DPDK-DU-NS is presented, a DPDK-enabled O-RAN DU that supports per-flow network slicing and bandwidth management in compliance with 3GPP 5G QoS flow and bearer management specifications and is validated as a high-performance and scalable foundation for next-generation O-RAN DU implementations.
Abstract
Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) disaggregates the traditional base station into the Radio Unit (RU), Distributed Unit (DU), and Central Unit (CU) with standardized open interfaces, enabling multi-vendor interoperability and reducing deployment costs. However, realizing per-flow network slicing at the DU while simultaneously meeting the high-throughput demands of 5G remains a significant challenge. This paper presents DPDK-DU-NS, a DPDK-enabled O-RAN DU that supports per-flow network slicing and bandwidth management in compliance with 3GPP 5G QoS flow and bearer management specifications. DPDK-DU-NS separates the control plane and user plane of an OpenAirInterface (OAI)-based DU and offloads user plane functions to Intel DPDK to achieve high-speed packet processing. We further propose Adaptive Metering, a dynamic bandwidth allocation mechanism that provides Guaranteed Bit Rate (GBR) service while fairly distributing residual capacity among active QoS flows, leveraging the Two-Rate Three-Color Marker (trTCM) algorithm. Experimental results demonstrate that the system enforces 3GPP-compliant per-flow bandwidth guarantees and limits with near-perfect fairness, ensuring robust network slice isolation. These findings, coupled with the achieved 10 Gbps line-rate throughput, validate the DPDK-DU-NS user plane as a high-performance and scalable foundation for next-generation O-RAN DU implementations.
Network slicing is a key enabling technology for fifth-generation (5G) and beyond mobile networks, which enables operators to run multiple logical networks on top of common physical infrastructure while meeting heterogeneous quality-ofservice (QoS) requirements. In this paper, we summarize the design, implementation, and evaluation of a UDP-based virtual network slicing simulator modeling four slices in accordance with 3GPP service types: enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications (URLLC), Massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC), and a dedicated Best Effort slice. The simulator uses real UDP sockets on localhost in a multi-threaded framework and implements separate admission control per slice, supporting three configurable resourceborrowing modes—none, full, and controlled—in which the primary slices (eMBB, URLLC, mMTC) may borrow unused capacity from the Best Effort slice when their own allocation runs out. QoS metrics including throughput, packet loss ratio, one-way delay, and jitter are collected in a thread-safe manner per slice. Experimental results under controlled borrowing (60 s, 16 nodes, 3 MB per slice, 40% borrow cap) demonstrate activation of the borrowing mechanism with nonzero borrowed-in and borrowedout values, and illustrate the trade-off between primary-slice throughput and Best Effort protection.
Sroor Habeeb Mahmood, Ali Al-Allawee· IEEE Jordan Conference on Ap...· 0 citations
This paper presents the design and evaluation of a network slicing implementation in a simulated 5G Standalone (SA) mobile network deployed as a nomadic edge node, where “nomadic” refers to the physical portability and ease of redeployment of a self-contained, containerized 5G testbed suitable for university teaching and experimentation. The platform integrates Open5GS, UERANSIM, Kamailio, and Prometheus/Grafana to emulate a sliced 5G core and access network supporting differentiated service requirements typical of heterogeneous traffic classes and latency-sensitive applications. Slice provisioning is fully configurable, and Docker-based resource constraints are applied to enforce Quality of Service (QoS) differentiation. Performance was assessed through bandwidth and traffic-quality measurements, demonstrating measurable improvements in packet loss and jitter for high-priority slices, with corresponding degradation for lower-priority slices. Although the laboratory environment limits replication of distributed real-world deployments, the results confirm the effectiveness of network slicing for traffic isolation and service prioritization in 5G SA systems. These findings highlight the practical boundaries of container-based slicing enforcement in a single-host nomadic 5G SA node, and inform the design of future multi-host deployments.
Elena-Ramona Modroiu, Jian-Wei Cheng, Damian Atlaß et al.· International Conference on...· 0 citations
Network Slicing (NS) is a fundamental pillar of 5G and beyond networks, enabling the provisioning of isolated, logical networks tailored to specific Quality of Service (QoS) requirements. While 3GPP standards comprehensively define slicing architectures over cellular access networks, the seamless integration of Non-3GPP technologies such as Wi-Fi into a unified slice instance remains an active area of investigation, particularly regarding empirical validation. This paper presents an end-to-end prototyping study that integrates 5G Standalone (SA) and Wi-Fi networks by adapting the Trusted Non-3GPP Gateway Function (TNGF) to extend NS to WLAN networks, enabling the unified management of Wi-Fi transmission resources. We implement a functional testbed leveraging an open-source 5G Core and an explicit Non-3GPP access to validate multi-Radio Access Technology (multi-RAT) slice operation. Our empirical results showcase the dynamic viability of multi-RAT slicing under varying bandwidth allocations and traffic steering policies, providing a concrete proof of concept for unified 3GPP and Non-3GPP service delivery.
Nelson Ion de Oliveira, M. Muniz, William M. C. Do Nascimento et al.· 0 citations
An Adaptive SDN-Edge 5G Architecture (ASE-5G) is proposed that integrates SDN programmability with edge-assisted control-plane coordination while preserving compatibility with the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) service-based architecture.
Vivi Monita, Naufal Hanan, Lutfianto et al.· 0 citations
