CLOUD SERVICES EXPENDITURE ANALYTICS

• US 20140324647A1
• Filed: 07/06/2014
• Published: 10/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: HCL Technologies Limited
• Original Assignee: Gravitant, Inc. (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Inventors: IYOOB, ILYAS, YAN, AARON MICHAEL
• Application Number:
  US14/324,213
• Publication Number:
  US 20140324647A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/30
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/067 Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/145 involving simulating, designing, planning or modelling of a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5054 Automatic deployment of services triggered by the service manager, e.g. service implementation by automatic configuration of network components

Abstract

A method is provided for analyzing cloud services expenditures. The method determines and displays an amount spent on cloud services for a cloud account is performed. The amount spent includes an amount spent on the cloud services for a current day of the cloud services billing period and all days of the cloud services billing period prior to the current day. The method determines and displays an estimated billed amount for cloud services for the cloud account over an entire duration of the cloud services billing period is performed. The method determines and displays a capacity cost parameter indicating a relationship between the amount spent on the cloud services and a portion thereof that is allocated to capacity-specific contributors of the cloud services is performed.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having tangibly embodied thereon and accessible therefrom instructions interpretable by at least one data processing device, the instructions are configured for causing the at least one data processing device to perform a method comprising:

determining and displaying an amount spent on cloud services for a cloud account, wherein the amount spent includes an amount spent on the cloud services for a current day of the cloud services billing period and all days of the cloud services billing period prior to the current day;

determining and displaying an estimated billed amount for cloud services for the cloud account over an entire duration of the cloud services billing period; and

determining and displaying a capacity cost parameter indicating a relationship between the amount spent on the cloud services and a portion thereof that is allocated to capacity-specific contributors of the cloud services.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1 wherein:

a plurality of cloud service consumer accounts are associated with the cloud account; and

determining and displaying the amount spent on cloud services for the cloud account includes determining and displaying an amount spent on cloud services for each one of the cloud service consumer accounts.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving selection of a particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts; and

in response to receiving the selection of the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts, displaying a cloud service consumer account spending summary for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts, wherein the cloud service consumer account spending summary includes a current amount spent on cloud services for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts and an estimated billed amount for cloud services for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts over an entire duration of the cloud services billing period

4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 3 wherein determining and displaying the capacity cost parameter is performed for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1 wherein:

a plurality of cloud service consumer accounts are associated with the cloud account; and

determining and displaying the estimated billed amount includes determining and displaying an estimated billed amount for cloud services for each one of the cloud service consumer accounts over the entire duration of the cloud services billing period.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 5 wherein determining the estimated billed amount for cloud services for each one of the cloud service consumer accounts includes:

determining, on a daily basis for each day since a first day of a cloud services billing period, an incremental cost amount for the cloud services of a particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts;

applying a weighting factor in its entirety to the incremental cost amount for a current day of the cloud services billing period; and

applying a weighting factor remaining portion in an equally divided manner to the incremental cost amount for each day of the cloud services billing period prior to the current day.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein:

the weighting factor is a specified number that is equal to or less than 1; and

the weighting factor remaining portion is a difference between 1 and the specified number.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving selection of a particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts; and

in response to receiving the selection of the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts, displaying a cloud service consumer account spending summary for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts, wherein the cloud service consumer account spending summary includes a current amount spent on cloud services for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts and an estimated billed amount for cloud services for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts over an entire duration of the cloud services billing period.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8 wherein determining and displaying the capacity cost parameter is performed for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8 wherein determining the estimated billed amount for cloud services for each one of the cloud service consumer accounts includes:

determining, on a daily basis for each day since a first day of a cloud services billing period, an incremental cost amount for the cloud services of a particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts;

applying a weighting factor in its entirety to the incremental cost amount for a current day of the cloud services billing period; and

applying a weighting factor remaining portion in an equally divided manner to the incremental cost amount for each day of the cloud services billing period prior to the current day.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having tangibly embodied thereon and accessible therefrom instructions interpretable by at least one data processing device, the instructions are configured for causing the at least one data processing device to perform a method comprising:

determining, on a daily basis for each day since a first day of a cloud services billing period, an incremental cost amount of cloud services for a cloud service consumer account; and

determining an estimated billed amount for the cloud services over an entire duration of the cloud services billing period, wherein determining the estimated billed amount includes applying a weighting factor in its entirety to the incremental cost amount for a current day of the cloud services billing period and applying a weighting factor remaining portion in an equally divided manner to the incremental cost amount for each day of the cloud services billing period prior to the current day.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11 wherein:

the weighting factor is a specified number that is equal to or less than 1; and

the weighting factor remaining portion is a difference between 1 and the specified number.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising:

using the incremental cost amount for determining an amount spent on cloud services for the cloud service consumer account, wherein the amount spent includes an amount spent on the cloud services for a current day of the cloud services billing period and all days of the cloud services billing period prior to the current day;

determining a portion of the amount spent on cloud services that is allocated to capacity-specific contributors of the cloud services; and

determining a capacity cost parameter that provides a comparison of the amount spent on the cloud services and the portion of the amount spent on cloud services that are allocated to capacity-specific contributors of the cloud services.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13 wherein:

the weighting factor is a specified number that is equal to or less than 1; and

the weighting factor remaining portion is a difference between 1 and the specified number.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having tangibly embodied thereon and accessible therefrom instructions interpretable by at least one data processing device, the instructions are configured for causing the at least one data processing device to perform a method comprising:

receiving, on a current day of a cloud services billing period, a request for cloud service spending information for a cloud account, wherein the cloud account has a plurality of cloud service consumer accounts associated therewith;

preparing and displaying, in response to receiving the request for the cloud service spending information, a cloud account spending summary for the cloud account, wherein the cloud account spending summary includes a current amount spent on cloud services for the cloud service consumer accounts and an estimated billed amount for cloud services for the cloud service consumer accounts over an entire duration of the cloud services billing period; and

in response to receiving selection of a particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts, preparing and displaying a cloud service consumer account spending summary for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts, wherein the cloud service consumer account spending summary includes a current amount spent on cloud services for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts and an estimated billed amount for cloud services for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts over an entire duration of the cloud services billing period.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, further comprising:

in response to receiving a request for capacity usage information for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts, determining and displaying a capacity cost parameter indicating a relationship between the current amount spent on cloud services for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts and a portion thereof that is allocated to capacity-specific contributors of the cloud services.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15 wherein preparing and displaying the cloud account spending summary for the cloud account includes determining and displaying an estimated billed amount for cloud services for each one of the cloud service consumer accounts over the entire duration of the cloud services billing period.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 wherein determining the estimated billed amount for cloud services for each one of the cloud service consumer accounts includes:

determining, on a daily basis for each day since a first day of a cloud services billing period, an incremental cost amount for the cloud services of a particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts;

applying a weighting factor in its entirety to the incremental cost amount for a current day of the cloud services billing period; and

applying a weighting factor remaining portion in an equally divided manner to the incremental cost amount for each day of the cloud services billing period prior to the current day.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18 wherein:

the weighting factor is a specified number that is equal to or less than 1; and

the weighting factor remaining portion is a difference between 1 and the specified number.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 19, further comprising:

in response to receiving a request for capacity usage information for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts, determining and displaying a capacity cost parameter indicating a relationship between the current amount spent on cloud services for the particular one of the cloud service consumer accounts and a portion thereof that is allocated to capacity-specific contributors of the cloud services.