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Extending RACF to Protect Complex Deployments

The mainframe has been providing shared computing resources (known today as cloud computing) to enterprise customers for more than four decades. These services, previously known as timeshare services or data service vendors, provide companies with a shared pool of computing resources that are managed centrally and deliver on-demand user access to applications and services.

Vanguard has been extending RACF to secure cloud-based computing environments for more than two decades. Many of the world's largest organizations and governments have deployed Vanguard security software to protect the critical data and applications that users access over the Internet. To see some examples of how these organizations are currently today offering cloud-based applications that run on System z, click here.

It's no wonder that many organizations are choosing to deploy cloud-based offerings on System z. And, in the future, will deploy cloud-based applications on hybrid systems that leverage IBM's new zBX hardware management console to manage heterogeneous cloud environments. There are significant advantages to hosting cloud environments on mainframe systems or across heterogeneous platforms that include System z, instead of deploying them across many distributed systems. These advantages include cost savings, reduced energy consumption, increased throughput and better uptime and workload management capabilities.

To minimize risk, enterprises using System z for cloud computing must ensure that their systems are secure and centrally managed. Only authorized, and authenticated, users should be allowed to access sensitive cloud-based data and applications. Securing the cloud is complex, but no more difficult than many of the security challenges that Vanguard has been solving for customers for more than 25 years.

As Sun's former CTO so eloquently stated, when comparing cloud computing to the mainframe era: "In some sense, it's nothing new – the idea that we're going to build large concentrations of computing, storage, and networking and produce them as a service. That's a great definition of mainframe computing.¹"

How Vanguard Is Helping Customers Securely Deploy Cloud-based Services

Many large enterprises are looking for ways to outsource email and other applications to the cloud. A critical requirement for making cloud outsourcing migration a success is to ensure that security exposures are not increased. While cloud-based services provide many benefits, they can also significantly increase an organization's security risks and vulnerabilities, especially if proper processes to safeguard corporate data are not implemented.

Click here to learn more about Vanguard's recommended approach for moving to the cloud while minimizing risk and maximizing security – an example featuring Google Mail.

Vanguard Customers That Are Offering Cloud-based Applications Running on System z

Outsourcing and IT Services – Cloud Examples

• An IT outsourcing company, with one of the most powerful networks in the world, is offering cloud-based services that run on mainframe systems.
  
  
• One of the largest global outsourcing services companies is providing large enterprises and government agencies worldwide with cloud-based business and technology services that run on mainframe systems.
  
  
• One of the world’s largest providers of information technology services to government and commercial clients is delivering cloud-based applications and services that run on mainframe systems to a wide range of industries.

Financial Services – Cloud Examples

• A principal source of mortgage and consumer loan processing services is providing most of the top 50 banks with cloud-based applications and services that run on mainframe systems.
  
  
• A top technology provider to the global banking industry is delivering customers a broad range of cloud-based financial industry applications that run on mainframe systems.
  
  
• A leading supplier of integrated payment solutions is providing secure, cloud-based applications and services that run on mainframe systems to more than 10,000 banks and credit unions.
  
  
• One of the most diversified financial services companies in the world is offering cloud-based applications that run on running on mainframe systems to individual and institutional investors.

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¹Greg Papadopoulos in a keynote address at the AFCOM Data Center World 2009 conference in Las Vegas