The exchange will now have the ability to provide direct access to IBM Corp. SoftLayer’s company-specific uses.

The brand new application programming interface (API) access means providers can provide an individual interface to the Equinix exchange for private, safe and on demand connections to cloud services without needing a cross-connect to be created, so that provisioning is considerably quicker.

“That enables various sorts of hybrid cloud structure,” says Chris Sharp, VP of cloud initiation for Equinix. “The real time provisioning via our APIs is not the same method for customers inside of Equinix to use up these cloud services from SoftLayer. It’s not the conventional form of cross-connect — itis an immediate link capacity.”

As the sector has typically proceeded toward hybrid cloud structures — which enable businesses to not only use distinct clouds for various workloads, but in addition unite public and private clouds and on-premises compute resources — Equinix is aiming for a much more flexible delivery platform that reaches a broad variety of cloud providers, Sharp includes.

The real time provisioning facet, with no standard cross-connect, is anticipated to possess special appeal.

“We’re assembling out that ecosystem of crucial associates, and that can drive far more use on the other side of the stage,” Sharp says. “In days gone by, a number of the services from service providers were beholden to the provisioning of cross-connects, which quits the complete automated strategy and can slow down the whole procedure. With the cloud exchange, we remove that obstacle to provisioning real time.”