Cloud Based Services

Corporate and government entities utilize cloud based services to address a variety of application and infrastructure needs such as CRM, database, compute, and data storage. Unlike a traditional IT environment, where software and hardware are funded up front by department and implemented over a period of months, cloud based services deliver IT resources in minutes to hours and align costs to actual usage. As a result, organizations have greater agility and can manage expenses more efficiently. Similarly, consumers utilize cloud based services to simplify application utilization, store, share, and protect content, and enable access from any web-connected device.

Cloud based services have several common attributes:

• Virtualization - cloud computing utilizes server and storage virtualization extensively to allocate/reallocate resources rapidly
• Multi-tenancy - resources are pooled and shared among multiple users to gain economies of scale
• Network-access - resources are accessed via web-browser or thin client using a variety of networked devices (computer, tablet, smartphone)
• On demand - resources are self-provisioned from an online catalogue of pre-defined configurations
• Elastic - resources can scale up or down automatically
• Metering/chargeback - resource usage is tracked and billed based on service arrangement

Among the many types of cloud based services delivered internally or by third party service providers, the most common are:

• Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) – software runs on computers owned and managed by the SaaS provider, versus installed and managed on user computers. The software is accessed over the public Internet and generally offered on a monthly or yearly subscription.
• Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) – compute, storage, networking, and other elements (cloud security, tools) are provided by the IaaS provider via public Internet, VPN, or dedicated network connection. Users own and manage operating systems, applications, and information running on the infrastructure and pay by usage.
• Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) – All software and hardware required to build and operate cloud based applications are provided by the PaaS provider via public Internet, VPN, or dedicated network connection. Users pay by use of the platform and control how applications are utilized throughout their lifecycle.
  

Cloud based services offer numerous benefits to include:

• Faster implementation and time to value
• Anywhere access to applications and content
• Rapid scalability to meet demand
• Higher utilization of infrastructure investments
• Lower infrastructure, energy, and facility costs
• Greater IT staff productivity and across organization
• Enhanced security and protection of information assets
  

What is cloud storage?

Cloud data storage is a technology for storing data in which data is transmitted via the Internet and stored on remote systems that may span multiple servers and locations. Cloud storage may be delivered by a service provider or installed on premises in a company’s own data center, or some combination of both.  

What is cloud object storage?

Cloud object storage is a format for storing data in the cloud, where data is managed as objects that contain data, metadata and a global identifier. Object storage is ideal for cloud applications because of its ability to scale massively and for its accessibility through common APIs. 

What is hybrid cloud storage?

Hybrid cloud storage is a way of managing cloud storage that relies on both on-premises and off-site storage resources. Hybrid cloud storage connects on-premises systems with cloud storage and can be managed as a single, homogenous storage solution.