The Project "Upgrade of the software and cloud computing service offered to members of the research and academic community " involves the expansion of GRNET’s existing cloud computing infrastructure and services in order to offer advanced services to the members of the organisations it serves.

GRNET provides a set of cloud computing services, such as "Okeanos" and "ViMa" (Virtual Private Servers), to the entities it serves, in order to store data, host information systems and applications, and provide services. The increasing need of research and academic institutions for computing and storage infrastructures, as well as the ageing of the existing cloud computing infrastructure, outline the framework for the new project. Therefore, by implementing this project, the ability to provide services will be increased and more users will be served more efficiently.

The objectives of the project are:

• to improve and upgrade the reliability of GRNET's cloud computing services for the members of the research and academic community as well as
• to expand the infrastructure the services are based on.

The project focuses on establishing and accomplishing a new cloud ecosystem through:

• the creation of a single private cloud environment which will support the development and availability of high-level services,
• the creation of a new GRNET Cloud infrastructure which will include the expansion of the infrastructure through the construction of a new, advanced data centre in order to house the new infrastructures and
• the procurement of new computing, storage and network equipment.

The key benefit is that through this project the needs of the research and academic community users will be covered through the upgrade of the quality of cloud computing services provided to them.

The new cloud ecosystem will also constitute a basis for the development of new digital services for citizens.

Overall, the upgrade of digital services and the expansion of capabilities they offer, will be achieved. Additionally, the reliability, security and the overall operation of the GRNET cloud and the level of service provided to its users will be improved.

More specifically, the Project focuses on the following:

1. the upgrade of the software’s reliability and the private cloud computing service offered to members of the research and academic community: GRNET will replace the existing hardware concerning the power and geographical distribution, and will create a single private cloud environment which will support the development and availability of many high-level services.
2. the development of a new GRNET Cloud infrastructure: private cloud expansion.
3. the improvement of the reliability, security and operation of the private RE-Cloud into Core Infrastructure Services, Inventory Infrastructure Services and User Infrastructure Services.
4. the procurement, installation of appropriate electro-mechanical equipment and the configuration of a new data centre.
5. the provision of Cloud Computing Infrastructure and services. GRNET’s private cloud will be supplemented with services from a public cloud. Αdditional services such as: Compute, Networking, Storage, Application Services, Containers, Management Systems, Business Intelligence and Data Analysis, Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence will be acquired
6. A Hybrid Cloud Computing. It involves the private and public clouds which provide two independent fully functional cloud computing environments, each with its own characteristics. For the combined exploitation of the features of both cloud computing infrastructures by the hosted services, a hybrid cloud computing will be set up to administratively interconnect the two infrastructures, to develop tools for the safe transfer of data and systems between the infrastructures, as well as to maintain the reliability of the services in hybrid mode.

The Project has been included in the Recovery and Resilience Fund , which is financed by the European Union – Next Generation EU .