M. Tech. (Department of Information Technology, Faculty of Applied and Computer Sciences) Vaal University of Technology. / Cloud computing provides improved and simplified IT management and maintenance capabilities through central administration of resources. Companies of all shapes and sizes are adapting to this new technology. Although cloud computing is an attractive concept to the business community, it still has some challenges such as traffic management and traffic prediction that need to be addressed. Most cloud service providers experience traffic congestion. In the absence of effective tools for cloud computing traffic prediction, the allocation of resources to clients will be ineffective thus driving away cloud computing users. This research intends to mitigate the effect of traffic congestion on provision of cloud service by proposing a proactive traffic prediction model that would play an effective role in congestion control and estimation of accurate future resource demand. This will enhance the accuracy of traffic flow prediction in cloud computing by service providers. This research will evaluate to determine the performance between Auto-regressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) and Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) as prediction tools for cloud computing traffic. These two techniques were tested by using simulation to predict traffic flow per month and per year. The dataset was downloaded data taken from CAIDA database. The two algorithms Auto-Regressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) and Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) where implemented and tested separately. Experimental results were generated and analyzed to test the effectiveness of the traffic prediction algorithms. Finally, the findings indicated that ARIMA can have 98 % accurate prediction results while ANN produced 89 % accurate prediction results. It was also observed that both models perform better on monthly data as compared to yearly data. This study recommends ARIMA algorithm for data flow prediction in private cloud computing

Edge computing facilitates applications of cyber-physical systems that require low latencies by moving compute and storage resources closer to the end application. Whilst the edge network benefits such systems in terms of responsiveness, it increases the systems’ complexity due to edge devices’ often heterogeneous and resource-constrained nature. In this work, we evaluate whether WebAssembly can be used as a lightweight and portable abstraction layer for such applications. Through the implementation of an edge network robot control scenario, we benchmark and compare the performance of WebAssembly against its native equivalent. We measure WebAssembly’s overhead and assess the impact of different placement options in the network. We further compare the overall application responsiveness against the latency requirements of an industrial application to evaluate its performance. We find that WebAssembly satisfies the portability and performance requirements of the selected industrial use case. Our empirical results show that WebAssembly doubles the execution latency in a localized setting, but does not excessively impact the overall responsiveness of a cyber-physical system. / Edge computing underlättar tillämpningar av cyberfysiska system som kräver låga latenser genom att flytta beräknings- och lagringsresurser närmare slutapplikationen. Även om edge-nätverket gynnar sådana system när det gäller reaktionsförmåga, ökar det systemens komplexitet på grund av edge-enheternas ofta heterogena och resursbegränsade natur. I detta arbete utvärderar vi om WebAssembly kan användas som ett lättviktigt och portabelt abstraktionslager för sådana applikationer. Genom att implementera ett robotkontrollscenario för edge-nätverk benchmarkar och jämför vi prestandan hos WebAssembly med dess inbyggda motsvarighet. Vi mäter WebAssemblys overhead och utvärderar effekten av olika placeringsalternativ i nätverket. Vi jämför även den övergripande applikationsresponsen mot latenskraven i en industriell applikation för att utvärdera dess prestanda. Vi konstaterar att WebAssembly uppfyller portabilitets- och prestandakraven för det utvalda industriella användningsfallet. Våra empiriska resultat visar att WebAssembly fördubblar exekveringslatensen i en lokaliserad miljö, men att det inte påverkar den övergripande responsiviteten i ett cyberfysiskt system i alltför hög grad.

<p> First, NoSQL data-stores provide a set of features that is demanded by high perfor?mance computing (HPC) applications such as scalability, availability and schema flexibility. High performance computing (HPC) applications, such as metagenomics and other big data systems, need to store and analyze huge volumes of semi-structured data. Such applica?tions often rely on NoSQL-based datastores, and optimizing these databases is a challenging endeavor, with over 50 configuration parameters in Cassandra alone. As the application executes, database workloads can change rapidly over time (e.g. from read-heavy to write-heavy), and a system tuned for one phase of the workload becomes suboptimal when the workload changes. </p>

The Swedish banking industry is facing major competition from Financial Technology(FinTech) firms. FinTech firms are leading in the adoption of leading tools and technologies to offer aunique and innovative solution to customers. On the other hand, major Swedish banks are facingchallenges when it comes to the adoption of modern technologies. Cloud computing emerged as a coretechnology that most Swedish banks adopted to compete in the market by offering innovation solutions.However, the adoption of cloud computing presents complex challenges. This study investigates thechallenges faced by the Swedish banking sector in adopting cloud computing solutions and explores thedigital business strategies implemented to address these challenges. This study aims to investigate and analyze the strategies implemented by Swedish banks toovercome challenges associated with the adoption of cloud computing technologies. By examiningfactors influencing cloud adoption, including technological, organizational, and environmental aspects,the study seeks to provide insights into digital business strategies within the Swedish banking sector. The study employed a combination of questionnaires and interviews to collect the data,utilizing a mixed-methods approach that encompasses both quantitative and qualitative analyses. Thequantitative analysis was conducted using the Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM), which quantifies expertopinions on cloud adoption challenges. The qualitative analysis was performed using thematic analysis,which explores the digital business strategies employed by banks to address technological,organizational, and environmental challenges. The findings indicate a consensus among Swedish banking experts on key cloudadoption challenges. Thematic analysis uncovers a diverse range of strategies tailored to addresstechnological, organizational, and environmental challenges, highlighting the complexity of digitaltransformation in the Swedish banking sector. The study concludes that Swedish banks face major challenges in cloud adoption,emphasizing the necessity for a robust digital business strategy to successfully overcome these obstacles.Diverse strategic approaches are observed, tailored to each bank's specific context and needs, indicatingthat there is no single strategy that universally applies to all.Recommendations for future research: To address the limitations of this study and enhance itsfindings, future research should focus on extending the timeframe and enlarging the sample size.Incorporating insights from external experts, including C-level executives, and diversifying the sampleby including a broader range of banks would provide deeper insights into cloud adoption challenges anddigital business strategies within the banking sector.

La computación en nube es una de las tecnologías que están dando forma al mundo actual. En este sentido, las empresas deben hacer uso de esta tecnología para seguir siendo competitivas en un mercado globalizado. Los sectores tradicionales de la industria manufacturera (calzado, muebles, juguetes, entre otros) se caracterizan principalmente por tener un diseño intensivo y un trabajo de fabricación en la producción de nuevos productos de temporada. Este trabajo se realiza a través de software de modelado y fabricación 3D. Este software se conoce habitualmente como “CAD/CAM”. Se basa principalmente en la aplicación de primitivas de modelado y cálculo geométrico. La externalización de procesamiento es el método utilizado para externalizar la carga de procesamiento a la nube. Esta técnica aporta muchas ventajas a los procesos de diseño y fabricación: reducción del coste inicial para pequeñas y medianas empresas que necesitan una gran capacidad de cálculo, infraestructura muy flexible para proporcionar potencia de cálculo ajustable, prestación de servicios informáticos “CAD/CAM” a diseñadores de todo el mundo, etc.. Sin embargo, la externalización del cálculo geométrico a la nube implica varios retos que deben superarse para que la propuesta sea viable. El objetivo de este trabajo es explorar nuevas formas de aprovechar los dispositivos especializados y mejorar las capacidades de las “GPUs” mediante la revisión y comparación de las técnicas de programación paralela disponibles, y proponer la configuración óptima de la arquitectura “Cloud” y el desarrollo de aplicaciones para mejorar el grado de paralelización de los dispositivos de procesamiento especializados, sirviendo de base para su mayor explotación en la nube para pequeñas y medianas empresas. Finalmente, este trabajo muestra los experimentos utilizados para validar la propuesta tanto a nivel de arquitectura de comunicación como de la programación en las "GPU" y aporta unas conclusiones derivadas de esta experimentación.

The emergence of cloud computing is influencing how businesses develop, re-engineer, and implement critical software applications. The cloud requires developers to elevate the importance of compliance with security policies, regulations and internal engineering standards in their software development life cycles. Cloud computing and agile development methodologies are new technologies associated with new approaches in the way computing services are provisioned and development of quality software enhanced. However adoption and use of agile and cloud computing by SMMEs in South Africa is seemingly constrained by a number of technical and non-technical challenges. Using Grounded Theory and case study method this study was aimed at exploring the development of a framework for agile methodologies to promote the adoption and use of cloud computing services by SMMEs in South Africa. Data was collected through survey and in-depth interviews. Open, Axial and Selective coding was used to analyse the data. In tandem with its main objective the study, besides exploring the development of the envisaged framework, also generated and made available valuable propositions and knowledge that SMMEs in South Africa using agile development methodologies can use to work better with cloud computing services in the country without compromising on software quality. The findings of this study and the emerging insights around the development of the framework, which in itself also constitutes an important decision making tool for supporting adoption and use of cloud computing services, are a substantial contribution to knowledge and practice in the ICT field of information systems in South Africa / Information Science / D. Phil. (Information Systems)

Die Sicherheit und Zuverlässigkeit von Anwendungen, welche schutzwürdige Daten verarbeiten, lässt sich durch die geschützte Verlagerung in die Cloud mit einer Kombination aus zielgrößenabhängiger Datenkodierung, kontinuierlicher mehrfacher Dienstauswahl, dienstabhängiger optimierter Datenverteilung und kodierungsabhängiger Algorithmen deutlich erhöhen und anwenderseitig kontrollieren. Die Kombination der Verfahren zu einer anwendungsintegrierten Stealth-Schutzschicht ist eine notwendige Grundlage für die Konstruktion sicherer Anwendungen mit zusicherbaren Sicherheitseigenschaften im Rahmen eines darauf angepassten Softwareentwicklungsprozesses. / The security and reliability of applications processing sensitive data can be significantly increased and controlled by the user by a combination of techniques. These encompass a targeted data coding, continuous multiple service selection, service-specific optimal data distribution and coding-specific algorithms. The combination of the techniques towards an application-integrated stealth protection layer is a necessary precondition for the construction of safe applications with guaranteeable safety properties in the context of a custom software development process.

Cloud computing based technology is becoming increasingly popular as a way to deliver quality education to community colleges, universities and other organizations. At the same time, compared with other industries, colleges have been slow on implementing and sustaining cloud computing services on an institutional level because of budget constraints facing many large community colleges, in addition to other obstacles. Faced with this challenge, key stakeholders are increasingly realizing the need to focus on service quality as a measure to improve their competitive position in today's highly competitive environment. Considering the amount of study done with cloud computing in education, very little has been done in examining the needs and the satisfactions of the instructor customer. The purpose of this study was to examine the expectations and perceptions of instructors’ usage of cloud computing based technology on overall quality of service (QoS). An extension and adaptation of the SERVQUAL model tailored to the higher education environment was introduced for this study. Using the established service quality (SERVQUAL) dimensions (tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy), the study investigated the relationship between instructors’ views (perception and expectation) and overall service quality received on their use of cloud computing based technology. A total of 301 online instructors at large Texas community colleges completed a Web-based survey containing previously validated and adapted items. The participants in this study completed four parts of the survey instruments that were used to measure service quality of academic cloud computing technology: Service Quality Expectations, Service Quality Perceptions, Perceived Service Quality and Demographic. The survey questions were answered using a seven-point Likert scale and the survey results were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods. The results indicated that the difference between instructors’ perception and expectation affected their perceived service quality of cloud computing based systems. The differences between the expectation and perception on all five SERVQUAL dimensions load to the instructors’ perceived service quality; gender but not age, income or education has significant effect on instructors’ overall perceived service quality. The results of the study create an awareness of instructors’ needs and offer useful feedback to college administrators and institutional planners in their efforts to improve service quality of educational technology initiative in higher education.

On March 2011 a destructive 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami along with nuclear explosions struck northeastern Japan; killing thousands of people, halting industry and crippling infrastructure. A large manufacturing company operating outside of Japan received the news in the middle of the night. Within a few hours of the tsunami hitting Japan, this manufacturer’s logistics team ran global materials management reports to communicate the precise status of the products originating from Japan to their entire global network of facilities. With this quick and far reaching communication the manufacturer was able to launch a successful contingency plan. Alternative suppliers, already existing as part of their global network, were evaluated and used to mitigate Japan’s disruptive impact. The resiliency of this manufacturer’s trusted network of supply chain trading partners allowed for minimum disruptions, saving countless money and maintaining continuity for its end-to-end supply chain. This manufacturer was part of a cloud-based supply chain that provided the catalyst to quickly shift its resources to allay the impact of no longer being able to receive product from Japan. Today's supply chains are global and complex networks of enterprises that aim to deliver products in the right quantity, in the right place, and at the right time in an increasingly volatile and unpredictable environment. To cope with internal and external supply chain instability and disruptions, supply chains need to be resilient to survive. A supply chain's ability to collaboratively share information with its supply chain partners is one of the most important factors that enhance a supply chain’s resilience. Cloud based supply chain management (SCM) creates a platform that enables collaborative information sharing that helps to identify, monitor and reduce supply chain risks, vulnerabilities and disruptions. However, supply chain academics and practitioners are at its infancy in understanding the capabilities of cloud based supply chains and its impact on resiliency. The goal of this dissertation is to explore how cloud based SCM make supply chains more resilient to disruptions. To achieve this goal the present research addresses the following fundamental research question: What is the impact of cloud based supply chain management (SCM) on supply chain resilience? To address this research question, this dissertation is comprised of three separate but interrelated essays. The first essay uses the systematically literature review (SLR) method to provide clear definitions of supporting constructs of supply chain resiliency (SCRES), classify the capabilities of SCRES, and identify existing research gaps and future SCRES research ideas. The second essay applies resource-based view (RBV) and dynamic capabilities as the theoretical lens to investigate the role of cloud based SCM in establishing SCRES. The second essay develops a theory-driven, conceptual model to illustrate and explain the relationships among cloud based SCM, SCRES, and the supply chain capabilities identified in the first essay. The third essay uses systems dynamics theory to develop two novel casual loop diagrams (CLD) and its equivalent systems dynamics (SD) models to quantitatively analyze the impact of cloud based information sharing on supply chain performance. A hospital supply chain is used as an illustrative example to show the positive impact on performance. Lead-time, inventory spend, and customer service levels are the comparative performance metrics used in this essay and are consistent with the findings of essays 1 and 2. One CLD and its equivalent SD model represent a traditional on-premise hospital supply chain information sharing platform and the other represent a cloud based hospital information sharing platform. The SD models simulate and compare the performance of the traditional and cloud based hospital supply chain platforms.

M. Tech. Business Administration / The main objective of this study was to identify and quantify the issues in implementing cloud computing by small and medium business in Pretoria. The empirical data were collected using an online self-administrated questionnaire. The respondents were taken using a mere random sampling of 120 SMEs in Pretoria. A total of 102 usable responses was obtained. A quantitative approach was applied.