# US 11,451,999 B2 · Application workload routing and interworking for network defined edge routing > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,451,999 B2 - Document ID: US11451999B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/139,857 - Filed: 2020-12-31 - Published: 2021-09-23 - Granted: 2022-09-20 - Earliest claimed: 2020-03-18 - Assignees: Equinix, Inc. - Applicants: Equinix, Inc. - Inventors: Oleg Berzin; Robert J. Huey - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11451999B2 ## CPC - H04W 28/0263: {involving mapping traffic to individual bearers or channels, e.g. traffic flow template [TFT]} - H04L 45/04: {Interdomain routing, e.g. hierarchical routing} - H04L 45/507: {Label distribution} - H04W 28/0273: {adapting protocols for flow control or congestion control to wireless environment, e.g. adapting transmission control protocol [TCP] (wireless network protocols or protocol adaptations to wireless operation, e.g. wireless application protocol H04W80/00)} - H04W 36/22: for handling the traffic - H04W 40/02: Communication route or path selection, e.g. power-based or shortest path routing - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) ## Abstract Techniques are described for a network providing application workload routing and application workload interworking. For example, a controller may move or replicate an application workload hosted on an original edge compute to a different edge compute in a different edge data center that is locally accessible by the device and route the network traffic to the new edge compute using paths mapped to respective traffic classes. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method comprising: in response to determining that a device is performing or is to perform handover from a first edge data center to a second edge data center, instructing, by a controller of a network, the first edge data center to replicate or move an application workload hosted on the first edge data center to the second edge data center, computing, by the controller and based on: (1) element registration information for modules hosted on a set of interconnected edge data centers including the first edge data center and the second edge data center, (2) one or more network devices that interconnect the modules in the network, and (3) one or more routing metrics of the network, a path mapped to a traffic class to route traffic between the device and the second edge data center hosting the application workload via one or more modules hosted on the second edge data center; and sending, by the controller, the path to the second edge data center to cause the second edge data center to route traffic for the application workload according to the path mapped to the traffic class. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein each of the modules hosted on the set of interconnected edge data centers provides at least one of a radio access network (RAN) function, a 5th Generation of Mobile Networks (5G) core function, and an edge computing function. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the device is performing handover comprises: receiving a signaling message from the second edge data center that the device has attached or has requested to attach to the second edge data center instead of the first edge data center; and determining, based on the signaling message received from the second edge data center, that the device is performing handover. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the device is to perform handover comprises: receiving telemetry data about the device, wherein the telemetry data comprises at least one of a location of the device and direction of travel of the device; and determining, based on the telemetry data, that the device is to perform handover. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, further comprising: receiving, from the one or more modules of the second edge data center, network insight data, wherein determining that the device is to perform handover further comprises determining, based on the telemetry data from the device and the network insight data from the modules of the second edge data center, that the device is to perform handover. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the routing metrics of the network comprises at least one of latency, bandwidth, hop count, link utilization, reliability, throughput, load, packet loss, and path parameters of an optical network, wherein the path parameters of the optical network comprises at least one of span latencies, capacities, and protection states. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the set of interconnected edge data centers is configured as a domain of the one or more edge computing functions. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein computing the path mapped to the traffic class comprises: in response to receiving the element registration information, assigning, by the controller, a segment identifier for each of the modules hosted on the second edge data center, and for each of the one or more network devices that interconnect the modules in the network; and generating, by the controller and from the segment identifiers, one or more segment routing label stacks mapped to the traffic class to route traffic for the application workload between the device and the second edge computing function according to the path mapped to the traffic class. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more segment routing label stacks comprises an uplink segment routing label stack, wherein sending the path comprises sending the uplink segment routing label stack to the second edge data center to cause a target centralized unit of the second edge data center to encapsulate traffic with the uplink segment routing label stack to route traffic for the application workload from the device to the second edge computing function. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more segment routing label stacks comprises a downlink segment routing label stack, wherein sending the path further comprises sending the downlink segment routing label stack to the second edge data center to cause the second edge computing function to encapsulate traffic with the downlink segment routing label stack to route traffic for the application workload from the second edge computing function to the device. ### Claim 11 A controller for a network, comprising: one or more processors operably coupled to memory, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: instruct, in response to determining that a device is performing or is to perform handover from a first edge data center to a second edge data center, the first edge data center to replicate or move an application workload hosted on the first edge data center to the second edge data center, compute, based on: (1) element registration information for modules hosted on a set of interconnected edge data centers including the first edge data center and the second edge data center, (2) one or more network devices that interconnect the modules in the network, and (3) one or more routing metrics of the network, a path mapped to a traffic class to route traffic between the device and the second edge data center hosting the application workload via one or more modules hosted on the second edge data center; and send the path to the second edge data center to cause the second edge data center to route traffic for the application workload according to the path mapped to the traffic class. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The controller of claim 11, wherein each of the modules hosted on the set of interconnected edge data centers provide at least one of a radio access network (RAN) function, a 5th Generation of Mobile Networks (5G) core function, and an edge computing function. ### Claim 13 (depends on 11) The controller of claim 11, wherein to determine that the device is performing handover, the one or more processors are configured to: receive a signaling message from the second edge data center that the device has attached or has requested to attach to the second edge data center instead of the first edge data center; and determine, based on the signaling message received from the second edge data center, that the device is performing handover. ### Claim 14 (depends on 11) The controller of claim 11, wherein to determine that the device is to perform handover, the one or more processors are configured to: receive telemetry data about the device, wherein the telemetry data comprises at least one of a location of the device and direction of travel of the device; and determine, based on the telemetry data, that the device is to perform handover. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The controller of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: receive, from the one or more modules of the second edge data center, network insight data, wherein to determine that the device is to perform handover, the one or more processors are further configured to determine, based on the telemetry data from the device and the network insight data from the modules of the second edge data center, that the device is to perform handover. ### Claim 16 (depends on 14) The controller of claim 14, wherein to compute the path mapped to the traffic class, the one or more processors are configured to: assign, based on the element registration information, a segment identifier for each of the modules hosted on the second edge data center, and for each of the one or more network devices that interconnect the modules in the network; and generate, from the segment identifiers, an uplink segment routing label stack and a downlink segment routing label stack each mapped to the traffic class to route traffic for the application workload between the device and the second edge computing function according to the path mapped to the traffic class; send the uplink segment routing label stack to the second edge data center to cause a target centralized unit of the second edge data center to encapsulate traffic with the uplink segment routing label stack to route traffic for the application workload from the device to the second edge computing function; and send the downlink segment routing label stack to the second edge data center to cause the second edge computing function to encapsulate traffic with the downlink segment routing label stack to route traffic for the application workload from the second edge computing function to the device. ### Claim 17 A method comprising: receiving, by a controller of a network, a first request to route traffic between a first device and an edge computing function hosting an application workload via a first edge data center, and a second request to route traffic between a second device and the edge computing function via a second edge data center; wherein the first edge data center and the second edge data center are each provided by different mobile network providers, wherein a third edge data center hosting the application workload is provided by a common application provider to the different mobile network providers; computing, by the controller and based on: (1) element registration information for modules hosted on a set of interconnected edge data centers including the first edge data center, the second edge data center, and the third edge data center (2) one or more network devices that interconnect the modules in the network, and (3) one or more routing metrics of the network, a first path mapped to a traffic class to route traffic between the first device and the edge computing function hosting the application workload via one or more of the modules hosted on the first edge data center, and a second path mapped to the traffic class to route traffic between the second device and the edge computing function hosting the application workload via one or more of the modules hosted on the second edge data center; sending, by the controller, the first path to the first edge data center to cause the first edge data center to route traffic for the application workload according to the first path mapped to the traffic class; and sending, by the controller, the second path to the second edge data center to cause the second edge data center to route traffic for the application workload according to the second path mapped to the traffic class. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The method of claim 17, wherein each of the modules hosted on the set of interconnected edge data centers provide at least one of a radio access network (RAN) function, a 5th Generation of Mobile Networks (5G) core function, and an edge computing function. ### Claim 19 (depends on 17) The method of claim 17, wherein the first request and the second request each include a common traffic class identifier. ### Claim 20 (depends on 17) The method of claim 17, further comprising: in response to receiving the first request and the second request, sending, by the controller, an application workload activation request to the edge computing function hosting the application workload to activate the edge computing function for access by the first device via the first edge data center and the second device via the second edge data center.