One of the Important Parts of Fog Computing is Going to be Mass Data Processing

This is a translation of an interview with Miguel Ángel López Peña, Director of Innovation and Development in SATEC, published in ChannelBiz on January 1, 2017. To read the article in Spanish, please follow this link.

Fog Computing is more than just a name. It’s going beyond the cloud, to that edge of the cloud that has led many discussions, also, of Edge Computing. Fog Computing is more of a marketing name because it takes the processing of data to the devices, rather than to the cloud or a remote data center.

As explained in the interview of Miguel Ángel López Peña, Director of innovation and development in SATEC, the services provided in a cloud environment are similar, but the same, which could be provided in a Fog Computing environment. Security, however, has to go a little further.

For a few months now, Fog Computing discussions started, stating that it goes a step beyond Cloud Computing, what does it mean?

Fog computing is the natural evolution of the cloud. That evolution is given by the number, the quantity of personal and industrial devices that are being deployed and are connecting to the network. The concept is as basic as bringing computing, storing that data from the cloud we see today to the devices that are at the network edge. That is the concept of Fog.

Do the companies provide the same services?

Basically, the services will be the same: storage, network, and computing.

Does something change from the security standpoint?

Yes, from a security standpoint, it is one of the fundamental points that will have to be developed. One of the important parts of Fog Computing is going to be the mass data processing, the Big Data. But when these data are not in a more centralized or at least more controlled area, because they are in those devices, new security components must be created, there has to be a security reinforcement, especially for critical infrastructure, such as the case of utilities, and other types of data that is going to have to be specially protected.

How is SATEC working to bring the Fog Computing to the market?

We are working in two different environments. On the one hand, as a natural evolution of the cloud is associated with the Internet of Things, we are starting to work on internal innovation projects; and on the 7th of February we started a project of the European Commission, a H2020 project, in which we worked with five other countries on a remarkably massive deployment project in service, cloud, edge and fog, which would be the three natural steps.

Is the Spanish market prepared for this Fog Computing?

I believe it is. The company is prepared, and in addition, there are two specific areas in which we, as integrators and prescribers of the service are seeing: the mobile operators and the utilities. Mobile operators because one of the things that the Fog concept incorporates is mobility; Those devices at the network edge are in many cases the mobiles, and in other cases, such as utilities, sensory devices are deployed in remote places where communication is wireless, often through 3G and 4G networks. So, for the operators, it is extremely important, and they are already considering these features. And for utilities, electrics are deploying smart meters massively, sensors equipment, also, gas companies… I think it is inevitable that they are centered and therefore that part of the market that will later be extended, yes, it is prepared, and from the investigator’s point of view, we see the necessity, and we are already working on it.