Google Cloud

Google Cloud Platform production projects are now available. Sandbox projects are also available, for users to learn about the Google Cloud Platform. If you have questions about GCP or moving your workload to Google Cloud, please contact the Cloud Center of Excellence.

Terminology note: In GCP, the organizational unit that contains resources is called a ‘Project’. The term ‘Account’ usually refers to a user identity.

Project Types 

We provide two different types of GCP Projects:

You can begin with a single Sandbox project, however this project will have no connectivity back to Comcast and is for learning purposes only, not for development. Once you are comfortable operating in the public cloud, or you want to do a PoC, we recommend that you obtain separate GCP Standard projects for development and production. This lets you manage production permissions separately and helps reduce the risk of automation mishaps.

To close a Standard project, submit a JIRA request. Terminated projects can be restored up to 30 days from their termination date. Note that some resources may be deleted prior to the full 30 day wait period. Interconnected networks will have to be decommissioned before the project can be closed. We will work with the team to do so if not done before submitting a closure request.

If you get a SAML Single Sign On failed error when logging in to JIRA, you will need to request access to the CCP (ccp.sys.comcast.net) JIRA instance.

Sandbox Projects 

Sandbox projects are available for 90 days and automatically deleted after that time. Reminders will be e-mailed one week before, one day before, and on the day of deletion. If, at a later date, additional testing is required, a new Sandbox may be requested.

When requesting a sandbox project, you agree to work within its constrains:

• Time Boxed. The Sandbox project will expire and be removed after 90 days. Data within the project will not be saved.
• Budget limits. The project will be restricted to a budget cap of $1000 during the lifetime of the Sandbox, and removed if it reaches that cap, even if the 90 day time limit has not been reached. Data within the project will not be saved.
• Isolated. The project does not have access to the Comcast networks.
• Not for Development. Sandbox projects are meant for education. They are not for Development.
• No Intellectual Property. No Comcast Source Code or Intellectual Property can be used or deployed in Sandbox projects.
• Not for POC. At times, learning and proving a concept can go hand in hand. However, due to limits and isolation, Sandbox projects should not be used for POC work.
• Region Constraint. Sandboxes are deployed to US regions.
• Instance Auto Shutdown. Instances that are created in the sandbox will automatically be shut down every day at 8PM and turned on at 8AM to save money during non-business hours.

Please review the Astro Sandbox Policies for more information on Sandbox restrictions. You are required to attest that you have read and understand this policy when requesting a sandbox.

Standard Projects 

Standard projects are now available in GCP as of 2019.

If you previously signed up for a Google account with your Comcast work email, you will be given a new Google account using your work email, and prompted to rename your pre-existing Google account, the next time you log in with your Comcast email address. Please see the documentation to understand this process.

• Points of Contact. You must provide contact information for the project owner, technical operator, executive sponsor, and finance representative. If your team already has an email distribution list, please provide it in the request.
• Funding. Each team is responsible to pay for its own cloud usage. Thus, approval by finance is required for all public cloud resources. To expedite the project creation process, you must provide your teams’s funding entity identifier. Your manager or local finance partner can look up your four-digit funding entity id (cost center).
• Budgeting. Estimate a 18-20% corporate discount, but also please add about 5% for support and governance charges, as the cloud team charges back our enterprise support agreement and also cost for security and monitoring.
• Connectivity. Connectivity from your GCP infrastructure back to the Comcast network can be provided using an InterConnect. Teams are billed for their usage of the InterConnect similar to any other data transfer charges. VPN Connectivity from GCP to Comcast or from Comcast to GCP is not allowed; all connectivity to Comcast should be done via an InterConnect. See Preferred Connectivity Topology
• Regions. By default, only US-based regions are permitted. If additional regions outside of the US will be required, please indicate this in your request. The CCoE will reach out and work with you to understand and seek approval for non-US resources.