Module 2: DEFINING CLOUD COMPUTING

Chapter: Defining Cloud Computing

Defining Cloud Computing

Cloud computing takes the technology, services, and applications that are similar to those on the
Internet and turns them into a self-service utility. The use of the word “cloud” makes reference to the
two essential concepts:

 Abstraction: Cloud computing abstracts the details of system implementation from users and
developers. Applications run on physical systems that aren’t specified, data is stored in locations
that are unknown, administration of systems is outsourced to others, and access by users is
ubiquitous.
 Virtualization: Cloud computing virtualizes systems by pooling and sharing resources. Systems
and storage can be provisioned as needed from a centralized infrastructure, costs are assessed
on a metered basis, multi-tenancy is enabled, and resources are scalable with agility.

To help clarify how cloud computing has changed the nature of commercial system deployment,
consider these three examples:

 Google: In the last decade, Google has built a worldwide network of datacenters to service its
search engine. In doing so Google has captured a substantial portion of the world’s advertising
revenue. That revenue has enabled Google to offer free software to users based on that
infrastructure and has changed the market for user-facing software.
 Azure Platform: By contrast, Microsoft is creating the Azure Platform. It enables .NET Framework
applications to run over the Internet as an alternate platform for Microsoft developer software
running on desktops.
 Amazon Web Services: One of the most successful cloud-based businesses is Amazon Web
Services, which is an Infrastructure as a Service offering that lets you rent virtual computers on
Amazon’s own infrastructure.

Cloud Types - The NIST model

Most people separate cloud computing into two distinct sets of models:

 Deployment models: This refers to the location and management of the cloud’s infrastructure.
 Service models: This consists of the particular types of services that you can access on a cloud
computing platform.

The NIST model

The United States government is a major consumer of computer services and, therefore, one of the
major users of cloud computing networks. The U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST) have a set of working definitions that separate cloud computing into service models and
deployment models. Those models and their relationship to essential characteristics of cloud computing
are shown in Figure.

The Cloud Cube Model

The Open Group maintains an association called the Jericho Forum whose main focus is how to protect
cloud networks. The group has an interesting model that attempts to categorize a cloud network based
on four dimensional factors.

The four dimensions of the Cloud Cube Model are listed here:

Physical location of the data: Internal (I) / External (E) determine your organization’s boundaries.

Ownership: Proprietary (P) / Open (O) is a measure of not only the technology ownership, but of
interoperability, ease of data transfer, and degree of vendor application lock-in.

Security boundary: Perimeterised (Per) / De-perimiterised (D-p) is a measure of whether the operation
is inside or outside the security boundary or network firewall.

Sourcing: Insourced or Outsourced means whether the service is provided by the customer or the
service provider.
 Taken together, the fourth dimension corresponds to two different states in the eight possible cloud
forms: Per (IP, IO, EP, EO) and D-p (IP, IO, EP, EO). The sourcing dimension addresses the deliverer of the
service.

Deployment models

A deployment model defines the purpose of the cloud and the nature of how the cloud is located. The
NIST definition for the four deployment models is as follows:

Public cloud: The public cloud infrastructure is available for public use alternatively for a large industry
group and is owned by an organization selling cloud services.

Private cloud: The private cloud infrastructure is operated for the exclusive use of an organization. The
cloud may be managed by that organization or a third party. Private clouds may be either on- or off-
premises.

Hybrid cloud: A hybrid cloud combines multiple clouds (private, community of public) where those
clouds retain their unique identities, but are bound together as a unit. A hybrid cloud may offer
standardized or proprietary access to data and applications, as well as application portability.

Community cloud: A community cloud is one where the cloud has been organized to serve a common
function or purpose.

It may be for one organization or for several organizations, but they share common concerns such as
their mission, policies, security, regulatory compliance needs, and so on. A community cloud may be
managed by the constituent organization(s) or by a third party.
Service models

There are many different service models described in the literature, all of which take the following form:

XaaS, or “<Something> as a Service”

Three service types have been universally accepted:

Infrastructure as a Service: IaaS provides virtual machines, virtual storage, virtual infrastructure, and
other hardware assets as resources that clients can provision. The IaaS service provider manages all the
infrastructure, while the client is responsible for all other aspects of the deployment. This can include
the operating system, applications, and user interactions with the system.

Platform as a Service: PaaS provides virtual machines, operating systems, applications, services,
development frameworks, transactions, and control structures. The client can deploy its applications on
the cloud infrastructure or use applications that were programmed using languages and tools that are
supported by the PaaS service provider. The service provider manages the cloud infrastructure, the
operating systems, and the enabling software. The client is responsible for installing and managing the
application that it is deploying.

Software as a Service: SaaS is a complete operating environment with applications, management, and
the user interface. In the SaaS model, the application is provided to the client through a thin client
interface (a browser, usually), and the customer’s responsibility begins and ends with entering and
managing its data and user interaction. Everything from the application down to the infrastructure is the
vendor’s responsibility.
The three different service models taken together have come to be known as the SPI model of cloud
computing. Many other service models have been mentioned: StaaS, Storage as a Service; IdaaS, Identity
as a Service; CmaaS, Compliance as a Service; and so forth. However, the SPI services encompass all the
other possibilities.
Cloud Consumer

The cloud consumer is the principal stakeholder for the cloud computing service. A cloud consumer
represents a person or organization that maintains a business relationship with, and uses the service
from a cloud provider. A cloud consumer browses the service catalog from a cloud provider, requests
the appropriate service, sets up service contracts with the cloud provider, and uses the service. The
cloud consumer may be billed for the service provisioned, and needs to arrange payments accordingly.

Cloud Provider

A cloud provider is a person, an organization; it is the entity responsible for making a service available to
interested parties. A Cloud Provider acquires and manages the computing infrastructure required for
providing the services, runs the cloud software that provides the services, and makes arrangement to
deliver the cloud services to the Cloud Consumers through network access

Cloud Auditor

A cloud auditor is a party that can perform an independent examination of cloud service controls with
the intent to express an opinion thereon. Audits are performed to verify conformance to standards
through review of objective evidence. A cloud auditor can evaluate the services provided by a cloud
provider in terms of security controls, privacy impact, performance, etc.

Cloud Broker

As cloud computing evolves, the integration of cloud services can be too complex for cloud consumers
to manage. A cloud consumer may request cloud services from a cloud broker, instead of contacting a
cloud provider directly. A cloud broker is an entity that manages the use, performance and delivery of
cloud services and negotiates relationships between cloud providers and cloud consumers. In general, a
cloud broker can provide services in three categories :

Service Intermediation: A cloud broker enhances a given service by improving some specific capability
and providing value-added services to cloud consumers. The improvement can be managing access to
cloud services, identity management, performance reporting, enhanced security, etc.

Service Aggregation: A cloud broker combines and integrates multiple services into one or more new
services. The broker provides data integration and ensures the secure data movement between the
cloud consumer and multiple cloud providers.

Service Arbitrage: Service arbitrage is similar to service aggregation except that the services being
aggregated are not fixed. Service arbitrage means a broker has the flexibility to choose services from
multiple agencies. The cloud broker, for example, can use a credit-scoring service to measure and select
an agency with the best score.

Cloud Carrier
A cloud carrier acts as an intermediary that provides connectivity and transport of cloud services
between cloud consumers and cloud providers. Cloud carriers provide access to consumers through
network, telecommunication and other access devices.

Examples of IaaS service providers include: Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2), Eucalyptus,
GoGridFlexiScale, Linode, RackSpace Cloud, Terremark.

Examples of PaaS services are: Force.com, GoGrid CloudCenter, Google AppEngine, Windows Azure
Platform.

Other good examples of SaaS cloud service providers are: GoogleApps, Oracle On Demand,
SalesForce.com, SQL Azure.

Benefits of cloud computing

Cloud computing offers numerous benefits that have transformed the way businesses and individuals
use and manage technology. Some of the key benefits of cloud computing include:

1. Cost Efficiency: Cloud computing eliminates the need for upfront investments in hardware,
software, and infrastructure. It follows a pay-as-you-go model, allowing businesses to scale
resources up or down based on demand. This leads to reduced capital and operational
expenses.

2. Scalability: Cloud services provide the ability to easily scale computing resources to
accommodate changing workloads and demands. Whether you need to expand during peak
periods or downsize during slower times, cloud computing allows for seamless scalability.

3. Flexibility and Accessibility: Cloud services enable users to access applications and data from
anywhere with an internet connection. This flexibility supports remote work, collaboration, and
efficient resource utilization across different locations and devices.

4. Speed and Agility: Cloud computing enables rapid deployment of resources, applications, and
services. This agility allows businesses to quickly respond to market changes, launch new
products, and experiment with new ideas without the delays associated with traditional
infrastructure setup.

5. Reliability and High Availability: Reputable cloud providers offer built-in redundancy, failover
mechanisms, and geographically distributed data centers, ensuring high availability and minimal
downtime. This enhances the reliability of applications and services.

6. Automatic Updates and Maintenance: Cloud providers handle maintenance, security updates,
and infrastructure management, freeing businesses from the burden of these tasks. This ensures
that applications and services are always up-to-date and secure.
 7. Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity: Cloud services often include robust backup and
disaster recovery options. Data is stored across multiple data centers, reducing the risk of data
loss and improving business continuity in case of unforeseen events.

8. Environmental Impact: Cloud computing can contribute to environmental sustainability by

optimizing resource utilization. The ability to share and pool resources leads to higher energy
efficiency and reduced carbon footprint compared to traditional on-premises infrastructure.

9. Innovation and Experimentation: Cloud computing provides a platform for innovation, allowing
businesses to experiment with new technologies and ideas without making significant upfront
investments. This fosters a culture of continuous improvement and technological advancement.

10. Global Reach: Cloud services enable businesses to reach a global audience easily by hosting
applications and services in multiple geographic regions. This helps reduce latency and improves
user experiences for customers worldwide.

11. Resource Utilization and Efficiency: Cloud computing enables efficient use of resources by
allowing multiple users to share the same physical hardware. Virtualization and resource
management techniques ensure optimal utilization of computing power.

12. Collaboration and Sharing: Cloud-based collaboration tools and platforms facilitate real-time
communication and collaboration among teams, regardless of their physical locations. This leads
to improved productivity and knowledge sharing.

Overall, cloud computing has revolutionized the way technology is consumed and delivered, providing
businesses and individuals with a wide range of benefits that enhance efficiency, flexibility, and
innovation while reducing costs and management complexity.

Disadvantages of cloud computing

Certainly, here are more specific disadvantages of cloud computing:

1. Lack of Control Over Infrastructure: Cloud users have limited control over the underlying
hardware and infrastructure. This can be a concern for organizations that require specific
hardware configurations, security measures, or software customization.

2. Performance Issues: Shared resources in a multi-tenant environment can lead to performance

bottlenecks. If other users on the same server or network are consuming excessive resources, it
can affect the performance of your applications.

3. Data Loss: While cloud service providers typically implement data backup and disaster recovery
measures, there is still a risk of data loss due to technical failures, human error, or even the
cloud provider going out of business.
4. Vendor Lock-In: As your data and applications become more integrated with a particular cloud
provider's services, it can become difficult and expensive to switch to a different provider or
bring the services back in-house.

5. Limited Customization: Cloud services may not always offer the level of customization that
some applications or industries require. This can be a limitation for organizations with unique
business processes or specialized software needs.

6. Network Connectivity Dependency: Cloud-based applications require a reliable and high-speed

internet connection. If the connection is lost or slow, it can disrupt access to critical applications
and data.

7. Hidden Costs: While cloud computing can provide cost savings, it's essential to closely monitor
usage to avoid unexpected charges. Costs can add up due to data storage, data transfer, API
calls, and other factors.

8. Data Security and Compliance: Storing data off-site introduces concerns about data security and
compliance with industry regulations. Organizations need to ensure that their data is adequately
protected and that the cloud provider meets necessary compliance standards.

9. Lack of Transparency: Cloud providers may not always provide detailed visibility into their
infrastructure and security practices. This lack of transparency can make it challenging to assess
potential risks and vulnerabilities.

10. Long-Term Viability: The cloud computing landscape is continually evolving. There's a possibility
that a cloud provider could go out of business or discontinue a particular service, which could
disrupt your operations.

11. Initial Migration Complexity: Moving existing applications and data to the cloud can be complex
and time-consuming. The migration process may require significant planning, testing, and
potential application modifications.

12. Regulatory and Legal Issues: Different countries and regions have varying regulations regarding
data privacy, residency, and security. Navigating these legal complexities can be challenging,
especially for multinational organizations.

13. Limited Offline Access: Cloud-based applications typically require an internet connection. If
access to the internet is disrupted, it can prevent users from accessing essential applications and
data.

14. Inconsistent Support Quality: The quality of customer support provided by cloud service
providers can vary. Some providers may not offer the level of support or responsiveness that
your organization requires.
 15. Cultural Resistance: Employees and stakeholders within an organization may resist the adoption
of cloud computing due to concerns about change, data security, or job implications.

These disadvantages highlight the importance of conducting thorough research and risk assessment
before fully committing to a cloud computing strategy. While cloud computing offers many benefits, it's
crucial to understand and address its potential drawbacks to make informed decisions for your
organization.

Assessing the Role of Open Standards

Open standards play a crucial role in cloud computing by fostering interoperability, competition, and
flexibility in the cloud ecosystem. They help ensure that different cloud services and solutions can work
together seamlessly, allowing organizations to avoid vendor lock-in, switch providers more easily, and
build customized cloud environments. Here's how open standards influence cloud computing:

1. Interoperability: Open standards define common protocols, formats, and interfaces that enable
different cloud services, platforms, and applications to communicate and work together
effectively. This allows organizations to integrate diverse components from various vendors into
a cohesive cloud environment.

2. Vendor Neutrality: Open standards reduce the risk of vendor lock-in, where organizations
become overly dependent on a single cloud provider's technologies. By adhering to open
standards, organizations can switch between different cloud providers or services without
significant disruption.

3. Portability: Open standards facilitate the movement of applications and data between different
cloud environments, making it easier to migrate workloads from one cloud provider to another
or even between private and public clouds.

4. Innovation and Competition: When cloud services adhere to open standards, they create a level
playing field that encourages healthy competition among vendors. This competition can drive
innovation, improve service quality, and lead to more cost-effective solutions.

5. Flexibility: Open standards allow organizations to mix and match services and technologies from
different vendors to create a tailored cloud environment that meets their specific needs. This
flexibility enhances an organization's ability to optimize performance, security, and cost-
effectiveness.

6. Community Collaboration: Open standards are typically developed through collaborative efforts
involving industry experts, vendors, and users. This collaborative approach fosters a sense of
community and shared goals, which can lead to better solutions and best practices.

7. Security and Compliance: Open standards can help ensure that security and compliance
measures are consistently applied across cloud environments. This is particularly important for
industries with strict regulatory requirements.
 8. Long-Term Viability: By relying on open standards, organizations can reduce the risk associated
with technology obsolescence. Open standards tend to have a longer lifespan and broader
industry support, which enhances their long-term viability.

9. Reduced Costs: Open standards can lead to cost savings by enabling organizations to choose the
most cost-effective and suitable solutions from a range of providers. They also minimize the
need for custom development to integrate proprietary technologies.

10. Avoiding Technology Lock-In: Proprietary technologies and closed standards can create
dependence on a specific vendor's ecosystem. Open standards empower organizations to make
strategic decisions based on their needs rather than being constrained by a single vendor's
offerings.

11. Ecosystem Growth: Open standards encourage the development of a rich ecosystem of tools,
applications, and services that can enhance and extend cloud computing capabilities.

12. Global Collaboration: Open standards facilitate collaboration on a global scale, allowing
organizations to leverage the expertise and contributions of a diverse community to advance
cloud computing technologies.

In summary, open standards provide the foundation for a more open, interoperable, and flexible cloud
computing environment. They enable organizations to make informed decisions, avoid lock-in, and
create resilient and adaptable cloud solutions that align with their business goals.
Chapter 2:Understanding Cloud Architecture

Exploring the Cloud Computing Stack

The cloud creates a system where resources can be pooled and partitioned as needed. Cloud
architecture can couple software running on virtualized hardware in multiple locations to provide an on
demand service to user-facing hardware and software. It is this unique combination of abstraction and
metered service that separates the architectural requirements of cloud computing systems from the
general description given for an n-tiered Internet application. Many descriptions of cloud computing
describe it in terms of two architectural layers:

 A client as a front end

 The “cloud” as a backend

A cloud can be created within an organization’s own infrastructure or outsourced to another datacenter.
While resources in a cloud can be real physical resources, more often they are virtualized resources
because virtualized resources are easier to modify and optimize.

Composability

Applications built in the cloud often have the property of being built from a collection of components, a
feature referred to as composability. A composable component must be:

 Modular: It is a self-contained and independent unit that is cooperative, reusable, and

replaceable.
 Stateless: A transaction is executed without regard to other transactions or requests.

A PaaS or SaaS service provider gets the same benefits from a composable system that a user does—
these things, among others:

 Easier to assemble systems

 Cheaper system development
 More reliable operation
 A larger pool of qualified developers
 A logical design methodology
Infrastructure

Cloud infrastructure consists of servers, storage devices, network, cloud management software,
deployment software, and platform virtualization.

Cloud Computing Infrastructure Components

Hypervisor

Hypervisor is a firmware or low-level program that acts as a Virtual Machine Manager. It allows to share
the single physical instance of cloud resources between several tenants.

Management Software

It helps to maintain and configure the infrastructure.

Deployment Software

It helps to deploy and integrate the application on the cloud.

Network

It is the key component of cloud infrastructure. It allows to connect cloud services over the Internet. It is
also possible to deliver network as a utility over the Internet, which means, the customer can customize
the network route and protocol.

Server

The server helps to compute the resource sharing and offers other services such as resource allocation
and de-allocation, monitoring the resources, providing security etc.

Storage

Cloud keeps multiple replicas of storage. If one of the storage resources fails, then it can be extracted
from another one, which makes cloud computing more reliable.
Infrastructural Constraints

Fundamental constraints that cloud infrastructure should implement are shown in the following
diagram:

Cloud Computing Infrastructure Constraints

Transparency

Virtualization is the key to share resources in cloud environment. But it is not possible to satisfy the
demand with single resource or server. Therefore, there must be transparency in resources, load
balancing and application, so that we can scale them on demand.

Scalability

Scaling up an application delivery solution is not that easy as scaling up an application because it
involves configuration overhead or even re-architecting the network. So, application delivery solution is
need to be scalable which will require the virtual infrastructure such that resource can be provisioned
and de-provisioned easily.

Intelligent Monitoring

To achieve transparency and scalability, application solution delivery will need to be capable of
intelligent monitoring. It refers to the use of advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI)
and machine learning (ML), to enhance the monitoring and management of cloud infrastructure,
applications, and services.

Security

The mega data center in the cloud should be securely architected. Also the control node, an entry point
in mega data center, also needs to be secure.
Platforms

 Cloud computing involves delivering various computing services over the internet, including
storage, processing power, and applications.

 Cloud computing platforms provide a range of services categorized into Infrastructure as a

Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS).

 Benefits include scalability, cost efficiency, accessibility, and reduced maintenance burden.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

 IaaS provides virtualized computing resources such as virtual machines, storage, and networking
components.

 Users have more control over their infrastructure, including the operating system, runtime
environment, and applications.

 This model is suitable for organizations that require flexibility and control over their resources.

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

 PaaS offers a complete platform for application development and deployment, including tools
and services.

 Developers can focus solely on coding, as the underlying infrastructure is abstracted.

 PaaS accelerates development and reduces the need for manual maintenance.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

 SaaS delivers software applications over the internet, accessible through web browsers.

 Users can access software without installation, updates, or maintenance hassles.

 Examples include email services, office suites, and customer management software.

Public, Private, and Hybrid Clouds

 Public clouds are shared environments provided by third-party vendors, offering cost savings
and scalability.

 Private clouds are dedicated to a single organization, providing enhanced security and
customization options.

 Hybrid clouds combine public and private cloud features for flexibility in workload placement.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) –

AWS provides different wide-ranging clouds IaaS services, which ranges from virtual compute, storage,
and networking to complete computing stacks. AWS is well known for its storage and compute on
demand services, named as Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) and Simple Storage Service (S3). EC2 offers
customizable virtual hardware to the end user which can be utilize as the base infrastructure for
deploying computing systems on the cloud. It is likely to choose from a large variety of virtual hardware
configurations including GPU and cluster instances. Either the AWS console, which is a wide-ranged Web
portal for retrieving AWS services, or the web services API available for several programming language is
used to deploy the EC2 instances. EC2 also offers the capability of saving an explicit running instance as
image, thus allowing users to create their own templates for deploying system. S3 stores these
templates and delivers persistent storage on demand. S3 is well ordered into buckets which contains
objects that are stored in binary form and can be grow with attributes. End users can store objects of
any size, from basic file to full disk images and have them retrieval from anywhere. In addition, EC2 and
S3, a wide range of services can be leveraged to build virtual computing system including: networking
support, caching system, DNS, database support, and others.

Google AppEngine –
Google AppEngine is a scalable runtime environment frequently dedicated to executing web
applications. These utilize benefits of the large computing infrastructure of Google to dynamically scale
as per the demand. AppEngine offers both a secure execution environment and a collection of which
simplifies the development if scalable and high-performance Web applications. These services include:
in-memory caching, scalable data store, job queues, messaging, and corn tasks. Developers and
Engineers can build and test applications on their own systems by using the AppEngine SDK, which
replicates the production runtime environment, and helps test and profile applications. On completion
of development, Developers can easily move their applications to AppEngine, set quotas to containing
the cost generated, and make it available to the world. Currently, the supported programming
languages are Python, Java, and Go.

Microsoft Azure –
Microsoft Azure is a Cloud operating system and a platform in which user can develop the applications in
the cloud. Generally, a scalable runtime environment for web applications and distributed applications is
provided. Application in Azure are organized around the fact of roles, which identify a distribution unit
for applications and express the application’s logic. Azure provides a set of additional services that
complement application execution such as support for storage, networking, caching, content delivery,
and others.

Hadoop –
Apache Hadoop is an open source framework that is appropriate for processing large data sets on
commodity hardware. Hadoop is an implementation of MapReduce, an application programming model
which is developed by Google. This model provides two fundamental operations for data processing:
map and reduce. Yahoo! Is the sponsor of the Apache Hadoop project, and has put considerable effort in
transforming the project to an enterprise-ready cloud computing platform for data processing. Hadoop
is an integral part of the Yahoo! Cloud infrastructure and it supports many business processes of the
corporates. Currently, Yahoo! Manges the world’s largest Hadoop cluster, which is also available to
academic institutions.
Force.com and Salesforce.com –
Force.com is a Cloud computing platform at which user can develop social enterprise applications. The
platform is the basis of SalesForce.com – a Software-as-a-Service solution for customer relationship
management. Force.com allows creating applications by composing ready-to-use blocks: a complete set
of components supporting all the activities of an enterprise are available. From the design of the data
layout to the definition of business rules and user interface is provided by Force.com as a support. This
platform is completely hostel in the Cloud, and provides complete access to its functionalities, and those
implemented in the hosted applications through Web services technologies.

Connecting to the Cloud

Clients can connect to a cloud service in a number of different ways. These are the two most common
means:

 A Web browser
 A proprietary application

These applications can be running on a server, a PC, a mobile device, or a cell phone. What these devices
have in common with either of these application types is that they are exchanging data over an
inherently insecure and transient medium. There are three basic methods for securely connecting over a
connection:

 Use a secure protocol to transfer data such as SSL (HTTPS), FTPS, or IPsec, or connect using a
secure shell such as SSH to connect a client to the cloud.
 Create a virtual connection using a virtual private network (VPN), or with a remote data transfer
protocol such as Microsoft RDP or Citrix ICA, where the data is protected by a tunneling
mechanism.
 Encrypt the data so that even if the data is intercepted or sniffed, the data will not be
meaningful.

The best client connections use two or more of these techniques to communicate with the cloud. In
current browser technology, clients rely on the Web service to make available secure connections, but in
the future, it is likely that cloud clients will be hardened so the client itself enforces a secure connection.