Introduction to Cloud Computing:
The term cloud indicates the network or the internet. In simple terms, the delivery of different types of services like storage, applications, analytics, networking, servers, etc. over the Internet is commonly termed as Cloud Computing. So this implies that let’s say instead of storing files and documents locally on the hard drive, we can store them on a Cloud-based Storage.
Such that, anybody with proper access rights can access those important files and documents. Just he/she needs internet connectivity to connect with the cloud storage. However, Storing files was the one aspect of this technology and there are several others. The technology of Cloud computing exists because of virtualization. Virtualization is the process of creating the virtual type of something like a computer, server, storage device etc. The technical term for that kind of device is Virtual Machine.
Day by day, from common consumers to business owners are adopting this technology because of the numerous benefits which we will see in this post later on. But like every other technology, it has its own set of advantages as well as disadvantages. So, now let’s talk about the types of Cloud Computing.
Types of Cloud Computing:
When we talk about the types of this technology, it is broadly classified into two main types. And they are the Deployment model and Service model. Let’s take the Deployment model first. The deployment model is divided into three main types and they are:
Deployment Model:
Public Cloud:
In this type of Cloud Computing, the platform is shared among the general public with the help of an internet connection. Or in other words, multiple users share the same storage at the same time. Public Cloud works based on the pay-as-per-use model and controlled by the cloud service provider. Examples of Public Cloud include IBM’s Blue Cloud, Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2), Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud and Sun Cloud.
Advantages of Public Cloud :
- Low Cost.
- Quick And Easy setup
- Location Independent.
- Easy to scale and reliable.
Disadvantages of Public Cloud:
- Low Security.
- Less Customizable.
Private Cloud:
Private Cloud is also named as Corporate Cloud or Internal Cloud. In a Private Cloud, the computing services are provided within the organization to selected people rather than the general public. The reason why Private Cloud is better than the Public Cloud is mainly due to the better security and privacy. Examples of Private Cloud Includes Ubuntu, Elastra-private cloud, HP Data Centers and Microsoft. So now, let’s talk about the advantages and disadvantages of a Private Cloud.
Advantages of Private Cloud :
- More Security and Privacy.
- More control over the resources as it is accessed by selected people.
- Better Performance scope in this type of cloud.
Disadvantages of Private Cloud :
- Maintaining a Private Cloud requires highly skilled people.
- Higher cost.
- The area of operation is limited to the organization.
Hybrid Cloud:
Hybrid Cloud is nothing but the combination of Public Cloud as well as Private Cloud. In addition to that, in this type of Cloud, all the non-critical activities are carried out by the Public Cloud. And all the critical activities are carried out by the Private Cloud. Examples of Hybrid Cloud providers are Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Cisco and NetApp.
Advantages of Hybrid Cloud:
- Hybrid Cloud has better flexibility because non-sensitive tasks happen in Public Cloud. And sensitive tasks happen in the Private Cloud.
- It has better security.
- It is cost-effective.
Disadvantage Of Hybrid Cloud:
- In this networking becomes complex because of private and public clouds.
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Service Model:
So now, as per service model ,Cloud Computing is divided into following:
Infrastructure as a Service ( IaaS ) :
IaaS or Infrastructure as a Service is also known by another name which is Hardware as a Service( HaaS ). In this users get a big advantage that he/she does not have to deal with the complexity of managing servers. Also, these resources can be easily scaled as per demand. Example of IaaS are DigitalOcean, Linode, Rackspace, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Cisco Metapod, Microsoft Azure and Google Compute Engine (GCE).
Platform as a Service (PaaS) :
PaaS generally delivers a framework upon which developers create, build and deploy their custom applications. In PaaS, the networking, storage and servers are managed by the firm, While the developers can maintain their apps. So the examples of PaaS are AWS Elastic Beanstalk, Windows Azure, Heroku, Force.com, Google App Engine, Apache Stratos and OpenShift.
Software as a Service (SaaS) :
Software as a Service or SaaS is also known as Cloud Application Services. Major SaaS applications directly run on the web browser and do not require downloading or installing anything on the client-side. SaaS uses an internet connection for the delivery of applications to its users. The most popular examples of SaaS are Google Workspace, Dropbox, Salesforce, Cisco WebEx, Concur and GoToMeeting.
In conclusion, we can say that cloud computing is emerging as the most powerful field of technology that is attracting both enterprises of all sizes, along with common consumers. Let me know what you think about this topic in the comments below. That’s all for this post. Thanks for Reading.
