What Is Cloud Computing?

Cloud computing refers to any online computing platform that can be accessed via a web browser. The term cloud computing was actually coined by computer scientists Ray Kurzweil and John McCarthy in the 1970s. It describes a new class of computing technologies, which is capable of delivering scalable, flexible, and cost-effective services whenever and wherever they are needed. The cloud-first became famous as a way to transfer information through the internet, but then it rapidly grew into other applications such as file storage, application deployment, business process modeling, and web content management. All of these services are based on the principle, “The cloud can deliver a particular service when and only when the customer requests it”.

Cloud computing is the on-demand provision of computer resources

Cloud computing is simply the on-demand provision of computer resources, particularly computer network resources, such as central processing unit (CPU), main memory, and hard disk storage, directly from the user without active control by the administrator. Large cloud-based platforms are often clustered together, each of them having smaller modular servers, which are individually managed by a dedicated staff. In short, this method of service allows users to make use of the internet without having to maintain or pay for expensive infrastructure. Large cloud computing platforms often have several operational functions deployed over multiple sites, each site being a data center. The advantage of using this methodology is that users can acquire resources at their own convenience on the cloud.

Public and private cloud computing platforms

There are two basic cloud computing platforms available today: public and private. The primary distinction between these two is how much information each can provide. Public cloud computing platforms are open to anyone who needs access. They also allow information to be transferred in bulk. Private cloud computing platforms are restricted to selected users, with access being granted on a need-to-have basis.

Public cloud computing platforms provide many benefits to business owners. Such services include the ability to make use of the company’s own infrastructure without incurring additional costs. As well, some of the features of the Service may be pre-installed or default, such as email, collaboration tools, calendars, and discussion boards. These features may be taken advantage of, as well as being offered at no cost by the service provider.

As an example, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft’s Internet Information Service (IIS) offer big advantages to businesses seeking to reduce IT costs. The former provides storage and application facilities as well as the infrastructure to support e-commerce websites. Amazon’s web service is known for its reliability, ease of deployment, and flexibility. Meanwhile, IIS is known for its security features, ease of use, high bandwidth, high availability, and cost-effectiveness. Businesses may find it beneficial to deploy one or both of these cloud computing platforms.

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Google’s cloud computing platforms and Microsoft’s Internet Information Service (IIS)

Google’s cloud computing platforms and Microsoft’s Internet Information Service (IIS) are two of the most widely used cloud computing platforms in the world today. Both these technologies have the capacity to deliver a robust range of solutions across a wide variety of industries. Google’s infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) has gained much popularity, particularly among companies that have expanded their business offerings to include e-commerce and virtualization. As such, many companies that were previously unable to invest in their own servers are now able to do so thanks to the availability of Google’s IaaS. On the other hand, Microsoft’s IIS is more commonly used for small to medium-sized businesses.

Aside from providing hosted storage and applications, both Google and Microsoft also offer several other features through their cloud computing platforms. These include Microsoft’s Visual Studio software, which is primarily utilized to create desktop applications. Google’s Storage Manager, on the other hand, allows users to manage storage, data protection, and bandwidth on their server. The former is often more preferred by smaller organizations that don’t require as much bandwidth, such as law firms in need of a cloud-based platform. The latter is best used by medium-sized and larger companies that require more server functionality and is a perfect cloud computing platform for business.

The two aforementioned cloud providers are only two of the numerous services that these two companies provide. There are still a number of other such services that these two giants offer. In order to gain an understanding of what are the different offerings of these two giants, it would be worthwhile for companies to delve into the world of internet marketing. This is because the way in which these companies market to their customers can provide a great insight into how they plan to penetrate and convert the target market into regular customers. Moreover, with what are cloud providers and what are Microsoft and Google offer, one should now be able to make a clearer decision about what are the important things these companies can do for their clients.

Benefits of Cloud Computing For Business

One of the biggest benefits of cloud computing for business is that you never have to be bothered with installing upgrades or new applications. No longer will you have to wait for long periods of time, or months for the next big release of your application or program. No worries about hardware failure or outages. No need to waste time learning a new set of software. Cloud computing keeps everything simple and convenient.

However, there are plenty of benefits of cloud-based computing that make it so popular. One of these benefits of cloud computing for small businesses is that of extreme flexibility. Since everything is stored on the web, you can easily access it from anywhere, at any time. The benefits of this are obvious in that as long as you have an internet connection, you can access and change your business data from any location.

On-demand computing

Cloud computing is also known as on-demand computing. This simply means that as a user, you pay only for what you need. You never pay for storage space, or bandwidth, or for power. Think of all those large companies that have huge IT departments that are spread across the globe, spending millions of dollars on IT infrastructure that they don’t use. This kind of over-reliance on expensive IT equipment is actually one of the biggest disadvantages of using on-demand computing.

On-demand computing also provides many other benefits. One of these is cost savings. Large businesses often have several different operating systems, several different database management systems, and a plethora of different programs and devices that all need to be maintained and updated. All of this requires massive infrastructure and a large staff of IT professionals to keep it all up to date. For this reason, it is one of the most popular trends in technology.

Cost savings

However, cloud computing offers great cost savings. Running all of these different pieces of software on your own infrastructure offers tremendous cost savings. This means that not only can you operate all of your business operating systems from one data center, but that you can also run them through a single platform without having to buy more hardware. This also allows you to create greater flexibility in how you manage your data center. For instance, you can set up a time schedule where your team members are available at a given time to perform maintenance on the server.

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Use remote servers

When you use remote servers for your computing needs, the benefits and disadvantages are similar to those of a public cloud. The primary difference is that there are fewer advantages and risks involved with using a private cloud. Remote servers, like your own internal network, make it easy to access and use your own applications. In contrast, your data is stored on servers in your own location, making it more susceptible to data loss and hacker attacks.

Cloud computing offers some other advantages as well. Some businesses, like medical offices, typically face data loss issues because of their locations. With cloud computing, you can eliminate the need for expensive data security measures. Also, you may not want to spend your money on costly upgrades for your server or programs on a monthly basis.

Finally

If you aren’t sure whether cloud services are right for your business, consider what you stand to gain. For starters, remote servers offer a way to get more storage, bandwidth, and processing power without having to purchase additional hardware. If you have a large business or a highly customized setup, this can be a huge advantage. On the other hand, if you’re a small company that needs everything running smoothly now, you may not be able to afford the extra costs. Even though cloud services can make a lot of sense, you’ll still want to spend some time thinking about the pros and cons of each option before deciding which one best suits your needs.

Advantages of Cloud-Computing

When you hear the word cloud computing, you may immediately have an image in your mind of a computer network teeming with colorful avatars, pop-ups, and flashy banners. The reality is far different. Cloud computing is an off-the-shelf availability of internet resources, specifically computer processing power and storage, without direct human oversight. Essentially, the term is used to describe large data centers accessible to numerous clients over the Internet. These machines are usually located in the data centers of various providers, such as Amazon and Rackspace. In most cases, the machines are leased from the providers in question, but there are instances where a user can rent a machine on their own.

Basic idea

The basic idea behind cloud computing services is that businesses can save a lot of money in terms of IT maintenance by renting high-performance servers from third parties. Rather than purchasing expensive hardware and maintaining it in the house, the business can simply lease the machines and have them provided for them. There is no need for software updates, patches, and custom training. Instead, all that is required is to have trained staff to update the machines on a regular basis and to ensure that they are behaving correctly. This is in contrast to traditional server provisioning methods, where changes to the configuration settings require technical knowledge and may take weeks or even months to make adjustments to the operating system.

Cloud computing services provide a number of advantages for small and medium enterprises, such as saving time and money by not having to buy hardware and software. More importantly, it allows for real-time usage monitoring and improved productivity, as users do not need to physically access and use the servers. By sharing data across multiple remote locations, users can get instant access to important analytics, allowing businesses to make informed decisions on what to do next. By migrating data between different locations, a business can also cut down on travel costs and improve customer relations.

Offers offsite storage and data migration solutions

Another advantage of using cloud computing services is that it offers offsite storage and data migration solutions. For companies that own and manage their own data, offsite storage is essential to securing data and making it accessible on multiple devices. However, for businesses that use cloud-based storage or have IT staff that will physically access data, offsite storage is not always an option. Migration of data to a cloud storage service reduces maintenance requirements, making it easier and more cost-effective to implement in the first place.

One of the advantages of using offsite storage is improved, deployment models. In traditional server provisioning and deployment, physical hardware and software components are required for the entire system. However, with cloud computing, certain features may be available only through subscription or managed use. This means that an organization’s IT department can rely on its own expertise and resources for managing the servers. There are a number of deployment models available, including elastic service, public cloud, self-service, and virtual private cloud.

The ease of access to various tools and applications

The other advantage of cloud computing is the ease of access to various tools and applications. By leveraging the same infrastructure, computers and their supporting technology are shared. This allows users to access data, storage, web applications, email, and collaboration software in different ways, according to their needs and preferences. Some of the different ways include instant messaging (IM), chat, text and file transfers, and video conferencing.

Cloud computing services also allow for greater customization of websites and application setups. This is because the service provider already has established infrastructure and application applications, simplifying the task of configuring websites and applications. This also makes it easier for organizations to meet the technological challenges of the future. The ability to rapidly establish new cloud applications and configure different business processes has meant that cloud providers can offer business-to-business solutions and services in different ways, catering to every need.

In a nutshell

Cloud computing services refer to the setup of an infrastructure in which computers and other IT infrastructure resources are hosted in a remote location. Organizations have the flexibility to configure how these resources are used. They can create and modify the necessary network settings and install custom software on their machines. They can even make use of their own computing resources (servers, desktops, laptops) on the server and deploy them on their network. However, the most popular use of cloud computing services is the provision of IT infrastructure that can be accessed as and when needed by organizations.