Communication method and device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11463280-B2
Application number	US-202017081545-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 27, 2020
Priority date	Apr 28, 2018
Publication date	Oct 4, 2022
Grant date	Oct 4, 2022

Abstract

A communication method and a device, to implement service isolation of an Ethernet broadcast frame. In this method, when a terminal device initiates establishment of a session of an Ethernet type, a virtual local area network management function entity in a communications system may determine a virtual local area network identifier of a user group to which the terminal device belongs. In this way, a user plane function entity in the session of the terminal device may allocate a plurality of virtual ports to a virtual local area network whose identifier is the virtual local area network identifier, and broadcast the Ethernet broadcast frame on the plurality of virtual ports.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A communication method, comprising:
receiving, by a session management function entity, a request for session establishment for a first terminal device, wherein the request comprises indication information for indicating that a session type is an Ethernet type, and wherein the request further comprises an identifier of a data network that the first terminal device requests to access;
sending, by the session management function entity, a request message to a virtual local area network management function entity;
receiving, by the session management function entity, a virtual local area network identifier from the virtual local area network management function entity, wherein the virtual local area network identifier is of a virtual local area network to which the first terminal device belongs;
sending, by the session management function entity, the virtual local area network identifier to a first anchor user plane function entity;
receiving, by the first anchor user plane function entity, the virtual local area network identifier;
receiving, by the first anchor user plane function entity, a first Ethernet frame; and
sending, by the first anchor user plane function entity according to the virtual local area network identifier, a second Ethernet frame associated with the first Ethernet frame through a tunnel between the first anchor user plane function entity and a second anchor user plane function entity, wherein the second anchor user plane function entity provides service to one or more terminal devices belonging to the virtual local area network, and wherein a respective session of each of the one or more terminal devices is anchored at the second anchor user plane function entity.

2. The communication method of claim 1 , wherein the request message comprises information about the first anchor user plane function entity, and wherein before sending, by the session management function entity, the request message, the communication method further comprises:
obtaining, by the session management function entity, deployment information of the virtual local area network based on the identifier of the data network, wherein the deployment information comprises information about the second anchor user plane function entity accessed by another terminal device in the virtual local area network on the data network; and
allocating, by the session management function entity, the first anchor user plane function entity to the first terminal device based on the deployment information.

3. The communication method of claim 1 , further comprising:
obtaining, by the session management function entity, tunnel information of the tunnel; and
sending, by the session management function entity, the tunnel information to the first anchor user plane function entity.

4. The communication method of claim 1 , wherein receiving the first Ethernet frame comprises receiving, by the first anchor user plane function entity, the first Ethernet frame via a first virtual port corresponding to the virtual local area network, wherein the first virtual port is for a session, wherein sending the second Ethernet frame comprises sending, by the first anchor user plane function entity, via a second virtual port corresponding to the virtual local area network and according to the virtual local area network identifier, the second Ethernet frame associated with the first Ethernet frame, and wherein the second virtual port is for the tunnel.

5. The communication method of claim 4 , further comprising allocating, by the first anchor user plane function entity, the first virtual port and the second virtual port for the virtual local area network.

6. The communication method of claim 4 , further comprising obtaining, by the first anchor user plane function entity, the second Ethernet frame by adding the virtual local area network identifier to the first Ethernet frame at the first virtual port.

7. A communication system, comprising
a session management function entity configured to:
receive a request for session establishment for a first terminal device, wherein the request comprises indication information indicating that a session type is an Ethernet type, and wherein the request further comprises an identifier of a data network that the first terminal device requests to access;
send a request message to a virtual local area network management function entity;
receive a virtual local area network identifier from the virtual local area network management function entity, wherein the virtual local area network identifier is of a virtual local area network to which the first terminal device belongs; and

send the virtual local area network identifier; and

a first anchor user plane function entity configured to:
receive the virtual local area network identifier from the session management function entity;
receive a first Ethernet frame; and
send, according to the virtual local area network identifier, a second Ethernet frame associated with the first Ethernet frame through a tunnel between the first anchor user plane function entity and a second anchor user plane function entity, wherein the second anchor user plane function entity provides service to one or more terminal devices belonging to the virtual local area network, and wherein a respective session of each of the one or more terminal devices is anchored at the second anchor user plane function entity.

8. The communication system of claim 7 , wherein the request message comprises information about the first anchor user plane function entity, wherein the session management function entity is further configured to:
obtain deployment information of the virtual local area network based on the identifier of the data network, wherein the deployment information comprises information about the second anchor user plane function entity accessed by another terminal device in the virtual local area network on the data network; and
allocate the first anchor user plane function entity to the first terminal device based on the deployment information.

9. The communication system of claim 7 , wherein the session management function entity is further configured to:
obtain tunnel information of the tunnel; and
send the tunnel information to the first anchor user plane function entity.

10. The communication system of claim 7 , wherein the first anchor user plane function entity is configured to:
receive the first Ethernet frame via a first virtual port corresponding to the virtual local area network, wherein the first virtual port is for a session; and
send, according to the virtual local area network identifier, the second Ethernet frame associated with the first Ethernet frame via a second virtual port corresponding to the virtual local area network, wherein the second virtual port is for the tunnel.

11. The communication system of claim 10 , wherein the first anchor user plane function entity is further configured to allocate the first virtual port and the second virtual port for the virtual local area network.

12. The communication system of claim 10 , wherein the first anchor user plane function entity is configured to obtain the second Ethernet frame by adding the virtual local area network identifier to the first Ethernet frame at the first virtual port.

13. A communication method, comprising:
receiving, by a session management function entity, a request for session establishment for a first terminal device, wherein the request comprises indication information indicating that a session type is an Ethernet type, and wherein the request further comprises an identifier of a data network that the first terminal dev

Assignees

• Huawei Tech Co Ltd

Inventors

• Xu Changchun
• Chen Zhongping
• Wang Yuan
• Wang Yan

Classifications

• H04L12/4633

  Interconnection of networks using encapsulation techniques, e.g. tunneling · CPC title

• H04L12/185

  with management of multicast group membership · CPC title

• H04L12/18

  for broadcast or conference {, e.g. multicast} · CPC title

• H04L12/467 Primary

  Arrangements for supporting untagged frames, e.g. port-based VLANs · CPC title

• H04L12/4641 Primary

  Virtual LANs, VLANs, e.g. virtual private networks [VPN] (LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone H04L12/462; encapsulation techniques H04L12/4633; routing of packets H04L45/00; packet switches H04L49/00; virtual private networks for security H04L63/0272) · CPC title