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Towards zero-touch network orchestration: An NWDAF-centered standards-compliant closed-loop approach
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Authors: Fatemeh Shafiei Ardestani, Noura Limam, Raouf Boutaba
Status: Final
Date of publication: 30 June 2026
Published in: ITU Journal on Future and Evolving Technologies, Volume 7 (2026), Issue 2, Pages 160-187
Article DOI : https://doi.org/10.52953/SVMM1934
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Abstract:
The transition toward zero-touch and AI-native network operations requires closing the loop between data collection, analytics, and automated control across distributed network functions. While the 3GPP Network Data Analytics Function (NWDAF) provides a standardized foundation for network intelligence, its practical realization as a network automation enabler remains largely unexplored. In this paper, we present a standards-compliant framework for closed-loop network automation that elevates NWDAF from an analytics service to an active component in runtime orchestration. Our design integrates (i) real-time user-plane observability via a novel implementation of the User Plane Function (UPF) Event Exposure Service, (ii) actionable analytics with modular engines and Machine Learning (ML) lifecycle management, and (iii) automated action and policy enforcement through control-plane functions, forming a complete data analytics action pipeline. We implement the proposed framework, integrate it with an open-source 5G core, and evaluate its end-to-end performance under realistic workloads. Our results show that fine-grained user-plane telemetry can be collected with minimal overhead while enabling responsive closed-loop control at runtime. Through two representative use cases, anomaly detection with automated mitigation and congestion-aware quality of service adaptation, we demonstrate that NWDAF-driven control can effectively translate analytics into actionable policies while preserving system scalability. This work provides the first comprehensive evidence that standards-aligned NWDAF can serve as a practical foundation for zero-touch network automation, bridging the gap between 3GPP-defined analytics and runtime orchestration. |
Keywords: Closed-loop network orchestration, ML-driven analytics, NWDAF, observability, policy enforcement
Rights: © International Telecommunication Union, available under the CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO license.
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