According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST):
Cloud computing is a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction.
Examples include:
Networks, servers, storage, applications, and services.
In this blog, we will discuss the “five essential characteristics,” “three deployment models,” and “three service models.”
5 Characteristics of Cloud Computing
1. On-demand Self-Service: You can access cloud resources, such as processing power, storage, and networks, as needed through a simple interface without requiring human interaction with the service provider.
2. Broad Network Access: Cloud computing resources are available over the network and can be accessed through standard mechanisms and platforms, such as mobile phones, tablets, laptops, and workstations.
3. Resource Pooling: This provides cloud providers with economies of scale, which they pass on to their customers, making the cloud cost-efficient. Resources are dynamically assigned and reassigned according to demand.
4. Rapid Elasticity: Users can access more resources when they need them and scale back immediately when they do not.
5. Measured Service: Cloud systems automatically control and optimize resource use by leveraging a metering capability. The user only pays for what they actually use.
3 Cloud Deployment Models
1. Public Cloud:
Cloud services are leveraged over the open internet on hardware owned by the cloud provider, but the underlying infrastructure is shared by multiple companies.
2. Private Cloud:
The cloud infrastructure is provisioned for exclusive use by a single organization. It may run on-premises or be owned, managed, and operated by a third-party service provider.
3. Hybrid Cloud:
This is a combination of both public and private clouds, bound together by standardized technology that allows data and applications to be shared between them.
3 Service Models
1. IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service):
Users gain access to infrastructure and physical computing resources, such as servers, networking, and storage, on demand and over the internet on a pay-as-you-go basis. The cloud provider hosts the infrastructure components traditionally found in an on-premises data center, as well as the virtualization and hypervisor layer.
2. PaaS (Platform as a Service):
PaaS is a cloud computing model that provides a complete platform to develop, deploy, run, and manage applications. Users access the platform—including the software and hardware tools needed for development—over the internet.
The PaaS provider hosts everything, including servers, networks, storage, operating systems, application runtimes, APIs, middleware, and databases at their data centers.
3. SaaS (Software as a Service):
SaaS is a software licensing and delivery model in which applications are centrally hosted and licensed on a subscription basis; it is sometimes referred to as “on-demand software.” Common uses for SaaS include:
a. Email and Collaboration: (Microsoft Office 365 and Google’s Gmail)
b. Customer Relationship Management (CRM): (Salesforce and NetSuite)
c. Human Resource and Financial Management: (Workday and SAP SuccessFactors)
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