The term cloud computing in its simplest form probably comes from the use of a cloud image to represent the Internet, or some large networked environment. It is the way we are beginning to access our information as a service over the internet.
The cloud is a large group of interconnected computers (small desktop to large servers), which allow you to use their hardware and services over the web.
A good example of companies who provide cloud computing is Google and Microsoft.
There are 3 main forms of clouds, “Private Clouds“, “Public Clouds” and “Hybrid Clouds“.
- Private cloud is the implementation of cloud services on resources that are dedicated to your organization, with a private cloud; you receive the many benefits of public cloud computing, including self-service, scalability, and elasticity, with the additional control and customisation available from dedicated resources
- Public clouds are where resources are dynamically provisioned to the general public on a self-service basis over the internet. These are provided from an off-site third-party provider who bills on a subscription based service
- A third model, the hybrid cloud is maintained by both internal and external providers.
Google offer Gmail, Google Docs and Google Apps to name a few. These are services that are built on their private cloud (they own it), which they allow users to access publically to use.
Microsoft offer Azure, BPOS, Skype to name a few which offer similar services on their private cloud
The aim of offering these services is to remove the burden of managing your own in-house hardware and applications. Instead, you will pay a very small subscription to services such as email, MS Office, data storage etc. and your provider will manage the well-being of these services on your behalf.
You will always own your data, but the hardware and services are owned by your cloud provider. At the end of the data, it is your information that is important to you and not the hardware it sits on, especially in a business environment.
Cloud computing gives you the flexibility to access your information from anywhere in the world, as long as you have an internet connection. Nothing is stored locally on your desktop. This provides many benefits to you as the user.
Benefits
- You can access your information from anywhere in the world
- You don’t require expensive hardware and software to procure and manage
- Your data is far safer in the cloud because it is constantly backed up and encrypted
- You save a lot of money on electricity
- You can share your data and information easily
to name a few…
Cloud computing is here to stay and is growing faster and faster with new service shooting up everywhere…. We will be helping you understand how cloud computing works, if it right for you, how to prepare for cloud computing and so on.
Steven John – The Sagari Team