C4 Protocol - Cloud Computing Common Connector

A standardized protocol for cloud service providers to integrate with enterprise-grade multi-cloud management platforms. Simplify your integration, expand your market reach.

Overview

The C4 Protocol (Cloud Computing Common Connector) provides a universal API specification that enables cloud service providers to integrate with multi-cloud management platforms. This repository hosts the official API specifications and documentation website.

Are you a CSP? Come onboard! Joining us is quite simple, here’s everything you need to know to join the Biggest Cloud resource marketplace.

Let’s start with some general details.

C4, does it explode?

The Elemento C4 protocol is a standardized protocol that allows CSP to communicate with Dynamo’s environment which is used through Mesons to onboard new cloud providers from anywhere!

Architecture

C4 Protocol Positioning

graph TD
    Enterprise[Enterprise Customers] --> MCM[Multi-Cloud Management Platforms]
    MCM --> C4[C4 Protocol]
    C4 --> CSP1[Cloud Service Provider 1]
    C4 --> CSP2[Cloud Service Provider 2]
    C4 --> CSP3[Cloud Service Provider 3]
    
    classDef enterprise fill:#f9f,stroke:#333,stroke-width:2px;
    classDef platform fill:#bbf,stroke:#333,stroke-width:2px;
    classDef protocol fill:#bfb,stroke:#333,stroke-width:2px;
    classDef provider fill:#fbb,stroke:#333,stroke-width:2px;
    
    class Enterprise enterprise;
    class MCM platform;
    class C4 protocol;
    class CSP1,CSP2,CSP3 provider;

Communication Flow

sequenceDiagram
    participant Client as Enterprise Client
    participant MCM as Multi-Cloud Manager
    participant C4 as C4 Protocol API
    participant CSP as Cloud Service Provider
    
    Client->>MCM: Request resource creation
    MCM->>C4: Translate to C4 API call
    C4->>CSP: Forward standardized request
    CSP->>C4: Return provider-specific response
    C4->>MCM: Normalize response
    MCM->>Client: Present unified result

Service Architecture

flowchart LR
    subgraph "C4 Protocol Services"
        Meson[Meson - Compute\nPort 7777]
        Storage[Storage\nPort 7772]
        PaaS[PaaS Services]
        SaaS[SaaS Services]
    end
    
    subgraph "Cloud Provider"
        VMs[Virtual Machines]
        Volumes[Storage Volumes]
        K8s[Kubernetes]
        S3[Object Storage]
        DB[Databases]
        LB[Load Balancers]
    end
    
    Meson --> VMs
    Storage --> Volumes
    PaaS --> K8s
    PaaS --> S3
    PaaS --> DB
    PaaS --> LB
    SaaS --> Apps[Managed Applications]

Strategic Value Proposition

• Market Access: Tap into a growing ecosystem of enterprise customers seeking multi-cloud solutions
• Standardized Integration: Simple API compliance process with clear documentation and support
• Competitive Edge: Join leading providers in offering seamless multi-cloud capabilities
• Enterprise Ready: Meet enterprise requirements for cloud service integration and management

API Reference

Meson (Compute) Endpoints

Endpoints for virtual machine management on the cloud provider. The matcher server listens on port 7777.

Status & Information

• GET /api/v1.0/status - Returns details in plain text format about the Meson provider
• GET /api/v1.0/statusjson - Returns details in JSON format about the Meson provider

VM Management

• GET /api/v1.0/running - List running instances with detailed status information
• GET /api/v1.0/canallocate - Check if a configuration can be allocated on the cloud provider
• POST /api/v1.0/register - Create new instances with specified configurations
• DELETE /api/v1.0/unregister - Remove instances and cleanup resources

Storage Endpoints

Endpoints for disk/volume management on the cloud provider. The storage server listens on port 7772.

Volume Management

• POST /api/v1.0/create - Create a disk on the cloud provider
• POST /api/v1.0/info - Returns information about a disk by volume ID
• POST /api/v1.0/accessible - Returns all visible disks for a client
• POST /api/v1.0/destroy - Delete a disk on the cloud provider
• GET /api/v1.0/cancreate - Check if a volume configuration can be created

PaaS Services

Platform as a Service endpoints for various cloud services. Each service follows a consistent pattern of endpoints.

S3 Object Storage

• POST /api/v1.0/s3/create - Create a new S3 bucket
• GET /api/v1.0/s3/info - Get information about an S3 bucket
• GET /api/v1.0/s3/running - List all S3 buckets
• DELETE /api/v1.0/s3/delete - Delete an S3 bucket

Kubernetes (KAAS)

• POST /api/v1.0/kaas/create - Create a new Kubernetes cluster
• GET /api/v1.0/kaas/info - Get information about a Kubernetes cluster
• GET /api/v1.0/kaas/running - List all Kubernetes clusters
• DELETE /api/v1.0/kaas/delete - Delete a Kubernetes cluster

Load Balancer

• POST /api/v1.0/loadbalancer/create - Create a new load balancer
• GET /api/v1.0/loadbalancer/info - Get information about a load balancer
• GET /api/v1.0/loadbalancer/running - List all load balancers
• DELETE /api/v1.0/loadbalancer/delete - Delete a load balancer

Elastic IP

• POST /api/v1.0/elasticip/create - Create a new elastic IP
• GET /api/v1.0/elasticip/info - Get information about an elastic IP
• GET /api/v1.0/elasticip/running - List all elastic IPs
• DELETE /api/v1.0/elasticip/delete - Delete an elastic IP

Database as a Service (DBaaS)

• POST /api/v1.0/dbaas/create - Create a new database instance
• GET /api/v1.0/dbaas/info - Get information about a database instance
• GET /api/v1.0/dbaas/running - List all database instances
• DELETE /api/v1.0/dbaas/delete - Delete a database instance

SaaS Services

Software as a Service endpoints for managed applications.

Jupyter Notebook

• POST /api/v1.0/jupyter/create - Create a new Jupyter notebook instance
• GET /api/v1.0/jupyter/info - Get information about a Jupyter notebook instance
• GET /api/v1.0/jupyter/running - List all Jupyter notebook instances
• DELETE /api/v1.0/jupyter/delete - Delete a Jupyter notebook instance

Common API Features

Asynchronous Operations

Many endpoints support both synchronous and asynchronous operations via the async header:

• When set to true, the response includes a poolingURL to check operation status
• When set to false, the operation completes before responding

Consistent Response Format

All API responses follow a consistent JSON structure with:

• Resource identifiers (UUIDs)
• Resource metadata
• Operation status
• Error information when applicable