IBM Softlayer Bluemix Marketplace
API Economy
Infrastructure as a Service
Platform as a Service
Software as a Service
IaaS PaaS SaaS
Register for Bluemix at http://ibm.biz/BluemixSBSS
See Softlayer at http://ibm.biz/SBSlideShareSL
Join the Marketplace at http://ibm.biz/SBSlideShareMP
SoftLayer has uniquely designed and deployed a global, interconnected platform that’s designed to meet the key operational and economic requirements of cloud infrastructure across a broad portfolio: dedicated and shared devices, physical and virtual servers, hourly compute instances and four-way, octo-core bare metal, along with a wealth of storage, networking and security components.
You can take these building blocks and deploy public cloud instances, build private clouds on your choice of virtualization stack, leverage the raw power of bare metal on demand, or combine these solutions into distributed, hybrid architectures. Build what you want, or leverage our turn-key big data and private cloud solutions to design and deploy complex, scalable infrastructure online in near-real time. It’s all delivered as a unified service, managed from a single pane of glass via our web portal or mobile apps, and accessible via a powerful, full-featured API.
Our bare metal option mirrors on-premises resources across a continuum of single processor servers, quad proc, hex-core, and even graphics processing unit (GPU)-powered. It deploys in near-real-time via the self-service portal or API.
Within our dedicated virtualized environment, you have a variety of hypervisor choices, including:
VMWare
Citrix (Xen)
Parallels
Hyper-V
OpenStack
The network is the cloud and the cloud is the network. The network is perhaps the fundamental component in terms of performance, yet it’s rarely discussed in detail by hosting providers. We’ve made a significant investment at SoftLayer in building a network of networks from best-in-class networking infrastructure, hardware, and software designed to deliver exceptional bandwidth and connectivity for the highest speed and reliability. We think our network architecture and performance stand apart in the industry.
We have 17 points-of-presence (PoPs) today and plan to expand that significantly in 2014. Data centers and PoPs are interconnected with over 2,000 GBps of connectivity around the globe for optimum performance.
Having this interconnectivity and the ability for customers to transport data from site to site at no additional charge and be able to get on our backbone through the closest PoP is critical. And we are one of the only cloud providers with our own global backbone. Others may be rumored to be building that, but we are there today! We pass 500 to 600 gigs sustained across our backbone. We house a large percent of the content on the Internet!
The entire network and services stack provides native support for IP version 6, helping to ensure that as this critical transition takes place over the next few years, you’ll be well ahead of the game.
Every server comes multi-homed to our fully redundant best-in-class public and private network as well as a third network for management
Public network is IPv4 and IPv6 stacked; every ancillary service comes ready for IPv6
Private network allows for unmetered bandwidth usage between servers and data centers; use at no extra cost with no special connection feeds or devices needed
Management network provides unlimited VPN; security-rich KVM access goes beyond basic controls and unsecured connection methods offered by some competitors KVM tool gives you console access as if you are standing right in front of your server; you can even use it to mount your own ISO and install your own custom operating system (OS)
Any device at any time can have any of three types of connections:
Public network: Connection to public Internet through Tier 1 carriers with multiple 10 Gbps connections for public traffic to hosted web sites or online resources
Private network: Virtual private network (VPN) server access through dedicated, stand-alone third carriers not connected to the public network with unmetered bandwidth usage between servers and data centers
Management network: Out-of-plane management network connection through an unlimited VPN connection for more secure management and connectivity between servers housed in separate data centers
The SoftLayer granular API is an essential element to supporting control. Whether or not you have IT staff and want control, you can appreciate that it’s there. You have the ability, insight and control whether or not you actually use it. And you get that control with the way we expose the API, and with the extensive nature of the API with over 3,400 methods.
We took a different approach to APIs. We chose to expose everything in our data centers in a granular API. Some competitors talk about “classes” of APIs … with a class that may have 10 functions in it. With SoftLayer, you can make the class call, or you can make the 10 individual function calls. That can make a big difference to an enterprise that may only use eight of the 10 functions in a class and doesn’t want the risk exposure of the other two being left on.
And when we start to talk about compliance, this ability to manage the APIs can make a huge difference and is where competitors may break. Their APIs may either on or off at the class level. For reduced risk and enhanced security, an enterprise client could prefer the approach of “if we don’t use it, we don’t even want to turn it on.” Think about the risk exposure if you had a class with 20 functions and you wanted only one, but had to have the other 19 on. Enterprise clients will likely appreciate the granularity of the API to lock down and build the environment for what they want to achieve.
The ability to use the API to build auto-scaling environments is also important to your ability to respond to on-demand growth. While keeping costs in check, your environment can scale to meet seasonal or other spikes in demand.
Please note: Presenter notes are on every slide. Written as a suggested script to help with messaging.
*note that this will be updated soon with a background picture that better conveys this slide’s message
Apps Are Everywhere
Over the last 5 or so years, we’ve experienced an “App Revolution” on the web, on our smartphones, in our cars, on wearable devices (like a NikeFuel band, Smart Watch, Google Glass), and in our homes.
Apps today allow interactions that we wouldn't have imagined 5 years ago. Architects can design homes on their iPads, merchants can swipe credit cards and accept payments anywhere with their phones, and runners can track their progress with a band on their wrist. Even my mother knows the phrase “there’s an app for that.”
Experience Matters
All of the associated data (like a runner’s average speed and location over the course of a 30 minute run) is often times pushed up to the cloud (as it’s being generated) for further processing, storage, or to allow syncs other devices and services.
Customers expect an integrated experience on the web, across all of their devices, in physical stores, and even talking with customer service on the phone.
Cloud Makes it Possible
Needless to say, the cloud has been a very large driving factor in the “App Revolution.” It provides a fast, simple, and cost effective way to for startups and enterprises alike to deploy and host applications and mobile backends over the internet.
Simply put, it keeps us all of us connected.
The instant power and speed of cloud has brought about new expectations for building applications on it.
Developers now expect:
To be able to deploy updates to their applications in seconds
To write their code in whichever tool or language they choose
Each has its own distinct “personality” and followings of developers have evolved around each of these
To be able to continually integrate working copies of code into a shared mainline at multiple points during the day
To focus on writing code, not on the administration of servers, virtualization, operating systems, and middleware.
To “fail fast” - or ensure applications fail immediately and visibly to speed debugging and fixes
To integrate useful APIs into their applications - who wants to write code that’s already been written and tested?
To build applications that are mobile ready - as users today expect their experience to be tailored to whatever device they happen to be using.
Timing is critical if your apps (and the functionality they provide to your employees and/or customers) are to keep up with the new expectations and competition the app revolution has generated.
Let’s see how everything stacks up:
Core IT represents everything you own and manage in your data centers (the full stack pictured here). This is still a critical part of enterprise IT - let’s take a look why it is beneficial and what it takes to manage all of this.
Core IT Benefits
As stable and customizable as the customer wants - the only main limitation is cost.
Necessary for certain solutions (Core IT still has value in many scenarios i.e. transaction processing)
Houses a lot of the investments most companies have already made (customer data, inventory, SAP, you name it).
Core IT Time Commitment
Typically takes weeks to setup an environment and deploy an initial app - customer manages entire stack pictured here
Have to maintain hardware and software as well (think environment uptime, fixes, upgrades). Dedicated staff necessary.
Thus, Core IT doesn’t lend itself to the experimental nature of development in the cloud/app revolution
Infrastructure as a Service (and specifically IBM’s acquisition of SoftLayer) was the cloud’s initial answer to the need for faster deployments, faster environment setup, etc… by abstracting the infrastructure from the customer.
IaaS Benefits
Networking, Storage, and Servers managed by service provider.
Most customizable cloud offering
Solutions where` customizability of VM, OS, Middleware, or Runtime needed
IaaS Time Commitment
Customer sets up and manages VM (in some cases), OS, Middleware, and Runtime - these still take at least a matter of days to setup and reach an initial deployment
Maintenance/upgrades necessary as well
We’ve realized that, in a large number of use cases, our customers want to move even faster and don’t need to spend the time managing the platform (VM, OS, Middleware, Runtime). IBM’s answer: Bluemix (platform as a service).
PaaS Benefits
Setup your environment and deploy apps quicker than any other offering
Service provider manages the Infrastructure AND the platform
PaaS Time Commitment
Minutes to initial deployment - developer can handle everything on his/her own
Maintenance and upgrades of Platform and Infrastructure handled by service provider
Key themes
Speed
Instant environments
Quick deployments
Sign up in minutes
Ease of Use
Instant Environments
Services prebuilt for your use - IBM, Third Party, Community
DevOps tools to monitor, plan, deploy, and manage your apps
Flexibility
On-Prem integration
Flexible pricing
Security
IBM secures the platform and infrastructure - leveraging experience with softlayer and proven on-prem security implementations
Provides you with the tools to secure your apps
Bluemix is built on top of IBM’s infrastructure as a service offering - SoftLayer. It embraces Cloud Foundry as an open source platform as a service and extends it with IBM, third party, and community built services.
Explain Diagram (verbs in blue - please use this terminology)
Start by Pushing your code through Cloud Foundry
Cloud Foundry interprets which language you’ve used and associates your code to the appropriate runtime - now you have a working app (layer above runtimes).
Your app can
Pull prebuilt services (IBM, 3rd party, or community built) in from the marketplace and utilize their functionality
Connect to traditional IT - aka “Your Systems” with a secure connector
Connect to other clouds that you utilize with a secure connector
All of this sits on infrastructure (networking, storage, servers) hosted by IBM Softlayer (IBM’s IaaS cloud offering)
Finally - when your app is built and ready to go, it can be accessed by anything with a web browser and a connection to the internet, a smartphone app (via the Bluemix SDK) to utilize backend services, or another type of app or system (via an API you create).
Bluemix allows developers the flexibility to choose their own languages and tooling - but choice doesn’t stop there. We want to allow developers to compose their applications of whichever services, IBM created or otherwise, that work best for them, their organization, and their projects.
IBM Created Service Examples (full range of proven, industry leading capabilities):
SQL Database (DB2 relational database), Analytics Warehouse (Blu Acceleration powered), MQLight (message provider), Cloudant (IBM’s no-sql database), Watson Services (cognitive computing), Mobile Application Security, Push Notifications
Third Party Created Service Examples (competing or otherwise - note the colors):
Clear DB (MANAGED MySQL relational database), Cloud AMQP (MANAGED rabbit MQ message provider), MongoLab (MANAGED no-sql mongo db), Square (process mobile payments), Twilio (VoIP Calls, SMS & MMS sending/receiving)
Community Services (if open source works best for you):
mysql (MySQL open source db), rabbitmq (RabbitMQ open source message provider), redis (open source Key-Value store),
We know how important your existing on-premise and other cloud investments are to your business - so we’ve designed Bluemix to quickly, easily, and securely connect to them:
Secure Connector provides a simple mechanism for connecting to another system - be it on-site (behind a firewall) or in the cloud. If you have DataPower, Bluemix works with that as well.
The Standard (Cast Iron) Secure Connector is a simple software based connector that establishes a tunnel between BlueMix applications and the network on which it is installed, leveraging a secure (HTTPS) access that eliminates the need for a firewall port.
You can create REST APIs against endpoints you’ve securely connected to (i.e. an API that “GETs” customer information from a DB2 database on-premise)
CastIron Live (separate IBM SaaS product) Integration (future)
Data Orchestration (future)
Catalog of the custom APIs you’ve created that is in-line with existing service catalog (future)
Gain the visibility and control you need over your applications.
Understand how your apps are performing in real time with these key metrics
Uptime
Usage
Response time
Easy-to-use dashboards and integrated analytics-powered search capability help you find the root cause line of code quickly and easily.
Integrated log file analysis on a single tab that helps you to quickly identify errors.
Bluemix leverages SoftLayer and IBM’s hosting experience to provide you with a trusted and secure platform to build and deploy your applications.
IBM’s focus is on securing the platform and the infrastructure - utilizing a number of rigorous security standards:
Defense in depth
Each layer (in the stack on the right) is secured assuming that the layer above isn’t.
Intrusion protection/penetration testing
Data Isolation
Automated Patch Management
Your focus is on securing your applications. We provide you with the tools to do that.
SSO
AppScan
Scans your apps to detect vulnerabilities
Bluemix’ pricing is just as flexible as many of the other capabilities we’ve discussed.
You can sign up for Bluemix in a matter of minutes
A 30 day free trial (no credit card required) allows you to experience all that Bluemix has to offer
A free tier for every service encourages further experimentation after the trial has ended
Once you’re ready to move forward with Bluemix, pricing is straightforward:
Pay as you go
Pay for what you use (runtimes/services) and nothing more
No commitment
Subscription
Pick a monthly commitment price and subscription term — receive a discount off of pay as you go rates
We’ve seen more than 30,000 apps created in beta and have derived four key categories of use cases from that data.
*Reference key categories and a selection of bullets mentioned on the slide
The metered usage API call can be called in two different modes: pre-configured and custom.
The pre-configured mode means that the prices for the items charged have been configured in the applicatation edition. For example, you configured your edition and entered a metered usage item with unit "Gigabyte" as well as another item with unit "Hour" and configured a price for each of these.
The custom mode is enabled if you check the "Allow custom usage" checkbox on your edition. This will let you bill user for arbitrary usage. You will have to pass the price and a description (but *NOT* the unit) for the usage
AppDirect currently supports 40+ units of metered usage (for the pre-configured usage). The pre-configured units are as follows:
USER
GIGABYTE
MEGABYTE
HOUR
INVOICE
UNIT
PROJECT
PROPERTY
ITEM
WORD
EMAIL
CONTACT
CALL
CREDIT
ROOM
HOST
AGENT
OPERATOR
PROVIDER
MANAGER
TESTER
JVM
SERVER
WEB_USE_MINUTE
AUDIO_USE_MINUTE
PIECE
EMPLOYEE_PER_PAY_PERIOD
COMPUTER
DATA_POINT
TIER1_API_CALL
TIER2_API_CALL
ADVISORY_HOUR
OVERAGE_AUDIO_MINUTE
EMPLOYEE
CONNECTION
PUSH_USER
THOUSAND EMAILS PER DAY
PUSH_NOTIFICATION_DEVICE
API_CALL
SMS_TEXT_MESSAGE
CONTACTS_1000