The Intercloud: Where Computing Needs to Go

There has been plenty of confusion about what cloud computing is thanks to a multitude of ways in which virtualization and IT services can be deployed and marketed. This has contributed to a vast array of papers and articles and blogs defining cloud computing.

Underneath the haze of “everything becomes cloud because cloud is a hot topic” confusion, a new term is rising on the horizon; and its pretty interesting. There are no doubt others using the term “intercloud”, but I think Cisco (CSCO) has really stepped up the discussion.

I don’t know who created the “intercloud", but it is a major development in articulating the highest potential enterprise cloud payoff. Check out this Cisco blog and intercloud preso. The intercloud is a spectacular vision of where computing needs to go. And there are plenty of barriers between that vision and where computing is today.

Think of the intercloud as a unified and elastic mesh of on demand processing power and IT services deployed across multiple data centers. The payoff is massive scale, efficiency and flexibility. Virtual machines (VMs) can spin up and move across physical data date centers in pursuit of the lowest cost method of delivery. It services are truly decoupled from a specific location.

Just when you thought that Google (GOOG) and Amazon (AMZN) would control the skies, along comes Cisco with a brilliant vision that amplifies the role of the network and offers enterprises a sexy, powerful alternative that might be just as far out as Google and Amazon making a noticeable dent in the enterprise IT market.

As hot an idea as it is, the Intercloud might have detractors like Mark Masterson, who recently published a brilliant presentation on enterprise cloud security. You want to watch the preso. He makes the case for why security needs to evolve to protect the cloud.

The intercloud will need to address these issues even more so than the partially virtualized racks of blades some are already calling clouds.

The brilliance of the intercloud is today’s gap between the intercloud promise and reality: the network. That’s why it makes great sense for networking hardware vendors like Cisco to begin educating the market about where cloud computing needs to go, and ultimately the investments in automation and management that will be required. The vision will help to champion the needed technology and will offer enterprises a sexy alternative to Google, Amazon and others who are likely to evolve their offerings over time.

Before we get too carried away with the intercloud promise, let’s talk about a few challenges here today. Everyone probably agrees that it will be the most powerful, cost effective and compelling form of cloud computing for the enterprise. Yet according to Internet visionary Vinton Cerf, today’s Internet isn’t yet prepped for the much, much simpler stuff:

“One of the most critical needs is authentication," Cerf said, and he told the crowd at a TechAmerica gathering Wednesday that anyone who performs transactions over the Internet -- which is everyone -- "should be deeply concerned about that technology."

"The lack of authentication is pervasive and is even a problem in simple cases, such as authenticating entries in the domain name system," he said.

-Patrick Thibodeau, Computerworld June 11, 2009

Authentication and addressing are problems in today’s less dynamic world of smaller, static It empires. Management costs have been going up, not down, for servers and networks. Is virtualization necessarily a solution for escalating management costs, or is more needed?

According to Denise Dubie at Network World much is still needed:

A majority of IT departments are deploying virtualization, but still most don't feel comfortable with the tools and technologies they have in place to manage application performance or troubleshoot problems in the virtual environment, according to recent survey results.

- Denise Dubie, Network World, May 2009

The intercloud won’t be a cakewalk. As Cerf advises, authentication (including the ages old art of addressing) will need to be tackled as a part of infrastructure 2.0. Management of more fluid VM environments will also continue to be issues. Bit what a sexy vision the intercloud is. If the challenges can be addressed the payoffs would be substantial for network vendors, customers and the industries producing traffic rich endpoints, including netbook computers and advanced cellphones.

Disclosure: Long Cisco, VMware

Comments

[goldhammer:]

very interesting article. Thank you.
/goldhammer

Jun 23 11:27 AM

[Jake Kimble:]

Good article, I am bullish on my CSCO holding with their entrance into so many new markets. Their Unified Computing System (UCS) is a superior product for virtualization and cloud computing. I agree that AMZN and GOOG are also cloud computing leaders, but dont overlook Sybase's (SY) mobilizartion software that operates on their cloud.

I just wrote an article on Cisco and its entrance into new markets, you can find it here: www.bullishbankers.com.../ on my company's website.

Jun 28 01:27 PM