Jon Brodkin of Network World pulled together a list of 10 Cloud Computing companies that they deemed important enough to watch this year. Brodkin’s list is a solid one, with each company profile containing:

• Name
• Founded Date
• Location
• Cloud Offering
• Why we’re watching it
• CEO
• How the company got into cloud computing
• Who uses the service

The 10 Cloud Computing Companies that they list (in order of appearance in the article) are:

• Amazon
• AT&T
• Enomaly
• Google
• GoGrid
• Microsoft
• NetSuite
• Rackspace
• RightScale
• Salesforce.com

The GoGrid listing is as follows:

Company name: GoGrid (a division of ServePath)

Launched: March 2008 (ServePath was founded in 2001, GoGrid development began in 2006)

Location: San Francisco

Cloud offering: The GoGrid platform offers Web-based storage and the ability to quickly deploy Windows- and Linux-based virtual servers onto the cloud, with preinstalled software including Apache, PHP, Microsoft SQL and MySQL.

Why we’re watching it: GoGrid, one of Amazon’s chief competitors in the cloud storage and compute markets, distinguishes itself from Amazon in a couple ways. GoGrid offers Windows Server 2008 instances (Amazon offers only Windows Server 2003) and 100% uptime service-level agreements (Amazon offers 99.95% for compute and 99.9% for storage).

CEO: John Keagy, the CEO and founder of ServePath, built and sold several ISPs in the decade prior to starting ServePath.

How GoGrid got its start: Executives at ServePath, a dedicated server hosting company, created GoGrid after deciding that inefficiencies within the standard hosting model could be alleviated with a self-service, pay-as-you-go infrastructure.

Who uses the service: Mostly start-ups, Web 2.0 and SaaS companies, plus a few big names like SAP and Novell who are running pilots or small test projects on the GoGrid service.

I encourage you to give this article a read and see some of the other companies mentioned.

2008 was an action-packed year for us here at GoGrid and ServePath and we have many accomplishments to be proud of. I thought it would make sense to reflect back on what major things we did over the year as well as a few other notables that happened within the industry. The easiest way for me to do this is through a blog post Chronology (not every post is highlighted):

1st Quarter 2008

• 01.03.08 – GoGrid Blog was launched
• 01.29.08 – “Sneak Peak” at GoGrid
• 02.01.08 – Twitter and Joyent go different ways
• 02.05.08 – Understanding “Clouded” Computer Terms – a post that made a 1st attempt to explain Cloud, Utility, Grid and other Computing terms.
• 02.13.08 – Dilbert does a series on Virtualization (here, here and here)
• 02.15.08 – Amazon’s S3 has major outage (my comments)
• 02.21.08 – GoGrid launches a new public website in anticipation of the product launch
• 03.11.08 – GoGrid Public Beta LAUNCH! After over 2 years of development, GoGrid hits the streets with many Cloud Computing firsts:
  • 1st Cloud Infrastructure provider with a Web GUI
  • 1st to offer Windows Server 2003 in the Cloud
  • 1st to offer Microsoft SQL Server in the Cloud
  • 1st with free Inbound Transfer
  • 1st with free f5 Load Balancing
  • 1st with free 24×7 Support
  • 1st with Persistent Storage
  • 1st with free managed DNS
  • 1st with 100% Uptime SLA
  • 1st with public and private VLANs
• 03.17.08 – Drilling down on the details of new GoGrid accounts
• 03.18.08 – Even I wasn’t initially on board with the whole “Cloud Computing” term. My thoughts have changed obviously.
• 03.28.08 – The initial GoGrid FAQ’s start rolling out.

2nd Quarter 2008

• 04.10.08 – GoGrid launches new templates: multiple RHEL, CentOS, Windows 2003 flavors
• 04.14.08 – GoGrid launches the Wiki (wiki.gogrid.com)
• 04.21.08 – GoGrid exhibits at the Web 2.0 Expo (some of our Expo stunts)
• 05.20.08 – GoGrid starts getting some blog traction
• 05.22.08 – Soliciting feature and images requests from the GoGrid community produced many great ideas
• 06.02.08 – NetworkWorld reviews GoGrid
• 06.04.08 – IP Suggest feature débuts
• 06.10.08 – “Cloud Computing” terms really starts trending upwards
• 06.16.08 – Cloud Computing helps build communities
• 06.19.08 – InfoWorld reviews GoGrid
• 06.24.08 – Introduction of the Cloud Pyramid
• 06.27.08 – GoGrid at GigaOM Structure ‘08 and Rafe Needleman of WebWare talks about GoGrid

3rd Quarter 2008

• 07.07.08 – GoGrid hits 1000th user and coverage by TechCrunchIT
• 07.17.08 – GoGrid launches API
• 07.18.08 – NetworkWorld, C|net & TechCrunchIT cover GoGrid’s new API
• 07.21.08 – InfoWorld does a side-by-side comparison of GoGrid, Amazon’s EC2 and Google App Engine
• 07.22.08 – Teens-in-Tech founder, Daniel Brusilovsky, interview of GoGrid
• 07.31.08 – Google Web Toolkit (GWT) showcases GoGrid
• 08.06.08 – GoGrid WINS LinuxWorld 2008 Best of Show in Product Excellence
• 08.19.08 – GoGrid is the FIRST to launch Windows Server 2008 in the Cloud
• 09.09.08 – the first NoHardware.com video is released
• 09.16.08 – Financial Markets start getting very shaky. Cloud Computing can help stabilize.
• 09.17.08 – GoGrid and RightScale partnership announced
• 09.22.08 – Feature preview of GoGrid’s Cloud Storage (now live)
• 09.23.08 – the second NoHardware.com video is released
• 09.29.08 – The “Original” Cloud Computing in Plain English produced in-house by GoGrid launches
• 09.30.08 – GoGrid and Appistry partnership announced

4th Quarter 2008

• 10.01.08 – Other Cloud providers announce Windows in the Cloud, play catch-up with GoGrid
• 10.03.08 – Recession starts hitting – 10 Tips to Survive it
• 10.07.08 – GoGrid and GigaSpaces partnership announced
• 10.08.08 – the third NoHardware.com video is released
• 10.21.08 – Cloud Computing Product Announcement Bingo Game
• 10.27.08 – GoGrid launches PHP-enabled Windows Server 2008 Clouds
• 11.03.08 – GoGrid & ServePath beta release Cloud Connect (connecting dedicated servers with the Cloud)
• 11.24.08 – Appistry & GoGrid do a joint webinar on Cloud Computing
• 12.02.08 – My 10 Cloud Computing Predictions for 2009, our CEO’s Predictions and our VP of Technology Strategy’s Predictions
• 12.11.08 – GoGrid featured again on Google Web Toolkit (GWT)
• 12.11.08 – GoGrid launches Cloud Storage v0.7
• 12.15.08 – Santa “Cloud” or how Cloud Computing saved Christmas
• 12.29.08 – Some New Years Resolutions

Happy New Year to all of you from us at GoGrid. May 2009 be happy, healthy and prosperous!

Many of you have been waiting in anticipation for this moment…well now it is here! This week we have launched Windows Server 2008 in GoGrid. GoGrid continues to trail blaze the way in the Cloud Computing marketplace and leapfrog others in the space. Windows Server 2008 in the Cloud is something that others don’t provide to this extent, at least, not that I have found. We already have a huge unique list of Cloud Hosting features (e.g., free load balancing, free static IPs, public and private VLANs, free support – offering true “Control in the Cloud”) and the addition of Windows Server 2008 as an Operating System is just another check in the box.

Now, starting at just $0.19 per GB RAM hour and with NO up-front commitment nor capital expenditure, you can try and deploy Windows Server 2008 in the GoGrid Cloud. For just cents on the dollar, you can do a variety of things including:

• Deploy a full .NET environment
• Educate yourself on the latest and greatest technology from Microsoft
• Set up a development or QA environment using the Microsoft framework
• Just play around with Windows Server 2008

So, why is Windows Server 2008 such an important OS? Here are just a few highlights:

• IIS 7.0 – it comes with the latest and greatest version of Internet Information Services (IIS 7.0) which has improved administration via the IIS Manager graphical tool, modular design and installation, and full set of diagnostic and troubleshooting tools.
• New Server Manager -  this is a new single MMC console that allows admins to view and manage the tools that affect server productivity. Roles and Features can be easily added or removed via the Manager and include several streamlined wizards to help with some common server management tasks. There is also an easy way to remotely manage the server over firewall-friendly ports.
• Read Only Domain Controllers (RODC) – provides a replica of the database in Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) and is designed to be installed in locations where physical security for the Domain Controller (DC) cannot be guaranteed. It also allows for local authentication for users in remote location and provide local and Active Directory Integrated DNS and Global Catalog (GC) services.
• Network Access Protection (NAP) – this new feature prevents non-compliant computers from accessing and compromising an organization’s network and allows for admins to create “health policies” for clients (e.g., firewall-enabled virus software).

More details can be found on the “Windows Server 2008: Why Upgrade to Windows Server 2008?” page on the Windows Server 2008 website.

GoGrid offers the following Windows Server 2008 32-bit configurations currently (64-bit will be added shortly):

• Windows Server 2008 Standard with Internet Information Services 7.0 (IIS 7)
• Windows Server 2008 Standard with IIS 7 and SQL Server 2005 Express Edition
• Windows Server 2008 Standard with IIS 7, SQL Server 2005 Express Edition and ASP.NET

These images include Terminal Services Gateway, Remote Desktop Client for Terminal Services, Application Server, Active Directory Domain Services, DHCP Server, DNS Server and SMTP (remember, you must officially request to have port 25 unblocked on GoGrid in order to send/receive email).

We continue to offer 32 and 64 bit cloud servers for Windows Server 2008, Red Hat Enterprise Linux and CentOS with a variety of pre-configured templates (mySQL, PostgreSQL, LAMP stack, Microsoft SQL Server 2005 editions, and Ruby On Rails). More exciting features are coming soon so stay tuned!

Peter Wayner, contributing editor of the InfoWorld Test Center, today posted a side-by-side comparison of 4 Cloud Computing providers: Amazon EC2, Google App Engine, GoGrid and AppNexus, titled “Cloud versus cloud: A guided tour of Amazon, Google, AppNexus, and GoGrid.” What was fairly obvious was that there isn’t a clear “winner” simply because Cloud Computing is so new and standards are still being written. What was clear, is that Wayner believes that GoGrid is “easy to use” and differentiates itself through the offering of both Windows and Linux cloud server images.

Wayner writes:

“GoGrid also has a wider variety of OS images ready to go. There is the usual collection of CentOS/Fedora and common LAMP stacks. If you need Windows, you can have Windows Server 2003 with IIS 6.0, and Microsoft SQL Server is available at extra cost. There are also images with Ruby on Rails, PostgreSQL, and the Facebook application server. These make it a bit easier to start up. “

Wayner also recorded a video of his analysis of GoGrid. Below he shows how a GoGrid cloud server can be easily and quickly deployed as well as some of the management features within the GoGrid control panel:

Wayner writes: “while GoGrid offers many of the same services as Amazon’s EC2, the Web-based control panel is much easier to use than the EC2 command line.” However, to round out the offering, it is important to mention that the GoGrid API is now available for use by all GoGrid users. GoGrid now truly offers full “Control in the Cloud.” The extensibility that the API gives moves GoGrid quickly to the top of the Cloud Computing provider list.

Yesterday we officially launched the new GoGrid API and I wanted to pass on a few notable mentions that recently appeared in the blogosphere. This release was a fairly significant event for us as well as for users of Cloud Computing because for the first time, users now have a choice of using either a slick and intuitive web-based interface or an Application Programming Interface (API), depending on their needs.

NetworkWorld

Technology writer, Mark Gibbs, who has been closely following GoGrid’s progress over the past few months writes:

“The GoGrid API is remarkable because of its depth – through a REST-style interface it provides access to everything that the GoGrid platform can do including configuring components, starting and stopping services, and retrieving status information as well as real time usage and billing data. “

He continues by discussing some possible options for hooking the GoGrid API into a Microsoft Visio COM object or C# to use Visio to diagram and control the service architecture. He extends this idea to incorporate the use of Business Objects’ Xcelsius to potentially create comprehensive GoGrid dashboards.

Additionally, he calls out to other services providers with a global wake-up call:

“GoGrid’s API is the kind of positioning that all service providers should adopt – complete openness on the front end so that customers can use the default user interface or where they have specific service goals they can interface to the service with alternative and extended user interfaces.”

C|Net News

Dan Rosenberg, who discusses the dynamics of growing a startup company on c|net’s Negative Approach blog, comments on how GoGrid has moved from what was “previously called Utility Computing to more of a full-on Cloud approach.”

He, like Gibbs, see the importance of pushing the envelop with Cloud Computing, stating:

“It’s pretty interesting to see the smaller, bleeding edge vendors figure this stuff out before the BigCo’s. This should put some pressure on those who still seem to be missing the Cloud blimp.”

TechCrunchIT

TechCrunchIT, who exclusively covered GoGrid reaching the 1000 paying customer mark, also reported on the release outlining the more technical aspects of the API. Cameron Christoffers writes:

“The API allows user’s to programmatically control their GoGrid environment. This allows users to, for example, auto-scale the GoGrid instance in a timely and efficient manner…GoGrid delivers similar on-demand, pay-by-the-hour server hosting as Amazon’s EC2, but uniquely offers a web-based GUI, Windows Cloud servers, free load balancing, and free support deals.”

Calling All Press and Bloggers

If there are any press or bloggers who are interested in reviewing GoGrid and/or the new GoGrid API, please fill out the Contact form and I will guide you through the process.