When SRv6 meets 5G Core: Implementation and Deployment of a Network Service Chaining Function in SmartNICs

Currently, we have witnessed a myriad of solutions that benefit from programmable hardware. The 5G Core (5GC) can and should also benefit from such paradigm to offload certain functions to the dataplane. In this work, we designed and implemented a P4-based solution for traffic identification and chaining using the Netronome Agilo SmartNIC. The solution here presented is deployed in-between the RAN and UPF (User Plane Function) so that traffic coming from the RAN is identified and chained using SRv6 based on different rules defined by the control plane. The traffic identification and the construction of the SRv6 list of segments are done entirely in the SmartNIC. A minimalist Proof-of-Concept (PoC) was deployed and evaluated to show that this function is perfectly capable to build service function chainings in a transparent and efficient way.