Re: [Wg-test-framework] Test-as-a-service deployment costing

[Konrad Rzeszutek Wilk <konrad.wilk@xxxxxxxxxx>]

On Tue, Dec 17, 2013 at 02:40:05PM +0000, Lars Kurth wrote:
> Konrad,
> 
> I agree this can be done more cheaply: Chris did this costing on *very* short 
> notice and used our usual suppliers (list prices) to turn this around in less 
> than a day. So the costs are *very* conservative, which IMHO is reasonable 
> for a budget. My thinking was that if we can get the Hardware cheaper, we can 
> just get more boxes or we have more cash in the bank.
> 
> On A+B
> > I am not sure what that is. Is this an upfront cost to setup the network, 
> > switches, terminal servers, remote power on/off setups, DHCP, etc? I 
> > presume so.
> The exact cost breakdown is in the budget spreadsheet. Here is the detail for 
> those two items:
> 
> A) Core infrastructure : A pool of servers and shared storage to run the 
> various VMs you need to run the network, monitor infrastructure, pxe boot, 
> dhcp, scheduling etc. Osstest would presumably need something similar.
> 
> B) XenRT âsiteâ infrastructure : XenRT can be built up into multiple âsitesâ, 
> each consisting of a number of servers (we have sites of 16, 32 and 64 
> servers). Each site needs its own small pool of servers with shared storage 
> and switches to run the site. For a small XenRT deployment (one site) we 
> could probably share the core infrastructure for the site infrastructure, 
> thereby removing (or at least postponing) this cost.
> 
> On C
> >> An admin / developer to look after and extend the deployment, possibly 
> >> part-time
> > Is this also considered the person who would triage issues with XenRT or 
> > osstest?
> No. We only covered HW maintenance (1-2 days a month) and remote management 
> (for a much larger deployment than what we are talking about this takes up 
> 20% of a person).
> 
> The key challenges are:
> * We can't employ anybody via the Linux Foundation (they already made clear 
> that this is too complex and unusual for what they do today)
> * This leaves us with : vendors donating time (which in practice never works, 
> unless a single vendor takes full responsibility). 
> * Employing somebody on behalf of the project within a vendor : this may be 
> politically, legally and logistically difficult and will need to be discussed 
> by the board
> * And we don't need a full-time person, unless we include triaging, etc.  


So the sticking point is actually finding a person who Xen AB could hire
to do this triage and also in some way help Ian Jackson (as he or she
could do both jobs - osstest and XenRTT).

And without that - the costs for hardware, setup, etc are kind of moot
as there would be nobody to shepard them.

> 
> So this, needs to be discussed at the Advisory Board meeting.
> As an aside: I believe we would end up paying a lot more if we used the Linux 
> Foundation (I was told how much OpenDayLight pays, which is very high)
> 
> > Meaning they would look at the test results and figure out where the bugs 
> > are happening?
> The question there is whether we can find somebody with the right skill set 
> AND whether we have enough funds. This should be discussed in the Advisory 
> Board.
> 
> > These would be one-time costs right? And I presume they could also be 
> > eliminated if vendors (AMD, Intel, Oracle, ARM) provided the hardware?
> Agreed. 
> Although if a vendor donated HW, there will logistical issues, etc. The other 
> option is to get discounts.
> 
> Regards
> Lars
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Konrad Rzeszutek Wilk [mailto:konrad.wilk@xxxxxxxxxx] 
> Sent: 17 December 2013 14:20
> To: Lars Kurth
> Cc: wg-test-framework@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [Wg-test-framework] Test-as-a-service deployment costing
> 
> On Thu, Dec 12, 2013 at 02:15:43PM +0000, Lars Kurth wrote:
> > 
> > 
> > From: Chris Shepherd
> > Sent: 12 December 2013 13:09
> > To: Lars Kurth
> > Subject: External test-as-a-service deployment costing
> > 
> > Hi Lars
> > 
> > The costs are in two parts: colo and test-as-a-service deployment.
> > 
> > TOTALS:
> > $100k-$150k capex for the test machines and infrastructure $2.5k-$3.5k 
> > per month costs for colo service Additional to pay for an admin
> > 
> > Note: if colo costs are unacceptable then could see if a Xen Project member 
> > would âdonateâ space, power and cooling etc.
> > 
> > See below for breakdownâ
> > 
> > Colo costs:
> > 
> > Â         $2.5k per rack per month (inclusive of space, power and cooling)
> 
> > 
> > Â         $1k per month for 20Mbps internet with high SLA (could reduce 
> > this cost very significantly in return for lower SLA)
> 
> I don't think we need the top tier SLA.
> 
> > 
> > Â         An admin / developer to look after and extend the deployment, 
> > possibly part-time
> 
> Is this also considered the person who would triage issues with XenRT or 
> osstest?
> Meaning they would look at the test results and figure out where the bugs are 
> happening?
> 
> > 
> > Test-as-a-service deployment costs:
> > A.  Core infrastructure = $24k
> > B.   XenRT âsiteâ infrastructure = $12k
> 
> I am not sure what that is. Is this an upfront cost to setup the network, 
> switches, terminal servers, remote power on/off setups, DHCP, etc? I presume 
> so.
> 
> > C.   Mid-range test servers = $4k each (could be lower if happy to go for 
> > lower spec machines)
> > Two options would be:
> 
> These would be one-time costs right? And I presume they could also be 
> eliminated if vendors (AMD, Intel, Oracle, ARM) provided the hardware?
> 
> > Â      Single 16-host site = A + B + 16xC = $100k
> > Â      Single 32-host site = A + B + 32xC = $164k
> 
> 
> With these numbers I am tempted to advertise my basement as a perfect place 
> for it :-) Much cheaper costs - though there would be an upfront cost to get 
> a new 100AMP circuit installed.
> 
> Free cooling thanks to New England weather.
> 
> (and yes, my basement already has two racks of machines that do testing every 
> night).
> 
> 
> > 
> > 
> 
> > _______________________________________________
> > Wg-test-framework mailing list
> > Wg-test-framework@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > http://lists.xenproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/wg-test-framework
> 

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