*2.6.2 Definition*

NFV is set of techniques that virtualize network functions that are traditionally supported on proprietary, dedicated hardware, such as traffic forwarding or Evolved Packet Core (EPC) capabilities. With NFV, functions like routing, load balancing and firewalls are hosted in virtual machines (VM) or in OS containers. Virtualized Network Functions (VNF), are an essential component of the NFV architecture, as shown in the **Figure 6** below from ETSI NFV [12]. Multiple VNFs can be added to a standard server and can then be monitored and controlled by a hypervisor. ETSI NFV [12].
