Multi-Cloud Tools and Terminology

Abstract

Ensure that there are materials that help translate core tools and terminology concepts across multiple cloud service providers.

Before you begin

You should understand the basics of how cloud computing works, know the key services on your cloud providers, including their common use cases, and have a basic understanding of billing and pricing models. Being able to describe the basic value proposition of running in the cloud and understand the core concept of using a pay-as-you-go consumption model are also necessary.

You’ll also need to have a base level of knowledge of at least one of the three main public cloud providers (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud). For AWS, we recommend AWS Business Professional training or, even better, the AWS Cloud Practitioner certification. For Google, check out the Google Cloud Platform Fundamentals course. For Azure, try the Azure Fundamentals learning path. Each can usually be completed in a full day workshop.

FinOps Tools Matrix

Each Cloud Service Provider has different tools available to help FinOps practitioners learn and practice efficient utilization of cloud resources. There are tools and reports available that can help FinOps practitioners and companies plan their potential cost in advance of consumption, understand invoices, complete billing analysis, govern cost and optimize cost. These tools have been enumerated in the FinOps Tools Matrix.

	GCP	AWS	Azure	OCI
Cloud Cost Planning	GCP Pricing Calculator	AWS Pricing Calculator	Azure Pricing Calculator	OCI Cost Estimator
Billing and Reporting	Google Cloud Billing Reports	AWS Cost Explorer	Azure Cost Management + Billing Additionally, via API (REST across 3 dimensions with fine-tune filtering & query or direct reports, also Scheduled via Cost Management API, aka “Exports”. Using with the Exports function allows delivers a variety of reports, even Scheduled for Ingestion into BigQuery tooling, such as Azure Synapse or Azure Data Explorer.	OCI Cost Analysis
	Standard Billing Export to BigQuery	AWS Cost and Usage Reports	Azure usage and charges report	OCI Cost and Usage Reports
	Detailed Billing Export to BigQuery	AWS Detailed Billing Reports
	Pricing Export to BigQuery	AWS Purchase Order Management
		AWS Consolidated Billing
		AWS Credits
Detailed Billing Analysis	Datastudio (GitHub Solution)	AWS Quick Sight	Azure Power BI Also see the Cost Management Power BI App	OCI Cost Governance and Performance Insights Solution
	Looker Analytics Dashboard (GitHub Solution)
Invoicing	Cost Table Report	AWS Invoices	Azure Invoices	OCI Invoices
	Cost Breakdown Report			OCI Payment History
	Pricing Report			OCI Billing Schedule
Forecasting	Billing Forecast	AWS Cost Explorer (Self-Service)		Forecasting in Cost Analysis
		AWS Budgets (Event-Driven)
Tagging	Resource Hierarchy	AWS Tag Editor	Azure Policy	OCI Tags
Alerts and Notifications	GCP Budget Alerts	AWS Budgets	Azure Budgets	OCI Budget Alerts
Template Driven Deployment	Terraform	AWS CloudFormation	Azure Resource Manager, Bicep, and Terraform	Terraform
	Cloud Deployment Manager
Controls	Quotas and Rate Limit APIs	Service Quotas	Native settings for Budgets and Spending Limits	Quotas
		AWS Instance Scheduler		Enforcing Budgets using Functions and Quotas
		Amazon Data Lifecycle Manager
Recommendations	Recommender	AWS Cost Explorer	Azure Advisor	OCI Cloud Advisor
	Active Assist	Trusted Advisor
	Google Cloud’s operations suite (formerly Stackdriver)
	Commitment Analysis Report
Insights	Billing Health Checks	CloudWatch	Azure Monitor
		CloudTrail

Cost Management Terminology

Cloud Service Providers utilize different terms to mean the same or similar things. This can make understanding cloud concepts across providers difficult. This terminology generated from this project was created to help FinOps practitioners translate these common terms across Cloud Service Providers and has been incorporated into the FinOps Terminology page here.

Three Letter Acronyms

Cloud cost management is not void of its own set of TLA’s. As a community the goal is to collect a list of three letter acronyms that are relevant and frequently used in daily cloud cost management.

TLA	Meaning
AWS	Amazon Web Services
CSP	Cloud Service Provider
GCP	Google Cloud Platform
KPI	Key Performance Indicator
OCI	Oracle Cloud Infrastructure
TAC	Technical Advisory Council

Resources

Acknowledgements

The FinOps Foundation extends its gratitude to the hard-working members of the Working Group:

Kim Wier

Target

Pathik Sharma

Google

Vivek Enniriyil

AWS

Amitai Rottem

Google

Ron Tatro

Target

Eric Lam

Google

Nathan King

Sky

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Guide to Cloud Service Provider Tools and Terminology

Abstract

Before you begin

FinOps Tools Matrix