Overview

VMware Telco Cloud Platform RAN is a cloud-native solution engineered to transform traditional Radio Access Networks (RAN) into agile, virtualized infrastructures. By decoupling hardware from software, it enables Communication Service Providers (CSPs) to deploy and manage virtualized baseband functions, including virtualized Distributed Units (vDUs) and virtualized Central Units (vCUs), across distributed RAN sites. This platform addresses the stringent performance and latency demands of modern RAN workloads, facilitating a seamless evolution from legacy RAN architectures to disaggregated and open RAN frameworks. Through centralized automation and orchestration, VMware Telco Cloud Platform RAN simplifies operations, reduces operational expenditures, and accelerates the deployment of new services.

Features and Capabilities

• Cloud-Native Architecture: Designed specifically for RAN environments, the platform supports the deployment of virtualized baseband functions, ensuring high performance and low latency.
• Hardware-Software Decoupling: Separates hardware from software, allowing CSPs to utilize RAN-centric hardware capabilities, such as Layer 1 acceleration technologies, to enhance network performance and flexibility.
• Centralized Automation: Automates the provisioning and onboarding of vRAN functions across numerous distributed RAN sites, streamlining operations and reducing operational complexity.
• Multi-Vendor Support: Enables the virtualization of RAN functions from various vendors, providing CSPs with the flexibility to deploy best-of-breed solutions tailored to their specific needs.
• Enhanced Security: Isolates vDUs and vCUs on virtual machines and the VMware hypervisor, establishing robust security boundaries to protect network integrity.
• Scalability: Supports the deployment of vRAN functions at scale, accommodating the growth of 5G services and the increasing demand for low-latency, high-bandwidth applications.
• Operational Efficiency: Reduces hardware footprint and total cost of ownership by enabling the co-location of vRAN functions with other telco workloads, such as virtualized cell site routers or RAN Intelligent Controllers (RICs).
• Future-Proof Platform: Provides a clear path to RAN modernization, supporting the evolution from traditional RAN to disaggregated RAN and, ultimately, open RAN architectures.