Topics for this podcast:
*OpenStack, Amazon, Eucalyptus and Citrix engage in open cloud warfare
*Microsoft spins off new company for openness
*Updates on automation players Puppet Labs and Opscode with Chef
*Percona turns attention to MySQL high availability
*Open APIs as the fifth pillar of modern IT openness
iTunes or direct download (28:42, 4.9MB)
Read the original article at Autoscaling MySQL on Amazon EC2
Autoscaling your webserver tier is typically straightforward. Image your apache server with source code or without, then sync down files from S3 upon spinup. Roll that image into the autoscale configuration and you’re all set. With the database tier though, things can be a bit tricky. The typical configuration we see is to have a [...]
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I went to a GSLUG meeting last Sat and gave a talk about ClouSE. The slides are mostly the same as here, with the addition of the cloud database technologies comparison chart:
RDBaaS stands for Relational Database as a Service.
Data confidentiality: ClouSE is the only cloud database technology that provides full data confidentiality in the cloud. To guarantee data confidentiality in the cloud ClouSE encrypts the data using military grade AES-256 encryption before it puts the data to the cloud storage. This ensures that the data is visible neither over the wire nor to the cloud storage provider. The data confidentiality is fully controlled with the encryption key that the customer provides to ClouSE. Customers are in charge of encryption key management and fully control who has access to their data, if anyone.
Fast DB access: ClouSE can run on the same machine as the server application (e.g. Web Server), so access from the server application to the database is fast and reliable. Other cloud databases need to be accessed over the Internet, so the server applications need to be re-designed to deal with longer response times and higher failure rates when accessing the database. Most server applications are designed to assume that database access is fast and reliable; ClouSE fully supports that assumption.
ACID transactions, Secondary indices, SQL: NoSQL services don’t support ACID transactions, secondary indices or structured queries. Both ClouSE and RDBaaS provide standard, well-known and widely used relational database management.
Storage elasticity: With RDBaaS, the primary storage size needs to be specified upfront. Users are charged for reserved storage, not for used storage. The storage consumption cannot shrink even if some of the data is deleted. With ClouSE and NoSQL services, the storage consumption grows and shrinks with the amount data, users pay only for storage they use.
Automatic scale out: I put a yellow dot for the automatic scale out for ClouSE to reflect its ability to scale out content delivery from cloud storage directly. Applications that manage a lot of content (e.g. images, videos) may achieve significant scale-out.
A week ago I again had the pleasure to give a guest lecture at Tampere University of Technology. I've visited them the first time when I worked as MySQL pre-sales in Sun.
To be trendy, I of course had to talk about the cloud. It turns out every section has the subtitle "...and why it is more difficult for databases". I also rightfully claim to have invented the NoSQL key-value development model in 2005.
The new dashboard from the CloudStack 3.0 beta.
Over the last year I have been working on the CloudStack Open Source Cloud Computing project. This month we are getting ready to launch CloudStack 3.0 which really raises the bar for cloud computing platforms. So what is CloudStack ? short It is an infrastructure-as-a-service(IaaS) platform that orchestrates virtualized servers into an elastic compute environment. The project was originally developed by Cloud.com and is now sponsored by Citrix since they acquired Cloud.com in July of 2011.
CloudStack provides multiple methods for interacting with the CloudStack compute platform. Users can request resources through a rich menu-driven web interface. Operations personnel can use an enhanced version of the web interface or interact with CloudStack’s RESTful API or command line interface (CLI). The new 3.0 UI takes things up a notch making it very intuitive for users to administer their own cloud computing so administrators can delegate infrastructure provisioning and focus on more high value tasks than spinning up servers.
Another thing that I think sets CloudStack apart is it’s networking-as-a-service capabilities. CloudStack administrator can create any number of custom network offerings in addition to the default network offerings provided by CloudStack. These offerings can be attached to the virtualized machines deployed by Cloudstack. Cloudstack allows user to choose the type of network architecture that best fits their needs. Out-of-the-box support includes the Basic Network, or flat network mode or advanced networking VLAN support and integration of network elements including external firewalls and load balancers. Administrators can offer different classes of service on a single multi-tenant physical network with a combination of networking offerings that include DHCP, Source Network Address Translation (NAT), Gateway, Load Balancing, Firewall, VPN, Port Forwarding.
You can get the details on the beta of CloudStack 3.0 from the CloudStack open source project and the GA version should be available in the upcoming weeks.
For those of you who are familiar with CloudStack here’s a list of features that will be included in CloudStack 3.0.
Technorati Tags: cloud computing, cloudstack, Iaas, Infrastructure-as-a-Service, Networking-as-a-Service, Open Source
As the saying goes, we at Severalnines have been walking on several clouds this year, 9 to be precise!
Today, we are proud to say that we are on walking on Cloud 9!
And in the spirit of celebration, we would like to announce our:
Top 9 Clouds of the Year 2011 for Severalnines
Cloud 1 – releasing ClusterControl™ - our first commercial product in April!
ClusterControl™ is our flagship product. It enables developers and database administrators to Deploy, Manage, Monitor and Scale their clustered database platforms, free from the complexity and learning curves associated with database clusters. Read more ...
Cloud 2 – releasing ClusterControl™ for MySQL Replication
Designed to address issues and needs of MySQL users relying on MySQL Replication, ClusterControl™ for MySQL Replication offers a complete set of tools to assist developers and administrators of all skill levels to deploy, manage, monitor and scale their replicated MySQL databases. Read more ...
Cloud 3 - releasing ClusterControl™ for MySQL Galera together with Codership
ClusterControl™ for MySQL Galera enables customers to Deploy, Manage, Monitor and Scale a clustered MySQL database platform based on Galera Replication. MySQL Galera is a synchronous multi-master cluster for MySQL/InnoDB, and allows applications to read and write from any MySQL Server.
Developers and DBAs now have access to all of the features of Severalnines' flagship product ClusterControl™ specifically adapted to MySQL Galera. Read more ...
Cloud 4 – reaching over 7,000 installations via the Severalnines Configurator
The Severalnines Configurator allows you to generate a production class configuration for a clustered MySQL configuration. It also generates a deployment package that automates the deployment of the complete database setup. Topologies can be based on MySQL Replication, MySQL Cluster or MySQL Galera.
We have a great user base and in order to facilitate communication within our user community, we set up our Severalnines Customer Services platform with forums, online support, etc. both for paying customers as well as users. Check it out and join the conversation!
Cloud 5 – our Customers
At Severalnines, our goal is to reduce database costs, ease deployment, simplify management and increase DBA and developer productivity.
But rather than us telling you why we think we are great, we wanted to provide documented case studies on how our innovative products are helping customers meet and exceed business goals for their database operations. See what our customers have to say about us.
Cloud 6 – introducing Severalnines DataCloud™
Severalnines DataCloud™ enables DBaaS for public, private and hybrid clouds. It extends the advantages of cloud computing to the database infrastructure layer by enabling on-demand access, automated management, managed availability and elasticity of MySQL databases. This reduces cost and the complexities of deploying and managing databases. Read more ...
Cloud 7 – launching the first ever 100% European DbaaS with City Network
On November 23rd, Severalnines and our partner City Network announced the first fully European Database as a Service (DBaaS) solution - in beta form. The City Cloud Database Service is based and operated in the European Union - offering European customers full compliance with EU Directive on Data Protection 95/46/EC and a safe haven from the reaches of the US Patriot Act and making it the first ever offering of its kind. Read more ...
Cloud 8 – being talked about at the European Commission – Severalnines in the News
Following our announcement of the City Cloud Database Service, the press took over and 20+ original articles later, we discovered that we were even being talked about at European Commission conferences. Which shows to prove that politicians do read the papers (or are well briefed by colleagues who do) and that we had hit the right spot with our announcement. Find out more and see all the press coverage in our News Center.
Cloud 9 – winning the EuroCloud Sweden & Europe Awards 2011 for Best Startup!!!
We did it! After winning the EuroCloud Award for Sweden, we won the EuroCloud Europe Award for Best Startup last week in Paris at a prestigious ceremony on the Seine. We attended the ceremony together with our friends from City Network and needless to say that we had a great night! The Awards have been widely covered by the European press in multiple languages – visit our News Center for all the details.
All in all, it's been a great year for us and we have all of you to thank for that!
So here is a BIG 'thank you' from everyone at Severalnines to all our customers, partners, friends and supporters out there.
Have a great year-end and and an even better start to the year 2012 - see you there!
Please do reach out to us with your feedback on Facebook, LinkedIn, XING or directly via these contact details for fruitful and interactive discussions on this latest release. For 'instant' communication, feel free to follow us on Twitter !
About Severalnines
Severalnines provides automation and management software for easily usable, highly available and auto-scalable cloud database platforms. ClusterControl™, the company’s flagship product, used by developers and administrators of all skill levels, addresses the full deploy-manage-monitor-scale cycle. Severalnines has enabled over 7,000 deployments to date via its popular online configurator for clustered MySQL databases.To see who is using Severalnines today, please visit our references page.
New Euro Partnership offers safe-haven from US Patriot Act
Severalnines and City Network launch first fully European ‘Database as a Service’
STOCKHOLM and LONDON, 23rd November -Severalnines, provider of automation and management software for cloud database platforms, and City Network, the ‘data center in a browser’ company have announced the first fully European Database as a Service (DBaaS) solution - in beta form. The City Cloud Database Service is based and operated by companies in the European Union - offering European customers full compliance with EU Directive on Data Protection 95/46/EC and a safe haven from the reaches of the US Patriot Act.
EU customers can now benefit from the savings and flexibility enabled by cloud-based database services safe in the knowledge that they will not fall under the jurisdiction of the Patriot Act. Under the Patriot Act, data from EU users of US-owned cloud-based services can currently be shared with US law enforcement agencies without the need to tell the user.
“Small start-ups and large corporations are turning to the cloud in a bid to deploy and manage databases with as little overhead as possible - but they need to know their data is secure and that they retain the right and ability to control who accesses it,” says Vinay Joosery, chief executive officer at Severalnines.
“A fully managed database service will enable our customers to further reap the benefits of the cloud,” says Johan Christenson, Chairman at City Network. “We believe that a service owned and operated locally in the EU, and fully compliant with EU data protection laws, will be very particularly attractive for European companies. US companies with European operations will also benefit from the lower latency of a locally hosted solution.”
The MySQL based City Cloud Database Service enables companies to outsource the configuration and management of their databases and only pay for what they use. Specific benefits include:
• Web interface for easy provisioning
• Zero maintenance or administration – backups, patch management and replication handling are fully automated
• Performance Management – users have visibility of top queries and can drill-down into performance
• High Availability – failures are handled automatically to minimise downtime
• Scalability – users can add more instances at the click of a mouse
• Comprehensive user interface for administering databases; and
• Data import and export functionality to help move MySQL databases within the cloud.
The service relies on the Severalnines DataCloud platform, a database automation and management platform that helps companies run flexible databases anywhere, whether on their premises or in the cloud. It is based on City Network’s City Cloud computing platform which allows unlimited growth with a focus on stability, security and redundancy.
City Cloud Database Service is available in beta. Companies can apply for the trial by emailing dbaas@citycloud.eu. The service is available free of charge for the duration of the beta period, which will run until early 2012. More information is available on http://www.citycloud.eu/
[ENDS]
About Severalnines
Severalnines provides automation and management software for easily usable, highly available and auto-scalable cloud database platforms. ClusterControl™, the company’s flagship product, used by developers and administrators of all skill levels, addresses the full deploy-manage-monitor-scale cycle. Severalnines has enabled over 7,000 deployments to date via its popular online configurator for clustered MySQL® databases.
With everyone at Severalnines coming from an Open Source background and with a view to supporting other start-up organisation, the company is introducing a start-up program, whereby organisations with less than 10 employees and less than one million Euro in funding will be given free access to its enterprise software for 12 months. For information, just email startup@severalnines.com.
To see who is using Severalnines today, please visit our references page: http://severalnines.com/references
About City Network
With more than 10,000 customers across Europe City Network is one of the leading European hosting companies. Core services include cloud hosting, dedicated environments as well as shared hosting and domain services. City Network also provides high end backup services via www.onlinebackup.io. City Cloud is the cloud computing brand which you can read more about at www.citycloud.eu. You can find more information about City Network at: www.citynetworkhosting.com
Red Hat’s $136m acquisition of open source storage vendor Gluster marks Red Hat’s biggest buy since JBoss and starts the fourth quarter with a very intersting deal. The acquisition is definitely good for Red Hat since it bolsters its Cloud Forms IaaS and OpenShift PaaS technology and strategy with storage, which is often the starting point for enterprise and service provider cloud computing deployments. The acquisition also gives Red Hat another weapon in its fight against VMware, Microsoft and others, including OpenStack, of which Gluster is a member (more on that further down). The deal is also good for Gluster given the sizeable price Red Hat is paying for the provider of open source, software-based, scale-out storage for unstructured data and also as validation of both open source and software in today’s IT and cloud computing storage.
This is exactly the kind of disruption we’ve been seeing and expecting as Linux vendors compete with new rivals in virtualization, cloud computing and different layers of the stack, including storage (VMware, Microsoft, OpenStack, Oracle, Amazon and others), as covered in our recent special report, The Changing Linux Landscape.
While the deal makes perfect sense for both Red Hat and for Gluster, it also has implications for the white hot open source cloud computing project OpenStack. There was no mention of OpenStack in Red Hat’s FAQ on the deal, but there was a reference to ongoing support for Gluster partners, of which there are many fellow OpenStack members. OpenStack was also highlighted among Gluster’s key open standards participation along with the Linux Foundation and Red Hat-led Open Virtualization Alliance oriented around KVM. Sources at both Gluster and Red Hat, which point to OpenStack support being bundled into Red Hat’s coming Fedora 16, also reiterated to me Red Hat is indeed planning to continue involvement with OpenStack around the Gluster technologies. I suspect Red Hat is looking to leverage Gluster more for its own purposes than for OpenStack’s, but I must also acknowledge Red Hat’s understanding of the value of openness, community and compatibility. Taking that idea a step further, Gluster may represent a way that Red Hat can integrate with and tap into the OpenStack community by blending it with its own community around Fedora, RHEL, JBoss, RHEV and Cloud Forms and OpenShift.
The deal also leads many to wonder whether or what may be next for Red Hat in terms of acquisition. We’ve long thought database and data management technologies were areas where we might see Red Hat building out. This was also the subject of renewed rumors recently, and we believe it might still be an attractive piece for Red Hat given the open source opportunities and targets around NoSQL technologies such as Apache Hadoop distributed data management framework and Cassandra distributed database management software. We’ve also believed systems management to be a potential place for Red Hat to further expand. Given its need to largely stay within open source, we would expect targets in this area to include GroundWork Open Source, which joins Linux and Windows systmes in its monitorig and management, and Zenoss, which works with Cisco and Red Hat rival VMware in monitoring and managing systems with its open source software. Another potential target that would increase Red Hat’s depth in open source virtualization and cloud computing is Convirture, which might also be an avenue for Red Hat to reach out to midmarket and SMB customers and channel players. Red Hat was among the non-OpenStack members we listed as potential acquirers when considering the M&A possibilities (451 subscribers) out of OpenStack.
Given its recent quarterly earnings report and topping the $1 billion annual revenue mark, Red Hat seems again to be bucking the bad economy. We’ve written before in 2008 and more recently how bad economic conditions can be good for open source software. Red Hat is atop the list of open source vendors that suffer as traditional, enterprise IT customers such as banks freeze spending or worse, fail. However, the company’s deal for Gluster is yet another sign it is thriving and expanding despite economic difficulty and uncertainty.
You don’t have to just look at Red Hat’s earnings or take our word for it. On Jim Cramer’s ‘Mad Money’ this week, we heard Red Hat CEO Jim Whitehurst praised for Red Hat performance and traction where most companies and many economists are throwing the blame: financial services, government and Europe. Cramer credited Red Hat for a ’spectacular quarter’ and allowed Whitehurst to tout the benefits of the Gluster technology and acquisition, particularly Gluster’s software-based storage technology that matches cloud computing. It was quite a contrast to the news out of Oracle Open World, where hardware was a focal point.
By releasing Open Compute Project technologies as open hardware, our goal is to develop servers and data centers following the model traditionally associated with open source software projects. That’s where you come in.Facebook and others are opening up data center design. Gamers have been building their own systems for years. Assuming Bunnie's logic is correct, open hardware will apply to wide range of devices from phones up to massive clusters. Community-based, customized system designs are no longer an oddity but part of a broad movement that will change the way all of us think about building and deploying applications on any kind of physical hardware. It will upset current companies but also create opportunities for new kinds of businesses. The "cloud" is not the only revolution in computing. Open source hardware has arrived.
I chatted today about VMware's Cloud Foundry with Roger Bodamer, the EVP of products and technology at 10Gen. 10Gen's MongoDB is one of three back-ends (along with MySQL and Redis) supported from the start by Cloud Foundry.
If I understand Cloud Foundry and VMware's declared "Open PaaS" strategy, it should fill a gap in services. Suppose you are a developer who wants to loosen the bonds between your programs and the hardware they run on, for the sake of flexibility, fast ramp-up, or cost savings. Your choices are:
An IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) product, which hands you an emulation of bare metal where you run an appliance (which you may need to build up yourself) combining an operating system, application, and related services such as DNS, firewall, and a database.
You can implement IaaS on your own hardware using a virtualization solution such as VMware's products, Azure, Eucalyptus, or RPM. Alternatively, you can rent space on a service such as Amazon's EC2 or Rackspace.
A PaaS (Platform as a Service) product, which operates at a much higher level. A vendor such as handles all the back-end services and just exposes an API to which you program.
By now, the popular APIs for IaaS have been satisfactorily emulated so that you can move your application fairly easily from one vendor to another. Some APIs, notably OpenStack, were designed explicitly to eliminate the friction of moving an app and increase the competition in the IaaS space.
Until now, the PaaS situation was much more closed. VMware claims to do for PaaS what Eucalyptus and OpenStack want to do for IaaS. Vmware has a conventional cloud service called Cloud Foundry, but will offer the code under an open source license. Right Scale has already announced that you can use it to run a Cloud Foundry application on EC2. And a large site could run Cloud Foundry on its own hardware, just as it runs VMware.
Cloud Foundry is aggressively open middleware, offering a flexible way to administer applications with a variety of options on the top and bottom. As mentioned already, you can interact with MongoDB, MySQL, or Redis as your storage. (However, you have to use the particular API offered by each back-end; there is no common Cloud Foundry interface that can be translated to the chosen back end.) You can use Spring, Rails, or Node.js as your programming environment.
So open source Cloud Foundry may prove to be a step toward more openness in the cloud arena, as many people call for and I analyzed in a series of articles last year. VMware will, if the gamble pays off, gain more customers by hedging against lock-in and will sell its tools to those who host PaaS on their own servers. The success of the effort will depend on the robustness of the solution, ease of management, and the rate of adoption by programmers and sites.