Defining intent-driven service fulfillment in autonomous networks

Intent-based networking has entered the spotlight as network operators recognize they must master substantial network complexity with sophisticated automation if they want to create, deliver, and sustain services, especially in cloud-native network environments like standalone 5G.

“Intent is the driving force of autonomous networks (AN),” writes Dana Cooperson in the recent TM Forum research report Intent in Autonomous Networks. “Automation of networks and related operations cannot evolve and mature to full closed-loop autonomy without intent,” states the report. The reason many CSPs are investigating intent-based networks is that it offers a path to automate networks and operations; to support higher degrees of network and service autonomy; and in so doing address escalating complexity while mitigating if not reducing operations and IT costs.

Specifying Intent

Intent-based automation can help CSPs to address most if not all these challenges, though not without overcoming substantial complexity. In an intent-based network, resources should scale and adjust dynamically according to real-time demand, as they do for cloud compute, storage, and networking and streaming services. This constant need to balance and coordinate resources dynamically has moved orchestration into the spotlight as a core capability for network automation as well as intent-based networks. Intraway has focused on solving the closed-loop automation challenges specific to this type of dynamic network and service orchestration.

Closed-loop operations

For CSPs to automate operations and networks to the degree they can achieve higher levels of autonomy, specifications need to be defined, tested, and improved that solve fundamental automation challenges and define how parties will integrate and communicate when operating autonomous networks. For example, the TM Forum’s Intent Management API (TMF 921) specifies how intents can be negotiated between intent owners and intent handlers to resolve resource conflicts or constraints.

Intent-driven autonomous networks infer closed-loop operations automation. This is needed to power zero-touch ordering, provisioning, and activation as well as self-healing and self-optimization across multi-vendor network domains and clouds. The key for CSPs will be to define how to predictably translate between business objectives and intent inputs for the network, which the TM Forum Catalyst team is currently exploring.

Catalyzing autonomy

At the upcoming TM Forum Catalyst Showcase during Digital Transformation World, theIntent-driven Autonomous Networks Catalyst team will unveil pioneering new work in closed-loop automation and intent. It will exhibit implementations of intent models and interfaces, at the business, service, and resource layers, which derive from CSP-defined business objectives and follow the Autonomous Networks Reference Architecture.

The Catalyst team, which includes more than seven CSPs, is exploring the concept of fulfilling spot requests for network services in a marketplace where customers set prices based on intents. The idea is to create a fluid, demand-based market for idle capacity that multiple operators could make available during low network usage periods. Using intents, idle capacity can be exposed as available capacity to generate incremental revenue.

Pick your price

The Catalyst project then takes the bold step of exploring new methods of supply and demand, where users make offers and CSPs satisfy the demand through automated, intent-based processes. It also assumes a layered marketplace and demonstrates how resellers and brokers can participate in the spot market to purchase same or similar services at the best prices to fulfill demand. Intraway plays a central role in automating the fulfillment of these dynamic service requests by providing automated provisioning, activation, and orchestration of services as they are requested and brokered.

Third parties can broker services by searching for the best offer-to-price ratio across multiple CSPs. Rather than making requests and compiling results across operators, the user creates just one intent request. Once the broker receives that request and its intent data, it searches for the best options to fulfill the request and assure sustained delivery of the service and release of resources back to the network when the service is terminated. This capability enables the end user, or customer, to propose a price or price range that it is willing to offer for any given service.

Give back to the community

The entire catalyst embraces and utilizes and range of standards, including TM Forum Open APIs, for the purpose of encouraging and demonstrating multi-vendor integration, by exploring these new intent implementations and pragmatic scenarios, this catalyst program is also contributing to the further definition and maturation of TMF921, for the benefit of the global CSP community.

For CSPs, this catalyst helps demonstrate and advance a solution that exhibits many of the key concepts that operators themselves are trying to prove. For example, multi-vendor integration is achieved via open APIs within the parameters of the catalyst. Operations automation for intent-based networks is also being tested, showing a mature path to achieve network automation and autonomous operation. And at a granular level, components such as orchestration, provisioning and activation of services in a sophisticated broker environment demonstrate that automation can not only eliminate complexity and reduce costs, but also open up new revenue streams at low cost that complement an operator's core business.