November Whitepaper Series. ucloud Computing. Richard Lew

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1 November 2011 Whitepaper Series u Richard Lew

2 Introduction and In/on the Cloud are the latest in a long history of overused and commonly misunderstood terms to come out of the computer industry. There are entire websites devoted to discussions about computer buzzwords, and intense debates as to what some of them even mean. The term Cloud has recently become one of the most hotly debated technical buzzwords to enter the debate. This has created confusion on the definition and a hazy view as to what the Cloud and is or even does. This lack of clarity leads both IT professionals, business managers and consumers to make assumptions and sometimes to miscommunicate as a result. Many IT vendors deliberately use this confusion to create products and use the word cloud in their marketing. The problem is that technology has evolved to a point where there are great opportunities for business in using the cloud, if used correctly. There are still some important things to know as well The term cloud is often used to describe the intangible place on the internet where ethereal things happen that requires no thought at our end. I have written this white paper in an attempt to define cloud and cloud computing using more natural language, a commonly accepted definition, and no industry buzzwords. To do this I will briefly discuss the evolution of the technology and the terminology. This paper was designed for easy reading and as a broad cover of the topic rather than as a technical paper, hopefully in order to demystify the hype. Page 1

3 What is the Cloud? We all, based on how we use it, have our own understanding of what the internet is. It is that mysterious place where our browser goes, in plain terms, to fetch stuff from to deliver it to us. It is as if it doesn t exist physically, that it is a network of connections rather than a big room of computers. In fact it is nothing more than a lot of rooms with computers, big and small, that are connected by clever software. There are a few terms that we will focus on: Figure 1: Two PCs directly connected. 1. Cloud Software 2. a. Public b. Private Where did it come from? The evolution of the Cloud as it relates to the Personal computer could be abbreviated as follows: 1. Two or more PCs are connected to each other and software lets them each see the data storage hard drives of the others. This was made possible by the creation of networking software (figure 1). 2. When lots of computers are involved in this basic network, a central hub directs traffic. Again, advances in software made this possible. (figure 2). 3. The central hub becomes a server and does more than direct traffic. It now stores data as well. Now the individual computers can store data in a centralized place. This has been made possible by the separation of the data from the software. In this example the software still needs to be loaded onto every computer (figure 3). Figure 2: Multiple PCs connected via a Hub. Figure 3: Multiple PCs connected via a Server. Page 2

4 4. The server starts to run the applications as well as store the data. The individual computers each need a browser and a connection to the central server and they can use the same programs at the same time as well as the same version of the data. This has been made possible by the evolution of the software to enable it to be run from a remote computer. The individual computers do not need to load all the individual application software they access them via a single piece of software the browser. This is the first Cloud (figure 4). 5. The server can now be provided over the internet. It is still a box (or boxes) somewhere, but the business doesn t have to run them. The business outsources the responsibility for the hardware, for the redundancy, 24/7 supervision, backups and performance, load balancing and monitoring. Applications and data can be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection. Now the cloud is getting some momentum (figure 5). 6. The current situation is that many applications are now being run exclusively in a cloud. The advantages are many, including Access, content and data currency and more. The downside mostly relates to security (more on this later). Cloud Software The Cloud has been growing for a while now. Cloud Software has been available for years, but it has been called something different until now. Have you heard of Software As A Service (SAAS), or Web Based Application, Software on Demand or Application Service Provision? They are all forerunners of this new term Cloud Software. Figure 4: Multiple PCs connected to the Cloud. Figure 5: Multiple devices connected to the Cloud. Cloud Software needs to run on Hardware. If that happens over the internet (or an intranet) then the industry is calling it. There are two main types of cloud computing: Private and Public. In essence these two types operate in the same way, but the main differences relate to the manner that the user pays for the service and the way the service is provided to the user. Page 3

5 Cloud Software in general An example to use to illustrate this is a word processor program. Generally you are required to buy the software (or a license for it) and install it onto your computer. If you have a number of computers you will need to buy a number of copies. Whether you use the program all day every day or once a month the cost is the same and the disk space etc. that is required is the same. If this software was provided as cloud software, you would not need to buy the product, you would not need to allocate the disk space and you would generally pay only for what you used. Another advantage is that you would not even need to be using your computer to access the program and your data. as an example of Cloud Software Demonstrating how the cloud works is most easily understood when looking at as an example (figure 6). We all know that relies on the internet, however some people use applications like Microsoft Outlook to manage their mail and data, whereas others use Gmail or Yahoo directly and use the Cloud Software service. The outlook users open Outlook (an application that they have paid for and on their hard drive) to read, sort, manage and send s. Outlook interacts with the internet by gathering their mail from the mail servers (which are Cloud based) onto their local computer and sending mail out for them, again via the Cloud based mail servers. Others open a browser, log into the mail server site and use the Cloud Software provided to manage, send and receive s. In fact their service operates the same way (more than that it is the exact same Cloud Software that is running), it is just a matter of how they access it. This gives the advantage that you can use either method: you can download your to your local client such as Outlook, or you can also see new mail on the go, such as on your smart phone. Figure 6: acting as a cloud service. Page 4

6 Despite being on the internet, Cloud software still needs to run on Hardware. Cloud computing hardware falls into two categories: Public Cloud Hardware and Private Cloud Hardware. A hybrid of these two categories also exists for more specialised business needs. Public Cloud A Public Cloud is where all the services and facilities are made available over the internet by a third party provider who charges based on usage. The massive investment by the service provider in the infrastructure is spread over all the users who pay relatively little for the service. Many services are provided free in order to attract the user to the service provider and to allow advertising and other revenue raising opportunities. Where fees are charged, they are a fraction of the cost of providing and maintaining an equivalent quality of infrastructure and service because they rely on large numbers of users making many small transactions. This is a relatively new business model where the customer buys on demand and the supplier charges only for what the customer uses. Another payment model is where the infrastructure is provided based on a fixed periodic fee. A good example of this is website hosting. The customer might share servers and bandwidth and management costs with many other customers. The main concern with this type of arrangement is the level of control and ownership over the data. Where is it? Is it secure? Will I always have access to it? Do I still own it? Private Cloud Cloud Software can be run on a Private Cloud. A Private Cloud is where the business controls the servers on which the Software runs. These have traditionally been held within an intranet, but now it is common for them to be provided by a Service Provider. Specific parts of (or whole) servers are commissioned, configured and managed according to the agreed terms of the Service Agreement and the Customer s Cloud Software is run on these servers. The cost to the customer is based on the infrastructure and SLA contract and is higher than with the Public Cloud, but the control and security can be very much better managed. Page 5

7 Hybrid Cloud A customer may have an application hosted on a Private server that has a batch process scheduled to run every month. If this batch process requires that the infrastructure can accommodate a significantly higher capability than the General operation of the software, it is often a better solution to integrate a Public Cloud contract to provide for these peaks rather than to build into the Private Cloud Hardware sufficient capacity to accommodate these occasional peaks. The security and the costs will determine this. The Cloud also allows for the integration of different software. As an example, you drive down to your pharmacy to fill a prescription. You hand the pharmacist the prescription, and he puts it into the queue (in this example, the Private Cloud). Everything that happens after this is processed externally, or in the Public Cloud. Your personal and financial information is checked with your insurance company. The prescription is checked for drug interactions with other medications you are taking. The prescription is checked against a database of generic drugs looking for conflicts. Once this process is complete, the prescription leaves the Public Cloud (all the external services used to check your information), and you are given your prescription via the Private Cloud (the pharmacy prescriptions queue). In large numbers this is a really powerful process but don t forget that during this whole process your data has to remain secure. When a company is thinking about whether to use a public or private cloud, the company is making a decision on whether or not to outsource the capital expense. It comes down to what the company wants to outsource, and what the company wants to control. Page 6

8 Summary provides much greater flexibility, extensive user access and significant cost savings. It is little wonder that it receives the investment and development it does and it is getting better daily. Advances in data transmission, security, storage capability and bandwidth are allowing ever more complex and intricate software to take advantage of this incredible technology. Security has to catch up, but as cloud software advances, new security techniques are being developed specifically for this technology. Cloud computing allows a business to invest in itself, rather than delivery infrastructure and it encourages creativity in the delivery of services and the integration between services. Page 7