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Tacker

Tacker is an OpenStack service that provides a framework for deploying and managing virtualized network functions (VNFs) and cloud-native network functions (CNFs) using ETSI NFV-compliant network service orchestration (network function virtualization / orchestration).

  • ETSI Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) MANO-compliant network service and VNF/CNF orchestration (network function virtualization / orchestration).
  • Lifecycle management for VNFs and CNFs, including instantiation, scaling, healing, update, and termination (service lifecycle management).
  • Management of network services composed of multiple VNFs/CNFs with topology and dependency modeling (service orchestration).
  • Support for multiple VNF/CNF descriptor formats and ETSI NFV specifications for interoperability (standards-based network management).
  • Integration with other OpenStack services for compute, networking, and storage resources used by VNFs/CNFs (cloud infrastructure management).

More About Tacker

Tacker is an OpenStack project focused on network function virtualization (network function virtualization) that implements a framework for deploying and managing virtualized and cloud-native network functions according to ETSI NFV Management and Orchestration (MANO) specifications. It addresses the need to orchestrate network services composed of software-based functions running on general-purpose cloud infrastructure instead of proprietary network appliances.

Within the ETSI NFV MANO reference architecture (network function virtualization / orchestration), Tacker implements the roles of NFV Orchestrator (NFVO) and Virtual Network Function (VNF) Manager (VNFM) for VNFs and CNFs. It provides mechanisms to onboard descriptors, instantiate network services, and manage the lifecycle of network functions in alignment with ETSI standards. This positioning allows Tacker to act as the control plane for NFV workloads in OpenStack-based environments.

Tacker supports lifecycle management (service lifecycle management) operations for VNFs and CNFs, including create, instantiate, scale in and out, heal, update, and terminate. These operations are typically exposed through Representational State Transfer (REST) APIs that integrate with higher-level OSS/BSS or automation systems. Tacker uses network service descriptors (NSDs) and VNF/CNF descriptors (VNFDs/CSAR packages) that conform to ETSI NFV specifications, enabling modeling of network service topologies, connection points, and deployment flavors.

In enterprise and service provider deployments (telecommunications infrastructure), Tacker is used to orchestrate services such as virtual routers, firewalls, Evolved Packet Core (EPC) components, 5G core functions, or other virtualized network elements running on OpenStack. It interacts with other OpenStack components such as Nova for compute, Neutron for networking, and Cinder for block storage (cloud infrastructure management), allowing network services to consume underlying infrastructure resources through standardized interfaces.

Tacker’s architecture (cloud service architecture) typically includes a central service that exposes APIs, a database for persistent state, and drivers or plugins that interface with infrastructure and VNF Manager (VNFM) backends. It supports multiple Virtualized Infrastructure Manager (VIM) (Virtualized Infrastructure Manager) integrations through the OpenStack ecosystem and can work with Kubernetes-based environments for CNF deployment when configured accordingly. This extensible architecture permits integration with external systems and adaptation to vendor-specific requirements through plugins.

From a categorization perspective, Tacker fits within NFV orchestration, ETSI NFV MANO-compliant management, and cloud-based network service lifecycle management. It is relevant to network architects, telecom operators, and enterprises building virtualized network services on OpenStack infrastructure, providing a standards-based control layer for modeling, deploying, and operating VNFs and CNFs in production environments.