OVUM-Technical-Audit-Exalead-CloudView
Description
Reference Code: TA001940CKM Publication Date: August 2010 Authors: Richard Edwards and Mike Davis TECHNOLOGY AUDIT Exalead CloudView 5.0 Exalead SUMMARY IMPACT CloudView is a next-generation search and information-access platform for enterprise, web, and OEM use. Its scalable service-oriented architecture provides advanced data-extraction, indexation, and text-analytics features, and is suited to a wide range of usage scenarios, from traditional web and enterprise search to search-based applications. In enterprises CloudView is a platform for presenting search as an end-user application. There are search applications based on CloudView that include the ability to provide a 360 degree view of a customer or business issue. CloudView web search brings relevant external data into the enterprise. The technology semantically extracts information rather than providing lists of hyperlinks. KEY FINDINGS Strengths: CloudView is suited to enterprise, web, and OEM usage. A highly scalable high-performance SOA search platform. CloudView should be considered for search-based applications and SQL-less analytics. Weaknesses: Exalead’s focus on larger deployments could dissuade smaller organizations from considering the solution. Key Facts: i Able to index 8 billion web pages per week and service 30 web queries per second. i CloudView can be extended through an open API framework. Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0 Published 08 ...
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Extrait
Reference Code: TA001940CKM
Authors: Richard Edwards and Mike Davis
Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0
Published 08/2010
© Ovum. This Technology Audit is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied
Page 1
TECHNOLOGY AUDIT
Exalead CloudView 5.0
Exalead
SUMMARY
IMPACT
CloudView is a next-generation search and information-access platform for enterprise, web, and OEM use. Its
scalable service-oriented architecture provides advanced data-extraction, indexation, and text-analytics
features, and is suited to a wide range of usage scenarios, from traditional web and enterprise search to
search-based applications.
In enterprises CloudView is a platform for presenting search as an end-user application.
There are search applications based on CloudView that include the ability to provide a 360 degree view
of a customer or business issue.
CloudView web search brings relevant external data into the enterprise.
The technology semantically extracts information rather than providing lists of hyperlinks.
KEY FINDINGS
Strengths:
CloudView is suited to enterprise, web, and OEM usage.
A highly scalable high-performance SOA search platform.
CloudView should be considered for search-based applications and SQL-less analytics.
Weaknesses:
Exalead’s focus on larger deployments could dissuade smaller organizations from
considering the solution.
Key Facts:
i
Able to index 8 billion web pages per week and service 30 web queries per second.
i
CloudView can be extended through an open API framework.
TECHNOLOGY AUDIT
Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0
Published 08/2010
© Ovum. This Technology Audit is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied
Page 2
OVUM VIEW
CloudView from French company Exalead is a next-generation search and information-access platform
designed for enterprise, web, and OEM use. The offering’s scalable service-oriented architecture provides
advanced data-extraction, indexation, and text-analytics features, and is suited to a wide range of usage
scenarios, from traditional web and enterprise search to search-based applications. By supporting security at
the data layer, application layer, and network layer, CloudView provides full compliance with existing security
schemas and confidentiality rules. When deployed as a traditional enterprise search engine, it enables users
to locate files from a variety of locations including the desktop, network servers, company intranet, or the
Web. As a platform for search-based applications, CloudView presents CIOs with a range of options that
provide an alternative approach to traditional applications that are reliant on database technology.
Organizations that have reached the limitations of their preferred RDBMS should consider the possibilities
afforded by search-based applications, particularly when huge amounts of structured and unstructured data
are involved. Organizations seeking to exploit social applications, whether internal or external, should also
assess the capabilities of CloudView because this information could well provide new kinds of business
intelligence.
Recommendations
For organizations looking for search-based applications with a fast time to value, CloudView provides
business applications out of the box.
CloudView’s web search capability can be used to bring relevant customer information and sentiment
into the business.
Organizations requiring real-time access and high scalability will benefit from CloudView.
SOLUTION OVERVIEW
CloudView is an information-access platform that collects data from sources including the Web, email
servers, databases, and multimedia archives, and then indexes it into a cohesive information resource. This
resource, which is continually evolving and scalable, can be searched directly or used as a foundation for
building web and enterprise search-based applications. Search technology has been around for a long time in
one form or another, but in the last five years the technology has expanded into many different areas and
usage scenarios. Enterprise search and online search continue to be important areas of business for
Exalead, with the new domain of search-based applications (SBAs) expected to become key in coming years.
A differentiator for Exalead as a provider of search solutions is the fact that it has always focused on both web
and enterprise search, which has enabled it to offer a unified platform for integrated desktop, enterprise, and
web searches.
CloudView is not reliant on any significant third-party components, and is packaged
with its own application servers and storage systems designed for scalability and high availability.
A European alternative to US-based search vendors, Exalead continues to exhibit strong technical
competence and innovation. The company is now trying to redefine information access for the enterprise and
the Web with its move toward search-based applications. Current deployments where users relying on
Exalead for unified information presentation, reporting, and search, illustrate the fact that the product is
relevant for organizations evaluating innovative uses of search technology.
TECHNOLOGY AUDIT
Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0
Published 08/2010
© Ovum. This Technology Audit is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied
Page 3
Solution analysis
Search and Query Capabilities
At the user level, out-of-the-box search interfaces are provided for enterprise-wide use, and specialized
knowledge dashboards for specific user groups can be created to add additional business value. These
provide the flexible navigation of results by categories, related terms, file type, and language. Thumbnail
images provide a quick evaluation of the results, and the rich-content preview highlights the search terms
where relevant. CloudView also provides phonetic and “fuzzy” searching for successful results even with
misspelled words. A Boolean search syntax with proximity search operators is also part of the advanced
search facility.
There is a built-in spellchecker, which takes advantage of all of the documents that have been indexed in
order to assess whether a word has been spelled correctly. Information provided with each item returned in a
search includes the location of the item, which could be a folder for an enterprise document or a URL for a
web item. A preview pane is provided to allow documents to be previewed before they are opened. This is
particularly useful because it enables users to pick out documents at a glance rather than having to wait for
the document to load in the native application. There is also the ability to refine the search using criteria such
as people, location, and organization. This is defined at the administrative level.
CloudView uses a patented technology that makes it easy to extract a “sub-index” from an enterprise-wide
index without accessing any of the original documents. The XML extract feature is important for organizations
with compliance requirements because it provides a regulator or a court with an index containing all of the
documents about a particular topic, customer, or product.
Visualization and Navigation Capabilities
A differentiator for CloudView is Exalead’s patented Search by Serendipity navigation system (see Figure 1).
Each search query results in a table of contents being generated by recording the information’s structure.
Users are then able to refine their search by clicking on hyperlinked categories and related topics, or by
location, author, or format. Irrelevant terms in topics can be easily excluded from the search. A common
problem encountered in searches is that the words used in the original query are often not contained in the
document being searched for. CloudView overcomes this by providing the user with related terms and
categories to allow the search to be broadened, refined, or even refocused.
Indexing Capabilities and Data Sources Supported
T
he core linguistic and semantic technologies and data structures of CloudView are updated in real time and
are transactional. Indexing is also performed in real time and this extends to situations where document
collections are split over many machines and into several indexes.
Exalead is deservedly proud of the fact that all of its linguistic technologies for English, French, and Italian
have been developed in house. These have been under development for eight years. In all, 54 languages are
are recognized and tokenized accordingly, including Japanese and Chinese. Phonetic processors exist for 20
languages. If advanced language processing of rare languages is needed, a fully tested third-party plug-in is
available. The platform can also be extended by integration of linguistic “cartridges” for processing text in
specific domains. Exalead has several ongoing partnerships with text-mining providers.
TECHNOLOGY AUDIT
Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0
Published 08/2010
© Ovum. This Technology Audit is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied
Page 4
Figure 1: Exalead CloudView sample search results
Source: Exalead
O V U M
TECHNOLOGY AUDIT
Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0
Published 08/2010
© Ovum. This Technology Audit is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied
Page 5
Administration and Management
The index database is optimized to reference large quantities of XML documents and to serve queries. Front-
end queries are sent to the index server and the results are returned in XML format. The HTTP front end
provides query formatting for the user front end while the CloudView search API queries third-party
applications. A master configuration server provides an HTML interface through which the platform
administrator can remotely configure the search engine.
Maturity
Fault-tolerance is enabled by CloudView components using XML with client/server protocols that can be
distributed over different physical servers. This also permits the use of different operating systems and types
of hardware. The file system structure of the index files makes it easy to back up and replicate the index
database, which means that multiple instances of the same index server can be deployed on different
machines by synchronizing the index database directories. The front end can be configured to balance
queries between the physical servers and to automatically stop querying out-of-service servers.
Scalability
Exalead’s 64-bit indexing technology is highly scalable with the ability to index several hundred million
documents on a single server at the same time as it is processing search queries. According to Exalead,
CloudView’s indexes typically take 30% of the size of the indexed text. In addition, it is possible to reduce the
size of the index to as small as 5% of the size of the indexed text by dropping some of the advanced
functions. Furthermore, Exalead’s search solutions reportedly offer some of the highest levels of scalability in
the industry for both data collection and user query, with a typical quad-core processor able to index 8 billion
web pages in a week and deliver 30 queries per second
.
CloudView’s modular service-oriented architecture was designed and built to manage high volumes of
structured and unstructured information, and the platform’s programmatic interfaces allow for the
development of search-based applications, which is an emerging segment of the search technology market.
Interoperability
At the infrastructure layer, the indexing engine is a fully transparent “white box” that securely connects users
to an organization’s data sources and transforms raw data into useful actionable information through
advanced indexing techniques. The data-source layer provides the indexing capability, which supports
virtually any format or source on the desktop, across the enterprise, the Web, or other external source.
From an architectural perspective, CloudView connectors use the information source’s native protocol to
retrieve documents from the information sources and then convert this content into a common XML document
format (custom connectors can be created using a Java or .NET API). The XML documents are then sent to
the index server that maintains the master index database.
Contents of documents retrieved by the connectors are passed to a document and content-analysis
framework called MOT (Mining Of Text), which is a pipeline-based architecture that Exalead developed for
the semantic annotation of text. It allows Exalead to specify the degree of annotation needed for a given
application, and it is also where CloudView adds structure to unstructured data.
TECHNOLOGY AUDIT
Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0
Published 08/2010
© Ovum. This Technology Audit is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied
Page 6
This module can be extended by corporate developers or third parties. Outputs of the pipelines are directed to
CloudView indexes and dictionaries that will respond to the search server to provide results.
CloudView does not require any additional software or application servers to be installed prior to its
deployment. Exalead CloudView Search relies on a few third-party open-source libraries such as OpenSSL,
OpenLDAP, and XpdfText, and OEM connectors such as DataDirect ODBC drivers and Stellent (now Oracle)
file filters. All these libraries are shipped with the product and are automatically installed with the CloudView
software.
Innovation
CloudView provides a platform and the functional and technical components required to build information-
access applications based on search technologies.
Data collection:
CloudView can connect to a broad range of systems including file systems,
collaboration tools and portals, enterprise content management systems, line-of-business applications,
and web content such as RSS feeds and web pages. It achieves this while respecting full-system
security, a vital facility for enterprise or extranet search solutions.
Data processing and transformation:
CloudView includes advanced semantic algorithms that can
consolidate data from different sources to ensure completeness and consistency of search data.
CloudView is also able to detect and extract named entities, and apply sentiment analysis to any text.
This classification feature enables the grouping of documents by similarity or by topic to save users’ time
when searching huge information repositories.
Indexing and data access:
CloudView delivers relevant results to the user by using algorithms or the
customer’s own ranking model. CloudView has a simple yet powerful query language to request data
from the index, and linguistics algorithms enable intelligent understanding of the user query.
Enterprise Fit
CloudView is supported on a range of 32-bit and 64-bit platforms including Windows Server, Unix, and Linux.
Solaris operating systems are also supported. According to Exalead, organizations should be able to
implement the product without any third-party assistance. Windows Server and/or Unix technical skills are
required, as is an understanding of the indexed databases. The average time required for an implementation
depends on the complexity of the project. A basic CloudView Search deployment can be installed in days,
with a full enterprise search or business-critical deployment taking a few weeks. The architecture supports
modular deployment, and once implemented an IT administrator is required for technical administration.
Exalead says the application can be easily customized through the administration function.
Technical training is available for IT infrastructure engineers or IT administrators through a two-day program.
A large part of the second day’s training is dedicated to typical deployment situations and examples. Training
can be carried out in the classroom, on site, or via the Web.
TECHNOLOGY AUDIT
Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0
Published 08/2010
© Ovum. This Technology Audit is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied
Page 7
Exalead provides a technical-support hotline service as well as maintenance of software to correct bugs and
develop the product. The hotline is available during working days between 9am and 5pm CET. Extended
support options outside core hours are available for organizations with business-critical applications.
PRODUCT STRATEGY
Exalead continues to win business in the enterprise-search market, but its primary areas of focus going
forward will be online search and search-based applications. The online search market can be subdivided into
several distinct areas, and Exalead has already had success in areas such as e-commerce, online
directories, social networks, and classified advertisements. The new domain of search-based applications is
perhaps the most significant for Exalead because this area of search technology is still very much in its
infancy.
The target audience for CloudView is the upper end of the enterprise search market: large enterprises and/or
organizations with enormous data stores. However, it is suitable for organizations of any size, from a single
desktop to thousands, from small businesses to global enterprises. Vertical sectors targeted include financial
services, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, life sciences, retail, manufacturing, and government. Exalead
sees a major opportunity arising from the recent trends in search that have focused on specialized functions
such as image and video search that demonstrate the importance of being able to index specific types of
content. It is also working to develop industry-specific applications for customers in sectors such as financial
services and healthcare.
Exalead has recognized two important markets for search technology: search-based applications and
business intelligence (BI). Search technology offers a way to bridge the hitherto separate worlds of structured
and unstructured information, and CloudView’s ability to handle both should be a key consideration for
organizations looking beyond the short term.
Exalead’s sales organization sells CloudView directly in France, Italy, the UK, Germany, and the US, and
through reseller and OEM partners in approximately 30 countries. It also has business relationships with IBM
and CA, and several customers of its CloudView OEM offering.
Key technology partners are: IBM, Messaging Architects, Lingway, IRCAM VECSYS, HP, Systran, DataDirect
Technologies, Basis Technology, Knowings, Softissimo, Oracle (Stellent), Synapse, Systran, and Temis.
Exalead is an Advanced IBM Partner and its solutions are certified for IBM Lotus Notes Domino version 8 and
EMC Documentum Content Server.
In June 2010 Exalead was acquired by Dassault Systemes (DS) for €136 million and operates as an
independent subsidiary with CloudView technologies being incorporated across all DS technology platforms.
Market focus
Much of E
xalead’s go-to-market focus in the US has been on SIs and consulting partners to foster more direct
sales, and it has been concentrating on seeking and securing partnerships as well as more traditional OEM
business relationships. For Exalead the acquisition by DS has opened up the product-lifecycle management
(PLM) market as well as the DS customer base of more than 115,000 customers.
TECHNOLOGY AUDIT
Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0
Published 08/2010
© Ovum. This Technology Audit is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied
Page 8
Exalead already has partnerships with CA, IBM, and other vendors. It is also looking to establish
infrastructure-management OEM relationships with the major players that manage and move unstructured
data and require search capabilities. In addition, there are opportunities for making OEM arrangements with
business applications vendors where compliance requirements mean there is a need to discover information,
or where the combination of structured and unstructured data demands hybrid or vertical searches across
multiple repositories.
Licensing
Licensing fees are based on a combination of the type of customer and availability expectations, the volume
of text or the number of documents, and the number of users or the number of queries per month. It is a
perpetual license with a maintenance fee. Pricing for OEM sales is more flexible.
The average cost of an implementation varies from to €100,000 to €500,000, with licenses accounting for
70% of the cost, and services 30%. Annual support and maintenance is priced at 20% of the license fee per
year and includes hotline and regular technical support as well as major and minor license upgrades.
IMPLEMENTATION
The target audience for CloudView is the upper end of the enterprise search market: large enterprises and/or
organizations with enormous data stores. However, it is suitable for organizations of any size, from a single
desktop to thousands, from small businesses to global enterprises. Vertical sectors targeted include financial
services, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, life sciences, retail, manufacturing, and government. Exalead
sees a major opportunity arising from the recent trends in search that have focused on specialized functions
such as image and video search, which demonstrate the importance of being able to index specific types of
content. It is also working to develop industry-specific applications for customers in sectors such as financial
services and healthcare.
Exalead has recognized two important markets for search technology: search-based applications and BI.
Search technology offers a way to bridge the hitherto separate worlds of structured and unstructured
information, and CloudView’s ability to handle both should be a key consideration for organizations looking
beyond the short term.
TECHNOLOGY AUDIT
Table 1:
Contact Details
Exalead SA
10, place de la Madeleine
75008 Paris
France
Tel:
+33 (0)1 55 35 26 26
Fax:
+33 (0)1 55 35 26 27
www.exalead.com
Source: Exalead
O V U M
Exalead – Exalead CloudView 5.0
Published 08/2010
© Ovum. This Technology Audit is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied
Page 9
Headquarters
Shirethorn House,
37/43 Prospect Street,
Kingston upon Hull,
HU2 8PX, UK
Tel:
+44 (0)1482 586149
Fax: +44 (0)1482 323577
Australian Sales Office
Level 46, Citigroup Building,
2 Park Street, Sydney,
NSW, 2000,
Australia
Tel:
+ 61 (02) 8705 6960
Fax: + 61 (02) 8705 6961
End-user Sales Office (USA)
245 Fifth Avenue,
4th Floor, New York,
NY 10016,
USA
Tel:
+1 212 652 5302
Fax: +1 212 202 4684
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