From cloud to OCP? Be ready to wrangle firmware
a day ago
- #Open Compute Project
- #Cost Optimization
- #Cloud Repatriation
- GEICO reduced costs by 50% per compute core and 60% per gigabyte of storage by adopting Open Compute Project (OCP) hardware and open-source software.
- The company repatriated most cloud workloads due to high costs, saving over $300 million annually.
- Transition challenges included operational gaps, firmware lifecycle automation, and fleet management.
- GEICO aims to move 50% of cloud workloads to a private OCP-based cloud by 2029.
- Public cloud issues included capacity constraints, service deprecations, and regional limits.
- OEM hardware posed problems like proprietary control planes and fragmented operations.
- GEICO built two colocation facilities with 1,000+ OCP servers using ORv3 architecture.
- Key challenges included power system workarounds and firmware management.
- Six major OCP challenges: supply predictability, ORv3 power standardization, firmware readiness, NPI guidance, fleet operations, and support ecosystem alignment.
- Organizations need specialized roles (hardware/firmware engineers, test automation) to adopt OCP successfully.
- OCP adoption requires operational and cultural transformation beyond just technical changes.