Introduction

The OpenPacketCore SDK is a toolkit for building 5G Core Network Functions (CNFs) that run on Kubernetes. It combines Rust-based policy engines with Go-based Kubernetes orchestration to give operators both safety and flexibility.

What the SDK Provides

• Rust crates for protocol codecs (GTP-U, PFCP, NAS-5GS, NGAP v0, experimental Diameter base/application dictionaries, the experimental opc-proto-gtpv2c S2b subset, and the experimental opc-proto-ikev2 header/payload-chain scaffold), session management, configuration consensus, alarms, and runtime chassis.
• Go packages (operator-sdk-go) for Kubernetes operators: conditions, bridge to Rust policy, drain orchestration, workload synthesis, runtime-gate helpers, Multus/SR-IOV attachment helpers, and metrics. Newly added packet-core helper surfaces are experimental mechanism helpers, not product CRDs or production controller claims.
• Reference operator (sdk-reference-operator) demonstrating end-to-end reconciliation of a network function custom resource.

Getting Started

See Quickstart for environment setup and your first SdkManagedNetworkFunction deployment.

Architecture

The SDK is documented through RFCs (high-level design) and ADRs (decision records). Start with:

• RFC 009 — Operator Lifecycle Upgrade
• ADR 0007 — Operator Lifecycle Rust Policy Core