BIG-IP Next Service Proxy for Kubernetes

Designed for service providers, BIG-IP Next SPK provides a single point of ingress/egress networking and security and supports the 4G to 5G transition.

BIG-IP Next Service Proxy for Kubernetes (SPK) Enables 5G Networks

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5G cloud-native infrastructure—core and edge deployments

BIG-IP Next SPK enables a 5G Core solution which paves the way for robust 5G consumer and enterprise solutions. New service-based architecture use cases like network slicing and MEC enable dynamic allocation of resources for specific customers and specific applications. BIG-IP Next SPK provides a North/South traffic ingress while Aspen Mesh provides a complementary solution for East/West traffic flowing within Kubernetes clusters.

  • Scaling the Core, Edge, and Far Edge - As a container-based solution, BIG-IP Next SPK can scale from a small number of very large cell sites in the core to a large number of smaller cell sites at the edge and far edge.
  • Cloud-Native for New Levels of Flexibility - By building the 5G core with a cloud-native architecture, service providers will be able to achieve new levels of operational automation, flexibility, and adaptability.
  • Interoperates with Aspen Mesh - Aspen Mesh provides observability, security, and control for the traffic flowing within and between Kubernetes clusters and ensures that containers run efficiently across thousands of edge sites.

Product Overview

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A service proxy that enables 5G networks

BIG-IP Next SPK is deployed as a Kubernetes resource at the ingress of the cluster, supporting signaling traffic management and control, load balancing, security, and visibility between nodes, becoming part of the Kubernetes orchestration environment.

Applies policy control over multiple traffic types many of which are unique to a service provider network such as TCP, UDP, SCTP, Diameter, GTPcV2, and SIP.

Provides a single point for network security for traffic into and within a service provider’s cloud-native infrastructure.

Visibility of traffic flow into and within the infrastructure for more efficient troubleshooting, revenue assurance, and flexible revenue controls.

Capitalize on new 5G revenue streams while maintaining revenue from current services by using existing billing and charging systems such as AAA and OCS.

Core Capabilities

BIG-IP Next SPK is unique in bringing critical network capabilities to a Kubernetes environment to meet the demands of a service provider network. It provides control for 4G and 5G signaling while adding needed security and visibility.

A single point of networking architected for service provider networks

Multi-protocol 4G and 5G

Telco Network Functions using telco protocols—L4 (SCTP) and L7 (Diameter, HTTP/2)

Network security controls for traffic into and within the cloud-native infrastructure

Offload processor intensive functionality such as DDoS and Encryption to Intel SmartNIC

Statistics and analytics for revenue assurance

Orchestrated and configured by Kubernetes

Embraces and extends Kubernetes patterns

Platform Support and Integrations

Platform Support and Integrations

Certify partner CNFs interoperability on SPK and Aspen Mesh

F5 and its partners certify onboarding, integration, deployment, and life cycle management of BIG-IP Next SPK and Aspen Mesh in a cloud-native environment with vendor CNFs.

Read more about the CNF certification program >

Technology alliances

F5 collaborates with the world’s leading technology companies. Together, via interoperability and integrations, we help our customers secure and deliver extraordinary digital experiences.

Resources

Next Steps

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