2009 Horizon Report Australia-New Zealand Edition

2

One Year or Less: Private Clouds

Time-to-Adoption Horizon: One Year or Less

Cloud computing refers to storage and processing that occurs in a networked environment rather than relying on the limits of a personal computer. In the cloud, storage and processing resources are allocated “on the fly” among consumers based on their specific needs. The result is shared content that is less expensive to store, easier to manage and access, and often more true to the dynamic nature of knowledge that emerges from university settings. The cloud has been of tremendous interest to Australia and New Zealand for some time, but concerns over the legal jurisdiction and continued availability of data stored on offshore servers is leading to the development of private, Australian clouds that offer the same benefits.

Overview

Cloud computing is the practice of using networked computers to distribute storage, processing power, applications, and large systems among many machines. To the end user, the cloud is invisible; it is simply the back-end platform that supports everyday applications, both web-based and desktop. Resources and storage in the cloud are allocated as needed in response to the level of demand at any given time, allowing applications to scale dynamically to support user loads of different sizes. Cloud-based applications appeared in the 2008 report on the near horizon, and indeed, many of the applications highlighted in that report have been integrated into educational practice already. However, as experience with the technology has grown, it has become clear that cloud computing poses unique challenges for audiences in Australia and New Zealand. The solution to the most vexing of these challenges is increasingly seen as combining the resources of educational institutions into cloud clusters, known informally as “private clouds.”

A key factor in the mix is that, irrespective of how the cloud is configured or where it is located, there are a number of clearly positive capacities inherent in cloud computing. Cloud-based applications are always up to date and there are no demands placed on local support staff to make that happen. The same is true when project and other shared sorts of documents are stored in the cloud; a number of cloud-based applications allow workgroups to collaborate in ways that automatically track changes and present the latest versions to users.

Cloud computing is also valued for the elasticity of resources it affords. Institutions and commercial entities that use the cloud to support complex computing demands, storage, and media streaming need not worry about over- or under-provisioning for necessary services, since the available resources Cloud computing refers to storage and processing that occurs in a networked environment rather than relying on the limits of a personal computer. In the cloud, storage and processing resources are allocated “on the fly” among consumers based on their specific needs. The result is shared content that is less expensive to store, easier to manage and access, and often more true to the dynamic nature of knowledge that emerges from university settings. The cloud has been of tremendous interest to Australia and New Zealand for some time, but concerns over the legal jurisdiction and continued availability of data stored on offshore servers is leading to the development of private, Australian clouds that offer the same benefits. expand and contract in real time in response to load and demand.

These benefits are naturally very attractive, but in Australia and New Zealand, they are tempered by concerns related to the physical location of cloud resources. Nearly all of the large data farms available for cloud-based applications are currently located in North America, Asia, or Europe, which poses problems for Australians concerned with the sovereignty of their information. Questions about who has legal control of data stored on computers in another country are not easily answered, making it a challenge to use the cloud to store or work with confidential, sensitive, or private information such as student records, health histories, financial data, and so on.

To address the issues around using existing clouds, Australian companies — and international companies that do significant business in Australia — are beginning to establish private clouds located within the country to house their customers’ data. For example, Blackboard, an American company, has established an Australian data centre to serve its customers there. Local providers like Infoplex (http://www.infoplex.com.au) offer secure, private cloud services to their clients using servers that are physically located within Australia. Enterprise software solutions such as Microsoft’s web-based Office 2010 can now be set up and configured to run in private cloud environments, combining the flexibility of cloud-based productivity tools with the security of a privately-controlled cluster.

Companies like Cisco Systems are encouraging the Australian and New Zealand governments and major educational organisations to establish private clouds within and among institutions, and to experiment with notions like hybrid clouds, which would use local clouds for processes and data that have needs tied to physical location, and external clouds for processes where there is less concern around data sovereignty. Advances in the ways networks are locally configured are making such approaches easier all the time; the creation of local cloud clusters, for example, has been spurred by advances in how they are configured and administered. Support for private clouds is on the very near term horizon, via open source cloud platforms such as Eucalyptus or OpenNebula.

Relevance for Teaching, Learning, and Creative Enquiry

Cloud computing in all its forms offers wide ranging benefits for education in the form of software and hardware management, data-driven research, and flexibility of resources. Private clouds offer the promise of truly personalised computing environments, complete with all the tools and resources one needs, accessible via the Internet on a wide range of devices located anywhere.

Access to scalable computing resources on demand means institutions will have a much wider range of choices regarding how they balance the cost of provisioning their networks with the research needs of their departments. University data centres, in particular, are uniquely poised to maximise their resources by creating local clouds on their own networks. For institutions that do not have a large computing infrastructure, the cloud allows researchers to easily and relatively inexpensively scale their computing needs up or down as the demands of their work require. In the not-so-recent past, neither of these scenarios was really possible. Such benefits apply across the range of cloud configurations under discussion.

The move toward private clouds physically located in Australia and New Zealand — and particularly in educational institutions there — is seen as a critical component of a larger effort to establish a national network of research data. Also called the national data fabric, this network would be supported by a series of Australian cloud clusters. Organisations such as the Australian National Data Service (ANDS) are being established to promote and realise the vision of an Australia-wide research data network. Such a data fabric promises secure and locally administered access for Australian scholars and researchers pursuing enquiries in virtually every discipline, and is a major driver of interest in private clouds.

A sampling of applications of cloud computing and private clouds across disciplines includes the following:

• Biotechnology. The Medical College of Wisconsin Biotechnology and Bioengineering Centre in Milwaukee produced a set of free tools called ViPDAC (Virtual Proteomics Data Analysis Cluster) to be used with Amazon’s cloud computing service to determine the elemental composition as well as chemical structure of a molecule.
• Computer Science. Students at the University of California, Berkeley, use cloud computing resources to perform load testing measurements as they learn how to design datacenter-scale applications. Each pair of students is able to access 8-10 virtual servers to make their own observations — nearly 200 servers are used per class. Once the lab is over, the servers are released.
• Professional Development. A trial project at Continuing Education Bendigo in Victoria, Australia known as RSSing Organisational Capacity aims to use RSS to collate information and coursework about learners so that teachers and trainers can quickly assess prior learning and current needs. The project is supported by the Australian Flexible Learning Framework.

Private Clouds in Practice

The following links provide examples of cloud computing and private clouds in educational settings.

8 ways Cloud Computing May Change Schools
http://blog.core-ed.net/derek/2009/06/8-ways-cloud-computing-may-change-schools.html
(Derek Wenmoth, Derek’s Blog, 8 June 2009.) Working in the cloud offers benefits to higher education. For example, students, staff, and the institution need no longer be concerned with outdated software. Using cloud computing eliminates the need to update software, or purchase a new program to sync home and school.

AWS in Education Customer Experiences
http://aws.amazon.com/education/customer-experiences/#6
Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides grant money to higher education institutions to allow technological advancement to take place. This link provides examples of how grant money has been used in the past, from universities such as Stanford, Oxford, and Carnegie Mellon.

Cloud Riders to be the Envy of Web Surfers
http://www.swinburne.edu.au/magazine/6/115cloud-riders-to-be-the-envy-of-web-surfers//
(Richard Constantine, Swinburne Magazine, June 2009.) At the University of Swinburne, cloud computing may solve the issue of student mobility, allowing participation of offshore students and researchers.

Megha: Melbourne Cloud Computing Initiative
http://www.gridbus.org
University of Melbourne addresses the issue of underdeveloped cloud computing skills among recent graduates by sponsoring research on the design and development of different cloud platforms for a range of applications.

Technology Enabled Learning and Teaching
http://telt.unsw.wikispaces.net
The University of New South Wales is currently implementing a new approach to e-learning, labelled Technology Enabled Learning and Teaching (TELT). This platform encompasses a suite of technologies, including cloud computing, to address the diverse needs of students and staff.

Uni of Melb Cloud to Water Farms
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/Uni-of-Melb-cloud-to-water farms/0,130061733,339296510,00.htm?feed=pt_ cloud_computing
(Chris Duckett, ZDnet.com.au, 19 May 2009.) Using cloud computing as part of the irrigation system at an experimental farm increased production by 300 percent. The cloud program, IBM’s System S, combines thousands of data streams which allow the farmer to predict variables — like the weather, or supply and demand — months into the future.

For Further Reading

The following articles and resources are recommended for those who wish to learn more about cloud computing and private clouds.

7 Things You Should Know About Cloud Computing
http://www.educause.edu/node/176856
(ELI, EDUCAUSE, August 2009.) This article explains cloud computing and its relevance to educational practice.

Be Careful When You Come to Put Your Trust in the Clouds
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/jun/04/bruce-schneier-cloud-computing
(Bruce Schneier, The Guardian, 4 June 2009.) This article provides a description of potential security and reliability issues that could face users of cloud computing and storage once they give up control of their data.

Cloud Computing Special Part 1: Looking for the Silver Lining
http://www.cio.com.au/article/309984/cloud_computing_special_part_1_looking_silver_lining
(Brad Howarth, CIO, 06 July 2009.) Australian companies are becoming increasingly more interested in cloud computing. This article discusses many aspects of cloud computing as it relates to Australian industry.

Cloud Computing’s Top Issues for Higher Education
http://www.universitybusiness.com/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=1342
(John L. Nicholson, University Business, June 2009.) The author describes the different forms cloud computing takes, from storage to computing applications, as well as issues that face would-be cloud computing adopters.

Cloud Computing: What are Private Clouds?
http://web2.sys-con.com/node/663501
(Jian Zhen, web2journal.com, 9 September 2008.) When considering how to incorporate cloud computing into a university’s IT program, should you choose a private or public cloud? This article explains private cloud computing.

Defining Private Clouds, Part One
http://www.cio.com.au/article/304190/defining_private_clouds_part_one?rid=-154
(Bernard Golden, CIO, 22 May 2009.) This article, first in a series of four on private clouds, describes private clouds and illustrates some of the considerations that should be taken into account when establishing one.

Harnessing Cloud Computing for Data-Intensive Research on Oceans, Galaxies
http://uwnews.org/article.asp?articleid=48747
(Hannah Hickey, University of Washington News, 14 April 2009.) This press release describes three projects that integrate cloud computing with university meteorological and astronomical research and a grant that provides curriculum and training.

Delicious: Private Clouds
http://delicious.com/tag/hz09au+cloudcomputing
(Australia–New Zealand Horizon Advisory Board and Friends, 2009.) Follow this link to find resources tagged for this topic and this edition of the Horizon Report, including the ones listed here. To add to this list, simply tag resources with “hz09au” and “cloudcomputing” when you save them to Delicious.