Digest: All about working with IaaS and examples of practical cases for IT-GRAD clients

Today we decided to collect the latest materials from our IaaS blog, in which we tell not only about our activities as a cloud provider, but do not forget about the practical side of the issue and share interesting examples from working with clients, writing about security technologies and talking about trends in the field of cloud computing.

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Cloud rental

Rent a virtual server or rent a virtual data center?

We tell what the concept of a virtual server includes, what exactly the client rents and what he can do about it, what is the classification of servers according to the hypervisor, the operating system and the format of services. For which companies the virtual server is suitable and how it can be used to minimize costs, increase efficiency, ensure security and reduce downtime. And also we compare the server with the virtual data center by their advantages and specific tasks.

Virtual capacity for rent

What do virtual power and Lego designer have in common? The article will tell not only about the essence of the service, but also about the components of which it consists. We will talk in detail about how the virtual processor works, what types of processors are allocated, whether it is possible to use several cores, in which cases it is inappropriate and how to evaluate the performance of the processor. In addition, we will discuss the RAM and find out which parameters you should pay attention to. And a little bit about hard drives: how to choose the right configuration and type of disk.

Cloud server rental

We talk about the classification of cloud servers, about why the choice can not be guided only by cost, about the features of virtualization at the hardware level and at the OS level, about the brands of hypervisors, what you need to know about the independent or automatic installation of the OS. From the article you will learn what advantages and limitations VPS / VDS have and how they differ from IaaS, what tasks a cloud server can perform (from 1C to video surveillance), what software can be installed, as well as about the existing payment system.

Virtual Data Center

Everything about a virtual data center, from the basics and definitions, to billing features, descriptions of horizontal and vertical scaling capabilities with examples of implementation and a description of all the functionality of such data centers. Briefly describe the differences between virtual and physical data center and virtual server and find out in which situations it is almost impossible to do without virtual data centers, and in which it would be more logical to use the services of physical data centers or virtual servers.

Cloud solutions for corporate clients

Providers offer a completely different set of cloud solutions to their customers. But there are several main categories of users. The article tells what solutions are suitable for private clients and small businesses, why they are less interested in security, resiliency and backup. We also give examples of large business tasks for which IaaS is used, as well as specific examples of applications and services using the SaaS model. For the convenience of perception, information about the differences in the used solutions of these two groups of clients is clearly presented in tabular form.

Cloud migration

What are the types of migration and how to determine which type is right for you, why you need an application dependency scheme, how a migration plan will help, why you cannot run migration without preliminary tests. Let us tell you what steps need to be taken to ensure that everything goes smoothly, as well as possible and frequently used migration methods, their features and algorithm of actions. In addition, in the article you will find the stories of our clients, by the example of which we examined the problems solved with the help of migration.

Webinar "7 criteria for choosing a cloud service provider. Experience "Kaspersky Lab"

The service manager of Kaspersky Lab, Grigory Kornilov, shares the experience of his company and tells how the mentioned criteria for choosing a provider were formed:

VMware Cloud Foundation: Simplified Software Data Center and Hybrid Cloud Deployment

We understand how to simplify the deployment of a hybrid cloud using the VMware Cloud Foundation platform, why it is ideal for building a software data center, what the solution is and what it is, and why customers get more freedom. And also a little about existing VMware Cloud Foundation implementation scenarios, which include building a virtual infrastructure, automating IT processes and deploying VDI infrastructure, and what the client gets in each case.

Infrastructure as a service

Although a lot of articles have already been written about IaaS, we decided to collect in one place materials not only about the service itself, its advantages, comparison with other models, but also talk about how to manage the solution through vCloud Director, IaaS origin history, which takes its beginning in the 50s of the last century, and the path of development to the present day, as well as prospects, possible extensions and growth directions in the future.

More about providers

Cloud provider

We find out who the cloud provider is and how it differs from the hosting provider and the data center. Which provider provides a wide range of virtual computing resources, and which is limited only to virtual servers? Where the client will be asked to create a virtual server in a few minutes, and where - to manage his virtual infrastructure? Who is more comfortable billing? And are the services provided by the data center and cloud provider? We answer the questions in the article.

SAP hosting in Russia

We talk about the features and benefits of transferring SAP to the cloud, the situation on the Russian market and the difficulties that arise when using foreign hosting due to differences in legislation, technical problems, language barriers, changes in exchange rates and the impossibility of full control. As well as the options for placing the service, which, although reflecting the standard models, are described in the article from the point of view of SAP.

What to require from SAP hosting service provider?

Detailed guide to the services of SAP providers: what you need to know about the service itself and why it is beneficial for customers. We talk about how to choose a provider, what questions all prospective applicants need to ask, what they need to know about the data center and why it is important, what the provider is responsible for, what SAP hosting service is, what additional services vendors can provide, what specific solutions The client can place in the provider cloud and what requirements are placed on the client. And also a few words about technical support, backup and disaster recovery.

Real cases

Cloud services: experience of using IaaS by Russian companies

We understand why Russian companies need a cloud, what problems it can solve, what customers like in cloud services, why they came up with such an option, what infrastructure requirements the companies had at the beginning of the way, whether the cloud helped them save, whether it could simplify their work companies, how can IaaS minimize risks and what advantages do development companies have.
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In addition, in the article, executives of various companies shared their experience in using the cloud and compared this experience using their own infrastructure, gave advice on choosing a provider and shared the problems they had to face.

As “IT-GRAD” IaaS-certified by PCI DSS standard. Part 2

The article describes in detail how Pentest was conducted, which is a test for compliance with the requirements of the standard. A little about the test itself and its goals, about how the preparation took place, which solutions to protect against vulnerabilities we used, and which solutions for analyzing all the details - the relying party. As a result of the test, vulnerabilities of various levels were discovered that we have eliminated. And a few tips on preparing for the pre-audit: we tell you what the auditor is checking and how to correct the identified inconsistencies and make small changes in the preparation process.

The first Russian project with certified IaaS and managed services: RFI Bank uses PCI DSS Compliant Hosting in the IT-GRAD IaaS cloud

On what tasks can be solved with the help of the PCI DSS Compliant Hosting service and how this service helps customers save not only money, but also wasted time and effort. The scope of certification in our case is not limited to physical placement, but also includes the services of providing virtual infrastructure (PCI DSS IaaS) and administration (PCI DSS Managed Services), which fully comply with the standard. We also denote the pros and cons of using the cloud when using this service.

GC "KarOperator" uses cloud IaaS "IT-GRAD" for the implementation of the NBDA project

We acquaint readers with the client company, talk about the project to create a national database of automobiles and its tasks, the reasons for choosing our company, the requirements of the NBDA project for cloud infrastructure, data centers and equipment reliability. We also give comments on the technical director of KarOperator, Alexey Vasilyev, who spoke about the beginning of collaboration, the experience of contacting technical support and the idea of ​​online training.

Security and Disaster Recovery

VMware NSX: A New Approach to Health Security

From the article you will learn about the main causes of security problems in medicine, how a multi-level enterprise protection is built and provided, and on which the chosen security model in medical organizations depends. And also we will talk in detail about the VMware NSX solution: what problems the platform is addressing, what is guaranteed in the event of a threat, what components does the platform consist of, what do flexible security policies provide, how can we speed up the process of responding to the problem and removing the threat.

Cloud Security Testing, or Security Tips

Talking about security problems: when there are risks of data leakage, what other means besides encryption can help protect information, what problems the lack of high availability architecture can cause, why the cloud should be protected from both horizontal and vertical spread of viruses. In addition, we find out why customers prefer cloud solutions to on-demand-services, how to live and work in the absence of cloud security standards. And a few practical recommendations that will help improve cloud security.

Comparison of four top disaster recovery solutions

We selected 4 popular DR-solutions that cope with the task, regardless of the root causes of the problem and for a limited time. From the article, you will learn all about VMware Site Recovery Manager, Zerto Virtual Replication, Veeam Backup and Altaro VM Backup.

We consider in detail the features of each solution and their main advantages. We also provide feedback from real users and try to understand what is missing from these programs, how to compensate for the shortcomings highlighted by customers and what could be improved.

Results and forecasts

IT Forecast 2017: review of key technologies that expects significant growth

The article examines the forecasts for 2017: IT specialists plan to focus on solving problems, how trends can affect business development, what security enhancement strategies will be implemented, how customer focus and data storage are related to analytics, and what analytical tools will be used. used by companies, what expects P-, S- and IaaS, why more and more attention is paid to mobile development and virtualization, and what specific solutions IT companies are willing to spend their money on.

IT-GRAD sums up 2016 in the direction of IaaS

We talk about what happened to us in the past year: what services we were able to launch, how we help our clients comply with the federal law “On the protection of personal data”, what new statuses we were able to receive and how it affected the services provided, how the geography expanded, What kind of new equipment we began to use and how, by the end of the year, we became the largest IaaS supplier in Russia.

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PS A couple of our other collections: * aaS-dictionary and DDoS-digest .