Introduction to cloud computing

             Cloud computing is the delivery of on-demand computing resources like applications, infrastructure etc. over the Internet on a pay-for-use basis. There are so many vendors provides cloud services like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Google cloud services etc. The term ‘Public Cloud’ is used to refer such services. A private cloud on the other hand will be directly managed by the business entity.

Infrastructure as a service (IaaS)

       Infrastructure as a service provides companies with computing resources including servers, networking, storage, and data center space on a pay-per-use basis. You can manage the OS,Applications and data.

The benefits of IaaS

• No need to invest in your own hardware
• It enables you to quickly configure network resources hosted by someone else.
• Infrastructure scales on demand to support dynamic workloads
• You can subscribe new or unsubscribe existing service based on demand

Platform as a service (PaaS)

   It enables you to access a software development platform hosted in the cloud. Here you manage only the applications and data. The OS, Network and storage will be manged by the cloud provider.

The benefits of PaaS

• Develop applications and get to market faster
• Deploy new web applications to the cloud in minutes

Software as a service (SaaS)

Cloud-based applications run on distant computers that are owned and operated by others and that connect to user computers via the Internet and, usually, a web browser. Office 365, Adobe creative cloud etc are examples of SaaS.

The benefits of SaaS. It will be completely managed by the vendor.

• You can sign up and rapidly start using innovative business apps
• Apps and data are accessible from any connected computer
• No data is lost if your computer breaks, as data is in the cloud
• The service is able to dynamically scale to usage needs

   You can opt for public cloud, if your requirements are dynamic and client connections are from many different locations. If your requirements are limited or you have a single or limited site offices, it is better to have an in-house data center. As cloud relies on Internet, if you have issues with internet connectivity, all your cloud based services will not be accessible.