Welcome to the VMware Telco Cloud Platform RAN™ documentation. Use the navigation on the left to browse through the documentation of Telco Cloud Platform RAN and its components (related products). The documentation is also available in the PDF format, which you can access by clicking the Download PDF icon while reading a page or viewing a search result.

What's Telco Cloud Platform RAN?

VMware Telco Cloud Platform RAN™ is a cloud-native RAN solution that is designed specifically for running RAN functions. It provides the RAN modernization path, evolving from legacy Radio Access Network (RAN) to virtualized RAN (vRAN) to OpenRAN. It transforms the RAN into a 5G multi-services hub “mini cloud”, enabling Communication Services Providers (CSPs) to monetize their RAN investments. VMware Telco Cloud Platform RAN is powered by field-proven virtualization, carrier-grade Container-as-a-Service (CaaS), and multi-layer automation that are consistent with its 5G core and edge offerings.

  • Enables CSPs to run virtualized Baseband functions that include virtualized Distributed Units (vDUs) and virtualized Central Units (vCUs).
  • Simplifies CSPs’ operations consistently across distributed vRAN sites with centralized cloud-first automation, while reducing the Operating Expense (OpEx).
  • Provides operational consistency by removing business uncertainties and reduces ballooning costs associated with 5G deployment.
  • Enables CSPs to accelerate innovation speed, deploy 5G services fast, and scale the services as customers’ demands increase.
  • Enables CSPs to provision 5G services customized for different enterprise and consumer markets while providing unparalleled operational efficiency.
The following diagram illustrates the building blocks of the Telco Cloud and the VMware products that exist within each tier.
Building Blocks of VMware Telco Cloud

Major Features of Telco Cloud Platform RAN

  • Optimization for RAN Workloads
    • Real-time optimization of vSphere ESXi to meet the PTP accuracy and latency requirements of virtualized Baseband functions.
    • Real-time optimization of Photon OS and Tanzu Worker Nodes by supporting various plugins.
    • FlexRAN optimization for enhanced dimensioning, ensuring maximum compute resources for RAN workloads.
  • Infrastructure Automation and Orchestration
    • Support for virtual Infrastructure configuration and distributed Kubernetes deployment from centralized management tooling.
    • Ability to standardize the deployment of regional Data Centers and single ESXi host Far Edge (Cell Site) locations.
    • Support for Distributed RAN (D-RAN) and Centralized RAN (C-RAN) deployments.
  • CaaS Management
    • Automated discovery, registration, and creation of Kubernetes clusters.
    • Continuous synchronization between the CaaS layer and VMware Telco Cloud Automation.
    • Automated and on-demand “late binding” configuration optimization to the platform when the partner RAN workloads are deployed.

Learn More About Telco Cloud Platform RAN

Additional VMware Resources