Introduction to Cloud Computing

  Defining cloud computing
  Components of a computing cloud
  Differentiating types of clouds: public, private, hybrid
  Delivering services from the cloud
  Categorizing service types
  Comparing vendor cloud products: Amazon, Google, Microsoft and others

Adopting the Cloud

  Key drivers of cloud computing solutions
  Instantaneous provisioning of computing resources
  Handling varied loads with elasticity and seamless scalability
  Tapping into an infinite storage capacity
  Cost-effective pay-as-you-use billing models
  Evaluating barriers to cloud computing
  Handling sensitive data
  Aspects of cloud security
  Assessing governance solutions

Exploiting Software as a Service ( SaaS )

  Characterizing SaaS
  Minimizing the need for local hardware and software
  Streamlining administration with centralized installation and updates
  Optimizing cost and performance with the ability to scale on demand
  Comparing service scenarios
  Improving collaboration with business productivity tools
  Simplifying business process creation by integrating existing components
  Inspecting SaaS technologies
  Deploying Web applications
  Implementing Web services: SOAP, REST
  Choosing a development platform

Delivering Platform as a Service (PaaS)

  Exploring the technical foundation for PaaS
  Specifying the components of PaaS
  Analyzing vendor PaaS provisions
  Selecting an appropriate implementation
  Building services with solution stacks
  Evaluating the architecture of vendor specific platforms
  Becoming familiar with service platform tools
  Leveraging the power of scalable middleware
  Managing cloud storage
  Controlling unstructured data in the cloud
  Deploying relational databases in the cloud
  Improving data availability
  Employing support services
  Testing in the cloud
  Monitoring cloud-based services
  Analyzing portability across platforms

Deploying Infrastructure as a Service ( IaaS )

  Enabling technologies
  Scalable server clusters
  Achieving transparency with platform virtualization
  Elastic storage devices
  Accessing IaaS
  Provisioning servers on demand
  Handling dynamic and static IP addresses
  Tools and support for management and monitoring

Building a Business Case

  Calculating the financial implications
  Analyzing current and future computing requirements
  Comparing in-house facilities to the cloud
  Estimating economic factors downstream
  Preserving business continuity
  Selecting appropriate service-level agreements
  Safeguarding access to assets in the cloud
  Security, availability and disaster recovery strategies

Migrating to the Cloud

  Technical considerations
  Rearchitecting applications for the cloud
  Integrating the cloud with existing applications
  Avoiding vendor lock-in
  Planning the migration
  Incremental vs
  one-step solution
  Selecting a vendor
  Establishing staff skill requirements