Cloud pionieers
  1. Cloud Computing - Introduction
  2. History
  3. Cloud pionieers

Cloud pionieers

In 60’s John McCarthy predicted Cloud computing claiming that „Computation may someday be organized as a public utility”.
He assumed that computation could be treated as other services consumed by the public: electricity, natural gas, water, sewage. Right now we have for example: Internet.
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Fig: 2.3/1: “John McCarthy”
Similar predictions were given by Douglas Parhill’s in book: The Challenge of the Computer Utility in 1966.
In 70’s IBM has shown idea of Virtual Machines. They defined Virtual machine us: “multiple virtual systems, or "Virtual Machines" (VMs) on a single physical node = multiple distinct compute environments in one physical environment”

What is virtualization?

Virtualization is a logical representation of resources not constrained by physical limitations.

One way of looking at virtualization is to visualize taking something large, carving it up and making it look like many small things. Think of that as partitioning an Intel server using technologies like the VMware.

Another way of looking at it is making many small things work in concert as one large thing. A good example of that is storage virtualization, where we can have multiple storage arrays from different vendors, work in concert as if they were one large single storage pool.

And, finally, it’s being able to dynamically change and adjust these resources across the infrastructure. Think of that as being able to do what we could do in the mainframe for years, being able to extend that capability across a heterogeneous distributed enterprise.

Most of the basic functions of any virtualization software that you see nowadays can be tracked back to this early VM OS.
Every VM could run custom operating systems or guest OS that had their „own”:
  •     memory,
  •     CPU,
  •     hard drives,
  •     CD-ROMs,
  •     keyboards,
  •     networking
in fact shared.
From 60’s we have era of personal computers: Most important mile stones are:

  •     IBM 610 (1957 – 55K $, 180 pcs)
  •     Olivetti Programma 101 (1965 – 3,2K$, 44pcs)
  •     MIR (1965-1969)

1977 - The „Trinity”:

  •     Apple II,
  •     Commodore PET 2001,
  •     TRS-80

1980s - home computers:

  •     Atari
  •     Sinclair (spectrum)
  •     Commodore
  •     IBP PC

Expansion of PCs lead to connecting web-sites, e-mail, chat and sharing of files, devices (printers, scanners, etc.) In the same moment with virtualization and emulation of one OS on others.

In networking VPN technology by Telecommunication companies. They evolve from dedicated point-to-point circuits to virtual private network (VPN) VPN – shared access to the same physical infrastructure, in other words one physical connection emulating multiple distinct connections. Until the end of the 1990s networked computers were connected through expensive leased lines and/or dial-up phone lines.

Virtual Private Networks reduce network costs because they avoid a need for many leased lines that individually connect to the Internet. Users can exchange private data securely, making the expensive leased lines unnecessary.

Strong points of VPN are: shifting traffic as necessary, Better network balance, More control over bandwidth usage.

VPN technology allowes:

  • Online access to your company’s or university’s servers
  • The ability to work remotely
  • Ensuring privacy
  • Access to country/region limited resources

In the same time idea of virtualization came back. In beginning of XXI century when the Internet and virtualization become more accessible, an idea emerged „Let’s take the virtualization on-line!”.

The way for companies and private users to get a server they needed was sharing a physical machine through a virtual server. For example if a company needs 10 servers to run its applications it may buy one physical server and install 10 virtual servers on it

Technology that allows online virtualization grow up few years earlier in 90’s.