CompTIA - Cloud Essentials

Curriculum

Characteristics of Cloud Services from a Business Perspective

• Common cloud computing terms and definitions
• Relationship between cloud computing and virtualisation
• Early examples of cloud computing
• Common definitions of cloud computing
• Organisations that benefit from cloud computing
• Organisations that may not benefit from cloud computing
• Different types of cloud: XaaS, IaaS, PaaS

Cloud Computing and Business Value

• Similarities and differences between cloud computing and outsourcing
• Characteristics of cloud services from a business perspective:
• Scalability
• Security
• Hardware independence
• Costs
• Time to market
• Distribution over the Internet
• How the characteristics of cloud computing enhance business value

Technical Perspectives and Cloud Types

• Difference between private and public cloud from a technical perspective
• Techniques and methods for deploying cloud computing:
• Networking
• Automation and Self Service
• Federation
• Standardisation
• Challenges and risks for cloud computing, and how to tackle them:
• Cloud storage
• Application performance
• Data integration
• Security
• Impact of cloud computing on application architecture and the application-development process

Steps to Successful Adoption of Cloud

• Steps that lead to a successful adoption of cloud computing services:
• Understand selection criteria for a pilot
• Relate SaaS, PaaS, IaaS deployment to organisational goals
• Roles and capabilities of cloud computing vendors
• Organisational capabilities that are relevant for realising cloud benefits:
• Skills required in an organisation adopting cloud computing
• Critical success factors
• Approaches for migrating applications

Impact and Changes of Cloud Computing on IT Service Management

• Impact and changes of cloud computing on IT service management:
• Service Strategy
• Service Design
• Service Operation
• Service Transition
• A structured approach - based on ITIL - to explore the potential impact of cloud computing

Risks and Consequences of Cloud Computing

• Issues associated with integrating cloud computing into an organisation’s existing compliance risk and regulatory framework:
• Security
• Legal
• Compliance
• Privacy risks
• Implications for direct cost and cost allocations
• How to maintain strategic flexibility