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Edge Computing
MOBILE EDGE COMPUTING: THE FUTURE OF TRUE 5G
Driving the future of 5G with mobile edge computing.
Raul K. Martynek Chief Executive Officer, DataBank
April 17, 2023
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The promise of 5G hasn’t been met with performance, but it’s too early to
proclaim its failure. True 5G is on its way with mobile edge computing – and
data centers will be at the core of it, discusses Raul K. Martynek, chief
executive officer at DataBank.
All the major mobile carriers heavily promote their ability to deliver 5G access
to wireless networks across the U.S. At the same time, consumers and businesses
eagerly await the next killer apps that will cause digital processes to take a
quantum leap in performance and efficiency. However, true 5G speeds and
capabilities also depend on mobile edge computing. Mobile edge computing is all
about wireless carriers enabling applications to be more responsive on their
networks, with data centers at the heart of enabling the integration of
applications and network interfaces.
Consider multi-player gaming. It’s impossible to deliver equal performance to
all users if the carriers can’t keep the packets local (aka, at the metro
level). If one person is on a Verizon device and another is on an AT&T device,
the two packet streams might peer hundreds of miles away, causing jitter and
latency, making for discouraged gamers in all locales. Similarly, if the game
software stack is located 1,500 miles away in a core data center market, then
the performance will not compare to a console experience in the house. Both the
network and the compute and storage of the application need to be local. That
locality will occur inside an edge data center and leverage the 5G capabilities
of mobile-edge computing.
Gaming developers need 5G wireless networks to keep packets among multiple
phones on different networks within the same metropolitan area—so that the
network and the application work in concert and are aware of each other. Then,
because the network and the application stack are developed by different
parties, that exchange needs to occur in a multi-tenant edge data center that
allows for interconnection, security, carrier neutrality, and scalability. Only
then can video games deliver equal and enjoyable experiences to users and
leverage wireless networks for ubiquitous coverage.
Here’s how the infrastructure improvements must play out.
THE FOUR CRITICAL COMPONENTS OF 5G
In reality, the promise of 5G to deliver such experiences is still several years
away. While the carriers are making progress, they still have much to do to
deploy a true “standalone” 5G network. Getting there requires the network
evolution of four critical components:
1. Incorporating the full-frequency, three-spectrum-band “layer cake” all the
way from cell towers, small cells, or rooftop RF distributions to devices.
This weaves together low, mid, and high band frequencies that will provide
the Ultra-Wide Broadband (UWB) and Ultra-Low Latency (ULL) of 5G; the
carriers are about 25% of the way to completing this component.
2. Re-architecting network cores from 4G to 5G virtualized. This will transform
the cores from a centralized design to an architecture where a relatively
smaller number of control points are disaggregated into dozens of user-plane
locations where applications can access the network at a more local level.
3. Virtualizing Radio Access Networks (cRAN or vRAN) so cell towers in a region
can pool their resources to handle peak user activity and improve handoff
between cell zones. This eliminates the need to size each individual macro
site for peak activity, which is the case with 4G.
4. Leveraging open network components where the key network functions are
‘virtualized” as software that runs on commodity hardware and allows
applications to plug directly into networks. This approach enables a more
proximate location for mobile users to access edge computing at cRAN cell
tower locations and performing like the internet in terms of aggregation
points.
Once carriers have all four components in place — and have migrated customers
from 4G frequencies to the 5G layer cake frequency bands — then the true
promise of 5G can be delivered with wireless networks that can support millions
of IP addresses in each cell zone (massive-machine-to-machine communications)
while delivering 1-gigabit speeds to users (ultra-wide broadband), latency under
10 milliseconds (ultra-low latency communications), and very low jitter.
With this new wireless network topology, true multi-access edge computing (MEC)
can occur, where networks and application stacks can come together and
programmatically interact. That’s what mobile edge computing is all about,
capable of delivering the ultimate user experience in gaming, e-retail,
financial trading, or any mobile interaction you can imagine.
See More: 4 Challenges of the Edge to Cloud Evolution
DATA CENTERS PLAY A KEY ROLE IN MOBILE EDGE COMPUTING
True 5G comes at a steep costOpens a new window —$100 billion in capital
expenditures. Even if carriers make the investment required by 5G, they still
need the ecosystem of software developers, SaaS companies, and hardware
manufacturers to create the next generation of applications and devices that can
effectively leverage the enhanced capabilities of a 5G network.
That ecosystem will need physical locations in which to interact, similar to the
way applications and networks come together today. Those locations are, and will
be, multi-tenant edge data centers located in dozens of metro geographies. These
edge data centers and on-ramps need to be connected with 5G networks to create
mobile edge computing infrastructures for developing, deploying, and scaling
low-latency applications.
By definition, 5G and mobile edge computing are disaggregated, but at the end of
the day, applications and their data all end up in the data center. To bring
wireless computing to end-users, cloud providers need to utilize data centers in
all the top metros across the U.S. that offer the required power density,
cooling, security, and interconnectivity.
FEAR NOT: 5G WILL HAPPEN
Going back to the emergence of the commercial internet, each technology cycle
has had the same pattern. Consider when carriers first launched 4G. Skeptics
doubted whether any new app would use all the new capacity; recall how happy
everyone was with a tactile keyboard Blackberry. Not long after, smartphones
began to emerge, and before you knew it, an app ecosystem developed that created
thousands of use cases that people consumed. A similar generation of apps
enabled by 5G will allow carriers to recover their investments, and ten years
from now, the impact of 5G will be no different than the impact 4G has had on
today’s society and the business world.
As everyone waits for that next killer app or set of killer apps that can
leverage all the extra bandwidth and ultra-low latency that 5G promises, the
internet today works pretty well. Now consider artificial intelligence models
for real-time language translation, virtual reality apps for training and
navigation, and autonomous vehicles and drones, and you can start to imagine
what can occur in the future with 5G.
Fear not – 5G will happen. No doubt, it will be impactful. Unlike 4G and 3G,
when they designed 5G, they considered how the network, the data, and the
applications all need to be connected. That’s what makes 5G different – and more
powerful — than previous wireless architectures. 5G, and more importantly,
applications that leverage 5G, will catch on as the network bandwidth and
latency come up to speed and as networks are built and connected at the
application layer. Those connections will be enabled inside multi-tenant edge
data centers in a large number of metro markets. Today’s data centers will
continue to expand, and the convergence of cloud and network will unleash a new
generation of applications and use cases.
How close do you think we are to cloud-network convergence? Share with us on
FacebookOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , and LinkedInOpens a new
window . We’d love to hear from you!
Image Source: Shutterstock
MORE ON 5G & EDGE COMPUTING
* Addressing Signaling Security in the Transition to 5G Networks
* Rapid 5G Growth Drives Latest Automotive Innovations
* Why Bridging 5G and Wi-Fi Is Key to a Connected Future
* How to Ensure Security for IoT Edge Device Processors
* In 2023, Edge Computing Will Right-Size Its Role: Here’s Why
Edge Computing network
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Raul K. Martynek
Chief Executive Officer, DataBank
opens a new window opens a new window
opens a new window opens a new window
Raul Martynek joined DataBank in 2017 as the Chief Executive Officer. In this
role, he defines the strategic direction of the company and its operations. Raul
is a 20+ year veteran in the telecom and Internet Infrastructure sector. He most
recently served as a Senior Advisor for DigitalBridge Holdings LLC. Mr. Martynek
earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Binghamton University and
received a Master’s degree in International Affairs from Columbia University
School of International and Public Affairs.
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