What is the cloud in cloud computing

The cloud is still fairly new as for consumers or people just wanting to play around with it as a hobby. Many large companies like amazon and google run cloud computing and some of them are Ubuntu or different flavor of Linux too!

When trying to make any sense of all the cloud terminology that is being thrown around today can be very confusing. From the different types of clouds, which are:

• public
• private
• external
• hybrid
• enterprise

To the various types of cloud services that are available:

• Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)

It is a software distribution model in which applications are hosted by a vendor and or service provider and made available to customers over a network, typically the Internet though sometimes dedicated WAN links.

• Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS)

This is a way to rent hardware, operating systems, storage and network capacity over the Internet. The service delivery of this type of model allows the customer to rent virtual servers and different associated services for running existing applications or developing and testing new ones.

• Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS)

This Service is a provision model in which an organization outsources the equipment used to support operations. I mean this by including storage, hardware, servers and networking components all in a centralized location. The service provider owns the equipment and is responsible for housing, running and maintaining it which is typically one of the lesser used routes. The customer typically pays on a per-use basis.

This is just the beginning it is not easy to understand what each means without spending a great deal researching.

Extra

• Make sure you review all of your options thoroughly