Secure method and apparatus for enabling the provisioning of a shared service in a utility computing environment

摘要

Embodiments of the invention provide a secure method for enabling the provisioning of a shared service in a utility computing environment. One embodiment establishes an account primary virtual local area network (VLAN) for at least one account in a utility computing environment. Then, a request is received from a service provider to provide a shared service to the at least one account. An isolated VLAN is established for each shared service being provisioned in the context of the account primary VLAN and a promiscuous port is provided for the service provider. A selection option is then provided to allow the at least one server to utilize the shared service provided by the service provider. An isolated port is then configured for the at least one server on an isolated VLAN between the at least one server that chooses to utilize the shared service, and the shared service.