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IaaS, PaaS and SaaS - Understanding the services delivered in the cloud

"Cloud computing" is a way to deliver services and computational resources through the Internet. It is expected that U.S. companies will spend more than $ 13 billion on cloud computing and related services this year. This is one of the fastest growing segments of the information technology industry.

In the 90s, when the Internet was crawling, many companies do not bet on their growth and lost the moment to develop. Many became "cases" of MBA and are studied today as companies that failed to see the future. Currently, they are trying to recover the lost space with a huge effort and a great investment.

Now, with the revolution of cloud computing in progress, everyone wants to get their space. And IBM, as seen previously on Explora!, has invested and continues to invest billions of dollars in research, development and acquisition of companies operating in the area. Since 2007, the company invested more than $ 7 billion.

But at the end of the day, what is marketed when we talk about cloud computing? 

To get a clearer picture, we can slice the cloud computing in three different types of offer:

1. IaaS - Infrastructure as a Service
2. PaaS - Platform as a Service
3. SaaS - Software as a Service

The image above represents in a graphical mode all of this different services (many thanks for Piyush Chordia for his contribution and also for sharing his blog with all of us on http://www.pcclm.com/2011/07/cloud-computing-definition-by-nist.html).

Each of these offers different services, seeking to meet specific demands.

1. IaaS - This is the easiest to understand. In this model, it is sold , or better yet, rent, infrastructure. Simple as that. You can rent servers, storage or even networking services. Need computing power equivalent to 3 Intel servers? Instead of purchasing, installing, configuring and maintaining servers in your company, just rent the necessary over the Internet. It is simple and for everyone in the company is transparent if the server is in a room on the third floor or in a datacenter in India or Germany. Everything is consumed over the Internet, transparently and with guaranteed service level in the contract. This scenario is quite common for new businesses, with low levels of investment in infrastructure, but that need it to grow.
   
   Imagine  a second situation where your company has peak demand throughout the year. This happens a lot with retail companies, which have a large increase in sales on special occasions like Christmas, for example. You need to be prepared and, therefore, will need to acquire more servers, representing more investments. And after Christmas pass, what to do with these machines? How about simply rent more computing power for the Christmas period? Much more effective and economical.
   
   IaaS is the fastest growing segment on cloud computing.
   
   For some more specific and critical demands, as infrastructure to support an ERP production environment or other enterprise applications, IaaS can be rented as Managed Services (Managed IaaS). This way adding a layer of services that guarantee greater security, scalability, integration and global coverage.
   
2. PaaS - This form of cloud computing delivers what is needed to support the entire life cycle of the development and delivery of applications to the web , without the costs and complexity of buying and managing infrastructure and development tools, including therein all software necessary.
   
   PaaS makes it is possible to develop applications more easily and consequently deliver a final result in less time.
   
3. SaaS - Finally, Software as a Service. When purchasing a particular software solution is needed, we typically do a search in the market, acquire, install, maintain, update, etc. All these activities come under our responsibility, generating cost because we are required to maintain equipment and more important, specialized manpower to support the infrastructure, for example.
   
   SaaS proposal is the renting of the software, which is hosted by a provider, a data center, outside our company. In this model, we do not acquire the software. Instead, we pay rent for their use, totally done on the internet.
   
   The advantages are many. For example, in deciding the rent certain software, we can begin the use immediately. We do not need to wait for its installation and configuration. Furthermore, the application is in the cloud and can be accessed from any authorized computer.
   
   The most common applications are sales management and CRM systems, corporate social networks and ERP systems.

Cloud solutions have the power and ability to support the growth of a company because they deliver computing capacity and services extremely rapidly and on a simplified way. Want to know more about the IBM cloud offerings? Visit this site.

IaaS, PaaS e SaaS - Entendendo os serviços entregues em nuvem

"Computação em nuvem" é uma forma de entregar serviços e recursos computacionais atraves da Internet. A expectativa é que empresas nos EUA gastarão mais de US$ 13 bilhões em cloud computing e serviços relacionados este ano. Trata-se de um dos segmentos de maior crescimento da indústria de tecnologia da informação. 

Na década de 90, quando a Internet engatinhava, muitas empresas não apostaram em seu crescimento e perderam o momento de desenvolver-se. Muitas viraram "cases" de MBA e são estudadas até hoje como empresas que não conseguiram ver o futuro. Atualmente, tentam recuperar o espaço perdido com um enorme esforço e um grande investimento. 

Agora, com a revolução de cloud computing em andamento, todos querem seu espaço. E a IBM, como já vimos anteriormente, investiu e segue investindo bilhões de dólares em pesquisa, desenvolvimento e aquisição de empresas atuando na área. Desde 2007, a empresa investiu mais de 7 bilhões de dólares.

Mas, afinal, o que é comercializado quando falamos em computação em nuvem?

Para se ter uma visão mais clara, podemos fatiar a computação em nuvem em três tipos diferentes de oferta:

1. IaaS - Infraestrutura como serviço (Infrastructure as a Service)
2. PaaS - Plataforma como serviço (Platform as a Service)
3. SaaS - Software como serviço (Software as a Service)

A imagem acima representa graficamente estes diferentes tipos de serviço (muito obrigado a Piyush Chordia pela contribuição e também por compartilhar conosco seu blog, em http://www.pcclm.com/2011/07/cloud-computing-definition-by-nist.html).

Cada uma delas oferece serviços diferentes, buscando atender a demandas específicas. 

1. IaaS - Esta é a mais fácil de entender. Neste modelo, vende-se, ou melhor, aluga-se, infraestrutura. Simples assim. Você pode alugar servidores, armazenamento ou até mesmo serviços de rede. Precisa de capacidade computacional equivalente a 3 servidores Intel? Em vez de comprar, instalar, configurar e manter os servidores em sua empresa, simplesmente alugue o necessário pela Internet. É simples e, para todos na empresa, é transparente se o servidor está em uma sala no terceiro andar ou em um datacenter na Índia ou na Alemanha. Tudo é consumido pela Internet, de forma transparente e com nível de serviço garantido em contrato. Este cenário é bastante comum para empresas novas, com baixos níveis de investimento em infraestrutura, mas que precisam da mesma para crescerem.
   
   
   Imagine ainda uma segunda situação, onde sua empresa tem picos de demanda durante o ano. Isso acontece muito com empresas de varejo, que tem um grande aumento de vendas em datas especiais como o Natal, por exemplo. Você precisa estar preparado e, para isso, vai precisar adquirir mais servidores, representando mais investimentos. E, depois que o Natal passar, o que fazer com estas máquinas? Que tal simplesmente alugar mais capacidade computacional para o período do Natal? Muito mais efetivo e econômico.
   
   
   IaaS é o segmento de cloud computing que mais cresce.
   
   
   Para algumas demandas mais específicas e críticas, como infraestrutura para suportar um ambiente ERP de produção ou outras aplicações corporativas, IaaS pode ser alugado na forma de Serviços Gerenciados (Managed IaaS). Desta forma, adiciona-se uma camada de serviços que garante maior segurança, escalabilidade, integração e cobertura global.
   
   
2. PaaS - Esta forma de cloud computing oferece o que é necessário para suportar todo o ciclo de vida do desenvolvimento e entrega de aplicações para o mundo web, sem os custos e a complexidade de comprar e gerenciar infraestrutura e ferramentas de desenvolvimento, incluindo aí todos os softwares necessários.
   
   
   Com PaaS é possível desenvolver aplicações mais rapidamente e, consequentemente, entregar um resultado final em menos tempo. 
   
   
3. SaaS - Por fim, Software as a Service. Quando é necessária a aquisição de uma determinada solução de software, tipicamente fazemos uma pesquisa no mercado, a adquirimos, instalamos, mantemos, atualizamos, etc. Todas essas atividades ficam sob nossa responsabilidade, gerando custo, pois somos obrigados a manter equipamentos e, mais immportante, mão de obra especializada para suportar a infraestrutura, por exemplo. 
   
   
   A proposta de SaaS é o aluguel de software, que fica hospedado em um provedor, um data center, fora de nossa empresa. Neste modelo, não adquirimos o software. Ao contrário, pagamos um aluguel pelo seu uso, totalmente feito pela internet.
   
   
   As vantagens são muitas. Por exemplo, ao decidirmos pelo aluguel de um determinado software, podemos começar a utilização imediatamente. Não precisamos esperar por sua instalação e configuração. Além disso, a aplicação está na nuvem e pode ser acessada a partir de qualquer computador autorizado.
   
   As aplicações mais comuns são sistemas de gerenciamento de vendas e CRM, redes sociais corporativas e sistemas de ERP.

As soluções em nuvem tem o poder e a capacidade de suportar o crescimento de uma empresa uma vez que entregam capacidade computacional e serviços de forma extremamente rápida e simplificada. Quer conhecer mais sobre as ofertas IBM em nuvem? Visite este site.

Ted, the fridge

Imagine the following conversation:

- Good morning, Mr. Ted. We received a contact from you and would like to verify how we can serve you.

- Thank you for contacting. I'm with my milk supply close to the minimum limit.

- I understand. Would you like to order some more milk?

- Yes I would like to order 6 liters of whole milk.

- Perfectly. Your order is registered and the final price with taxes is $ 28.00. Delivery will be made within 12 hours. The tracking code for your order is 89634529. Anything else I can offer today?

- Not at the moment. Thank you very much.

This is an absolutely natural conversation that occurs thousands of times every day around the world. The detail is that this one, in particular, is the communication between a refrigerator, called Ted, and the virtual attendant of a company that provides milk. The most optimistic forecasts indicate that this type of communication, which is already happening, will grow tremendously in the coming months and, before long, will be so natural that we will not find it strange to name a refrigerator Ted.

The IoT (Internet of Things) is the new frontier to be explored and promises to have a huge impact not only for businesses, but for each of us. The promise is big and points to a near future in which we will question deeply about "how could we live without all this communication?". To give an idea, I recently read an article and infographic prepared by the Best Computer Science Degrees, (an institution whose purpose is to advise interested in applying to something in the area of Computer Science) where they state that, in 2015, there will be around 25 billion devices and equipments connected to the Internet and communicating with each other.

The idea is simple. Today, our computers are connected to the Internet and each time they connect, they receive an IP address (I will not enter into the merits of static or dynamic IP, although this concept has a great impact on the subject). Going beyond our computers, the concept is that each device, like the radio of our cars, the refrigerator (both Ted as well as others), the television in our living room or the air conditioning in our room, each of them will be connected to the Internet. And all of them will provide services and resources not yet explored. The example of self-maintenance of stock is one of them, as well as the air conditioning in your home, that will automatically set themselves on the time and temperature that pleases you, a special selection of songs in your car, etc.. All of this will happen seamlessly. Example: your car could send a signal to the air conditioning system of your home when you are 2 miles away from your destination. Your alarm clock could send a signal to your coffee maker to prepare a coffee at a selected time. And many others that we can not even envision yet but, very soon, will be integral part of our lives.

The market is big. In 2012, it is estimated that the gross revenues of the segment, still in its early stages, was $4.8 trillion. This whole new world will generate even more information that somehow will need to be worked, reinforcing the concepts of Mobility, BigData and Analytics. We are very close to witness a major transformation in our lives in the coming years.

Check out the infographic prepared by them:

Ted, a Geladeira

Imagine a seguinte conversa:

- Bom dia, Sr. Ted. Recebemos um contato seu e gostariamos de verificar de que forma podemos atendê-lo.

- Obrigado pelo contato. Estou com meu estoque de leite próximo ao limite mínimo.

- Entendo. Gostaria de fazer um pedido?

- Sim. Gostaria de solicitar a compra de 6 litros de leite integral.

- Perfeitamente. Seu pedido já está registrado e o preço final, com impostos, é de R$ 28,00. A entrega será feita em 12 horas. O código de rastreamento para seu pedido é 89634529. Algo mais que possa oferecer hoje?

- No momento não. Muito obrigado.

Esta é uma conversa absolutamente natural, que ocorre milhares de vezes a cada dia, em todo o mundo. O detalhe é que esta, em especial, representa a comunicação entre uma Geladeira, chamada de Ted, e o atendente virtual da empresa fornecedora de leite. As previsões mais otimistas indicam que este tipo de comunicação, que já está acontecendo, vai crescer enormemente nos próximos meses e, em pouco tempo, será tão natural que nem acharemos estranho uma geladeira ter o nome de Ted.

A Internet das Coisas (Internet of Things, IoT) representa a nova fronteira a ser explorada e promete ter um enorme impacto não somente para as empresas, mas para cada um de nós. A promessa é grande e aponta para um futuro próximo em que nos questionaremos profundamente sobre "como podiamos viver sem toda essa comunicação?". Para que se tenha uma idéia, recentemente li um artigo e infográfico preparado pela Best Computer Science Degrees, (uma instituição que tem como finalidade aconselhar interessados em cursar algo na área de Ciência da Computação) no qual afirmam que, em 2015, teremos simplesmente 25 bilhões de dispositivos e equipamentos conectados a Internet e se comunicando entre si.

A idéia é simples. Hoje temos nossos computadores conectados a Internet e cada um deles recebe um endereço IP durante suas conexões (não vou entrar aqui no mérito de IP estático ou dinâmico, apesar deste conceito ter um impacto grande no tema). Indo além de nossos computadores, o conceito é que cada dispositivo, como o rádio de nossos carros, a geladeira (tanto o Ted quanto outras), a televisão em nossa sala de estar ou o ar condicionado de nossa sala, cada um deles estará conectado à Internet. E oferecerão serviços e recursos ainda pouco explorados. O exemplo da manutenção automática de estoque é um deles, assim como a climatização da sua residência, na hora e na temperatura que te agrada, uma seleção especial de músicas em seu carro, etc. Tudo isso aconteceria de forma integrada. Exemplo: seu carro poderia enviar um sinal para o sistema de ar condicionado de sua casa quando você estiver a 10 minutos do seu destino. Seu despertador poderia enviar um sinal para sua cafeteira preparar um café no horário selecionado. E muitos outros que nem conseguimos vislumbrar ainda mas que, muito em breve, farão parte integrante de nossas vidas.

O mercado é grande. Em 2012 estima-se que o faturamento bruto do segmento, ainda em sua fase inicial, foi de US$ 4,8 trilhões. Todo este novo mundo vai gerar ainda mais informações que, de alguma forma, precisarão ser trabalhadas, reforçando os conceitos de Mobilidade, BigData e de Analytics. Estamos próximos de assistir a uma grande transformação em nossas vidas, nos próximos anos.

Vejam o infográfico preparado por eles:

Information stored in the cloud, an Open Letter to IBM Customers

Much has been said about the security of information stored in the cloud. The recent case of leakage / espionage involving the NSA brought the topic to the main agenda of discussions of CEOs and CIOs worldwide. IBM has just published an Open Letter to our Customers about government access to stored information. Below you can find the original content, published last Friday, March 14th, signed by Robert Weber, IBM Senior Vice President, Legal and Regulatory Affairs, and General Counsel.

For decades, clients around the world have trusted IBM with their data. We believe we have earned that trust.

In view of the wide range of proposed government regulations around the world related to the handling and treatment of data, clients have asked us questions about their data – how best to secure it, where to locate it, and how we would respond should governments request access.

This is also a matter of interest to our employees, our partners, and our shareholders. Given the global discussion about data security and privacy, we wanted to communicate our view on these issues.

At the outset, we think it is important for IBM to clearly state some simple facts:

• IBM has not provided client data to the National Security Agency (NSA) or any other government agency under the program known as PRISM.
• IBM has not provided client data to the NSA or any other government agency under any surveillance program involving the bulk collection of content or metadata.
• IBM has not provided client data stored outside the United States to the U.S. government under a national security order, such as a FISA order or a National Security Letter.
• IBM does not put “backdoors” in its products for the NSA or any other government agency, nor does IBM provide software source code or encryption keys to the NSA or any other government agency for the purpose of accessing client data.
• IBM has and will continue to comply with the local laws, including data privacy laws, in all countries in which it operates.

IBM is fundamentally an enterprise company, meaning our customers are typically other companies and organizations rather than individual consumers. We serve some of the world’s most successful global corporations, helping them achieve their business goals.

Our business model sets us apart from many of the companies that have been associated with the surveillance programs that have been disclosed. Unlike those companies, IBM’s primary business does not involve providing telephone or Internet-based communication services to the general public. Rather, because the vast majority of our customers are other companies and organizations, we deal mainly with business data. Our client relationships are governed by contract, with clear roles and responsibilities assigned and clearly understood by all parties. To the extent our clients provide us access within their infrastructure to the type of individual communications that reportedly have been the target of the disclosed intelligence programs, such information belongs to our clients.

For these reasons, it has long been our (and our clients’) expectation that if a governmentdid have an interest in our clients’ data, the government would approach that client, not IBM.

Our Commitment to Clients and Recommendations to Governments

We understand that clients are concerned about the security and privacy of their data. Therefore, we want to offer the following assurances:

• In general, if a government wants access to data held by IBM on behalf of an enterprise client, we would expect that government to deal directly with that client.
• If the U.S. government were to serve a national security order on IBM to obtain data from an enterprise client and impose a gag order that prohibits IBM from notifying that client, IBM will take appropriate steps to challenge the gag order through judicial action or other means.
• For enterprise clients’ data stored outside of the United States, IBM believes that any U.S. government effort to obtain such data should go through internationally recognized legal channels, such as requests for assistance under international treaties.
• If the U.S. government instead were to serve a national security order on IBM to obtain data stored outside the United States from an enterprise client, IBM will take appropriate steps to challenge the order through judicial action or other means.
• IBM will continue to invest in world-class security technologies and services, and we will engage governments around the world on behalf of sensible, market-led policies that enable the free flow of data while promoting strong security. IBM will also continue its decades-long tradition of privacy leadership.

Governments must act to restore trust. IBM believes governments should take the following actions:

• Governments should reject short-sighted policies, such as data localization requirements, that do little to improve security but distort markets and lend themselves to protectionist tendencies.
• Governments should not subvert commercial technologies, such as encryption, that are intended to protect business data.
• The U.S. government should have a robust debate on surveillance reforms, including new transparency provisions that would allow the public to better understand the scope of intelligence programs and the data collected.

Conclusion

Technology often challenges us as a society. This is one instance in which both business and government must respond. Data is the next great natural resource, with the potential to improve lives and transform institutions for the better. However, establishing and maintaining the public’s trust in new technologies is essential.

IBM is committed to being a responsible participant in this discussion and a strong advocate for our clients.

Informações na nuvem, uma carta aberta da IBM aos Clientes

Muito se tem falado sobre a segurança das informações armazenadas na nuvem. O recente caso de vazamento / espionagem envolvendo a NSA trouxe o tema para a pauta principal de discussões de CEOs e CIOs em todo o mundo. A IBM acaba de publicar uma Carta Aberta para nossos Clientes sobre o acesso do governo às informações armazenadas. Abaixo o conteúdo integral, em inglês, do texto publicado na última sexta-feira, 14 de Março, assinado por Robert Weber, IBM Senior Vice President, Legal and Regulatory Affairs, and General Counsel.

To Our Clients:

For decades, clients around the world have trusted IBM with their data. We believe we have earned that trust.

In view of the wide range of proposed government regulations around the world related to the handling and treatment of data, clients have asked us questions about their data – how best to secure it, where to locate it, and how we would respond should governments request access.

This is also a matter of interest to our employees, our partners, and our shareholders. Given the global discussion about data security and privacy, we wanted to communicate our view on these issues.

At the outset, we think it is important for IBM to clearly state some simple facts:

• IBM has not provided client data to the National Security Agency (NSA) or any other government agency under the program known as PRISM.
• IBM has not provided client data to the NSA or any other government agency under any surveillance program involving the bulk collection of content or metadata.
• IBM has not provided client data stored outside the United States to the U.S. government under a national security order, such as a FISA order or a National Security Letter.
• IBM does not put “backdoors” in its products for the NSA or any other government agency, nor does IBM provide software source code or encryption keys to the NSA or any other government agency for the purpose of accessing client data.
• IBM has and will continue to comply with the local laws, including data privacy laws, in all countries in which it operates.

IBM is fundamentally an enterprise company, meaning our customers are typically other companies and organizations rather than individual consumers. We serve some of the world’s most successful global corporations, helping them achieve their business goals.

Our business model sets us apart from many of the companies that have been associated with the surveillance programs that have been disclosed. Unlike those companies, IBM’s primary business does not involve providing telephone or Internet-based communication services to the general public. Rather, because the vast majority of our customers are other companies and organizations, we deal mainly with business data. Our client relationships are governed by contract, with clear roles and responsibilities assigned and clearly understood by all parties. To the extent our clients provide us access within their infrastructure to the type of individual communications that reportedly have been the target of the disclosed intelligence programs, such information belongs to our clients.

For these reasons, it has long been our (and our clients’) expectation that if a governmentdid have an interest in our clients’ data, the government would approach that client, not IBM.

Our Commitment to Clients and Recommendations to Governments

We understand that clients are concerned about the security and privacy of their data. Therefore, we want to offer the following assurances:

• In general, if a government wants access to data held by IBM on behalf of an enterprise client, we would expect that government to deal directly with that client.
• If the U.S. government were to serve a national security order on IBM to obtain data from an enterprise client and impose a gag order that prohibits IBM from notifying that client, IBM will take appropriate steps to challenge the gag order through judicial action or other means.
• For enterprise clients’ data stored outside of the United States, IBM believes that any U.S. government effort to obtain such data should go through internationally recognized legal channels, such as requests for assistance under international treaties.
• If the U.S. government instead were to serve a national security order on IBM to obtain data stored outside the United States from an enterprise client, IBM will take appropriate steps to challenge the order through judicial action or other means.
• IBM will continue to invest in world-class security technologies and services, and we will engage governments around the world on behalf of sensible, market-led policies that enable the free flow of data while promoting strong security. IBM will also continue its decades-long tradition of privacy leadership.

Governments must act to restore trust. IBM believes governments should take the following actions:

• Governments should reject short-sighted policies, such as data localization requirements, that do little to improve security but distort markets and lend themselves to protectionist tendencies.
• Governments should not subvert commercial technologies, such as encryption, that are intended to protect business data.
• The U.S. government should have a robust debate on surveillance reforms, including new transparency provisions that would allow the public to better understand the scope of intelligence programs and the data collected.

Conclusion

Technology often challenges us as a society. This is one instance in which both business and government must respond. Data is the next great natural resource, with the potential to improve lives and transform institutions for the better. However, establishing and maintaining the public’s trust in new technologies is essential.

IBM is committed to being a responsible participant in this discussion and a strong advocate for our clients.