1. What value does LabManager-Cloud Edition offer over AWS?
2. What is Amazon Web Services (AWS)?
3. What are good examples of virtual lab scenarios where I can leverage LabManager-Cloud Edition?
4. What is required to get started?
5. Why do I need to get an AWS account?
6. How do I get an AWS account?
7. How much is it likely to cost on AWS?
8. What is the VMLogix LabManager-Cloud Edition Pricing?
9. Can you tell me more about security in the cloud?
10. What is the Service Level Agreement (SLA) of the solution in the cloud?

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1. What value does LabManager-Cloud Edition offer over AWS?

VMLogix LabManager-Cloud edition is the next-generation virtual lab management software that offers customers the flexibility of elastic (scale up / scale down), pay-as-you-go (PAYG) virtual lab management solution. Specifically, the management application provides the following key value on AWS:

• Manage multiple-AMIs grouped in a single environment/configuration
• Enable end user self service through a web portal
• Govern the self service - through policies on users and teams (quotas and leases)
• User management to configure lab users and teams
• Persona management to control access to lab management functionality
• Powerful automation capabilities for the deployment and re-deployment of environments including software stacks in AMIs
• Allow users to share lab artifacts – through view/edit/delete permissions
• Gather audit trails of lab use
• Access to a central library of software media for lab users

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2. What is Amazon Web Services (AWS)?

AWS is the de-facto gold standard of Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) cloud providers providing utility access to infrastructure such as compute and storage. If you are new to AWS, you will find the following statistics on AWS particularly impressive (all of these can be found from some basic Internet searches):

• Reportedly has 100,000+ servers
• Has spent more than $2B building out the infrastructure
• Provides multiple levels of operational and physical security
• At last count had more than 500,000 customers
• The Amazon CTO has recently been quoted as saying "Amazon's ecommerce sites combined is only a moderate customer of AWS."

From the AWS website, "Since early 2006, Amazon Web Services (AWS) has provided companies of all sizes with an infrastructure web services platform in the cloud. With AWS you can requisition compute power, storage, and other services–gaining access to a suite of elastic IT infrastructure services as your business demands them."
You can get more information about AWS from their website.

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3. What are good examples of virtual lab scenarios where I can leverage LabManager-Cloud Edition?

In today’s economic environment cost containment is critical. The VMLogix LabManager-Cloud solution is ideal for bursty virtual lab requirements (e.g., training classes, periodic software builds with automated testing etc.) for which planning and investing in on-premise infrastructure for the peak load is economically unviable.

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4. What is required to get started?

You will need an Amazon Web Services (AWS) account.

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5. Why do I need to get an AWS account?

VMLogix LabManager-Cloud Edition is a virtual lab management solution that manages your AWS account infrastructure. IT administrators can now provide policy governed self service access to the public cloud (i.e., AWS infrastructure) to all virtual lab users in the organization. AWS provides you with the Infrastructure (AWS provides this as a service) required to run your virtual lab.

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6. How do I get an AWS account?

You can sign up for an AWS account here.

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7. How much is it likely to cost on AWS?

Assuming you launched and ran a virtual lab with five (5) default Windows images for an entire 8 hour day, then your AWS compute cost (per the AWS website information) for the day would be just = $0.125/hour * 8 hours/VM * 5 VMs = $5/day! Note that this does not include the marginal cost of the single Amazon Machine Instance (AMI) running LabManager-Cloud Edition. VMLogix charges a per VM Hour management fee over the AWS compute cost.

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8. What is the VMLogix LabManager-Cloud Edition Pricing?

VMLogix charges a management fee that is billed separate from the Amazon infrastructure costs incurred (and billed by AWS).  VMLogix is currently offering special promotions to encourage broad adoption, so please contact sales@vmlogix.com today.

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9. Can you tell me more about security in the cloud?

LabManager-Cloud Edition is a virtual lab management product that helps IT organizations deliver a policy governed self service virtual lab on public clouds (Amazon). You will find the following resources on the Amazon website useful as you learn more about Amazon’s security and privacy in their cloud.

• AWS Security Center: Outlines at a high level the approach taken to secure AWS infrastructure
• Amazon Web Services: Overview of Security Processes: This article answers a number of questions about certifications, physical security, backups, and issues specific to Amazon S3, Amazon EC2, and Amazon SimpleDB

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10. What is the Service Level Agreement (SLA) of the solution in the cloud?

LabManager-Cloud Edition manages your virtual lab infrastructure running in the Amazon cloud (Amazon Web Services - AWS). AWS is the de-facto gold standard of Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) cloud providers providing utility access to infrastructure such as compute and storage.

Since LabManager-CE runs entirely within AWS, you enjoy the SLA Amazon provides on your AWS account. You can read more about the AWS EC2 SLA guarantee here and the AWS S3 SLA guarantee here. If you have further questions, please send us a note at info@vmlogix.com. 

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