An enterprise architecture driven approach to virtualisation

Organisations have shown a significant interest in the adoption of virtualisation technology for improving the efficiency of their Data Centres (DC) from both the resource performance and cost efficiency viewpoints. By improving the efficiency of data centres we can sustainably manage their impact on the environment by controlling their energy consumption. The intentions are clear but how best to approach to Data Centre virtualisation is not. This paper proposes an integrated Enterprise Architecture and Information Infrastructure (EAII) driven approach to guide the Data Centre virtualisation. The EAII approach has been developed based on the review and analysis of wellknown The Open Group Architecture Framework (TOGAF) and Information Infrastructure (II) model. The proposed integrated EAII approach seems appropriate to guide and align business strategy and virtualisation implementation for data centres of any size in any industry vertical

Information standards to support application and enterprise interoperability for the smart grid

Copyright @ 2012 IEEE.Current changes in the European electricity industry are driven by regulatory directives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, at the same time as replacing aged infrastructure and maintaining energy security. There is a wide acceptance of the requirement for smarter grids to support such changes and accommodate variable injections from renewable energy sources. However the design templates are still emerging to manage the level of information required to meet challenges such as balancing, planning and market dynamics under this new paradigm. While secure and scalable cloud computing architectures may contribute to supporting the informatics challenges of the smart grid, this paper focuses on the essential need for business alignment with standardised information models such as the IEC Common Information Model (CIM), to leverage data value and control system interoperability. In this paper we present details of use cases being considered by National Grid, the GB transmission system operator for information interoperability in pan-network system management and planning.This study is financially supported by the National Grid, UK

Container network functions: bringing NFV to the network edge

In order to cope with the increasing network utilization driven by new mobile clients, and to satisfy demand for new network services and performance guarantees, telecommunication service providers are exploiting virtualization over their network by implementing network services in virtual machines, decoupled from legacy hardware accelerated appliances. This effort, known as NFV, reduces OPEX and provides new business opportunities. At the same time, next generation mobile, enterprise, and IoT networks are introducing the concept of computing capabilities being pushed at the network edge, in close proximity of the users. However, the heavy footprint of today's NFV platforms prevents them from operating at the network edge. In this article, we identify the opportunities of virtualization at the network edge and present Glasgow Network Functions (GNF), a container-based NFV platform that runs and orchestrates lightweight container VNFs, saving core network utilization and providing lower latency. Finally, we demonstrate three useful examples of the platform: IoT DDoS remediation, on-demand troubleshooting for telco networks, and supporting roaming of network functions

Management and Service-aware Networking Architectures (MANA) for Future Internet Position Paper: System Functions, Capabilities and Requirements

Future Internet (FI) research and development threads have recently been gaining momentum all over the world and as such the international race to create a new generation Internet is in full swing: GENI, Asia Future Internet, Future Internet Forum Korea, European Union Future Internet Assembly (FIA). This is a position paper identifying the research orientation with a time horizon of 10 years, together with the key challenges for the capabilities in the Management and Service-aware Networking Architectures (MANA) part of the Future Internet (FI) allowing for parallel and federated Internet(s)

Introducing mobile edge computing capabilities through distributed 5G Cloud Enabled Small Cells

Current trends in broadband mobile networks are addressed towards the placement of different capabilities at the edge of the mobile network in a centralised way. On one hand, the split of the eNB between baseband processing units and remote radio headers makes it possible to process some of the protocols in centralised premises, likely with virtualised resources. On the other hand, mobile edge computing makes use of processing and storage capabilities close to the air interface in order to deploy optimised services with minimum delay. The confluence of both trends is a hot topic in the definition of future 5G networks. The full centralisation of both technologies in cloud data centres imposes stringent requirements to the fronthaul connections in terms of throughput and latency. Therefore, all those cells with limited network access would not be able to offer these types of services. This paper proposes a solution for these cases, based on the placement of processing and storage capabilities close to the remote units, which is especially well suited for the deployment of clusters of small cells. The proposed cloud-enabled small cells include a highly efficient microserver with a limited set of virtualised resources offered to the cluster of small cells. As a result, a light data centre is created and commonly used for deploying centralised eNB and mobile edge computing functionalities. The paper covers the proposed architecture, with special focus on the integration of both aspects, and possible scenarios of application.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

SDN/NFV-enabled satellite communications networks: opportunities, scenarios and challenges

In the context of next generation 5G networks, the satellite industry is clearly committed to revisit and revamp the role of satellite communications. As major drivers in the evolution of (terrestrial) fixed and mobile networks, Software Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Function Virtualisation (NFV) technologies are also being positioned as central technology enablers towards improved and more flexible integration of satellite and terrestrial segments, providing satellite network further service innovation and business agility by advanced network resources management techniques. Through the analysis of scenarios and use cases, this paper provides a description of the benefits that SDN/NFV technologies can bring into satellite communications towards 5G. Three scenarios are presented and analysed to delineate different potential improvement areas pursued through the introduction of SDN/NFV technologies in the satellite ground segment domain. Within each scenario, a number of use cases are developed to gain further insight into specific capabilities and to identify the technical challenges stemming from them.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Data warehouse automation trick or treat?

Data warehousing systems have been around for 25 years playing a crucial role in collecting data and transforming that data into value, allowing users to make decisions based on informed business facts. It is widely accepted that a data warehouse is a critical component to a data-driven enterprise, and it becomes part of the organisation’s information systems strategy, with a significant impact on the business. However, after 25 years, building a Data Warehouse is still painful, they are too time-consuming, too expensive and too difficult to change after deployment. Data Warehouse Automation appears with the promise to address the limitations of traditional approaches, turning the data warehouse development from a prolonged effort into an agile one, with gains in efficiency and effectiveness in data warehousing processes. So, is Data Warehouse Automation a Trick or Treat? To answer this question, a case study of a data warehousing architecture using a data warehouse automation tool, called WhereScape, was developed. Also, a survey was made to organisations that are using data warehouse automation tools, in order to understand their motivation in the adoption of this kind of tools in their data warehousing systems. Based on the results of the survey and on the case study, automation in the data warehouses building process is necessary to deliver data warehouse systems faster, and a solution to consider when modernize data warehouse architectures as a way to achieve results faster, keeping costs controlled and reduce risk. Data Warehouse Automation definitely may be a Treat.Os sistemas de armazenamento de dados existem há 25 anos, desempenhando um papel crucial na recolha de dados e na transformação desses dados em valor, permitindo que os utilizadores tomem decisões com base em fatos. É amplamente aceite, que um data warehouse é um componente crítico para uma empresa orientada a dados e se torna parte da estratégia de sistemas de informação da organização, com um impacto significativo nos negócios. No entanto, após 25 anos, a construção de um Data Warehouse ainda é uma tarefa penosa, demora muito tempo, é cara e difícil de mudar após a sua conclusão. A automação de Data Warehouse aparece com a promessa de endereçar as limitações das abordagens tradicionais, transformando o desenvolvimento da data warehouse de um esforço prolongado em um esforço ágil, com ganhos de eficiência e eficácia. Será, a automação de Data Warehouse uma doçura ou travessura? Foi desenvolvido um estudo de caso de uma arquitetura de data warehousing usando uma ferramenta de automação, designada WhereScape. Foi também conduzido um questionário a organizações que utilizam ferramentas de automação de data warehouse, para entender sua motivação na adoção deste tipo de ferramentas. Com base nos resultados da pesquisa e no estudo de caso, a automação no processo de construção de data warehouses, é necessária para uma maior agilidade destes sistemas e uma solução a considerar na modernização destas arquiteturas, pois permitem obter resultados mais rapidamente, mantendo os custos controlados e reduzindo o risco. A automação de data warehouse pode bem vir a ser uma “doçura”