Cloud Computing ESE Paper – 2022
What are the key components of OpenStack? Explain each one in
detail.
OpenStack is a free and open-source cloud computing software platform that allows businesses to
deploy and manage their own private cloud infrastructure. It comprises several key components,
each of which plays a critical role in the overall functioning of the platform.
Keystone: Keystone is OpenStack's identity service that provides authentication and authorization for
all OpenStack services. It acts as a central directory for all users, projects, and services, and it
supports a variety of authentication methods, including username and password, token-based
authentication, and external identity providers such as LDAP and Active Directory.
Nova: Nova is OpenStack's compute service, which provides the ability to create and manage virtual
machines (VMs) and other instances on demand. It allows users to provision and manage VMs across
a variety of hypervisors, including KVM, Xen, and VMware, and it provides a flexible API that can be
used to automate the deployment and management of instances.
Glance: Glance is OpenStack's image service, which provides a catalog of images that can be used to
create instances in Nova. It allows users to upload and manage images, and it supports a variety of
image formats, including raw, qcow2, VMDK, and ISO.
Neutron: Neutron is OpenStack's networking service, which provides virtual networking resources,
including networks, subnets, and routers, that can be used to connect instances together and to the
outside world. It supports a variety of networking technologies, including VLAN, VXLAN, and GRE,
and it provides a flexible API that can be used to automate network configuration.
Cinder: Cinder is OpenStack's block storage service, which provides persistent storage volumes that
can be attached to instances. It supports a variety of storage backends, including local disks, NFS, and
iSCSI, and it provides a flexible API that can be used to automate storage management.
Swift: Swift is OpenStack's object storage service, which provides a highly scalable and fault-tolerant
storage system for storing and retrieving large amounts of data. It is designed to be highly available
and resilient, and it supports a variety of data types, including unstructured data such as images,
videos, and documents.
Horizon: Horizon is OpenStack's web-based dashboard, which provides a graphical user interface for
managing OpenStack resources. It allows users to provision and manage instances, networks, and
storage volumes, and it provides a visual representation of the OpenStack architecture.
In summary, OpenStack comprises several key components that work together to provide a flexible,
scalable, and highly available cloud computing platform. These components provide the necessary
infrastructure and services to support the deployment and management of virtual machines, storage
volumes, and networking resources, while also providing a user-friendly interface for managing these
resources.
Which storage types are allowed by OpenStack compute?
Differentiate between them
OpenStack Compute, also known as Nova, supports various types of storage, each with different
characteristics and use cases. The three primary storage types supported by OpenStack Compute
are:
Local Storage: Local storage refers to storage that is directly attached to the compute node, such as a
hard disk drive or solid-state drive. It is generally the fastest type of storage and is ideal for storing
temporary data, such as the operating system and applications of a virtual machine. However, local
storage is limited by the amount of available storage on the compute node and is not suitable for
storing persistent data.
Block Storage: Block storage refers to storage that is provided by a separate storage system and is
attached to a virtual machine as a block device, much like a physical hard drive. OpenStack Compute
uses the Cinder service to manage block storage, which allows users to provision and manage
persistent block storage volumes. Block storage is ideal for storing data that needs to persist across
instances, such as a database or file system.
Object Storage: Object storage refers to a distributed storage system that stores data as objects in a
flat address space, rather than in a hierarchical file system. OpenStack Compute uses the Swift
service to manage object storage, which provides a highly scalable and fault-tolerant storage system
for storing and retrieving large amounts of data. Object storage is ideal for storing unstructured data,
such as images, videos, and documents, that can be accessed by multiple virtual machines.
In summary, OpenStack Compute supports local storage, block storage, and object storage. Local
storage is ideal for storing temporary data, while block storage is used for persistent data that needs
to persist across instances, and object storage is used for storing unstructured data that can be
accessed by multiple virtual machines.
What is Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)? Which instances are
available on EC2 for free tier usage?
Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) is a web service that provides resizable compute capacity in the
cloud. It allows users to easily launch and manage virtual servers, called instances, and scale capacity
up or down as needed. EC2 is part of Amazon Web Services (AWS) and provides a flexible and costeffective way to run applications in the cloud.
The EC2 Free Tier allows users to use a certain amount of compute capacity, storage, and data
transfer for free for the first 12 months of their AWS account. The Free Tier includes the following
EC2 instances:
t2.micro: This is a general-purpose instance that provides a baseline level of CPU performance with
the ability to burst to higher levels when required. It includes 1 virtual CPU and 1 GB of memory.
t3.micro: This is a newer generation of the t2.micro instance that provides improved performance
and network throughput. It includes 2 virtual CPUs and 1 GB of memory.
t4g.micro: This is an ARM-based instance that provides similar performance to the t3.micro instance
but is optimized for applications that can run on ARM processors. It includes 2 virtual CPUs and 1 GB
of memory.
In addition to these instances, the EC2 Free Tier also includes 750 hours of Linux and Windows
t2.micro, t3.micro, and t4g.micro instances per month for the first 12 months. It also includes 30 GB
of EBS (Elastic Block Store) General Purpose (SSD) or Magnetic storage, as well as 5 GB of Amazon S3
(Simple Storage Service) standard storage, 20,000 GET requests, and 2,000 PUT, COPY, POST, or LIST
requests per month for the first 12 months.
Overall, the EC2 Free Tier provides users with a great opportunity to explore and experiment with
AWS services at no cost for the first year.
Is Amazon EC2 used in conjuction with Amazon S3? How?
Yes, Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) is often used in conjunction with Amazon S3 (Simple
Storage Service) to provide a complete solution for building and deploying web applications in the
cloud.
Amazon S3 is a highly scalable object storage service that provides a simple interface to store and
retrieve any amount of data from anywhere on the web. It is ideal for storing and sharing large
amounts of data, such as images, videos, and documents.
Amazon EC2, on the other hand, provides virtual compute capacity in the cloud that allows users to
run applications and workloads on virtual servers, called instances. EC2 instances can be easily
launched, scaled, and managed using the AWS Management Console, Command Line Interface (CLI),
or SDKs.
When used together, Amazon EC2 and Amazon S3 can provide a complete solution for deploying web
applications in the cloud. For example, an EC2 instance can host a web application that accesses data
stored in an S3 bucket. The application can retrieve the data using the S3 API or SDKs, process it as
needed, and return the results to the user.
Furthermore, Amazon S3 can be used to store and distribute static content, such as images, videos,
and documents, that are accessed by web applications running on EC2 instances. This can help
offload the serving of static content from the web server running on the EC2 instance, improving
performance and scalability.
Overall, Amazon EC2 and Amazon S3 are often used together to provide a complete solution for
building and deploying web applications in the cloud, leveraging the scalability and flexibility of both
services.
What are the advantages of web services?
Web services provide several advantages over traditional software applications and systems,
including:
Platform Independence: Web services can be accessed from any platform or programming language
that supports the standard web protocols, such as HTTP and XML. This makes them highly portable
and interoperable across different systems and environments.
Scalability: Web services can be easily scaled up or down to meet changing demands, without
requiring changes to the underlying infrastructure or applications. This makes them ideal for
handling large-scale and distributed systems.
Reusability: Web services are designed to be modular and reusable, allowing developers to build
complex applications by combining and reusing existing services. This reduces development time and
costs and promotes software reuse.
Interoperability: Web services are based on open standards and protocols, allowing different
systems and applications to communicate and exchange data seamlessly. This promotes
interoperability and enables integration with other systems and services.
Reduced Integration Costs: Web services can help reduce integration costs by providing a common
interface and data format for different systems to communicate and exchange data. This eliminates
the need for custom integrations and reduces maintenance and support costs.
Increased Availability: Web services can be accessed over the internet, making them easily
accessible from anywhere in the world. This increases availability and allows users to access services
and data from any device or platform with an internet connection.
Overall, web services provide several advantages that make them an ideal solution for building and
integrating complex software applications and systems.
What is compute engine? What can it do?
Compute Engine is a cloud computing service offered by Google Cloud Platform (GCP) that provides
virtual machine (VM) instances for running applications and workloads in the cloud. It allows users to
create, configure, and manage VMs on demand, providing flexibility and scalability for their
computing needs.
Compute Engine offers a variety of features and capabilities, including:
Custom Machine Types: Compute Engine allows users to create custom VM instances with specific
CPU, memory, and storage requirements, providing optimal performance for their workloads.
Auto Scaling: Compute Engine provides auto-scaling capabilities, allowing users to automatically
adjust the number of VM instances based on changing workload demands.
Load Balancing: Compute Engine provides load balancing capabilities to distribute traffic across
multiple VM instances, improving performance and availability.
Persistent Disk Storage: Compute Engine provides persistent block storage for VM instances,
allowing data to be stored and accessed even after the instance is terminated.
Preemptible VMs: Compute Engine offers preemptible VM instances at a lower cost than regular
instances, but with the caveat that they can be terminated at any time.
Network Security: Compute Engine provides advanced network security features, such as firewalls,
VPNs, and virtual private clouds (VPCs), to protect VM instances and data.
Compute Engine is suitable for a wide range of use cases, including web and mobile applications,
batch processing, data analytics, and machine learning. It provides a reliable and scalable computing
platform that can be easily integrated with other GCP services, such as BigQuery, Cloud Storage, and
Kubernetes.
Overall, Compute Engine is a powerful cloud computing service that provides users with flexible and
scalable VM instances to run their applications and workloads in the cloud.
Google Cloud Platform offers a range of machine types optimized to
meet various needs. Explain the machine types with discription.
Google Cloud Platform (GCP) offers a wide range of machine types optimized for various workloads,
including compute-optimized, memory-optimized, and general-purpose instances. Here is a brief
description of each machine type:
Compute-Optimized Machine Types: These machine types are designed for compute-intensive
workloads that require high CPU performance. They are ideal for running applications that require a
lot of CPU resources, such as high-performance computing (HPC), rendering, and gaming. Computeoptimized machine types come with multiple vCPUs, high memory-to-CPU ratios, and fast
processors, such as Intel Xeon Scalable processors.
Memory-Optimized Machine Types: These machine types are designed for memory-intensive
workloads that require high memory performance. They are ideal for running applications that
require a lot of memory, such as in-memory databases, data analytics, and machine learning.
Memory-optimized machine types come with a large amount of memory, high memory-to-CPU
ratios, and fast memory access.
General-Purpose Machine Types: These machine types are designed for general-purpose workloads
that require a balance of CPU and memory resources. They are ideal for running applications that
have moderate resource requirements, such as web servers, application servers, and small
databases. General-purpose machine types come with a mix of CPU and memory resources, and
offer a good balance between performance and cost.
GPU Machine Types: These machine types are designed for running workloads that require highperformance GPUs, such as machine learning, scientific computing, and 3D rendering. They come
with one or more GPUs, and are available in both compute-optimized and memory-optimized
configurations.
TPU Machine Types: These machine types are designed for running workloads that require highperformance Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), which are custom-designed hardware accelerators for
machine learning workloads. They are available in both compute-optimized and memory-optimized
configurations, and offer high performance and low cost for machine learning workloads.
Overall, GCP offers a wide range of machine types optimized for various workloads, providing users
with flexibility and choice when selecting the best machine type for their specific needs.
Explain Hypervisor vulenrabilties and risks.
A hypervisor, also known as a virtual machine monitor (VMM), is a software layer that creates and
manages virtual machines (VMs) on a physical server. Hypervisors are used in virtualization
technologies to provide greater flexibility, scalability, and resource utilization in data centers.
However, like any other software, hypervisors can also be vulnerable to security risks and
vulnerabilities that can impact the security and integrity of the virtualized environment. Here are
some common hypervisor vulnerabilities and risks:
VM Escape: This is a vulnerability that allows an attacker to escape from a guest VM and gain access
to the underlying hypervisor or other VMs on the same host. Once an attacker has access to the
hypervisor, they can potentially gain access to all the VMs running on that host.
Hypervisor DoS: This is a vulnerability that allows an attacker to cause a denial-of-service (DoS)
attack on the hypervisor, which can lead to the unavailability of all the VMs running on that host.
VM-to-VM Communication: In some cases, VMs on the same host can communicate with each other
directly, which can create security risks if one VM is compromised. An attacker can use this
vulnerability to gain access to other VMs on the same host.
Insufficient Isolation: Hypervisors are responsible for providing isolation between VMs to prevent
one VM from accessing another VM's data or resources. However, if this isolation is not properly
implemented, it can create security risks and vulnerabilities.
Insecure Management Interfaces: Hypervisors typically provide management interfaces for
administrators to manage the virtualized environment. However, if these interfaces are not properly
secured, they can be vulnerable to attacks and compromise the security of the virtualized
environment.
To mitigate these risks and vulnerabilities, it is important to ensure that hypervisors are properly
configured, patched, and secured. This includes implementing security best practices, such as using
strong passwords, disabling unnecessary services, and enabling security features such as encryption
and secure boot. Regular vulnerability scanning and patching is also important to ensure that any
new vulnerabilities are addressed in a timely manner. Additionally, implementing network
segmentation and access control measures can help to prevent attackers from moving laterally
within the virtualized environment.
Elaborate Gartner's seven cloud computing security risks.
Gartner has identified seven cloud computing security risks that organizations should be aware of
when adopting cloud services. These risks are as follows:
Data breaches: Cloud computing increases the risk of data breaches, as sensitive data is stored on
remote servers that may be accessed by unauthorized parties. Data breaches can lead to financial
loss, reputational damage, and regulatory compliance issues.
Misconfiguration and inadequate change control: Misconfigurations and inadequate change control
procedures can result in unintended exposure of sensitive data, loss of data, or system downtime.
Cloud environments require effective change control procedures to ensure that changes are properly
tested, approved, and documented.
Lack of transparency: Cloud providers often do not provide full transparency into their security and
compliance processes. This lack of transparency can make it difficult for organizations to fully
understand the security risks associated with using cloud services.
Vendor lock-in: Organizations that rely heavily on a particular cloud provider may be at risk of vendor
lock-in, which can limit their ability to switch providers if needed. Vendor lock-in can result in
increased costs and decreased flexibility.
Service outages: Cloud providers are not immune to service outages, which can result in data loss,
decreased productivity, and financial losses. Organizations should have a disaster recovery plan in
place to ensure that critical services can be restored in the event of an outage.
Insufficient due diligence: Organizations may fail to perform sufficient due diligence when selecting a
cloud provider, which can result in selecting a provider that is not capable of meeting their security
and compliance requirements.
Compliance violations: Cloud providers must comply with a variety of regulations and standards,
including HIPAA, PCI DSS, and GDPR. Organizations that use cloud services are responsible for
ensuring that their cloud provider is in compliance with these regulations and standards.
To mitigate these risks, organizations should perform thorough due diligence when selecting a cloud
provider, implement effective change control procedures, and establish disaster recovery plans.
Additionally, organizations should ensure that their cloud provider has appropriate security and
compliance certifications, and should monitor the provider's security and compliance practices on an
ongoing basis.
What are the different cloud security services available? Explain
each one in detail.
Cloud security services are designed to protect cloud-based data, applications, and infrastructure
from cyber threats. These services are provided by cloud service providers and third-party vendors,
and can be broadly categorized into the following types:
Identity and Access Management (IAM): IAM services provide authentication and authorization
mechanisms for cloud-based applications and services. This includes user authentication, password
policies, multi-factor authentication, and access control mechanisms. IAM services help to prevent
unauthorized access to cloud-based resources.
Data Encryption and Key Management: Data encryption and key management services protect data
in transit and at rest by encrypting sensitive data and managing encryption keys. Encryption and key
management services help to prevent data breaches and unauthorized access to sensitive data.
Network Security: Network security services provide firewall, intrusion detection and prevention,
and other security mechanisms to protect cloud-based applications and services from network-based
attacks. Network security services help to prevent unauthorized access to cloud-based resources
through network-based vulnerabilities.
Application Security: Application security services provide security mechanisms to protect cloudbased applications and services from application-level attacks. This includes web application
firewalls, application scanning, and other security mechanisms. Application security services help to
prevent unauthorized access to cloud-based resources through application-level vulnerabilities.
Threat Intelligence and Management: Threat intelligence and management services provide realtime threat analysis and detection, threat response, and remediation capabilities. These services
help to detect and respond to threats in real-time, and can help to prevent data breaches and other
cyber attacks.
Compliance and Governance: Compliance and governance services provide tools and mechanisms to
help organizations meet regulatory compliance requirements and maintain governance over cloudbased resources. This includes auditing, logging, and reporting capabilities, as well as compliance
management tools. Compliance and governance services help to prevent regulatory compliance
issues and maintain control over cloud-based resources.
Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity: Disaster recovery and business continuity services
provide mechanisms to recover from system failures, outages, and other disruptions to cloud-based
resources. This includes backup and recovery services, as well as failover mechanisms. Disaster
recovery and business continuity services help to prevent data loss and ensure continuity of critical
business operations.
In summary, cloud security services provide a range of security mechanisms and tools to help
organizations protect cloud-based resources from cyber threats. These services help to prevent data
breaches, unauthorized access to cloud-based resources, and regulatory compliance issues, and help
to ensure the availability and continuity of critical business operations.
Being network administrator, which stpes will you perform while
implementing security policy for network.
As a network administrator, implementing a security policy for the network involves several steps.
Here are the typical steps that you would need to follow:
Perform a risk assessment: The first step is to perform a risk assessment to identify potential
security risks and vulnerabilities in the network. This involves analyzing the network architecture, the
devices and applications used, and the types of data that are transmitted across the network.
Define the security policy: Based on the results of the risk assessment, you can define a security
policy for the network. The security policy should clearly define the rules and procedures for
accessing network resources, as well as the types of security controls that will be implemented.
Select and implement security controls: With the security policy in place, you can select and
implement appropriate security controls. This includes firewalls, intrusion detection and prevention
systems, antivirus software, and other security mechanisms.
Educate employees: Employees play a critical role in maintaining network security, so it is important
to educate them about the security policy and the importance of adhering to it. This includes training
employees on how to use security tools and how to detect and report security incidents.
Monitor and maintain security: Once the security controls are in place, you need to monitor and
maintain them on an ongoing basis. This includes regularly checking for software updates and
patches, monitoring network traffic for unusual activity, and conducting regular security audits.
Respond to security incidents: Despite your best efforts, security incidents may still occur. It is
important to have a plan in place for responding to security incidents, including procedures for
reporting incidents, containing the damage, and conducting a post-incident review.
By following these steps, you can help ensure that the network is secure and that sensitive data is
protected from unauthorized access and other security threats
What is Hyper-V? What are the benefits of Hyper-V?
Hyper-V is a hypervisor-based virtualization technology from Microsoft that enables multiple operating systems to run on a
single physical server. It allows multiple virtual machines to share the same physical hardware resources, such as CPU,
memory, storage, and network, while providing isolation and security between each virtual machine. Hyper-V is included as a
feature of the Windows Server operating system, and is also available as a standalone product called Hyper-V Server.
The benefits of Hyper-V include:
•
Cost-effective virtualization: Hyper-V allows organizations to consolidate multiple physical servers onto a single
physical host, reducing hardware and maintenance costs.
•
Improved resource utilization: Hyper-V enables better utilization of hardware resources by allowing multiple virtual
machines to share the same physical resources. This can help to reduce waste and improve overall system
efficiency.
•
Flexibility and scalability: Hyper-V supports a wide range of operating systems and applications, and allows
organizations to easily scale their virtual infrastructure as needed.
•
Enhanced security and isolation: Hyper-V provides strong isolation between virtual machines, helping to prevent
security breaches and malware infections from spreading between virtual machines.
•
High availability: Hyper-V supports clustering and live migration, enabling virtual machines to be moved between
physical hosts without disruption, providing high availability and fault tolerance.
•
Integration with other Microsoft technologies: Hyper-V integrates with other Microsoft technologies such as Active
Directory, System Center, and Windows PowerShell, making it easy to manage and automate virtual environments.
Overall, Hyper-V is a powerful virtualization technology that offers organizations many benefits in terms of cost, efficiency,
flexibility, and security.
Differntiate between Type-I and Type-II hypervisor.
Type-I and Type-II hypervisors are two different types of virtualization software used to create and manage virtual machines.
Here are the key differences between the two:
Architecture:
➢
Type-I hypervisors are also known as bare-metal hypervisors because they are installed directly on the host system's
hardware. They run directly on the host's hardware and have direct access to the physical resources, such as CPU,
memory, storage, and network.
➢
Type-II hypervisors, on the other hand, are installed on top of a host operating system. They run as applications
within the host operating system and rely on the host system's resources to function.
Performance:
➢
Type-I hypervisors generally offer better performance than Type-II hypervisors because they have direct access to
the hardware resources. This allows Type-I hypervisors to provide near-native performance and low overhead.
➢
Type-II hypervisors, on the other hand, have to rely on the host operating system to access the hardware resources,
which can result in higher overhead and reduced performance.
Complexity:
➢
Type-I hypervisors are generally more complex to set up and configure because they require direct access to the
hardware resources. They also typically have more advanced management features, which can require more
expertise to use effectively.
➢
Type-II hypervisors, on the other hand, are generally easier to set up and use because they are installed on top of a
host operating system and rely on the host system's resources.
Security:
➢
Type-I hypervisors are generally considered more secure than Type-II hypervisors because they provide stronger
isolation between virtual machines and the host system. This is because Type-I hypervisors have direct access to the
hardware resources, which allows them to enforce strict security policies.
➢
Type-II hypervisors, on the other hand, rely on the host operating system for security, which can be less secure in
some cases.
Overall, Type-I hypervisors are generally considered more powerful and secure than Type-II hypervisors. However, Type-II
hypervisors can be easier to use and configure, and may be suitable for certain use cases, such as running virtual machines o n
a desktop computer.
How tradional software licensing model and SaaS differes?
What is a SaaS business model
and how does it works?
Traditional software licensing models and SaaS differ in several ways:
Ownership: In traditional software licensing models, customers own the software and install it on
their own infrastructure. In SaaS, the software is owned and managed by the SaaS provider and is
accessed by customers over the internet.
Cost: Traditional software licensing models usually involve high upfront costs for software licenses,
hardware, and maintenance. SaaS, on the other hand, typically involves a subscription-based model
with lower upfront costs and predictable ongoing costs.
Updates and maintenance: In traditional software licensing models, customers are responsible for
maintaining and updating the software themselves. In SaaS, the provider handles all updates and
maintenance.
Customization: Traditional software licensing models often allow for more customization and
integration with existing systems. SaaS providers typically offer less customization but may provide
integrations with other software services.
SaaS, or Software as a Service, is a business model that provides software applications to customers
over the internet on a subscription basis. The SaaS provider hosts and maintains the software, and
customers access it through a web browser or other interface. The SaaS provider is responsible for all
updates, maintenance, and security of the software.
The SaaS business model works by providing a cloud-based software solution that is accessible to
customers over the internet. Customers pay a subscription fee to use the software, typically on a
monthly or annual basis. The provider hosts the software on their own infrastructure, and customers
access it through a web browser or other interface. The provider is responsible for maintaining the
software, providing updates and new features, and ensuring the security of the system. SaaS
providers can offer a range of software solutions, from business productivity tools to customer
relationship management (CRM) systems, and can target businesses of all sizes.