Cloud computing is a very broad and all-encompassing term. It means that your data and applications are hosted remotely, usually over the internet, instead of on a device you have in your home or at work. This can be a scary proposition for some. Yet, with so many of us relying on the cloud every single day, it’s important that we understand its use and implications. Let’s cover some basics first before getting into what cloud computing means from a practical perspective.
In a nutshell, what is cloud computing?
People often ask “What is cloud computing?” and the answer is pretty simple. Generally speaking, cloud computing means storing and accessing data and programs over the Internet instead of your computer’s hard drive.
What are the benefits of cloud computing?
There are multiple and varied benefits to using cloud computing in the enterprise. In fact, many companies rely solely on the public cloud. The biggest benefit is that it reduces or eliminates the need for a company to buy and maintain its own hardware and software.
Instead, you simply use what you need from the cloud provider. This can lower costs, since you aren’t paying for something if you don’t need it. It also reduces downtime, as you don’t have to deal with outages in your own data center; however, this can be a double-edged sword, as outages at public cloud providers can take down your systems as well.
It also allows for greater flexibility, as it’s relatively easy to add or subtract resources depending on business needs.
Finally, it frees up your IT staff to work on other projects instead of maintaining servers, installing patches and troubleshooting issues like disk failures.
What are the different types of cloud computing?
Cloud computing can be divided into three major services: Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). SaaS is the most widely used form of cloud computing — it allows users to access applications over the Internet. PaaS provides development environments for application creation via the Internet, while IaaS provides virtual servers and storage on demand.
Are there hidden costs with cloud computing?
Cloud service providers typically charge customers based on what they use. They bill users based on the following factors:
CPU usage
Storage capacity used
Bandwidth consumed
That means you’re not paying for storage space that is sitting idle. However, the price per CPU hour or per GB of storage may vary depending on the scale of usage. For example, you’d be charged Rs 1/GB for 1000 GB but Rs 0.5/GB for 10,000 GB in a month.
How does cloud computing work, from an end-user perspective?
Cloud computing is here to stay. Many companies, large and small, have adopted this technology to some extent. But how does cloud computing work, from an end-user perspective?
The rise of the cloud has led to a significant shift in the way that companies manage their IT infrastructure. Cloud solutions offer much more flexibility than traditional on-premise hardware and software. They are available on demand, and you can scale up or down as your business needs change. You can also access your data from anywhere in the world, which makes it easier for teams to collaborate remotely (this is particularly useful since many employees now work from home).
One of the best things about cloud computing is its accessibility: it’s possible to get started with a simple website or app on a platform like Amazon Web Services (AWS) without needing any technical knowledge whatsoever. There are already millions of developers using AWS for their projects, so if you want advice or support then there’s plenty out there already!
Where can one use cloud computing? With what devices or programs?
Google Drive
Dropbox
iCloud
Microsoft OneDrive
How can I know if a site is using the cloud? How do I know if my own site is using the cloud?
Does the website offer unlimited disk space and bandwidth? If so, it’s probably using the cloud.
Does the website offer at least ten gigabytes of disk space? This is a strong indicator that it’s using cloud computing. The larger web hosting companies are all using the cloud, either exclusively or in addition to traditional hardware.
If you want to check your own website’s usage of cloud computing, take a look at your access logs. Are you getting more than ten gigabytes per day in traffic? If so, you may be using the cloud.
The next time you visit a website, ask yourself these questions. Do they seem like they’re running on a traditional server? Is there an increase in performance? These are all indicators that the site is likely running on a virtualized platform such as Amazon EC2 or Rackspace Cloud Servers.
The Cloud Computing phenomenon has been underway for a few years now and there are many questions about the technology, how it works and its implications. Here we try to get to the bottom of it, what is it, how does it work and interview a few experts along the way…
