Understanding Cloud Computing

What is Cloud Computing?

Cloud Computing is not new – it encompasses a host of existing technologies. In some ways, it's easier – and more useful – to define what 'Cloud Computing' can do to transform your infrastructure and the way your environment delivers applications to users. The first step in understanding how to navigate the host of cloud offerings available today is to adopt a descriptive, working definition for what YOU mean when you say 'cloud.'

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Types of Clouds

In general, there are 3 relevant types of clouds you need to know about:

• Private or Internal Cloud: A cloud environment which creates a pool of resources behind a company's firewall and includes resource management and dynamic allocation, chargeback and support for virtualization.
• Public or External Cloud: A cloud environment which exists outside a company's firewall, offered as a service by a 3rd party vendor (eg. Amazon EC2, Sun OCP, Google AppEngine).
• Hybrid or Mixed Cloud: A cloud environment in which external services are leveraged to extend or supplement the internal cloud – simply put, a mixture of both private and public cloud .

Why Cloud?

The benefits of cloud computing – whether private, public or hybrid – are significant and well documented. In a nutshell, the promise of cloud computing is to enable companies to meet their computing requirements with the minimal possible hardware purchase and automate the process of resource provisioning to minimize the need for human interaction. Essentially, it boils down to the traditional value proposition for all modern technology: Do more with less.

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Cloud Challenges

From experience with users as well as market research and investigation, we've consolidated a list of key challenges to cloud adoption that companies need to know before undertaking a cloud implementation. Note that, while many of the challenges below are true technology barriers, others are simply perception issues that companies will need to address internally before a cloud solution can be adopted.

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Univa's Cloud Approach

Univa takes an evolutionary (not revolutionary) approach to cloud implementations, working with customers to determine the best way to leverage cloud. Our lightweight products integrate with your existing systems and technologies, rather than requiring you to ‘rip and replace' what you've already invested in. We apply best practices and proven methodologies and technology to get you up and running quickly, reducing risk and time to value.

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