Cloud architects need to transform SOA thinking in five ways

Is the enterprise architecture really ready to accept cloud computing? So is cloud computing really suitable for enterprise architecture? The advent of cloud computing does bring some different ways of thinking, but in reality these "new" ideas are not so new.

Chris Bruzzi and Nick Hamm, from the IT and cloud computing consulting services provider Appirio, published an article in which two people shared some personal experiences with CIOs about cloud application development. They point out that in the application development and deployment process, the performer should pay attention to change their own habits in five aspects in order to better achieve cloud computing for the enterprise. Now, these ideas still apply.

Most of the most successful practice cases for architects and developers with SOA (service-oriented architecture) domain experience are very similar. But Bruzzi and Hamm think that the SOA architecture of the past has great limitations, because it is always blocked by the enterprise's overall structure outside the door. But as more and more enterprise it starts to turn to cloud computing, people really should rethink the "service-oriented" approach:

1. Design the architecture solution using a modular approach: first consider what the needs of the enterprise are, and then design a solution that consists of multiple loosely coupled components to meet the overall needs of the enterprise. It does increase the amount of work you do in the early stages, but it pays a lot more in return.

2. Review API interfaces across the application development language: 10 years ago, the so-called it enterprise was not a Java store or a. NET store. Cloud computing directs the issue focus from application to application development language and service delivery platform. This means that cloud architects also need to shift their gaze from the technical or development language to the architecture services and API interfaces used to use these technologies and languages.

3. Reuse components as much as possible: components in these cloud planning scenarios may already be effective, whether they come from within the enterprise's own library or from external cloud computing providers, such as Salesfroce.com and Amazon Web Services (Amazon Network Service) can be reused.

4. Outside the package of the form of expansion team: Pay attention to the developer community, such as Cloudspokes or 99Designs, and find new components there. The advantage of this is that the application is built much faster, while avoiding the overall technical capability of the team being limited. Many creative solutions are designed in this case.

5. Evaluation of internal applications: in cloud computing solutions, there is a large number of internal applications in the enterprise configuration, coding, quality and other aspects of the data available for evaluation. Some cloud computing solution vendors also collect these benchmark values, but they certainly don't provide all the data, so it is necessary for the architect to do some collection work on their own.

(Responsible editor: The good of the Legacy)