Much of the network automation discourse in the telecoms world currently revolves around Level 4 autonomous networks, which can create the impression that some telcos out there are already operating advanced, highly automated environments.
They are not. In fact, the average maturity level for most telcos is somewhere between Level 2 and Level 3. Level 3 brings substantial benefits in automated monitoring and fault diagnosis, but the benefits generally apply to small pieces of the puzzle. Level 4 connects those pieces to provide more end-to-end advantages.
So what are autonomous networks?
The most commonly used autonomous network model is that maintained by the TM Forum, which defines levels of autonomy over several dimensions by whether the associated functions are executed by people or by the (automated) system. Level 2 – which is where most carriers find themselves these days – is defined as a partial autonomous network, where execution of operational tasks is carried out by the system, but monitoring/observability and analysis are handled by a mix of man and machine.
Level 3 – conditional autonomous networks – hand off the monitoring and observability functions to the system while also assigning the system joint responsibility with humans for actions to remediate network problems.
Level 4 is a substantial leap ahead, assigning the automated system the responsibility to fix problems in service and network experience. This means that the system must be sophisticated enough to tell whether it has actually fixed the problem. In any case, it leaves definition of service intent and network experience to human beings.
Improvements brought by early level 4 implementation
Very few telcos have reached Level 4; most of those that have have done so in a limited, clearly defined area of their networks, a certain family of processes, or a specific use case. Some advanced carriers and vendors have implemented Level 4 automation in bigger areas, however.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataThe telecommunications vendor Huawei has gathered some dramatic KPIs from its Chinese carrier customers that are running early Level 4 networks:
In a home broadband network, the time it takes to find the root cause of a service problem has dropped from 1.5 hours to one minute. It used to require more than one truck roll to fix a problem; now almost all problems are resolved on the first visit.
Improvements with automation
In an IP network, the network optimisation cycle has gone from a week to ten minutes, which allows for much more responsive optimization. This dramatic improvement owes to 90% automation, up from just 10% before the automation.
In service assurance on a B2B network, locating a fault takes 15 minutes, as opposed to four hours previously.
In a wireless network, Level 4 automation brought a 15% percent drop in energy usage.
Putting the pieces in place for Level 4 autonomous networks
Level 4 autonomous networks are able to realise these dramatic benefits because they bring together isolated instances of automation into larger pieces that provide improvements in business benefits as well as technical benefits. Integrating these automated elements leads to end-to-end analysis and control loops where service degradations are detected, diagnosed, and remediated.
How should telcos work toward this Level 4 goal as they roll out Level 3 automation?
They should, as much as possible, implement projects that realise immediate benefits while contributing to a common foundation that will support Level 4’s benefit. Two major elements of this foundation are ever smarter hardware – which provides the richer data necessary for finer analysis and control – and a common digital twin that serves as a single source of truth for the entire automated network.
Level 4 automation should use this more granular information and common knowledge store to produce business benefits: higher service reliability, decreased costs, and shorter time to issue resolution. As telcos work on implementing Level 3 automation, they should make Level 4’s foundational architecture a priority.
