Automating Intent-Based Networks Requires More than Good Intentions
Intent is a word that is increasingly being used in relation to telecom as new services and applications focus on what they need from the network in order to run efficiently.
Intent-based automation is a key industry topic due to the growing complexity of networks with the growing deployments of 5G, private and public clouds, and network disaggregation, and there is massive revenue potential to be unlocked by harnessing the flexibility of these new hybrid networks. Enhanced connectivity opens up a huge range of specific use cases across industry verticals that can be addressed by communications service providers (CSPs). However, supporting these use cases in a cost-effective manner requires increased automation.
What’s Your Intent?
Networks are evolving to become highly dynamic, constantly changing service delivery environments. Intents can be as straightforward as requesting establishment of a secure communications tunnel between point A and point B for a limited period; or, they can be deeply complex services, utilising multiple different networks to reliably, securely and automatically address the needs of the expressed intent.
Intent-based automation will transform the telecom network landscape by bringing together design tools, orchestration, real-time inventory, artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate services and resources across the network. It replaces complex, deterministic workflow automation and manual processes that required a great deal of technical expertise and were open to many opportunities for error. Automated intents demand a closed-loop environment for orchestrating the service request and managing the deployment and lifecycle across hybrid networks with minimal human intervention.
The dynamic, flexible expression of intent as an actual set of network and service characteristics that a service or app can rely on is an exciting new opportunity for CSPs – but the critical path to success lies in ensuring that the service modelling, implementation and execution of intent-based automation is carried out correctly. Netcracker Digital Platform enables CSPs to advance beyond standard process automation to achieve intent-based automation and take network intelligence to a new level.