Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Cloud
    • Cloud

    Google Embraces Rival OpenStack Cloud Technology

    By
    Sean Michael Kerner
    -
    July 17, 2015
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin
      Google joins OpenStack

      Google officially is joining the open-source OpenStack Foundation today as a corporate sponsor. Google’s sponsorship isn’t about advocating for a rival cloud technology, but rather about helping boost interoperability across clouds, using container technology.

      Google, of course, has its own cloud technology that is not open-source. In that light, Google’s Cloud can and should be seen as a rival to OpenStack, which powers both private and public clouds around the globe. However, Google is not undermining its own cloud by becoming a sponsor of the OpenStack Foundation; rather, it is deftly taking the initiative to improve support for its own cloud technologies.

      The key is Docker containers.

      In the pre-container era, cloud users were somewhat defined and constrained by the cloud vendor platform they chose, with cross-cloud interoperability being more of a myth than practical production reality. Containers change the equation and level the playing field for application workload compatibility and interoperability across clouds.

      The ability to run containers on a given cloud, however, is not enough in the modern world of high-availability applications. Developers need the ability to manage and orchestrate container deployment, regardless of the underlying cloud infrastructure, and that’s where Google comes into the picture.

      The Google-led open-source Kubernetes project enables organizations to manage container deployment across different infrastructures, whether that infrastructure is Google Cloud or, for example, an OpenStack cloud.

      It’s a use case that Google demonstrated on stage at the recent OpenStack Vancouver Summit. Sandeep Parikh, senior technical solutions consultant at Google, was on the keynote stage on May 19 to demonstrate how Kubernetes can work together with OpenStack’s Project Magnum, which is a container services technology.

      By helping to enable OpenStack usage with Kubernetes, Google is really helping itself make sure that the Google Cloud remains relevant in the container era. With containers, the promise is now that the underlying infrastructure no longer matters for applications, and application portability is just a question of making sure that containers are supported on a given host. Organizations no longer need to first determine if an application can run on a given cloud; instead, the choice is about optimizing for container delivery. Then the question of infrastructure and the actual cloud host just becomes one of availability and performance requirements as well as cost.

      Without containers, it is still possible to move workloads from an OpenStack cloud to Google Cloud, but the process and the technologies involved are more bulky and require more organizational planning. With containers and Kubernetes, an application workload is one that has greater portability and should be able to move seamlessly from Google Cloud to OpenStack and vice versa.

      It’s a powerful model and one that should yield value to both OpenStack users and Google.

      Perhaps more importantly though is how Google’s OpenStack sponsorship will position Google’s public cloud against Amazon Web Services (AWS). Amazon also understands the ascendant primacy of containers in the modern application deployment space. The Amazon EC2 Container Service is all about making sure that containers are a first-class citizen on Amazon’s cloud.

      Amazon, unlike Google, is not an OpenStack sponsor. That’s doesn’t mean that it’s not possible to have interoperability of containers from OpenStack to Amazon. It just means that Amazon isn’t actively working within the OpenStack community to make sure it all works smoothly for users.

      To be fair, since its earliest day OpenStack has had various forms of Amazon cloud API compatibility to help enable interoperability. It’s just that as a corporate sponsor and contributor to OpenStack, Google now has a differentiated position in the OpenStack community.

      Google’s embrace of OpenStack is great for the OpenStack community, but make no mistake about it, it’s also a solid positioning move.

      Sean Michael Kerner is a senior editor at eWEEK and InternetNews.com. Follow him on Twitter @TechJournalist.

      Sean Michael Kerner
      Sean Michael Kerner is an Internet consultant, strategist, and contributor to several leading IT business web sites.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Applications

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      IT Management

      Intuit’s Nhung Ho on AI for the...

      James Maguire - May 13, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nhung Ho, Vice President of AI at Intuit, about adoption of AI in the small and medium-sized business market, and how...
      Read more
      Applications

      Kyndryl’s Nicolas Sekkaki on Handling AI and...

      James Maguire - November 9, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nicolas Sekkaki, Group Practice Leader for Applications, Data and AI at Kyndryl, about how companies can boost both their AI and...
      Read more
      Cloud

      IGEL CEO Jed Ayres on Edge and...

      James Maguire - June 14, 2022 0
      I spoke with Jed Ayres, CEO of IGEL, about the endpoint sector, and an open source OS for the cloud; we also spoke about...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2022 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×