Abstract

A decade ago, the corporate world viewed grid computing as a curiosity. Today, it views it as an opportunity--a chance to reduce costs, improve performance, fund new projects, and take advantage of under-utilized capacity. The engineering behind this transformation has been amply documented. Until now, however, little has been written to prepare managers, executives, and other decision-makers to implement grid computing in a sensible and effective way.
Grid Computing: The Savvy Manager's Guide examines the technology from a rigorous business perspective, equipping you with the practical knowledge you need to assess your options and determine what grid computing approach is right for your enterprise. This book is heavy on real-world experience, distilling from a rich assortment of case studies the best practices currently at work in a variety of industries. Always attentive to grid computing’s many competitive advantages, it is also realistic about the challenges of selling the idea to staff and making it a part of your company’s culture.

• Sketches the history of grid computing, showing how it made the leap from academia to business.
• Examines the criteria you'll need to meet to make your network "grid-enabled."
• Explains how a grid-based solution can be made to meet key organizational requirements, including security, scheduling, data storage, and fault-tolerance.
• Surveys the approaches currently available and helps you choose the one that will best meet your needs, both now and in the future.
• Focuses heavily on the competitive advantages you can reap from grid computing, and provides advice on convincing your organization to adopt grid computing and making a successful transition.

"This book explains grid in simple terms, using practical examples to demonstrate the technical and business benefits of grid and providing hands-on guidance for readers. This is a must read for everyone who is seriously investigating grid or planning to integrate grid technology in their IT environment."
--Wolfgang Gentzsch, Managing Director of Grid Computing and Networking Services, MCNC, Inc.
"What sets the book apart …is the practical context, backed up with actual case studies…From "building the business case" to understanding the motivations/requirements for "Grid-enabling" a product or application, this is a comprehensive look at some of the key business issues related to enterprise Grid." -- Greg Nawrocki, President, Globus Consortium, Grid Today
"The authors produced a very useful book for those who want to get a quick introduction in Grid computing." -- Primeur Weekly
"A great collection of all the variety of aspects, opinions and facets of Grid and Grid computing. I have been involved in Grid for several years, and yes, all the different aspects discussed in the book have come up sometime, somewhere." -- Sven Graupner, Technical Specialist, Hewlett Packard Laboratories
“The authors of this book are particularly well qualified to make the case for Grid computing to the business IT manager. Both have been intimately involved in developing and deploying Grid technology and applications for many years." --
Ian Foster, Head of Distributed Systems Lab, Argonne National Laboratory and Carl Kesselman, Director of Center for Grid Technologies, University of Southern California
"Offers a practical examination of where the entire field of distributed computing is headed." David Stodder, Intelligent Enterprise