What is Cloud Computing?

Cloud computing is a service, which offers customers to work over the internet. It
simply states that cloud computing means storing and accessing the data and programs
over the internet rather than the computer’s hard disk. The data can be anything such
as music, files, images, documents, and many more.
The user can access the data from anywhere just with the help of an internet
connection. To access cloud computing, the user should register and provide with ID
and password for security reasons. The speed of transfer depends on various factors
such as internet speed, the capacity of the server, and many more.
The management of Cloud Computing is done by the host itself as they come up with
new modifications, which continuously improves the service. The host has an ample
amount of storage and fast processing servers, through which the data gets accessed
very quickly. Cloud Computing major advantage is that the user can only concentrate
on the job while leaving the problems behind.

Cloud Computing
History of Cloud Computing
Before cloud computing emerged,  there was client/server computing, centralized
storage in which all the data, software applications and all the controls reside on the
server side.
If a user wants to run a program or access a specific data, then he connects to the
server and gain appropriate access and can do his business. Distributed computing
concept came after this, where all the computers are networked together and resources
are shared when needed.
The Cloud Computing concept came into the picture in the year 1950 with accessible
via thin/static clients and the implementation of mainframe computers. Then in
1961, John McCarthy delivered a speech at MIT in which he suggested that
computing can be sold like a utility like electricity and food. The idea was great but it
was much ahead of its time and despite having an interest in the model, the
technology at that time was not ready for it.
In 1999, Salesforce.com became the 1st company to enter the cloud arena, excelling
the concept of providing enterprise-level applications to end users through the
Internet. Then in 2002, Amazon came up with Amazon Web Services, providing
services like computation, storage, and even human intelligence. In 2009, Google
Apps and Microsoft’s Windows Azure also started to provide cloud computing
enterprise applications. Other companies like HP and Oracle also joined the stream of
cloud computing, for fulfilling the need for greater data storage.
 Types of Cloud Computing

i. SaaS
SaaS stands for Software as a Service, provides a facility to the user to use the
software from anywhere with the help of an internet connection. It is also known as
software on demand. The remote access is possible because of service providers, host
applications and their associated data at their location. There are various benefits of
the SaaS as it is economical and only the user has to pay for some of the basic costs
such as licensing fees, installation costs, maintenance fees, and support fees. Some of
the examples of SaaS are Yahoo! Mail, Hotmail, and Gmail.
ii. PaaS
PaaS stands for Platform as a Service. This helps the user by providing the facility to
make, publish, and customize the software in the hosted environment. An internet
connection helps to do it. It also has several benefits such as it has lower costs and
only the user has to pay for the essential things. The host of a PaaS has the hardware
and software of its own. This frees the user from installing the hardware and software
to execute a new application.

PaaS (Platform as a Service)

iii. IaaS
IaaS stands for Infrastructure as a Service. With the help of IAAS, the user can use
IT hardware and software just by paying the basic price of it. The companies that use
IaaS are IBM, Google, and Amazon. With the help of virtualization, the host can
manage and create the infrastructure resources at the cloud. For small start-ups and
firms, the IaaS has the major advantage as it benefits them with the infrastructure
rather than spending a large amount of money on hardware and infrastructure. The
reason for choosing IaaS is that it is easier, faster, and cost-efficient which reduces the
burden of the organizations.
Cloud Computing Deployment Methods
There are four cloud computing deployment methods that vary as per the requirement.
The customer can choose which suits them the most among them. In this session of
Cloud Computing Tutorial, we are going to mention all the deployment methods-

1. Private Cloud
2. Public Cloud
3. Community Cloud
4. Hybrid Cloud

i. Private Cloud
A particular Cloud Company maintains the management, deployment, and operation
of the cloud. The operation can be in-house or with a third party.

ii. Community Cloud

The companies having similar interest and work can share the same cloud and it can
be done with the help of Community Cloud. The initial investment is saved, as the
setup is established.

iii. Public Cloud

In Public Cloud, the company serves the infrastructure to the customer on a
commercial basis. This helps the customer to develop and deploy the application with
minimum financial outlay.

iv. Hybrid Cloud

In a Hybrid cloud, there is an ease to move the application to move from one cloud to
another. Hybrid Cloud is a combination of Public and Private Cloud which supports
the requirement to handle data in an organization.
 Cloud Service Providers
Most of the companies are using Cloud Computing and others are about to use Cloud
Computing. Cloud Computing is one of the important parts of a business and can
benefit in many ways. There is a tremendous amount of data generated day-by-day
and the data needs to store, therefore, most are the companies are in need of it. Some
Cloud Service providers are-
 Microsoft Azure.
 Amazon Web Services (AWS)
 Google Cloud.
 Alibaba Cloud.
 IBM Cloud.
 Oracle.
 Salesforce.
 SAP.

Characteristics of Cloud Computing

1. Resources Pooling
It means that the Cloud provider pulled the computing resources to provide services
to multiple customers with the help of a multi-tenant model. There are different
physical and virtual resources assigned and reassigned which depends on the demand
of the customer. The customer generally has no control or information over the
location of the provided resources but is able to specify location at a higher level of
abstraction

2. On-Demand Self-Service
It is one of the important and valuable features of Cloud Computing as the user can
continuously monitor the server uptime, capabilities, and allotted network storage
without requiring human interaction with each service provider.
3. Easy Maintenance
The servers are easily maintained and the downtime is very low and even in some
cases, there is no downtime. Cloud Computing comes up with an update every time by
gradually making it better. The updates are more compatible with the devices and
perform faster than older ones along with the bugs which are fixed.

4. Large Network Access

The user can access the data of the cloud or upload the data to the cloud from
anywhere just with the help of a device and an internet connection. These capabilities
are available all over the network and accessed with the help of internet.

5. Availability
The capabilities of the Cloud can be modified as per the use and can be extended a lot.
It analyzes the storage usage and allows the user to buy extra Cloud storage if needed
for a very small amount.

6. Automatic System
Cloud computing automatically analyzes the data needed and supports a metering
capability at some level of services. We can monitor, control, and report the usage. It
will provide transparency for the host as well as the customer.

7. Economical
It is the one-time investment as the company (host) has to buy the storage and a small
part of it can be provided to the many companies which save the host from monthly or
yearly costs. Only the amount which is spent is on the basic maintenance and a few
more expenses which are very less.
8. Security
Cloud Security, is one of the best features of cloud computing. It creates a snapshot
of the data stored so that the data may not get lost even if one of the servers gets
damaged. The data is stored within the storage devices, which cannot be hacked and
utilized by any other person. The storage service is quick and reliable.

9. Pay as you go
In cloud computing, the user has to pay only for the service or the space they have
utilized. There is no hidden or extra charge which is to be paid. The service is
economical and most of the time some space is allotted for free.

10. Measured Service

Cloud Computing resources used are monitored. This resource utilization is analyzed
by supporting charge-per-use capabilities. It means that the resource usages which can
be virtual server instances that are running in the cloud are getting monitored
measured and reported by the service provider. The model pay as you go is variable
based on actual consumption of the client.

 Advantages of Cloud Computing

The benefits of Cloud Computing are mentioned below.

i. Economical
One of the important benefits of Cloud Computing is the low cost. Cloud Computing
provides service to the companies at the lowest rates possible. The company can save
substantial capital costs with zero server storage and the requirements of the server.
This also saves the cost of the infrastructure and the amount required to manage it. It
also removes the administrative and operational costs. There are no upfront costs as
the user has to pay only for what they have used. It is a misconception that only the
huge firms are able to use Cloud Computing. However, the small startups can also use
it as it is economical and safe.

ii. Reliability
The cloud computing platform is very reliable as the data stored is secured and cannot
be tampered. Several copies of the data are made. If in case the database crashes the
data can be retrieved from the other database. The company can get benefit from the
massive source of redundant IT resources as well as the failover mechanism.

iii. Manageability
Cloud Computing helps to manage most of the things. The only thing, which the user
has to do is get a device and an internet connection. The maintenance task is
performed by the central administrations of resources, vendor managed infrastructure
and SLA backed agreements. Whenever something happens to the Cloud Database or
any other part, the host manages each and everything thing which is beneficial to the
customers.

iv. Data Centralization

It is also one of the benefits of Cloud Computing that all the data store in one location
so that it can access from different remote places. There are many projects which
stores in a particular place and can access at anytime and anywhere.

v. Proper Security
The service vendors select the highest level of security of the data. For which a user
can set a proper audition, passwords, and encryption.

Disadvantages of Cloud Computing

Following are the limitations of Cloud Computing:

i. Internet Connectivity
Cloud Computing needs internet connectivity as if there will be no internet connection
you won’t be able to access the cloud. Moreover, there is no other way to gather the
data from the cloud.
ii. Lower Bandwidth
Lower bandwidth reduces the benefits of the clouds such that it cannot use properly.
A satellite connection can lead to quality disruption, due to higher latency or higher
bandwidth.

iii. Affect of Speed

If a client is using an internet which use by multiple users to download files such as
music, documents etc, this will reduce the speed to use the Cloud.

iv. Security Issues

As Cloud Computing is very secure but still it requires an IT consulting firm’s
assistance and advice. Neglecting this can lead to the fact that the business will
become vulnerable to the hackers and the threats.

v. Agreements
There are many vendors available which have agreements that are non-negotiable. It
is one of the disadvantages for the companies.

vi. Lacks of Support

Cloud Computing companies sometimes fail to provide proper support to the
customers. Moreover, they want customers to depend fully on FAQs, which can be a
tedious job.

How Cloud Computing Works?

Cloud Computing works by providing permission to the user to upload and download
the information. User can access the data from anywhere. A user will get the initial
amount of storage at a very low price.

Cloud Computing can be divided into two systems. One is front-end and the other is
back-end. The two ends connect to each other with the help of an internet connection.

The backend of the cloud is the system and the front end is a computer user or client.
The front end of the system has the application, which is used to access the cloud
system. Moreover, the backend has various computers, hardware, servers, and data
storage systems that make the cloud. All these features and functions managed by the
central server. The central server ensures that everything runs smoothly and in a
perfect manner. It is done with the help of software named Middleware, which also
permits the network computer to communicate with each other.

Cloud Computing Architecture

Cloud Computing is an emerging technology which is skyrocketing nowadays. This
technology is often used by big companies as well as the startups as it is flexible for
both. Every company is in need to store the data so they require cloud to store their
information. The data is secured and can access anytime and from anywhere.

Cloud Computing architecture basically comprises of the two parts. They are the
front-end and the back-end. The front end is the end which uses by the user and the
back-end manages by the host. Both the end connects to each other with the means of
internet.
i. Front End
The front end is the client part of Cloud Computing which uses as per the requirement
of the user. Front-end comprises of the applications and the interfaces which help to
access the cloud computing. Example- Browser or an app created by the company
itself.

ii. Back End

The back end is a part which manages by the allotted authorities of the company and
their back end has large data storage facilities, Virtual machines, security system, and
servers. They are also engaged in traffic management along with security
management.
Components of Cloud Computing
Architecture
Components of Cloud Computing Architecture:

i. Hypervisor
The hypervisor is also known as Virtual Machine Monitor. This consists of the
software that runs the virtual machines. The Hypervisor provides a user with a
platform which is known as Virtual Operating Platform. This allows us to manage the
guest’s operating system to use the cloud.

ii. Management Software

Management software consists of various plans and the strategies which help to
increase the performance of the cloud. This management software provides many
features such as on-time delivery of storage, proper security, all-time access, and
many other facilities. This is one of the important parts of Cloud Computing
architecture. One of the important features of this is the compliance auditing,
management of overseeing disaster, and contingency plans.

iii. Deployment Software

Cloud deployment simply means to initiate the working of the SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS.
This initiates the solutions that can access by the users or the customers. This
deployment consists of all the mandatory installations and configurations of the cloud.
This emerges from the back end and implements before the provisioning occurs.

iv. Route of Connectivity

It is an important part of the Cloud Computing architecture, through which the whole
cloud gets connected. The speed of transfer depends on the network which is the
internet connection. There are many cloud servers present which connects with the
help of this virtual route. This also provides a facility to the user by allowing them to
customize the route and protocol.
v. A server of the Cloud
A cloud server is a virtual server running in cloud computing premises. It’s
engineered, hosted and delivered via a cloud computing platform via the web. It can
be accessed from anywhere.

Cloud servers are stable, quick and secured. They avoid the hardware problems seen
with physical servers, and that they are seemingly to be the foremost stable choice for
businesses. Also, call as virtual servers. Cloud servers have all the software they need
to run and can operate as non-dependent units. It also has the profit because it is
incredibly simple and fast to upgrade by adding memory and disk space, further as
being more cost-effective.

vi. Storage of the Cloud

Cloud storage service, construct to produce applications, services and organizations
with access to offsite storage capability that may provision instantly are versatile in
scaling automatically at runtime and is globally accessible. An Infrastructure as a
Service (IaaS) service model delivers scalable, flexible and redundant storage
capability through net services API, online interfaces and thin client applications.

Cloud Storage also benefits the user by providing remote access with the help of
internet. The storage services are very quick to access. Cloud information is often held
on, altered and retrieved from a remote cloud storage server over the web below a
utility computing model.

Cloud Computing Applications

i. Storing File Online :Cloud Computing provides a benefit to store and
access the software with the help of internet connection to the Cloud. The interface
provided is very easy to operate and is economical too.

ii. Video Making and Editing Software

There are many software available which can access with the help of the cloud. This
software helps to create and modify the videos. The videos create or modify are stored
in the cloud itself and we can access anytime.
iii. File Converters
There are many applications which utilize to change to format of the file such that
from HTML to pdf and so on. This software is available at cloud and access from
anywhere with the help of internet connection.

iv. Anti-Virus Applications

There is software which is stored in the cloud and from there they fix the system. All
the viruses and the malware are detected and analyzed by the software and the system
is fixed. They also come up with a feature of downloading the software.

v. E-commerce Application
With the help of e-commerce application in the cloud, user and e-business allow
responding quickly to the opportunities which are emerging. It also allows the user to
respond quickly to the market opportunities and the challenges. Business tycoons
focuses on the usage of cloud computing without keeping time in the mind. Cloud-
based e-commerce applications allow the companies, business leaders to evaluate new
opportunities and making things done with the minimum amount possible.

vi. Business Process

Business management applications are based on the cloud service provider. The
business utilizes the cloud computing to store the necessary data and all the relevant
information. This information can be anything such as the personal data of the
customer, analyzed records etc.

vii. Backup and Recovery

The cloud computing can be used as a backup option in which we can store the files,
information and the data. The data stored will be protected and provided much
security. When the data is lost the user can recover the data which he/she has stored in
the cloud.