Companies realize the appeal of growing open source cloud computing

The sophistication of OSS (OSS) and the growing support of mainstream it vendors mean that the cloud architecture built by OSS tools will be favored by companies that are seeking some way to avoid vendor lock-in, but they will need to assess whether they have an internal knack for managing such deployments.

"Open source Cloud computing" is a common term that involves a cloud-computing framework based on OPEN-SOURCE technology or on it, says Arun Chandrasekaran, Gartner's research director. This essentially allows the enterprise to build a cloud environment that provides broader compatibility for http://www.aliyun.com/zixun/aggregation/18671.html "> Hardware and Software in the marketplace."

Red Hat Asia Pacific Vice president and general manager Dirk-peter van Leeuwen added to the definition, open source cloud makes three aspects become unconstrained. Customers will be free to control their implementation, and the path of technology and business required by it vendors is unconstrained.

Van Leeuwen explained that they were free to work with other companies and to communicate freely in the areas of their relevance or importance to them.

In terms of programming languages, applications and data, the Open-source cloud also provides easy portability for heterogeneous cloud infrastructures, he added.

Interest is growing

Chandrasekaran says the growing interest in open source cloud computing can generally be attributed to the growing sophistication of OSS tools and the growing support of mainstream it vendors.

In Asia, the initial interest came from cloud service providers, as Asian companies became more cautious in their attempt to evade risk. These organizations typically invest in the proprietary IT products beforehand, and then rest assured that more and more of the enterprise-ready features are being ported to open source cloud computing products and then migrated, analyst Gartner explains.

If deployed well, he adds, these open source clouds offer many benefits, such as lower total cost of ownership (TCO), reduced vendor lock-in, better interoperability, and developer community support. Companies should consider assessing their choices in these areas.

Laurent Lachal, senior software analyst at Ovum, points out that, given the number of Asian companies in emerging economies, these companies have little problem jumping across traditional it challenges. As a result, this increases the likelihood of considering open source cloud computing deployments.

As with any OSS, Lachal calls on companies to pay attention to the licensing of software and the extent to which the Community participates in the tool. For example, a powerful community developer can show long-term support for the software, while a less enthusiastic developer is only temporary and does not look to the future, he explains.

Chandrasekaran also wants companies to assess whether they want to deploy the necessary internal resources and support open source cloud projects.

He added that if they chose to make use of third-party suppliers, they should evaluate the firmness and availability of the vendor's pre-sale maintenance and support services.

Little Red Riding Hood's van Leeuwen agreed and said the organization must go to assess their existing IT assets, security needs, and budgets, and the Organization would have to take stock. This also means ensuring that their IT investments today are flexible enough to accommodate future new technologies.

In this context, open cloud source provides flexibility to companies in determining their long-term it roadmap. "This gives the company its IT infrastructure, not the supplier's, the maximum degree of control." "he said.

(Responsible editor: The good of the Legacy)