Component Details

This page describes each of the QMCLOUD components in detail.

Organization

Organization is a logical component that acts as a security boundary for a set of resources. A default organization (called “common”) is created during the installation.

It is recommended that the user create a new organization to organize all the resources. Multiple organizations can be created to suite specific requirements where logical separation is required. For example, multiple organizations can be created to represent business units within a large organization.

Workspace

Workspace is a logical entity that acts as a boundary for all the infrastructure resources defined using one or more stacks (unit of infrastructure) contained within the organization. A workspace consists of one or more stacks.

For example, multiple workspaces can be created to represent business applications within a large organization.

Component (or Resource)

A component is a low-level object in QMCLOUD that represents a cloud resource. A component is represented as a square shaped image on a canvas.

A collection of one or more components forms a deployable unit of infrastructure and is referred to as a Stack. For example, AWS VPC is referred to as a component. Othe examples include Subnets, IAM Role, NAT gateway.

Connection

A connection connects two components to each other and defines the relationship of the compnents. For example, a Subnet is connected to a Vpc thus defining the relationship and dependency. A subnet cannot exist in isolation and needs to be part of a Vpc.

The connection are depicted as lines on the canvas and can be drawn using the mouse controls by connecting the dot (connection points of a component).

QMCLOUD has a new feature called "Auto Connection". This feature auto connects many common components with each other and reduces the time and effort that is required to make connections. For example, if there is a single VPC and multiple subnets on the canvas and when auto connection icon is clicked, the system automatically connects all subnets to the Vpc.

The auto connection feature is a list of connections saved in the QMCLOUD database.

Auto Connection property of a stack - A user can add additional connections to be reused across other stacks by checking the option of Auto Connection on properties of a stack. When a stack is successfully deployed, all the connections in the stack will be saved in the database.

Stack

Stack is a logical entity for a collection of cloud resources and is considered a unit for deployment. A workspace consists of one or more stacks.

Stack group

Stack group is a logical entity for a collection of stacks. Resources within a stack group can be referenced by other resources in another stack. For example, an AWS VPC in Stack 1 can be referenced by a Subnet in Stack 2 where both stacks are within a stack group.

Stack profile

Stack profile defines the credentials required to connect to the appropriate cloud provider. A stack profile can be set as a Shared Profile that other users in the organization can use.

The following combination constitutes a profile and defines the credentials to connect to the cloud provider:

For AWS - AWS Region, Access Key, Secret Key.

For Azure – clientID, clientSecret, tenantID, subscriptionID

Canvas

A canvas is an area where infrastructure can be composed by using shapes and connectors. Shapes can be connected using connectors to the appropriate properties of the shapes to indicate dependencies or additional properties.

The following diagram depicts a shape and the various associated properties. Each of the dots on the edge of the shape represents either a connection point or a specific property. The green dot is used to initiate a connection to another shape. The connection always connects to a red dot that represents a specific property of the shape.

Diagram – Anatomy of shapes and connectors

For example, a stack can consist of an AWS VPC and Subnets as depicted in the diagram

• The name of the VPC is defined by the name property (defined as dev101 in this example)

• The name of the subnet is defined by the name property (defined as public-subnet-1 in this example)

• A connection is made between VPC and the subnet. This connection defines the property “vpcId” of the subnet object. The property details are shown when a user hovers over the mouse controls on the red dot

• The VPC (dev101) is defined as consisting of a subnet (public-subnet-1)