Understanding Cloud Computing

     Cloud computing is a style of computing in which dynamically scalable and often virtualized resources are provided as a service over the Internet. Users need not have knowledge of, expertise in, or control over the technology infrastructure in the "cloud" that supports them. Cloud computing is a method of delivering hosted services -- Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) – over the Internet in a fast, cost-effective way. The technology has gained popularity in a weakened economy as enterprises seek ways to save money, but as always, this emerging technology presents certain risks, and it could open an organization to security vulnerabilities and threats. 

    The concept generally incorporates combinations of  infrastructure as a service (IaaS) , platform as a service (PaaS), software as a service (SaaS) . Cloud computing services often provide common business applications online that are accessed from a web browser, while the software and data are stored on the servers. Cloud computing can be confused with  Grid computing  which is a form of distributed computing whereby a 'super and virtual computer' is composed of a cluster of networked, loosely-coupled computers, acting in concert to perform very large tasks and  Utility computing – the packaging of computing resources, such as computation and storage, as a metered service similar to a traditional public utility such as electricity

Characteristics

    Cloud computing customers do not generally own the physical infrastructure serving as host to the software platform in question. Instead, they avoid capital expenditure by renting usage from a third-party provider. They consume resources as a service and pay only for resources that they use. Many cloud-computing offerings employ the utility computing model, which is analogous to how traditional utility services (such as electricity) are consumed, while others bill on a subscription basis. Sharing "perishable and intangible" computing power among multiple tenants can improve utilization rates, as servers are not unnecessarily left idle (which can reduce costs significantly while increasing the speed of application development). A side effect of this approach is that overall computer usage rises dramatically, as customers do not have to engineer for peak load limits. Additionally, "increased high-speed bandwidth" makes it possible to receive the same response times from centralized infrastructure at other sites.

Companies

     Vmware, Sun Microsystems, IBM, Amazon, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo are some of the major cloud computing service providers. Cloud services are being adopted by individual users through large enterprises including vmware, General Electric and Procter & Gamble.

Cloud computing types

Public cloud

     Public cloud or external cloud describes cloud computing in the traditional mainstream sense, whereby resources are dynamically provisioned on a fine-grained, self-service basis over the Internet, via web applications/web services, from an off-site third-party provider who shares resources and bills on a fine-grained utility computing basis.

Hybrid cloud

     A hybrid cloud environment consisting of multiple internal and/or external providers "will be typical for most enterprises".

Private cloud

     Private cloud and internal cloud are neologisms that some vendors have recently used to describe offerings that emulate cloud computing on private networks. These (typically virtualization automation) products claim to "deliver some benefits of cloud computing without the pitfalls", capitalising on data security, corporate governance, and reliability concerns. They have been criticised on the basis that users "still have to buy, build, and manage them" and as such do not benefit from lower up-front capital costs and less hands-on management, essentially "[lacking] the economic model that makes cloud computing such an intriguing concept".

Cloud Computing and Security Issues

     The benefits of virtualization and cloud computing are transforming the way we look at IT outsourcing for development, testing, and production.  Existing skills, processes, and projects seem to translate naturally to a virtualized environment, and few obstacles seem to impede the adoption of the cloud model for production.  Practitioners and the media alike have touted the potential security issues of virtualization.  The cloud brings with it a layer of additional security considerations, in terms of both technology and process.

     This layer of additional security isn’t necessarily scary or complicated.  But right now, trust in the security of cloud computing is the number one impediment to its growth.  This article takes a look at the cloud from various points of view.  I will compare real-world examples to look at security implications of the Cloud, and show how they integrate with traditional security processes.

 

 

V.Venkatesa Kumar.

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Cloud Computing - What Are Its Advantages?

This article briefly explains what cloud computing is & does, examines the facts that underlie the hyperbole & considers the benefits it can bring to organisations.

Cloud computing is a general term for anything that involves delivering hosted services over the Web. These services are broadly divided in to these categories:

Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS),
Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS)
Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).

A cloud service is fully managed by the provider (the consumer needs nothing but a personal computer & Web access).

A cloud can be private or public.

Public Cloud - A public cloud sells services to somebody on the Web.
Private Cloud - A private cloud is a proprietary network or a knowledge middle that supplies hosted services to a limited number of people. When a service provider makes use of public cloud resources to generate their private cloud, the result is called a virtual private cloud.

Advantages of Cloud Computing Services:

Businesses can have enormous infrastructure without having to implement and administer it directly.
It permits accessibility to multiple data centers anywhere on the globe.
Companies can add additional service as and when needed from the vendor without having to pay for additional hardware.
It reduces energy costs for running hardware and cooling as well as reducing carbon dioxide emissions and conserving energy.
It results in improved resource utilization.

There is a big push for these services by several big companies. Several large universities have also been busy with large scale cloud computing research projects.

The bottom line: It is a simple idea, but it can have a huge impact on your business.

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Cloud Computing: The New Way to Host Websites and Other Computer Resources

Cloud computing is the new IT trend that is grabbing the industry magazine headlines, and although it is being positively embraced by many users, some are needlessly worried about security issues.

Bringing together the three major trends of virtualisation, utility computing and software as a service (SaaS), cloud computing is still regarded with a degree of suspicion by some. However, as both the US and UK governments utilise the technology they at least have no doubts over its use.

It is the combination of the three component parts of cloud computing that make it particularly appealing to users as they need little or no knowledge of the technology needed to operate it. First used to describe large ATM networks in the early 1990s, when used in the computing context ‘Cloud’ is describing the internet and the way that resources are used across its entirety. It involves the provision of services to users who don’t have to worry about any of the technical issues surrounding the service.

Because resources can be pulled from across the internet it means that cloud computing solutions are entirely scalable and peak loads are easily accommodated. That allows users to go about their business without having to worry about allocation of CPU, storage or network bandwidth.

The shared hosting infrastructure model in regular use today is limited by the physical constraints of the available hardware, usually at one bottleneck point, such as single server. However, cloud hosting has no such restrictions as it utilises the processing power of a series of servers in real time. A user of cloud hosting simply purchases as much processing capacity as they require from a resource that is virtually inexhaustible and therefore provides a seamless service regardless of peaks and troughs in visitor numbers.

Intelligent systems simply ensure that load-balancing is applied across a series of servers, adding or removing them from the cluster as required providing an invisible transition for customers. The technology underpinning the infrastructure enables small and medium–sized enterprises to utilise web hosting architecture in a way that was only available a large corporate IT department a few years ago.

Cloud technology is now utilised by major corporations and governments throughout the world. It is certainly no fad, and despite myths about its lack of security is almost as robust as any traditional system; it is dependent upon the quality of the software and operator. There are also varying types of cloud, such as an on-premise cloud or a virtual private cloud, which are as secure as the system operator wishes them to be as it is in a private environment. However you would be constrained to your pre-configured environment.

Adam Singleton writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.

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