Canonical, the developer behind Ubuntu Linux and related cloud technologies, has introduced a significant expansion to facilitate the modernization of small-scale, legacy IT systems and the shift from proprietary solutions to open-source alternatives.
In a recent announcement, Canonical unveiled its enhanced commercial OpenStack offering, referred to as “project Sunbeam,” specifically designed for small-scale cloud environments. This extension represents a new addition within the OpenStack framework and is governed by the OpenInfra Foundation.
In addition to Sunbeam, Canonical is introducing “MicroStack,” a product that will receive comprehensive commercial support from the Ubuntu Linux developer. Initially, MicroStack, which is built upon Sunbeam, will focus on supporting small-scale cloud environments consisting of 1 to 8 nodes.
Tyus Kurek, the product manager at Canonical, explained the significance of this expansion, stating that historically, full commercial support from Canonical’s commercial OpenStack offering required 9 or more nodes. Commercial OpenStack deployments typically involved paid consulting engagements across the industry.
The fully open-source Sunbeam project is available free of charge. Enterprise customers also have the option to opt for comprehensive security coverage and full commercial support through Ubuntu Pro + Support subscriptions at the standard rate once they have completed the deployment themselves.
Canonical introduced these new offerings at the outset of the OpenInfra Summit in Vancouver, Canada, a three-day event dedicated to direct collaboration between individuals involved in open-source infrastructure projects such as Linux, OpenStack, Kubernetes, and more.
This expansion aims to facilitate the integration and operation of various open-source technologies, allowing organizations to update their small-scale legacy IT systems and transition smoothly from proprietary solutions to OpenStack, without incurring the expenses typically associated with professional services engagements.
Kurek emphasized Canonical’s commitment to amplifying open source and providing a production-grade platform that can be deployed by the community without excessive reliance on professional services.
Sunbeam was created to eliminate the barriers associated with the initial adoption of OpenStack. Its purpose extends to simplifying OpenStack adoption considerably. Operators can now establish a fully functional and highly available cloud infrastructure with just 12 simple commands. This strategic move aims to minimize the need for historically costly professional services, ultimately shifting OpenStack from a “consultingware” model to a software-based one.
Sunbeam boasts a user-friendly interface and straightforward installation instructions, making it accessible to both beginners and experienced engineers, even those without prior OpenStack experience. The tool’s lightweight architecture ensures it can run on machines with limited hardware resources, including workstations and virtual machines, eliminating the need for dedicated hardware for testing purposes.
What sets Sunbeam apart is its unique K8s-native architecture, which leverages Kubernetes to run OpenStack services within containers. This decouples OpenStack from the underlying operating system, simplifying traditionally complex operations like system upgrades. Sunbeam goes beyond merely running OpenStack on Kubernetes; it utilizes native Kubernetes principles like StatefulSets and operators, allowing users to model, deploy, and manage OpenStack just like any other cloud-native application.
The integration of Sunbeam helps organizations standardize their infrastructure and application platform, offering a modern operational experience with OpenStack. According to Thierry Carrez, the General Manager of the Open Infrastructure Foundation, more than 70% of OpenStack users also deploy Kubernetes, and Kubernetes is increasingly used to manage OpenStack deployments.
As a result, the introduction of Sunbeam is expected to revolutionize OpenStack deployment, catering to small labs as well as large-scale global implementations. With Sunbeam shipping with the latest OpenStack version, 2023.1 (Antelope), early adopters can look forward to direct upgrades to the 2024.1 version next year through the Skip Level Upgrade Release Process (SLURP) mechanism.
While Sunbeam currently includes only the core OpenStack services, developers have ambitious plans to rapidly expand it, achieving full feature parity with OpenStack Charms. OpenStack Charms are integral to Canonical’s reference architecture for OpenStack implementation, encompassing various software components that streamline essential operational tasks such as upgrades, backups, and scaling.
Organizations interested in exploring Sunbeam’s performance and features can easily test it on workstations or a virtual machine by visiting microstack.run. Canonical is also hosting a webinar on July 12 that delves into the use of Sunbeam as an alternative to small-scale proprietary virtualization environments, offering insights into how to build a cloud infrastructure in under an hour. To participate in the webinar, participants will require a minimum of three machines, each with Ubuntu 22.04 server edition pre-installed, meeting specific hardware requirements outlined on the seminar’s website.