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 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 domains. The Cell Site Compute workload domain dedicates a vCenter Server to manage both Regional Data Center (RDC) and Cell Site ESXi hosts and workloads.
NSX, vRNI, vROPs, TCSA, and vRLI are optional components in the Telco Cloud Platform RAN design that is leveraging Telco Cloud Platform 5G, and they are typically deployed at RDC / Central domains.
NSX is typically not deployed as part of Telco Cloud Platform RAN. However, the Telco Cloud Platform RAN design works in conjunction with Telco Cloud Platform 5G and hence NSX is included in the management domain.
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 Server 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 workloads that are specific to telco management at RDC. NSX is not used for RAN deployments.
Compute Workload Domains contain a vSphere cluster such as WLD1-Cluster1 and multiple Cell Site ESXi hosts.
In the Compute vCenter Server, WLD1-Cluster1 is hosted at the Regional Data Center and standalone ESXi hosts are deployed at Cell Site locations.
A dedicated vSphere Distributed Switch is used for both the RDC vSphere cluster and the Cell Site.
Kubernetes cluster components such as control plane nodes are deployed in the vSphere cluster in the RDC.
Kubernetes Worker nodes are deployed at both the Regional Data Center and Cell Site locations to support the CNF workloads such as the CU and DU in a geographically distributed manner.
