Ubuntu Blog: Harnessing the potential of 5G with Kubernetes: a cloud-native telco transformation perspective

Telecommunications networks are undergoing a cloud-native revolution. 5G promises ultra-fast connectivity and real-time services, but achieving those benefits requires an infrastructure that is agile, low-latency, and highly reliable. Kubernetes has emerged as a cornerstone for telecom operators to meet 5G demands. In 2025, Canonical Kubernetes delivers a single, production-grade Kubernetes platform with long-term support (LTS) and telco-specific optimizations, deployable across clouds, data centers, and the far edge.

This blog explores how Canonical Kubernetes empowers 5G and cloud-native telco workloads with high performance, enhanced platform awareness (EPA), and robust security, while offering flexible deployment via snaps, Juju, or Cluster API. We’ll also highlight its integration into industry initiatives like Sylva, support for GPU/DPU acceleration, and synergy with MicroCloud for scalable edge infrastructure.

The rise of the cloud-native telco

Telecom decision-makers face immense pressure to evolve their networks rapidly and cost-effectively. Traditional, hardware-centric architectures struggle to keep pace with 5G’s requirements for low latency, high throughput, and dynamic scaling. This is where Kubernetes – the de facto platform for cloud-native applications – comes in. Kubernetes brings powerful automation, scalability, and resiliency that allow telcos to manage network functions like software across data centers, public clouds, and far-edge deployments. The result is a more agile operational model: services can be rolled out faster, resources automatically optimized to demand, and updates applied continuously without disrupting critical services. In the 5G era, such agility is essential for delivering innovations like network slicing, multi-access edge computing (MEC), and AI-driven services.

At the same time, Kubernetes opens the door for telcos to refactor their network functions into microservices. Instead of relying on monolithic appliances or heavy virtual machines, operators can deploy cloud-native network functions (CNFs) – essentially containerized network services – that are lighter and faster to roll out than traditional virtual network functions (VNFs). By shifting to CNFs, new network features (whether a 5G core component or a firewall) can be introduced or updated in a fraction of the time, using automated CI/CD pipelines instead of lengthy manual upgrades. This approach helps telcos simplify the migration from legacy systems to a more agile, software-driven network model.

However, adopting Kubernetes for telecom workloads also means meeting rigorous performance and reliability standards. Carrier-grade services like voice, video, and core network functions can’t tolerate unpredictable delays or downtime. Telco leaders need a Kubernetes platform that combines cloud-native flexibility with telco-grade performance, security, and support. Canonical Kubernetes answers that call, providing a Kubernetes distribution specifically tuned for telecommunications needs.

Canonical Kubernetes: optimized for cloud-native 5G networks and edge computing

Canonical’s Kubernetes distribution has been engineered from the ground up to address the unique challenges of 5G and cloud-native telco cloud deployments. It is a single, unified Kubernetes offering that blends the ease of use of lightweight deployments with the robustness of an enterprise-grade platform. Importantly, Canonical Kubernetes can be deployed and managed in whatever way best fits a telco’s environment – whether installed as a secure snap package or integrated with full automation tooling like Juju (model-driven operations) or Kubernetes Cluster API (CAPI). This flexibility means operators can start small at the network edge or scale up to carrier-core clusters, all using the same consistent platform. Notably, Canonical Kubernetes brings cloud-native telco-friendly capabilities in the areas of performance, networking, operations, and support:

High performance & low latency

Real-time linux kernel support ensures that high-priority network workloads execute with predictable, ultra-low latency, a critical requirement for functions like the 5G user plane function (UPF). In parallel, built-in support for advanced networking (including SR-IOV and DPDK) enables fast packet processing by giving containerized network functions direct access to hardware, dramatically reducing network I/O latency for high bandwidth 5G applications. Together, these features allow cloud-native network functions to meet stringent performance and determinism once only achievable on specialized telecom hardware.

GPU acceleration

Canonical Kubernetes integrates seamlessly with acceleration technologies to support emerging cloud-native telco workloads. It works with NVIDIA’s GPU and networking operators to leverage hardware accelerators (GPUs, SmartNICs, DPUs) for intensive tasks. It supports NVIDIA’s Multi-Instance GPU (MIG), which expands the performance and value of the NVIDIA’s data center GPUs, such as the latest GB200 and RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell Server Edition by partitioning the GPU into up to seven instances, each fully hardware isolated with its own high-bandwidth memory, cache, and streaming multiprocessors. The partitioned instances are transparent to workloads which greatly optimizes the use of resources and allows for serving workloads with guaranteed QoS.

This means telecom operators can run AI/ML analytics, media processing, or virtual RAN computations that take advantage of GPUs and DPU offloading within their Kubernetes clusters – all managed under the same platform. By tapping into hardware acceleration, telcos can deliver advanced services (like AI-driven network optimization or AR/VR streaming) with high performance, without needing separate siloed infrastructure.

Operational efficiency and automation

Day-0 to Day-2 operations are streamlined through automation in Canonical’s stack. The distribution supports full lifecycle management – clusters can be deployed, scaled, and updated via one-step commands or integrated CI/CD pipelines, reducing manual effort and errors. Using Juju charms, Canonical’s model-driven operations further simplify complex orchestration, enabling teams to configure and update Kubernetes and related services in a repeatable, declarative way. Built-in self-healing and high availability features ensure that the platform can recover from failures automatically, keeping services running without intervention.

This high degree of automation translates into faster rollout of new network functions and updates (with minimal downtime), allowing telco teams to focus on innovation rather than routine ops tasks.

Edge flexibility

Canonical Kubernetes is designed to run from the core to the far edge with equal ease. Its lightweight, efficient design (delivered as a single snap package) results in a low resource footprint, making it viable even on a one- or two-node edge cluster in a remote site. At the same time, it scales up to multi-node deployments for central networks. The platform supports a variety of configurations – from a single node for an ultra-compact edge appliance, to a dual-node high-availability cluster, to large multi-node clusters for data centers – all with the same tooling and consistent experience.

This flexibility allows operators to extend cloud capabilities to edge locations (for ultra-low latency processing) while managing everything in a unified way. In practice, Canonical’s solution can power cloud-native telco IT workloads, 5G core functions, and edge applications under one umbrella, meeting the specific performance and latency needs of each environment.

Long-Term support and stability

Canonical backs its Kubernetes with long-term support options far exceeding the typical open-source release cycle. Each Canonical Kubernetes LTS version can receive security patches and maintenance for up to 15 years, ensuring a stable foundation for cloud-native telco services over the entire 5G rollout and beyond. (For comparison, upstream Kubernetes offers roughly 1 year of support per release).

This extended support window means carriers can avoid frequent, disruptive upgrades and rest assured that their infrastructure remains compliant over the long term. Such a commitment to stability is a key reason telecom operators choose Canonical – long-term maintenance provides confidence that critical network workloads will run on a hardened, well-maintained platform for many years.

Cost efficiency and vendor neutrality

As an open-source, upstream-aligned distribution, Canonical Kubernetes has no licensing costs and prevents vendor lock-in. Telcos are free to deploy it on their preferred hardware or cloud, and they benefit from a large ecosystem of Kubernetes-compatible tools and operators. The platform’s efficient resource usage and automation also help drive down operating costs – by improving hardware utilization and simplifying management, it enables operators to serve growing traffic loads without linear cost increases. In short, Canonical’s Kubernetes offers carrier-grade performance and features at a fraction of the cost of proprietary alternatives, all while keeping the operator in control of their technology roadmap.

Enabling a new wave of cloud-native telco services

Using Canonical Kubernetes, cloud-native telcos can position themselves to innovate faster and operate more efficiently in the 5G era. They can readily stand up cloud-native 5G Core functions, scale out Open RAN deployments, and push applications to the network edge – all on a consistent Kubernetes foundation. In fact, Kubernetes makes it feasible for telcos to transition from traditional VNFs on virtual machines to containerized CNFs, reducing resource overhead and speeding up deployment of network features. This means legacy network applications can be modernized step-by-step and run alongside new microservices on the same platform, avoiding risky “big bang” overhauls.

The result is not only technical efficiency but business agility: operators can launch new services (from enhanced mobile broadband to IoT analytics) in weeks instead of months, respond quickly to customer demand spikes, and streamline the integration of new network functions or vendors.

Early adopters in the industry are already seeing the benefits. For example, Canonical’s Kubernetes has been embraced in initiatives like the European Sylva open telco cloud project, in part due to its security, flexibility and long-term support advantages. This momentum underscores that a performant, open Kubernetes platform is becoming a strategic asset for telcos aiming to stay ahead in a competitive landscape. Perhaps most importantly, Canonical Kubernetes lets telcos focus on delivering value to subscribers – ultra-reliable connectivity, rich digital services, tailored enterprise solutions – rather than getting bogged down in infrastructure complexity. It abstracts away much of the heavy lifting of deploying and upgrading distributed systems, while providing the controls needed to meet strict cloud-native telco requirements. The combination of automation, performance tuning, and openness creates a powerful engine for telecom innovation.

Cloud-native at any scale: Canonical Kubernetes meets MicroCloud

At the edge, complexity is the enemy. That’s why Canonical Kubernetes pairs naturally with MicroCloud, our lightweight production-grade cloud infrastructure for distributed environments. MicroCloud fits the edge use case extremely well: it is easy to deploy, fully automated, and optimized for bare-metal and low-power sites. Drop it into a telco cabinet, regional hub, or remote data center, and you get a resilient control plane for running Kubernetes, virtualization, and storage with zero overhead.

In such deployments, MicroCloud and Canonical Kubernetes form a tightly integrated stack that brings cloud-native operations to the far edge. Need to orchestrate CNFs next to VMs? Spin up a single-node cluster with high availability? Scale to dozens of locations without rearchitecting? This combo makes it possible, with snaps for simple updates, Juju for full automation, and long-term support built in.

Conclusion: building the future of cloud-native telco on open source Kubernetes

5G and edge computing are reshaping telecom networks, and Kubernetes has proven to be an essential technology powering this evolution.Industrial IoT,automotive applications ,smart cities,robotics, remote health care, and the gaming industry rely on high data transfer, close to real time latency, very high availability and reliability. Canonical Kubernetes brings the best of cloud-native innovation to the telecom domain in a form that aligns with carriers’ operational realities and performance needs. It delivers a rare mix of benefits – agility and efficiency from automation, high performance for demanding workloads, freedom from lock-in, and assured long-term support – making it a compelling choice for any telco modernizing its infrastructure.

Telecommunications leaders looking to become cloud-native telcos should consider how an open-source platform like Canonical Kubernetes can serve as a foundation for growth. Whether the goal is to reduce operating costs in the core network, roll out programmable 5G services at the edge, or simply break free from proprietary constraints, Canonical’s Kubernetes distribution provides a proven path forward.

Explore further

To dive deeper into how Canonical Kubernetes meets telco performance and reliability requirements, we invite you to read our detailed white paper: Addressing telco performance requirements with Canonical Kubernetes. It offers in-depth insights and benchmark results from real-world cloud-native telco scenarios. Additionally, visit our blogs on Ubuntu.com and Canonical.com for more success stories and technical guides – from 5G network modernization strategies to edge:

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