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Clarity Tech Ltd

UKCloud for Microsoft Azure Elevated OFFICIAL

Our Azure based public cloud is designed for the UK Public Sector, and is compliant with GDPR and suitable for Azure OFFICIAL workloads, based in UK Crown hosting datacentres ensures Azure data sovereignty.  Our Azure service is on-demand, flexible, billed by the hour, and with full support free of charge.

Features

  • Range of service levels, Azure VM sizes and licencing options
  • Build and configure VMs via Azure selfservice portal & API
  • On demand. Billed by the hour for Azure resources used
  • Azure Platform spans two UK datacentres separated by over 100km.
  • 24/7 Azure service desk included standard with SLA response times
  • Azure connected to internet, PSN, N3/HSCN, Janet via UKCloud
  • Based on Microsoft AzureStack, an extension of Microsoft Azure
  • UK hosted by SC and NPPV cleared personnel. Azure alternative
  • The Azure service is aligned with NCSC Cloud Security Principles
  • Azure technology available from a trusted UK sovereign provider

Benefits

  • Configure the Azure solution that is right for your application
  • Get the Azure resources you need, when you need them
  • Enabling cost savings by controlling Azure VM power states
  • Architect Azure solutions confident that applications and services remain available
  • Full 24/7 Azure support free of charge
  • Choose the right network to connect your Azure solution to
  • Use Azure technologies to de-risk your cloud transition and management
  • Have confidence in who supports your Azure VMs and data
  • Azure on a cloud that aligns with NCSC best practice
  • Use Azure without the risk of data leaving the UK

Pricing

£0.04 a virtual machine an hour

Service documents

Request an accessible format
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at faiz@claritytech.org. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 13

Service ID

4 7 4 5 4 5 9 2 2 9 3 3 1 6 7

Contact

Clarity Tech Ltd Faiz Ahmad
Telephone: 02030062813
Email: faiz@claritytech.org

Service scope

Service constraints
Based on setup
System requirements
Based on customer requirements

User support

Email or online ticketing support
Email or online ticketing
Support response times
Tickets are responded to on a priority basis. We aim to respond to ALL initial questions within 15 minutes during normal business hours and High Severity tickets will be answered 24/7
User can manage status and priority of support tickets
Yes
Online ticketing support accessibility
None or don’t know
Phone support
Yes
Phone support availability
24 hours, 7 days a week
Web chat support
Web chat
Web chat support availability
9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
Web chat support accessibility standard
None or don’t know
How the web chat support is accessible
Slack is accessible via any web browser that supports HTML5 and is also accessible programmatically via its API. Alternatively, Slack can be used via its own desktop client.
Web chat accessibility testing
None
Onsite support
Yes, at extra cost
Support levels
UKCloud's standard support includes Customer Success Managers, Technical Account Managers, Support Engineers and a 24/7 Network Operations Centre. We aim to respond to ALL incidents and requests within 15 minutes 24/7, with a priority on resolving P1 incidents.
Support available to third parties
Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

Getting started
All new customers are assigned a Customer Success Manager that will provide proactive support and advise for the first 90 days. This also includes the assistance from devops and cloud architects to ensure the right solution is provisioned and maximised for the workloads, along with a range of user guides.
Service documentation
Yes
Documentation formats
  • HTML
  • ODF
  • PDF
  • Other
Other documentation formats
  • Video
  • Audio
  • Webinars/Webex
  • Presentations
End-of-contract data extraction
The customer has complete autonomy of how data is stored and managed within their virtual environment. Data can be extracted either from within the VM (for example, copying data over virtual networks), or the entire VM (for example, exporting as a VMDK or OVF).
End-of-contract process
We will return all your data and materials which cannot be deleted or exported by you, and securely destroy all copies of your data on your written instruction.  We will return any pre-paid sums for services not delivered to you. We will not penalise you for terminating your contract with us unless specifically stated in the Service Definition. We will also return all of your confidential information, unless there is a legal requirement that we keep it.

Using the service

Web browser interface
Yes
Using the web interface
We provide a control panel allowing users to provision, manage and decommission various aspects of this service. It also allows users to interface with the UKCloud service management system including raising tickets and requests. The web interface also provides access to a comprehensive set of documentation and videos. Launch, manage and delete virtual network, compute and storage resources. Display network topology. Manage images including creation and recover of backups. Control access and security including key pairs, API access and floating IPs. Manage load balancers.
Web interface accessibility standard
None or don’t know
How the web interface is accessible
The web interface is accessible using the most common web browsers and is delivered over various public and private networks including the internet, PSN, N3/HSCN and Janet. The web interface is protected by standards-based encryption, two-factor authentication and optionally IP address restrictions. The web interface is entirely HTML5 and does not require any auxilary plug-ins, therefore the web interface is accessible by any modern day desktop or mobile internet browser able to support secure HTTPS connections.
Web interface accessibility testing
None
API
Yes
What users can and can't do using the API
You can use API calls to create, manage and monitor Service Requests and view information about the components of your environment. We provide native access to underlying APIs such as Microsoft Azure Stack. These are compatible with opensource tooling such as Terraform and Microsoft tooling such as Visual Studio.
API automation tools
  • Ansible
  • Chef
  • SaltStack
  • Terraform
  • Puppet
  • Other
Other API automation tools
  • Jenkins
  • Docker
  • Azure Resource Manager
API documentation
Yes
API documentation formats
  • Open API (also known as Swagger)
  • HTML
  • ODF
  • PDF
  • Other
Command line interface
Yes
Command line interface compatibility
  • Linux or Unix
  • Windows
  • MacOS
Using the command line interface
Customers can fully manage their virtual infrastructure resources including compute, storage and networking, including management of virtual images, programmatically or manually via the CLI

Scaling

Scaling available
Yes
Scaling type
  • Automatic
  • Manual
Independence of resources
In order to guarantee that users are not affected by the demands from other users, we use reource reservations and shares such as internet bandwidth shaping. In addition, the capacity planning team ensure that usage in terms of all resources are constantly monitored and increased accordinglty relating to user demand.
Usage notifications
No

Analytics

Infrastructure or application metrics
Yes
Metrics types
  • CPU
  • Disk
  • Memory
  • Network
  • Number of active instances
  • Other
Other metrics
  • IP Management
  • User quotas
Reporting types
  • API access
  • Real-time dashboards
  • Reports on request

Resellers

Supplier type
Reseller providing extra support
Organisation whose services are being resold
UKCloud

Staff security

Staff security clearance
Conforms to BS7858:2019
Government security clearance
Up to Developed Vetting (DV)

Asset protection

Knowledge of data storage and processing locations
Yes
Data storage and processing locations
  • United Kingdom
  • European Economic Area (EEA)
User control over data storage and processing locations
No
Datacentre security standards
Complies with a recognised standard (for example CSA CCM version 3.0)
Penetration testing frequency
At least every 6 months
Penetration testing approach
‘IT Health Check’ performed by a CHECK service provider
Protecting data at rest
  • Physical access control, complying with CSA CCM v3.0
  • Other
Other data at rest protection approach
Customers are encouraged to protect their own data using encryption technologies where only they have the decryption key. In this way, our customers are assured that their data can never be accessed by a third party.
Data sanitisation process
Yes
Data sanitisation type
  • Explicit overwriting of storage before reallocation
  • Deleted data can’t be directly accessed
  • Hardware containing data is completely destroyed
Equipment disposal approach
Complying with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v.30, CAS (Sanitisation) or ISO/IEC 27001

Backup and recovery

Backup and recovery
No

Data-in-transit protection

Data protection between buyer and supplier networks
  • Private network or public sector network
  • TLS (version 1.2 or above)
  • IPsec or TLS VPN gateway
  • Bonded fibre optic connections
  • Other
Other protection between networks
We offer the choice of connecting:
• Via the internet using additional encryption such as TLS 1.2
• IPSec VPN tunnels
• Via private networks such as leased lines or MPLS
• Via public sector networks such as PSN, N3, Janet
Data protection within supplier network
  • TLS (version 1.2 or above)
  • Other
Other protection within supplier network
We use dedicated CAS-T circuits between each of our sites to ensure the protection of customer data in-flight. We additionally encrypt this data within our Elevated OFFICIAL platform. All data flows are also subject to our protective monitoring service.

Availability and resilience

Guaranteed availability
99.90% for a single VM deployed as a single instance, or 99.95% for a single VM with two instances deployed
Approach to resilience
Our service is deployed across a number of sites, regions and zones. Each zone is designed to eliminate single points of failure (such as power, network and hardware). Customers are encouraged to ensure their solution spans multiple sites, regions or zones to ensure service continuity should a failure occur.
Outage reporting
All outages will be reported via the Service Status page and the notifications service within the UKCloud Portal.  Outages are identified as Planned maintenance, Emergency maintenance, and platform issues.  In addition, the designated Technical Account Manager will proactively contact customers as appropriate.

Identity and authentication

User authentication
  • 2-factor authentication
  • Limited access network (for example PSN)
  • Other
Other user authentication
For online systems (e.g. Customer Portal & API interfaces), all users are required to have a unique username, password and memorable word combination. Customers may also use 2FA authentication tokens.
Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels
Customers have the option to raise a support request via telephone or email. UKCloud will always authenticate the identity of the user by validating known phone numbers and asking them for specific characters within their pre-agreed memorable word. The management interfaces are only available on the UKCloud network.
Access restriction testing frequency
At least every 6 months
Management access authentication
2-factor authentication
Devices users manage the service through
  • Dedicated device on a segregated network (providers own provision)
  • Dedicated device on a government network (for example PSN)
  • Dedicated device over multiple services or networks
  • Any device but through a bastion host (a bastion host is a server that provides access to a private network from an external network such as the internet)
  • Directly from any device which may also be used for normal business (for example web browsing or viewing external email)

Audit information for users

Access to user activity audit information
Users contact the support team to get audit information
How long user audit data is stored for
Between 1 month and 6 months
Access to supplier activity audit information
Users contact the support team to get audit information
How long supplier audit data is stored for
Between 1 month and 6 months
How long system logs are stored for
Between 1 month and 6 months

Standards and certifications

ISO/IEC 27001 certification
Yes
Who accredited the ISO/IEC 27001
Lloyds Register (LR)
ISO/IEC 27001 accreditation date
8th May 2012
What the ISO/IEC 27001 doesn’t cover
Nothing
ISO 28000:2007 certification
No
CSA STAR certification
Yes
CSA STAR accreditation date
28th October 2016
CSA STAR certification level
Level 1: CSA STAR Self-Assessment
What the CSA STAR doesn’t cover
Level 1: CSA STAR Self-Assessment
PCI certification
No
Cyber essentials
Yes
Cyber essentials plus
Yes
Other security certifications
Yes
Any other security certifications
  • ISO27018
  • Cyber Essentials
  • Cyber Essentials Plus
  • ISO9001
  • ISO20000
  • ISO27017
  • CISPE (Cloud Infrastructure Service Providers Europe) Code of Conduct Certification

Security governance

Named board-level person responsible for service security
Yes
Security governance certified
Yes
Security governance standards
  • CSA CCM version 3.0
  • ISO/IEC 27001
  • Other
Other security governance standards
CSA STAR, ISO27001, ISO27017, ISO27018 and ISO20000
Information security policies and processes
UKCloud has a number of inter-connected governance frameworks in place which control both how the Company operates and the manner in which it delivers cloud services to its customers. These have been independently assessed and certified against ISO20000, ISO27001, ISO27017 and ISO27018 by LRQA, a UKAS accredited audit body. The Company is governed by an integrated suite of information security policies. Under the top level Information Security Policy itself are second-level documents with specific focus on Acceptable Use, Antivirus Protection, Asset Management, Business Continuity Management, Data Protection, Password Management, Personnel Management, Supply Chain Management and many others.

Operational security

Configuration and change management standard
Conforms to a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v3.0 or SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
Configuration and change management approach
UKCloud has documented configuration and change management policies and processes, which have been implemented, maintained and assessed in accordance with the guidance from ITIL v.3 and the current ISO20000 standard. Formal configuration management activities, including record management and asset reporting, are monitored and validated constantly, and any identified discrepancies promptly escalated for investigation. A robust, established process for the formal submission of change requests is mandated prior to review and approval of the daily Change Advisory Board, which is attended by a quorum of operational and technical management personnel.
Vulnerability management type
Conforms to a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v3.0 or SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
Vulnerability management approach
UKCloud has a documented vulnerability management policy and process, which have been implemented, maintained and assessed in accordance with the guidance from ITIL v.3 and the current ISO20000 and ISO27001 standards. Where technically possible, real-time updates and status reports are identified and sourced from credible vendor sources, which cover a significant proportion of UKCloud’s asset population. For other systems and software, assigned personnel have responsibility for regularly reviewing technical forums and specialist groups to promptly identify and evaluate any emerging patches or updates which require our attention.
Protective monitoring type
Conforms to a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v3.0 or SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
Protective monitoring approach
Following best practice from the National Cyber Security Centre, UKCloud protects both its Assured and Elevated platforms with 24x7 enhanced protective monitoring services, vulnerability scanning and assessment.  Our approach to protective monitoring at minimum meets the Protective Monitoring Controls (PMC 1-12) outlined in NCSC document GPG13 (Protective Monitoring for HMG ICT Systems).  It includes checks against systems events (SIEM) and network traffic analysis, including time sources, cross-boundary traffic, suspicious activities at a boundary, network connections and status of backups.  Any alerts generated are logged and investigated 24x7.
Incident management type
Conforms to a recognised standard, for example, CSA CCM v3.0 or ISO/IEC 27035:2011 or SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
Incident management approach
UKCloud has a documented incident management policy and process, which have been implemented, maintained and assessed in accordance with the guidance from ITIL v.3 and the current ISO20000 and ISO27001 standards. This activity is responsible for the progression of alerts generated by automated monitoring systems, issues identified by UKCloud personnel, and incidents identified and reported to UKCloud by its customers and partners. All incidents are promptly reported into a central ticketing system, which ensures that each is promptly assigned to an appropriate resource, and its progress tracked (and escalated, as required) to resolution.

Secure development

Approach to secure software development best practice
Independent review of processes (for example CESG CPA Build Standard, ISO/IEC 27034, ISO/IEC 27001 or CSA CCM v3.0)

Separation between users

Virtualisation technology used to keep applications and users sharing the same infrastructure apart
Yes
Who implements virtualisation
Supplier
Virtualisation technologies used
Other
Other virtualisation technology used
We use Microsoft Azure Stack provided by Microsoft as an extension to their Azure public cloud.

Using Microsoft
How shared infrastructure is kept separate
At the compute/storage layer, consumers are separated via robust hypervisor controls based on Microsoft Azure Stack technology. This solution is regularly tested via regular independent IT Security Health Checks conducted by a CHECK service provider.

Energy efficiency

Energy-efficient datacentres
Yes
Description of energy efficient datacentres
UKCloud’s services are CarbonNeutral® cloud services. We achieved this certification by working with Natural Capital Partners to measure and reduce our CO2 emissions across all sources used to deliver our cloud services to our customers. These include direct emissions from all owned or leased stationary sources that use fossil fuels and/or emit fugitive emissions, and emissions from the generation of purchased electricity and steam (including transmission and distribution losses) to power our servers. For our cloud services to achieve CarbonNeutral® status, an independent assessment of the CO2 emissions produced from direct and indirect sources required to deliver them was carried out, followed by an offset-inclusive emissions reduction programme. This means that for every tonne of greenhouse gas emissions we produce in delivering cloud services, we buy a verified carbon offset which guarantees that an equivalent amount of greenhouse gas emissions is reduced from the atmosphere through a renewable energy or clean technology project.

Social Value

Fighting climate change

Fighting climate change

As a part of our Social Value (SV) and Corporate Social Responsibility policy, we have incorporated Social Value development into our company's business model, which incorporates our long term and ongoing commitment to doing better by individuals, communities, and the planet. It will have a positive impact on Social Value like Justice, Freedom, Respect, Community, and Responsibility especially for young people. We are determined to deliver value
which results in benefits above and beyond the value derived from our exceptional service delivery.

Environmental Initiatives
Our Commitments:
• Reducing energy and fuel consumption
• Incorporating sustainability considerations into our supply chain
• Saving energy e.g., using energy efficient lighting and equipment
As a part of our Environmental Policy and Procedure, we have adapted and encouraged remote and flexible working environments, and have also adopted tools like MS Team, Zoom and Basecamp to reduce face to face meetings. This has resulted in carbon footprint reduction, which is good for both the company and society. We use energy saving bulbs, and hybrid transport, and as a result are efficient in energy usage.
We are committed to digital transformation, and have fully digitised our business.
Some of our sustainability targets include:
• Moving more services and data into the cloud to improve cost efficiency. We have achieved 90%, and target is 100% by March 2023
• Establishing guidelines for monitoring environmental compliance.

We are also working towards environmental accreditations ISO14001.
Covid-19 recovery

Covid-19 recovery

As a part of our Social Value (SV) and Corporate Social Responsibility policy, we have incorporated Social Value development into our company's business model, which incorporates our long term and ongoing commitment to doing better by individuals, communities, and the planet. We are determined to deliver value which results in benefits above and beyond the value derived from our exceptional service delivery.

Social Initiatives
Our Commitments:
• COVID-19 Recovery
• Diversity and Equality
• Helping local charities/community
• Health and well-being-outcome=increased wellbeing

We support the COVID-19 recovery effort, and have adapted best practices of remote working and sustainable travel solutions. It includes use of MS Team and other technologies to achieve the desired outcome. We also engage and collaborate with businesses to manage and recover from the impacts of COVID-19, including new and flexible ways of working to deliver value added services.
We are committed to Equality and Diversity, and encourage greater diversity within the Tech sector e.g., we will offer work experience to at least one woman in 2022/23 for three months. We will also be signing up to the Disability Confident employer scheme. Clarity Tech has links and donate regularly to Charities, and will continue to donate this year to “Royal Marsden Cancer Charity” and “Humanity First”.
We always promote equality, diversity and inclusion, and are working towards providing work experience to young people with previous convictions. We have also adopted a flexible and digital working environment, and as a result looked after employees’ health, well-being and facilitate a work-life balance. For example, adopting this approach in our contracts has helped us in meeting our goal of improving Health and well-being and a result increased company performance, increased job satisfaction, an improved work/life balance and an increase in staff morale & motivation which resulted in positive social impact.
Tackling economic inequality

Tackling economic inequality

As a part of our Social Value (SV) and Corporate Social Responsibility policy, we have incorporated Social Value development into our company's business model, which incorporates our long term and ongoing commitment to doing better by individuals, communities, and the planet. We are determined to deliver value which results in benefits above and beyond the value derived from our exceptional service delivery.

Social Initiatives
Our Commitments:
• COVID-19 Recovery
• Diversity and Equality
• Helping local charities/community
• Health and well-being-outcome=increased wellbeing

We support the COVID-19 recovery effort, and have adapted best practices of remote working and sustainable travel solutions. It includes use of MS Team and other technologies to achieve the desired outcome. We also engage and collaborate with businesses to manage and recover from the impacts of COVID-19, including new and flexible ways of working to deliver value added services.
We are committed to Equality and Diversity, and encourage greater diversity within the Tech sector e.g., we will offer work experience to at least one woman in 2022/23 for three months. We will also be signing up to the Disability Confident employer scheme. Clarity Tech has links and donate regularly to Charities, and will continue to donate this year to “Royal Marsden Cancer Charity” and “Humanity First”.
We always promote equality, diversity and inclusion, and are working towards providing work experience to young people with previous convictions. We have also adopted a flexible and digital working environment, and as a result looked after employees’ health, well-being and facilitate a work-life balance. For example, adopting this approach in our contracts has helped us in meeting our goal of improving Health and well-being and a result increased company performance, increased job satisfaction, an improved work/life balance and an increase in staff morale & motivation which resulted in positive social impact.
Equal opportunity

Equal opportunity

As a part of our Social Value (SV) and Corporate Social Responsibility policy, we have incorporated Social Value development into our company's business model, which incorporates our long term and ongoing commitment to doing better by individuals, communities, and the planet. We are determined to deliver value which results in benefits above and beyond the value derived from our exceptional service delivery.

Social Initiatives
Our Commitments:
• COVID-19 Recovery
• Diversity and Equality
• Helping local charities/community
• Health and well-being-outcome=increased wellbeing

We support the COVID-19 recovery effort, and have adapted best practices of remote working and sustainable travel solutions. It includes use of MS Team and other technologies to achieve the desired outcome. We also engage and collaborate with businesses to manage and recover from the impacts of COVID-19, including new and flexible ways of working to deliver value added services.
We are committed to Equality and Diversity, and encourage greater diversity within the Tech sector e.g., we will offer work experience to at least one woman in 2022/23 for three months. We will also be signing up to the Disability Confident employer scheme. Clarity Tech has links and donate regularly to Charities, and will continue to donate this year to “Royal Marsden Cancer Charity” and “Humanity First”.
We always promote equality, diversity and inclusion, and are working towards providing work experience to young people with previous convictions. We have also adopted a flexible and digital working environment, and as a result looked after employees’ health, well-being and facilitate a work-life balance. For example, adopting this approach in our contracts has helped us in meeting our goal of improving Health and well-being and a result increased company performance, increased job satisfaction, an improved work/life balance and an increase in staff morale & motivation which resulted in positive social impact.
Wellbeing

Wellbeing

As a part of our Social Value (SV) and Corporate Social Responsibility policy, we have incorporated Social Value development into our company's business model, which incorporates our long term and ongoing commitment to doing better by individuals, communities, and the planet. We are determined to deliver value which results in benefits above and beyond the value derived from our exceptional service delivery.

Social Initiatives
Our Commitments:
• COVID-19 Recovery
• Diversity and Equality
• Helping local charities/community
• Health and well-being-outcome=increased wellbeing

We support the COVID-19 recovery effort, and have adapted best practices of remote working and sustainable travel solutions. It includes use of MS Team and other technologies to achieve the desired outcome. We also engage and collaborate with businesses to manage and recover from the impacts of COVID-19, including new and flexible ways of working to deliver value added services.
We are committed to Equality and Diversity, and encourage greater diversity within the Tech sector e.g., we will offer work experience to at least one woman in 2022/23 for three months. We will also be signing up to the Disability Confident employer scheme. Clarity Tech has links and donate regularly to Charities, and will continue to donate this year to “Royal Marsden Cancer Charity” and “Humanity First”.
We always promote equality, diversity and inclusion, and are working towards providing work experience to young people with previous convictions. We have also adopted a flexible and digital working environment, and as a result looked after employees’ health, well-being and facilitate a work-life balance. For example, adopting this approach in our contracts has helped us in meeting our goal of improving Health and well-being and a result increased company performance, increased job satisfaction, an improved work/life balance and an increase in staff morale & motivation which resulted in positive social impact.

Pricing

Price
£0.04 a virtual machine an hour
Discount for educational organisations
No
Free trial available
Yes
Description of free trial
Free trials are available to both new and existing customers for products that haven't previously purchased or trialled. Free trials are excluded from any SLA credits and are limited to 30 days’ based on a fair usage policy.
Link to free trial
https://ukcloud.com/free-trials/

Service documents

Request an accessible format
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at faiz@claritytech.org. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.