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GNU Free Documentation License
Copyright © 2011-2013 Maciek Plewa (maciek.plewa@gmail.com)
Download updates from pixeldyne.org
WHAT'S IN A CLOUD
• Any technology, software or devices made available as
services over the Internet, consumed clients.
• Three most common models: Infrastructure-as-a-Service,
Platform-as-a-Service and Software-as-a-Service:
• IaaS: a lower level offering full control to automatically or
manually allocate servers, install operating systems, etc.
• PaaS: level up (usually on top of IaaS), some loss of
control, aimed at application design and development.
• SaaS: high level, very specialised, provision of traditional
applications for Internet and Mobile access.
WHAT'S IN A CLOUD :: COMMON MODELS
Software
Testing
Data
Platform
Infrastructure
Development
Desktop
API
Database
Network
Integration
Backend
Security
Storage
RECIPE FOR ADEQUATE SUCCESS?
• State your objectives.
• Research and avoid common pitfalls.
• Obtain advice on legal issues involved.
• Choose Cloud models that fit the organisation.
• Make your case and evaluate the Cloud services.
• Choose: Microsoft, Google, Amazon or someone else?
• Begin change management processes in advance and
prepare PPPs for the adoption.
STATE YOUR OBJECTIVES
• Cost reduction:
• How much can you save by exploiting economies of scale?
• Less maintenance:
• You will need experienced staff for setup, integration,
development and some maintenance.
• Business agility:
• If your current architecture and platforms are not
delivering the agility you want on-premise, why would
propagating the same kind of technology in the cloud give
you greater agility?
DO YOUR RESEARCH :: PLAN
• Take your time: Allow yourself sufficient time for
planning and transitioning to the Cloud. Moving too
fast increases the risk of oversight or failure.
• Ensure that you have staff on hand to perform testing
• Look ahead: Consider future growth
requirements. Will you be adding new
software? Expanding your business? How much will
your storage requirements increase?
DO YOUR RESEARCH :: THE BASICS
• Established leaders: research the provider’s financial
outlook, past performance and reputation, and how
long they have been in the game.
• Inside out: Know all of the provider’s equipment,
vendors and solutions the provider uses - especially if
you plan to use their services for the long term.
• Like-minded: a provider should have the same change
management best practices that you would demand.
• Iron clad contracts: review and compare the contracts
and SLAs from different providers. Tailor the SLA to
your needs.
DO YOUR RESEARCH :: COST
• Some basics:
I.
Define requirements: services and applications that
will be used, analyse current utilisation including the
number of users, storage capacity, bandwidth, and
other needs.
II. Compare: pricing models (subscription or utilitybased) between providers, and actual prices for
bandwidth, storage, computing hours or server
instances.
III. Calculate ROI and TCO. Budget for the risk, anticipate
growth, but avoid paying for more than is needed.
DO YOUR RESEARCH :: FIT FOR PURPOSE
• Location: determines the usability and how quickly
you can access your information, transfer data, and
use the applications and services.
• Performance: carefully evaluate the performance of
your cloud solution. It needs to meet or exceed your
existing infrastructure performance.
• Integration: analyse the Cloud service’s compatibility
with your applications and processes, and all available
integration options.
• Scalability: what scalability solutions does the
provider offer?
DO YOUR RESEARCH :: SECURITY
• Encryption: are transfers encrypted? Do you control
the encryption keys for stored data? Does the
provider use the same encryption key for everyone
else you share the cloud with?
• You may need to implement own encryption for the
data.
• Firewall: are firewalls provided as part of the service,
what level of control and protection can they provide?
• Only in some cases you will have enough control to roll
out own firewall.
DO YOUR RESEARCH :: ACCREDITATIONS
• ISO certifications, independent auditing: ensure that
the provider has been audited for security and legal
compliance by independent auditors. Look for ISO
certifications to backup provider’s claims and
marketing literature.
• You cannot completely outsource risk, accountability
and compliance obligations, but some level of trust is
important.
DO YOUR RESEARCH :: RELIABILITY
• High availability and redundancy: some providers
don’t include redundancy, increasing the risk of Cloudbased businesses going offline for days or weeks.
• You may need to purchase load balancing or load
sharing, and additional standby redundant services.
• Backups: some providers don’t provide backups at all.
• Similar to the above, you may need to purchase
additional storage for backups, perhaps even
implement custom backup solution.
• SLAs: can the provider meet your availability, backup
frequency, and disaster plan requirements?
DO YOUR RESEARCH :: GETTING HELP
• Support:
• Look for a provider offering dedicated phone and email
support 24/7/365.
• Trial and error:
• Some providers offer either 30 days or more
evaluations or free Cloud services (feature-limited).
• Get help with auditing, benchmarking, and testing the
services, and a pilot deployment before committing to
a contract.
DO YOUR RESEARCH :: COMMON PITFALLS
• Vendor Lock-in 2.0: Is the provider using open
technologies? Can they move the data if the business’
owners change?
• Analyse the feasibility and plan for moving your data to
another provider.
• Contract Lock-in: Don’t sign long term initial contracts
(over 12-24 months), especially if you haven’t
completed the hands-on evaluation.
• Middle man: Is the provider simply a reseller of
services without added value?
LEGAL ISSUES :: A FEW EXAMPLES
• Jurisdiction: processing or storing information in another
country may be subject to the legislation of that
jurisdiction.
• Trans border dataflow: You may not host customer data
solely overseas.
• Data access and retention: can the provider access and
refer your data to foreign law enforcement? How long is
the data is stored by the provider, and when/if is it
deleted once the contract ends?
LEGAL ISSUES :: PROTECT THE INVESTMENT
• Obtain legal advice: can legal issues
impact or prevent the move to the
cloud?
• Safeguard: educate users, create
bulletproof terms, comply with
legislation.
• Don’t make the regulators your
adversaries:
• improper disclosure, data breaches
leading to reputational damage,
litigation by third parties or even
prosecution by Information
Commissioner; other surprises?
LEADERS :: AT A GLANCE
Provider
Amazon
Google
Microsoft
IaaS
PaaS
PaaS
Use / Subscription
Use
Use / Subscription
2 months
6 months
3 months
Free/Limited Service
Yes
Yes
No
Australian Hosting
Yes
No
No
Web, API
API Only
Web, API
Windows OS
Yes
No
Yes
GNU/Linux OS
Yes
Yes
Yes
Microsoft .NET
No
No
Yes
Enterprise Java
Yes
Limited
Yes
Node.js
Yes
No
Yes
Cloud Model Focus
Pricing Models
Free Trial Period
Management UI
Technology Support
LEADERS :: FEATURES COMPARISON
Provider
Amazon
Google
Microsoft
Analytics
Yes
Yes
Yes
Archiving
Yes
No
No
Backups
No
Yes
Yes
Encryption
No
No
Yes
Firewall
Yes
Yes
Yes
Load Balancing
Yes
Yes
Yes
Monitoring
Yes
No
Yes
Relational DB
Yes
Limited
Yes
Limited
No
Limited
Yes
Yes
Yes
Features
Service Bus
Virtual Machines
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Q&A
What else: private/public/hybrid Clouds,
sovereignty issues, technologies, concepts and
business processes?
For comments or questions about
how/why/when/where just email
Mac: maciek.plewa@gmail.com
Copyright © 2011-2013 Maciek Plewa (maciek.plewa@gmail.com)