Apache CloudStack vs Google Compute Engine

Apache CloudStack is free, open-source software for deploying and managing networks of virtual machines as a highly available, scalable IaaS cloud platform. Organizations can use it to build public, private, or hybrid clouds. Its features include compute orchestration, network services, account management, resource accounting, a web interface, and an open API. Operators can manage clouds through a web UI, command-line tools, or REST API, with optional AWS EC2- and S3-compatible APIs. Supported hypervisors include XenServer or XCP, KVM, Hyper-V, and VMware ESXi with vSphere. Storage options include iSCSI, NFS, Ceph RBD with KVM, volume encryption, snapshots, and storage tiering. Authentication options include OAuth2 single sign-on, two-factor authentication, TOTP, SAML, and LDAP. The project says CloudStack can manage tens of thousands of physical servers across geographically distributed data centers. Long Term Support releases receive bug and security fixes for 18 months after the main release. Operators remain responsible for protections such as monitoring, host security, and defenses against DoS and brute-force attacks.

Google Compute Engine is an infrastructure-as-a-service product for running self-managed virtual machines on Google infrastructure. Choose a predefined machine type or configure a custom VM with 1 to 96 vCPUs and up to 8.0 GB of memory per core. Linux and Windows VMs are supported, with images including Debian, Ubuntu, FreeBSD, and Windows Server. Storage options include Persistent Disk and Local SSD. Managed instance groups can add VMs for peak load and replace underperforming instances; live migration can move a VM to another host in the same zone when its host goes down. Confidential VMs encrypt data in use, while Shielded VMs defend against rootkits and bootkits. The service integrates with Cloud Storage, App Engine, and BigQuery, and resources can be controlled through a REST-based API. Its free tier is free, within monthly limits and eligible US regions. Pay-as-you-go pricing is usage-based, with VM resources billed after a one-minute minimum in one-second increments.