RDCL 3D is a “model agnostic” web framework for the design and composition of NFV services and components. The framework allows editing and validating the descriptors of services and components both textually and graphically and supports the interaction with external orchestrators or with deployment and execution environments. RDCL 3D is open source and designed with a modular approach, allowing developers to “plug in” the support for new models. We describe several advances with respect to the NFV state of the art, which have been implemented with RDCL 3D. We have integrated in the platform the latest ETSI NFV ISG model specifications for which no parsers/validators were available. We have also included in the platform the support for OASIS TOSCA models, reusing existing parsers. Then we have considered the modelling of components in a modular software router (Click), which goes beyond the traditional scope of NFV. We have further developed this approach by combining traditional NFV components (Virtual Network Functions) and Click elements in a single model. Finally, we have considered the support of this solution using the Unikernels virtualization technology.

1. RDCL 3D, a Model Agnostic Web Framework
for the Design and Composition of NFV Services
Stefano Salsano(1,2,*), Francesco Lombardo(1), Claudio Pisa(1), Pierluigi Greto(1), Nicola Blefari-Melazzi(1,2)
(1) CNIT, Italy – (2) Univ. of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy
(*) Project coordinator of the EU H2020 Superfluidity project http://superfluidity.eu/
O4SDI – 3rd IEEE International Workshop on Orchestration for Software Defined Infrastructures
@ IEEE NFV-SDN 2017 – Berlin, Germany – 6th November, 2017
A super-fluid, cloud-native, converged edge system

2. Outline
• The Superfluidity vision: from network softwarization to
superfluid networking
• Extending the NFV models to support the Superfluidity vision
(heterogeneous and “nested” execution environments)
• RDCL 3D : an open source tool to work with extended NFV models
2

3. From Network Softwarization to Superfluid networking
Goals
• Instantiate network functions and services on-the-fly
• Run them anywhere in the network (core, aggregation, edge), across
heterogeneous infrastructure environments (computing and networking), taking
advantage of specific hardware features, such as high performance accelerators,
when available
Approach
• Decomposition of network components and services into elementary and
reusable primitives (“Reusable Functional Blocks – RFBs”)
• Platform-independent abstractions, permitting reuse of network functions
across heterogeneous hardware platforms
3

4. The Superfluidity vision
4
Current NFV
technology
Granularity
Time scale
Superfluid
NFV
technology
Days, Hours Minutes Seconds Milliseconds
Big VMs
Small
components
Micro
operations • From VNFs
(Virtual Network Functions)
to RFBs
Reusable Functional Blocks

5. State of the art
NFV composition/execution environments
5
• Classical NFV environments (i.e. by ETSI NFV standards)
– VNFs are composed/orchestrated to realize Network Services
– VNFs can be decomposed in VNFC (VNF Components)

6. Going beyond state-of-art
Heterogeneous composition/execution environments
6
• Classical NFV environments (i.e. by ETSI NFV standards)
– VNFs are composed/orchestrated to realize Network Services
– VNFs can be decomposed in VNFC (VNF Components)
– From traditional VMs to Containers
– Lightweight Virtualization Technologies: Unikernels
• Modular Software Routers
– Click, Fastclick, Open/R, VPP, …
• Programmable dataplanes
– P4, xFSM based, …

7. Outline
• The Superfluidity vision: from network softwarization to
superfluid networking
• Extending the NFV models to support the Superfluidity vision
(heterogeneous and “nested” execution environments)
• RDCL 3D : an open source tool to work with extended NFV models
7

8. The Superfluidity Architecture
8
RFB
#a
RFB
#b
RFB
#c
RFB
#n
(node-level) RDCL script
REE
RFB#2
(network-level) RDCL script
(network-wide) REE
RFB Execution Environment
RFB#1
(node-level) REE
RFB Execution Environment

9. The Superfluidity Architecture
9
RFB
#a
RFB
#b
RFB
#c
RFB
#n
(node-level) RDCL script
REE
RFB#2
(network-level) RDCL script
(network-wide) REE
RFB Execution Environment
RFB#1
(node-level) REE
RFB Execution Environment
RFB : Reusable Functional Blocks

10. The Superfluidity Architecture
10
RFB
#a
RFB
#b
RFB
#c
RFB
#n
(node-level) RDCL script
REE
RFB#2
(network-level) RDCL script
(network-wide) REE
RFB Execution Environment
RFB#1
(node-level) REE
RFB Execution Environment
REE : RFB Execution Environments
RFB : Reusable Functional Blocks

11. The Superfluidity Architecture
11
RFB
#a
RFB
#b
RFB
#c
RFB
#n
(node-level) RDCL script
REE
RFB#2
(network-level) RDCL script
(network-wide) REE
RFB Execution Environment
RFB#1
(node-level) REE
RFB Execution Environment
REE : RFB Execution Environments
RFB : Reusable Functional Blocks
RFBs and REEs are
heterogeneous and can
be “nested”

12. The Superfluidity Architecture
12
RFB
#a
RFB
#b
RFB
#c
RFB
#n
(node-level) RDCL script
REE
RFB#2
(network-level) RDCL script
(network-wide) REE
RFB Execution Environment
RFB#1
(node-level) REE
RFB Execution Environment
RDCLs : RFB Description and Composition Languages
REE : RFB Execution Environments
RFB : Reusable Functional Blocks
RFBs and REEs are
heterogeneous and can
be “nested”

13. ETSI NFV Orchestration architecture
13

14. ETSI NFV Orchestration architecture
14
“Service, VNF and
infrastructure description”:
NFV MODELS
i.e. our RDCLs
“RFB Description and
Composition Languages”

15. Extending the NFV models towards the Superfluidity vision
15
• The NFV models need to be extended to support:
– coexistence of VMs, containers, other virtualization technologies
(e.g. unikernels)
– generalization of VNFs into RFBs (Reusable Functional Block)
– nested decomposition of components (RFBs) into “smaller” / “more
granular” components
– heterogeneous (and nested) RFB Execution Environments
• We need tools to work with these extended models !!

16. Outline
• The Superfluidity vision: from network softwarization to
superfluid networking
• Extending the NFV models to support the Superfluidity vision
(heterogeneous and “nested” execution environments)
• RDCL 3D : an open source tool to work with extended NFV models
16

17. The RDCL 3D tool
RDCL 3D: RFB Description and Composition Language Design Deploy and Direct
• The RDCL 3D tool is an open source web framework for
dealing with NFV models
• The tool is “model agnostic”, it can be adapted and extended
to work with different models
• “do not give a man a fish, teach him how to fish” 
17

18. The RDCL 3D tool
RDCL 3D: RFB Description and Composition Language Design Deploy and Direct
• The RDCL 3D tool allows editing and displaying a set of descriptors,
both graphically and textually
• It supports a set of different models, a model can be seen as a “plugin”
• For each model there is a different set of descriptors and a different set
of rules and constraints that guide the editing of descriptors
• The rules and constraints can be expressed through “meta-models”
(simplifying the development of new models…)
18

19. Examples of models supported by RDCL 3D
• The current RDCL 3D prototype supports the editing/displaying of
the models:
–ETSI NFV V2
–Click Modular Router
–TOSCA simple profile in YAML
–TOSCA simple profile for NFV
–“Superfluidity” = ETSI NFV V2 + Unikernel support + Click, with
support for nested descriptors
19

20. RDCL 3D prototype
20
ETSI NFV V2 model
Graphical editor

21. RDCL 3D prototype
21
TOSCA simple model
Textual editor

22. RDCL 3D : example of heterogeneity and nesting
This is a regular
VM (XEN HVM)
These are 3 Unikernel
VMs
(ClickOS)
Superfluidity Model : ETSI NFV V2 + Unikernel support + Click, nested 22

23. This is a regular
VM (XEN HVM)
These are 3
Unikernel VMs
(ClickOS)
A VNF includes a
Click Router VDU
RDCL 3D : example of heterogeneity and nesting
23

24. RDCL 3D : example of heterogeneity and nesting
This is a regular
VM (XEN HVM)
These are 3
Unikernel VMs
(ClickOS)
24
The Click Router
is decomposed in
Click “Elements”

25. RDCL 3D – Design, Deploy and Direct
• The descriptors can be processed and handed over to an
Orchestrator or a Virtual Infrastructure Manager
• A “deployment agent” receives the processed descriptors and
interacts with Orchestrators / VIMs.
• The RDCL 3D tool is modular, allowing to “plugin” different
deployment agents for the different use cases.
25

26. RDCL 3D – Design, Deploy and Direct
26
ETSI NFV
descriptors
(also enhanced for
containers)
Deployment
agent Y
“Superfluidity”
descriptors
ETSI NFV enhanced
for Unikernels / Click
RDCL 3D GUI
Deployment
agent X

27. RDCL 3D – Design, Deploy and Direct
27
ETSI NFV
descriptors
(also enhanced for
containers)
Deployment
agent X ManageIQ
Deployment
agent Y
OpenVIM
OpenStack
“Superfluidity”
descriptors
ETSI NFV enhanced
for Unikernels / Click
RDCL 3D GUI
Orchestrators Virtual Infrastructure
Managers (VIMs)
Deploy
Deploy

28. RDCL 3D – Design, Deploy and Direct
28
ETSI NFV
descriptors
(also enhanced for
containers)
Deployment
agent X ManageIQ
Deployment
agent Y
OpenVIM
OpenStack
“Superfluidity”
descriptors
ETSI NFV enhanced
for Unikernels / Click
RDCL 3D GUI
Orchestrators Virtual Infrastructure
Managers (VIMs)
feedbacks/
interaction
feedbacks/
interaction

29. Different use cases for RDCL 3D tool
(in relation with the ETSI MANO architecture)
29
Repositories
NSD
NSD
NSD
NS Catalogue
NSD
NSDVNF
D
VNF Catalogue
<2>
RDCL 3D
<4>
RDCL 3D
<1>
RDCL 3D
<3>
RDCL 3D
1) Standalone tool for editing and
validating NFV descriptors
2) Interact with APIs of Orchestrators
(e.g. with ManageIQ)
3) Orchestrator prototype, interacting
with VIMs (e.g. with OpenVIM)
4) Integrated into other Orchestrator
to enhance GUI

30. RDCL 3D software architecture
30
1) Javascript front-end for the web GUI,
using the D3.js framework
2) Django/python backend
3) We implemented the deployment
agents plugins in the backend using
the node.js framework
4) Interaction with the deployment
agents based on REST APIs

31. RDCL 3D on line demo
31
This is a regular
VM (XEN HVM)
These are 3
Unikernel VMs
(ClickOS)
Live demo of RDCL 3D prototype:
http://rdcl-demo.netgroup.uniroma2.it/

32. RDCL 3D source code
32
This is a regular
VM (XEN HVM)
These are 3
Unikernel VMs
(ClickOS)
Git source code repository:
https://github.com/superfluidity/RDCL3D
(we also have a docker installation and a ready-to-go VM)

33. References
• SUPERFLUIDITY project Home Page http://superfluidity.eu/
• S. Salsano, F. Lombardo, C. Pisa, P. Greto, N. Blefari-Melazzi,
“RDCL 3D, a Model Agnostic Web Framework for the Design and Composition of NFV Services”,
3rd IEEE International Workshop on Orchestration for Software Defined Infrastructures, O4SDI at
IEEE NFV-SDN conference, Berlin, 6-8 November 2017
• G. Bianchi, et al. “Superfluidity: a flexible functional architecture for 5G networks”, Transactions on
Emerging Telecommunications Technologies 27, no. 9, Sep 2016
33
The Superfluidity Architecture
NFV models and tools (RDCL 3D)

34. Take home messages
• Superfluid networking: a vision to fully exploit the network
softwarization approach
• Decomposition in “small” RFBs (Reusable Functional Blocks), highly
dynamic deployment of services / service components
• NFV models needs to be extended to consider the heterogeneity of
Execution Environments and support “nested” decomposition across
multiple Execution Environments
• The open source RDCL 3D framework is a powerful tool to address
the challenges of modeling complex and dynamic NFV environments
34

35. Thank you. Questions?
Contacts
Stefano Salsano
University of Rome Tor Vergata / CNIT
stefano.salsano@uniroma2.it
http://superfluidity.eu/
The work presented here only covers a subset of the work performed in the project
35

36. The SUPERFLUIDITY project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon
2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No.671566
(Research and Innovation Action).
The information given is the author’s view and does not necessarily represent the view
of the European Commission (EC). No liability is accepted for any use that may be
made of the information contained.
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