Google Cloud Projects are entities that help organize all the components inside of GCP.
This blog will explain projects in Google Cloud Platform and then demonstrate how to create, modify, and delete a Google Cloud project.
This blog post covers the following topics:
- Introduction to Projects
- Need For Projects
- Components of a Project
- Permissions in Projects
- Working With Projects
- Creating a Project
- Updating a Project
- Deleting a Project
Introduction To Projects
While most cloud platforms make use of a one-to-one mapping between the user account and service used, GCP requires the creation of a separate project to do the same. That project then becomes the organizing entity for all the work that would be done on the platform.
All resources that one uses in the Google Cloud Platform are part of a specific project. This includes all storage buckets, Compute instances, monitoring and logging data, App Engine instances, etc. The associated permissions for these resources also reside in the project that they are part of.
Need For Projects
In a lot of cases in cloud computing, one might be required to have certain components isolated from each other. For example, if an organization wants to host both the public & private parts of its hybrid system on the same cloud account, it is very important that those two are not aware of each other. A similar situation might be present if the company has tasks from different clients that both run on the same account in the cloud.
The solution to this is a feature called “Project Isolation“. Google Cloud Projects are designed while keeping that in mind so that one does not face any interference while handling separate types of workloads. All resources in different projects are fully separated from each other and have nil awareness of each other. This provides higher security for all the resources and parties involved.
Google Cloud Project Components
A project is made of three parts:
- Project Name
This is a common alphabetical name of the project, provided by the user. It helps the user identify which project they are working on. - Project ID
This is an alphanumeric ID based on the project name. It can be changed by the user, or left as default. The project ID is unique across the whole of Google Cloud. Even when a project is deleted, the associated Project ID cannot be used by any new project. - Project Number
This is a numeric value set by Google to identify the projects from the backend. This value is also unique across the whole of Google Cloud.
Additionally, each project is also associated with a Billing Account. This is where the charges of all services used in the project (compute instances, VPC networks, etc.) are cumulated. A project may share its Billing Account with other projects, which means multiple projects can have the same billing account.
Permissions In Projects
A project is the second layer in an IAM resource hierarchy. Under a project comes various resources. And every project is part of an organization. The organization may have one or more projects under it. It is possible to migrate a project into another organization by changing the respective IAM policies.
Working With Projects
To work with GCP components, we need to create a Google account first. You can start by creating a free-tier account with $300 worth of free credits for 90 days, which can be used while working on various features of Google Cloud.
Once you have created your free trial account, you can explore the options available in the Google Cloud Console.
Now before you create any service like compute engine or storage account, you will need a Project where you can create all your resources – so here are the steps to create, update, and delete a project.
Steps To Create A Project
Step 1: In the console, click on the drop-down arrow in the Project tab.
Step 2: Then click on the NEW PROJECT option
Step 3: Give the project name and Organization (Default-No Organization) and click on CREATE.
NOTE: A Project ID will be created which cannot be updated or edited once the project is created. So, if you wish to edit the project ID then do so before clicking on Create option.
Step 4: You can see the project creation status in the notification bar.
Steps To Update A Project
Projects in the Google Cloud Platform can be updated via either the Cloud Console or the projects.patch() method. As of now, only two attributes of a project can be edited – the name and the labels associated with it. To update a project, follow these steps:
Step 1: Go to the Settings page from the dashboard, and select PROJECT SETTINGS.
Step 2: This will lead you to the IAM & Admin Settings, from where you can change the Project name.
Step 3: To edit the labels of a project, you need to go to the hamburger menu on the left. From the list that pops up, select IAM & ADMIN, followed by LABELS.
Step 4: On the page that opens up, you can edit the labels associated with the project (or add new labels in case there are no labels already).
Steps To Delete A Project
Once you are done with your practice, you can delete the project so that if any default resources are deployed they can be deleted directly to save your account credits. To delete an existing project, follow these steps.
Step 1: Go to the Settings page from the dashboard and select PROJECT SETTINGS.
Step 2: If you have multiple projects running, select the project you want to delete. Then click on SHUT DOWN.
Step 3: A window will pop up, asking you to enter the Project ID. Enter the project ID to confirm the deletion, and click on the SHUT DOWN button.
And finally, your project is deleted.
Conclusion
We saw that projects form a very integral part of GCP functioning, providing a platform for all resources to co-exist, while also ensuring they are isolated from resources in other projects. Projects also allow for an easier way for IAM permissions to be given or edited. Finally, projects ensure higher security by ensuring Project Isolation.
FAQs
Can I use GCP without projects?
No, all of Google Cloud Platform's features and functionalities - including access to resources - are tied to projects. One must have at least one project active in their account to work on GCP
Is there a limit on the number of projects?
Yes, there is a set quota that decides the maximum number of projects that can be associated with an account. However, if there is a need, an increase in that quota may be requested.
Can the Billing Account of a project be changed?
Yes, the Billing Account linked to a project can be changed through the Billing tab.
Related References
- GCP Professional Cloud Architect: Everything You Need To Know
- Google Cloud Services & Tools
- Google Cloud Functions
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If you are also interested and want to know more about the Google Professional Cloud Architect certification, register for our Free Class.
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