IT Assignment: Article Review On Cloud Automation & Relation With Guardian Pacific Case Study

Question

Task:
Select two articles on cloud automation and prepare IT assignment. Also, briefly describe how the two articles relate with the Guardian Pacific case study.

Answer

Article 1
Title
Bhattacharjee, A., Barve, Y., Gokhale, A., & Kuroda, T. (2018). (WIP) CloudCAMP: Automating the Deployment and Management of Cloud Services. 2018 IEEE International Conference on Services Computing (SCC). https://doi.org/10.1109/scc.2018.00038

Main Point(s)
The article covers the details of the cloud automation and discusses the deployment and management of the cloud services in an automated manner. The source selected is a journal article that has a clear and apt title (Bhattacharjee et al., 2018).

There are a number of manual efforts and processes that the cloud users are required to put in. These are mainly identified in the development and orchestration processes. Due to the involvement of the manual processes, there are errors that are witnessed in the configuration of the cloud. The article describes the need and relevance of an automation framework for the same and explores CloudCAMP. The utilization of the quantitative research methods is done to determine and compare the manual processes versus the automated framework. There are three major aspects covered in the paper. The first includes the domain specific modelling language, DSML that is associated with CloudCAMP. It provides the ability to mask the low-level details of the specific app components and provides the mechanism to use high-level representations. The article then includes the automatic transformation of Infrastructure as Code (IAC). The third main point that is addressed in the article is the realization of CloudCAMP and mapping of the same with the real-world scenarios (Bauer, 2018).

The article explored and evaluated the utilization of the model-driven engineering approach along with the generative programming techniques for automated deployment, handling, and management of the cloud applications. The use of CloudCAMP provides assistance to the application deployment team to model the services and understand the level of abstraction involved. The deployment process becomes easier without the need of advanced domain expertise and also requires minimal modelling. It is essential to have the adequate understanding of the application components that are involved. CloudCAMP provides the ability to obtain the required level of understanding (Church et al., 2017). The use of DSML provides the effective IAC solution which can be useful for the target cloud environment. The utilization of WebGME assists in the decoupling of the meta-model and knowledge base while ensuring required scalability and flexibility. The utilization of the automated framework provides the mechanism to effectively enhance the productivity of the deployment and management process. It is also available in open-source format and therefore, the cost-effectiveness is maintained.

The article covers the aspects around the flexibility and benefits offered by CloudCAMP which can be useful in the reduction of the errors caused by the manual processes and operations. Also, the choice of the design remains with the application deployment team which is also beneficial from the aspect of overall flexibility in the design.

Relationship with the Cloud Automation
The question deals with the automation of the operations in order to enhance the agility and resilience of the operations and applications.

The article that has been selected related with cloud automation as it provides the details of the CloudCAMP framework that can be used for the automation of cloud deployment and its management. The utilization of CloudCAMP gives help to the application deployment team to model the services and comprehend the level of abstraction included. The deployment cycle gets simpler without the need of cutting edge space aptitude and furthermore requires lowest level of modelling. It is basic to have the sufficient comprehension of the application parts that are included. CloudCAMP gives the capacity to get the necessary level of comprehension. The utilization of DSML gives the effective IAC solution which can be valuable for the target cloud climate (Emejeamara et al., 2020). The usage of WebGME aids the decoupling of the meta-model and knowledge base while guaranteeing required scalability and flexibility. The use of the robotized structure gives the system to effectively upgrade the profitability of the deployment and management measure. It is also accessible in open-source format and accordingly, the cost-effectiveness is kept up. The article covers the viewpoints around the flexibility and benefits offered by CloudCAMP which can be helpful in the reduction of the errors brought about by the manual cycles and activities. Also, the decision of the design stays with the application deployment team which is also helpful from the part of generally flexibility in the design.

During the transition of the system or an application from the existing platform to the cloud platform, there are a number of activities that are involved. For example, the smooth migration is often a challenge and is marked by the implementation and configuration errors. The article provides the details of CloudCAMP which can be very useful in the migration process. There are two connection types that are involved as deleteFrom and migrateTo. The automated workflow structure can be developed using these functions. The article also showed the comparison between the manual processes and the CloudCAMP framework. The former took around 650-700 minutes to complete the migration whereas it could be done without errors in 10-15 minutes using the CloudCAMP framework.

As a result, the information covered in the article can be used for the purpose of automation of the operations.

Relationship with the Case Study
The Guardian Pacific case study is a financial organization and there are numerous technology gaps that are identified in the case study details that are presented. There are various issues that are highlighted, such as the managers and the employees that travel and work remotely usually do not have access to the network. There are security issues and gaps also identified in the processes and the devices that are used by the employees. The upgrade can also be affected by various issues. There is enhanced cost associated with the production and test systems that also need to be addressed (Khan & Al-Yasiri, 2015).

There are various measures that Guardian Pacific is required to take. These shall include the automation of the network systems along with the use of the centralized resources. The organization must look to utilize and migrate to the cloud services. The article that is selected is relevant and applicable to the case scenario as it provides the mechanism to automate the cloud deployment and management. The CloudCAMP framework that is discussed in the article will assist the resources of Guardian Pacific to easily and effectively migrate to the cloud platforms. It will also enable them to be productive and carry out the migration quickly and securely. The organization has significant customer base and it cannot afford to have enhanced downtime. The use of CloudCAMP will enable the organization to quickly carry out the migration which would otherwise be not possible with the use of the manual processes.

It is also possible that there are various changes that the organization is required to make in the future. The use of CloudCAMP will come with the enhanced level of flexibility and scalability. These aspects will be relevant in the migration process and will also have much significance in the future. The article is relevant for the case scenario as it presents the limitations with the existing approaches associated with Guardian Pacific. It also covers the details of the future changes and modifications that can be done with the use of the CloudCAMP framework (Linthicum, 2017). The comparison that has been shown between the manual processes and scripting with the CloudCAMP framework will assist Guardian Pacific in determining and selecting the suitable approaches and frameworks. It will also assist the organization in effectively planning the migration process.

The aspect of cloud automation is properly addressed in the article selected which is directly applicable to be case scenario.

Article 2
Title
Evers, A. (2015). Evaluating Cloud Automation as a Service. ISACA Journal, 3.

Main Point(s)
The source that is selected is a journal article that includes the details of the evaluation of cloud automation as a service. The title of the article is appropriate as it covers the different aspects of cloud automation as a service. Some of these include consistency, quality, hybrid complexity, and security (Evers, 2015). The use of the qualitative approach is done to explore and evaluate the cloud automation as a service.

There is enhanced popularity and usage of cloud services and platforms that can be witnessed in the current times. There are numerous organizations that are already using the cloud applications and services. The cloud apps and services can offer automation to the business organizations in varied forms. The use of cloud automation as a service is one aspect that has not been completely explored as of now. The article includes the several benefits that cloud automation as a service can present. The implementation becomes quick and the connectivity also becomes simplified with enhanced scalability and flexibility. There are various challenges and concerns that the organizations witness which the involvement of cloud automation. This is primarily because of the involvement of the onsite data centres in the business firms which cannot be migrated to the cloud platforms (Nagarmunoli & Sidnal, 2015).

The article includes the solution that can address such issues and provide assistance to the organization in experiencing the benefits that the cloud can offer. Apart from these aspects, there are also issues that may arise in the monitoring of the security issues and challenges. Alongside the challenges and issues, the article also covers the benefits that the automated systems and processes can offer. There is improved reliability and consistency that comes with the inclusion of cloud automation as a service. The utilization of the cloud automation as a service can result in the safe and secure migration that can assist in better control and coordination. This has positive impacts on the monitoring and transparency aspects. The involvement of an adequate cloud automation service provides the mechanism to make smooth transition.

The scope of the article is limited to the use and implementation of cloud automation as a service. The article addresses some of the most significant aspects, such as security which is often a major challenge with the utilization of the cloud platforms. The use of a couple of case studies is also done to describe the inclusion of cloud automation as a service and the wide range of benefits that it can provide (Nevil.S & C.J, 2016).

Relationship with the Cloud Automation
The question is based on the automation of the operations and the inclusion of the aspects as agility and resilience while migrating to the cloud. The article addresses the question directly as it covers the different aspects of cloud automation as a service. The article covers the problems and challenges that can arise with the absence of cloud and hybrid solutions. Also, it presents the details of the issues that commonly appear with the transition to cloud. It then explains the use of cloud automation as a practice and the benefits that it can offer to the business firms. The cloud apps and services can offer automation to the business associations in differed structures. The utilization of cloud automation is one perspective that has not been totally investigated starting at now. The article incorporates the few benefits that cloud automation as service can introduce. The implementation turns out to be brisk and the availability also gets disentangled with upgraded scalability and flexibility (Sill, 2016). There are different difficulties and worries that the associations witness which the inclusion of cloud automation. The article incorporates the solution that can address such issues and give help to the association in encountering the benefits that the cloud can offer. Aside from these perspectives, there are also gives that may emerge in the checking of the security issues and difficulties. There is improved reliability and consistency that accompanies the incorporation of cloud automation as a service. The usage of the cloud automation can bring about the safe and secure migration that can aid better control and coordination. This affects the observing and transparency perspectives. The inclusion of a satisfactory cloud automation administration gives the instrument to make smooth transition.

The information covered in the article can be used to automate the operations and make effective use of the cloud services and platforms.

Relationship with the Case Study
The Guardian Pacific case study includes the aspects around cloud automation. It covers the requirement to migrate to the cloud and to make sure that the transition is smooth. The article covers the details that can be directly applied to the case. The characteristics of good cloud automation are included that must be adhered with in the migration performed by the case study organization (Sreeja, 2020). For example, the use of the standard-compliant protocols shall be used and the configuration process shall be kept simple. These aspects and others will assist Guardian Pacific in making smooth transition to the cloud. Also, the aspects of security are addressed in the article.

These aspects will be useful for the case scenario presented and it will be useful in the improvement of the consistency, quality, and security aspects. The article covers the issues and difficulties that can emerge with the nonattendance of cloud and hybrid solutions. Also, it presents the subtleties of the issues that generally show up with the transition to cloud. It at that point clarifies the utilization of cloud automation and the benefits that it can offer to the business firms. The cloud apps and services can offer automation to the business relationship in contrasted structures. The use of cloud automation is one point of view that has not been completely examined beginning at now. The article fuses the couple of benefits that cloud automation as service can present. The implementation ends up being lively and the accessibility also gets unravelled with overhauled scalability and flexibility (Zimmermann, 2016). There are various troubles and stresses that the affiliations witness which the consideration of cloud automation. The article consolidates the solution that can address such issues and offer assistance to the relationship in experiencing the benefits that the cloud can offer. Beside these points of view, there are also gives that may develop in the checking of the security issues and troubles. There is improved reliability and consistency that goes with the joining of cloud automation. The use of the cloud automation can achieve the safe and secure migration that can help better control and coordination. This influences the watching and transparency points of view. The incorporation of a palatable cloud automation organization gives the instrument to make smooth transition.

The various issues highlighted in the case study, such as security issues, lack of remote networking, etc. can be addressed with the use of the information covered in the article.

References
Bauer, E. (2018). Cloud Automation and Economic Efficiency. IEEE Cloud Computing, 5(2), 26–32. https://doi.org/10.1109/mcc.2018.022171664

Bhattacharjee, A., Barve, Y., Gokhale, A., & Kuroda, T. (2018). (WIP) CloudCAMP: Automating the Deployment and Management of Cloud Services. 2018 IEEE International Conference on Services Computing (SCC). https://doi.org/10.1109/scc.2018.00038

Church, P., Mueller, H., Ryan, C., Gogouvitis, S. V., Goscinski, A., & Tari, Z. (2017). Migration of a SCADA system to IaaS clouds – a case study. Journal of Cloud Computing, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13677-017-0080-5

Emejeamara, U., Nwoduh, U., & Madu, A. (2020). Effective Method for Managing Automation and Monitoring in Multi-cloud Computing: Panacea for Multi-cloud Security Snags. International Journal of Network Security & Its Applications, 12(4), 39–44. https://doi.org/10.5121/ijnsa.2020.12403

Evers, A. (2015). Evaluating Cloud Automation as a Service. ISACA Journal, 3.

Khan, N., & Al-Yasiri, A. (2015). Framework for Cloud Computing Adoption: A Roadmap for Smes to Cloud Migration. International Journal on Cloud Computing: Services and Architecture, 5(5/6), 01–15. https://doi.org/10.5121/ijccsa.2015.5601

Linthicum, D. S. (2017). Cloud-Native Applications and Cloud Migration: The Good, the Bad, and the Points Between. IEEE Cloud Computing, 4(5), 12–14. https://doi.org/10.1109/mcc.2017.4250932

Nagarmunoli, S. R., & Sidnal, N. S. (2015). Automation of Discovery and Aggregation of Cloud Services. International Journal of Distributed and Cloud Computing, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.21863/ijdcc/2015.3.1.005

Nevil.S, A., & C.J, K. P. . (2016). Optimized cloud migration using reliabilty framework. International Journal Of Engineering And Computer Science. https://doi.org/10.18535/ijecs/v5i5.51

Sill, A. (2016). Cloud Standards as Roadmaps for Migration. IEEE Cloud Computing, 3(2), 64–70. https://doi.org/10.1109/mcc.2016.49

Sreeja, S. P. (2020). A Meta-analysis on the Security Control Measures in Cloud Migration. International Journal of Psychosocial Rehabilitation, 24(5), 6943–6947. https://doi.org/10.37200/ijpr/v24i5/pr2020693

Zimmermann, O. (2016). Architectural refactoring for the cloud: a decision-centric view on cloud migration. Computing, 99(2), 129–145. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00607-016-0520-y