It is so convenient to store data in the cloud, most people do the same. It is accessible. It is easier. And there are a lot of benefits cloud computing offers. It stores information on the cloud rather than the local servers, making it cost-effective.
With that, the use of Big Data is getting popular each day. The data sets are huge and complex in volume, speed, and variations. All these links give adequate performance, all-time accessibility of resources, swift implementation, and cost-efficiency.
The whooping utilization of the tech also increases the risk and doubts about data security. With the growing prevalence of cloud computing and its remarkable ability to improve your activities' reach and efficiency, it is a big win.
In 2023, a study forecasted that cybercriminals will continue to aim at the cloud to gain access to sensitive information. This could include customer data, financial records, and proprietary business intelligence.
Although it has data safety doubts to put your big data in a public place, SSL encryption is required for big data security in cloud computing.
SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption is a technology used to protect the data transmission between a user's web browser and a website's server. In cloud computing servers, it does the same. It is particularly applied to protect data communications within cloud-based infrastructure.
When a user finds ‘https://’ https://'in the initial of the URL and a padlock icon in the address bar, they are relieved as that indicates that the connection is safe. SSL encryption in cloud computing is for holding the privacy, integrity, and authenticity of data within cloud-based environments.
SSL encryption is fundamental for protecting sensitive data like passwords, credit card information, credentials of users, personal data, etc. It's widely used in numerous applications, including online banking, e-commerce, email services, etc.
There are numerous levels of validation, ranging from bare minimum validation to thorough background investigations. An SSL certificate in any of these validations offers the same level of encryption. There are various types of SSL certificates.
Let's look at some of the security risks of cloud computing.
Data loss can result from accidental deletion, corruption, or a catastrophic event. While cloud providers implement backup and redundancy measures, it's still possible for data to be permanently lost if not properly managed.
Data breaches are nothing new nowadays, especially when it's about sensitive data where unauthorized parties access it. In a cloud system, fragile access controls, unsuitable configurations, or vulnerabilities in the cloud user's infrastructure may lead to it.
Inadequate access to the website leads to unauthorized users getting access to personal and sensitive data. That happens due to no proper configuration, and therefore credentials are leaked.
Cloud services often have website-based interfaces that allow users to oversee their resources. It is possible that those resources could be exploited.
In a multi-tenant cloud system, various users share a common infrastructure. If there are vulnerabilities in the tech, one tenant's actions could affect others.
APIs are used to link numerous services within a cloud environment. When these APIs are not accurately protected, they can become vulnerable points for assailants to exploit.
SSL encryption is crucial in securing big data in cloud computing infrastructure. Here's how SSL environments served in this context:
SSL certificates ensure that data transmitted between a user's device and the cloud server is encrypted. This encryption makes it hard for unauthorized users to intervene and decipher the data transmission.
Without encryption, data sent over various networks can be obstructed by spiteful actors through approaches like packet sniffing. SSL regulates this by encrypting the information, rendering it useless to anyone who intercepts it without the proper decryption code.
Various elements or services may process data. SSL ensures that data stays encrypted throughout this procedure, from the starting request to the output.
Big data often comprises sensitive and precious data. By utilizing SSL, organizations can make sure that this information is protected from unauthorized access, safeguarding it from potential threats.
In big data apps, audiences often need to log in and follow a particular authentication process to access the info and examine it. This forbids attacks from stealing or tampering with these credentials.
Besides, SSL also ensures its integrity. This shows that if any irrelevant modification happens during communication, the data becomes invalid, modifying both the sender and receiver that affecting has taken place.
SSL encryption permits the business to oversee the procedure of managing and transmitting sensitive data strictly. SSL encryption assists firms in complying with these regulations, decreasing the risk of legal consequences.
While cloud service providers execute their security traits, SSL offers an extra layer of security. It ensures that the data remains secure even if there are vulnerabilities or risks within the cloud infrastructure.
So, this is why SSL encryption is a crucial component in the overall security strategy for big data in cloud computing. It shields data at every step, from communication and processing to storage, assisting firms in maintaining the confidentiality and integrity of their sensitive information.
This is all about SSL encryption in securing big data in cloud computing. It is one the most essential parts of an organization's security approaches for security business and user information. As the security standards improve each time, you must upgrade for SSL encryption as well.
With cloud computing effectively becoming the norm in the world of IT over the past decade, it’s no surprise that the management of the diverse infrastructures and resources it represents has risen to prominence as a process and a professional calling.
So what is cloud management exactly, what does it involve, how can it be handled efficiently, and what are the career prospects for anyone who flirts with this field?
Cloud management refers to the administrative control over public, private and hybrid cloud services. Its primary purpose is to optimally manage scalability, workload make-up, performance and security so that these services run as intended.
In short, it's about utilizing various tools and technologies to maintain order across a collection of applications and infrastructures within your system environment.
If left unchecked, cloud infrastructures can descend into chaos, so adhering closely to comprehensive planning processes that prioritize proactive responses to problems is a must. It’s one of the cornerstones of cloud management, but there are others, as we’ll discover.
Managing your cloud environment effectively involves harnessing multiple critical elements that work together to optimize system performance, data management and error mitigation. Here are the central aspects involved:
Scalability: This ensures your systems can handle increased workloads without affecting performance.
Monitoring: Regular checks on operational infrastructures track performance metrics and flag potential issues.
Security Management: This is essential in protecting data integrity through stringent access control and threat detection measures.
Capacity Planning: Designing networks to accommodate future growth while maintaining current efficiency levels is crucial too, and also applies to storage needs.
Disaster recovery planning is another pivotal component for enabling quick system repair or recovery after an incident. With these aspects under your belt, you can manage complex cloud platforms effectively, so it’s a great stride towards enhancing overall business productivity.
The complexities of cloud environment management necessitate powerful tools that can handle diverse tasks in sophisticated, user-friendly ways. Here's a glance at some essential technologies packed with comprehensive features to streamline your cloud operations:
Management Platforms: Comprehensive applications like Microsoft Azure and VMware vRealize offer visibility into various resources across multiple clouds.
Automation Software: Tools like Chef Automate and Puppet Enterprise handle repetitive tasks swiftly, increasing efficiency and minimizing human errors.
Performance Monitoring Tools: Services such as SolarWinds and Dynatrace identify bottlenecks and security vulnerabilities, thus assisting with seamless service delivery.
Among these assorted capabilities are certain focused utilities tailored for specific needs, such as tools catering explicitly towards hybrid cloud and Meraki management . Such specialized software solutions permit seamless interoperability within respective infrastructures, targeting critical issues in those realms alone. This includes aspects of management like optimizing resource sharing between private and public cloud configurations, or simplifying wireless control systems respectively.
With a blend of general-purpose applications alongside task-specific ones, you can uphold superior performance with higher efficiency levels, even in taxing scenarios.
Choosing cloud management as your career path means developing specific skills to flourish. These include:
Technical Proficiency: Understanding software, networking capabilities, and different types of cloud architectures (like IaaS, PaaS and SaaS ) is a bare minimum requirement.
Security Savviness: With cyber threats an ever-present risk, security knowledge in areas including encryption protocols and threat mitigation becomes another base level ability.
Cloud Systems Administration: Familiarity with managing system resources on platforms like AWS or Microsoft Azure will set you up to wow would-be employers.
Also vital are problem-solving skills, as these help you offer up inventive solutions when fighting fires as a cloud manager. And of course adaptability is central to specialists in this fast-paced sector. With its dynamic potential and constant evolution, these skills can open up diverse job opportunities.
Automation has become a pivotal mechanism that's profoundly transforming the way cloud systems are managed. The benefits include:
Efficiency: Automated processes mean fewer resources spent on repetitive tasks, freeing up time for more strategic duties.
Accuracy: Eliminating human involvement avoids errors that are an inevitable part of manual processes, providing notably higher accuracy levels, as well as overall consistency.
Optimized Resource Allocation: Automation allows for dynamic resource management, helping to prevent wastage and maintain optimal performance.
Considering all these merits, modern automation tools like those mentioned above can catalyze things like simplifying coding update rollouts across different platforms, while also promptly identifying system irregularities without any administrative intervention.
The speed with which the cloud ecosystem is changing may provide appealing benefits, but it’s also known for throwing up complications and unforeseen downsides. Let’s take a look at some common challenges and how to overcome them:
Security Concerns: Encrypt data, implement stringent access control, and adopt threat detection tools to maintain robust security measures.
Managing Costs: Plan capacity wisely, and embrace automation for efficient resource usage to curb unwarranted expenses.
Compliance with Regulations: Keeping systems updated in line with ever-evolving technological standards is crucial. You can outsource or develop an internal legal-IT department if needed in this context.
The roadblocks you'll encounter won’t be easy to route around, but they don't spell the end either. Coping well involves planning wisely, and cloud management experts know how to do this better than most.
The rising wave of cloud computing isn't slowing down, offering an array of opportunities for aspiring professionals. These include:
Cloud Solutions Architect: Designing systems on a large scale to facilitate smooth cloud operation demands creativity, foresight.
Cloud Systems Administrator: Maintaining and upgrading system efficiency is a crucial task often tackled by these professionals.
Security Analysts: With digital threats ever-present, specialists who can secure data integrity are becoming increasingly sought after.
Basically, if you get into cloud management, your career can lead you in all sorts of directions, and the skills you develop will be transferable, even if there is a need for a lot of specialized training.
This introductory overview of cloud management is a good jumping-off point for further research, so if you’re currently rethinking your career and it sounds appealing, get stuck in to see what opportunities are out there, or what changes you could implement in your organization to optimize how cloud resources are deployed.
The digital age has ushered in a new era of computing, and at the core of this transformation is cloud computing. Whether you're sending emails, streaming videos, or running a global enterprise, there are high possibilities you're already benefiting from the power of the cloud. For those venturing into the dynamic field of cloud computing or striving to sharpen their expertise, the right book can be an invaluable guide. I have benefitted from many books that throw light on the fundamentals of cloud computing, making the dynamic field of cloud computing interpretable and accessible.
This article is your guide to the finest cloud computing books, carefully curated to direct both beginners and seasoned individuals in the field. Read on to explore these literary companions that illustrate the fascinating cloud technology domain in the best way possible.
Cloud computing technology refers to the use of remote servers hosted on the internet to store, manage, and process data and applications rather than relying on local computing resources or on-premises servers.
Cloud computing works by providing access to various computing resources and services over the Internet:
Cloud computing operates by granting instant access to a shared pool of computing resources via the internet. Here's a simplified breakdown of its functioning:
Virtualization: Cloud providers employ virtualization to create virtual instances of physical hardware, allowing multiple virtual servers to run on one physical server.
Data Centers: Cloud providers maintain vast data centers worldwide, served with servers, storage, and networking equipment, ensuring reliability and low-latency access.
Service Models:
IaaS: Users rent virtualized hardware resources like virtual machines, storage, and networks, with control over software configurations.
PaaS: Users develop, run, and manage applications without worrying about infrastructure, as the provider handles the underlying components.
SaaS: Users access software applications directly through the internet without managing the underlying infrastructure or software.
Deployment Models:
Public Cloud: Resources owned by third-party providers are accessible to the public online.
Private Cloud: Resources exclusively serve a single organization, hosted either on-site or by a third party.
Hybrid Cloud: Combines public and private resources, facilitating data and application sharing.
Community Cloud: Shared by multiple organizations with common concerns, such as security or compliance.
User Interaction: Users access cloud resources through web browsers, command-line interfaces, or dedicated software applications provided by the cloud provider.
Scalability: Cloud services are highly scalable. Users can modify resources to meet demand, optimize performance, and control costs.
Pay-as-You-Go: Cloud services operate on a pay-as-you-go or subscription basis, with users paying only for the resources they consume, eliminating upfront investments.
Security and Compliance: Robust security measures, data encryption, and access controls help safeguard user data and ensure adherence to regulations.
Maintenance and Updates: Cloud providers manage routine maintenance, updates, and patches for infrastructure, reducing user burdens.
Aspiring to enter the field of cloud computing or aiming to advance your career, learning from an esteemed e-learning provider is a strategic move. KnowledgeHut's cloud computing course learning path
is a well-structured program to familiarize students with a deep knowledge of cloud technologies. Starting with foundational concepts, it progresses to cover advanced cloud architecture, security, and optimization topics. Practical exercises and hands-on labs provide valuable experience in implementing cloud solutions to make learners well-prepared for real-world scenarios.
Dive into the fundamentals of cloud technology with these finest beginner-friendly books.
"Explain the Cloud Like I’m 10" by Todd Hoff
Overview: Todd Hoff's book takes a unique approach to demystifying cloud computing by presenting complex concepts in a way that even a 10-year-old can grasp. It employs simple language, analogies, and relatable examples to break down the cloud's intricacies.
Topics Covered:
The book introduces readers to the fundamental concept of cloud computing and its significance in the modern world.
Covers essential cloud terminology and concepts for readers to understand key terms like servers, data centers, and virtualization.
Readers learn about the mechanics of cloud computing, including data storage, accessibility, and scalability.
Highlights the advantages of cloud computing, such as cost-efficiency, accessibility, and flexibility.
"The Basics of Cloud Computing: Understanding the Fundamentals of Cloud Computing in Theory and Practice" by Derrick Rountree and Ileana Castrillo
Overview: Derrick Rountree and Ileana Castrillo provide a comprehensive introduction to cloud computing for beginners and those seeking deeper insights. The book covers a wide range of topics, from theory to real-world applications.
Topics Covered:
The authors explain the different service models, including Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS).
Readers gain an understanding of cloud deployment options, including public, private, and hybrid clouds.
It delves into cloud security considerations, risks, and best practices for safeguarding data in the cloud.
Compliance requirements and governance frameworks for cloud environments are covered.
Case studies and real-world examples illustrate how organizations are benefiting from cloud computing.
"Cloud Computing for Dummies" by Judith S. Hurwitz, Robin Bloor, and Marcia Kaufman
Overview: As part of the renowned "For Dummies" series, this book provides a beginner-friendly introduction to cloud computing. It offers clear explanations, practical insights, and guidance for individuals and businesses.
Topics Covered:
Different cloud deployment models (public, private, hybrid) and service models (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS) are covered.
Learn about the advantages and potential challenges of adopting cloud technology in this book.
Guidance on how to plan, implement, and manage cloud solutions, including migration strategies, is offered.
It discusses cloud security practices and compliance considerations.
An overview of major cloud providers and their offerings is available.
"AWS: The Complete Beginner’s Guide" by Byron Francis
Overview: Byron Francis's book is for beginners looking to dive into Amazon Web Services (AWS), one of the leading cloud providers. It focuses on the basics of AWS services and how to get started.
Topics Covered:
Introduction to AWS and its core services, helping readers become familiar with the AWS ecosystem is a key learning.
It guides readers through the process of setting up and configuring AWS resources for various use cases.
It gives practical examples and exercises, allowing beginners to gain hands-on experience with AWS.
It offers tips for cost management and security best practices within the AWS environment.
"Cloud Computing: A Hands-On Approach" by Arshdeep Bahga and Vijay Madisetti
Overview: This book adopts a hands-on approach to cloud computing, providing practical exercises and real-world examples. It is suitable for readers who want to gain a deeper understanding of cloud technologies through hands-on experience.
Topics Covered:
The book explores cloud computing architectures, technologies, and their applications.
It allows readers to understand how hands-on labs work and discusses practical exercises designed for cloud platforms like AWS and Google Cloud.
It presents real-world applications and use cases, including the development of cloud-based mobile apps.
It addresses cloud security and privacy considerations.
The book discusses emerging trends and future directions in the field of cloud computing.
Explore unparalleled cloud expertise through the top collection of cloud computing books, where expert-level insights and innovation await your discovery.
"Cloud Computing: Concepts, Technology & Architecture" by Thomas Erl, Ricardo Puttini, and Zaigham Mahmood
Overview: This book is a comprehensive resource that delves deep into cloud computing concepts, technologies, and architectures. It is for professionals with prior cloud experience looking to expand their knowledge and expertise.
Topics Covered:
In-depth coverage of cloud service models (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS) and deployment models (public, private, hybrid).
Architectural patterns and best practices for designing cloud solutions.
Cloud security, governance, and compliance.
Case studies and real-world examples.
“Cloud Computing Patterns: Fundamentals to Design, Build, and Manage Cloud Applications" by Christoph Fehling and Frank Leymann
Overview: It is a valuable resource for cloud professionals, offering insights into cloud-native application development, real-world use cases, vendor selection, and practical guidance. It caters to a diverse audience, from beginners seeking an introduction to cloud computing patterns to experienced practitioners looking for actionable advice.
Topics Covered:
Cloud computing pattern fundamentals.
Real-life applications and use cases.
Selecting suitable cloud vendors.
Architectural patterns for cloud applications.
Design principles and best practices.
Building cloud services and APIs.
Cloud resource management.
Security considerations.
Deployment and operations.
Scalability, resilience, and cost management in cloud applications.
"Cloud Computing: Theory and Practice" by Dan C. Marinescu
Overview: "Cloud Computing: Theory and Practice" by Dan C. Marinescu is an extensive resource that provides a deep exploration of network-centric computing, with a primary focus on cloud computing. It is best for students and IT professionals to get an all-around understanding of cloud technology.
Topics Covered:
It introduces readers to the fundamental principles of cloud computing.
The book explores advanced concepts such as concurrency, parallel processing, and distributed systems, enhancing the reader's understanding of the underlying technologies of cloud computing.
Insights into various cloud applications and services hosted in the cloud are shared.
The importance of cloud security is discussed, and guidance on safeguarding data and resources within cloud environments is given.
Emerging research areas within cloud computing are discussed.
Numerous cloud computing projects discussed in this book enable readers to apply their knowledge in hands-on scenarios.
References to the latest advancements and research in cloud computing and related domains are given.
"Cloud Computing: A Practical Approach" by Anthony T. Velte, Toby J. Velte, and Robert Elsenpeter
Overview: It is a comprehensive guide that offers a pragmatic look at the rapidly evolving landscape of cloud computing. This book provides insights, practical advice, and real-world examples to help businesses navigate the transition from conventional network infrastructure to advanced cloud solutions.
Topics Covered:
Economic implications of cloud computing
Critical aspects of cloud security are covered, addressing concerns, and best practices for safeguarding data and resources in the cloud are discussed.
Regulatory and compliance considerations to navigate the legal landscape of cloud computing.
Insights into prominent cloud service providers, including Amazon, Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, IBM, EMC/VMware, and others, with the services they offer.
Services, and storage, hardware, clients, infrastructure, platforms, and applications.
HTTP, XMPP, HTML, OpenID, DHTML, and SSL.
Software plus Services (S S), Custom application development environments, Platform as a Service (PaaS), Software as a Service (SaaS), and solutions tailored for the cloud.
Thin clients, local clouds,, and virtualization technologies
How to migrate to the cloud—emerging standards and best practices for a seamless transition.
Cloud computing has evolved from a nice-to-have technology to an indispensable one with even greater potential on the horizon. All IT professionals must become well-versed in cloud computing to advance in the field, and the suggested books in the article are excellent resources for building that essential foundation. So, pick up a book and commence your voyage into the promising realm of cloud computing.
What are the 4 pillars of cloud computing?
The 4 pillars of cloud computing, often referred to as the “NIST Cloud Computing Reference Architecture”, are foundational elements that define cloud services. They are:
Resource Pooling
On-Demand Self-Service
Broad Network Access
Rapid Elasticity
Which is the best source to learn cloud computing?
The best sources to learn cloud computing are official cloud provider documentation, online learning platforms, certification programs, books, online communities, hands-on practice, YouTube tutorials, and local cloud user groups.
What is 5 3 4 in cloud computing?
5 3 4 in cloud computing is the concept of the 5 essential characteristics, 3 service models, and 4 deployment models to make cloud technology compelling and revolutionary.
What are the 6 principles of cloud computing?
The six Principles of Cloud Computing are:
Service Models (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS)
Deployment Models (Public, Private, Hybrid)
Scalability
Pay-as-You-Go Pricing
Security
Interoperability
These principles define cloud computing foundations.
Hi Friends! Hope you’re well today. I welcome you on board. In this post today, I’ll walk you through Cloud Computing Services.
The requirement to process and store data varies from business to business. Some organizations can handle data in on-site data centers. They have a team of experts who handle IT infrastructure and install, maintain and upgrade hardware based on the availability of data. This approach is expensive, no doubt. Some companies, however, don’t accept this model. They prefer cloud computing which is the availability of on-demand IT infrastructure over the internet. This model sets them free from handling and managing on-site data centers, instead, everything is managed and controlled by the cloud service providers. End users only pay for the computing services they use. This IT solution is not only cost-effective but also reliable and secure as your data is managed and stored over the cloud with globally managed data center.
I suggest you read this entire post as I’ll cover cloud computing services and how they can improve the efficiency of any business.
Scroll on.
Cloud services are the availability of software, platform, and infrastructure by the cloud service providers over the internet. Cloud computing services come with the following features:
Cloud computing services are maintained and hosted by cloud service providers. The end users don’t have to purchase or install software or hardware on-site since the service providers host, maintain and purchase the necessary IT infrastructure on their premises.
Service providers offer these services with the pay-as-you-go model which means the end-users only pay for the services and computing resources they use. This is the most economical approach for businesses since they don’t have to install and maintain the entire hardware and software system instead they only pay for the computing resources they use.
Cloud computing offers unlimited storage capacity. The virtual office you create with cloud computing gives you accessibility to almost limitless data to store and manage. This is very difficult to incorporate into traditional data centers since the more storage capacity and bandwidth you need the more hardware and software setup you have to install.
Cloud computing services are mainly divided into three types:
No matter the service model businesses opt for, the cloud service providers host and manage the entire IT infrastructure in their onsite facility. The end users only get only IT resources as a service instead of businesses using them directly.
All three services are different in terms of resource pooling and storage though, they can form a comprehensive model of cloud computing by interacting with each other.
In the following, we’ll discuss these services one by one.
In this service model, the service providers host the software on their own IT system and offer it to organizations based on the subscription fees. This way software is not installed in an individual’s system, instead, users can access the software installed on the cloud data centers over the internet with log-in usernames and passwords.
The services in this SaaS model include calendaring, email, and collaboration. Other business applications that enterprises can get on rent from the service providers include document management, ERP (enterprise resource planning), and CRM (customer relationship management).
Know that cloud software or SaaS is a full web application that requires huge capital investment since cloud service providers offer the full-fledge online app dedicated to the customers of an enterprise. The organizations get these services with a pay-as-you-go plan and more often this type of application or cloud software can be accessed directly from the web browsers without any installation or downloads. The reason, it is commonly called on-demand software, web-based software, or hosted software.
Economical: It works on the pay-as-you-go model which means you only pay for the computing resources you use.
Reduced time: Most SaaS apps can be accessed directly from the web browser. No downloads or installations are required. This means less time is required to run this app which you would otherwise spend on the installation and configuration of apps on an individual system.
Mobility: You can access this cloud software from anywhere in the world.
Automatic Updates: You don’t purchase the entire software. Only the services from that software on rent. This sets you free from manual updates, instead service providers will automatically update the software to avoid any potential threats.
IaaS service is the availability of on-demand IT infrastructure to businesses over the internet. This infrastructure includes operating systems, networks, storage, virtual machines, and servers. The cloud service provider offers this service to the organizations on a pay-as-you-go model.
The IaaS is an ideal solution for small and medium-sized businesses looking for an economical approach for their business growth. This gives them better control over the computing services and removes the need for intricate hardware installation as companies can access this model over the internet.
PaaS is the availability of on-demand IT platforms to businesses over the internet. With PaaS, cloud service providers create an online environment by incorporating multiple technologies including orchestration, containerization, security, routing, management, automation, and application programming interfaces.
Using this service, developers can develop, test, manage and deploy software applications without the need for the underlying infrastructure of the network, storage, servers, and databases required for the development.
Many cloud computing services we already use regularly. Common PaaS services include OpenShift, Apache Stratos, Google App Engine. Similarly Cisco WebEx, DropBox, SalesForce fall under the SaaS service model. And Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services, and Cisco Metapod belong to the IaaS service model. End users don’t need hardware and software installation on-premises instead they can access these services with a computer and a strong internet connection.
Know that the cloud computing service models are different from the cloud computing types. The four cloud computing types include Public Cloud, Private Cloud, Hybrid Cloud, and Community Cloud. While cloud computing services, on the other hand, include IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS service models. In the public cloud, services are delivered to the general public. For instance, several organizations can use the public cloud. While in a private cloud, services are delivered to a single organization.
That’s all for today. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading this article. Feel free to reach out in the section below about any questions regarding cloud computing. I’m willing to help in the best way possible. Thank you for reading this post.
Hi there! Happy to see you around. Thank you for clicking this read. In this post today, I’ll cover how cloud computing can benefit small businesses.
Cloud computing is the new normal. Many small and medium-sized businesses use cloud computing to handle and store a large amount of data. But what does cloud computing mean? Even if they are using it, some people don’t understand this term. Don’t worry. I’m here to make it clear for you.
Cloud computing is the availability of computing resources over the internet; these resources include databases, servers, storage, processing power, and more. In simple words, it’s the process of storing, hosting, managing, and processing data on third-party hardware over the internet. The common third-party service providers include AWS (Amazon Web Service), Alibaba Cloud, and Google Cloud.
Earlier companies used to install and manage local data centers to store data. They would buy the software and host it on the local servers. In cloud computing, they can do the same on the online servers. Everything is managed and handled online and you can access computing resources from anywhere in the world. This removes the need for intricate hardware installation which would otherwise require capital investment and a team of experts to maintain it.
Curious to know more about how cloud computing can benefit small businesses?
Keep reading.
Cloud computing is a combination of hardware and software where your data stays. If you’re binge-watching Netflix, storing files on DropBox, or leveraging Facebook or Instagram, that’s all because of cloud computing. From data storage and disaster recovery to automatic software updates and mobility, cloud computing covers all.
The following are the 7 reasons how cloud computing can benefit small businesses.
Cloud computing gives companies the flexibility to improve their operational efficiencies. They can scale up or scale down the demand for computing resources as per their needs and requirement. Cloud service providers offer pay-as-you-go services which mean organizations only pay for the computing resources they use. Small businesses no longer need to spend huge capital investments on buying the entire hardware and software combination, instead, they can opt for subscription-based services and can customize computing resources as per their business needs.
Losing sensitive files can be devastating to small businesses. If they are using local servers they require time and money to recover files from the on-site servers. With cloud computing, recovering lost files is quick and easy. Since cloud service providers store the company data at multiple data centers from multiple locations. And if the sensitive file is lost from one location, companies can demand a copy of that file mirrored at different locations.
Based on a large amount of data to be stored and managed, picking cloud computing is a no-brainer. One of the top benefits that come with cloud computing is automatic software updates. If you’re managing data on local servers, you require an IT professional to manually update the system. While with cloud computing, everything is taken care of by the service providers and they do regular updates to ward off potential security threats.
Mobility is another great benefit that comes with cloud computing. No matter the device (desktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone) you’ve got on hand, you can access cloud computing services from anywhere, anytime if you have a strong internet connection. This feature gives organizations offer their employees a work-life balance so they can do work from the comfort of their homes or remote locations.
Cloud computing streamlines collaboration. Every member of the team using cloud computing can edit, share and access documents from anywhere in the world. This gives employees opportunities to work as a team where they can update documents in real-time with seamless communication. The slack app is a great example of cloud computing.
Data security is a talk of mainstream conversation. Especially for small businesses that want to create a footing in the competitive market. They want to convince customers that their data is in safe hands and they can share their information with confidence. The cloud service providers ensure and monitor the security of data of end-users which is practically very difficult to achieve for small businesses if they carry their workloads on their local servers. The service providers always strive to look for new threats, create modern encryption solutions, and monitor the potential intrusions into their servers, all to keep the data safe and secure from malicious actors.
Cloud computing offers a cost-effective solution to your business needs. And if you’re a small business looking to leave a footprint in the competitive market, you cannot compromise on your capital investment. Setting up local servers needs huge investment and a team of experts to install, manage, and upgrade data centers. With cloud computing, you only pay for the services you need to manage and store your company data. You no longer need to host the business data on the local servers, instead, you can host data on the online cloud servers which saves both time and money required to set up local data centers.
Whether you’re an established enterprise or are just starting, it’s wise to switch to a cloud model instead of funneling tons of money on building local data centers and a team of experts to properly maintain them.
Cloud computing secures your data, creates backup and data recovery, and is the most economical solution to meet your business needs. Since you don’t have physical data centers to maintain and upgrade, instead everything is maintained and hosted by the service providers.
As per the requirement of data storage, you can opt for customized computing resources that you can scale up or down as your business grows.
With cloud computing, you can access data from anywhere in the world. This remote access offers better productivity and helps employees create a work-life balance.
Taking more of your data to the cloud means you have a solid plan to properly function in a time of crisis and a team that can make educated decisions to handle and store your sensitive data.
That’s all for today. Hope you find this article helpful. If you’re unsure or have any questions, you can approach me in the section below. I’ll assist you the best way I can. Thank you for reading this post.
Hi Friends! Glad to have you on board. Thank you for clicking this read. In this post today, I’ll walk you through Edge Computing vs Cloud Computing.
Cloud computing has been around for many years while edge computing, on the other hand, has just become the prime topic of mainstream organizations. But what is the key difference between both edge computing and cloud computing, how do they work, can we implement both in the IT model of any business? These are the main questions that arise every time someone tries to get a hold of these terms. Don’t worry. We’ll discuss them in detail so you know when to pick a cloud model and when to choose edge computing.
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Before we go further to describe the comparison between edge and cloud, know that, both these infrastructures are independent of each other and companies separately employ these models based on their business needs and requirements. Edge computing favors the IT model of the company at times, while cloud computing is the answer to handle some issues.
Edge computing is a distributed and decentralized computing infrastructure that brings computing power and storage near the edge of the network. Simply put, the data is handled or stored near the location where it’s produced. This reduces the bandwidth and removes the latency issues (latency is a time delay between actual action and processed action), requiring fewer data to be stored with improved quality. This phenomenon is ideally suited for applications that are time-sensitive and are dependent on the quick decisions to make. Know that the introduction of IoT devices for a variety of businesses is the main driving force of this edge computing development. Gartner predicts, “Around 10% of enterprise-generated data is created and processed outside a traditional centralized data center or cloud. By 2025, this figure will reach 75%.”
Cloud computing, on the other hand, is a centralized computing infrastructure where computing is carried out at the cloud with data centers that are located miles away from the data source. This process takes time because you cannot make quick and on-spot decisions since the produced data move to the cloud for processing before you make decisions based on the processed data. In cloud computing produced data moves to the cloud for processing while in edge computing the cloud comes near the produced data.
For instance, vibration sensors are installed in the industry to monitors the metrics of vibration caused by machines. If the sensors are connected with the cloud and vibration levels go above the required readings, it takes some time to shut down the machines since the first data produced by the sensors will go to the cloud for the processing which causes time delay and the machine will take some time to shut down. While if those sensors are connected with the edge device near the location where data is produced, and if readings go above the required level, the machines will get shut down immediately since the edge device is installed near the data source and it doesn’t require time to move that data to the cloud.
Now we know what cloud and edge computing is, in this section, we’ll cover how these infrastructure work.
Three main components are used in edge computing:
In edge computing, an additional node is introduced between the device and cloud called edge device. This way no involvement of the cloud is required to manage, process, and store data. Instead edge device will serve this purpose.
It is important to note that, edge computing contributes to the cloud but it’s not a part of the cloud, and processing is done near the data source in the edge device. In cloud computing internet is necessary to maintain connectivity throughout the process to handle and store data in the data centers. While in edge computing, as the edge is not part of the cloud, you can still get results and process data without internet connectivity since the devices relying on edge infrastructure normally uses 5G or IoT (internet of things) technology to process data.
Two main components are involved in cloud computing:
Data is produced at the data source (device) and that data is then moved to the cloud with data centers where that data is being processed. Cloud computing takes more time to process data hence creating latency issues.
The following are the main advantage of edge computing.
As touched earlier, the computing power and storage bring near the edge of the network in edge computing, removing the need for cloud resources to process data. This significantly improves the performance of the system, allowing the machines to make quick decisions based on the processed data. Using this infrastructure, you are adding the intelligent computing power near the source of the data which keeps the latency low which means you’ll get processed data quickly with improved quality. Experts say edge computing combined with 5G will reduce the latency, if not zero, to 1 millisecond.
As you know, cloud infrastructure is completely owned and managed by the cloud service provided, giving you less control over the data to be managed and stored. While edge computing gives you better control over data since the data is managed and stored locally without the involvement of the cloud.
Edge computing is less expensive compared to cloud computing since less bandwidth is required and no large amount of data needs to be stored. You only need the required data to make real-time decisions. Moreover, connectivity, data migration latency issues are pretty much expensive in cloud computing. Edge computing removes the requirement of enormous bandwidth since no large amount of data is stored in data centers. Nowadays companies prefer edge computing over cloud computing because of its low operational cost and improved and optimal system performance.
Since data is stored and processed near the data source, it allows companies to keep their sensitive data within the local area network. It provides added advantage to companies obsessed with the security of their data.
The company’s requirement of IT models varies as the business grows over time. Purchasing dedicated cloud resources is not a wise move since you’re not sure what business requires as the customers' needs and requirements change. The main advantage of edge computing is its ability to scale it as per the activities of the business. Edge computing gathers and processes data locally with dedicated hardware called edge device, setting you free from depending on the software environment of data centers in cloud computing.
The following are the main advantages of Cloud Computing:
In cloud computing data is stored and processed in the cloud which means it creates the backup of your data. In case of emergency, if your data is deleted or compromised, you can collect a copy of the electronic file stored in data centers of the cloud. Organizations of every size use cloud computing to create a backup of their important data. As the company grows, the requirements of the data to process and store also grow which makes cloud computing an important part of the company’s IT infrastructure.
If you store data in local data centers, you require capital expense to install, handle, maintain and scale those data centers. With cloud computing, you no longer need to handle and manage the separate data centers since your data is stored in the cloud globally managed and supported by data centers.
The cloud service providers often offer pay-as-you-go packages which means you can customize the computing resources as per your requirement. As the business grows, the activities of the business also go complex, getting a customized package from the cloud service providers helps you vary the plan as per your exact needs and requirements.
Cloud computing offers more flexibility to businesses compared to organizations using traditional local data centers. You need to upgrade your IT infrastructure if you want more bandwidth to handle the onslaught of data, while with cloud computing you can request more bandwidth instantly. Still, it depends on the service provider you pick for cloud computing, not all providers are equal, some are better than others. So make sure you put the dedicated effort into figuring out which service provider will more efficiently complement your business.
Cloud data is easily accessible to anyone around the world. Considering the growing usage of mobile devices like smartphones and tablets is a great advancement to make the data accessible for anyone anywhere in the world. This works for businesses working with freelancers and remote employees who are not part of on-site staff. It provides better work-life balance to employees and adds flexibility to the working environment of the company.
Think about on-site IT infrastructure and drills it needs to routinely update and maintain local data centers. This is not the case with cloud computing since the software involved in this model updates themselves automatically, setting you free from the hassle of manual updating.
If you’re still reading this post, it means you got to know what both edge and cloud models hold and their advantages. It’s too early to say which one is better since both models are different and are employed based on the business needs and requirements.
If you want the backup of your data and are not concerned about the time it takes to store and process that data, cloud computing is the solution. For the large volume of data to store and process, cloud computing is used. And if you’re concerned about the time it takes to process data, then edge computing is the solution. Using this infrastructure, you can make quick and better decisions for the activities that are time-sensitive. For example in the case of automatic cars you need to make an instant decision about the car’s fuel consumption and the route it takes to reach the destination. Similarly, to successfully use the facial recognition feature to unlock the mobile, you need instant data to be processed to unlock the screen. Here edge computing works far better than the cloud model since cloud computing takes a lot of time to process facial features to unlock the screen.
Latency is another issue that edge computing handles better. For instance, the live feed you record with surveillance cameras. If these cameras are connected with the cloud, it will increase the latency and you’ll get the processed video after some time. This is not the case in edge computing. If motion sensors are installed near the surveillance cameras, in this case, the monition sensor itself will work as an edge device, and it providers immediate feed of the live recording without time delay.
More companies, no doubt, are adopting edge computing at an accelerated pace, still, it’s too early to say if this is the end of cloud computing. The Cloud model holds its values when it comes to storing a large amount of data. However, with the inception of AI and IoT devices, processing capabilities become the major concern instead of storing a large amount of data. This projects that cloud computing will remain relevant for the development of the company’s IT models, and it will work with edge computing to provide better and instant processing capabilities.
That’s all for today. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading this article. If you’re unsure or have any questions, you can reach out in the section below. I’d love to help you the best way I can. Thank you for reading this article.
Hi Everyone! Glad to have you on board. Thank you for clicking this read. In this post today, I’ll cover the Role of Cloud Computing in IoT.
Digital transformation has gained momentum in the past few years, the reason traditional technologies are becoming obsolete over time. Now organizations are incorporating modern technologies into their business model at an accelerated pace. These technologies produce the influx of data and at times it becomes very difficult to process and handle that data, thanks to cloud computing that has made the handling of data easy and effective. You don’t need traditional data centers anymore to store and process information. Everything will be taken care of remotely in the cloud with data centers.
Not to mention, this is the era of automation. Companies strive to accommodate automation in the activities of their business so they can achieve maximum output without the interference of humans. And this trend complements the arrival of IoT (internet of things). The IoT is nothing but a data source and cloud computing is used to store and process that data. We’ll touch on this further in this article.
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Both cloud computing and IoT are separate terms but can work together for better efficiency and productivity. The former is an architecture that offers on-demand computing resources to the end-users to process, store and handle data over the internet while the latter is a technology that acts as a data source from where data is produced. In simple words, IoT (internet of things) is a network of ‘things’ like physical objects, humans, and machines connected and collect and exchange data in real-time through embedded sensors. For instance, a human with a heart monitoring device and a car with sensors that send an instant alert to the driver for any danger fall under the umbrella of IoT.
According to Statista, “the total Internet of Things (IoT) connected devices worldwide is expected to reach 30.9 billion units by 2025, compared to 13.8 billion units that were expected in 2021.”
This projects that billions of devices connected will produce enormous data which makes cloud computing a major part of the IoT technology. Both IoT and cloud computing are inseparable and make an effective integration. In the following, we’ll stretch on this further.
As touched on earlier, IoT devices are connected with each other and can produce a flood of data that needs to be handled and processed somewhere. Cloud computing serves that purpose. If IoT devices are connected with traditional data centers, it takes a capital investment to install, manage, scale and upgrade machines on-premises to handle that data. While with cloud computing, virtual infrastructure is created that allows the developers to access and handle computing resources remotely without having to worry about the management of on-site IT infrastructure.
There are cloud service providers that offer cloud computing services to end-users. The common service providers include AWS (Amazon Web Services), Google Cloud, and Alibaba Cloud. The computing capabilities they offer are virtually endless that can effectively process and store the information produced by IoT devices. These providers commonly offer pay-as-you-go service which means you can scale up or scale down the resources as per the requirement of connected IoT devices.
Cloud computing and IoT are not the same but they complement each other. The following are the main advantages of combining IoT data with cloud computing infrastructure.
Security is the top priority for any organization to run its business activities successfully. And when companies use cloud computing to their advantage, it gives them a sense of security because your data is processed and stored in remote data centers managed globally. The cloud service providers have a network of servers located at multiple locations which means your data is not stored at one data center, instead, the system creates files of your data at multiple locations in different data centers. If one server goes down, you can get a copy of data from another server.
Whether you pick private cloud or public cloud is another parameter to guarantee the security of your sensitive data. This is how it works – companies use the public cloud for storing a large amount of data and the private cloud to process sensitive data locally. If you want to keep your IoT safe and secure, you can pick a private cloud for this purpose.
Cloud makes IoT data easily accessible which means you can remotely access information produced by IoT devices from anywhere in the world. Quick and on-spot data access is crucial when it comes to monitoring information gained by connected IoT devices. In IoT technology, we often get continuous readings from the attached sensors and that readings need to be stored and monitored quickly to make instant decisions.
To stretch this further, you can even use edge computing (which is the extension of cloud computing) to your advantage for handling IoT data. The difference between edge computing and cloud computing is the time it takes to process the information. In edge computing, data doesn’t go to the cloud, instead, it goes to the edge device installed near the data source which takes less time to process it.
IoT-based businesses often pick cloud computing to speed up their business operations. Since on-site IT infrastructure is costly and requires up-front payment for the management of traditional data centers. While cloud models remove the hassle of hardware maintenance and give you the flexibility to pick the pricing package best suitable for your business needs.
The following are the frequently asked questions when it comes to integrating IoT with cloud computing.
Technically speaking the answer is no and yes. NO, if you want to locally process your data in on-site IT infrastructure. YES, if you want to leverage the cloud since it’s preferable to pick the cloud model when there is a flood of information to be handled and stored.
There are four different cloud models named public cloud, private cloud, hybrid cloud, and community cloud. You can pick any model based on your business needs and requirements. It all depends on the type of data you want to manage and store. For sensitive information to manage, you can prefer the private cloud model, and for non-sensitive, you can opt for the public cloud model. A hybrid model is another option that gives you the option to integrate both private and public clouds into your business.
It depends on the requirement of IT infrastructure. Do your current IT requirements constantly change over the year? Do local data centers cost you more? What is the type of data? The number of connected IoT devices? These are the main questions you need to ask if you need a cloud model or not. This cloud architecture is mainly suited for you if want cost-effective and reliable solutions to handle enormous data.
Technology is evolving and every business uniquely works to keep up with the pace of this technology.
Billions of devices are expected to be connected through IoT technology, the information produced by these devices is difficult to handle if you apply the traditional approach to handle and process that information.
As the demand to handle and manage a data grows, organizations will integrate cloud computing into their business models.
And on-demand availability with cloud computing is what makes this model more attractive since this way you can monitor and access your information remotely from anywhere in the world. This trend will complement the usage of more IoT devices in the cloud computing model.
It is safe to say that cloud computing is expected to open new and flexible opportunities for IoT-based businesses to handle, store and process a bulk of data.
That’s all for today. Hope you loved reading this article. If you’re unsure or have any questions, you can ask me in the section below. I’d love to help you the best way I can. Feel free to share your experience with the IoT and cloud computing integration. Thank you for reading this article.
Hi Guys! Hope you’re well today. Thank you for clicking this read. In this post today, I’ll walk through Cloud Computing Advantages.
Growing a business requires keeping up with modern technologies. And cloud computing is no different. Even though it’s not a new term and has been around for a long while, it still encompasses a huge potential to effectively run and manage business operations. Cloud computing is the provision of computing resources over the internet. These resources include storage, processing power, and databases.
Integrating more technologies (like IoT, AI) into the business models means it opens up opportunities to produce a large amount of data. And it’s very challenging to store and process that data on on-site data centers. This is where cloud computing comes in handy. It has the potential to effectively handle the flood of data while giving remote access to the developers to manage that data from anywhere in the world.
I suggest you read this entire article as it aims to cover the advantages of cloud computing.
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Cloud computing comes with scores of benefits. A few of them include cost saving, scalability, mobility, unlimited storage, security, instant collaboration, automatic software update, and more. we’ve discussed them one by one in the section below.
Cost is crucial when it comes to successfully running your business. You need to take careful steps to spend capital investments. Using traditional ways to handle your data allows you to spend an upfront payment for the installation of complex IT hardware infrastructure. And this is not enough. You need money to maintain, scale and upgrade that system to effectively handle your data. Cloud computing prevents you from setting up hardware on-site and your data is managed and stored remotely over the cloud with data centers. You don’t need experts to use computing resources. Everything will be taken care of by the cloud service provider.
Scalability is another big advantage that comes with cloud computing. You are not bound to pay for all the computing resources. Service providers offer pay-as-you-go service which means you’ll only pay for the resources you use for your business. For instance, you can pick the specific bandwidth, storage, and processing power to handle and store the data. Business requirements increase as the business grows over time. And at times it happens, based on the customer’s current needs and requirements you need to customize the approach. If you require less storage and processing power, you can ask for it from the service provider.
Cloud computing offers mobility which means your data is not stored in any specific computer hard drive. That data is available online and anyone with an internet connection can access that data. This saves you from program failures or power shutdown. If the system on your location is not working, you can access the data from a different location as long as you have the device to work on and a strong internet connection.
With cloud computing, you create a virtual office to handle the onslaught of data. It gives you the power to ask for unlimited virtual access to handle that data. With traditional data centers, creating unlimited storage capacity is very difficult since you need to upgrade the hardware which requires huge investments. This is not the case with cloud computing. Data centers are handled globally by the service provider and you only pay for the resources you use.
Security is important to turn your business into a brand. More customers will rely on your applications if they know the information they share with you is safe and carefully handled. Data on the cloud computing servers is secure. No need to worry in case your sensitive data is deleted. Data centers on cloud computing are located at different locations and they create the copy of your data at different locations. This means if you’ve lost the data or the server at one location is down, you can use another server from a different location to claim that data. Cloud computing also offers an access management feature that gives access to sensitive data to your employees only, preventing that data from being attacked by potential hackers.
Cloud computing allows instant collaboration between workers. Especially if you are working with freelancers or employees from remote locations. Any file or information shared on cloud computing gives instant access to that data from anywhere in the world. For instance, Google Drive or Dropbox are examples of cloud computing. Data available on these applications can be accessed by anyone anytime.
The software and applications available on cloud computing get updated automatically. You don’t need IT experts to do manual updates. This is the job of your service provider. They instantly update their systems and software for security purposes to avoid any potential threats.
In cloud computing data is managed over the internet. This means you can easily try new ideas and can simply apply new tweaks in the software within seconds. The data is remotely handled and any new software deployment gives you instant access to find the information in the software or any newly introduced application.
Cloud computing offers disaster recovery and backup features. At times the updates on your applications don’t work out and you instantly require the previous version. Cloud servers store the backup of your previous version. And if one server is down, cloud computing quickly moves the customers to the running servers, preventing you from big financial loss.
Cloud computing allows you to have better control over data. It gives you different types of cloud models to pick from like public cloud, private cloud, and hybrid cloud. If you want to process your sensitive data locally, you can pick a private cloud, or if you want to store a large amount of data you can pick a public cloud. And the hybrid cloud is the combination of both private and public cloud which allows you the selectively handle and process your data over different clouds. Moreover, if you don’t want to remain dependent on one service provider, you can get services from two different service providers, this gives you to have better control over your sensitive data.
Not every company picks cloud services to handle data. Some are not even aware of this architecture and even if they are aware, they are not willing to incorporate this infrastructure into this business model. If you choose cloud computing to manage your data, you will remain ahead of your competitors and can better store and process your data.
Cloud computing gives you benefits like security, scalability, unlimited data storage, data recovery, high speed, and more.
One wrong move in the initial steps of picking the right service provider can drastically impact your business.
It takes the right knowledge and skill to implement cloud computing into any business model.
Make sure you’re handling your sensitive data in the right hands who know how to effectively incorporate this cloud model into your organization.
Rest assured, if the service provider is reputable and expert in what they do, you’ll be better off with the cloud model to enhance the productivity, revenue, security, and collaboration of your enterprise.
That’s all for today. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading this article. If you’re unsure or have any questions, you can reach me in the section below. I’d love to assist you in the best way possible. Thank you for reading this post.
Hi Guys! Happy to see you around. Thank you for clicking this read. In this post today, I’ll walk you through Types of Cloud Computing.
Cloud computing is not a new term. Companies have been using this infrastructure for the past two decades. You might be familiar with this term, in case you don’t, cloud computing is the on-demand availability of computing resources over the internet. Simply put, you can process, store and manage a large amount of data using this architecture. The companies offering these services to end-users are called Cloud Service Providers (CSP). And most of these services offer the pay-as-you-go model which means you can ask for only those computing resources required for your business; you don’t pay for the resources you don’t use in the cloud computing model. This liberates you from using on-site data centers for managing data, and you get computing resources online including storage, processing power, and databases.
I suggest you read this post all the way through as I’ll thoroughly cover the Types of Cloud Computing and how they can be used for improving the activities of any business.
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Earlier on-site data centers were a norm for the management of large amounts of data, but cloud computing has gained momentum due to its ability to effectively manage and store the onslaught of data online. Moreover, since these resources are available online, you don’t need hectic IT drills to install, manage, scale or update traditional data centers. These data centers over the cloud are globally managed to give you access from anywhere in the world.
The following are the main types of cloud computing.
1: Public Cloud
2: Private Cloud
3: Hybrid Cloud
4: Community Cloud
No two clouds are the same and picking the cloud type is dependent on the business needs and requirements. Every cloud enables computing power over the network and allows the running of workloads within that system. These cloud models differ in terms of storage capacity, location, and accessibility but they all work on the same principle of virtualization. There is a lot of confusion in each type and I’ll try my best to remove these confusions so you can better understand what each type is all about. We’ll discuss them one by one in the section below.
Public clouds are typically created for businesses but they are not owned by the individual business. Public cloud providers manage and run these clouds and offer services to organizations based on their current needs and requirements. The common public cloud providers include:
This is the most cost-effective option for organizations that don’t have enough capital to invest in the development of IT infrastructure. Public cloud resources are shared by a variety of end-users which means this model is not made for a specific business. Instead, computing resources are shared among businesses of all sizes.
Although this is the preferably best option for businesses to handle a large amount of data, this model doesn’t guarantee the security of sensitive data since this architecture is shared by multiple organizations.
Moreover, this infrastructure offers less customization options and the service providers hold the main authority. A single tweak from the provider’s side can drastically impact your business. For improved security and better control over data, a private cloud is used.
In a private cloud, computing resources are owned by a single organization. This model offers two options: resources can be hosted on-site IT infrastructure or businesses can hire a third party to host their computing resources.
Compared to the public cloud, this model is a bit expensive since it gives you more customization power with improved security. Companies dealing with sensitive data can pick this model since here resources are not shared by a variety of businesses.
Private cloud, if hosted on on-site data centers, gives you the power to fully control the computing resources and make the adjustment based on your internal processes and preferences. Even though this model gives you more control, you require professional IT experts to handle and manage the private cloud on-site. If you don’t want to involve yourself in the nitty-gritty of handling complex IT infrastructure required for private cloud, you can get services from a third party to host and manage your resources on their system. This way you still own the private cloud but you require less technical expertise for handling this model.
Better security is another advantage that comes with a private cloud. Companies require a large amount of data to be handled and stored and in the public cloud that data is vulnerable to cyber-attacks since the computing resources are shared by multiple end-users. To prevent your sensitive data from being compromised or deleted, it is better to keep this type of data within your private security boundary so no one can manipulate your data for their advantage.
Hybrid cloud combines both private cloud and public cloud. You can share data and applications between two clouds using this cloud deployment model. This way workload is not handled by a single cloud architecture, instead, it is shared by two different cloud models.
For instance, organizations need unlimited storage capacity to store a large amount of data, public cloud comes in handy for this purpose for handling non-sensitive data. While, on the other hand, if companies want the processing of sensitive data on the premises of their business, the private cloud is the solution.
Hybrid models are common since they set you free from the long-term investment on a specific cloud model, instead, you can use the combination of both models and ask for required computing resources valuable for your business.
Community cloud is valuable for those sharing common business goals. A variety of businesses use cloud computing models including healthcare, education, manufacturing industries, IT sector, and more. Community cloud is suitable for companies falling under the same business model. For instance, organizations falling under the education sector can pick for community cloud with similar computing resources and storage power. Cost is another factor behind the popularity of this model. The resources cost is split between the organizations picking this cloud model.
If you’re still reading this post, it means you have got a clear idea about the four main types of cloud models. However, there are also less common cloud types used for specific purposes. These types include:
Don’t get confused. This is different from hybrid cloud. In a hybrid infrastructure, companies can get computing resources from both the private and public cloud. While Multicloud is not the combination of different clouds, instead it’s the provision of computing resources from two different cloud service providers. For instance, you can ask for public cloud resources from two different providers to avoid dependency on one single provider.
At its core, a distributed cloud is an architecture that runs from multiple locations but is not owned by a single organization. This model is used to meet the company’s specific performance and compliance needs and it does support edge computing but essentially is managed and controlled by the public cloud provider.
This model is particularly developed to support high-performance computing applications. This model is useful if you want to perform research on a large scale and are looking for a solution for advanced computing problems.
Every business is unique.
It’s your job to carefully monitor the activities of your business and put dedicated thought to pick the particular cloud computing model for your business.
How you want your data to be managed, processed, and stored does matter. If you want to handle a large amount of data, the public cloud is a valuable solution. And if you want the sensitive data to be processed locally, the private cloud is the answer.
And the best part?
You can deploy both private and public cloud models to selectively handle sensitive and non-sensitive data.
And if you don’t want to remain dependent on a single service provider, you can leverage the services of two providers and use them to your advantage.
Make sure you consider the proper security protocols before picking up the right architecture. A single mistake in the initial steps of choosing the cloud model can drastically impact your business in the long run. So be careful.
That’s all for today. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading this article. Share your experience with cloud computing in the section below. If you’re unsure or have any questions about cloud computing, ask me in the comment section. I’d love to help you the best way I can. Thank you for reading this article.
Hello Folks! Glad to have you on board. Thank you for clicking this read. In this post today I’ll walk you through What is Cloud Computing?
Cloud computing is not a buzzword anymore. Even though most companies are familiar with this term, they don’t know what it does and how it works. If you’re one of them, this read is for you. In simple terms, cloud computing allows you to use computer system resources over the internet. This means you can manage your data remotely over the internet from anywhere in the world. We’ll touch this further in our article.
I suggest you read this post all the way through as I’ll cover what is cloud computing, how does it work, the types of cloud computing, the advantages of cloud computing, and the future of cloud computing.
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Cloud computing is a way of storing, processing, and managing data over the internet. Simply put, it’s the on-demand availability of IT resources online. These resources include data storage, computing power and databases. This way you don’t need to worry about handling data over the computer’s hard drive or on-site data centers. This liberates you from managing hardware circuits, software patching, and on-site IT drills, giving you online access over data centers through which you can efficiently manage and process your data.
With the onslaught of IT workloads, companies harness the power of cloud computing. It’s not only fast, economical, and secure, it also gives better control over data. No matter your location, as long as you have access to the internet, you can control your information online.
Google Drive and Dropbox are the best examples of cloud computing where you can access and manage your information online. Companies can use it for regular tasks like data processing, data management, software development, data protection, backup and disaster recovery, server virtualization, data analytics, and other real-time applications.
There are three basic parts of cloud computing.
1: Device (like computer, tablets, smartphones) through which you access data
2: Cloud with data centers where data is stored and processed
3: Internet which connects cloud with the device
You might be familiar with the term client-server model. Here user with the device is the client and the cloud with data centers are the servers while the internet connects the users with data centers.
Prior to cloud computing, handling and storing data was challenging. Companies used to install their own data centers that required proper maintenance and regular on-site check-ups to make sure they were running well, which resulted in more oversized bills and more space to accommodate them. It was impractical, expensive, and less efficient.
But cloud computing has dramatically changed this behavior. Now companies don’t need to worry about maintaining, scaling, securing, and managing their IT infrastructure, instead, they can focus on providing a better user experience with quality products. The organizations get these reousrces with pay-as-you-go terms which means the more resources they use the more they pay over time.
Companies that provide cloud computing services often offer monthly subscriptions and give users access to their computing resources. They don’t need to get in the hassle of updating servers, buying software, getting more machines to back up the data, and updating software to avoid potential security threats. The service provider takes care of all of that for them.
Cloud computing is perfect for businesses that have a lot of data to deal with. Cloud computing is mainly divided into three major types.
The public cloud offers compute resources like storage, memory, networking, and CPU. Public cloud vendors host these resources with globally and fully managed data centers. You can pay the vendors and rent these resources to develop your IT infrastructure.
The managed services in the compute resources include security systems and database servers that set you free from the hectic drill of managing and installing the whole solution into your local and on-site data centers.
The common leading providers of cloud computing services include Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and Microsoft Azure. You can hire the compute resources from these vendors as per the needs and complexity of your business operations.
The public cloud is shared by a range of organizations while the private cloud, on the other hand, is specifically developed to meet the business needs of a single organization.
Some businesses don’t feel comfortable working with the public cloud. They want their separate and private cloud on their on-site data centers. Private cloud is perfect and ideally suited for single private organizations.
Two options there: companies can host private cloud or they can involve third-party vendors to host their private cloud on their system. This gives them the ability to immediately get access to the compute power based on their businesses. This setup is best for businesses that are a bit obsessed with the security of their systems.
Hybrid cloud gives you the ability to combine both public and private cloud and use them to your advantage. You can use either of them for a specific purpose. For instance, you may want to get unlimited storage space from the public cloud but you want to process the sensitive data on your private cloud.
This means if you running out of computing resources from the private cloud you can get the services of the public cloud to fulfill your business needs. It gives businesses advanced flexibility to move data across both clouds without a full commitment to the public cloud’s vendor.
And cost management is another blessing that comes with hybrid cloud. If you own a private cloud you need to install data centers on-site which require proper care and a capital expense. But with the public cloud, you only pay for resources without having to worry about the management of data centers.
Now you know what is cloud computing and how does it work. Perfect. There are several advantages of cloud computing. A few of them include:
Cloud computing becomes a necessary part of the business as the requirement to manage and store a large amount of data grows. And this trend will definitely increase as managing data in on-site data centers is not only expensive, it requires a lot of IT drills to properly install and maintain machines handling and storing data.
We can expect the following future trends in cloud computing.
Digital transformation is on the rise. And in this era where technology is changing at an accelerated pace, it’s necessary to come up with advanced solutions to manage, store and process your data.
Cloud computing is now a part and parcel of successful organizations. But still, companies, who have reservations about the security of cloud computing, hesitate to transfer their data to a remote location.
For those hybrid model gives the perfect solution where you can get the advantage of both cloud services. For sensitive data, you can pick the private cloud while for the storage of regular and less sensitive data you can choose the private cloud. This way you can move your data and scale your compute resources as per the complexity of your business.
Not to mention, cloud computing has just started. And as the requirements and demands of businesses go complex, companies need powerful systems that not only store their data but also offer advanced processing capabilities. With new advancements in IoT technology and Artificial Intelligence, more businesses will likely adopt cloud computing for the years to come.
That’s all for today. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading this article. If you are unsure or have any questions about cloud computing, feel free to ask me in the section below. I’d love to help you the best way I can. Thank you for reading this article.