Assignment 7

Question 1*

In your own words, just what is “the cloud”?

Question 2

Why might it make more sense to scale a web-based application using multiple low-end servers instead of just one high-end server?

Question 3

What are some technical challenges that arise when using multiple low-end servers to host a web-based application that are avoided when using just one high-end server?

Question 4

How is a virtual machine different from an actual (physical) machine?

Question 5

Suppose that you work for an internet startup. Argue in a paragraph why your startup SHOULD use cloud computing for its infrastructure.

Question 6

Suppose that you work for an(other) internet startup. Argue in a paragraph why your startup should NOT use cloud computing for its infrastructure.

Question 7

Suppose that a vendor promises 99% uptime for some service, per an SLA (service-level agreement). How many HOURS might that service be offline each year, without violating the SLA?

Question 8

Suppose that a (better) vendor promises 99.999% uptime (aka “five nines”) for the same service, per another SLA. How many MINUTES might that service be offline each year, without violating that SLA?

Question 9

What features might the 99.999% vendor’s underlying architecture have that allows the vendor to commit to more nines?

Question 10

Why might you nonetheless want to contract with the 99% vendor?