Overlay Architectures Enabling Cloud Computing for Multi-level Security Environments

Herein, we consider how overlay architectures can be deployed in order to support usage management in cloud computing. We contrast filter-centric perimeter and policy-centric overlay approaches toward usage management of sensitive content from the perspective of cross-domain solutions and then demonstrate a path from current systems to distributed policy-centric overlay methods. We first cover the need for overlay networks supporting usage management by highlighting the pending migration to utility computing models and the current shortcomings of those kinds of systems from a variety of perspectives. We also briefly cover the state of usage management within these kinds of systems, also examining the known state of the art in proposed cross domain solutions. We then compare and contrast the advantages of policy-based overlay systems to solving usage management issues over sensitive materials within multi-level security environments. We then demonstrate a migration path from current to future solutions. We close with our current and future directions of research.