What is Cloud Computing?
Digital transformation is helping companies rapidly drive efficiency, agility, and connectivity as they use technology to transform their business processes into something easier, faster, and more secure, flexible and profitable. Cloud computing technology is a cornerstone to digital transformation.
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What are the benefits of cloud computing?
Cloud computing offers companies convenient models to access infrastructure, platform, and software offerings on a pay-as-you-go basis. With cloud computing, companies are freeing up capital, streamlining IT maintenance, modernizing and scaling business approaches, building security and flexibility into services and solutions, helping customers in new ways, and growing their business in ever-changing market conditions.
Types of cloud computing deployment models
Private cloud
The private cloud model refers to cloud computing resources used exclusively by a single business or organization. A private cloud can be located in your on-site data center or hosted in the cloud by a service provider.
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Public cloud
When an organization deploys a public cloud model, all hardware, software, and supporting infrastructure is owned and managed by a service provider, which is delivered exclusively over the Internet. You access these services and manage your account through a web browser.
Hybrid cloud
A hybrid cloud computing model combines public and private clouds to share data and applications. Hybrid clouds connect infrastructure and applications between cloud-based resources with existing resources not located in the cloud. This approach gives your business greater flexibility and deployment options.
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Types of cloud computing services
Cloud computing services offer convenient, pay-as-you-go models that eliminate costly expenditures and maintenance. Cloud providers host a choice of infrastructure, platform, and software offerings on-site that they "rent," giving your organization the flexibility to turn cloud computing services up and down according to your changing requirements.
Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS)
Think of IaaS as the building blocks for cloud-based IT. In this model, a cloud provider hosts infrastructure components that are traditionally located in on-premises data centers. For example, servers, storage and networking hardware, along with the hypervisor (virtualization layer), usually reside on-premises. With IaaS, your organization can choose when and how you want to administer workloads, without needing to buy, manage, and support the underlying infrastructure. IaaS gets your infrastructure up and running quickly, with a pay-as-you-go model.
Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS)
PaaS builds on the IaaS model, but is usually specific to hardware and software tools for application development. Cloud providers, in addition to providing infrastructure components, also host and manage operating systems and middleware that your developers need to create and run applications. PaaS offers an on-demand, pay-as-you-go model.
Software-as-a-Services (SaaS)
With SaaS, cloud providers host and manage an entire infrastructure, as well as end-user applications. When your company chooses a SaaS model, you do not need to install anything; your users will be able to log in and begin immediately using the cloud provider's application running on their infrastructure. SaaS frees you to think only about how your business will use that software, not how to maintain it. SaaS is available on-demand or by subscription.
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