OpenStack is providing a powerful tool for companies and the open-source community, but there’s a second world that is often ignored in the discussion. Networking is the world behind the scenes, moving the data that makes Cloud technologies work. While OpenStack itself is not a networking solution, it does have an effect on the people who move the data. This effect is both professional and philosophical.

To gain some insight into how open technologies affect networking, Stu Miniman (@stu) and Brian Gracely (@bgracely), cohosts of theCUBE, from the SiliconANGLE Media team, talked with Tom Hollingsworth, founder of The Networking Nerd and analyst for Foskett Services, during the OpenStack Summit in Austin, TX. 

Leaving traditional networking behind

The conversation started with a quick mention of some changes that were happening in the networking field. Hollingsworth mentioned he was happy that networking people have moved away from fixing broken stuff in the platform and instead used that platform to launch new and better things.

He continued, stating they’re going to start getting away from the mentality of people waiting for something to be programmed in favor of doing things themselves with these new available resources. He said they’re using software to make things work better.

Users and open source

Hollingsworth took a moment to answer the question of how much open source matters to users. He said it fits in with a lot of priorities. Many examples of new technology don’t work unless they’re shared. The open-source community helps make that real. Without sharing, he said, a company is stuck with a box that must be supported forever, or thrown away after a few years.

For engineers, he said, it’s easy to get focused on the tech, forgetting about the applications of that technology. Yet, as more people get involved in the community, he continued, those people help to figure out something cool to do with the tech, and that drives innovation and adoption.

Watch the full interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE and theCUBE’s coverage of OpenStack Summit — Austin. And make sure to weigh in during theCUBE’s live coverage at the event by joining in on CrowdChat.

Photo by SiliconANGLE