In this tutorial, we will start with what is cloud computing. Introduction to cloud computing and learning various cloud service models which are there in cloud computing. We will also discuss popular cloud providers in the industry.
Here are the highlights of this blog post that you will learn.
- Introduction to Cloud Computing
- Cloud Service Models
- Introduction to Cloud Providers
What Is Cloud Computing?
Cloud computing is the practice of using remote servers on the internet for carrying out our tasks instead of using our own computers. Let’s say for example you want to access your data (your work) from anywhere, any location, or any device, you can do this by storing your data on Cloud server and get the freedom of accessing your data from anywhere and any location and any device like a tablet, mobile or your laptop.
The other benefit of using cloud computing is you get more computer (CPU) power, more resources and it can be added as much as required because cloud computing is a group of computers (servers).
Some of the most popular cloud providers is Google Cloud, Amazon Web Server (AWS) and Microsoft Azure.
You can configure the cloud server as per your requirement like selecting CUP, RAM and billing cycle as per your requirement. It’s like renting the server from a cloud provider as long as you want. You can also upgrade/downgrade hardware configuration as those servers are scalable and cancel at any time if you don’t require it anymore.
Few Examples of Using Cloud Servers Are:
Amazon uses AWS cloud server for amazon prime to store their movies and web series videos. Even Netflix is also using AWS for the same.
SalesForce, one of the world’s largest CRM providers, using cloud technology to store applications and customer data.
Even Software Company like Adobe has adopted cloud technology and sifted their software from desktop version to online cloud platform to stop software piracy and this also resulted in increasing their review by subscription module.
Cloud Computing Models
There are two types of model cloud computing follows:
- Deployment Models
- Public Cloud
- Private Cloud
- Hybrid Cloud
- Service Models
- Infrastructure as a service
- Platform as a service
- Software as a service
Let’s talk about deployment models first. How can you deploy your app on the cloud? What are the various ways you can deploy your application on the cloud platform.
Options Available in Deployment Models
1. Public Cloud
Public cloud is defined as a computing service offered by cloud providers on the internet, making them available for anyone to purchase.
A public cloud is basically a place wherein you have one server rack. It’s a group of machines and it’s shared by all customers of the cloud providers.
It’s cost-effective and you have the ability to upgrade or downgrade your plan anytime as per your requirement.
2. Private Cloud
Private Cloud refers to a model of cloud computing where IT services are provisioned over private IT infrastructure for the dedicated use of a single organization.
Private cloud is also a group of machines that act as one server and is only dedicated to you. In fact it’s not shared with any other customers. You can have your own selected softwares/ application get installed and configured as per your requirements.
Private cloud is mostly used by big companies whereas security is their primary concern and have a big budget to spend on cloud servers.
3. Hybrid Cloud
Hybrid Cloud is a cloud computing environment that uses a mix of on-premises, private cloud and third-party, public cloud services with orchestration between the two platforms.
It’s basically a mixture of public and private clouds. For example, I want to deploy my website on the public cloud as it’s accessible to the whole world and database on the private cloud for security concerns. This type of deployment is called the hybrid cloud.
Service Models
Now let’s talk about service models. There are three different modes of service models. Let’s talk about each.
1. You Can Have Infrastructure as a Service by Cloud Provider
Infrastructure as a service refers to providing complete access to the server’s OS. Typically, laas provides hardware, storage, servers and data center space or network components. It may also include software.
2. You Can Have Platform as a Service by Cloud Provider
In platform as a service, one does not get access to the whole operating system. Rather access is given at a dashboard level, where a user uploads the data and the rest is taken care by the cloud provider.
3. You Can Have Software as a Service by Cloud Provider
Software as a service refers to the practice of directly providing the software to the customer without making any server or dashboard available to them.
Below is a chart to understand in what type of service you manage and what is managed by your provider.
So these were three cloud computing models that you have to work on.
Cloud Web Hosting
Even web hosting providers are switching their services from traditional servers to cloud hosting. This results in an increase in the loading speed and performance of the client’s website stored on the cloud. As the cloud is scalable they can easily upgrade their hardware without any downtime upon requirement.
Cloud hosting is the current buzz of the hosting industry. It’s just a marketing term and “Cloud” can mean different things in different contexts. Hosting means a group of computers working together, running applications using a group of computing resources. It’s a hosting solution that works via a network, like an internet, and enables companies to consume computing resource like a utility e.g. gas or electricity.
Using as much as they need without having to build and maintain their own computing infrastructure in-house. The resources required for maintaining your website are spread across more than one web server, reducing the chance of any downtime due to server failure.
Cloud-based hosting is scalable, meaning your site can grow over time, using as many resources as it requires and you only pay for what you need.
Some of the popular cloud hosting provider is Hostwinds, HostMines, InterServer, etc..
