Buzz Topic THE CLOUD
data. Provisioning a cloud service requires provisioning storage alongside it, and ensuring that this storage is as well managed as the services it supports. Both today and in the future, companies require solutions that allow for simplified storage management and provide seamless expansion features which are often found with Internet SCSI (iSCSI) storage area network (SAN) arrays, enabling scalable performance and reliability as the cloud grows.
Networks are the connective tissue of a cloud. Often a bottleneck, bandwidth to the cloud and between elements in the cloud must be allocated and prioritized so that it doesn’t become a constraint on the flexibility and elasticity of the environment. Allocated network resources are often also the location of security measures, so the proper translation of isolation requirements into the cloud architecture is critical to helping ensure that security is maintained or enhanced as workloads move to the cloud.
Switches should provide a high-performing and secure foundation for networking the components in the cloud infrastructure. On top of that foundation, Network Automation tools can enable dynamic configuration change to meet the changing needs of the cloud.
Once the physical components have come together, additional components layer on top: hypervisors, operating systems for each cloud service, and the stack of middleware and applications that comprise the service most tangible to the customer or internal group. For users of the service, the cloud need only
display the highest layers of the stack. For IT departments, however, the full complement of pieces must come together to deliver the value of cloud efficiently and economically.
A built-out cloud platform comprises six key functions: a self-service portal, a service catalogue, flexible provisioning, closed-loop compliance, decommissioning, and hybrid cloud operations.
Self-service portal The most visible user-facing part of the cloud computing environment is a self-service portal. Through an intuitive Web browser–based interface, end users can manage the services they have requested from the cloud, including turning them on or off and requesting additional time or resources.
The self-service portal is designed to be inherently multi-tenant, scalable, and secure. From this portal, users can also request new services through a simple wizard that exposes specific options that are available to that user based on his or her role in the organisation. Options range from different resource sizes, service tiers, and operating systems through application stacks and higher-level services, such as compliance and monitoring.
The portal provides an approachable front end to the cloud environment, customised for both the functionality and the appearance of the organisation— helping to dramatically simplify the end user’s interaction with the cloud. As users become increasingly sophisticated (and service offerings
WWW.SNSEUROPE.COM FEBRUARY | 2011 33
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