2012

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RACKSPACE’S GUIDE TO THE CLOUD

INDEX1. WHAT CLOUD IS, WHAT IT ISN’T, AND WHY USE IT2. RACKSPACE CLOUD OFFERINGS

CLOUD SERVERS –CLOUD SERVERS WITH A MANAGED –SERVICE LEVELCLOUD FILES –CLOUD DNS –CLOUD LOAD BALANCERS –RACKCONNECT –

3. HOW BUSINESSES ARE USING CLOUD4. CLOUD MYTH BUSTER

1. WHAT CLOUD IS, WHAT IT ISN’T, AND WHY USE IT

You may have heard the term cloud computing or ‘the cloud,’ but could you describe what it is? There are so many defi nitions fl ying around that you wouldn’t be alone if you struggled to defi ne it. So, what is cloud computing? Simply put, cloud computing is a shared computing resource, delivered over the Internet and invoiced on a utility basis (i.e. pay-as-you-go computing).

The shared computing resource that cloud computing delivers can take many forms, including fl exible applications (e.g. email, CRM), web services, online storage or virtual servers on demand. Cloud computing allows businesses to effortlessly scale their technology requirements to meet new demands. The cloud can be a very cost-effective approach to technology because it removes the need to make usage predictions, up-front capital investments, or over-purchase hardware or software to meet the demands of peak periods.

With the right approach, cloud computing can work for any size organisation. While the industry has seen the highest uptake from start-ups and tech savvy developers, enterprises too are now starting to adopt the cloud. The cloud is ideal for test and development work - being able to create new servers or clone servers within minutes, and only pay for the servers while they are online makes testing new code a lot easier and more cost-effective.

Some enterprises are fi nding the cloud allows them to be more agile and react quickly to customer and internal demands. Examples of this include pharmaceutical companies using the cloud to perform drug research analysis and online retailers trying a new strategy for surges in seasonal website traffi c.

1111111...... W What Cloud isn’tCloud computing is not a panacea. At Rackspace, we often say that while the cloud is right for everyone, it’s not right for everything. Businesses looking to move to the cloud should be certain that they are placing the right solution in the cloud. Remember that the cloud is built on a shared infrastructure, so may not be suitable to highly confi dential data, anything requiring regulatory compliance (e.g. PCI DSS) or some highly transactional applications.

Why use cloud computing? There are many benefi ts to cloud computing - the ability to scale swiftly at low cost is the most often cited; however, the massive choice of applications, servers and services available to cloud users should not be ignored. Cloud computing allows businesses of all sizes to react swiftly to demand and be more agile.

Cloud computing customers don’t have to raise the capital to purchase, manage, maintain and scale the physical infrastructure required to handle drastic traffi c fl uctuations. Instead of having to invest time and money to keep their sites afl oat, cloud computing customers simply pay for the resources they use, as they use them.

Rackspace customers are also able to combine Managed Hosting and Cloud in a hybrid confi guration. Using RackConnect™, customers with the right network device (either an F5 Big IP local traffi c manager or a Cisco ASA 5505 Sec Plus fi rewall, or better) can connect their Cloud and Managed Hosting infrastructures together at no additional cost.

Signifi cant ongoing cost reduction“ We have made savings by moving from a commercial enterprise solution to open source, but the most impressive saving has been through the implementation of the cloud based hosting platform, where we have achieved very signifi cant savings of between 60 and 70% per month when compared to the previous hosting arrangements. The key factor is that we have become more effi cient and we now offer a more robust website with the ability to instantly scale up to meet high traffi c demands.”

2. RACKSPACE CLOUD OFFERINGS

Rackspace Cloud® offers a wide range of hosting services which include: Cloud Servers® for on-demand virtual servers, Cloud Servers with a Managed Service Level (Managed Cloud), Cloud Files for easily scalable online fi le storage and CDN, and RackConnect, which enables customers to combine Managed and Cloud Hosting in one logical confi guration.

Cloud Servers

Cloud Servers give you instant computing power, serving your applications with maximum fl exibility and effi ciency. Deploy one or even dozens of Cloud Servers instantly, for as long (or little) as you need them.

What you get Full root access and rebooting, allowing you to customise • your server and install/remove applications at willChoose from a variety of popular Linux distributions • including: Ubuntu, Debian, Gentoo, Centos, Fedora, Arch and Red Hat Enterprise Linux, or Windows® 2008Dedicated IP address and redundant bandwidth• RAID-10 disk storage, with persistence as standard so even • if the hardware fails, your data is safeReserved RAM, ensuring that servers are not oversubscribed• Guaranteed CPU power, PLUS the ability to burst free of • charge (subject to availability and hardware limitations)

Select a Size for Your Cloud Server

Select Your Operating System

Your Server is Online in Just a Few Minutes

Cloud Server sizes are measured by the amount of physical memory reserved for your instance and range from 256 MB up to 30 GB.

Choose from a variety of popular 64-bit Linux® Distributions—Ubuntu, Debian, Gentoo, CentOS, Fedora, Arch and Red Hat Enterprise Linux—or Windows® Images—Windows Server 2008. You can also add a SQL Server 2008 R2 database to your Windows image.

Using our online control panel and API, each Cloud Server can be upgraded or removed as your needs change. You can even manage your Cloud Servers on-the-go via your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Android.

Typical usesDevelopment• – The most popular use for Cloud Servers is for development, because Cloud Servers are ideal for testing new code. Spin them up when you need them, reboot via the portal if your code crashes and delete your Cloud Servers when they are no longer needed. And stop paying immediately.Web Sites• – the other highly popular use for Cloud Servers is as affordable web servers. Using our online control panel and API, each Cloud Server can be upgraded or removed as your needs change.

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Cloud Servers with Managed Service Level

Rackspace® Cloud Servers with a Managed Service Level extends our world-class managed services from our Managed Hosting offering to the Rackspace Cloud.

This offer provides an additional level of support on Cloud Servers that includes monitoring, operating systems and application infrastructure layer support and technical guidance. Cloud Servers with a Managed Service Level is ideal for any business or IT department that needs the on-demand availability, fl exibility and scalability of cloud computing, but doesn’t have the in-house resources to support it 24/7/365.

With a Managed Service Level on Cloud Servers, you receive:

Cloud Files

Cloud Files provides you and your applications cloud-based storage – items like backups, video fi les, or user content. And for public content, you can deliver that content to your users at high speed over Akamai’s Content Delivery Network (CDN).

What you getScalable, dynamic storage. Use as much or as little as you • want, and only pay for what you useManage fi les through our online control panel or • programmatically through our REST APIServe public fi les at high speed using Akamai’s CDN technology• Redundancy in your data, which is automatically replicated • into three separate zones of the data centre

Upload Files to the Cloud

Pay Only For What You Use

Keep Data Private or Share it Publicly —Your Choice

Store and manage unlimited fi les using our online control panel, desktop software, or programmatically via the API. And even manage it on-the-go via your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch and Android device.

Unlike traditional storage solutions, there’s nothing to buy and no up-front costs for Cloud Files. You’ll pay only for the fi le storage space and outgoing bandwidth that you actually use.

Each container that you create for your fi les can be marked as either private or public.

Typical usesPrivate Storage• : Many organisations integrate Cloud Files into their applications, as a simple, reliable and cost-effective archiving mechanism, ensuring that important documents and records are protected.Public Documents• : Another popular use of Cloud Files is to share popular content (documents, images, fi les etc.) with Internet audiences. This takes advantage of the affordable CDN capability that comes as standard for all public content.

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Cloud DNS

The Rackspace Cloud DNS free API service automates and simplifi es Domain Name System management.

What you get:Comprehensive Management• – Easily manage domains, sub-domains and records via the:REST-based API – You can list, add, modify and remove domains and records, as well as import and export domains.Advanced Confi guration – With the Rackspace Cloud DNS Beta, you are also able to manage mail servers, zone delegation and create SPF records through an easy to use wizard.

How it works

Cloud Load Balancers Cloud Load Balancers provide a cost-effective and reliable failover solution, plus they are easy to deploy and scale.

What you getDedicated (static) IP address• Easy to set up, use and manage• Supports multiple protocols and algorithms• Built-in high availability• Access via online control panel and open API• Works with RackConnect• Fanatical Support• ® always includedNo long-term contracts•

What you getCombined traditional and Cloud Hosting, allowing the • fl exibility to put workloads where they perform bestAdded security of a dedicated fi rewall to your • Cloud confi gurationCentrally defi ned Network Security Policies automatically • applied to your entire confi gurationIncreased security allowing you to move workloads between • your data center and Rackspace over an encrypted VPN tunnel or private linkFanatical Support with our traditional Dedicated Hosting and • Cloud Servers with a Managed Service Level.

Typical use cases Unpredictable traffi c• Marketing campaigns• Rich media• Seasonal traffi c apps, such as E-commerce applications•

Most suitable for:Mission critical deployments requiring multiple levels • of redundancyComplex enterprise applications with specifi c • technology requirements

RackConnect

RackConnect™ is a unique solution designed for customers who require the fl exibility and elasticity of the cloud, as well as the enhanced security and performance characteristics of traditional hosting – the best of both worlds. In essence, RackConnect enables customers to realise the power of Hybrid Hosting.

How RackConnect works

2. SaaS - scaled costs, increased profi tabilityBuilding a SaaS solution on Cloud Files and Cloud Servers enables businesses to scale their costs in line with revenues.

These two services act together to dramatically reduce the business risk of SaaS development. Ending speculative investment in new capital projects, businesses only pay for what they use, and so don’t need to make an up-front CAPEX commitment.

Companies can also get their SaaS application into the market much quicker with Cloud services than has previously been possible. This is because the services are so fl exible for developers - spin up Cloud Servers for test and development in minutes, reboot when needed via the portal. Developers can also automate provisioning of additional servers according to demand, using our RESTful Application Programming Interface (API).

“ The key factors for choosing Rackspace were a combination of price, skill and knowledge, combined with a level of service and global presence. Since Rackspace has been the hosting partner, the company has added a large number of new servers to the fully managed private cloud. They also make use of the managed backup service and fi rewall technology to protect and secure client data. And with over 30 GB data being added per month, this is a critical component of the setup.”

3. HOW BUSINESSES ARE USING CLOUD

We fervently believe that the Cloud is suitable for everyone (though not for everything). However, we have noticed some trends amongst how our customers are using Cloud.

We’ve seen a strong IT focus (web development and design, IT Services). And while they use Cloud for a wide variety of applications, the most commonly hosted are defi nitely corporate websites, testing and development and E-commerce sites.

It’s not just seasonable businesses that are jumping on the Cloud. Even organisations with very predictable traffi c are fi nding that Cloud services are ideal for testing and development. The capability to turn on a server within minutes, running the operating system of your choice, with the fl exibility to reboot or delete the server from a web portal, means that developers in all kinds of organisations are fl ocking to the Cloud.

Cloud Servers and Cloud Files have already helped many customers in many different business applications.

1. File storage - create, publish and serve content worldwideCloud Files offers a scalable, on-demand solution which can be used to store virtually anything. The integration of Akamai’s Content Delivery Network allows users to create, publish and serve content worldwide. This ensures a good end-user experience, without overloading their Cloud Files infrastructure. And as for all Cloud services, it’s pay as you use.

“ Unlike traditional fi le storage solutions, there is nothing to buy and no up-front costs for cloud storage. You simply pay for the fi le storage space and outgoing bandwidth that you actually use. This change had the potential to offer us signifi cant cost savings through Rackspace.”

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3. E-commerce - handle peak demand withcost-effective scalingCloud Servers, Cloud Load Balancers and Cloud Files allow retailers to upgrade their online presence in minutes - and even automate this process with our API or tools from some of our Cloud Partners. They can handle spikes in website traffi c with ease, secure in the knowledge that capacity can be added or removed on demand, via the customer portal, or automatically via API.

This means that they can reduce their costs by scaling down their online infrastructure during quiet periods - since when you scale back your infrastructure, you also scale back your costs. Then when demand picks up, they can scale up again - and grow their business.

Rackspace Cloud Files also speeds up the delivery of images and media content (videos, documents, fi les etc) from your website, using the world-class Akamai Content Delivery Network (CDN).

Rackspace Cloud Load Balancers work alongside Cloud Servers to give you redundancy and make it easier to scale your Cloud infrastructure. Using either the API, control panel or iPhone/iPad app, you can add and remove Cloud Servers to and from your Cloud Load Balancers with ease.

“ The problem was that we wanted the very best of both worlds. Our hosting solution had to offer the exceptionally high level of security and confi gurability that only comes with dedicated managed hosting, but also had to provide the instant scalability and economy of cloud hosting. The answer was found with Rackspace® Hosting’s RackConnect® solution that ticks all these options and more.”

4. Social media - stay up and running 24/7Organisations are now adopting social media as a signifi cant new way of improving customer engagement and intimacy, getting near real-time customer feedback on what your business is getting right, as well as your areas for improvement.

The words “social media” and “viral” can go hand-in-hand. You want your app, blog, forum or video to go viral. But you don’t want your site to go down.

Whether it’s for a forum, a wiki or a blog, the Rackspace Cloud is an ideal solution. It provides scalable, on-demand virtual servers and fi le storage, available 24/7 to ensure that businesses can interact with their customers at any time. And if the content goes viral, they can simply automate provisioning and deprovisioning of capacity, ensuring that there is always the capacity they need, and they never pay more than they need to.

Plixi is a photo sharing platform for the real-time web. This free service allows you to share photos on Twitter, Facebook and through your favourite desktop and mobile clients.

The company aims to change the way people share, discover and interact with photos across multiple social networks in a way that feels natural and engaging to users.

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5. Media - scalable virtual servers and fi le storageFor businesses planning a big promotion, or hosting content that has topical interest, Rackspace Cloud services can be an excellent solution. They provide highly scalable, on-demand virtual servers, load balancers and fi le storage, available 24/7 to ensure that they are always up and running - no matter how successful the app or content. If traffi c levels grow, server and storage capacity can be boosted quickly and easily using our online customer portal.

Alternatively, using our API, provisioning and deprovisioning of virtual servers, load balancers and storage can be integrated into your systems, to ensure that businesses always have the capacity they need, but never pay more than they have to.

ORM has delivered many highly creative online solutions for its clients including Channel 4 TV, ITV, and Monitise and astute technical bodies such as the IET (Institute of Engineering and Technology) putting them on the digital map and ensuring their net presence keeps pace with a rapidly changing market. Cloud Files and Cloud Servers have allowed this to be a seamless and economic client solution.

6. Testing and development - fl exibility, scalability and OS optionsTraditional servers for test and development are fast becoming a thing of the past because the case for Cloud Servers is so compelling for development environments. Businesses can pick the size of server required, choose the operating system being worked with, and in minutes your test environment is online. Code crashed? No problem, reboot via the portal. When you’re done, just delete your Cloud Servers and you stop being charged.

3EV (3rd Eye Vision) provides web and intranet services to a swiftly growing client list including the European Bank (EBRD), The Economist, Macmillan Publishing and The Chemical Brothers along with the delivery of E-commerce solutions for a multitude of Soho music stores. They have found the Rackspace Cloud an ideal and cost effective environment for conducting test and development work.

“ The Rackspace Cloud means our R&D will be able to put different things such as betting games out there in the Cloud and test them. They don’t have to wait in line.”

Duren Dexter, technology strategy, risk and audit manager at Betfair.*

*source, CIO Magazine, 27 Jan 2011

4. Myth: Customers lose control in the Cloud and get locked-in.There are different types of clouds that offer different levels of customisation and fl exibility. Clouds that implement standard technology stacks and participate in cloud standardisation efforts are your best bet to enable application mobility. Traction for open clouds is gaining momentum and the future will involve federation between public-to-public as well as public to on-premise/hosted private clouds.

5. Myth: Pay as you go Cloud pricing will cost me more.Cloud computing has huge economies of scale that get passed on to the consumer. In addition, cloud computing transfers what is typically CAPEX (large up-front expenditures) into OPEX (ongoing operational costs), enabling pricing to be commensurate with usage.

Also, don’t just look at raw cost. Generally, best value solutions are superior to lowest cost. Consider all the factors including support, customer service, reputation, reliability, etc. when measuring value.

6. Myth: The Cloud is not for enterprises.The benefi ts of cloud computing apply equally to enterprises as they do to SMBs, startups and consumers. Since enterprise businesses are typically more risk averse, new technologies are generally adopted by small business fi rst. That said, overall cloud adoption rates are increasing substantially and we are seeing more and more enterprise adoption.

*Source: Gartner report “Forecast: Public Cloud Services, Worldwide and Regions, Industry Sectors, 2009-2014.

4. CLOUD MYTH BUSTER

1. Myth: Cloud is just a fad.Cloud as a term is new, but the concepts and technologies have been evolving for years. It continues to emerge as a game-changing technology and Gartner Research predicts that the cloud market will grow to $148.8bn by 2014*. Cloud computing is here to stay.

2. Myth: The cloud is not secure.Public clouds are fundamentally multi-tenant to justify the scale and economics of the cloud. As such, security is a common concern, but is certainly not a new concept. Customers thinking about moving to the cloud should always be aware of the ramifi cations of using a shared infrastructure and what data is suitable to be hosted there.

Many cloud solutions, including Rackspace Cloud Servers, can be secured using software fi rewalls, data encryption and VPN access. RackConnect customers using a hybrid infrastructure are able to further secure their solutions with the dedicated hardware fi rewalls in their Managed Hosting environment.

If the public cloud is fundamentally not secure enough, consider an on-premise cloud, virtual private cloud, or a hybrid cloud solution such as RackConnect that allows you to maintain the level of security you require.

3. Myth: The cloud is not reliable.No system has 100% uptime, and neither does the cloud. However, cloud computing services are typically designed to provide high redundancy and availability. While this same level of redundancy/availability is possible to achieve in-house or with dedicated hosting, it’s generally cost prohibitive except for the most critical systems. The cloud enables a higher level of reliability at a fraction of the cost.

7. Myth: I should move everything to the cloud.Not all applications are suitable for cloud computing. While the cloud is here to stay, it will not replace traditional hosting or on-premise deployments, but rather complement them. There will always be situations where security requirements, fl exibility, performance or control will preclude the cloud. In those cases, a hybrid solution involving both cloud and either traditionally hosted or on-premise servers may make sense.

Also, if you are a Managed Hosting customer, be aware that there are two service levels available on the Rackspace Cloud - Core and Managed. Core Cloud customers receive what is essentially an “unmanaged” service, meaning the onus for backups, patching, OS and application support, monitoring, etc. is back on you. However, customers requiring support for their operating systems, selected applications and patching can sign up for our Managed Cloud service.

HOW WE CAN HELP

Here are a few places you can go to fi nd out more about cloud and the Rackspace Cloud.

Rackspace websitesEMEA Cloud site

www.rackspace.co.uk/cloud-hosting

Cloud Knowledge Base http://help.rackspacecloud.com/

Cloud Demo Videos http://www.rackspace.co.uk/cloud-hosting/learn-more/cloud-demos/

What is Cloud Computing? http://www.rackspace.co.uk/cloud-computing/

If you have any questions or queries or you would like to sign up to the Rackspace Cloud please contact:

Sales +44 (0)20 8712 6579

Web https://buyonline.rackspace.co.uk/cloud/

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