Cloud Computing

Team CumulusGilbert Vega, Pathik Chitania, Li Yue, Noura

Almasri, Eric Knox

Team Cumulus’s Collaborations tools

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AT&T Teleconference

Overview of Cloud Computing• Cloud computing: is a style of computing in which

dynamically scalable and often virtualized resources are provided as a service over the Internet. Users need not have knowledge of, expertise in, or control over the technology infrastructure "in the cloud" that supports them. The term cloud is used as a metaphor for the Internet, based on how the Internet is depicted in computer network diagrams, and is an abstraction for the complex infrastructure it conceals.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_computing

Major Issues in Cloud Computing

• Security– Data may not remain private– Data Loss can occur if vendor's infrastructure is

compromised– Firewall and Anti-virus settings may be inadequate

Major Issues in Cloud Computing

• System– May not be able to handle multiple file formats – Insufficient Processor speed and memory– Bandwidth may not be high enough leading to slow

response times– Backups and version control may be inadequate

Major Issues in Cloud Computing

• Accessibility– May not provide different levels of access to data– Multi-browser/Multi-Operating System support may not

be available– May not be available at all times in all places

• Compliance– Copyright Issues– Legal Issues

Process for Evaluating Tools• The following criteria are used to evaluate various tools and

vendors in Cloud Computing:• Technical Specifications

– What Operating Systems does the product function in?– Is the product limited to certain web browsers?– Are there appropriate encryption schemes available? Have they

been tested by professionals?– What kind of Firewall and Anti-Virus settings have been put into

place?– Is Mobile access available? If not, are there any plans for the future?– Are there different levels of data access available?

Process for Evaluating Tools• Cost– Is the cost fixed or is there a customized quote available?– Does a minimum term contract need to be made or is

there a pay-as-you-go model available? Is there a trial period available?

– Are there varying prices based on disk space, RAM and bandwidth?

– Are the charges hourly or monthly?

Process for Evaluating Tools• Support

– Is 24/7 support available?– Will there be qualified administrators in place to monitor access and

resolve any issues?– What is the planned uptime? Will the client be reimbursed if the

vendor doesn’t meet the planned uptime?– How often are system backups taken? Has a version control system

been put into place?– What kind of contingency plans are put into place for quick recovery

of data? How long will a recovery take?– What is the vendor able to do if illegal or inappropriate activity has

been detected?

Process for Evaluating Tools

• Compliance– Has the vendor gone through external audits and/or

security certifications? If not, will it be willing to do this?– Has the client been involved in any copyright or legal

issues?

What did we learn specifically about implementation of tools?• There are three major ways the different tools can be

implemented:• Public Cloud – Products offered via web applications

or web services.– Less control– Lower up-front costs– Easy to implement– Less Secure– Minimal day-to-day maintenance required– Not always reliable

What did we learn specifically about implementation of tools?• Private Cloud – Products that emulate a public cloud

on private networks– Provides more control to the client– More up-front costs– Harder to implement as clients will have to build– More secure– Clients will have to account for day-to-day maintenance– Very reliable as the product has been tailored according to

the client's needs

What did we learn specifically about implementation of tools?• Hybrid Cloud – An environment consisting of

multiple internal and/or external providers– More Control than a Public Cloud– Less up-front costs than a Private Cloud– Maintain a good security level– Not as hard to implement as a Private Cloud

Storage use case• Hannah Mac is the Founder and CEO of Honey Bees.• Honey Bees is a non-profit organization for young

women in Lake County, Illinois.• Hannah, a very successful businesswoman and a long

time resident of Lake County, was able to use her own capital to start up the organization.

Storage use case• After experiencing the successes of the group, many

organizations started to offer donations to help Honey Bees pay for operating costs.

• Hannah chose to create a board of directors to help establish the curriculum, assist with the business end of this organization (budgeting, finance, etc), as well as critical group decision making.

• Growing organization!

Storage use case• About two years ago, Hannah made the decision to

convert all hard copies of meeting notes, contacts, and financial information to digital form.

• Hannah is running out of space on her Hard Drive and looking for other ways to store this information while making it accessible by fellow board members.

• Hannah recently discovered that she has a virus on her computer, potentially allowing access to her confidential file information to hackers.

Storage use case

Goals• Virtual address book.• Safe storage alternative.• The ability for authorized users to access and update

information from any location.• The ability to search for specific financial data if

called for by partners.

Storage use case

Goals• Hannah wants to be sure that her data will be backed

up in multiple locations. • Along the same lines, if the data is ever requested,

Hannah expects it to be in a user-friendly format. • Hannah requires an organization with superior tech

support (24/7/365) to be there to answer any questions that may arise from board members.

Storage use case

Solution• Google Apps– Google Docs• Supports .doc, .xls, .pdf files• Secure invites/access control• Google Contacts .csv• No need to upgrade physical computers• Secure & redundant backups• 99% uptime• Text, video, and phone support

Online Training Use case

• Company: Find Your Way, Inc.• Company Size: 50 employees.• Company Location: Chicago, IL.• A Marketing Training Company that works with other

companies throughout the US to train their personnel on traditional and new marketing techniques to help them market and sell their products.

Online Training Use case

Goal:• Reduce traveling costs.• Find Your Way, Inc is having a hard time finding

qualified people to work at their company, so they have to find away to fill all customer’s need while maintaining the same number of internal staff.

Online Training Use case

• Mike and five of his friends have started Find Your Way, Inc with a total of 10 employees.

• The company has grew so fast within two years and forty more people has joined the company.

• The need of travel to coach and train clients has become too expensive and the need to hire more people has become critical to meet the increasing demand everyday.

Online Training Use case

• Find Your Way, Inc has to figure out a more efficient way to do their business without having their clients wait to receive service.

• A team from Find your way, Inc was selected to come up with a creative solution.

• The team suggested having a third party who can provide online tools that can be used to provide training to clients with no need to travel or to hire new people.

Online Training Use case

Requirements:• Reasonable price and cost effective.• Save time to efficiently do business.• Available 24/7.• Easy to use.• Clients should be able to access the system through the Internet so there

is no need to meet face to face anymore.Secure every user with a username and password.

Nice to have:• Video tutoring.• Live chatting.

Online Training Use case

Solution: • salesforce.com http://www.salesforce.com/platform/

– It cost $20 a month for the employee.– They can build and deploy their own unique application.– Easy to use– On Demand

Final Thoughts• Companies may be able to save on upfront capital

expenditures.– They may not be saving much and may actually pay more

on operating expenses. – Other factors impacting the scale of any potential cost

savings include the efficiency of a company’s data center as compared to the cloud vendor’s, the company’s existing operating costs, the level of adoption of cloud computing, and the type of functionality being hosted in the cloud.

Questions?