What Is IBM Cloud IaaS?
IBM Cloud IaaS allows organizations to easily and rapidly deploy virtualized IT resources over the internet - such as computing power, storage space and networking services - with both virtualized or bare metal servers as options for computing resources.
IBM Cloud PaaS, built on Cloud Foundry - an open cloud platform - allows developers to leverage IBM services for application creation, management, deployment and running within both on-premises or cloud environments. IBM Cloud supports Java, Node.js, PHP, Python as well as Node.js applications, among many others.
IBM Cloud Products and Services provide innovative cloud products and solutions designed for modern enterprises.
IBM Cloud Platform supports many other IBM services and tools, such as IBM Watson for serverless computing and IBM Cloud Functions.
IBM Cloud Features
IBM's cloud services cover 16 categories to meet every business need and requirement.
- AI/machine learning: Watson AI provides resources, tools and tutorials that make building your own AI models simple and straightforward.
- IBM Cloud Pak's automation resources enable businesses, including those using IBM Cloud Pak itself, to streamline business workflows with IBM Cloud Pak by automating them.
- Turbonomic can serve as an automation resource to optimize costs and manage application resources effectively.
- IBM Cloud Kubernetes gives access to Red Hat OpenShift, Istio and Container Registry services.
- IBM Cloud Paks are certified applications designed for Red Hat OpenShift that make up a collection. Cloud Paks cover Watson, business automation, data integration, networking automation and networking automation applications, as well as Watson itself.
- Quantum Systems: IBM Quantum Lab, Composer and Qiskit SDK allow you to take advantage of quantum systems when running workloads.
- Compute: Provides access to various computing resources, including virtual machines, serverless computing environments and physical servers.
- Cloud Networking: This service encompasses cloud-based services like load balancers, content delivery networks (CDN), VPN tunnels and firewalls.
- IBM Cloud Storage offers options for object, file and block data storage solutions in the Cloud.
- Logging and Monitoring: Tools available here include Cloud Activity Tracker, Log Analysis and Cloud Monitoring - among many others - which enable log collection, management and surveillance of cloud deployments.
- Security services provide activity tracking, access control management and authentication as core elements.
- Databases: Provides both SQL and NoSQL database options as well as data warehousing, migration and query tools for data warehouse management and migration projects.
- Data Science: Provides tools and services related to data science such as Apache Spark and Hadoop as well as IBM Watson Machine Learning as well as analytical services.
- Internet of Things: IBM offers services to connect, manage, and analyze IoT device data generated.
- Tools for developers: This includes an environment such as Gitlab CLI as well as tools that support continuous delivery, continuous release and pipelines.
- IBM Blockchain Platform: IBM provides its Blockchain Platform as a SaaS service, making it easier for application developers to implement blockchain networks, monitor networks and enforce governance regulations.
- IBM Secure Gateway, App Connect and API Connect: These services work to integrate various cloud-based apps and systems such as IBM Secure Gateway, App Connect, and IBM Cloud as part of an overall ecosystem solution.
IBM Cloud Deployment Models
IBM Cloud Platform offers three deployment options.
- Public Cloud: Public clouds provide virtual servers to multiple tenants. A company can deploy its apps across any number of geographic regions using them.
- IBM offers its dedicated Cloud as a single-tenant, private Cloud in its data center, managed exclusively for an individual enterprise that can access it either via VPN or direct network connection.
- IBM Cloud Private: IBM's Platform can be deployed inside an organization's data center behind an approved firewall as a private cloud solution for use by employees within that organization.
What is Application Development?
Application development entails designing software specifically to support an organizational function. It comprises seven stages, beginning with planning and collecting business requirements; designing; development; testing & deployment; deployment to the production environment; and maintenance; before finally concluding.
Traditional software applications were installed and maintained on hardware owned by and owned by their users; today, more firms are turning to the Software-as-a-Service delivery model, which hosts apps in the Cloud and makes them accessible via browser - this model typically incurs per person monthly subscription charges while ownership and maintenance expenses are eliminated altogether.
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App Development: Buy or Build?
All development projects must make this decision. Off-the-shelf software may offer all or most of the features you require for running all business processes efficiently; if an organization relies on digital technology for competitive advantages, however, creating its own customized software could provide greater value and result in faster progress.
App Development Methodologies
Next, you need to determine how to proceed with your application.
Waterfall Development
The waterfall approach has long been employed within organizations as the standard way of proceeding with projects, where teams would first define a project before creating and then delivering it to its customer.
The waterfall approach comes with its own set of pros and cons. A project manager must oversee every stage of this approach. However, this takes more time and larger teams.
Rapid Application Development (RAD)
Rapid Application Development (RAD) was introduced as an approach to help overcome some of the shortcomings associated with traditional waterfall-style development. Rapid App Development emphasizes rapid prototyping and the creation of minimum viable products; then, these are iterated rapidly over time in order to add functionality, address any problems, or otherwise enhance them quickly - creating software quickly into the market with limited team involvement.
As previously discussed, Rapid Application Development (RAD) requires highly skilled and versatile software developers, who are unfortunately scarce. Furthermore, large teams struggle to implement this methodology due to its complex structure; end users are expected to provide ample feedback, which makes RAD an excellent method for creating software with great user interface design features, but sometimes this feedback cannot be easily found or lack the information that would give accurate answers.
Agile Development
Agile has quickly become one of the go-to strategies in business today; over 70% are employing it. Like its precursor RAD, Agile uses an iterative process; however, instead of emphasizing application creation per se, agile focuses on functional capabilities, which can then be aggregated together to meet business requirements. Agile adheres to 12 core principles, including customer focus, simplicity, adaptability to changing conditions and being adaptable as circumstances shift.
Agile is an application development framework characterized by short, iterative sprints,' during which teams of diverse individuals come together and focus their efforts on one function in a limited period of time. Agile and DevOps share many similarities; DevOps serves to accelerate application delivery by breaking down barriers between developers and end-users.
No-Code and Low-code Development
No-code software development (NCSD) is an approach to app creation that facilitates faster delivery with reduced manual coding requirements.
Low-code and no-code are two approaches that share similarities in approach, yet their differences make each special.
Low-code platforms work especially well when creating standalone web and mobile apps that integrate multiple data sources and systems; - allow the app to do almost anything! Low-code platforms designed with professional developers in mind support both collaborations between business users and pro-developers while catering for developers at the same time.
No-code tools, on the other hand, are best utilized in front-end situations and typically used by citizen developers. Low-code tools offer you more freedom if all that's required for creating basic applications is customizing.
Mobile Application Development
As part of its focus, this company specializes in custom cloud application development for Android and iOS, reaching an estimated total user base of 7 billion worldwide. Many Progressive Web Applications also exist that deliver a seamless experience similar to native apps without needing any software download.
Mobile operators' investments in their network infrastructure ensure that users will increasingly benefit from 5G's lower latency, faster speed, and reduced jitter. Mobile apps will soon enable smarter cities and autonomous vehicles.
Read More: Role of .Net in Web Application Development In 2023
Use Collaboration, not Migration, to Modernize Mainframe applications with Cloud
Migration may be your initial response when hearing "modernize mainframe applications using the cloud". But before making haste decisions based on outdated beliefs about migration from mainframe to cloud application development, take time to think it through fully before jumping to any conclusions. Migrating away may not always be the best approach if considered thoroughly.
Modern mainframes are lightning-fast and scalable while simultaneously being extremely reliable, often running for years without experiencing a single incident of downtime.
No surprise then that two-thirds of Fortune 100 companies rely on mainframe computers for mission-critical operations - banks, airlines, insurers, retailers... The list is exhaustive: banks, airlines, insurers and retailers, among them! In turn, mainframes play an integral part in every minute of global economic activity; from banks through airlines to insurers and retailers using mainframes every minute to modernizing mainframes to meet demands from customers as well as changing economic pressures - cloud solutions often form part of such transformation processes while mainframe modernization becomes essential!
AWS, Microsoft Azure and other cloud giants would love nothing better than for all enterprise workloads to run entirely on their platforms; however, they recognize that most mainframe customers would benefit more from an amalgam of mainframe and cloud technologies. IBM as both a mainframe provider and cloud service provider champions the idea of marrying both solutions so as to provide enterprises who have relied heavily on mainframe platforms a seamless migration path into modern business processes.
Do you still believe modernizing mainframe applications requires migration? In this session, we will look at various mainframe/cloud scenarios and what can be done to maximize value, reduce costs, and achieve customer-oriented digital transformation goals.
Contextualizing Mainframe Modernization
Modernization may not be top of mind for every company; some mainframe applications may still provide value decades after being installed.
Change may not always be necessary; however, failing to adapt could hamper your company's ability to respond to changing requirements. You should carefully weigh up both the potential benefits and drawbacks of making any modifications against maintaining the status quo.
Modernizing mainframe applications often involves upgrading or replacing them with newly developed or revamped applications developed exclusively for this task. Mainframe modernization generally necessitates both mainframe- and cloud capabilities in order to be completed successfully.
Modernization strategies typically involve migrating mainframe applications to run in the Cloud. You may convert COBOL programs directly or as part of an initiative to redesign cloud native apps.
Reducing mainframe MIPS usage is often the driving factor behind moving some or all applications or data sets to Cloud, according to Steven Steuart of AWS GTM Mainframe WW. Our customers' focus should be getting more done for less with AWS being transformed in-place or with it used for processing before finally being consumed on AWS for consumption by end-users.
Separate Application Data And Concerns
Enterprises use mainframe computers to run applications and store information. Modernization decisions vary based on each purpose for which these servers are employed.
To make cost-effective decisions, it's crucial to examine both mainframe and Cloud as tools that fit each job well. While making low-risk, straightforward choices such as keeping core transaction processing on the mainframe may seem easier, moving analytics- and customer experience app workloads on cloud solutions could reduce costs while taking full advantage of them.
Application environments often come second to the data itself. Supporting mobile apps with mainframe data may prove costly and time-consuming due to processing costs, transportation fees and network latency considerations.
Solving this challenge may involve replicating data from mainframes to Cloud for read-only access; however, this option should only be pursued when real-time access to information is unimportant.
Modern IBM z16 provides organizations with a competitive edge by enabling near real-time inference of data sets near where it resides or offering cloud access and applications via mainframe data accessed remotely; both options allow organizations to enhance the IT landscape.
Cloud-Based Mainframe Development
Mainframe organizations are facing an uphill struggle as baby boomer mainframe developers retire and leave an organization. Finding ways to energize and motivate a new group of developers requires finding ways to engage them, yet these professionals don't wish to sit behind a green screen terminal; rather, they want modern tools in an environment with cloud storage solutions.
IBM Developer is a web-based IDE designed to empower developers and testers alike with access to build, test, and run mainframe apps from any location. AWS is one of the companies backing Wazi; Steuart, at their AWS Marketplace page, confirms it.
IBM unveiled IBM Wazi, a cloud-based service to test and develop for z/OS operating system testing and development - the first service of its kind! Andy Bradfield, vice president for IBM Z Hybrid Cloud, noted that developers now have access to innovative cloud services as well as modern development tools with hybrid clouds giving them flexibility in running apps anywhere - whether on-premises, in the Cloud or in edge computing environments.
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Conclusion
The IBM cloud app development Platform offers features and tools designed to facilitate seamless application deployment and management. With powerful infrastructure, flexible deployment models, and scalable architectural design features that accommodate businesses of any kind or size - making the IBM Cloud Platform is ideal for all businesses!
IBM Cloud can assist companies in realizing greater efficiency, agility, and innovation. Offering comprehensive cloud application lifecycle support - development, testing, deployment, and management services on cloud platforms - IBM Cloud offers businesses all they need for successful application life cycles.
IBM Cloud provides businesses navigating cloud computing for the first time or looking to expand their operations with confidence in today's digital environment. Offering the flexibility and stability necessary for success in today's digital sphere, this solution helps companies stay ahead of the competition while creating value for customers and improving operations.
