subnet requirement information. In particular, the first management unit is a cross-domain manager unit.

According to document <CIT>, in a communication network managing system, at a network manager, a management section manages QoS (Quality of Service) capability management information from element managers, a request reception section receives a request for a target QoS capability, and a section and notification section selects a candidate subnetwork such as to satisfy the target QoS capability for which the request has been received by the request reception section, and notifies the corresponding element managers of information about the selection. At the individual element manager, based on the selection information from the selection and notification section of the network manager, a control section controls the corresponding subnetwork.

The present disclosure describes a management method and a management unit to prevent a management fault of an entire network slice when a subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement.

The present invention is set out by the set of appended claims. In the following, parts of the description and drawing referring to examples, aspects or implementations, which are not covered by the claims are not presented as embodiments of the invention, but as illustrative examples useful for understanding the invention.

According to one aspect, the present disclosure provides a management method. The method includes: sending, by a second management unit, an update request to a first management unit, where the update request is used to request the first management unit to update requirement information of a subnet managed by the first management unit; and determining, by the first management unit, that the subnet can satisfy the update request, or determining that the subnet cannot satisfy the update request. In the solution in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the second management unit can request the first management unit to update requirement information of a first subnet, thereby preventing a management fault of an entire network slice when a second subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement. In a possible design, the update request carries first indication information, where the first indication information is an update value used by the second management unit to instruct the first management unit to update the requirement information of the subnet.

In a possible implementation, if the first management unit determines that the subnet can satisfy the update request, the first management unit may further modify the subnet based on the first indication information.

In a possible design, the first management unit may further send an update response to the second management unit, where the update response carries update information of the requirement information of the subnet.

In a possible implementation, the update information may include one or both of an update result and second indication information. The update result is used to indicate an update value that can be supported by the first management unit and that is used to update the requirement information of the subnet. The second indication information is used to indicate that the subnet can satisfy the update request, or the second indication information is used to indicate that the subnet cannot satisfy the update request.

The requirement information of the subnet includes at least one of a latency, a throughput, a report success ratio, a command success ratio, reliability, a capacity, and coverage.

An embodiment of the present disclosure provides another management method. The method includes: determining, by a first management unit, requirement information of a second subnet based on requirement information of a first subnet, where the first subnet is a subnet managed by the first management unit, the second subnet is a subnet managed by a second management unit, and the first subnet and the second subnet are subnets included in a network slice; and sending, by the first management unit, the requirement information of the second subnet to the second management unit. In the solution in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the network slice includes the first subnet and the second subnet, and the first management unit may determine the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet, and send the requirement information of the second subnet to the second management unit. Therefore, the first management unit can adjust the requirement information of the subnet managed by the first management unit and the requirement information of the subnet managed by the second management unit, thereby preventing a management fault of the entire network slice when the first subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement.

Before determining the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet, the first management unit may further receive capability information of the second subnet from the second management unit. In this case, the first management unit determines the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet and the capability information of the second subnet.

In a possible implementation, before receiving the capability information of the second subnet from the second management unit, the first management unit may further send a query request to the second management unit, where the query request is used to request the capability information of the second subnet.

In a possible design, before determining the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet, the first management unit may further send warning information to a third management unit, where the warning information is used to indicate that the first management unit starts a coordination process between the requirement information of the first subnet and the requirement information of the second subnet.

In a possible design, the first management unit may further send a notification message to a third management unit, where the notification message is used to notify the third management unit that the first management unit has completed a coordination process between the requirement information of the first subnet and the requirement information of the second subnet.

The requirement information of the first subnet or the requirement information of the second subnet includes at least one of a latency, a throughput, a report success ratio, a command success ratio, reliability, a capacity, and coverage. In the solutions described in the foregoing two aspects, the first management unit and the second management unit may be different domain manager units, for example, may be same-domain manager units, or may be different-domain manager units. The third management unit may be a cross-domain manager unit.

According to still another aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a first management unit. The first management unit has functions for implementing actions of the first management unit in the foregoing method designs. The functions may be implemented by hardware, or may be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the foregoing functions.

The first management unit includes a processor, where the processor is configured to support the first management unit in implementing a corresponding function in the foregoing methods. Further, the first management unit further includes a communications interface, where the communications interface is configured to support the first management unit in communicating with a second management unit, a third management unit, or another unit. Further, the first management unit may further include a memory, where the memory is configured to couple with the processor, and store a program instruction and data necessary for the first management unit.

According to yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides a second management unit. The second management unit has functions for implementing actions of the second management unit in the foregoing method designs. The functions may be implemented by hardware, or may be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the foregoing functions.

In a possible design, the second management unit includes a processor, where the processor is configured to support the second management unit in implementing a corresponding function in the foregoing methods. Further, the second management unit may further include a communications interface, where the communications interface is configured to support the second management unit in communicating with a first management unit or another unit. Further, the second management unit may further include a memory, where the memory is configured to couple with the processor, and store a program instruction and data necessary for the second management unit.

According to still yet another aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a third management unit. The third management unit has functions for implementing actions of the third management unit in the foregoing method designs. The functions may be implemented by hardware, or may be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the foregoing functions.

In a possible design, the third management unit includes a processor, where the processor is configured to support the third management unit in implementing a corresponding function in the foregoing methods. Further, the third management unit may further include a communications interface, where the communications interface is configured to support the third management unit in communicating with a first management unit or another unit. Further, the third management unit may further include a memory, where the memory is configured to couple with the processor, and store a program instruction and data necessary for the third management unit.

According to a further aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communications system, where the system includes the first management unit and the second management unit described in the foregoing aspects; or the system includes the first management unit, the second management unit, and the third management unit described in the foregoing aspects.

According to a still further aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a computer readable storage medium, where the computer readable storage medium stores an instruction, and when the instruction runs on a computer, the computer is enabled to perform the methods in the foregoing aspects.

According to a yet further aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a computer program product that includes an instruction, where when the instruction runs on a computer, the computer is enabled to perform the methods in the foregoing aspects.

Compared to the prior art, in the solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the second management unit can request the first management unit to update the requirement information of the first subnet, thereby preventing a management fault of the entire network slice when the second subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement.

The following describes the technical solutions in the examples of the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings in the examples of the present disclosure.

A network architecture and a service scenario that are described in the examples of the present disclosure are used to describe the technical solutions in the examples of the present disclosure more clearly, and do not constitute limitations to the technical solutions provided in the examples of the present disclosure. A person of ordinary skill in the art may know that the technical solutions provided in the examples of the present disclosure are also applicable to similar technical problems as the network architecture evolves and a new service scenario appears.

Some possible application scenarios and network architectures to which the examples of the present disclosure are applicable are first described below with reference to <FIG>.

<FIG> is a schematic diagram of a possible application scenario according to an example of the present disclosure. In the application scenario shown in <FIG>, at least a service orchestrator (Service Orchestrator, SO) unit, a network orchestrator (Network Orchestrator, NO) unit, an element manager (Element Manager, EM) unit, and a network (Network) unit/a network function (Network Function, NF) unit are included. The following briefly describes the units shown in <FIG>.

The SO unit may also be referred to as a service orchestration and management unit or a service management unit, and mainly includes the following functions: service (service) lifecycle management (for example, instantiation, update, and deletion) based on a service request message; service aggregation; service management, for example, service fault, configuration, accounting, performance, security (Fault, Configuration, Accounting, Performance, Security, FCAPS) management; mapping between a service and a network slice (network slice); and the like. A service may be a communication service entitled to a group of users within a specified service level agreement (Service Level Agreement, SLA), for example, a mobile broadband (Mobile Broadband, MBB) service, a voice service, or an Internet of Things (Internet of Things, IOT) service (for example, a smart parking service or a smart meter reading service). For example, the SO unit may manage a service carried by a network slice.

The NO unit may also be referred to as a network orchestration and management unit or a network management unit, and mainly includes the following functions: network slice management, for example, network slice lifecycle management and network slice template management; mapping between a network slice and a network function; coordination between different types of network resources; coordination between network resources provided by different operators or different network providers, so that the network resources provided by different network providers can satisfy a requirement of a target service, for example, an SLA requirement, a key performance indicator (key performance indicator, KPI) requirement, or a quality of service (Quality of Service, QoS) requirement; unified orchestration for network devices provided by different providers; and provision of an external application programming interface (Application Program Interface, API), where the API is used to provide a network function for a third party for implementing cross-operator deployment.

The EM unit may also be referred to as a network function manager (Network Function Manager, NF-M) unit, and mainly includes the following functions: network element or network function lifecycle management (for example, instantiation, update, and deletion); network element or network function FCAPS management; and the like.

The network unit may include at least one of a core network unit, an access network unit, or a transport network unit. It should be noted that the network unit may be replaced by a network function unit, or the network unit may also have a function of a network function unit. The "Network/NF" unit shown in <FIG> is a unit having a function of a network unit and/or a function of a network function unit.

It should be noted that the SO unit or the NO unit may be deployed in an operations support system (Operations Support System, OSS), or the SO unit or the NO unit may be deployed independent of an OSS. The OSS may be understood as a support system oriented to device and network maintenance, and is responsible for single-vendor network management and multi-vendor network management.

It can be understood that descriptions of the functions of the units are merely some examples, and each unit may still have another function. This is not limited in the examples of the present disclosure.

For ease of description, a unit may be represented by an English abbreviation of the unit below. For example, the SO unit may be represented by SO, and other units are represented in a similar way. Details are not described below.

Based on the foregoing application scenario, <FIG> shows a possible network architecture according to an example of the present disclosure. As shown in <FIG>, the network architecture includes a business support system (Business Support System, BSS), a core network domain manager (Core Network Domain Manager, CN-DM) unit, and an access network domain manager (Access Network Domain Manager, AN-DM) unit, a transport network domain manager (Transport Network Domain Manager, TN-DM) unit, and the like. For example, the access network domain manager unit may be a radio access network domain manager (Radio Access Network Domain Manager, RAN-DM) unit. The CN-DM, the AN-DM, and the TN-DM are interconnected. Optionally, the network architecture may further include a cross domain manager (Cross Domain Manager, CDM) unit. When the network architecture does not include the CDM, the BSS is connected to the CN-DM, the AN-DM, and the TN-DM; when the network architecture includes the CDM, the CDM is connected to the BSS, and the CDM is further connected to the CN-DM, the AN-DM, and the TN-DM.

The following briefly describes the BSS, the CDM, the CN-DM, the AN-DM, and the TN-DM.

The BSS is responsible for performing service-related management (for example, service operation, accounting, and customer relationship management) and providing a service for a terminal. In the network architecture shown in <FIG>, the BSS may be alternatively replaced by a customer (Customer), or the BSS may also have a function of a customer. Functions of the customer include: performing service management and providing a corresponding service for the terminal. In <FIG>, the "BSS/Customer" represents a unit having a function of the BSS and/or a function of the customer.

The CDM may also be referred to as a cross-domain slice manager (Cross-Domain Slice Manager, CDSM) unit, a cross-domain orchestration unit, or a network slice management function (Network Slice Management Function, NSSF) unit, and has a network slice (Network Slice, NSL) management function and/or an NSL orchestration function. For example, the CDM may include some or all of the following functions: NSL management such as network slice lifecycle management, network slice template management, network slice fault management, network slice performance management, and network slice configuration management; mapping between an NSL and a subnet and mapping between an NSL and a network function; coordination between network resources or service level agreement (Service Level Agreement, SLA) information provided by different sub-domains (for example, a core network domain, an access network domain, or a transport network domain); and unified orchestration for subnet slices or network functions provided by all sub-domains, where the unified orchestration enables the subnet slices or the network functions provided by all the sub-domains to satisfy a requirement of a target service (for example, an SLA requirement, a key performance indicator (Key Performance Indicator, KPI) requirement, or a quality of service (Quality of Service, QoS) requirement).

The network slice, also referred to as an end-to-end (End to End, E2E) network slice, may include at least a core network (Core Network, CN) part, an access network (Access Network, AN) part, and a transport network (Transport Network, TN) part; or the network slice may include any two of a CN part, an AN part, or a TN part; or the network slice may be a network slice of a CN part, a network slice of an AN part, or a network slice of a TN part. The access network may be a radio access network (Radio Access Network, RAN). It can be understood that the network slice described in the examples of the present disclosure may also have another implementation. This is not limited in the examples of the present disclosure.

The CN-DM may also be referred to as a core network domain slice manager (CN Domain Slice Manager, CN-DSM) unit, and has a subnet management function of a core network domain network slice and/or a subnet orchestration function of the core network domain network slice. For example, the CN-DM may include some or all of the following functions: subnet management of the core network domain network slice, for example, subnet lifecycle management (including creation, update, and deletion), subnet fault management, subnet performance management, and subnet configuration management; management of a service in the core network domain, for example, service lifecycle management, service fault management, service performance management, and service configuration management; and coordination between network resources in the core network domain for unified orchestration. The AN-DM may also be referred to as an access network domain slice manager (AN Domain Slice Manager, AN-DSM) unit, and has a subnet management function of an access network domain network slice and/or a subnet orchestration function of the access network domain network slice. For example, the AN-DM may include some or all of the following functions: subnet management of the access network domain network slice, for example, subnet lifecycle management (including creation, update, and deletion), subnet fault management, subnet performance management, and subnet configuration management; management of a service in the access network domain, for example, service lifecycle management, service fault management, service performance management, and service configuration management; and coordination between network resources in the access network domain for unified orchestration.

The TN-DM may also be referred to as a transport network domain slice manager (TN Domain Slice Manager, TN-DSM) unit, and has a subnet management function of a transport network domain network slice and/or a subnet orchestration function of the transport network domain network slice. For example, the TN-DM may include some or all of the following functions: subnet management of the transport network domain network slice, for example, subnet lifecycle management (including creation, update, and deletion), subnet fault management, subnet performance management, and subnet configuration management; management of a service in the transport network domain, for example, service lifecycle management, service fault management, service performance management, and service configuration management; and coordination between network resources in the transport network domain for unified orchestration.

When the network architecture shown in <FIG> does not include the CDM, the CN-DM, the AN-DM, and the TN-DM may all be deployed in the SO, may all be deployed in the NO, or may all be deployed in the EM. When the network architecture shown in <FIG> includes the CDM, the CDM, the CN-DM, the AN-DM, and the TN-DM may all be deployed in the SO or may all be deployed in the NO; or the CDM may be deployed in the NO, and the CN-DM, the AN-DM, and the TN-DM may all be deployed in the EM; or the CDM may be deployed in the SO, and the CN-DM, the AN-DM, and the TN-DM may all be deployed in the NO.

It should be noted that the CN-DM, the AN-DM, and the TN-DM may be collectively referred to as a domain manager (Domain Manager, DM) unit, a domain slice manager (Domain Slice Manager, DSM) unit, or a network slice subnet management function (Network Slice Subnet Management Function, NSSMF) unit. Furthermore, the domain manager unit may be a domain manager unit that manages a single subnet; or may be a domain manager unit that manages hybrid subnets. In the latter case, the subnets managed by the domain manager unit may include any two or all of the CN, the AN, or the TN.

Based on the foregoing common aspects in the examples of the present disclosure, the following further describes the examples of the present disclosure in detail.

In view of this, the examples of the present disclosure provide a management method, and a management unit and a system that are based on the method. The method includes: sending, by a second management unit, an update request to a first management unit, where the update request is used to request the first management unit to update requirement information of a subnet managed by the first management unit; and determining, by the first management unit, that the subnet can satisfy the update request, or determining that the subnet cannot satisfy the update request. In the solutions in the examples of the present disclosure, the second management unit can request the first management unit to update requirement information of a first subnet, thereby preventing a management fault of an entire network slice when a second subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement.

It should be noted that in this specification, if the following concepts are described, reference may be made to the following descriptions.

Requirement information of a network slice is necessary information for determining the network slice. For example, the requirement information of the network slice may include some or all of a network slice type (for example, enhanced mobile broadband (enhanced Mobile Broadband, eMBB), massive machine type communication (massive Machine Type Communication, mMTC), or ultra-reliable and low-latency communication (Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communication, URLLC)), a service SLA requirement, a network KPI, and the like. The service SLA requirement or the network KPI may include at least one of a latency (latency), a report success ratio (report success ratio), a command success ratio (command success ratio), coverage (coverage), a capacity (capacity), reliability (reliability), and a throughput (throughput). The report success ratio may be a proportion of successful uplink packet transmission; the command success ratio may be a proportion of successful downlink packet transmission; the coverage may be a terminal distribution area; and the capacity may be a quantity of terminals that can be supported. Requirement information of a subnet (for example, the requirement information of the first subnet or requirement information of the second subnet) is necessary information for determining the subnet. For example, the requirement information of the subnet may include some or all of a service SLA requirement, a network KPI, and the like. The service SLA requirement or the network KPI may include at least one of a latency (latency), a throughput (throughput), a report success ratio (report success ratio), a command success ratio (command success ratio), reliability (reliability), a capacity (capacity), and coverage (coverage). The subnet may also be referred to as a subnetwork (subnetwork).

Capability information of a subnet is a feature of the subnet or a subnet feature that can be provided by a management unit of the subnet. For example, the capability information of the subnet may include a type of the subnet, a function of the subnet, an area supported by the subnet, a capacity supported by the subnet, a service or network parameter (for example, an SLA) supported by the subnet, a range of requirement information of the subnet, or the like. The SLA of the subnet may include a latency requirement and/or a throughput requirement that can be satisfied by the subnet.

With reference to <FIG>, the following describes the solution provided in an example of the present disclosure. A method shown in <FIG> is described by using the network architecture shown in <FIG> as an example. In addition, for description of the requirement information of the subnet, if mentioned, reference may be made to the foregoing detailed description, and details are not described herein again. The method shown in <FIG> includes a part <NUM> and a part <NUM>. Optionally, the method may further include a part <NUM>.

In part <NUM>, a second management unit sends an update request to a first management unit, where the update request is used to request the first management unit to update requirement information of a subnet managed by the first management unit.

In an example, the update request may carry first indication information, where the first indication information is an update value used by the second management unit to instruct the first management unit to update the requirement information of the subnet.

In an example, before sending the update request to the first management unit, the second management unit may further determine the update request first. In a possible implementation, the second management unit may first obtain capability information of a subnet managed by the second management unit, and determine the update request based on the capability information of the subnet. For example, the second management unit determines, based on the capability information of the subnet, that the subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement, and therefore determines the update request.

In part <NUM>, the first management unit determines that the subnet can satisfy the update request, or determines that the subnet cannot satisfy the update request.

For example, the first management unit may determine, based on the capability information of the subnet, that the subnet can satisfy the update request, or that the subnet cannot satisfy the update request.

In an example, the first management unit determines that the subnet can satisfy the update request. In a possible implementation, if the update request carries the first indication information, the first management unit may further modify the subnet based on the first indication information.

In part <NUM>, the first management unit sends an update response to the second management unit.

The update response carries update information of the requirement information of the subnet.

In an example, the update information may include one or both of an update result and second indication information. The update result is used to indicate an update value that can be supported by the first management unit and that is used to update the requirement information of the subnet. The second indication information is used to indicate that the subnet can satisfy the update request, or the second indication information is used to indicate that the subnet cannot satisfy the update request.

With reference to <FIG>, based on the method shown in <FIG>, the following further describes the solution in an example of the present disclosure by using an example in which the first management unit and the second management unit are different domain manager units (for example, the first management unit is a DM1, and the second management unit is a DM2). When a third management unit is used, a CDM is used as an example of the third management unit for description. In addition, for description of the requirement information of the subnet and the capability information of the subnet, if mentioned, reference may be made to the foregoing detailed description, and details are not described herein again.

<FIG> shows a management method in a scenario in which negotiation is performed between different domain manager units according to an example of the present disclosure. The method shown in <FIG> may relate to only a DM1 and a DM2. Optionally, the method may further relate to one or both of a DM3 and a CDM, where the DM3 is a domain manager unit other than the DM1 and the DM2. For ease of description, a subnet managed by the DM1 is referred to as a first subnet, a subnet managed by the DM2 is referred to as a second subnet, and a subnet managed by the DM3 is referred to as a third subnet. The method shown in <FIG> includes part <NUM> and part <NUM>. Optionally, the method shown in <FIG> may further include all or some processes of part <NUM> and part <NUM> to part <NUM>.

In part <NUM>, the DM2 sends warning information to the CDM, where the warning information is used to indicate that a first management unit starts an inter-domain coordination process.

In an example, if the second subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement due to a network status change or another reason, the DM2 sends the warning information to the CDM, to start the inter-domain coordination process. For example, when the method shown in <FIG> does not relate to the DM3, the inter-domain coordination process may be a coordination process between requirement information of the second subnet and requirement information of the first subnet; or when the method shown in <FIG> relates to the DM3, the inter-domain coordination process may be a coordination process between requirement information of the second subnet, requirement information of the first subnet, and requirement information of the third subnet.

In an example, requirement information of each subnet is an SLA of the subnet, and the SLA may be, for example, a latency requirement or a throughput requirement. An SLA of a subnet may be described as a sub-SLA. For example, an SLA of the first subnet may be described as a sub-SLA <NUM>, an SLA of the second subnet may be described as a sub-SLA <NUM>, and so on.

In a possible implementation, a network slice serves a throughput-sensitive service, the foregoing SLA is a throughput requirement, and a preset throughput requirement that needs to be satisfied by the first subnet is <NUM>. However, due to a network status change or another reason, a throughput that can be currently satisfied by the first subnet is lower than <NUM>. Therefore, the DM1 triggers the inter-domain coordination process and sends the warning information to the CDM.

In part <NUM>, the DM2 sends an update request to the DM1, where the update request is used to request the DM1 to update the requirement information of the first subnet.

In an example, a maximum throughput that can be currently satisfied by the second subnet is <NUM>, that is, the maximum throughput that can be currently satisfied by the second subnet is <NUM> lower than the preset throughput of <NUM>. In this case, the DM2 sends an update request to the DM1 to request the DM1 to update the sub SLA <NUM>, so that the first subnet further supports <NUM> in addition to the preset throughput of the first subnet.

In an example, the update request may carry first indication information, where the first indication information is an update value used by the DM2 to instruct the DM1 to update the requirement information of the first subnet. For example, the update value may be a throughput of <NUM>.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 determines that the first subnet can satisfy the update request, or determines that the first subnet cannot satisfy the update request.

For example, the DM1 may determine, based on capability information of the first subnet, that the first subnet can satisfy the update request, or that the first subnet cannot satisfy the update request. For example, the capability information of the first subnet may be a throughput requirement that can be currently satisfied by the first subnet.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 updates the requirement information of the first subnet.

In an example, if the DM1 determines that the first subnet can satisfy the update request in part <NUM>, the DM1 then performs part <NUM>. In a possible implementation, the DM1 may modify the first subnet based on the first indication information. For example, the DM1 updates the sub-SLA <NUM> so that a throughput of the sub-SLA <NUM> is <NUM> higher than the preset throughput of the first subnet.

In another example, if the DM1 determines that the first subnet cannot satisfy the update request in part <NUM>, the DM1 may then perform part <NUM>, or may not perform part <NUM>.

In a possible implementation, although the DM1 cannot satisfy the update request, the sub-SLA <NUM> may be updated so that a throughput of the sub-SLA <NUM> is <NUM> higher than the preset throughput of the first subnet. In another possible implementation, the DM1 cannot satisfy the update request or update the sub-SLA <NUM>.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends an update response to the DM2.

In an example, the update response carries update information of the requirement information of the first subnet. For example, the update information may include one or both of an update result and second indication information. The update result is an update value that can be supported by the DM1 and that is used to update the requirement information of the first subnet, and the second indication information is used to indicate that the first subnet can satisfy the update request or the second indication information is used to indicate that the first subnet cannot satisfy the update request. If the first subnet can satisfy the update request, the second indication information may be referred to as a positive indication; or if the first subnet cannot satisfy the update request, the second indication information may be referred to as a negative indication.

In a possible implementation, if the DM1 can satisfy the update request, the update response may carry one or both of the positive indication and the update result. For example, the positive indication may be represented by an indication value <NUM>, and the update result may be a throughput of <NUM>, or the update result may be a throughput supported by the first subnet after an update is performed, that is, a sum of the preset throughput of the first subnet and the throughput of <NUM>.

In another possible implementation, if the DM1 cannot satisfy the update request, the update response may carry one or both of the negative indication and the update result. For example, the negative indication may be represented by an indication value <NUM>, and the update result may be a throughput of <NUM> or a throughput of <NUM>, or the update result may be the preset throughput of the first subnet or a throughput supported by the first subnet after an update is performed. Herein, the throughput supported by the first subnet after the update is performed is a sum of the preset throughput of the first subnet and the throughput of <NUM>.

It should be noted that if the update response carries one or both of the positive indication and the throughput of <NUM>, or if the update response carries one or both of the positive indication and the sum of the preset throughput of the first subnet and the throughput of <NUM>, the update response may be referred to as a positive response; or if the update response carries neither the positive indication nor the throughput of <NUM> or the sum of the preset throughput of the first subnet and the throughput of <NUM>, the update response may be referred to as a negative response.

In part <NUM>, the DM2 updates the requirement information of the second subnet.

In an example, if the update response is the positive response, the DM2 may update the sub-SLA <NUM> from the preset <NUM> to <NUM>.

In another example, if the update response is the negative response, the DM2 may perform part <NUM> or may not perform part <NUM>. In a possible implementation, if the update response carries the negative indication but does not carry the update result, the DM2 does not perform part <NUM>; or if the update result carried in the update response is the throughput of <NUM> or the preset throughput of the first subnet, the DM2 does not perform part <NUM>. In another possible implementation, if the update result carried in the update response is the throughput of <NUM> or the sum of the preset throughput of the first subnet and the throughput of <NUM>, the DM2 may update the sub-SLA <NUM> from the preset <NUM> to <NUM>.

In part <NUM>, the DM2 sends a first notification message to the CDM.

The first notification message is used to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process is completed. In this case, the first notification message may be referred to as a positive notification message. Alternatively, the first notification message is used to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process fails. In this case, the first notification message may be referred to as a negative notification message.

In an example, if the DM2 receives the positive response in part <NUM>, the DM2 performs part <NUM> to send the positive notification message to the CDM in part <NUM>. In this case, pat <NUM> to part <NUM> of the method shown in <FIG> are not performed.

In another example, if the DM2 receives the negative response in part <NUM>, the DM2 may perform part <NUM> to send the negative notification message to the CDM in part <NUM>. In this case, pat <NUM> to part <NUM> of the method shown in <FIG> are not performed.

In still another example, if the DM2 receives the negative response in part <NUM>, the DM2 may perform part <NUM> to part <NUM> instead of part <NUM>.

Part <NUM> to part <NUM> are similar to part <NUM> to part <NUM>. For implementation processes of part <NUM> to part <NUM>, reference may be made to the implementation processes of the foregoing part <NUM> to part <NUM>, and details are not described herein again.

It should be noted that if an update response received by the DM2 in part <NUM> is the positive response, the DM2 may send a positive update notification to the CDM in part <NUM> to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process is completed. Alternatively, if an update response received by the DM2 in part <NUM> is the negative response, the DM2 may send a negative update notification to the CDM in part <NUM> to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process fails. Alternatively, if an update response received by the DM2 in part <NUM> is the negative response, the DM2 may further send an update request to a DM other than the DM1 and the DM3, and perform implementation processes similar to part <NUM> to part <NUM> until the inter-domain coordination process is completed. An example of the present disclosure further provides a management method, and a management unit and a system that are based on the method. The method includes: determining, by a first management unit, requirement information of a second subnet based on requirement information of a first subnet, where the first subnet is a subnet managed by the first management unit, the second subnet is a subnet managed by a second management unit, and the first subnet and the second subnet are subnets included in a network slice; and sending, by the first management unit, the requirement information of the second subnet to the second management unit. In the solution in this example of the present disclosure, the network slice includes the first subnet and the second subnet, and the first management unit may determine the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet, and send the requirement information of the second subnet to the second management unit. Therefore, the first management unit can adjust the requirement information of the subnet managed by the first management unit and the requirement information of the subnet managed by the second management unit, thereby preventing a management fault of the entire network slice when the first subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement.

With reference to <FIG>, the following describes the solution provided in an example of the present disclosure. A method shown in <FIG> is described by using the network architecture shown in <FIG> as an example. The method shown in <FIG> includes part <NUM> and part <NUM>.

In part <NUM>, a first management unit determines requirement information of a second subnet based on requirement information of a first subnet.

The first subnet is a subnet managed by the first management unit, the second subnet is a subnet managed by the second management unit, and the first subnet and the second subnet are subnets included in a network slice.

In an example, before determining the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet, the first management unit may further receive capability information of the second subnet from the second management unit. In this case, the first management unit may determine the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet and the capability information of the second subnet.

Before receiving the capability information of the second subnet from the second management unit, the first management unit sends a query request to the second management unit, where the query request is used to request the capability information of the second subnet.

In an example, before determining the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet, the first management unit may further send warning information to a third management unit, where the warning information is used to indicate that the first management unit starts a coordination process between the requirement information of the first subnet and the requirement information of the second subnet.

Requirement information of a subnet includes at least one of a latency, a throughput, a report success ratio, a command success ratio, reliability, a capacity, and coverage.

In part <NUM>, the first management unit sends the requirement information of the second subnet to the second management unit.

In an example, the first management unit may further send a notification message to the third management unit, where the notification message is used to notify the third management unit that the first management unit has completed the coordination process between the requirement information of the first subnet and the requirement information of the second subnet.

In the solution illustrated in <FIG>, the first management unit is a domain manager unit; the second management unit may be a domain manager unit other than the first management unit; and the third management unit may be a cross-domain manager unit. It should be noted that the first management unit and the second management unit may be same-domain manager units. For example, the first management unit and the second management unit are different core network domain manager units, different access network domain manager units, or different transport network domain manager units. Alternatively, the first management unit and the second management unit may be different-domain manager units. For example, the first management unit is one of a core network domain manager unit, an access network domain manager unit, and a transport network domain manager unit, and the second management unit is a domain manager unit, other than the first management unit, in the three domain manager units. This is not limited in this example of the present disclosure.

With reference to <FIG>, based on the method shown in <FIG>, the following further describes the solution provided in an example of the present disclosure by using an example in which the first management unit and the second management unit are different domain manager units (for example, the first management unit is a DM1, and the second management unit is a DM2). When a third management unit is used, a CDM is used as an example of the third management unit for description. In a method shown in <FIG>, for content same as or similar to that of the method shown in <FIG>, reference may be made to the detailed description in <FIG>, and details are not described herein again. In addition, for description of requirement information of a subnet and capability information of the subnet, if mentioned, reference may be made to the foregoing detailed description, and details are not described herein again.

<FIG> shows another management method in a scenario in which negotiation is performed between different domain manager units according to an example of the present disclosure. The method shown in <FIG> may relate to only a DM1 and a DM2. Optionally, the method may further relate to one or both of a DM3 and a CDM, where the DM3 is a domain manager unit other than the DM1 and the DM2. Correspondingly, a subnet managed by the DM1 is a first subnet, a subnet managed by the DM2 is a second subnet, and a subnet managed by the DM3 is a third subnet. The method shown in <FIG> includes part <NUM> and part <NUM>. Optionally, the method shown in <FIG> may further include all or some processes of part <NUM> to part <NUM> and part <NUM> to part <NUM>.

In part <NUM>, the DM <NUM> obtains capability information of the first subnet.

In an example, the DM1 may obtain the capability information of the first subnet once or periodically, to determine whether the first subnet can satisfy a preset requirement.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends warning information to the CDM, where the warning information is used to indicate that a first management unit starts an inter-domain coordination process.

In an example, if the first subnet cannot satisfy the preset requirement due to a network status change or another reason, the DM1 sends the warning information to the CDM, to start the inter-domain coordination process. For example, when the method shown in <FIG> does not relate to the DM3, the inter-domain coordination process may be a coordination process between requirement information of the first subnet and requirement information of the second subnet; or when the method shown in <FIG> relates to the DM3, the inter-domain coordination process may be a coordination process between requirement information of the first subnet, requirement information of the second subnet, and requirement information of the third subnet. The first subnet, the second subnet, and the third subnet are subnets included in one network slice.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends a query request to the DM2, where the query request is used to request capability information of the second subnet.

In part <NUM>, the DM <NUM> sends the capability information of the second subnet to the DM1.

When the method shown in <FIG> does not relate to the DM3, part <NUM> is performed after part <NUM> is performed; or when the method shown in <FIG> relates to the DM3, part <NUM> is performed after part <NUM> is performed.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends a query request to the DM3, where the query request is used to request capability information of the third subnet.

In part <NUM>, the DM3 sends the capability information of the third subnet to the DM1.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 determines the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet.

In an example, when the method shown in <FIG> does not relate to the DM3, the DM1 determines the requirement information of the first subnet and the requirement information of the second subnet based on requirement information of the network slice. For example, when part <NUM> to part <NUM> are performed, the DM1 may determine the requirement information of the second subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet and the capability information of the second subnet.

In another example, when the method shown in <FIG> relates to the DM3, the DM1 determines the requirement information of the second subnet and the requirement information of the third subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet. For example, when part <NUM> to part <NUM> are performed, the DM1 may determine the requirement information of the second subnet and the requirement information of the third subnet based on the requirement information of the first subnet, the capability information of the second subnet, and the capability information of the third subnet.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends the requirement information of the second subnet to the DM2.

In part <NUM>, the DM2 sends feedback information to the DM1.

The feedback information herein is used to indicate whether the DM2 performs corresponding adjustment based on the requirement information of the second subnet. For example, if the DM2 performs corresponding adjustment based on the requirement information of the second subnet, the feedback information may be referred to as success feedback information; or if the DM2 does not perform corresponding adjustment based on the requirement information of the second subnet, the feedback information may be referred to as failure feedback information. When the method shown in <FIG> does not relate to the DM3, part <NUM> is performed after part <NUM> is performed; or when the method shown in <FIG> relates to the DM3, part <NUM> is performed after part <NUM> is performed.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends the requirement information of the third subnet to the DM3.

In part <NUM>, the DM3 sends feedback information to the DM1.

The feedback information herein is used to indicate whether the DM3 performs corresponding adjustment based on the requirement information of the third subnet. For example, if the DM3 performs corresponding adjustment based on the requirement information of the third subnet, the feedback information may be referred to as success feedback information; or if the DM3 does not perform corresponding adjustment based on the requirement information of the third subnet, the feedback information may be referred to as failure feedback information.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends a notification message to the CDM to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process is completed or that the inter-domain coordination process fails.

In an example, when the method shown in <FIG> does not relate to the DM3, if the feedback information sent by the DM2 to the DM1 is the success feedback information, the notification message sent by the DM1 to the CDM is used to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process is completed, that is, the coordination process between the requirement information of the first subnet and the requirement information of the second subnet is completed; or if the feedback information sent by the DM2 to the DM1 is the failure feedback information, the notification message sent by the DM1 to the CDM is used to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process fails. Optionally, in the latter case, the notification message may carry a failure cause of the inter-domain coordination process.

In another example, when the method shown in <FIG> relates to the DM3, if both the feedback information sent by the DM2 to the DM1 and the feedback information sent by the DM3 to the DM1 are the success feedback information, the notification message sent by the DM1 to the CDM is used to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process is completed, that is, the coordination process between the requirement information of the first subnet, the requirement information of the second subnet, and the requirement information of the third subnet is completed; or if both or one of the feedback information sent by the DM2 to the DM1 and the feedback information sent by the DM3 to the DM1 are the failure feedback information, the notification message sent by the DM1 to the CDM is used to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process fails. Optionally, in the latter case, the notification message may carry a failure cause of the inter-domain coordination process.

It should be noted that in the part <NUM>, if the notification message is used to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process fails, the part <NUM> to the part <NUM> may be re-performed, or the part <NUM> to the part <NUM> may be re-performed until the notification message in the part <NUM> is used to notify the CDM that the inter-domain coordination process is completed. For example, when capability information of each subnet changes rapidly, the part <NUM> to the part <NUM> may be re-performed; or when capability information of each subnet is relatively stable, the part <NUM> to the part <NUM> may be re-performed.

With reference to <FIG>, the following further describes the solution in an example of the present disclosure by using an example in which the requirement information of the network slice is an SLA of the network slice, requirement information of each subnet is an SLA of the subnet, and capability information of each subnet is an SLA that can be supported by the subnet. In a method shown in <FIG>, the SLA of the network slice may be described as a total-SLA or an E2E-SLA, and an SLA of a subnet may be described as a sub-SLA (for example, an SLA of a first subnet may be described as a sub-SLA <NUM>, an SLA of a second subnet may be described as a sub-SLA <NUM>, and an SLA of a third subnet may be described as a sub-SLA <NUM>), and capability information of a subnet may be described as a sub-SLA-capability (for example, capability information of the first subnet may be described as a sub-SLA-capability <NUM>, capability information of the second subnet may be described as a sub-SLA-capability <NUM>, and capability information of the third subnet may be described as a sub-SLA-capability <NUM>).

In part <NUM>, a DM1 obtains the sub-SLA-capability <NUM>.

In an example, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> is a latency that can be satisfied by the first subnet, and the latency that can be satisfied by the first subnet is greater than <NUM>. However, a preset latency requirement that needs to be satisfied by the first subnet is <NUM>. In this case, the DM1 determines, based on the sub-SLA-capability <NUM>, that the first subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement.

In another example, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> is a throughput that can be satisfied by the first subnet, and the throughput that can be satisfied by the first subnet is less than <NUM>. However, a preset throughput requirement that needs to be satisfied by the first subnet is <NUM>. In this case, the DM1 determines, based on the sub-SLA-capability <NUM>, that the first subnet cannot satisfy a preset requirement.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends warning information to a CDM, where the warning information is used to indicate that the DM1 starts an inter-domain coordination process.

In an example, the network slice serves a latency-sensitive service, and the SLA is a latency requirement. In this case, the total-SLA is <NUM>. The preset latency requirements that need to be satisfied by the first subnet, the second subnet, and the third subnet are <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM>, respectively. Due to a network status change or another reason, the first subnet cannot satisfy the preset <NUM>. Therefore, the DM1 triggers the inter-domain coordination process and sends the warning information to the CDM.

In another example, the network slice serves a throughput-sensitive service, and the SLA is a throughput requirement. In this case, the total-SLA is <NUM>. The preset throughput requirements that need to be satisfied by the first subnet, the second subnet, and the third subnet are <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM>, respectively. Due to a network status change or another reason, the first subnet cannot satisfy the preset <NUM>. Therefore, the DM1 triggers the inter-domain coordination process and sends the warning information to the CDM.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends a query request to the DM2 for requesting the sub-SLA-capability <NUM>.

In an example, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> is a latency that can be supported by the second subnet.

In another example, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> is a throughput that can be supported by the second subnet.

In part <NUM>, the DM2 sends the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> to the DM1.

In an example, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> is <NUM>.

In another example, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> is <NUM>.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends a query request to the DM3 for requesting the sub-SLA-capability <NUM>.

In an example, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> is a latency that can be supported by the third subnet. Alternatively, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> may be a latency that can be additionally supported by the third subnet based on the preset requirement.

In another example, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> is a throughput that can be supported by the third subnet. Alternatively, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> may be a throughput that can be additionally supported by the third subnet based on the preset requirement.

In part <NUM>, the DM3 sends the sub-SLA-capability <NUM> to the DM1.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 determines the sub-SLA <NUM> and the sub-SLA <NUM> based on the sub-SLA <NUM>.

For example, the DM1 determines the sub-SLA <NUM> and the sub-SLA <NUM> based on the sub-SLA <NUM>, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM>, the sub-SLA-capability <NUM>, and the sub-SLA-capability <NUM>.

In an example, if the sub-SLA <NUM> is <NUM>, the DM1 determines that the sub-SLA <NUM> is <NUM> and the sub-SLA <NUM> is <NUM>.

In another example, if the sub-SLA <NUM> is <NUM>, the DM1 determines that the sub-SLA <NUM> is <NUM> and the sub-SLA <NUM> is <NUM>.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends the sub-SLA <NUM> to the DM2.

In part <NUM>, the DM2 sends feedback information to the DM1, where the feedback information is success feedback information.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends the sub-SLA <NUM> to the DM3.

In part <NUM>, the DM3 sends feedback information to the DM1, where the feedback information is success feedback information.

In part <NUM>, the DM1 sends a notification message to the CDM to notify a CDM1 that the inter-domain coordination process is completed.

The foregoing mainly describes the solutions provided in the examples of the present disclosure from a perspective of interaction between different management units. It can be understood that, to implement the foregoing functions, the first management unit, the second management unit, and the third management unit each include a corresponding hardware structure and/or a software module for implementing respective functions. With reference to units and algorithm steps of each example described in the examples disclosed in the present disclosure, the examples of the present disclosure may be implemented in a form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is implemented by hardware or in a manner of driving hardware by a computer software depends on a particular application and a design constraint of the technical solution. A person skilled in the art may use different methods for each particular application to implement the described functions, but it should not be construed that the implementation goes beyond the scope of the technical solutions of the examples of the present disclosure.

In the examples of the present disclosure, function module division may be performed on the first management unit, the second management unit, the third management unit, and the like based on the foregoing method examples, for example, function modules may be divided based on functions, or two or more functions may be integrated into one processing module. The integrated module may be implemented in a form of hardware, or may be implemented in a form of a function module of software. It should be noted that, the module division in the examples of the present disclosure is an example and is merely logical function division. There may be another division manner in actual implementation.

When an integrated module is used, <FIG> is a possible schematic block diagram of the first management unit in the examples of the present disclosure. The first management unit <NUM> includes a processing module <NUM> and a communications module <NUM>. The processing module <NUM> is configured to control and manage actions of the first management unit. For example, the processing module <NUM> is configured to support the first management unit in performing the processes <NUM> and <NUM> in <FIG>, the processes <NUM> to <NUM> in <FIG>, the processes <NUM> and <NUM> in <FIG>, the processes <NUM> to <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> in <FIG>, the processes <NUM> to <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> in <FIG>, and/or other processes for implementing the techniques described in this specification. The communications module <NUM> is configured to support the first management unit in communicating with a second management unit or a third management unit. The first management unit may further include a storage module <NUM>, configured to store program code and data of the first management unit.

The processing module <NUM> may be a processor or a controller, such as a central processing unit (Central Processing Unit, CPU), a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (Digital Signal Processor, DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit, ASIC), a field programmable gate array (Field Programmable Gate Array, FPGA), or another programmable logic device, a transistor logic device, a hardware component, or any combination thereof. The processing module <NUM> can implement or execute various example logical blocks, modules, and circuits that are described with reference to the content disclosed in the present disclosure. The processor may be a combination for implementing a computing function, for example, a combination of one or more microprocessors or a combination of the DSP and a microprocessor. The communications module <NUM> may be a communications interface, a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, or the like. The communications interface is a general name. During specific implementation, the communications interface may include a plurality of interfaces, for example, may include an interface between the first management unit and the second management unit or the third management unit and/or another interface. The storage module <NUM> may be a memory.

When the processing module <NUM> is a processor, the communications module <NUM> is a communications interface, and the storage module <NUM> is a memory, the first management unit in this example of the present disclosure may be a first management unit shown in <FIG>.

As shown in <FIG>, the first management unit <NUM> includes a processor <NUM>, a communications interface <NUM>, and a memory <NUM>. Optionally, the first management unit <NUM> may further include a bus <NUM>. The communications interface <NUM>, the processor <NUM>, and the memory <NUM> may be connected to each other by using the bus <NUM>. The bus <NUM> may be a peripheral component interconnect (Peripheral Component Interconnect, PCI for short) bus, an extended industry standard architecture (Extended Industry Standard Architecture, EISA for short) bus, or the like. The bus <NUM> may be classified into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, and the like. For ease of representation, only one thick line is used to represent the bus in <FIG>, and this does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

The first management unit shown in <FIG> may be the domain manager unit in <FIG>, for example, a core network domain manager unit, an access network domain manager unit, or a transport network domain manager unit.

When an integrated unit is used, <FIG> is a possible schematic block diagram of the second management unit in the examples of the present disclosure. The second management unit <NUM> includes a processing module <NUM> and a communications module <NUM>. The processing module <NUM> is configured to control and manage actions of the second management unit. For example, the processing module <NUM> is configured to support the second management unit in performing the process <NUM> in <FIG>, the processes <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> to <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> in <FIG>, the processes <NUM> and <NUM> in <FIG>, the processes <NUM> and <NUM> in <FIG>, and/or other processes for implementing the techniques described in this specification. The communications module <NUM> is configured to support the second management unit in communicating with a first management unit. The second management unit may further include a storage module <NUM>, configured to store program code and data of the second management unit.

The processing module <NUM> may be a processor or a controller, for example, may be a CPU, a general-purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA, or another programmable logic device, a transistor logic device, a hardware component, or any combination thereof. The processing module <NUM> can implement or execute various example logical blocks, modules, and circuits that are described with reference to the content disclosed in the present disclosure. The processor may be a combination for implementing a computing function, for example, a combination of one or more microprocessors or a combination of the DSP and a microprocessor. The communications module <NUM> may be a communications interface, a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, or the like. The communications interface is a general name. During specific implementation, the communications interface may include a plurality of interfaces, for example, may include an interface between the second management unit and the first management unit and/or another interface. The storage module <NUM> may be a memory.

When the processing module <NUM> is a processor, the communications module <NUM> is a communications interface, and the storage module <NUM> is a memory, the second management unit in this example of the present disclosure may be a second management unit shown in <FIG>.

As shown in <FIG>, the second management unit <NUM> includes a processor <NUM>, a communications interface <NUM>, and a memory <NUM>. Optionally, the second management unit <NUM> may further include a bus <NUM>. The communications interface <NUM>, the processor <NUM>, and the memory <NUM> may be connected to each other by using the bus <NUM>. The bus <NUM> may be a PCI bus, an EISAbus, or the like. The bus <NUM> may be classified into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, and the like. For ease of representation, only one thick line is used to represent the bus in <FIG>, and this does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

The second management unit shown in <FIG> may be the domain manager unit in <FIG>, for example, a core network domain manager unit, an access network domain manager unit, or a transport network domain manager unit.

An example of the present disclosure further provides a third management unit. A possible schematic block diagram of the third management unit is similar to <FIG> or <FIG>, and a possible schematic structural diagram of the third management unit is similar to <FIG> or <FIG>. For specific descriptions, reference may be made to the detailed descriptions in <FIG>, and details are not described herein again. The third management unit may implement the actions of the third management unit in the foregoing method examples, and/or other processes for implementing the techniques described in this specification. The third management unit provided in this example of the present disclosure may be the cross-domain manager unit in <FIG>.

Methods or algorithm steps described with reference to the content disclosed in the examples of the present disclosure may be implemented by hardware, or may be implemented by a processor by executing a software instruction. The software instruction may include a corresponding software module. The software module may be stored in a random access memory (Random Access Memory, RAM), a flash memory, a read-only memory (Read-Only Memory, ROM), an erasable programmable read only memory (Erasable Programmable ROM, EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read only memory (Electrically EPROM, EEPROM), a register, a hard disk, a removable hard disk, a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), or a storage medium in any other forms well-known in the art. A storage medium used as an example is coupled to the processor, so that the processor can read information from the storage medium, and can write information into the storage medium. Certainly, the storage medium may be a component of the processor. The processor and the storage medium may be located in an ASIC. In addition, the ASIC may be located in the first management unit, the second management unit, or the third management unit. Certainly, the processor and the storage medium may alternatively exist as discrete components in the first management unit, the second management unit, or the third management unit.

Claim 1:
A management method, comprising:
determining (<NUM>, <NUM>), by a first management unit (<NUM>, <NUM>), requirement information of a second subnet based on requirement information of a first subnet and capability information of the second subnet, wherein the first subnet is a subnet managed by the first management unit (<NUM>, <NUM>), the second subnet is a subnet managed by a second management unit (<NUM>, <NUM>), and the first subnet and the second subnet are subnets comprised in a network slice, wherein each of the requirement information of the first subnet and the requirement information of the second subnet comprises at least one of a latency, a throughput, a report success ratio, a command success ratio, reliability, a capacity, or coverage; and
sending (<NUM>, <NUM>), by the first management unit (<NUM>, <NUM>), the requirement information of the second subnet to the second management unit (<NUM>, <NUM>);
wherein before the determining, by a first management unit (<NUM>, <NUM>), requirement information of a second subnet based on requirement information of a first subnet and capability information of the second subnet, the method further comprises:
receiving (<NUM>), by the first management unit (<NUM>, <NUM>), the capability information of the second subnet from the second management unit (<NUM>, <NUM>).