TOSCA

Topology and Orchestration

Specification for Cloud
Applications

International Cloud Symposium

aulOctober
Lipton, VP 10-12,
Industry Standards,
CA Technologies
2012

OASIS TOSCA Technical Committee Co-Chair

aul.lipton@ca.com

Background
TOSCA Technical Committee formed
in December 2011
Initial technical contribution:
CA Technologies, CapGemini, Cisco,
Citrix, EMC, IBM, NetApp, PwC, Red Hat,
SAP, Software AG, Virtunomic, WSO2

Grown to be one of the largest TCs (>

100 members)

Members (Also Many

Observers)

Services Portability is Not

Easy!
Portability (install, operate, regulate,
market/exchange)
Many challenges with real-world services
Complex software and hardware infratructure
Complicated requirements, Sequence-of-operation,
Network
relationships, groupings, capacity, dependency,
configuration, and much, much more!

Approach 1: Moving virtual images?

Uncoordinated, unsynchronized snapshots of virtual
components
Operation at the component level only
No understanding of the overall service

Services Portability is Not

Easy!
Portability (install, operate, regulate,
market/exchange)
Many challenges with real-world services
Complex software and hardware infratructure
Complicated requirements, Sequence-of-operation,
Network
relationships, groupings, capacity, dependency,
configuration, and much, much more!

Approach 2: Bundle the service components in a

package for a service provider? Not adequate!
Another provider might not have a clue how install,
operate, regulate, manage the service
Detailed skills and information needed!

TOSCA Addresses Service

Portability
TOSCA Use Cases Across Service
Lifecycle
Deploy Cloud Services: Install, Remove,
Configure, Integrate
Operate Cloud Services: Start, Stop, Patch,
Scale
Regulation of Cloud Services: Disaster
Recovery, Geo-Redundancy, Optimization
(cost, volume, etc.), Verification
Markets and Exchanges for Cloud
Services

Introducing TOSCA
Topology and Orchestration Specification for Cloud Applications

Standardized description language

Structure and nature of an IT Service (its

topology model)
Behavior and best practices (plans such
as build, deploy, patch, shutdown, etc.)
Packaging format

Simple declarative model that spans

applications, virtual and physical
infrastructure

More Colorfully
Topology Model

Orchestrated Behaviours (Plans)

Node

Relationship

Operation

Task

8
TOSCA
Service Templates a model based approach!

How Plans and Nodes Fit

Together

Deploy
Web
Farm

Task of a plan refers to interface of a topology

node

refers to
Apache
Webser
ver

Script
-----------

------

------

-----------

------

------

Topology node specifies all interfaces offered to

manage it
Interface is bound to a concrete implementation
bound to

Implementation already available at providers

side, or
Implementation is copied from somewhere, or
A standardized Cloud Interface (Iaas, PaaS,
SaaS) is used, or ...

Vision: A Complete TOSCA

Eco-System
Service Instance

3. Browse
and Select

Service
Catalog

6. Use
5. Deploy
anywhere

4. Tools toService Template

optimize,
report, etc.

2. Publish
1. Model Once
10

Service Template

TOSCA Status
Goal: submit v1 of the language for
public review by the end of 2012
Additional language definitions and
refinements will be standardized in late
2013, as the industry and use cases
continue to mature
Interoperability testing subcommittee
started in September 2012

11

Summary
Model-driven, portability across the service lifecycle
Examples: scale-in, scale-out, patch, multi-cloud, regulate,
burst, markets
Enabled by service-centric topology models acted upon by
TOSCA plans

Can work with other standards, e.g., OVF, CIMI,

OCCI, BPMN, etc. Working with TM Forum.
Immense TOSCA eco-system potential

12

Multi-cloud services to meet requirements, restrictions,

regulations
Automation with faster deploy, test, update, existing app
migration, etc.
Simulation (like debugging) of deployment and changes
Cloud service marketplaces

Learn More, Ask Your

Vendors, Join!
OASIS TOSCA Technical Committee:
http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/tosca
TOSCA TC Charter:
http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/tosca/charter.php
More on OASIS or Joining TOSCA Technical Committee:
Carol Geyer
Senior Director, OASIS
carol.geyer@oasis-open.org
+1-941-284-0403