METAARCHIVE & CLOUD COMPUTING Central Server Functions Bill Robbins System Administrator MetaArchive Cooperative

MetaArchive Central Servers  LOCKSS Caches Require a Title Database  LOCKSS Caches Require plugins  MetaArchive Has Created a Conspectus  These Common needs are hosted on Central Servers  Other Centralized/Common tools are also hosted on the “properties” server(s)…Wiki, Cache Manager

Why Cloud Computing

Division of Central Server Functions Functions were separated on two cloud servers and some third party service providers. One server contains functions & material under the public web address, a.k.a. the WWW server. Another server contains functions for network operations, a.k.a. the Admin server. A test network is supported, as well as the production network.

WWW Server  Public Web Site – Drupal  Wikis  MetaWiki  Inter-Wiki  Subversion – Source Code Control  Trac – Ticketing System

Admin Server  Title Database – production + test  Plugin Repository - production + test  Keystore – Validate the plugins  Ssl Key Generation  Nagios - Monitoring  Cache manager – Live View (If time)  Conspectus – Live View (If time)  LOCKSS s/w Repository

These are the functions hosted in the Amazon Cloud. Standard server functions such as MySQL and Apache are left out for simplicity. Cloud Computing Overview

Third Party Functions   XML Code Repository  Listserv

Roles/Accounts - Discussion  Referring to new member package, who needs what?  Different Responsibilties  Expected Duties

Selection of Amazon Cloud Computing for MetaArchive Properties Server  Quick Review of Why Cloud Computing  Desired Features  Maximum Flexibility to Server Configuration  Predictable Pricing Model  Well Established Service Providers Selection:Amazon EC2

Amazon Pricing Model  Finite Virtual Hardware Configurations  Finite O/S availability, created as AMI packages  Pay as you go for storage  Pay as you go for data transfer  Minimal charges for storage I/O  Computing is flat rate, with reduced pricing for a one year commitment.  MetaArchive has a few months of actual usage history  Cost estimates were quite accurate

Actual Cost for Central Servers ( Sample for three running instances)

3 Server Cost - Monthly

Storage costs

Amazon Flexibility  AMI Packages  Start with a Base, then configure as needed.  Restart a complete image if needed.

Cost Analysis for Using Cloud Servers as a LOCKSS Cache  Too Pricy – Vendors not trying hard enough  TBs of storage become too expensive  Constant network traffic becomes too expensive  MetaArchive Caches  Replace Hardware on a 3 year cycle  Latest Server < $4, TB Disk 6GB Ram Quadcore CPU O/S: CentOS – Free Redhat Linux Clone

Cache Price Points  What would it take cost wise to afford running a LOCKSS Cache in a Cloud Computing Environment?  $100/mo. Definitely  $150/mo. Probably  $200/mo. Maybe  $250/mo. Too expensive

Summary of Experience with Amazon EC2  Amazon EC2 Strengths  RAPID Deployment  Perfect for Temporary Needs  Consistent Build Outs  EZ firewall configuration

 Amazon EC2 Drawbacks  Storage Capability Poorly Documented  Simple Storage – Too Simple  Complete examples of servers non-existent (Backup, drive mounting, & others)  Code Library for Working with Storage is non- vendor provided. (Lack of documentation and working examples) Summary of Experience with Amazon EC2

Summary  Cloud Computing Is Working well for MetaArchive for the central properties servers  Vendors need to do better in offering a full set of tools for server operations  Contact Info: Bill Robbins MetaArchive Cooperative 1230 Peachtree Street, Suite 1900 Atlanta, GA or

Side Note The Next Level for Open Source Software  Amazon EC2 can be used as a way to bring Open Source projects to the next level.  A public server image can be made available to run software developed for LoC, other government agencies or non-profit institutions.  There would be no software to download, and / or build and no additional server configuration needed.