OpenStack: a virtualisation overview

Abstract

The major cloud computing software companies offer a new concept, on which resources are virtualised to provide these as a service on the internet. Currently, there are multiple service providers, and additional options to virtualise services on-premises. OpenStack is an open-source alternative to create virtual local or cloud setups, which supports petabytes of data, unlimited scale, and configurable networking. These features make this tool suitable for large scale virtualisation, reducing maintenance costs and optimising hardware resource utilisation (e.g., schools, government). This paper presents an overview of the study of the OpenStack software, oriented to build a scalable hosting architecture suitable for an educational setup. Functional and architectural details are discussed to implement unique cloud computing to fit virtualisation purposes. An experimental virtualisation setup is described in the scope of an educational scenario. Finally, a guideline to configure OpenStack is given.