Private
cloud software has to work with the virtualization layer that is
providing the resources, enabling a management interface for the
self-service aspect along with a management interface for the IT
administrator. All of this has to be accomplished at a reasonable price
and with adequate support if you plan on making your private cloud a
part of your core business strategy. With all software investments
today, and especially when it comes to virtualization and cloud
software, the additional question of going with open source also has to
be taken into consideration with the pros and cons that come with it.
Thus below, you'll notice a mix of proprietary as well as open source
private cloud options and what each has to offer. to know more about
private cloud vendor keep on reading the article
Microsoft Private Cloud
While Microsoft was a bit late to the virtualization and cloud arena,
the software giant has spent considerable resources catching up and
leveraging experience to avoid some of the mistakes other vendors in
this space have made. Microsoft's private cloud software is part of the
System Center 2012 R2 offering. System Center incorporates several
products under one umbrella including Virtual Machine Manager, Data
Protection Manager, Endpoint protection and Operations Manager.
- Microsoft's System Center will support and centrally manage
Windows 2012 Hyper-V hosts along with third party hypervisors from
Citrix and VMware; KVM is a notable exception that is not included at
this time. While the hypervisors are agnostic, the current lack of
active third party network providers, including Cisco, is worth noting
and may be limiting to some customers.
- Microsoft's private cloud
offering focuses on the application life cycle combined with automation
and monitoring in one package. This, coupled with a straightforward
ability to create self-service portals based on mature IIS features,
helps with the installation process. Leveraging the .NET framework does
allow for additional extensions and troubleshooting.
- Security
can be leveraged off of existing Active Directory resources without the
complexity of setting up single sign on (SSO). However this can open up
additional security risks based on existing Windows Server
vulnerabilities.
- While the pieces in the package may not go
feature for feature when compared to other offerings, the single SKU
does make licensing and purchasing easier.
VMware vCloud Suite Private Cloud
VMware is one of the oldest players in the virtualization market and
has an established record of performance and reliability. VMware's
products have the ability to scale to some of the most demanding
workloads. VMware has incorporated several products into its private
cloud offering allowing customers to choose ala cart what features they
would like to use. VMware's vCloud Suite comes in three different
versions (Standard, Advanced and Enterprise) with each incorporating
additional products and features.
- VMware vCloud Suite does support other hypervisors, including
Hyper-V and KVM, however extensive single pane of glass management is
not advertised, as the favored hypervisor is ESXi.
- The Advanced
edition of vCloud Suites adds vRealize Business for vSphere and
Enterprise version includes vCenter Site Recovery Manager on top of the
vRealize Business Suite. vRealize Business offers cost, usage and
metering ability while vCenter Site Recovery Manager is policy-based
disaster recovery.
- The vCloud Suite is packaged and requires
license upgrades together as a single entity, however it is a collection
of separate products, which can lead to confusion with support, and
installation when compared to other offerings.
- Frequent
product name changes lead to confusion on what the products do, which
ones are needed, upgradable or even owned in some cases.
- vCloud
has the ability to integrate with VMware's software defined networking
offering NSX, however this is an additional licensing fee with all
versions of vCloud.
- Established enterprise class security at the
hypervisor and network layers for easy user integration with Active
Directory single sign on and its complexities are required.
- Support for VMware Virtual SAN and OpenStack allow for flexibility in both storage and third party cloud integration tools.
OpenStack Private Cloud
OpenStack is one of the most popular open source cloud operating
options today. It has the ability to manage compute, storage and
networking and deploy them is an easy to use, but somewhat feature
limited dashboard. Unlike VMware and Microsoft, OpenStack does not have
its own hypervisor.
- OpenStack can be used with VMware's ESXi, Microsoft's Hyper-V,
or Citrix Xen, however it is most often used with KVM, which is also
open source. With more vendors including OpenStack APIs this will
encourage more adoption.
- OpenStack supports a wide range of
software and hardware due to its open source nature. This allows for
flexible architecture that can support both legacy and new hardware
platforms.
- While the capital cost of the software is free (since
it's open source) the soft cost in training your IT staff will have to
be accounted for.
- Similar to other open source offerings, a
community support model is in place over paid maintenance, this may
require trained staff for immediate support needs.
- With so many
community developers and quality feedback from users the complexity of
installation and operation is simpler than might be expected. OpenStack
is directly focused on the cloud platform and does not have additional
pieces which reduces complexity.
Platform9 OpenStack Private Cloud
Platform9 is a private cloud provider based on OpenStack that does
not reside onsite. Platform9 uses an OpenStack as a service model to
allow organizations to manage their private clouds from an external
cloud. While this might seem a bit unusual for a private cloud solution,
the key point to remember is that your data still resides inside your
data center, it's simply the management piece that is external to your
company.
- Platform9 currently supports the KVM hypervisor with VMware ESXi
in beta testing. Currently there are no plans for Hyper-V or Citrix Xen
listed.
- Being a hosted solution there is no software to install
or upgrade. Platform9 handles all patches and upgrades to the OpenStack
core.
- Simplified user portal, image management and
infrastructure discovery allow for reduced administrative overhead while
leveraging the scalability and reliability of OpenStack.
- Policy
based deployments with infrastructure monitoring brings many of the
popular public cloud features into the private cloud space without
limited complexity.
- No capital costs to get started; the solution is priced as a monthly service fee.
Apache CloudStack Private Cloud
Another contender in the open source private cloud space is Apache's
CloudStack. The CloudStack solution supports a wide range of hypervisors
from VMware, Microsoft, Citrix and KVM. CloudStack is offered as a
complete solution minus the hypervisor, allowing companies to have a
robust management interface, usage metering and image deployment.
Storage tiering and Active Directory are also included with limited
software defined networking.
- Unlike OpenStack, which focuses on the core cloud aspect,
CloudStack is looking to provide everything under the single open source
umbrella.
- CloudStack is an economical approach to the private
cloud with many popular features included. One concern is the quality of
those features, along with the support that exists with open source
software.
- It includes a Java-based management agent, which may
cause some concerns regarding performance, security and version
splintering.
Private Cloud Feature Comparison
Microsoft Private Cloud |
Compatibility | Single pane of glass for Hyper-V, VMware ESXi and Citrix Xen servers, although detail of management support is not clear. |
Complexity | Single
product makes it easy (but expensive) to purchase. Because System
Center contains so many related products, installation and upgrades can
be complex. |
Security | Relies on the existing Active Directory / IIS frameworks allowing for ease of operations. |
Summary | Microsoft's
private cloud with System Center is a good option businesses looking to
get started with a private cloud. Cost is packaged, but System Center
itself is a very complex product and a bit large in overhead when
compared to some of the other offerings. |
VMware vCloud Suite Private Cloud |
Compatibility | Ability to manage top three hypervisors, but limited information on to what detail. |
Complexity | Suite
variants with add-ons can make purchasing complex. Products are
separate features making installing and upgrades more complex. |
Security | Mature security in core products, integration with Active Directory requires single sign on. |
Summary | VMware's
vCloud Suite is a collection of best of breed technologies that allow
for enterprise class performance, reliability and scalability. The ala
cart approach combined with frequent name changes does increase the
complexity for licensing, purchasing, installing and maintaining, even
as the majority of products are bundled in a loose collection. |
OpenStack Private Cloud |
Compatibility | Primary focus is on KVM but VMware's hypervisor is gaining support. Limited attention on Citrix Xen and Microsoft Hyper-V. |
Complexity | Fairly easy to get started with community created documentation. |
Security | Security
is based on security domains and trusts. Third-party LDAP server can do
authentication; support for multi-factor authentication is available as
well. |
Summary | OpenStack is a
private cloud offering that can scale from SMBs to larger enterprises.
While there is concern over support with open source software, a robust
community does exist. With the open source nature of OpenStack, several
vendors have used it as their cloud layer, adding additional features
and functions. |
Platform9 OpenStack Private Cloud |
Compatibility | Official
support for KVM; VMware hypervisor support is in beta. No published
plans for Citrix Xen or Microsoft Hyper-V at this time. |
Complexity | Quick and easy to get started with as there is no software to install. |
Security | Management is being done offsite, which could present security concerns for some organizations. |
Summary | Platform9
is the cloud platform for the folks that want many of the features of a
cloud without the management complexity. While you won't find some of
the advanced features that other vendors include, such as software
defined networking, Platform9 will appeal to those looking to get
started without the lead-time and costs of many of the other solutions.
The biggest hurtle with Platform9 today is the lack of full VMware and
Hyper-V support. |
Apache CloudStack Private Cloud |
Compatibility | Supports VMware ESXi, Citrix Xen, Microsoft Hyper-V and KVM. No single pane of glass for detailed management. |
Complexity | Multiple
products under a single open source umbrella may present challenges for
installation and configuration, coupled with primary support being
forum based is cause for concerns. |
Security | While
support for Active Directory exists, along with security zones, the
inclusion of Java-based management agents may present additional
security concerns. |
Summary | CloudStack
is a complete open source private cloud offering that can scale up to
enterprise needs. However, with limited customer references, until
CloudStack receives more exposure in the enterprise space it may be more
suited for smaller or classroom deployments. |