Cloud storage and services provider OpenStack has launched an iPad app to boost clients tools. Based on the Rackspace Cloud Pro iPad app, the new OpenStack iPad app presents a mobile access point for managing certain aspects of clients’ accounts (read more about Rackspace’s backing of OpenStack here).

The OpenStack iPad app is a front-end project for clients, allowing them to receive updates on the status of your servers, the ability to ping your compute nodes from various global locations, and emailing files from your OpenStack Object Storage. OpenStack explains the app’s integration with Chef and the Opscode Platform, noting

“Our newest feature, made possible by working with people from Opscode, is integration with Chef and the Opscode Platform. Before, when you created a compute node on the iPad, you would then need to log into the node and manually install any software, data, and configurations you may need.

This could take a considerable amount of time and effort for some deployments, but not anymore. If you’re a Chef user, you can configure the iPad app with your Chef or Opscode credentials to automatically run any recipes or role assignments immediately after the node is provisioned. Look ma, no shell!”

Developed around OpenStack’s API, the new iPad app demonstrates the company’s willingness to attend to consumer needs through these kinds of applications. It’s often a necessary tactic for startups, particularly those seeking a certain demographic in an industry where customer-centered ideals are of high value.

OpenStack is among the earliest cloud server companies to create a front-end solution for mobile device account management, largely in part thanks to Rackspace’s initiative in this arena. A mobile app is one of the early ways in which Rackspace has appealed to its client base, presenting a rather useful management tool. I had a chance to see some its best features when meeting Linux Senior Systems Engineer at Rackspace R James Taylor at Social DevCamp in Chicago earlier this summer.

That’s not to say OpenStack will be able to take the easy street, just because it’s launched an iPad app. Cloud computing is getting to be a more crowded industry every day, with each company seeking its own point of differentiation and feature sets to attract new customers.

“Openstack represents and validates the growing movement in open source and it’s role in the cloud market. It’s early in the cloud game,” says John Furrier. “Although companies like VMware and EMC are dominating virtualization, new players are emerging and openstack can possibly catchup fast to the market leaders. One good way to look at the OpenStack opportunity is to look no further than what Google did with Android. In record time Android has moved into position to challenge Apple in smartphones in terms of developer momentum and market share. Why? It’s all about open standards and building an ecosystem.

“Openstack, if adopted by the developer community, could quickly be a force and market leading platform. If Openstack fizzles and fails to gain momentum then it will be just another overhyped effort to get an angle on the cloud infrastructure. At the end of the day it’s all about enabling new applications and services. The end user experience will be the ultimate guage on if OpenStack will succeed.”