TechNet Flash, Volume 13, Issue 22 - October 5, 2011
TechNet Flash Editor's Note from Mitch Irsfeld

This edition's editor's note is penned by John Dawson, Microsoft Server and Cloud Information Experience for Windows Server Solutions.

Welcome to the TechNet Private Cloud Solution Hub. This is a consolidated, constantly updated source of the latest technical resources relevant to Microsoft private cloud solutions for IT architects, implementers, and managers. For a non-technical overview, benefits, and success stories please refer to microsoft.com/privatecloud.

Private cloud is a new way of delivering IT services according to some compelling attributes, such as usage-based metering, on-demand self-service provisioning, and elastic capacity delivered as a service with clear service level agreements. Behind the scenes, private cloud lets IT professionals optimize utilization of physical infrastructure for maximum efficiency and organizational alignment of service delivery for improved responsiveness to business needs, as well as to reduce costs and ensure more consistent service levels.

When you've mastered the potential benefits of private cloud using the information here, your organization's implementation of this evolution in IT capabilities and maturity should be approached in a carefully planned and educated way. You'll find articles, videos, white papers, and guides for decision-making, including information about formulating an appropriate roadmap, deployment planning based on best practices, and reference architectures. These resources will provide insight you can use to effectively implement and operate a private cloud. There are considerations spanning people, process, and technology and they are relevant to all IT roles throughout the lifecycle of a private cloud implementation.

This solution hub is here to support your IT evolution with appropriate guidance. To that end, you will find "Getting Started" guidance that provides the necessary definitions and explanations of private cloud terms and key components. Architecture guidance provides reference materials that include models for rationalizing the scope of the cloud opportunity for your organization, as well as definitions of architectural principles, concepts, and patterns to help guide effective design processes. Following these contextual materials are technical topics such as infrastructure, management, security, and service management that you can reference when exploring architectures relevant to your usage scenarios.

Finally, the solution hub links to other relevant materials in the TechNet Wiki and TechNet Library, as well as social networking forums for discussion, debate, inquiry, and collaboration within the community at large as well as with Microsoft experts.

We'll be continuously improving this solution hub and individual resources, so stay tuned to receive our latest cloud information. If you have feedback or suggestions to help improve the site or suggest guidance you would like to see, please contact us at PAGfdbk@microsoft.com.

- John Dawson

Thanks for reading,

Mitch Irsfeld
Editor, TechNet Flash

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