The Edgecell solution
We hear companies say, “We have been doing edge for years.” No, you have not. You have been doing pre-cloud computing for years. It is not the same thing at all.
Edge computing is not a return to closet servers like we had in the 1990s.
Edge computing is the computing that is not in the cloud, but is managed and monitored with tools and processes like those used in the cloud.
Edgecell solves edge computing by solving four key challenges:
- Hardware deployment
- Software deployment
- Edge networking
- Infrastructure servicing
Let's walk through each of these four challenges.
Hardware deployment
The goal of edge computing is to deploy and run applications on site and hundreds or thousands of locations. We need a computer to run software.
Deploying a virtual server in the cloud feels so easy because a big organization has already installed thousands of servers in datacenters just sitting there waiting for you to use them. We do not have that luxury at the edge. So the first challenge to solve is: how do we deploy hardware on site at hundreds of locations in a way that is similar to how we deploy servers in the cloud.
We stress similar because it will never be identical. The edge is physically different than the datacenter.
Edgecell solves the problem of deploying servers to thousands of locations.
Software deployment
The second challenge is to deploy the software to the servers once you have them. This problem is also similar but not identical to the cloud.
In a typical cloud deployment, we have a handfull of clusters that we deploy to. There is development cluster, one or more test clusters and a production cluster. We might have production clusters in two or more regions, but the full total you can count on your fingers.
With edge computing, each location is a cluster. In fact, each node at each location might need to be treated as we would treat a cluster in the cloud. That is hundreds or thousands of clusters.
Edgecell solves the problem of deploying applications to thousands of locations.
Edge networking
Companies host their cloud infrastructure in a virtual private cloud (VPC). The servers are treated as if they were behind the company firewall.
We do not have that luxury at the edge. It would be unwise to punch SSH tunnels through thousands of onsite firewalls to deploy and monitor software. In fact, in many scenarios such as retail and energy, such an approach is impossible because the company does not control those firewalls.
Edgecell solves the problem of networking servers at thousands of locations.
Infrastructure servicing
One of the joys of cloud is that we do not have the upfront sunk cost of buying hardware. When the hardware is obsolete, we don't have to worry about replacing it. Someone else monitors to make sure it is running. If it breaks, someone else fixes it. We don't even have to worry about updating or patching operating systems. How do we achieve this type of joy at the edge?
Edgecell solves the problem of servicing servers at thousands of locations.
Read on
Please read the next section Introduction to edge to learn more about these challenges of edge computing and why they exist. If you are already familiar with these challenges, then please skip ahead to the other sections detailing the Edgecell solution.
Of course, do not hesitate to reach out directly to us to discuss your particular edge challenges and how Edgecell can help.