CHAPTER 1INTRODUCTION

1.0              INTRODUCTION

Cloudcomputing,whichevolvedfromtheInternetandtheweb,setsthepacefora new era of computing globally as it changes the way we work, think, do business, andcommunicate. It is a practical innovation that entails the renting of common businessapplicationsorservicesonlinebycloudcomputingserviceproviderstoclientsoneitherasapay-as-you-go basis orbysubscription.

Historically,computingstartedinthe1960swithmainframedatacentrecomputing during which IBM attempted utility computing (a pay-as-you-use strategy).This was shortly followed by personal/minicomputer computing during which computersbecame rampant and affordable. Afterwards, we entered into the period of distributednetworkcomputingreferredtoasClient-Servercomputing.Thesteadygrowthofcomputer networking across the globe then gave rise to the Internet and the web in the1990s. Actually, the term ‘Internet’ was used to describe the growing networks whichwereoriginallyrestrictedtothemilitaryandresearch.In1995,theInternetwascommercialized following the withdrawal of the US National Science Foundation (NSF)in the Internet’s sole funding. This action led to the growth of the Internet and the webglobally over the years. Cloud computing birthday could be traced to August 24, 2006whenAmazonpubliclytestranitsElasticComputingCloud(EC2)withthemainintentionofofferingdevelopersaninfrastructurethatcouldbehiredtomeettheirITneeds(T-Systems, 2011). However, the term cloud computing first became popular in2007followingitsfirstentryintheEnglishWikipediaonMarch3,2007.Today,

virtualization within networks has given rise to the evolution of cloud computing as itenables a dynamic data centre to provide a pool of resources that can be exploited asneededbyclients tomeet theirworkloads andvaryingbusinessdemands.

Cloud computing presents a shift of control from the traditional way of companiesowing their respective data centre/infrastructure to a resolve on resource sharing therebycutting down the cost of running businesses. The service could be provided using anenterprise’s data centre, or that of a cloud provider. Major Cloud providers in Nigeria areMicrosoft, Google and International Business Machines (IBM). These companies rendercloud computing services either directly to customers/organizations or in partnership withother Information Technology (IT) major players like Cisco, NetApp, Sunnet, Descasio,Wysetechnology,Infowaretechnologies,Accenture,BusinessConnexion,etc.

1.1              STATEMENT OFPROBLEM

Cloudcomputing,whichisachallengingnewtechnology,ispeculiartotheAfrican continent and Nigeria in particular. This is borne out of the fact that Nigeria fallsshort of the basic IT infrastructure requirements (such as steady electricity, and poorinternetconnectivity)for theeffectiveadoption of thetechnology.

Therefore, the following problem statements are intended to be addressed by thisstudy:-

•   Whatarethefeasibilities/constraintsofcloudcomputingdeploymentbycorporationsin Nigeria?
•   WhataretheprospectsofcloudcomputingtechnologyinNigeria?

•   Whataretheprospectsforuseraccess acrossseveralclassesofusers?
•   Howcouldtheproviders’responsestochangesin demandbeillustrated?

•   AretherevisiblecloudcomputingplatformsinNigeria?

•   Howwouldausageofa cloudcomputingplatformbedemonstrated?

1.2              OBJECTIVESOFTHE STUDY

Thisstudyintends to:-

•   Examinethefeasibilities/constraintsofcloudcomputinginNigeria.

•   ExaminetheprospectsofcloudcomputingtechnologyinNigeria.

•   Showtheprospectsforuseraccessacrossseveralclassesofusers.

•   Demonstratetheproviders’responsetochangesin demand.

•   ShowvisiblecloudcomputingplatformsinNigeria.

•   Demonstrateausageofa cloudcomputingplatform.

•   Developsoftwarethatworkslikeasearchengine.

1.3              SIGNIFICANCEOFTHESTUDY

With the perception that cloud computing technology is still new, this study willno doubt be useful to students, academia, individuals and organizations. This is becausethisstudyexploresthepresentsituationandperceptionontheadoptionofcloudcomputinginNigeriawithmajoremphasisonitschallengesandenormousbenefits.

1.4              RESEARCHQUESTIONS

Thefollowingresearchquestionshavebeendesignedforthisstudy:

(1)   Whataretheimpediments/challengesyouenvisagethatfacetheadoptionofcloudcomputingbyorganizations in Nigeria?

(2)   Whataretheperceivedgains,inyourview,thatorganizationsinNigeriastandtobenefitbytheiradoptionofcloud computingtechnology?

1.5              RESEARCHHYPOTHESIS

For the purpose of this study, the following null hypotheses were formulated to belatersubjected toascientifictest to verifyits validityorotherwise.

H₀ :      Thereisnoenormouschallengetothefeasibilityofcloudcomputingadoptionbyorganizationsin Nigeria.

H₀ :      Thereisnoenormousgain/benefitderivablebytheadoptionofcloudcomputingbyorganizations in Nigeria.

1.6              SCOPEOFTHE STUDY

Thisstudycomprisesofsixchapters.Chapter1istheintroductorychaptercomprising of eight sections namely – introduction, statement of the problem, objectivesof the study, significance of the study, research questions, research hypothesis, scope ofthe study, limitation of the study, and definition of technical terms. Chapter 2 focuses ontheliteraturereviewofcomputingcomprisingofdefinitionofcloudcomputing,characteristicsofcloudcomputing,cloudcomputingtechnology,cloudcomputingservice and deployment models, and many others. Chapter 3 discusses the methodologyandsystemanalysiswhilechapter4discussesthesystemdesign.Inchapter5,hypothesis

testing and evaluation is discussed using the t-distribution test to test the validity orotherwise of the above stated null hypotheses. Finally, chapter 6 presents the systemimplementation of the application developed, summary of the research findings, drawnconclusionand theprofferingofsomerecommendations.

1.7              LIMITATIONOFTHE STUDY

Thisstudyislimitedtothestatisticalanalysisoftheimpedimentstocloudcomputing deployment in Nigeria. The indigenous cloud service providers examinedconsistofNetAppTechnologies,WyseTechnologies,Descasio,andInfowareTechnologieswhiletheorganizationsusingtheservicesincludeNigerianAirspaceManagementAgency(NAMA),CoscharisGroup,andElectronicTestCompany.

1.8              DEFINITIONOFTECHNICALTERMS

AllthedefinitionsbelowareaccordingtoWikipediaencyclopaedia.

•          Client:- is a piece of computer hardware or software that accesses a service madeavailablebyaserver.
•          Client-Server Model:- refers to a network in which certain computers have specialdedicatedtasks,providingservices toother computers (inthenetwork).
•          Cloud Computing:- is a term used to refer to a model of network computing where aprogram or application runs on a connected server or servers rather than on a localcomputingdevicesuch as aPC, tablet orsmartphone.
•          Grid Computing:- is the collection of computer resources from multiple locations toreachacommongoal.
•          Internetbot:-isasoftwareapplicationthatrunsautomatedtasksovertheInternet.

•          Server:- is a system (software and suitable computer hardware) that responds torequestsacrossacomputernetworktoprovideorhelptoprovide,anetworkservice.
•          Sphider:-isalightweightwebspiderandsearchenginewritteninPHP,usingMySQL, as its backend database. It is a great tool for adding search functionality toyour websiteorbuildingyourcustom searchengine.
•          Sphinx:- is a free software (open source fulltext search engine) designed to providefulltext search functionalitytoclient applications.
•          Utility Computing:- is the packaging of computing resources, such as computation,storageand servicesas a metered service.
•          Virtualization:- refers to the act of creating a virtual (rather than actual) version ofsomething,includingbutnotlimitedtoavirtualcomputerhardwareplatform,operatingsystem(OS), storagedevice,orcomputernetwork resources.
•          Web Crawler:- is an internet bot that systematically browses the world wide web,typicallyforthepurposeofweb indexing.
•          Web Search Engine:- is a software system that is designed to search for informationontheworld wideweb.
•          XAMPP:-isafreeandopensourcecross-platformwebserversolutionstackpackage,consistingmainly oftheApacheHTTPserver,MySQL database,andinterpreters forscriptswritteninthePHP andPerlprogramminglanguages.