DEVOPSdigest

Mavenir launched its Open Virtualized RAN (Open vRAN) solution running on Red Hat OpenShift for cloud deployment, running on general purpose, common-off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware available from market leading server vendors.

The solution complies with O-RAN Alliance’s O-Cloud specifications, using the O-RAN O2 interface to allow Mavenir’s cloud-native network functions (CNF) to manage the resources provided by Red Hat OpenShift, the industry’s leading enterprise Kubernetes platform.

The integrated offering provides a full stack solution to operationalize Open RAN, including life cycle management, orchestration, and automation, to lower the barrier to entry for service providers and enterprises deploying 4G and 5G public and private networks with real-time use cases that require on-premises equipment. The solution is being deployed by three tier-1 service providers in global markets including Asia, North America, and Europe.

Mavenir’s Open vRAN is an O-RAN compliant, fully containerized solution, working on open interfaces supporting O-RAN Split 7.2x and Split 2. It further disaggregates into a Distributed Unit (DU) and Centralized Unit (CU). Designed to support multiple fronthaul splits simultaneously, making the vRAN solution an ideal choice for a vendor-agnostic and future-proof strategy.

Red Hat OpenShift provides organizations with the ability to deploy on any hybrid or multi-cloud environment with a fast, flexible and easy-to-manage platform that speeds up application development and extends control over distributed resources.

Mavenir’s Open vRAN runs on Red Hat OpenShift and can be deployed in any combination of network models such as 4G, 5G SA (standalone), 5G NSA (non-standalone), and 5G massive MIMO; delivering the following benefits for service providers:

- Accelerated deployment — as a pre-integrated, pre-engineered solution that is ready to deploy, with minimal planning

- Cost efficiencies — by reducing on-premises cloud infrastructure overhead and leveraging general-purpose COTS hardware

- Lower hardware footprint than other competing on-premises cloud solutions

- Continuous Innovation — with DevOps-based CI/CD software release and upgrade cycles that reduce time to market of new capabilities

- Security features, performance, and reliability added by Red Hat OpenShift

BG Kumar, President, Access Networks, Platforms and MDE, Mavenir, said, “This collaboration with Red Hat allows Mavenir to address the requirements of operators and enterprises needing hybrid or multi-cloud solutions, as well as those looking for a solution that runs on-premises but benefits from the automation and orchestration of a cloud deployment.”

“Red Hat is building a bridge for customers to embrace the Open RAN movement, connecting business needs with the underlying technologies with our open source expertise. Red Hat OpenShift offers a consistent and flexible cloud-native foundation to accelerate application development and Open RAN deployments across any network landscape,” said Honoré LaBourdette, VP, Telco, Media, Entertainment & Edge Ecosystem, Red Hat. “By supporting the Mavenir Open vRAN solution on Red Hat OpenShift, service providers are better equipped to meet unique network requirements on a trusted, agile open source platform.”