Application Packaging Standard

Last updated 18-Mar-2019

Platform Data Models

Odin Automation is a service delivery platform that allows Internet service providers (ISPs) to quickly launch the hosting services and for that purpose provides the complete life-cycle management of hosting infrastructure.

In this document:

Platform Services

The consumers of the hosting services, called customers in the platform, are SMBs (small and medium-sized business) or individuals, whose goal is to get access to web hosting, business email solutions, and various other online applications from the cloud.

The platform allows the providers to deliver a variety of service types grouped into:

  • Services and resources hosted on premises
  • Services and resources hosted on partner clouds

The platform allows the service provider and its resellers to automate and simplify configuration, management, support, and operational work associated with resource sales, operations, and maintenance. Web-based management tools are used for the mentioned activity at different business levels without the necessity to understand underlying systems in detail.

The platform, as a comprehensive hosting and cloud automation platform, provides full spectrum of integrated management tools to deploy and deliver services to customers and their service users:

  • Single centralized management console for managing offers and service delivery.
  • Multi-tier account management model including the provider, resellers, sub-resellers, and customers.
  • Security system with different levels of permissions for protecting the whole system and its components.
  • Resource (service) and product management system implementing flexible sales models.
  • Comprehensive billing system.
  • Built-in mechanisms for providing various hosting services, for example, web, FTP, mail, virtual servers, and DNS (registration and hosting).
  • Out-of-box customizable online store for selling products.

OSS and BSS

The mentioned tools are grouped into the following two big systems:

  • Operations Support System (OSS) allows service providers to deploy and deliver application services to customers and service users without commercial operations. This systems can import application packages, configure application specific services, and deliver them through subscriptions to customers and then to service users.
  • Business Support System (BSS) integrated with the OSS makes the platform functionality complete by adding the commercial part to the platform. It provides tools for creating flexible cloud automation products based on needed sales models. The out-of-box online store is highly customizable and makes the products publicly available. The system automates the full product sale and service delivery life-cycle, including selling products, getting payment, creating subscriptions, delivering services, subscription renewal, and many other operations. It provides flexible resource upsell and cross-sell.

The next articles introduce the main operations in the platform that are necessary to deploy and deliver application services to end-users. For more detailed guides, refer to the platform documentation.