Cloud computing for library services

1
Cloud computing for library services
2
Continuum of Abstraction

• Locally owned and installed servers
• Co-located servers
• Co-located virtual servers
• Web hosting
• Server hosting services
• Application Service Provider
• Software-as-a-service
• Platform-as-a-service

3
Cloud computing basic understanding

• Any arrangement where the library relies on some
  kind of remote hosting environment for major
  automation components
• Includes
• Almost any vender-hosted offering

4
Cloud computing formal definitions

• Highly abstracted computing model
• Utility model
• Provisioned on demand
• Scaled according to variable needs
• Discrete virtual machines
• Compute cycles on demand
• Storage on demand
• Elastic consumption of resources can contract
  and expand according to demand

5
Hosting Services

• Web hosting
• Web site only
• Standard support for PHP, Perl, and other dynamic
  page generation
• Dedicated Server
• Appropriate for applications that have not been
  tested and deployed in virtual environments
• Virtual server
• Requires software that supports virtualization

6
Advantages

• Increasing opportunities to eliminate local
  servers and tech support
• Most libraries cannot support the cost of systems
  and network administrators which command higher
  salaries than professional librarians
• Eliminate hardware replacement, operating systems
  upgrades, etc.

7
Software-as-a-Service

• Complete software application, customized for
  customer use
• Eg Salesforce.com

8
Platform-as-a-Platform as a Service

• Virtualized computing environment for deployment
  of software
• Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)

9
Storage-as-a-Service

• Provisioned, on-demand storage
• Bundled to, or separate from other cloud services

10
Private vs Public cloud

• Public multi-tenant provisioning
• Locically isolated computing environment
• Theoretical security / competitive concerns
• Private cloud architecture, institutionally
  owned/controlled
• Leverages cost and scalability
• Enforces physical segration

11
Examples of cloud offerings by library vendors
12
Application Service Provider

• Expxtech Horizon in 2000
• Sirsi Unicorn (sirsi.net) 2005
• DRA Classic pilot ASP program in 2000
• Auto-Graphics acquired Macess Library Systems in
  2001 gt AGent VERSO offered primarily as hosted
  service
• Virtua ASP 2003
• Polaris Hosted launched in 2005

13
Virtualization

• SirsiDynix virtualization for Symphony
  implemented in March 2010
• SirsiDynix virtualization for Horizon
  implemented in Dec 2009

14
Software-as-a-Service

• Common marketing term
• Often applied to ASP
• Subscription-based vendor-hosted offerings

15
Serials Solutions

• All offerings delivered as a service
• 360 Search
• 360 Link
• Summon

16
SirsiDynix

• Strategic emphasis on SaaS
• Technically more of a ASP model
• Many local installs transitioning to SaaS

17
LibLime

• LibLime Enterprise Koha deployed in Amazon EC2
• LAMP stack implemented on Virtual Machine Image
• Ability to meet larger site requirements through
  high-performance cloud-delivered platform.

18
OCLC

• WorldCat Cataloging
• WorldCat ILL
• WorldCat Local
• WebScale Management Services
• Private cloud