HP

"HP IT has been facing increased pressure to implement an end user file sync and share solution as mobile devices become prevalent in the workplace with each user choosing their own services. Enterprise file sync and share has been a black hole for many organizations, with employees using consumer grade public options for sync and share. The real world problem HP was looking to solve using Openstack swift was to implement an enterprise file sync and share solution that would allow HP to control the data by implementing a single service for employees to use."

"The project was scoped to satisfy the following requirements: First, we wanted HP employees to be able to bring their own device to the solution in order at access their corporate data. We also wanted to support the full range of mobile phones, tablets, laptops and desktops regardless of platform. HP employees also work with many different vendors, partners and customers so it was important to give them a secure way to transfer and share files of any size. And as file sizes have increased, there has been a growing need to look beyond email for file transfer. Since we were expecting a large number of employees, vendors and customers, maintaining control of user access and security was a priority for the Sync and Share project. So, we looked very closely at solutions that would enable the use of the HP corporate active directory for identity and authentication, while having SSL and data at rest encryption to protect users data in transport and at rest. As far as flexibility, the focus was on capacity demand growth. We wanted a solution with the flexibility to use many different object store endpoints. Specifically we looked for a solution that could use the HP Public Cloud object store for capacity demand and growth. We also wanted to make sure that the solution could be rapidly deployed to meet our deadlines while accommodating any customization needs that might surface. Obviously, with a global, mobile workforce, we had to offer secure unfettered access from any location. And we wanted to do this without any VPN requirements, while still offering a solution that would allow rapid user adoption with a familiar user interface. Last but not least, we searched for an enterprise grade solution that would scale accordingly. The initial design would need to accommodate 150,000 users with 25Gb quotas."

"Before arriving at the the OpenStack-Gladinet conclusion, we investigated several different options, including SAN storage, NFS/CIFS, SMEStorage, Citrix Sharefiles and many others. Given the types of data users would be storing, images, videos, documents, archive data, the enterprise file sync and share use case was a logical fit for our OpenStack Swift implementation that was already in production. As an added bonus, Openstack swift was easily integrated with our cloud services automation framework. Since Openstack Swift provides a RESTful API, we were able to build a provisioning model through our cloud automation tool that allowed swift accounts to be provisioned immediately. Other benefits of using OpenStack Swift for our Enterprise File Sync and Share solution was the high durability and low cost of the Openstack Swift solution. Swift also provided a high level of data availability at a much lower total cost than traditional storage mediums And meeting HP’s security requirements was relatively straightforward, since openstack swift is completely accessible via HTTPS. We took this a step further by opting to implement LDAP integration for authentication and authorization, which allows us to enable and disable account access to the swift cluster from the HP directory, The last, but certainly not the least, compelling benefit for us was that Openstack Swift is built to scale. So, as capacity demands rise we can scale the OpenStack Swift cluster proxy layer or the storage layer by simply adding additional nodes, thereby adding capacity for concurrency or data. -------------------------- For the sync and share platform, HP IT had a project directive to roll out the service within a compressed timeframe. We worked directly with Gladinet to outline very specific product enhancements based on HP’s design requirements and security standards. Gladinet did an excellent job of delivering these enhancements within the compressed time frame. We were impressed. Because of the geographical scope of HP and the unique aspects of our directory, gladinet was able to make changes to the Sync and Share product to support HP as an enterprise Since HP does not provide mobile devices to all of its employees, we wanted a solution that would allow any employee to participate by using any mobile or workstation devices (IOS, Android, Windows Mobile, Windows OS and Mac OSX). We also wanted a solution that would be easy for users to adopt, have a familiar look and feel, and enable file sharing and collaboration inside and outside the organization. Gladinet met or exceeded our expectations for each of these requirements Since the sync and share solution was to be used internally and externally, security was a big concern. Again working directly with Gladinet and the application security scanning team, we were able to satisfy all of the security requirements set forth by HP security policy. (Perhaps mention the scope and size of the security report?) the multi forest directory support, SSL transport security, Data At Rest Encryption and application security policies to name a few. As I mentioned before, scalability and flexibility were always at the forefront of our design choices. And planning for future growth can be a challenge, so having the capability to burst to the HP public cloud for capacity demand is a great option for interim storage while additional private cloud object storage is being purchased. Finally, look and feel had been a major requirement for the project. As an internally and externally presented service for Hewlett Packard, the sync and share solution had to be fully customizable and branded. The Gladinet product supports both the product customizations and branding we desired as a service provider. We also needed to customize the mobile device application deployment and management. Gladinet and HP customized the mobile apps to meet HP’s requirements and helped to deliver mobile applications into our mobile device management suite. We could then control the deployment of the mobile apps to specific users and groups."