Since VMware vSphere and vCloud have been making the news discussing the future of the private cloud, I thought I would find out more about this cloud from a company who has been developing it and providing it to customers for many years now -- a company called Surgient.
To spotlight Surgient's forward thinking on the subject, not only has it been offering customers a private cloud solution for years, but it also holds an awarded patent that goes back to 2005 for the "virtualized logical server cloud." To find out more, I was fortunate to get a chance to speak with Surgient's CTO, Dave Malcolm.
[ Learn how early adopters of cloud computing have used the technology and the lessons they have learned. | See how Amazon, Google, and other cloud platforms stack up in the InfoWorld Test Center's comparison. ]
InfoWorld: It seems that a number of companies are now bringing cloud computing solutions to market. Where do you see Surgient in this market?
Malcolm: When talking about "cloud-based infrastructure," it is important to understand what is meant by that. The wide variation of definitions of cloud-based infrastructure has caused significant confusion in the industry. Here at Surgient, we define cloud-based infrastructure as a pool of abstracted, scalable, and self-managed infrastructure capable of running end-customer applications and billed or charged by consumption. These cloud infrastructures can be located internally to an organization or hosted externally by a third party.
We've actually long recognized how our technology can be used to create an internal, private cloud and were awarded a patent in 2005 for a "virtualized logical server cloud." Our technology optimizes the IT service delivery process through dynamic resource provisioning and heterogeneous infrastructure management and automation. We essentially create a cloud of internal virtual resources, which users access in a self-service manner, to configure specific computing environments for varied business tasks.
As you point out, there a number of companies coming to market with cloud solutions being delivered as a service, much like Amazon EC2, Google Apps, Microsoft Windows Azure, etc. Surgient, with our Virtual Automation Platform, enables Global 2000 corporations and managed service providers' operations teams to implement internal private clouds by providing the automated management, orchestration, and self-service of business services for their users.
This whitepaper explains the terminology and concepts behind Data Replication technologies and establishes some sizing rules through worked examples. Learn the new paradigm in disaster tolerance—protect data anywhere.
Download now »
Server virtualization is a popular option for dealing with mounting datacenter costs. Another equally promising approach is the use of an Application Delivery Controller. Citrix NetScaler provides a low-cost way for organizations to reduce their server count and accrue cost savings from a reduction in space, cooling, power and personnel.
Download now »
The emergence of WLANs has created a new breed of security threats to enterprise networks.
Included in HP ProCurve WLAN solutions is security technology that alleviates threats from WLANs through:
* Monitoring wireless activity inside and out of the enterprise
* Classifying WLAN transmissions into harmful and harmless
* Preventing transmissions that pose a security threat to the enterprise network
* Locating participating devices for physical remediation
Effectively address data protection challenges, implementing solutions that help store and protect business–critical data while cutting costs and improving efficiency and reliability.
Download now »
Sign up to receive Virtualization Resource Alerts
24 Recommendations
