Deploying NFs on Kubernetes — bridging to Level 21

How NFs Map onto Kubernetes Objects

Each 5GC NF maps onto Kubernetes objects in a fairly standard pattern. The NF binary runs in a Pod, managed by either a Deployment (for stateless or externally-stateful NFs) or a StatefulSet (when the NF needs stable network identity and ordered scaling). A Service exposes the NF's SBI endpoint to other NFs in the cluster. ConfigMaps hold non-secret configuration; Secrets hold TLS certificates and OAuth client credentials. A HorizontalPodAutoscaler scales replicas based on CPU or custom metrics (active sessions, SBI request rate). For NFs with hardware needs (UPF), Multus CNI adds extra…