service definition
Pure commitment.
service description
Dedicated Compute Cloud
IaaS
G-Cloud service ID numbers
Assured: 7169 8814 3051 9813
Elevated: 7949 4260 7826 0377
version 7.1
Contents
Highlights 3
What is the service? 4
What can I do with this service? 4
What are the key features and benefits? 4
Why UKCloud? 4
What are the key technical features? 6
Who is the service aimed at? 6
What are the service levels? 7
How much does it cost? 9
Is there a trial service? 12
Appendix 13
Highlights
· Flexible compute solution delivered as a cloud service and designed to meet unique requirements for scale, budget and security· Dedicated single-tenant cloud computing solution provides stronger assurance of isolation in line with CESG Cloud Security Principles
· UK sovereign — an assured cloud platform delivered from two secure UK data centres by a UK company with UK government security-cleared staff
· Disaster tolerant — two Tier 3 UK data centres separated by more than 100km and securely connected by high-bandwidth, low-latency dedicated circuits enabling synchronous replication
· Optimised for OFFICIAL — extensive independent validation (including CESG PGA), the service fully aligns with the CESG 14 Cloud Security Principles, making it ideal for all data classified at OFFICIAL (including OFFICIAL SENSITIVE) and legacy IL0–IL4 solutions
· Flexible connectivity options — connect via the internet, a government community network (for example, PSN Assured / Protected service, N3) or via HybridConnect (your own private circuits including CPA-encrypted tunnels and MPLS)
What is the service?
Dedicated Compute Cloud enables organisations to enjoy the benefits of the UKCloud Assured Cloud platform for a single-tenant (private cloud) compute infrastructure. It provides the most robust levels of assurance for data classified as OFFICIAL or OFFICIAL SENSITIVE.
What can I do with this service?
The service is designed for organisations whose particular requirements suit a dedicated compute infrastructure rather than a multi-tenant compute solution. Examples include:
· Scale — organisations that require unique hardware configuration (for example high-performance compute and SAP HANA)
· Security — organisations that require additional isolation within the community of UK public-sector consumers
· Budget — organisations that prefer capital expenditure (CAPEX) and require ownership of the underlying hardware
What are the key features and benefits?
The UKCloud Dedicated Compute Cloud service provides a high assurance, PSN/N3-connected, cost-effective alternative to hosting and managing your own compute infrastructure. It provides the following features and benefits:
· Assurance — hosted in the UK and operated by UK government security-cleared staff, the service benefits from extensive independent validation (formally CESG PGA IL3) that it is properly aligned with CESG Cloud Security Principles, making it the ideal service for all data classified at OFFICIAL (including OFFICIAL SENSITIVE) and legacy IL0-IL4 solutions.
· Dedicated platform — the compute platform is designed for the exclusive use of each consumer providing the highest levels of separation and isolation from other consumers.
· Automation — the compute solution is delivered as a cloud service through high levels of automation enabling self-service via the UKCloud Portal.
· Cost-effectiveness — Dedicated Compute Cloud can be purchased to suit all budgets including upfront capital expenditure (CAPEX) and ongoing operational expenditure (OPEX).
· Geodiversity — the platform can be designed to span our two UK data centres which are separated by over 100km.
Why UKCloud?
UKCloud is a UK company founded in 2011, we are unique among cloud providers as we maintain an exclusive focus on the UK public sector. We were one of the first G-Cloud providers to successfully achieve CESG Pan Government Accreditation.
Our range of on-demand, pay-for-what-you-use cloud services with no minimum commitment are suitable for OFFICIAL and OFFICIAL SENSITIVE (formerly IL0 through IL4) data. They’re delivered from two secure Tier 3 UK data centres separated by more than 100km and securely connected by dedicated high-bandwidth, low-latency CESG-assured circuits, enabling synchronous replication.
We help public sector organisations lower CO2 emissions through reduced energy consumption, sustainable procurement and better hardware utilisation. UKCloud is a CarbonNeutral® Company whose data centres have a low carbon footprint and low PUE rating, and comply with the EU Data Centre Code of Conduct.
UKCloud has unparalleled capability in:
Security assurance
We offer our cloud services from UK data centres, operated by UK government security-cleared staff. Customers’ data is therefore not subject to foreign legislation or the risk of international surveillance or disclosure.
Our services are designed and built with clear alignment to the 14 CESG Cloud Security Principles that all UK public sector organisations use when assessing cloud hosted solutions. The UKCloud cloud benefits from extensive independent validation via certifications ranging from international standards (for example, ISO9001, ISO27001, ISO20000) to UK public-sector specific standards (for example, PSN, N3/HSCIC).
Our cloud platforms are subject to regular, extensive IT Security Health Check (ITSHC) CHECK Tests by independent, CESG-approved assessors to provide our customers with confidence in the physical and technical security controls which have been implemented to protect their valuable data assets.
Connectivity
Both of our UK data centres have resilient connections to secure UK government networks such as PSN Assured, PSN Protected and N3, as well as large-scale, DDoS-protected internet connectivity. We also make it possible for you to present your own connections (such as direct connectivity into your MPLS, or inexpensive point-to-point connections via leased lines); and offer a Secure Remote Access solution that allows assured VPN access to the Elevated OFFICIAL domain.
Flexibility
We offer simple products for delivering complex solutions, all designed to reduce security risks without decreasing the flexibility of a cloud platform. Our differentiated, commoditised products provide a choice of IaaS, PaaS and SaaS; service levels; virtual machine sizes; and security levels.
We provide innovative solutions to further increase cloud flexibility, such as the Cross Domain Security Zone which enables internet-facing Assured OFFICIAL applications to connect to data stored within our Elevated OFFICIAL platform. This allows you to keep your data safe, while letting citizens interface with the information they need.
Public sector partnerships
We have a committed team focused on identifying partners who understand the UK public sector and have expertise in enabling and accelerating digital transformational projects.
· Managed Service Providers (MSPs). Specialists in services relating to the design, management and support of environments built within UKCloud’s cloud platform, helping to reduce the complexities of platform management.
· Systems Integrators (SIs). Organisations that fully understand UKCloud’s cloud portfolio are experts at bringing together individual cloud components to deliver entire cloud-based solutions.
· Developers and Independent Software Vendors (ISVs). Able to provide fully packaged applications or SaaS solutions which leverage UKCloud’s secure cloud capabilities.
· Strategic Advisors/Consultants. For customers who require additional advice around delivering solutions in the cloud, our consultancy partners and subject specialists can help define strategy, develop action plans and create solutions.
What are the key technical features?
Dedicated Compute Cloud provides the following technical features:
· Secure and flexible software-defined data centre solution powered by VMware vCloud Director
· Integration with existing, legacy and virtualised enterprise applications
· Native support for a wide variety of operating systems (for example, Windows, Linux and Solaris x86) and applications (for example, Oracle, SAP and Microsoft)
· Connectivity via a variety of networks — PSN Assured, PSN Protected, internet, legacy networks (such as PNN), N3 and HybridConnect options
· Custom hardware configuration to support unique requirements (for example. all-flash arrays, processor-to-memory ratio, converged or modular infrastructure)
· Automated systems management via the UKCloud Portal and API (for example, show-back of utilisation, health, availability)
· Option to implement a dual-site replicated Dedicated Compute Cloud solution
· Availability within both the UKCloud Assured OFFICIAL (formerly IL2) platform and the UKCloud Elevated OFFICIAL (formerly IL3) platform
· Advanced software features, such as de-duplication, retention and replication
Who is the service aimed at?
The UKCloud Dedicated Compute Cloud is aimed at customers who:
· Wish to reduce the complexity of managing compute. Dedicated Compute Cloud provides new levels of simplicity. No more managing compliance, hypervisors or hardware — customers can just consume assured cloud computing.
· Want a better way to deliver the private cloud element of their hybrid cloud strategy. Dedicated Compute Cloud provides secure, UK-sovereign hosting, management by UK government security-cleared experts, and accredited connectivity to government community networks.
· Want to avoid the costs of creating the assurance, management and hosting platform for a Dedicated Compute Cloud platform, thanks to extensive independent assurance that it delivers the highest levels of security.
What are the service levels?
UKCloud provides an availability SLA and a response time SLA for the Dedicated Compute Cloud service — see table.
/ STANDARD /Availability (monthly*) / 99.99%
Incident response / P1 — within 15 minutes
P2 — within 4 hours
P3 — within 24 hours
P4 — within 72 hours
Service Credits / 10% of monthly spend
* Availability indication is based on an average 730 hours per month. Excludes planned and emergency maintenance.
Unavailability definition
‘Unavailability’ applies to existing data when the data becomes inaccessible due to a fault recognised at the IaaS layer or lower:
· Fault is not within the consumer’s control (OS configuration, customer applications, customer networks, etc)
· Fault is within UKCloud-controlled components such as the dedicated compute infrastructure, data centre facilities, physical firewalls, routers etc
· External connectivity providers (for example internet, PSN and N3) and components colocated at UKCloud are also not included in the availability calculation
UKCloud API and Portal
UKCloud provides an availability service level target for:
· The UKCloud API — access to the API allows direct commands to be sent to the environment for programmatic control of the UKCloud Dedicated Compute Cloud service
· The UKCloud Portal — covering the ability to log on to the Portal to manage your environment, create support tickets and use other functions
/ Target availability (monthly*) /Client Portal availability (monthly) / 99.90%
Options
Backup / recovery and disaster recovery
You can choose from the following service options:
Compute Only
The Dedicated Compute Cloud is hosted in one UK data centre with no automated VM backup included by default. Typical use cases include true cloud applications which are designed for failure or where customers deploy their own backup solution using UKCloud Cloud Storage.
Automated VM Backup
The Dedicated Compute Cloud is hosted in one UK data centre and the consumer opts to pay for automated VM backups retained for 14 days (backups can be stored for 28 days at an additional charge). Typical use cases include enterprise / production environments that require the additional protection of automated backup.
· Automated VM Backups include the whole virtual machine (crash-consistent snapshot); partial backups are not supported
· Automated VM Backups do not include the virtual data centre configuration (for example, firewall rules and load-balancing configuration)
· Automated VM Backups of virtual machines using the Shared Disk option are not available — consumers using this option must back up their systems themselves
· A restore of a VM from backup will incur additional (hourly) charges based on the resources consumed (it will be treated as another VM)
Dual Site
The Dedicated Compute Cloud is hosted in two UK data centres (separated by over 100km) with continual replication of the live VMs to the second data centre in real time. This service option offers customisable Recovery Point Objective (RPO) and Recovery Time Objective (RTOs) to help consumers with their disaster avoidance plans.
How much does it cost?
UKCloud Dedicated Compute Cloud is available in two packages with an additional purchasing option:
/ Roles and Responsibilities // All Inclusive / Platform Only /
Procurement of compute hardware and related infrastructure (such as network) / UKCloud / Consumer
Hardware design and deployment / UKCloud / UKCloud
Capacity management / UKCloud / Consumer
Availability management / UKCloud / UKCloud
Health management / UKCloud / UKCloud
Performance management / Consumer / Consumer
Support and maintenance / UKCloud / UKCloud
Assurance and compliance / UKCloud / UKCloud
All Inclusive
The All Inclusive package provides consumers with a turnkey solution including the Dedicated Compute hardware and underlying Assured Cloud platform.
Upgrade options* £ / VM / monthAsset options / Single-site platform size / £ / VM / month† / Automated VM backup / Site replication and failover / 50VM pack: compute and storage
Small / 500 VMs / From £20 / From £50 / From £150 / From £16
Medium / 1,000 VMs / From £18
Large / 2,000 VMs / From £16
† Based on 24-month contract and average VM size of 2vCPU, 8GB RAM and 100GB disk. Price will vary depending on specific hardware and performance requirements.
* Assuming 24-month contract; however upgrades will be coterminous with the original contract, so the price will increase on a pro-rata basis. Based on average VM size of 2vCPU, 8GB RAM and 100GB disk. Price will vary depending on specific hardware and performance requirements.
The All Inclusive package is available as follows:
/ CAPEX-optimised / OPEX-optimised /Upfront payment — design and deploy / 10% of asset cost / £10,000
Annual payment — asset prepayment / Asset cost / 2 / Zero
Monthly charge — asset finance / Zero / Asset cost + 20% / 24 months
Monthly charge — platform fee / From £150 per VM* / From £150 per VM*
Minimum term / 3 months / 24 months
Early exit charge / Remainder of asset cost / Remainder of asset finance
Premium for Elevated OFFICIAL / 20% / 20%
Unit of billing / VM capacity upfront
Platform fee per month / VM capacity per month
(includes platform fee per month)
* Based on 24-month contract and average VM size of 2vCPU, 8GB RAM and 100GB disk. Price will vary depending on specific hardware and performance requirements.
Worked example (indication only)
A UKCloud Dedicated Compute Cloud platform sized at 1,000 VMs:
Dedicated Compute Cloud assets (Compute, Storage and Network Hardware) costs £18 x 1,000 VMs x 24 months = £432,000