1. Cloud Computing and Libraries
Edward Iglesias
Systems Librarian
Central Connecticut State University

2. Obviously Librarians know about it

3. A little vague

4. What is it?
Cloud computing refers to the delivery of
computing and storage capacity as a service to a
heterogeneous community of end-recipients. The
name comes from the use of clouds as an
abstraction for the complex infrastructure it
contains in system diagrams. Cloud computing
entrusts services with a user's data, software and
computation over a network. It has considerable
overlap with software as a service (SaaS).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_computing

5. The Cloudy Diagram

6. For the end user not that different
from…

7. Breeding’s Continuum of Abstraction
• Locally owned and installed servers
• Co-located servers
• Co-located virtual servers
• Web hosting
• Server hosting services
• Application Service Provider
• Software-as-a-service
• Infrastructure-as-a-service
• Platform-as-a-service
– Stolen from Marshal Breeding at
http://www.librarytechnology.org/ltg-displaytext.pl?RC=16681

8. Buy his Book

9. These don’t count even though they
feel “cloudy”
• Locally owned and installed servers
• Co-located servers
• Co-located virtual servers
• Web hosting
• Server hosting services
• Application Service Provider

10. These do.
• Software-as-a-service
• Infrastructure-as-a-service
• Platform-as-a-service

11. NIST Characteristics
• Essential Characteristics:
• On-demand self-service. A consumer can unilaterally provision computing capabilities, such as
server time and network storage, as needed automatically without requiring human interaction
with each service provider.
• Broad network access. Capabilities are available over the network and accessed through standard
mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneous thin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones,
tablets, laptops, and workstations).
• Resource pooling. The provider’s computing resources are pooled to serve multiple consumers
using a multi-tenant model, with different physical and virtual resources dynamically assigned and
reassigned according to consumer demand. There is a sense of location independence in that the
customer generally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of the provided resources
but may be able to specify location at a higher level of abstraction (e.g., country, state, or
datacenter). Examples of resources include storage, processing, memory, and network bandwidth.
• Rapid elasticity. Capabilities can be elastically provisioned and released, in some cases
automatically, to scale rapidly outward and inward commensurate with demand. To the consumer,
the capabilities available for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can be appropriated in
any quantity at any time.
• Measured service. Cloud systems automatically control and optimize resource use by leveraging a
metering capability1 at some level of abstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage,
processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can be monitored, controlled,
and reported, providing transparency for both the provider and consumer of the utilized service.
– http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-145/SP800-145.pdf

12. ASP vs SaaS

13. Application Service Provider
• Business applications hosted by software vendor
• Standalone application on discrete or virtualized
hardware
• Staff and public clients accessed via the Internet
• Same user interfaces and functionality as if
installed locally
• Established as a deployment model in the 1990’s

14. So what does it look like
• Sample transactions: Storage space
– You need an extra 2GB of storage space you can
access from anywhere. You can
1. Ask IT for a server share that you can access
remotely.
2. Get a free dropbox account.
3. Grab that thumbdrive you got from Oxford
Analytica at the last conference.
Which is cloud?

15. Software as a Service
• Complete software application, customized for
customer use
• Software delivered through cloud
infrastructure, data stored on cloud
• E.g. Google Docs

16. Comparisons ASP vs SaaS
• ASP • SaaS
– Hosted “turnkey” ILS – OCLC Worldshare
– Microsoft Office on an – Google Docs
Application Server – Amazon’s S3
– Hosted server space
offered by IT

17. Multi-tenant SaaS
• Multitenancy refers to a principle in software
architecture where a single instance of the
software runs on a server, serving multiple
client organizations (tenants).
– http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multitenancy

18. Examples of Multitenant SaaS
• SFX
• BiblioCommons
• Serials Solutions
– Summon
– Intota
– 360 Search

19. Platform as a Service
• Platform as a service (PaaS) is a category of cloud
computing services that provide a computing
platform and a solution stack as a service. Along
with SaaS and IaaS, it is a service model of cloud
computing. In this model, the consumer creates
the software using tools and libraries from the
provider. The consumer also controls software
deployment and configuration settings. The
provider provides the networks, servers and
storage.
– NIST Definition of Cloud Computing
http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-145/SP800-
145.pdf

20. Paas Reality Check
At a minimum, a PaaS solution should include the following elements:
1. Browser-based development studio - if you have to install something
on your computer to develop applications, that's not PaaS!
2. Seamless deployment to hosted runtime environment - ideally, a
developer should be able to deploy a PaaS application with one click. If you
have to talk to a person to get your app deployed, that's not PaaS!
3. Management and monitoring tools - while cloud-based solutions are
very cost effective, they can be tricky to manage and scale without good
tools. If you have to bolt on DIY monitoring to scale your cloud app, that's not
PaaS!
4. Pay as you go billing - avoiding upfront costs has made PaaS popular.
If you can't pay with your credit card based on usage, that's not PaaS!
http://www.keeneview.com/2009/03/what-is-platform-as-service-paas.html

21. Examples of PaaS Solutions
• AppEngine from Google: based on Python
and Django
• Force.com from SalesForce: based on the
SalesForce SaaS infrastructure and Apex language
• Bungee Connect: visual development studio
based on Java
• LongJump: based on Java/Eclipse
• WaveMaker: visual development studio based
on Java and hosted on Amazon EC2

22. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).
• The capability provided to the consumer is to provision
processing, storage, networks, and other fundamental
computing resources where the consumer is able to
deploy and run arbitrary software, which can include
operating systems and applications. The consumer
does not manage or control the underlying cloud
infrastructure but has control over operating systems,
storage, and deployed applications; and possibly
limited control of select networking components (e.g.,
host firewalls)
– NIST Definition of Cloud Computing
http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-145/SP800-145.pdf

23. Description of IaaS
With IaaS the enterprise renting the service is likely
to have considerable IT skills in-house because the
infrastructure offered is quite plain. Customers
select and basic software servers for their part of
the cloud and then load up their libraries,
applications and data then configure them
themselves. Virtualisation enables IaaS providers to
offer almost unlimited instances of servers to
customers and make cost-effective use of the
hosting hardware.
• http://www.bestpricecomputers.co.uk/glossary/infrastructur
e-as-a-service.htm

24. Example AWS
• http://aws.amazon.com/
More later…

25. Does it Make Sense?
• Moving to Cloud Benefits
– Less paperwork
– Less Maintenance
– More reliable
– Easier

26. Moving to Cloud Continued
• Cons
– Loss of local control
– May be more expensive
– May not be sufficiently customizable
– May not be legal

27. Other Possible Uses
• Free software needed for users
– Google Docs instead of Microsoft Word
– Spotify instead of iTunes or Freegal

28. Use cases continued
• Wordpress.com vs local install
• Omeka.net vs Omeka.org
• Microsoft Outlook vs Google Calendar

29. Software-as-a-Service Email Security:
Risk vs. Trust
– Bottom Line: Security is a major inhibitor to enterprise use
of software as a service (SaaS) email. SaaS email is a high-
trust and high-risk delivery model for the enterprise. It is
high-trust because the vendor controls the entire service
and delivery environment. It is high-risk because email
systems contain sensitive and proprietary content that
enterprises need to protect. However, some enterprises
are deploying SaaS email while taking measures to
mitigate their risk and assess the vendor security posture.
Armed with this information, enterprises can determine
their risk and deploy SaaS email that meets their security
requirements.
– http://www.gartner.com/technology/reprints.do?id=1-
1ACHDMJ&ct=120502&st=sb#h-d2e160

30. Sample Scenario
• Storage needed
– The story of ERISDA
– http://journal.code4lib.org/articles/4468
– Needed storage for high resolution digital scans.
– Needed to be redundant.
– Needed long term accessibility
– Couldn’t afford OCLC’s Digital Archive

31. Process System
Digital
Deposit Objects
Ingest Digital Update archive database
Archive MySQL
Server
Create PREMIS
-Manifest verification BagIt! Keep track
-Fixity check - What objects
-Format verification Archival are in archive
PREMIS
Object -Storage use &
growth
-File types
Archive
RAID1 HDD Amazon
S3

32. Contact Info
Edward Iglesias
Systems Librarian
Central Connecticut State University
http://www.edwardiglesias.com
This powerpoint will be at
http://www.slideshare.net/edwardiglesias