Page 9 - FCW, May/June 2018

required applications and tools, and then to remove access, as necessary.
Leveraging Defense Department data assets Data analytics have become critical to readiness, and modern technology has allowed for more and better data stores. But data should be maintained and leveraged to its full advantage. Data from external sources must be able to coexist with on-premises data, and both must be readily available and useable. A hybrid cloud environment makes this approach possible, users can work with operational and analytical data on-premises and in the cloud, accessing the same services for data warehousing, analysis, and visualization.
Some agencies simply run a database in a cloud virtual machine. While VM
can be useful for operational efficiencies, it does not provide the cloud database services that complement on-premises databases for a more robust user experience and deeper insights. Hybrid cloud services include automatic backups and archiving less-used data in a lower- cost cloud platform.
Building a common environment to Defense Department app development
Typically, application development in the cloud and on-premises implies two distinct environments — and two distinct ways of working. What works in one environment is not guaranteed to work in the other. For example, applications developed in the public cloud aren’t always built with the same languages, services, or platforms that are available on-premises. These differences can create problems.
Providing up-to-date platform technologies when a cloud solution isn’t appropriate can be problematic. This is especially pertinent to edge-computing
scenarios when applications can’t always connect to the cloud, or in a closed environment, such as a base or an embassy on foreign soil.
It can be challenging to create applications that take advantage of
the cloud while still complying with all regulations. If the application must adhere to specific provisional authorization
levels, developers might need to create different versions for the cloud and an on-premises datacenter. Differences between on-premises and cloud platforms can make it difficult to create a common DevOps environment for applications deployed in both places.
“A key success factor for adopting hybrid cloud is ensuring organizations have a repeatable strategy for delivery of applications from development through production on any infrastructure,” said Sujit Mohanty, CTO of Microsoft’s DoD team. Some organizations build their own automation and tooling to handle the lifecycle of deploying their applications
to different infrastructures, which results
in their own custom, one-off platform. “Longer term, this results in disjointed approaches for security, networking, and health management of those applications,” he said.
Azure and Azure Stack provide the same application delivery infrastructure and lifecycle, from both the cloud to the edge. Azure Stack is an extension of Azure. It brings the agility and innovation of cloud computing to on-premises environments.
Meeting cloud users where ever they are
Most important to the military, hybrid cloud allows for data to be processed in the field without worrying about latency or internet connectivity, and then run aggregated analytics to obtain precise predictions and detect anomalies. In each scenario, a hybrid cloud extends from the enterprise to the tactical edge, whether
that’s a connected, offline, or disconnected environment. Hybrid cloud can deliver such flexibility for intelligence gathering and analysis at the edge through
satellite or other transient methods of communication. This means forward- deployed units and platforms, including ships and transport vehicles, become vital sources of data to inform strategic and tactical success.
Choosing a hybrid cloud solution
is a foundational step toward digital transformation. For the DoD, it’s especially important to take the step with sure footing, as the solution must be capable of managing across current IT investments, third-party offerings, and multiple commercial clouds. A hybrid platform is the strategic choice for a long-term, powerful solution to propel innovation, flexibility, and control across on-premises and cloud environments. A hybrid cloud model delivers efficiency at scale, leveraging existing investments in traditional, on-premises datacenters and providing the modern infrastructure for digital transformation.
“Hybrid cloud support is a must-have for any large enterprise,” Strausbaugh said. “Most organizations are adopting a multi-cloud strategy with two or
more distinct infrastructures – having, at minimum, a private cloud on-premises and a commercial, public cloud presence. The key to this strategy is choosing a vendor who can bind this together with
a standard approach to identity, data and application portability. Microsoft is the only vendor who can provide this.”
Microsoft’s Azure and Azure Government have FedRAMP Moderate and FedRAMP High provisional authorizations, respectively. Microsoft provides accreditation accelerators for Azure Stack using the FedRAMP High baseline controls to assist customers with authorizing Azure Stack for deployment behind their firewall.