THE PROBLEM: For years, the Department of Defense (DoD) has been transitioning to cloud-based computing for the DoD Information Network (DoDIN), the agency’s global network for gathering, processing, storing, and distributing electronic information to warfighters, policymakers and support personnel. For the DoD entities, support agencies and other DoDIN users, switching to the cloud was a time-consuming and cumbersome process. Adopting cloud services required users to spend time setting up the infrastructure and security to meet their needs – and receiving DoD cybersecurity approval could take up to two years. These issues were burdening DoDIN users and complicating cloud adoption.
THE SOLUTION: Developed by the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), DoD Cloud Infrastructure as Code (IaC) is a collection of software templates with built-in features and capabilities that streamline and speed up cloud service adoption. The Cloud IaC templates use automation to create cloud computing setups that meet users' needs and follow the structure of commercial cloud services. Additionally, the templates are preset with DoD-approved cybersecurity policies and protections. This innovation removes the cost and burden of configuring cloud networking systems, allowing users to adopt and deploy the cloud service within months instead of years.
THE TECH TRANSFER MECHANISM: In 2021, the DoD began collaborating with Amazon, Google, Microsoft and Oracle through a Joint Warfighter Cloud Capability (JWCC) contract, which allows the agency to acquire commercial cloud capabilities and services directly from commercial cloud service providers. DISA established CRADAs with the four companies that built in regular meetings, feedback and information sharing that helped the technology develop efficiently. These close collaborations allowed DISA to develop and validate the software templates within each partner’s cloud environment to then receive government cybersecurity approvals. DISA HaC, its legal department and technology transfer office worked with the industry partners to develop the strategy for optimizing the CRADAs.
THE TECH TRANSFER EXCELLENCE: The CRADA was creatively designed to overcome the project’s inherent hurdles and to leverage DISA's deep understanding of the difficulties of cloud adoption in the DoD. A modified intellectual property (IP) rights structure allowed DISA to retain rights for the government as the technology’s target end-user. The team strategized to avoid liability concerns around putting government-developed software code into commercial systems. The team also included a grace period after the CRADA’s execution, during which industry collaborators could declare relevant preexisting IP. The advance planning streamlined CRADA negotiations and implementation and helped ensure the success of DoD Cloud IaC.
THE OUTCOMES: DoD Cloud IaC is also the first government product ever offered in a commercial cloud provider marketplace. This technology transfer effort accelerated cloud adoption within the DoD, directly supporting DISA’s mission and fulfilling goals from the DoD’s official Cloud Strategy. More than 40 DoD entities (military services and support agencies) and other federal agencies – including the Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard and Department of Justice – have used Cloud IaC to support their cloud adoption. In one example, the U.S. Transportation Command (TRANSCOM) urgently needed to track evacuees from Afghanistan and used Cloud IaC to establish cloud capability within 72 hours to support this mission.