September 28, 2010

Why Nonprofits Should Care About Cloud Computing

Anna S. JaegerCo-Director of GreenTech

TechSoup Global

ajaeger@techsoupglobal.orgwww.techsoup.org/greentech

Topic and Objective

Topic: Overview of Cloud Computing - Defining types of cloud computing and how it might apply to your organization

Take Aways: • Understand the different types of cloud computing, • Understand how it is impacting nonprofits, • Outline some criteria for use,• Mention some challenges of which you should be

aware.

We are working toward a time when every nonprofit and social benefit organization on the planet has the technology resources and knowledge they need to operate at their full potential

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Information(Knowledge)

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Mission of GreenTech

Help nonprofits and NGOs reduce their environmental impact through the effective use of technology.

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We help you, reduce the impact of your IT and use IT to reduce the impact of your organization.

www.techsoup.org/greentech @TSGreenTech

Please Ask Questions

What are some things you would specifically like to learn today?

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As we go along, please feel free to ask questions.

Valuable Prizes

Pay attention, I have prizes to give away, but you must answer questions based on the presentation!

Your Technical Experience Poll

Technical Experience:• Accidental Techie• Some Technical Experience• Solid Tech Experience• Advanced

Quick Audience Poll

Knowledge of Cloud Computing• Beginner• Intermediate• Advanced

Last Poll

• Do you use cloud computing in your organization or personally? YesNoWho knows?!

Defining Cloud Computing

Understanding the Types

CyberOptic Group Cloud Definition

“… cloud computing enables computer software and hardware resources to be accessed over the Internet without the need to have any detailed or specific knowledge of the infrastructure used to deliver the resources, much like a utility model. You really don't need to know what the phone company or electric company does on there end to enable calls and allow the lights to go on when you flip the switch; and, you really don't want to know as long as when you plug into it, it works.”

Forrester Research Definition

• “A standardized IT capability (services, software, or infrastructure) delivered via Internet technologies in a pay-per-use, self-service way.…”

• From: TechRadar™ For Infrastructure & Operations Professionals: Cloud Computing, Q3 2009, James Staten, Forrester Research, Inc., Oct. 2, 2009

Fun Video

• Cloud Computing in plain English by CommonCraft

Slide by Microsoft

Cloud as Business Model

• Some say “cloud computing” is nothing new.

• Despite all the hype, there’s very little, from a technical capability standpoint, that hasn’t been widely available for years.

Image from: http://www.eci.com/blog/25-why-cloud-computing-is-right-for-your-hedge-fund.html

Why Should You Care?

IDC forecasts that from 2009 through 2014• Worldwide IT product spending will grow at

an annual rate of 5.0%• Spending on Cloud Services will increase

at an annual rate of 27%, i.e., _very_ fast.• Non-Cloud IT product spending will grow at

an annual rate of 3.3%, i.e., positively, but slowly.

Source: IDC’s Public IT Cloud Services Forecast: New Numbers, Same Disruptive Story

Benefits of Cloud Computing• Little to no upfront costs: watch out for recurring

operating costs.• Little to no IT staff required: many applications

available in the cloud require much less in-house IT support because the hosting provider takes care of installs, upgrades, backups, security, and standard maintenance for you.

• No servers need to be researched, purchased, maintained, or recycled.

• Rapid deployment: Often, accounts can be set up in minutes. More complicated pieces of software (CRM, accounting packages, donor management software) still require more set up and probably training.

• Convenience: Staff and volunteers can access your applications from almost any Internet connection with their login information. No more setting up VPNs or systems to allow remote access to your servers.

• Be on latest software vendor managed upgrades.

Green Benefits• Fewer servers are built and running:

fewer toxic materials and water used to build them

fewer toxic materials are dumped less energy is consumed in the running of the

servers

• Less powerful client computers: all the processing is performed on the hosted server(s). keep your older computers longer reduces demand for new computers

Green Benefits

Slide by David Deal of Community IT Innovators

Cloud Computing

“One of the biggest opportunities for decreasing an organization’s power and equipment usage is through the use of hosted software.… This offers significant environmental advantages, and typically also simplifies IT administration. ”

David Deal in Greening Your IT Through Your Software Choices

Some Helpful Reading

Comparing Online vs. Traditional Office Software

Why Should Nonprofits Care About Cloud Computing?

Types of Cloud Computing

• IaaS: Infrastructure as a service• PaaS: Platform as a service• SaaS: Software as a Service

Examples of Cloud Providers

• Amazon – EC2 and S3(IaaS)• Google – App Engine(PaaS)• Microsoft – Azure(IaaS & PaaS)|BPOS(SaaS)• Salesforce – NPO Starter Pack(SaaS)

• Caution: Make IT Green: Cloud Computing and its Contribution to Climate Change

26

NIST: 4 Cloud Deployment Models

• Private cloud enterprise owned or leased

• Community cloudshared infrastructure for specific community

• Public cloudsold to the public, mega-scale infrastructure

• Hybrid cloudcomposition of two or more clouds

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

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NIST: 5 Essential Cloud Characteristics

• On-demand self-service • Broad network access• Resource pooling

Location independence

• Rapid elasticity• Measured service

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

Business Productivity Online Suite

Discounted Offerings Free offerings

Slide by Microsoft

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NIST: Three Features of Mature SaaS Applications

• Scalable Handle growing amounts of work in a graceful manner

• Multi-tenancy One application instance may be serving hundreds of companies Opposite of multi-instance where each customer is provisioned

their own server running one instance

• Metadata driven configurability Instead of customizing the application for a customer (requiring

code changes), one allows the user to configure the application through metadata

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From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

SaaS Common Examples

• Software as a ServiceDocument Sharing - Google docs, Office Live,

ZohoCRM solutions – Salesforce, BlackbaudBackup - MozyCollaboration/Training tools – ReadyTalk,

WebEx, GoToMeeting, Unified Communication Tools

Social Networking: LinkedIn, Twitter, FlickrHR Tools: Performance Reviews, PayrollProject Management: Basecamp

Prize Give Away

• What are the three types of Cloud Computing?

• Hint: _aaS, _aaS, _aaS

How is the Cloud Impacting NPOs?

Slide by Microsoft

Impacting NPOs: More Complexity

• More IT choices = IT decisions more complicated and more confusing

• Some cloud based services like webhosting, HR services, and conferencing (like Skype) are already well developed in the cloud

• Others like security and disaster recovery will take longer to develop.

Info from Forresters

Impacting NPOs: Lower Barrier to Entry

Particular importance to smaller organizations: it lowers the “barrier to entry” for certain large-scale enterprise applications, that wouldn’t be cost-effective to install and run internally for a small staff; but can make sense, when available on a per-user subscription basis (Microsoft Sharepoint is a good example of this).

Impacting NPOs: Shifting Use

• More staff and volunteers have access to more systems outside the office.

• Fundraising, volunteer management and donor management all have solid offerings in the cloud.

• Many SaaS providers offer free or discounted services for NPOs: Salesforce, GrantStation, VolunteerMatters, Google Docs, Office Live

Impacting NPOs: Shifting Use

• Next 6 to 8 years we’ll be in a state of hybrid cloud adoption

• More people will be using both ‘on premises’ and cloud versions of MS Office

• Use of computers will change toward easier collaboration/sharing and better access to the office anywhere you are.

Impacting NPOs: Software Costs

• In the next 6 to 8 years, nonprofits will probably not be reducing software and IT staffing costs very much.

• Migration to cloud software and services will be gradual and costs will be shifting, but not going down dramatically.

• You’ll probably being paying more in monthly fees, and less on buying software packages.

Impacting NPOs: Hardware Costs

• IT hardware costs will gradually go down for nonprofits over the next 6 to 8 years.

• You will probably need fewer on premises server computers, and less robust and expensive desktop or laptop computers as more of your work is online.

• Telecom costs may increase as more bandwidth and stability is needed.

Summary: Cloud Economics

• Decreased captial costs• Usually, increased operating costs• Example 1: Preferred Hotel

Traditional: $210k server refresh and $10k/month

Cloud: $10k implementation and $16k/month

• Example 2: Nevada Crisis Call Center Trimmed technology management work by

$20,000 annuallyEliminated a recurring capital expense of

$15,000More reliable IT services

Prize Give Away

• Name 2 impacts the cloud is having on nonprofits

Some Criteria for Use

UsageCom

pute

Time

Average

InactivityPeriod

Com

pute

Time Average Usage

Average Usage

Com

pute

Time

Com

pute

Time

Average Usage

Criteria for Use: Questions for Vendors

When selecting a service & provider, consider these items:

• Costs: upfront, ongoing, utility model • Security & Compliance• Reliability & SLAs• Connectivity: stability & bandwidth• Features • Ease of startup

45

NIST: Service Level Agreements (SLAs)

• Contract between customers and service providers of the level of service to be provided

• Contains performance metrics (e.g., uptime, throughput, response time)

• Problem management details• Documented security capabilities• Contains penalties for non-performance

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

Some Easy Targets

• Virtual PBX• VoIP – potentially eliminate your phone• Electronic fax services like MyFax and

eFax• Email systems• Green Host for Websites

Questions for Green Website Hosting ProvidersWhen selecting a provider, consider these items:• $$: most are comparable or better than traditional hosts • Ease of startup • Features• Reliability • How green are they? Do they buy carbon off-sets or

power their operations with their own solar panels? Do they virtualize their servers? Are they certified by anyone?

Lists of Green Web Hosts webhostinggeeks.com TreeHugger WebHostingReport.com http://twitter.com/greenwebsites

Travel Reduction

• Reduce commuter and business travel

• Travel contributes to 50% of CITI’s total emissions(even with 75% of travel done via public

transit, biking, and walking!)

• Ingredients: Remote & mobile access to ICT resources - data, voice, video

• Numerous studies confirming moderate to significant positive environmental impact

Slide by David Deal of Community IT Innovators

Video

• Peer-to-peer, small groups:• Skype • VuRoom add-on allows for group video• Quality?

• Hosted, better for groups:• WebEx (for up to 6 people)

Slide by David Deal of Community IT Innovators

Working with Distributed Teams

• Web conferencing: • GoToMeeting, WebEx, Ready Talk

• File sharing: • Box.net, Dropbox, Jungle Disk, Google Docs,

BPOS/SharePoint

• Comprehensive hosted apps: • Zoho, Google Apps, MS BPOS+Office Web Apps

• Extranets/project collaboration: • Basecamp, SharePoint

Slide by David Deal of Community IT Innovators

Some Challenges

Challenges with Cloud Computing

Risks of Cloud Computing• Loss of connectivity: If you have a slow or unreliable

connection, cloud computing isn't right for your mission-critical needs.

• Service levels: Ensure reputable provider & provides an acceptable level of uptime & rapid response to issues.

• Regulatory compliance: If you need to be HIPAA- or PCI-compliant or conform to other regulations, make sure your service provider is certified.

• Backups: Make sure you have copies of and access to your data, especially if your service should fail.

• Security: There are a variety of concerns about storing sensitive client data in the cloud due to privacy and security standards, that include data security for phishing, spamming, and hacking concerns. The jury is still out on some of these issues, so for the time-being, we recommend caution when storing sensitive financial or personal information about your supporters and clients online.

54

NIST: Analyzing Cloud Security

• Some key issues: trust, multi-tenancy, encryption, compliance

• Clouds are massively complex systems that can be reduced to simple primitives that are replicated thousands of times and common functional units

• Cloud security is a tractable problemThere are both advantages and challenges

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

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NIST: General Security Advantages

• Shifting public data to a external cloud reduces the exposure of the internal sensitive data

• Cloud homogeneity makes security auditing/testing simpler

• Clouds enable automated security management

• Redundancy / Disaster Recovery

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

56

NIST: General Security Challenges

• Trusting vendor’s security model• Customer inability to respond to audit findings• Obtaining support for investigations• Indirect administrator accountability• Proprietary implementations can’t be examined• Loss of physical control

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

57

NIST: Cloud Security Advantages Part 1

• Data Fragmentation and Dispersal• Dedicated Security Team• Greater Investment in Security Infrastructure• Fault Tolerance and Reliability• Greater Resiliency• Hypervisor Protection Against Network Attacks• Possible Reduction of C&A Activities (Access

to Pre-Accredited Clouds)

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

58

• Simplification of Compliance Analysis• Data Held by Unbiased Party (cloud

vendor assertion)• Low-Cost Disaster Recovery and Data

Storage Solutions• On-Demand Security Controls• Real-Time Detection of System Tampering• Rapid Re-Constitution of Services• Advanced Honeynet Capabilities

NIST: Cloud Security Advantages Part 2

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

59

NIST: Cloud Security Challenges Part 1

• Data dispersal & international privacy laws EU Data Protection Directive and U.S. Safe

Harbor program Exposure of data to foreign government and

data subpoenas Data retention issues

• Need for isolation management• Multi-tenancy • Logging challenges• Data ownership issues • Quality of service guarantees

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

60

NIST: Cloud Security Challenges Part 2

• Dependence on secure hypervisors• Attraction to hackers (high value target)• Security of virtual OSs in the cloud • Possibility for massive outages• Encryption needs for cloud computing

Encrypting access to the cloud resource control interface

Encrypting administrative access to OS instances Encrypting access to applications Encrypting application data at rest

• Public cloud vs internal cloud security • Lack of public SaaS version control

From NIST: Presentation on Effectively and Securely Using the Cloud Computing Paradigm v26

Security & PrivacySecurity & Privacy

CustomizabilityCustomizability

Visibility & ControlVisibility & Control

Data AccessibilityData Accessibility

Global ReachGlobal Reach

Ease of ProvisioningEase of Provisioning

Business AgilityBusiness Agility

Deployability & ManageabilityDeployability & ManageabilitySlide by Microsoft

• Questions on Challenges?

Prize Give Away!

Name a benefit, a green benefit, and a risk of Cloud Computing

Extra credit: Why should you care?

Conclusion

• Cloud has a lot to offer, esp. small nonprofits.

• Cloud solutions are often greener, easier to implement, and more secure.

• Cloud solutions are not right for every need or every organization.

• Talk with your board, staff, volunteers and/or consultants. Decide which is the best first step for your organization.

Thank you!

More Info:Come to www.techsoup.org/greentech to

find other tips and suggestions.Anna S. Jaeger

TechSoup Globalanna@techsoup.orgwww.techsoup.org

@TSGreenTech