New study finds strong UK adoption of OpenStack

However, despite strong uptake for OpenStack in the UK, most respondents are also concerned about private cloud installation challenges and possible vendor lock-in, as well as a lack of OpenStack skills in the market.

“There is no question that private clouds are seen as the future for many enterprise workloads, including many that are considered to be business-critical,” said Mark Smith, senior product marketing manager of cloud solutions at SUSE. “The results speak very positively about the level of trust enterprises have in OpenStack, but understandably there are clear concerns among customers about how their cloud infrastructure should be integrated and managed. SUSE works closely with the OpenStack project and technology partners to give these companies unique levels of flexibility, choice, training and support, helping them make the most of their private cloud investments without feared constraints.”

Away from OpenStack deployments, the survey also looked at private cloud more generally. Among the complexities faced by UK businesses, 91 percent have some concerns about vendor lock-in when it comes to choosing a private infrastructure cloud solution. 89 percent of respondents say a lack of available skillsets in the market is making their company reluctant to pursue private cloud further.

“This new report clearly demonstrates that UK businesses are keen to adopt private cloud, even for business-critical workloads,” said Danny Rowark, country manager, UK & Ireland at SUSE. “However, it’s important that IT departments are able to overcome the complexities that continue to arise here. With cost as a primary motivator for UK businesses to move to the cloud, an open source solution can play a key role in enabling organisations to implement a private cloud solution – reducing costs, driving innovation and agility, as well as providing freedom from vendor lock-in.”

The study reveals the private cloud preferences and adoption levels of large companies in the UK as well as the challenges they face when moving to a private cloud. In addition, the study indicates private clouds are:

• Universally adopted: 88 percent of UK companies say they have already implemented at least one private cloud within their business
• Trusted: 96 percent of respondents said they would use a cloud solution for business-critical workloads
• The future of the data centre: 94 percent think infrastructure-as-a-service is the future of the data centre

However, as enterprises increasingly look to OpenStack for their private cloud investments, they are also wary of challenges and complications, including:

• High degree of difficulty: Almost half of UK enterprises surveyed that tried to implement an OpenStack cloud have failed, and 57 percent report they have found the implementation experience difficult. In addition, 30 percent plan to download and install OpenStack software themselves, potentially adding to the degree of difficulty
• Vendor lock-in constraints: 91 percent of UK respondents have concerns about vendor lock-in when it comes to choosing a private cloud infrastructure solution