openstack-manuals/doc/training-guides/module001-ch001-intro-text.xml
Andreas Jaeger 598f4f8c10 Use X-as-a-Service
Convert to new convention, add an entry for PaaS to the glossary.

Change-Id: Ie0ce977858e4c2659d207077e03ad85d8d088347
2014-03-14 15:38:13 +01:00

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<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<chapter xmlns="http://docbook.org/ns/docbook"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude"
xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" version="5.0"
xml:id="module001-ch001-intro-text">
<title>Introduction to OpenStack</title>
<para>OpenStack is a cloud operating system that controls large
pools of compute, storage, and networking resources throughout a
data center, all managed through a dashboard that gives
administrators control while empowering users to provision
resources through a web interface.</para>
<para>Cloud computing provides users with access to a shared
collection of computing resources: networks for transfer, servers
for storage, and applications or services for completing
tasks.</para>
<para>The compelling features of a cloud are:</para>
<itemizedlist>
<listitem>
<para>On-demand self-service: Users can automatically provision
needed computing capabilities, such as server time and network
storage, without requiring human interaction with each service
provider.</para>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<para>Network access: Any computing capabilities are available
over the network. Many different devices are allowed access
through standardized mechanisms.</para>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<para>Resource pooling: Multiple users can access clouds that
serve other consumers according to demand.</para>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<para>Elasticity: Provisioning is rapid and scales out or is
based on need.</para>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<para>Metered or measured service: Cloud systems can optimize
and control resource use at the level that is appropriate for
the service. Services include storage, processing, bandwidth,
and active user accounts. Monitoring and reporting of resource
usage provides transparency for both the provider and consumer
of the utilized service.</para>
</listitem>
</itemizedlist>
<para>Cloud computing offers different service models depending on
the capabilities a consumer may require.</para>
<itemizedlist>
<listitem>
<para>SaaS: Software-as-a-Service. Provides the consumer the
ability to use the software in a cloud environment, such as
web-based email for example.</para>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<para>PaaS: Platform-as-a-Service. Provides the consumer the
ability to deploy applications through a programming language
or tools supported by the cloud platform provider. An example
of Platform-as-a-service is an Eclipse/Java programming
platform provided with no downloads required.</para>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<para>IaaS: Infrastructure-as-a-Service. Provides infrastructure
such as computer instances, network connections, and storage
so that people can run any software or operating
system.</para>
</listitem>
</itemizedlist>
<para>Terms such as public cloud or private cloud refer to the
deployment model for the cloud. A private cloud operates for a
single organization, but can be managed on-premise or off-premise.
A public cloud has an infrastructure that is available to the
general public or a large industry group and is likely owned by a
cloud services company.</para>
<para>Clouds can also be described as hybrid. A hybrid cloud can be
a deployment model, as a composition of both public and private
clouds, or a hybrid model for cloud computing may involve both
virtual and physical servers.</para>
<para>Cloud computing can help with large-scale computing needs or
can lead consolidation efforts by virtualizing servers to make
more use of existing hardware and potentially release old hardware
from service. Cloud computing is also used for collaboration
because of its high availability through networked computers.
Productivity suites for word processing, number crunching, and
email communications, and more are also available through cloud
computing. Cloud computing also avails additional storage to the
cloud user, avoiding the need for additional hard drives on each
user's desktop and enabling access to huge data storage capacity
online in the cloud.</para>
<para>When you explore OpenStack and see what it means technically,
you can see its reach and impact on the entire world.</para>
<para>OpenStack is an open source software for building private and
public clouds which delivers a massively scalable cloud operating
system.</para>
<informaltable class="c20">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td rowspan="1" colspan="1">OpenStack is backed up by a global
community of technologists, developers, researchers,
corporations and cloud computing experts.</td>
<td rowspan="1" colspan="1"><inlinemediaobject>
<imageobject>
<imagedata fileref="figures/image11.png"/>
</imageobject>
</inlinemediaobject></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</informaltable>
</chapter>