As the most deployed open-source cloud software in the world, OpenStack provides a reliable platform where organizations can design, deploy, and manage IT infrastructure in the cloud. It essentially gives administrators the ability to promptly and efficiently manage their cloud environment, allow the deployment of virtual machines to handle diverse tasks, and empower users to provision resources via a web interface.
At Accrets International, we are big proponents of OpenStack because it is an open-source platform with a vibrant community of developers, superior security, scalability and flexibility, and ease of management. If your business is interested in maintaining its own cloud storage or computing center, OpenStack is an excellent technology choice.
Best OpenStack Management Tools
OpenStack offers the core set of software tools needed to build and manage cloud computing platforms for both public and private cloud infrastructure. Managing the OpenStack infrastructure requires controlling the individual cloud services. One major advantage of OpenStack is that it is designed with horizontal scalability. This makes it easier to add new compute, storage, and network resources to build-up the cloud over time. There are also many excellent open-source tools for installing, running and managing your OpenStack cloud.
Chef
Chef is an excellent OpenStack automation framework for OpenStack. It enables admins to deploy servers and applications to any virtual, physical, or cloud location regardless of the size of the infrastructure. This is among the more popular OpenStack management tools because it ensures that automates the management of configurations as well as ensures that the system is set up correctly. Chef works on agent-based architecture where each VM machine is controlled by a central master agent. It uses the Ruby programming language and comes with cookbooks to guide developers when working with various OpenStack options. Updates are applied dynamically for added convenience. Configuration options include databases, block storage, source builds, hypervisors, message queuing, and object storage. Some of Chef’s key features can be summed up as follows:
- Makes use of simple declarative definitions for executing simple administrative tasks.
- Robust and flexible – can manage as few as five servers to as many as 50,000.
- Chef comes with robust testing tools so that changes can be validated before they are updated.
- Configures a variety of cloud-based SaaS services and includes cloud provisioning APIs.
- Provides a single process for managing both on-premise and cloud infrastructure.
Ansible
This is an open-source management and automation tool for OpenStack that allows admins to configure systems and deploy software. It also supports advanced tasks like zero downtime when installing updates, and manages diverse cloud operations. Ansible is no doubt a great tool for configuring, provisioning and deploying applications on top of the cloud. This OpenStack management tool is based on an agentless architecture and focuses on simplicity and ease-of-use. Some of Ansible’s main features include:
- More than 1300 modules for connecting to all network nodes, with an active support community.
- Simple solutions for all configuration management issues.
- Shorter learning curve for developers and administrators.
- Secure remote configuration management system.
Fuel
This is a GUI-based tool for OpenStack cloud management. Its key focus is automating deployment and testing of OpenStack. It automatically detects the entire range of virtual nodes in the network. Fuel also offers a wide range of third-party options and several separate components that can be reused separately. Some of the key features of Fuel opensource tool include:
- Support for Ubuntu and CentOS
- Performs post-deployment checks and tests to validate OpenStack Cloud deployment.
- Can manage multiple OpenStack clusters.
- Makes it easier for administrators to track real-time logs via the GUI.
Puppet
This is a Declarative Language for ‘write once deploy many’ packages for OpenStack configuration and management. Puppet is deployed in a client/server model or in a serverless setup where clients can poll the server for the needed state on a periodic basis as well as send status records back to the server. This open-source OpenStack management tool is able to plan, upgrade, and manage nodes through their entire life cycle. Since all models and configurations are outputted in Ruby or a Puppet-specific version of Ruby, programming expertise is required in addition to system admin skills.
The enterprise version of Puppet facilitates real-time control of nodes via prebuilt modules and Cookbooks located on the master servers. There are also well-developed reporting tools that provide precise details on the behavior of agents, as well as updates on what changes have been implemented. Some key features of Puppet include:
- Support configuration and deployment of OpenStack components such as Keystone, Nova, Swift, and glance.
- Allows real-time control of managed nodes via pre built modules and cookbooks on master servers.
- Supports large-scale automation with requisite reporting and compliance features.
- Supports idempotency so that the same configuration can be run numerous times on the same machine.
Juju Charms
Juju Charms offers a smooth experience for both public and private cloud deployments, including OpenStack, Azure, AWS, Google Cloud, and bare metal with Metal as a Service (MAAS). It is an effective model for service-oriented deployment and architecture. Juju Charms is a product from Ubuntu that many administrators use for defining and deploying services to any cloud or bare metal system. Each Juju Charm is set up as a collection of YAML files and software scripts and enables it to manage each software component as a service. Key features of Juju Charms include:
- Easy to use and attractive GUI for managing all services
- Simple deployment and modeling along with scalability and management of services.
- Service configuration based on user requirements.
- Prevents dependency problems in different machines.
Accrets OpenStack Management & Hosting Services
OpenStack-based cloud solutions boost business availability, agility, and efficiency by providing on-demand, highly-elastic, and measured service capabilities. But most organizations do not have the technical teams to implement a private cloud infrastructure so they can take advantage of these benefits. Accrets International fills the gap by offering the right cloud hosting and OpenStack management tools, as well as managed services to suit your application needs.
Our teams can host private infrastructure as a service that is paid for based on your usage. This model offers an avenue for your business to focus on its core services while capitalizing on the leading technology – all within costs. Accrets OpenStack cloud management experts also offer training to equip both individuals and entire corporate teams with the skills needed to make the most out of this technology.
