Cloud Computing and Libraries

Edward IglesiasSystems Librarian

Central Connecticut State University

Obviously Librarians know about it

A little vague

What is it?

Cloud computing refers to the delivery of computing and storage capacity as a service to a heterogeneous community of end-recipients. The name comes from the use of clouds as an abstraction for the complex infrastructure it contains in system diagrams. Cloud computing entrusts services with a user's data, software and computation over a network. It has considerable overlap with software as a service (SaaS).

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

The Cloudy Diagram

For the end user not that different from…

Breeding’s Continuum of Abstraction

• Locally owned and installed servers• Co-located servers• Co-located virtual servers• Web hosting• Server hosting services• Application Service Provider • Software-as-a-service• Infrastructure-as-a-service• Platform-as-a-service

– Stolen from Marshal Breeding at http://www.librarytechnology.org/ltg-displaytext.pl?RC=16681

Buy his Book

These don’t count even though they feel “cloudy”

• Locally owned and installed servers• Co-located servers• Co-located virtual servers• Web hosting• Server hosting services• Application Service Provider

These do.

• Software-as-a-service• Infrastructure-as-a-service• Platform-as-a-service

NIST Characteristics• Essential Characteristics:• On-demand self-service. A consumer can unilaterally provision computing capabilities, such as server time

and network storage, as needed automatically without requiring human interaction with each service provider.

• Broad network access. Capabilities are available over the network and accessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneous thin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, tablets, laptops, and workstations).

• Resource pooling. The provider’s computing resources are pooled to serve multiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physical and virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according to consumer demand. There is a sense of location independence in that the customer generally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of the provided resources but may be able to specify location at a higher level of abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter). Examples of resources include storage, processing, memory, and network bandwidth.

• Rapid elasticity. Capabilities can be elastically provisioned and released, in some cases automatically, to scale rapidly outward and inward commensurate with demand. To the consumer, the capabilities available for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can be appropriated in any quantity at any time.

• Measured service. Cloud systems automatically control and optimize resource use by leveraging a metering capability1 at some level of abstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage, processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can be monitored, controlled, and reported, providing transparency for both the provider and consumer of the utilized service.– http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-145/SP800-145.pdf

ASP vs SaaS

Application Service Provider

• Business applications hosted by software vendor• Standalone application on discrete or virtualized

hardware• Staff and public clients accessed via the Internet• Same user interfaces and functionality as if

installed locally• Established as a deployment model in the 1990’s

So what does it look like

• Sample transactions: Storage space– You need an extra 2GB of storage space you can

access from anywhere. You can1. Ask IT for a server share that you can access

remotely.2. Get a free dropbox account.3. Grab that thumbdrive you got from Oxford

Analytica at the last conference.

Which is cloud?

Software as a Service

• Complete software application, customized for customer use

• Software delivered through cloud infrastructure, data stored on cloud

• E.g. Google Docs

Comparisons ASP vs SaaS

• ASP– Hosted “turnkey” ILS– Microsoft Office on an

Application Server– Hosted server space

offered by IT

• SaaS– OCLC Worldshare– Google Docs– Amazon’s S3

Multi-tenant SaaS

• Multitenancy refers to a principle in software architecture where a single instance of the software runs on a server, serving multiple client organizations (tenants).– http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multitenancy

Examples of Multitenant SaaS

• SFX• BiblioCommons• Serials Solutions– Summon– Intota– 360 Search

Platform as a Service

• Platform as a service (PaaS) is a category of cloud computing services that provide a computing platform and a solution stack as a service. Along with SaaS and IaaS, it is a service model of cloud computing. In this model, the consumer creates the software using tools and libraries from the provider. The consumer also controls software deployment and configuration settings. The provider provides the networks, servers and storage.

– NIST Definition of Cloud Computing http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-145/SP800-145.pdf

Paas Reality CheckAt a minimum, a PaaS solution should include the following elements:

1. Browser-based development studio - if you have to install something on your computer to develop applications, that's not PaaS!

2. Seamless deployment to hosted runtime environment - ideally, a developer should be able to deploy a PaaS application with one click. If you have to talk to a person to get your app deployed, that's not PaaS!

3. Management and monitoring tools - while cloud-based solutions are very cost effective, they can be tricky to manage and scale without good tools. If you have to bolt on DIY monitoring to scale your cloud app, that's not PaaS!

4. Pay as you go billing - avoiding upfront costs has made PaaS popular. If you can't pay with your credit card based on usage, that's not PaaS!

http://www.keeneview.com/2009/03/what-is-platform-as-service-paas.html

Examples of PaaS Solutions

• AppEngine from Google: based on Python and Django

• Force.com from SalesForce: based on the SalesForce SaaS infrastructure and Apex language

• Bungee Connect: visual development studio based on Java

• LongJump: based on Java/Eclipse• WaveMaker: visual development studio

based on Java and hosted on Amazon EC2

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).

• The capability provided to the consumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and other fundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy and run arbitrary software, which can include operating systems and applications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage, and deployed applications; and possibly limited control of select networking components (e.g., host firewalls)

– NIST Definition of Cloud Computing http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-145/SP800-145.pdf

Description of IaaS

With IaaS the enterprise renting the service is likely to have considerable IT skills in-house because the infrastructure offered is quite plain. Customers select and basic software servers for their part of the cloud and then load up their libraries, applications and data then configure them themselves. Virtualisation enables IaaS providers to offer almost unlimited instances of servers to customers and make cost-effective use of the hosting hardware.

• http://www.bestpricecomputers.co.uk/glossary/infrastructure-as-a-service.htm

Example AWS

• http://aws.amazon.com/

More later…

Does it Make Sense?

• Moving to Cloud Benefits– Less paperwork– Less Maintenance– More reliable– Easier

Moving to Cloud Continued

• Cons– Loss of local control– May be more expensive– May not be sufficiently customizable– May not be legal

Other Possible Uses

• Free software needed for users– Google Docs instead of Microsoft Word– Spotify instead of iTunes or Freegal

Use cases continued

• Wordpress.com vs local install• Omeka.net vs Omeka.org• Microsoft Outlook vs Google Calendar

Software-as-a-Service Email Security: Risk vs. Trust

– Bottom Line: Security is a major inhibitor to enterprise use of software as a service (SaaS) email. SaaS email is a high-trust and high-risk delivery model for the enterprise. It is high-trust because the vendor controls the entire service and delivery environment. It is high-risk because email systems contain sensitive and proprietary content that enterprises need to protect. However, some enterprises are deploying SaaS email while taking measures to mitigate their risk and assess the vendor security posture. Armed with this information, enterprises can determine their risk and deploy SaaS email that meets their security requirements.

– http://www.gartner.com/technology/reprints.do?id=1-1ACHDMJ&ct=120502&st=sb#h-d2e160

Sample Scenario

• Storage needed– The story of ERISDA– http://journal.code4lib.org/articles/4468

– Needed storage for high resolution digital scans.– Needed to be redundant.– Needed long term accessibility– Couldn’t afford OCLC’s Digital Archive

Digital ObjectsDeposit

Process System

Digital Archive Server

Ingest

Create PREMIS-Manifest verification-Fixity check-Format verification PREMIS

MySQL

Keep track- What objects are in archive-Storage use & growth-File types

Update archive database

Amazon S3

RAID1 HDDArchive

Archival Object

BagIt!

Contact Info

Edward IglesiasSystems LibrarianCentral Connecticut State University http://www.edwardiglesias.com

This powerpoint will be athttp://www.slideshare.net/edwardiglesias