Cloud Computing - A brief introduction

Cloud Computing - A brief introduction

Recently, a number of commercial and academic organizations have built large systems and have created software to make this hardware easier to program and manage. They have taken a variety of novel approaches to address the challenges. In some cases, these organizations have used their hardware and software to provide storage, computational, and data management services to their own internal users or to provide these services to external
customers for a fee. We refer to the hardware and software environment that implements this service-based environment as a cloud-computing environment. Because the term cloud computing is relatively new, there is not universal agreement on this definition. Some people use the terms grid computing, utility computing, or application service providers to describe the same storage, computation, and data-management ideas that constitute cloud computing. Irrespective of the exact definition used, numerous companies and research organizations are applying cloud computing concepts to their business or research problems including Google,
Amazon, Yahoo, and numerous universities. 
There are three types of cloud providers that you can subscribe to: Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). These three types differ in the amount of control that you have over your information and they are:
1. Software as a Service - A SaaS provider gives subscribers access to both resources and applications. SaaS makes it unnecessary for you to have a physical copy of software to install on your devices. SaaS also makes it easier to have the same software on all of your devices at once by accessing it on the cloud. In a SaaS agreement, you have the least control over the cloud.
2. Platform as a Service - A PaaS system goes a level above the Software as a Service setup. A PaaS provider gives subscribers access to the components that they require to develop and operate applications over the internet.
3. Infrastructure as a Service - An IaaS agreement, as the name states, deals primarily with computational infrastructure. In an IaaS agreement, the subscriber completely outsources the storage and resources, such as hardware and software they need.
To summarize, the cloud provides many options for the everyday computer user as well as large and small businesses. It opens up the world of computing to a broader range of uses and increases the ease of use by giving access through any internet connection. However, with this increased ease there are drawbacks. You have less control over who has access to your information and little to no knowledge of where it is stored. You also must be aware of the security risks of having data stored on the cloud. Additionally, know your options in terms of what type of cloud will be best for your needs, what type of provider will be most useful to you, and what the reputation and responsibilities of the providers you are considering are before you sign up.