This section describes the end-to-end deployment architecture of the Telco Cloud Platform RAN solution leveraging Telco Cloud Platform 5G, and the potential benefits of virtualization.

The deployment architecture of the Telco Cloud Platform RAN solution shows the management and compute workload placement between the Regional Data Center site and the Cell Site. This guide focuses on the Telco Cloud Platform RAN solution. However, you must understand how a Cell Site host and application work in conjunction with a Regional Data Center and what are the dependencies to onboard a Cell Site host..

The following figure shows an end-to-end deployment model of the Telco Cloud Platform RAN solution with 5G core to understand how they work together.

In the Regional Data Center (RDC) site, vSphere administrators deploy and configure one management workload domain and one or more Cell Site compute workload domain. The Cell Site Compute workload domain dedicates a vCenter Server to manage both Regional Data Center (RDC) and Cell Site vSphere host and workloads.

Figure 1. End-to-End Deployment Model of the Telco Cloud Platform RAN Solution with Telco Cloud Platform 5G
End-to-End Deployment Model of the Telco Cloud Platform RAN Solution with Telco Cloud Platform 5G
Note:

NSX, vRNI, vROPS, and vRLI are optional components in the Telco Cloud Platform RAN design, and they are shown at RDC.

This deployment model includes one Regional Data Center (RDC) and one Cell Site as part of the VMware Telco Cloud Platform RAN solution architecture.

  • Regional Data Center (RDC) consists of one Management Workload Domain and one Cell Site Compute Workload Domain.

  • Management workload domain hosts a dedicated vCenter and manages all the SDDC management and operational management components such as vCenter Server, NSX, vRealize Operations, vRealize Log Insight, and so on.

  • VMware NSX is deployed as part of 5G Core components. It is used only for workload that is specific to telco management at RDC. NSX is not used for Cell Site Compute Workload Domain.

  • Compute Workload Domain hosts a dedicated Compute vCenter Server with one vSphere cluster such as WLD1-Cluster1 and multiple Cell Site hosts.

  • In the Compute vCenter Server, WLD1-Cluster1 is hosted at Regional Data Center and standalone hosts are deployed at Cell Site locations.

  • A dedicated vSphere Distributed Switch (VDS) is used for both RDC vSphere cluster (WLD1- Cluster1) and the Cell Site host.

  • Kubernetes cluster components such as control plane nodes are deployed at vSphere cluster such as WLD1-Cluster1 in RDC.

  • Kubernetes Worker nodes are deployed at both Regional Data Center and Cell Site locations to support the telco CNF workloads such as vCU and vDU in a geographically distributed manner.