Executive's Guide to Cloud Computing

Your organization can save and thrive in the cloud with this first non-technical guide to cloud computing for business leaders In less than a decade Google, Amazon, and Salesforce.com went from unknown ideas to powerhouse fixtures in the economic landscape; in even less time offerings such as Linkedin, Youtube, Facebook, Twitter and many others also carved out important roles; in less than five years Apple's iTunes became the largest music retailer in North America. They all share one key strategic decision – each of these organizations chose to harness the power of cloud computing to power their drives to dominance. With roots in supercomputing and many other technical disciplines, cloud computing is ushering in an entirely new economic reality – technology-enabled enterprises built on low cost, flexible, and limitless technical infrastructures. The Executive's Guide to Cloud Computing reveals how you can apply the power of cloud computing throughout your enterprise, giving members of the C-suite a detailed look at: Why cloud computing must be a top priority on your company's IT roadmaps How the drive for scale, lower costs and greater agility is making cloud computing a fiscal and technological imperative The relationship between cloud computing and other relevant IT initiatives The strategic implications of cloud computing for the enterprise Where to begin and how to get started integrating cloud computing into your existing operations Now you can harness cloud computing's potential for your organization. Executive's Guide to Cloud Computing shows you how. Executive's Guide to Cloud Computing 5 Contents 9 Preface 13 Chapter 1: The Sound of Inevitability 17 A Persistent Vision 21 A Little History 22 Three Ages of Computing 22 Broad Enablers 31 Big Contributions 36 Limitations 37 I Want One of Those 38 Back to the Future? 38 Chapter 2: Concepts, Terminology, and Standards 41 Basic Concepts: The Big Stuff 43 Major Layers 50 Where They Live (Deployment Models) 52 Geographic Location 55 Datacenter Innovation 55 The Quest for Green 56 Standards 57 Much Sound and Fury ... 58 Parting Thoughts 58 Chapter 3: Cloud Computing and Everything Else 61 The Neighborhood 61 Parting Thoughts 82 Chapter 4: Strategic Implications of Cloud Computing 85 A Survey of Cloud Implications 86 Business Benefits of Cloud Computing 94 Cloud-Based Business Models 98 Cloud-Enabled Business Models 99 Strategic Implications of Cloud Computing 102 Evolving from SOA into the Cloud 107 When to Do SOA versus Cloud? 114 Cloud Computing Adoption Obstacles 123 Parting Thoughts: Things to Do Tomorrow 125 Chapter 5: Cloud Adoption Lifecycle 127 Cloud Adoption Lifecycle and Cloud Modeling Framework: Two Necessary Tools for Cloud Success 128 Cloud Adoption Lifecycle 130 Cloud Adoption Lifecycle Summary 160 Parting Thoughts 161 Chapter 6: Cloud Architecture, Modeling, and Design 163 Cloud Adoption Lifecycle Model: Role of Cloud Modeling and Architecture 163 Cloud Industry Standards 165 Standards Monitoring Framework 170 A Cloud Computing Reference Model 171 Exploring the Cloud Computing Logical Architecture 173 Developing a Holistic Cloud Computing Reference Model 178 Cloud Deployment Model 186 Cloud Governance and Operations Model 190 Cloud Ecosystem Model (Supporting the Cloud Reference Model) 195 Consumption of Cloud-Enabled and Cloud Enablement Resources 200 Cloud Computing Reference Model Summary 203 Cloud Computing Technical Reference Architecture 204 Parting Thoughts 208 Chapter 7: Where to Begin with Cloud Computing 211 Cloud Adoption Lifecycle 211 Where to Begin with Cloud: Using the Cloud Adoption Lifecycle 215 Where to Begin with Cloud: Deployment Model Scenarios 216 Cloud Business Adoption Patterns 220 Where to Begin with Cloud: Consumers and Internal Cloud Providers 225 Cloud Patterns Mapped to Common Cloud Use Cases 229 Parting Thoughts 240 Chapter 8: All Things Data 243 The Status Quo 244 Cracks in the Monolith 246 Cloud Scale 248 The Core Issues 250 Lessons Learned 253 Solutions and Technologies: A Few Examples 255 A Look Below: Need for Combined Computation/Storage 258 Parting Thoughts 259 Chapter 9: Why Inevitability Is ... Inevitable 261 Driving Scale 263 Objections and Concerns 264 Overwhelming Rationality 269 A Natural Evolution 273 Parting Thoughts 275 Appendix: The Cloud Computing Vendor Landscape 279 Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) 280 Platforms as a Service (PaaS) 280 Software as a Service (SaaS) 281 Systems Integrators 281 Analysts and Service Providers 282 Parting Thoughts 282 About the Authors 283 Index 285 0470521724,9780470521724

Praise for Executive's Guide to Cloud Computing

"A very timely and invaluable resource for CIOs, CTOs, and enterprise architects . . . extremely relevant information that will serve readers well now and far into the future." -Bob Flores, President and CEO Applicology Inc.; former CTO, Central Intelligence Agency

"The authors have done a great job in explaining the cloud concepts. They give historical and technical background to show that cloud computing is really an evolution of numerous technologies and business strategies. It is the combination of these that enables cloud and these new business strategies to happen. This makes the fuzziness of the concept come into focus. The 'technical' chapters show the CIO and technical architect a model for building your own strategy within the business and a path from concept to deployment with governance and business models thrown in. Darn, I keep hoping for 'the answer.' Now my questions can dig into the real value for our enterprise and a strategy for moving forward. Great book!" -Dave Ploch, CIO, Novus International

"'Executive's Guide' is not a code-phrase for an introductory text, but a comprehensive guide for the CIO, IT decision-maker, or project leader. The authors, both entrepreneurs and pioneers in the field, speak from substantial real-world project experience. They introduce the topic and related technologies, highlight cloud drivers and strategy, address relationships to existing initiatives such as Service-Oriented Architectures, detail project phases in the implementation of and evolution to cloud-based enterprise architectures, and offer many reasoned insights along the way." -Joe Weinman, Strategy and Business Development, AT&T Business Solutions

"Executive's Guide to Cloud Computing is a crystal ball into the future of business. Not a technical treatise but an insightful explanation of how cloud computing can quickly deliver real business value. This book is an instruction manual on how to win business in this 'born on the Web' world." -Kevin L. Jackson, Engineering Fellow, NJVC, and author of Cloud Musings (kevinljackson.blogspot.com)

"There's cloud computing for dummies and cloud computing for rocket scientists. This book is for the rest of us. Great book!" -John Willis, VP of Services, Opscode, Inc. / JohnMWillis.com, co-host Redmonk's IT Management Guys podcast

The first widely-accessible guide to cloud computing-for business leaders and more

This guide reveals to readers how they can apply the power of cloud computing throughout their enterprise. It gives a detailed look at why cloud computing should be a top priority and how the drive for scale, lower costs and greater agility is making cloud computing a fiscal and technological imperative