Converged Cloud computing infrastructure

Cloud computing is not only the technology, but also the innovation of service mode. Cloud computing can bring users more efficiency, flexibility and scalability, is based on the entire IT field of change, its technology and applications related to hardware systems, software systems, application systems, operation and maintenance management, service patterns and other aspects.

IaaS (infrastructure as a service) as one of the three parts of cloud computing, cloud the infrastructure to better support the online, deployment, and operation of application systems to improve efficiency and reduce TCO. At the same time, because IaaS contains various types of hardware and software systems, the cloud migration process also faces unprecedented complexity and challenges. So what are the components of the cloud infrastructure? What are the main problems? What are the main solutions?

Cloud infrastructure

As shown in Figure 1, the traditional It deployment architecture is "chimney-style", or "private jet" system.

Converged Cloud computing infrastructure

Figure 1 Traditional It chimney Mode deployment architecture

In this architecture, when the new application system on the line needs to analyze the application system's resource requirements, to determine the infrastructure required for computing, storage, network and other equipment specifications and quantities, this deployment pattern is the main problem with the following two points:

Hardware is high with low. In view of the application system in the next 3-5 years of business development, as well as business burst demand, in order to meet the performance of the application system, capacity requirements, often in the selection of computing, storage and network hardware equipment configuration will leave a certain percentage of the margin. But when the hardware resources are on line, the load of the application system in a certain time will not be too high, so the utilization of the hardware device with high configuration is not high.

Integration difficulties. Users are also aware of the low utilization of resources in practical use, when the need for a new application system, will be given priority to deploy in the existing infrastructure. However, because of the operating environment required by different application systems, the preemption of the resources will be very different, more important is to consider the reliability, stability, operation and maintenance management issues, the new and old application system integration in a set of infrastructure is very difficult, more users often choose new and application system matching calculation, hardware devices such as storage and networking.

This deployment pattern, resulting in each set of hardware and the host application System "special plane", many sets of hardware and application system constitute a "chimney-style" deployment framework, so that the overall resource utilization is not high, occupy too much room space and energy, with the increase of application systems, IT resources efficiency, scalability, Manageability faces great challenges.

The introduction of the cloud infrastructure effectively addresses traditional infrastructure issues (as shown in Figure 2).

Converged Cloud computing infrastructure

Figure 2 Cloud Computing Fusion Mode deployment architecture

The cloud infrastructure, based on traditional infrastructure computing, storage, and network hardware layers, adds virtualization layers and clouds:

Virtualization layer: Most cloud infrastructures employ virtualization technologies, including computational virtualization, storage virtualization, and network virtualization. Through the virtualization layer, the difference and complexity of hardware layer are shielded, and the virtual resource pool with standardization, flexible expansion and contraction and elasticity is shown up.

Cloud: The resource pool for the deployment, combination, according to the needs of the application system automatically generate, expand the required hardware resources, more applications through the flow, automated deployment and management, improve it efficiency.

Compared to the traditional infrastructure, through virtualization consolidation and automation, the cloud infrastructure uses systems to share infrastructure resource pools for high utilization, high availability, low cost, low power consumption, and automated management of the cloud Platform layer to enable rapid deployment, easy scalability, and intelligent management to help users build IaaS ( Infrastructure as a service) cloud business model.