CloudCommons 2011

Cloud News Amazon Web Services (AWS) has launched its virtual private cloud service globally and introduced dedicated networking and identity management solutions for enterprise customers, according to this eWeek article. Rather than having to use the Internet or a VPN to connect to AWS, its new Direct Connect service enables customers to set up their own private network to a facility that has a high-speed, private link to a nearby Amazon EC2 data center. AWS is working with Equinix (which operates 90 high-performance data centers in 37 markets around the world) as its partner in secure communications. For more detail, read this InformationWeek article. The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) is creating an online registry for cloud service providers to document their compliance with CSA best practices. The Security, Trust and Assurance Registry (STAR), which will be go l... (more)

This Week in Cloud

Featured on Cloud Commons Where is the line between virtualization and the cloud?—Webcast featuring Forrester Research analyst James Staten If you had a virtualized environment with impressive P2V (physical-to-virtual) ratios on your servers, would you still consider moving to the cloud? In this 40-minute webinar, James Staten, Forrester Research Inc. VP & Principal Analyst, explains the difference between virtualization and cloud and where the line is between the two. Ryan Hughes, CEO of GIS marketplace provider Skygone Inc., joins James to discuss Skygone’s experience with mo... (more)

This Week in Cloud

Featured on Cloud Commons Gartner report: The Cloud is Less Important than the Cloud Operating Model Do cloud service providers have a new and better approach to IT operations figured out – and can enterprises learn from them? In this report by Cameron Haight of Gartner (available free of charge on Cloud Commons), Cameron details new approaches to application and infrastructure architecture that some large public cloud firms are using to improve service delivery. Read the full report. Feature article On Cloud Computing Standards and Definitions When I go to the gas station these ... (more)

This Week in Cloud, April 21, 2011: New OpenStack release, why Facebook open-sourced the designs of its data center. And more…

Feature article CSMIC Initiative Update – A Mission to Build Cloud Service Measurement Metrics By Jeff Abbott The Cloud Service Measurement Initiative Consortium (CSMIC) recently added some new members to its roster. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the organization, its objective is to develop a standardized method for measuring and comparing IT business services based on metrics that matter to the consumers of those services. There are some tools (such as http://www.cloudsleuth.net/) in the market today that can show real-time service performance monitoring of uptime ... (more)

This Week in Cloud, July 28, 2011: Cloud can save billions in energy costs, CA & cloud choice, Cloud2 Commission recommendations, GSA completes cloud email migration. And more…

Cloud News Energy savings & cloud: The Carbon Disclosure Project released a report that found that cloud computing may save large companies $12.3 billion a year in energy costs by 2020, also avoiding 85.7 million metric tons of carbon emissions. Read more about the findings in this GreenBiz article. Another report by WSP Environment & Energy and Salesforce.com found that companies could realize per-transaction emission reductions of 95 percent on average by moving to the cloud. In this GigaOm blog, Jonathan Koomey explores four reasons why cloud computing is generally far more en... (more)