Next-generation IP services

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Can you describe the benefits of virtualization in two sentences? Can you explain to your boss or your customer the difference between Cloud Computing and Managed Services? Do you understand the benefits and risks of mashups? Do you know what Storage-as-a-Service means? Could you decide when using Security-as-a-Service makes sense?

You’ll get answers to all these (and numerous other) questions in the two hour Next-generation IP Services tutorial.

Contents

Data Center virtualization

The massive virtualization of data center infrastructure has enabled the deployment of new web-based services and the cloud computing paradigm. This section gives you an overview of server, network and storage virtualization technologies.

Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is a massively overhyped concept with numerous practical implications. It can be viewed as a natural continuation of the outsourcing trend, extension of your existing data center resources or as an infrastructure that can enable quick and affordable deployment of scalable startup projects.

This section describes the differences between managed services and cloud computing, gives you an overview of various cloud-based offerings and concludes with a few practical deployment examples.

The cloud services covered in this section include Infrastructure-as-a-Service, Storage-as-a-Service, Database-as-a-Service, Platform-as-a-Service, Application/Software-as-a-Service and Network Management-as-a-Service.

Web-based applications

Software-as-a-Service (also known as Application-as-a-Service) is the best known example of cloud computing. Most SaaS models use web-based applications to deliver almost-desktop experience to the clients. This section describes recent enhancements in web technologies that have enabled the rich web-based applications, evolution of mobile platforms and mashups, an innovative way of combining multiple web services into a seamless user experience. The section concludes with an overview of benefits and drawbacks of modern web-based approaches.

Security-as-a-Service and IT virtualization

Information Technology (IT) is rapidly becoming an infrastructure, but lacks the inherent built-in security expected from an infrastructure offering. Various Security-as-a-Service offerings, ranging from managed firewalls to virtual desktops and full-blown IT virtualization, allow the end-users to start viewing IT as a reliable and secure infrastructure and focus on creating value in their daily jobs.

Target audience

Engineers who need a high-level understanding of virtualization, cloud computing and web 2.0 technologies presented in a concise technical format without marketing hype and vendor-specific views. Example: internetworking engineers who have to prepare their networks and security environment for the emerging IP services.

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