Cloud computing, SOA and Web Services standards

Today’s topic is how cloud computing is related to SOA and why Web services standards are important to adoption of cloud computing.

Both cloud computing and SOA do not have a standard definition. It can be concluded that cloud computing is centralized model required pay-per-use in order to achieve a cost-efficient, scalable, reliable, convenient and transparent network for users to access a pool of measurable computing recourses. Cloud computing strives for the minimal management recourses and keep continuous service provider interaction. SOA is an architectural style designed for the better implementation of business. Software services and functions are built in a loosely or tightly coupled way to support business process. Invocation plays an essential role in SOA. Softer services and functions can be assembled and reassembled quickly according to the business requirement.

Web services are now regulated by W3C web services architecture working group. Concluded from the definition from W3C, a web service standard gives interoperating method between different software, running on different applications, platforms and infrastructure.

Firstly, let’s talk about the relationship between cloud computing and service-oriented architecture (SOA).

1.       Cloud computing is totally different from SOA on the concept view. “SOA is a pattern of architecture, whereas cloud computing is an instance of architecture, or an architectural option.”[5]

2.       Although cloud computing and SOA are different in concept but they can be related. Cloud computing can be used in service-oriented architecture for the purpose of convenience of retrieving data, less management effort or risk diversification. The following diagram shows a basic usage of cloud computing in an SOA: (the applications are retrieving information that business required from the cloud)

[5]

This is only one example using one of the services of cloud computing called information as a service. The major difference between using a built-it-in function and using a simple web API to retrieve information for the cloud is the cost. Company does not have such information service may require one thousand of times of cost to build the infrastructure and software than just outsourcing it on a cloud. That is the magic of “cloud”.

3.       SOA is not the only that cloud computing collaborated with. Cloud computing are used with many other business models or architecture forms including peer-to-peer (P2P) computing, SOA and autonomic computing nowadays. Cloud computing reveals its business benefit in different architecture and it seems that there is trend for using cloud computing in a variety of business services on information technology.

The second part is the importance of web services standards to the adoption of cloud computing.

Cloud computing provide access of computing recourses for a broad range. It can be servers, platforms, storage devices, application and etc. For a user who wants to develop web application using cloud as a platform, many programming language or method can be used. Web services standards play an important role for the compatibility of applications developed using cloud computing. The compatibility of applications or usage of the software directly influences the scalability. For example, database of a cloud stores some information that a client required. How the client would deliver the request application and how the form of data should the servers sent back are very important. Web services standards regulate and improve the collaboration using the cloud computing. Furthermore, web services standards include items on business process, service publications, transport, security and reliability. These are all essential factors in a cloud computing process. One of the vulnerable point of cloud computing is the security problem because data or information are stored remotely on a server. Web services standards give better solution to the security problem so that cloud computing are easier to be accept in the business cases require high protection of the data and information.

Reference:

[1] Toward a Unified Ontology of Cloud Computing by Lamia Youseff University of California, Santa Barbara, Maria Butrico, Dilma Da Silva, IBM T.J. Watson Research Center

[2] Cloud Computing – Issues, Research and Implementations by Mladen A. Vouk Department of Computer Science, North Carolina State University,

[3] W3C Web Service Architecture Working Group http://www.w3.org/TR/ws-arch/

[4] Cloud computing and emerging IT platforms: Vision, hype, and reality for delivering computing as the 5th utility by Rajkumar Buyyaa, Chee Shin Yeoa, Srikumar Venugopala, James Broberg, Ivona Brandic

[5] Cloud Computing and SOA Convergence in Your Enterprise: A Step-by-Step Guide by David S. Linthicum