Rackspace has expanded its Private-Cloud-as-a-Service (PCaaS) to deliver ‘the future of multi-cloud’.

Today, Rackspace Managed VMware Cloud has launched on AWS.

Rackspace says that this evolution of its private cloud portfolio will give customers new ways of deploying workloads across public and private clouds in any location, using a single, industry-standard set of tools and processes.

This, in turn, will help customers overcome the typical multi-cloud operational challenges, including standard workflows; consistent APIs; easier access to native services across clouds; simpler geographical expansion; compliance with data sovereignty policies and business continuity; cost-effective disaster recovery and on-demand flexible capacity.

“Every organisation is on a multi-cloud journey. Enterprises today have three primary choices when moving to the cloud – managed private, hybrid or public cloud. Regardless of environment, the trend toward using multiple cloud providers to meet business requirements is undeniable,” said Ajay Patel, senior vice president and general manager, cloud provider software business unit, VMware.

“Rackspace has built the expertise and multi-cloud services portfolio to help customers succeed in today’s digital world, and the new Rackspace Managed VMware Cloud on AWS service will enable their customers to run production applications across vSphere-based private, hosted public environments, with optimised access to AWS services.”

Multi-cloud strategies: Why are organisations lagging behind?

Despite certainty that the use of multi-cloud services will be the future of business, research from IDC has found that fewer than 10% of European organisations will be multi-cloud ready. Read here

According to the announcement: This cloud solution delivers greater flexibility for customers to run each VMware workload where it makes the most sense – in VMware Cloud on AWS, in their own data centre or hosted in a geo-specific location, along with the consistency of a unified infrastructure that bridges private and public clouds. With thousands of VMware and AWS certifications across hundreds of experts, Rackspace is now uniquely positioned to help customers integrate multiple clouds to meet their business requirements.

Game changer

“This is a game changer in the cloud industry, and with thousands of VMware and AWS certifications across hundreds of experts, Rackspace is a strategic partner to help customers that want to move to VMware Cloud on AWS and further modernise their applications with native AWS services,” said Peter FitzGibbon, vice president and general manager of Rackspace managed services for VMware.

“Enterprises can now run every application in the best location, optimising price, reliability, performance and security for every workload while using familiar tools, processes and APIs, which enterprises already use today. We deliver this as a fully managed service, making consumption simple while delivering the outcomes our customers expect.”

IBM acquires Red Hat in $34BN deal: A game changer?

The merger between IBM and Red Hat is like David to the Amazon/Alphabet/Microsoft Goliaths, can it make the sling shot? Read here

Rackspace will aim to deliver common cloud APIs to any type of cloud resource so that enterprises can avoid being locked-in to a specific cloud — delivering multi-cloud for an enterprise at an application-by-application basis.

This portable cloud API strategy, delivered as a managed service, removes barriers to enterprises’ multi-cloud challenges by providing the next generation multi-cloud, which accelerates innovation, optimises economics and eases migration to the cloud, according to the announcement.

Rackspace Managed VMware Cloud on AWS provides:

• Simplified multi-cloud development and deployment. Rackspace experts certified in multi-cloud deployments provide unbiased guidance and consulting across architecture, migration and cloud transformation strategies. And, with VMware Cloud on AWS providing direct access to native AWS services, Rackspace guides customers in identifying a best-fit solution that serves their business needs. With a comprehensive portfolio of services, Rackspace unifies public and private cloud by helping customers integrate services and utilise APIs across VMware and AWS platforms.
• Relief from the burden of multi-cloud operations. Rackspace’s certified architects and engineers streamline and simplify building, migrating, operating and optimising VMware Cloud on AWS with their deep cross-platform expertise. Rackspace offers consolidated billing and flexible payment options, a single source to call for 24x7x365 support with dedicated account teams, and access to proactive monitoring and troubleshooting across multiple clouds.
• Centre of Excellence. Rackspace has developed a first-of-its-kind Centre of Excellence collaboratively with VMware to help accelerate customers’ path to multi-cloud and allow them to access exceptional, cross-platform expertise and simplified operations from a single partner. The Centre of Excellence draws from Rackspace’s deep experience with VMware and AWS, and is dedicated to developing new strategies for customers consuming native AWS services from VMware workloads.

Is it a game changer?

This, unfortunately, can only be determined when we see some use case studies, which Information Age will endeavour to bring the reader.