What is Cloud Computing and Who Uses Cloud Services?
What is Cloud Computing?
Cloud computing is the delivery of different services through the Internet. These resources include tools and applications like data storage, servers, databases, networking, and software.
Rather than keeping files on a proprietary hard drive or local storage device, cloud-based storage makes it possible to save them to a remote database. As long as an electronic device has access to the web, it has access to the data and the software programs to run it.
Cloud computing is a popular option for people and businesses for a number of reasons including cost savings, increased productivity, speed and efficiency, performance, and security.
Understanding Cloud Computing
Cloud computing is named as such because the information being accessed is found remotely in the cloud or a virtual space. Companies that provide cloud services enable users to store files and applications on remote servers and then access all the data via the Internet. This means the user is not required to be in a specific place to gain access to it, allowing the user to work remotely.
Cloud computing takes all the heavy lifting involved in crunching and processing data away from the device you carry around or sit and work at. It also moves all of that work to huge computer clusters far away in cyberspace. The Internet becomes the cloud, and voilà—your data, work, and applications are available from any device with which you can connect to the Internet, anywhere in the world.
Cloud computing can be both public and private. Public cloud services provide their services over the Internet for a fee. Private cloud services, on the other hand, only provide services to a certain number of people. These services are a system of networks that supply hosted services. There is also a hybrid option, which combines elements of both the public and private services.
Benefits of Cloud Computing
Cloud platforms offer some significant benefits today, which are driving businesses to adopt Cloud Computing. Those major benefits include:
- Speed
- Cost
- Scalability
- Accessibility
- Better Security
Speed
If you want an IT resource or service from the cloud, it is available almost instantaneously, and ready for production virtually at the same time. This means that the product, service, and the go-live date hit the market almost immediately, a considerable advantage over using a legacy environment. This has helped many businesses’ services generate revenue much sooner after they go live.
Cost
Planning and buying the right kind of hardware has always been a challenge in the traditional legacy environment. If you purchase hardware that doesn’t fit your needs, then chances are you might need to live with that purchase indefinitely. However, this is not an issue with the cloud, since you do not need to buy any hardware. Instead, you pay to use the host’s hardware, and once it does not fit your needs, you can release it and can replace it with a better configuration. In that way, you save a lot of money since you only pay for the time you use
Scalability
In a legacy environment, forecasting demands is a full-time job, but with cloud services, you can easily set up an automated monitoring tool to do the job for you. That information will let you accurately upscale or downscale the rate of work you do depend on the needs.
Accessibility
Cloud Computing allows you to access resources, data, services, and applications from anywhere you want, as long as you are connected to the internet. If you are not connected to the internet, some tools and techniques will allow you to access the cloud whenever needed.
Better Security
Ensuring that your data is stored in a secure, durable place is a priority for all businesses. The cloud provides highly secure storage for customers’ data, yet letting it be accessed anytime and anyplace that it’s required. Also, all data stored in the cloud is encrypted and secured so that it cannot be tampered with.
Let’s now look at the types of cloud computing in this what is cloud computing Bootcamp article.
Types of Cloud Computing
Cloud computing is not a single piece of technology like a microchip or a cellphone. Rather, it’s a system primarily comprised of three services: software-as-a-service (SaaS), infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS), and platform-as-a-service (PaaS).
1.Software-as-a-service (SaaS)
SaaS involves the licensure of a software application to customers. Licenses are typically provided through a pay-as-you-go model or on-demand. This type of system can be found in Microsoft Office’s 365.
2.Infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS)
IaaS involves a method for delivering everything from operating systems to servers and storage through IP-based connectivity as part of an on-demand service. Clients can avoid the need to purchase software or servers, and instead procure these resources in an outsourced, on-demand service. Popular examples of the IaaS system include IBM Cloud and Microsoft Azure.
3.Platform-as-a-service (PaaS)
PaaS is considered the most complex of the three layers of cloud-based computing. PaaS shares some similarities with SaaS, the primary difference being that instead of delivering software online, it is actually a platform for creating software that is delivered via the Internet. This model includes platforms like Salesforce.com and Heroku.
Types of Cloud Services
Regardless of the kind of service, cloud computing services provide users with a series of functions including:
- Storage, backup, and data retrieval
- Creating and testing apps
- Analyzing data
- Audio and video streaming
- Delivering software on demand
Cloud computing is still a fairly new service but is being used by a number of different organizations from big corporations to small businesses, nonprofits to government agencies, and even individual consumers.
Conclusion
With 83% of the total enterprise workload expected to be on the cloud by the year 2020 and 75% of all the non-cloud apps expected to move to the cloud, today’s computing landscape is witnessing a great transition. Most organizations and businesses are finding ways to migrate to the cloud for better storage opportunities, scalability, and various other services that the cloud offers. Even with all of this, the cloud journey for many organizations has just begun, and the future with cloud services looks very bright with endless opportunities to explore.
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