Deep dive into the main OpenStack components part 1

In one of our recent blogs, we described the main components of OpenStack for you. The blogs provides an overview of the main OpenStack components and describes them briefly. However, in this blog we will dive a little deeper into the various components of OpenStack and their features. If you are interested in reading our previous blog with the OpenStack components overview, you can find it through the following link: https://fairbanks.nl/recap-of-openstack-services/  

Some components of OpenStack are needed for the basic functioning of OpenStack, while others can be added depending on use cases.  

The following OpenStack components are required for the basic functioning of OpenStack: 

Additionally, when it comes to the main OpenStack components you can choose to add:  

Aside from these main OpenStack components, OpenStack has many more components that can be used, including OpenStack Adjutant, Aodh, Barbican, Blazar, Ceilometer, Cloudkitty, Cyborg, Designate, Ec2-api, Freezer, Glance, Ironic, Manila, Masakari, Mistral, Monasca-api, Monasca-events-api, Murano, Neutron, Octavia, Placement, Sahara, Senlin, Solum, Storlets, Tacker, Vitrage, Watcher, Zaqar, Zun. 

However, in this blog we will discuss the main components Nova, Cinder and Neutron. In a follow-up blog, we will discuss the remaining main components of OpenStack. Which are Keystone, Glance, Swift, Horizon, Heat, Trove and Magnum. So, keep an eye out on our LinkedIn or website to read the follow-up blog on the main OpenStack components. 

OpenStack Nova is the compute component of the OpenStack cloud computing platform. It provides the ability to provision and manage virtual machines (VMs) running on OpenStack. Nova enables users to create, launch, and manage VMs in a distributed environment, with features such as instance types, scheduling policies, and live migration. 

The main features of Nova include: 

In addition to the main features of OpenStack Nova that I mentioned above, here are some more details about how Nova works and some of its advanced capabilities: 

Nova is a powerful and flexible compute component of OpenStack. Its support for multiple hypervisor drivers, integration with the Neutron networking component (which we will discuss in the next part of this blog), live migration, high availability, and API make it a critical component for building scalable and flexible cloud infrastructures. 

OpenStack Neutron is the networking component of the OpenStack platform. It provides a software-defined networking (SDN) platform that enables users to create and manage virtual networks, subnets, routers, and other network resources. Neutron allows users to define and manage network topologies, configure network services such as firewalls and load balancers, and allocate IP addresses to virtual machines. 

The main features of Neutron include: 

In addition to the main features of OpenStack Neutron that I mentioned above, here are some more details about how Cinder works and some of its advanced capabilities: 

Overall, Neutron is a critical component of OpenStack that provides a flexible and scalable networking platform for managing virtualized network resources. It enables users to create and manage virtual networks, configure network services, and allocate IP addresses to virtual machines, making it an essential component of any OpenStack deployment. 

OpenStack Cinder is the block storage component of the OpenStack cloud computing platform. It provides persistent storage to virtual machines (VMs) by allowing users to manage, attach and detach block storage volumes to their VMs.  

The main features of Cinder include: 

In addition to the main features of OpenStack Cinder that I mentioned above, here are some more details about how Cinder works and some of its advanced capabilities: 

Cinder is a flexible and powerful block storage component of OpenStack that provides users with the ability to create and manage persistent storage for their virtual machines. Cinder’s advanced capabilities, such as volume backups, snapshots, migration, volume types, QoS, and encryption, make it a crucial component for building robust and scalable cloud infrastructures. 

There you have it. Our deep dive into the main components of OpenStack part 1. Do you have any questions about this? Feel free to reach out to me through LinkedIn or send a message to my personal e-mail address m.manten@fairbanks.nl . Lastly, keep an eye out for the next part of this blog: Deep dive into the main OpenStack component’s part 2, where we will discuss the remaining main components of OpenStack.