Active Broadband Networks has introduced a new virtual, all-software forwarding engine - Active Programmable Gateway -Virtual Network Function (APG-VNF) - that moves broadband edge processing functions off edge routers into software, eliminating the need for complex, expensive and inflexible edge routers and enabling broadband operators to directly connect customers to their cloud. It enables edge admission, forwarding and QoS functionality to be deployed as virtual machines in an operator’s cloud.
The new framework is build on Software-Defined Broadband Network Gateway (SD-BNG), a platform that also consists of the Active Resource Controller (ARC), an SDN controller optimized for broadband service delivery with integrated orchestration, activation, analytics, policy and QoE management.
According to Active Broadband Networks, using the SD-BNG with the APG-VNF, operators can directly connect customers’ edge connectivity services to network, compute, storage and application services elastically provisioned within their cloud without the cost and complexity of legacy edge routers. The APG-VNF provides physical and logical connectivity integrating Linux virtualization and containers to enable flexible customer and infrastructure capabilities. The APG-VNF supports popular fixed broadband termination and access mechanisms orchestrated and managed by the ARC.
Adam Dunstan, Co-Founder and CEO, Active Broadband Networks
Our customers are moving to take advantage of cloud technologies in the delivery of network service much more quickly than we anticipated. By connecting customers directly to the cloud, operators avoid the cost and complexity of service functions in edge routers, unlocking functionality and efficiency that can result in meaningful competitive advantage.
