Before you ask me ‘What is Cloud technology?” let me tell you Cloud technology has dragged us to the crossroads of IT world. Whether to employ the loud or go with traditional IT techniques is the question every entrepreneur is asking. The success of cloud has been immense. Despite the fears of it being not a secure model it has taken the market by the scruff of its neck.
Ever since sales force made the cloud commercially viable, it has made humongous strides towards an unparalleled success. And believe or not it has reached the pinnacle of IT at this moment. Every big IT player is investing in the technology and is aggressively trying to take over the major stakes in the field.
Many people out there in the market claim that cloud is the biggest technology that our generation has seen in recent times. They say this because of the wide range of features offered by the cloud which we are already versed with. What we don’t have is the more knowledge about the types of service models offered by the cloud. In this article we will discuss about such models.
The models are basically of 3 types. These are:
1. IaaS: IaaS stands for infrastructure as a service. In this service the cloud host provides the infrastructure on which the company’s IT needs are serviced. The outsourced company is responsible for supports, maintenance, servers and hardware of the company. The provider charges on the pay per use basis.
Following factors characterizes IaaS:
- Automated administration
- Billing model
- Virtualization of the desktop
- Connectivity
These are some of the important benefits of IaaS:
a) The effective channelization of IT: With the model of IaaS the IT department is able to shift focus on core operations rather than focusing on the peripheral support services.
b) Stress free operation: When the infrastructure is provided as a service, the firm does not have to worry about routine up gradation or scaling. These issues are dealt by the provider giving user a hassle free experience.
c) Multiple users: The same infrastructure can be used by more than one user making the use of the equipment efficient.
d) Helps in Companies to go green: With the help of IaaS companies can reduce their carbon footprint as the servers are not run on their electricity and the power conservation is of a very high order.
2. SaaS: Software as a service or SaaS is a model in which software is hosted by the provider. In this model the company doesn’t have to buy the software, but they rent it. SaaS allows organizations to use the software at a cost which is much less than that of licensed software. It reduces the need of up gradation or installation of patches. The maintenance overhead is also reduced.
Characteristics of SaaS are:
- Secure
- Straightforward cost proposition
- Sales model
The benefits of SaaS include:
a) Installation Time: The installation time and cost is saved in the SaaS model. Service is obtained fairly quickly and easily. Moreover time and energy spent in installation and up gradation is also saved.
b) Cost effective: The renting the software is much simpler and cheaper option as compared to the buying the licensed software. The cloud based software also helps in real time reviewing of the work done on the project.
c) Customization: The provider gives a lot of options according to which the software can be customized. The service is also available on wide range of Operating systems making integration even simpler.
3. PaaS: In platform as a Service or PaaS the company rents hardware, storage capacity and networking on an internet connection. This allows the companies to test and model their prototypes on virtualized servers. This is different from IaaS as the host not just provides the hardware but also the application development environment.
The PaaS is characterized by:
- Multi-tenant architecture
- Customizable user interface
- Robust workflow
- Flexible integration model
The key benefits of PaaS are:
a) Investment cost is saved: The application developers don’t need to spend on hardware required to test their prototypes. This enables them to channelize their whole effort and capital in developing rather than concerning themselves with hardware issues.
b) Flexible: The users can customize rented platform according to their needs. They can choose the features they want in their environment.
c) Scalable: The hardware requirements can be scaled according to the needs.
d) Data Security: The testing environment provided by the host is highly secure. There is no chance of someone getting hold of your design and using it maliciously.
Conclusion - We saw the three basic models along with their characteristics and benefits that are there in cloud computing. The success of each model is determined by the environment in which it is being deployed. All three have created a good market for themselves and is continuing to create waves in the tech world.
Author Bio:
Renuka Rana, Editor at AceCloudHosting.Com spends considerable part of her time in writing about technology including cloud computing, Smartphones and hosted PBX. When not writing, she loves to dig deeper into knowing the best and the latest technology in industry
