Chapter 7 – Operating a Cloud

The goal of operating a cloud is to deliver cloud services efficiently, reliably, cost-effectively, and securely. This can be difficult to achieve and success ­depends on several supporting activities. Overall, though, the way an organization benefits from cloud computing will depend on how it assesses its ­information and communication resources and how it envisions its transition to cloud computing. Although private clouds can achieve immense scale and can serve many internal customers, most private clouds will likely be on the small side. This gives public clouds several advantages in terms of return on investment for tools and security capabilities that are expensive or require an investment in expertise to properly implement and operate. Earlier chapters surveyed current cloud services and delivery models and examined cloud security and architecture. This chapter picks up on the knowledge imparted in those earlier chapters, and focuses on operating a cloud from a security perspective.