IBM’s Cloud Computing Reference Model – Customer-Focused And Clear

IBM Cloud Computing Reference Model Highlights

• Architectures are not product roadmaps!
• Includes three communities – consumers, providers and creators
• Identifies 14 separate user types central to the design
• IBM has a major SaaS broker role
• Will help IBM draw the various strands of its strategy together and report associated revenues
• Identifies technical and business elements
• Will help users understand the mix between building and buying
• Suggests a move from internal to IBM-defined infrastructure
• Will challenge HP, Oracle, Fujitsu, Intel and others to explain their own reference models clearly

Figure 1 – IBM Cloud Computing Reference Model

We recently spent a day with IBM discussing its Cloud Computing approach. Although many of the presentations were a reminder of things we have studied before, its introduction of a reference architecture was new, so we thought our readers would be interested in our analysis.
We make no apologies for the eye-test graphics of Figure 1, which shows the architecture. It’s important in providing a way of understanding its multiple offerings and in demonstrating the company’s experience in addressing a very complex subject.
Like HP and Fujitsu, IBM has many large Enterprise customers for whom it has been building private Clouds for some time. We’ve also covered a number of initial SaaS and IaaS offerings , as well as discussing the implications of its shift to building block business in its outsourcing business. All of these can be fitted to the reference architecture, although we should remember that architectures are not in themselves offerings.

A Customer-Focused Approach

The architecture includes no fewer than 14 user types whose interest in Cloud Computing varies from creators, through managers, to end-users. In particular:

• On the left-hand ‘Cloud Service Consumer’ side it includes End-User, Service Integrator, Business Manager and Administrator roles
• In the middle ‘Cloud Service Provider’ section it includes Service and Business Manager roles interacting at the top with the Common Cloud Management Platform, while it includes Deployment Architect, Security and Risk, Operations and Transition Manager and Customer Care roles
• On the right-hand ‘Cloud Service Creator’ side it includes Service Component Developer, Service Composer and Offering Manager roles
  Following IBM’s diagram we’ve marked each of these with a user icon.

Four Types Of Cloud Services

Within the architecture IBM breaks Cloud Services into four categories. In particular:

• IaaS – this has been a typical early offering from system vendors as well as Google, Amazon and other public Cloud suppliers; the introduction of a standard architecture should encourage users who have taken advantage of offloading peak workloads to their suppliers for many years
• PaaS – IBM’s approach is focused on supplying tools for customers to build, deploy, manage, and integrate applications in a public or virtual private cloud, with supporting infrastructure (like processing, storage and networking), which it takes as a common understanding of what constitutes a PaaS offering; again the use of a common architecture should help to standardise and integrate these services with their own internal IT systems
• SaaS – In addition to the LotusLive offerings, IBM has a number of middleware offerings available “as a service” such as Tivoli Live (SaaS monitoring) and Blueworks Live (BPM); in addition, it has a number Smarter Commerce SaaS offerings, including Sterling Commerce, Unica, Coremetrics, and SPSS; its architectural approach should be attractive for ISVs and users; success in this area should see IBM become a major software broker, while its partners address the mid-market and SMB areas
• Business Process as a Service (BPaaS) – seemingly unique in comparison with other system vendor approaches, clearly IBM is incorporating its Technical and Business Services offerings here

Each of these areas is connected to the user through APIs and to the Common Cloud Management Platform through management software specific to each of the four areas. One of IBM’s Cloud Computing reference customers is Arrow, a traditional distributor with a new strategy, which includes building its own SaaS business. We are not yet sure how far it intends to go to adopt IBM’s reference architecture, but it is likely to appeal to a wider set of customers if it resists the urge to define its own infrastructure.

Some Conclusions – A Useful Model For Cloud Builders, Partners And Investors

IBM’s own research demonstrates the extent to which Cloud Computing is becoming one of the top issues for CIOs and it has been very active in helping many large companies virtualise their data centres, from which to run internal Cloud services. However Cloud Computing remains a confusing and potentially expensive investment for most businesses – including many ISVs and channel players. Its introduction of a reference architecture is important as it helps to illustrate the interconnections between developers, partners, users and IBM itself.
In future IBM’s will not be the only reference model: Cisco, VMWare, Oracle, HP, Fujitsu, Intel and others all have alternative ideas. Although the reference model per se doesn’t define specific offerings, IBM will prosper in this area if it can persuade its customers to move from an internal to an IBM-defined infrastructure. Its publication of this reference architecture is an important step in tying its various (sometimes ‘siloed’) Cloud Computing offerings together, which harmonises with its decision to measure these revenues separately from other businesses. We’re hoping that it will begin to publish these regularly in its financial reports.

This is complex information to digest. Please contact us if you would like to discuss IBM’s and other vendors’ approaches to Cloud Computing

ITCandor Acronym Buster

API – Application Programmable Interface
BPaaS – Business Process as a Service
CIO – Chief Information Officer
IaaS – Infrastructure as a Service
ISV – Independent Software Vendor
PaaS – Platform as a Service
SaaS – Software as a Service
Siloed – idiosyncratic and separated operations