OCNI - Open Cloud Networking Interface

This work presents an open cloud interface extension to merge cloud computing and networks into one modeling and representation framework to extend clouds beyond data centers and enable cloud networking to set up distributed cloud infrastructures. The proposed extension to the de facto standard interface in cloud computing (OCCI) is named Open Cloud Networking Interface (OCNI). OCNI is presented and evaluated in terms of its ability to integrate smoothly with existing cloud computing interfaces and to provide all the required capabilities to express connectivity requirements and ease connection establishment between cloud computing, network and storage nodes at the virtual and physical level irrespective of underlying transport technologies.