Rackspace offers cloud management iPad app

Hosting firm Rackspace has unveiled an iPad application designed to manage cloud infrastructures.

The free Cloud Pro is the first iPad-based app designed to allow developers to manage Rackspace cloud servers, the firm said.

The app has a host of cloud server management options, including turning on server backups, creating new servers from backups and managing back-up schedules.

The user interface has been optimised for the iPad with a touch-screen interface, making it much more user friendly, according to Rackspace.

Users can identify the status of the Rackspace Cloud and ping the public IP address for a cloud server to check responsiveness. The Rackspace Cloud was also designed as a platform to encourage developers to create tools and applications with community-driven functionality.

"It is amazing to think about how the iPad and cloud servers can lower the entry barriers for web startups everywhere because they no longer have to make large investments in hardware to get their businesses going," said Mike Mayo, a developer at Rackspace Hosting.

Apple has been touting the iPad's consumer credentials pretty heavily since its first appearance on stage with Steve Jobs, but the company needs the backing of enterprise players like Rackspace if the device is to be taken seriously by corporate users.

The Rackspace announcement follows a vote of confidence in the new device from two other enterprise players.

Citrix has developed an enterprise-class application for the iPad called Citrix Receiver that provides access to Windows applications, while Wyse Technology announced a Windows virtualisation application for the device.