Portable lab modules on cloud computing

Cloud computing is a highly scalable model for delivering information technology resources and applications, on demand, as a service, to end users through the network. In recent years, cloud computing has been adopted rapidly and extensively in industry. Notable public cloud services include Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) and Google App Engine, among others. There is a fast growing demand for professionals with cloud computing skills. However, the demand is not being fulfilled, partially due to the inability of educational institutions to keep up with technological advancements, as well as a lack of hands-on educational material. We have been developing portable virtual lab modules which can be used to teach basic cloud computing concepts and skills early and often. The labs run on virtual machines and can be ported between different courses and between different platforms. The virtual labs can be deployed in centralized or decentralized ways. To meet the learning outcomes, the students are expected to: (1) comprehend the fundamental concepts of cloud computing; (2) identify the building blocks of cloud computing systems; (3) understand the basic operation of open source cloud infrastructures; and (4) recognize commonly used, commercial cloud computing services and applications.