Cloud Agnostic Workload Identity Translation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Cloud computing environments face challenges in implementing a 'zero trust' architecture due to workload identities being specific to each cloud service provider (CSP) and not usable across multiple CSPs, limiting access and security across different cloud platforms.
Innovation Solution
A mechanism to translate cloud native workload identities (CNWI) into cloud agnostic workload identities (CAWI) that can be used across multiple CSPs, providing a consistent abstraction layer and ensuring secure communication through a TLS certificate, allowing workloads to interact seamlessly across various cloud environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If cloud native workload identities (CNWI) are used, then security and identity management are improved within a specific CSP, but portability and usability across multiple CSPs deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a cloud agnostic workload identity (CAWI) as an intermediary layer between the cloud native workload identity (CNWI) and the cloud service provider's native services. The CAWI acts as a mediator that translates and bridges different CSP-specific identity systems, enabling portable identity management across multiple cloud providers while maintaining security through zero trust verification mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The CAWI is designed as a universal identity mechanism that can function across different cloud service providers. It provides multi-functionality by serving as both a portable identity credential that works across CSPs and a security verification mechanism that implements zero trust principles, thereby resolving the contradiction between portability and security.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a cloud agnostic workload identity (CAWI) is introduced, then portability and usability across multiple CSPs are improved, but system complexity increases due to the translation mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates a simplified copy or representation of the complex CSP-specific identities through the CAWI. Instead of implementing full translation capabilities for each CSP's identity system, the patent uses a standardized CAWI format that captures the essential identity attributes, reducing the complexity of the translation mechanism while maintaining portability.
3Reliability
If zero trust verification is implemented for all workloads, then security is improved, but processing time and operational overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary verification by pre-establishing the CAWI credentials and verifying them before workloads access cloud resources. The zero trust verification is integrated into the identity establishment process rather than being applied as a separate overhead step, thereby reducing additional verification time while maintaining security.
Data Source
AI summary
Examples include a system and computer-implemented method to create a cloud native workload identity (CNWI) and assign the CNWI to an instance of a workload to be instantiated in a cloud computing environment of a cloud service provider (CSP); translate the CNWI into a cloud agnostic workload identity (CAWI) and assign the CAWI to the workload instance; and use the CAWI by the workload instance to communicate with other workloads in the same or a different CSP.