Embodiments of a Network Manager (NM), a (NFVO), and methods of communication are disclosed herein. The NM may transfer, to the NFVO, an update NS request message to update the NS instance based on the new NSD. The NM may encode the update NS request message to include: an nsInstanceID parameter that identifies the NS instance, and an updateType parameter that indicates a type of update for the NS instance. One value of “AssocPnfWithPnfProfile” for the updateType parameter may indicate a request to associate the PNF of the NS instance with a new or updated PNF profile indicated by the new NSD. Another value of “AssocVnfWithVnfProfile” for the updateType parameter may indicate a request to associate the VNF of the NS instance with a new or updated VNF profile indicated by the new NSD.