Cloud computing is an internet based computer technology that provides services to users over the cloud. In simple words, cloud computing involves delivering computing services like servers, storage, databases, software etc. over the Internet.
Cloud computing offers rapid innovation, flexible resources and above all economies of scale. A user has to pay only for the cloud services used. This helps in lowering their overall operating costs, running their infrastructure more efficiently and scalability for business whenever required.
How does cloud computing work?
With cloud computing, instead of owning a robust computing infrastructure or data centers, businesses can rent everything from applications to storage to networking platforms from a cloud service provider.
The key benefit of cloud computing services is that companies do not have to bear any upfront cost of owning and maintaining their own IT infrastructure. They have to only pay for the infrastructure used and when they use it.
At the same time, cloud vendors can benefit from significant economies of scale as they can deliver the same services to a diverse range of customers.
With Cloud computing services, employees have more flexibility in their work practices. They can access data from their homes or when they are on holiday or while commuting.
The business can easily scale up or scale down its operations and storage requirements to suit the situation, allowing flexibility and scalability.
Protecting data and systems is very important for a business. In case of a natural disaster, power failure or any other outward situation, having data stored and backed up in the cloud ensures protection and security.
Cloud computing allows businesses to access their data easily, minimizing any downtime and loss of productivity.
What are the types of cloud computing?
When we talk about cloud computing, it can be confusing as there are many types of clouds available. To understand the different types of cloud computing, one needs to first understand the different types of clouds and their capabilities.
- Public cloud: A public cloud is a collection of readily available compute resources like networking, memory, central processing unit (CPU) and storage. These compute resources are hosted in the cloud vendor’s fully managed data centers located across the globe. Users can rent these resources to build their IT infrastructure.
- Private cloud: Private organizations own and use private clouds. Private clouds are traditionally located at the company’s own data center using its hardware.
- Hybrid Cloud: A hybrid cloud is the great combination of public and private cloud elements that are securely connected over the internet through a virtual private network (VPN) or a dedicated private channel.
The three main types of cloud computing are:
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
Infrastructure as a Service popularly known as IaaS offers the basic building blocks for cloud Infrastructure. It involves providing access to networking features, physical or virtual infrastructure and data storage space.
IaaS offers the business the highest level of flexibility and management control over IT resources. IaaS includes providing cloud-based services through a subscription model.
- Platform as a Service (PaaS)
With Platforms as a service (PaaS), organizations can easily manage their infrastructure including hardware and operating systems. They only have to focus on the deployment and management of the applications.
This helps the business to be more efficient as they don’t have to worry about procuring resources, capacity planning, maintaining the software or any other issues involved in running the application.
- Software as a Service (SaaS)
With Software as a Service, the cloud provider offers a completed product including its running and management. Software-as-a-service (SaaS) involves delivering on-demand software applications through the Cloud on a pay-as-you-go basis.
A cloud services provider is responsible for managing the Cloud infrastructure and offers various SaaS applications over the internet that are accessible through a web browser. These SaaS applications can be accessed on multiple devices from anywhere through the internet.
The Cloud is supposed to be one of the most evolving and fast growing technologies. It enables automated backups, whereby securing the organizational data. With the Cloud, there is a flawless transition between several devices as it provides multi-user support for both existing and new applications.
Data Types in Cloud Computing
With the amount of data increasing day by day, cloud computing now requires innovative and competent data types to store them. Some of the different data types used in cloud computing are emails, contracts, images, blogs, text, Boolean, decimal, locale, number, date etc.
The different data types define which operations can be safely performed for creating, transforming and using the variable in another computation.
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We offer a wide range of cloud solutions that are suitable for all types of businesses and their needs. We understand the increasing communication needs and offer wide-ranging cloud solution options that can help to keep a business going.