19 Nov 2012

Services-Oriented Architecture Gives Headstart in Cloud Computing Systems

If your company has been thinking about integrating a cloud computing system into your services-oriented architecture you may just be a little bit ahead of the game than you think. There are plenty of organizations that are leaning towards a cloud based business process, but have to build from the ground up. With the SOA type of management within your overall computing system, there is already the framework necessary for cloud integration and development.

Within the SOA world there are a lot of proponents and adversaries of the cloud computing integration. There are those that say this is too much of a burden upon overworked IT departments and technicians. The necessity of having to work within a larger community of business managers brings about complications within the communication and conversation end that it isn’t feasible. However, a great many proponents of cloud computing, like James Staten, suggest that SOA and cloud computing work together rather than against each other.

In a statement made in a recent report, Staten says, “Revisit your old SOA enterprise architectures — they’re relevant again.” This is a great rally cry to those who want to move ahead in their business rather than watching the world go forward while they are still trying to catch up. The old “SOA is dead” mantra no longer applies.

The reason?

Leading cloud-native services are built using SOA-class designs — as a series of interconnected but discrete services. These services are designed for survivability of the infrastructure failure and have independence of locality. Another hallmark that beckons SOA integration is cloud services are also designed for rapid innovation and iteration. It also reduces risk of incompatibility when new enhancements are delivered as system updates.

However, there are some steps to take in order to make this a less painful integration.

1. Segment Your Application Transition

If you currently have applications that are a part of your SOA they will need to be the first parts of your cloud integration. Believe it or not you can use these applications as a part of the cloud computing process through some changes.

2. Use Cloud Services To Build New Applications

One of the great aspects of cloud applications is that the framework is already there from which to build upon. There is no need to rewrite tons of code from scratch. You only need to integrate into it through the use of it.

3. Get Started With Cloud Accounts

One of the problems with getting IT technicians started with cloud computing is the right cloud accounts. Get started with accounts on leading IaaS and PaaS cloud platforms. If not sure which ones to use then check out the ones that your business-aligned developers are already using.

Working within the cloud is not some sort of fantasy fix. However, it can be used within your SOA framework using many of the same applications and usable metrics that are in use now.

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