What is cloud computing?
Cloud computing is a technology that leverages the internet to deliver resources such as data storage, databases, networking, software, applications and data analytics. Companies that offer cloud computing services are known as cloud service providers. Cloud computing provides a scalable, accessible and cost-effective alternative to physical on-premises hardware and servers. This is because cloud services usually offer unlimited storage space and are delivered using a pay-as-you-go model, with simple management via a centralised portal.
Cloud computing definition
In simple terms, cloud computing is the practice of delivering on-demand IT services remotely using an internet network and hosting at one or more external datacentres. With cloud computing, users simply create an account with a cloud provider (e.g. OVHcloud, AWS, Microsoft, Google, Oracle or IBM) and purchase cloud services on a pay-as-you-go basis, instead of purchasing physical on-premises machines and managing resources in-house. Since its inception, cloud computing has helped millions of organizations to embrace new technologies, drive efficiency, reduce time to market and expand their operations, whilst also driving down IT infrastructure costs and enabling organizations to shift from a CapEx to OpEx model.
Why is cloud computing important?
Over the past 20 years, cloud computing technology has evolved considerably, to the extent that cloud services now account for more than a third of annual enterprise IT services spending worldwide. The reason cloud computing is so popular is perhaps obvious, with its cost-effective and scalable design being ideal for building modern applications, delivering quality services, and transforming business operations. Public cloud, private cloud, and hybrid cloud computing have all changed how organizations approach their infrastructure and deliver services, offering a robust alternative to physical on-premises infrastructure. Innovation within cloud computing shows no signs of slowing down, as it looks set to support the next generation of enterprise IT services, including AI, machine learning, and big data analytics.
Who is using cloud computing?
Cloud computing offers a wide range of benefits and is therefore used by large and small organizations operating in all industries and sectors worldwide. Cloud services can be used for many use cases, including data storage, data backup, software development, data analytics, communications, virtual desktops, and applications. Cloud computing also supports remote working and collaboration, being a key facilitator for modern business life. Without cloud computing, many organizations simply wouldn’t have been able to grow, reach new markets, or create new solutions for their customers.
What are the features of cloud computing?
Cloud computing has multiple features, including:
Self-Service
A core feature of cloud computing is that users can manage their cloud computing resources as required, without the need for intervention from the cloud service provider.
Elasticity
With cloud computing, resources can be scaled up or down easily based on demand, enabling users to manage their workloads efficiently.
Metered Service
Cloud computing services are billed using a pay-as-you-go model, based on the customer’s usage of cloud resources. This enables users to control their cloud costs and increase efficiency.
Resource Pooling
Another feature of cloud computing is that resources are pooled together and shared amongst users. The cloud service provider then allocates resources dynamically as required.
Broad Network Access
Being based on the internet, cloud computing services, applications and data can be accessed on multiple devices, including laptops and smartphones.
What are the advantages of cloud computing?
There are multiple benefits of cloud computing for both the enterprise and users, including:
Flexibility and Agility
Thanks to cloud computing, it is possible for users to access files over the internet on devices such as laptops and smartphones. Cloud services also make it much easier to organise data, as files can be stored, shared and organised on a cloud-based network.
Cloud computing services are rented from a cloud provider (such as OVHcloud, AWS, Google, IBM, Oracle or Microsoft), often using a pay-as-you-go model, so they can be agile to enterprise customer demands, with the ability to drop resources and acquire new ones without hefty investment or over-allocation. This system helps ensure business continuity, but at a lower cost.
Speed of Deployment
A user’s journey to the cloud - from concept to production - has never been faster or smoother. With the ability to deploy new resources in just a few clicks, cloud computing enables users to scale their cloud services up or down seamlessly. The scalability offered by cloud computing enables businesses to expand infrastructure, accommodate traffic peaks, deploy and delete sandbox environments, and minimise overall time to market.
Cost Control
As an organization grows, the ongoing cost of its operations and IT infrastructure must be considered, in terms of both current and future requirements. Cloud computing’s economies of scale are difficult to match, as there is no need to anticipate workloads and invest in resources that may only be required occasionally. Using a cloud service provider, customers only pay for the cloud resources they use - whether this involves the cloud computing technology that powers solutions, the IT infrastructure an organization relies on each day, or the long-term storage of databases.
Scalability
Cloud computing offers unbeatable scalability. Because the hardware for cloud services is fully managed externally by the cloud provider, customers are free to add or delete new resources remotely, potentially with a single click. This core feature of cloud computing gives businesses more freedom to focus on how they will utilise architectures, rather than the deployment process.
Robust Security
For too long, security was a serious concern for many organizations, which made them reluctant to migrate, either partially or completely, to the cloud. However, cloud computing has evolved considerably over the years, in direct response to these concerns, with a range of cloud security solutions now available from cloud providers. Cloud computing enables businesses to leverage secure private connections between physical on-premises infrastructure and external datacentres, supported by sophisticated anti-DDoS protection and automated backups.
Freedom of Location
Data location is important to consider when designing cloud computing infrastructure - not only to enhance the performance of sites and applications, but to gain certifications and fulfil compliance requirements (especially considering regulations like the Cloud Act and GDPR). Hosting cloud computing resources securely, in external datacentres, means they can be located as close as possible to where an organization’s teams and end users are based and help to take all the stress out of achieving compliance.
What are the different types of cloud computing?
The concept of cloud computing is simple but moving to the cloud can involve numerous approaches – from the relatively straightforward to the highly sophisticated. These are the three most common cloud computing approaches (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS):
Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS)
Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) is a popular cloud computing service model. It enables users to access virtualised computing resources over the internet, without the need for physical on-premises hardware. With IaaS, businesses rent out cloud computing infrastructure - such as computing power, data storage and networking - from a cloud service provider, but still oversee the management of their mission-critical applications, security systems, databases, and operating systems.
Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS)
Using the Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) cloud computing model, teams can manage, build, test and deploy their own applications on a cloud-based platform designed to benefit the user. Any underlying IT infrastructure – such as hardware and middleware – is managed by a cloud service provider. Without the need to maintain cloud computing infrastructure, internal IT teams can save time and focus on business needs relating to their data and applications, freeing them up to drive sustained enterprise growth.
Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)
With the SaaS cloud computing model, software platforms are hosted externally, in the cloud. Users can access software over the internet via a subscription model, which frees organizations of the need to purchase, install and update key software platforms. This also ensures their key tools are accessible to teams around the world. With SaaS, the user only needs to worry about managing their own data within an application, as the software is handled by the cloud service provider. This saves time and accelerates business efficiency.
How does cloud computing work?
For all three of the above cloud computing use cases, there are several different deployment strategies, each with advantages specific to the cloud environment, including:
Hosted Private Cloud
Hosted private cloud delivers the flexibility of cloud computing alongside the raw power of dedicated resources. This allows users to deploy a high-performance virtual datacentre or cloud instance, whilst the cloud service provider manages the hardware. This way, businesses enjoy the power and autonomy of a fully managed, dedicated cloud computing solution, without the need to manage or maintain hardware – a perfect foundation for IT teams looking to optimise their operations.
Public Cloud
Public cloud provides on-demand cloud computing resources, offering everything you need to scale up from testing to deployment, plus an excellent price/performance ratio. A public cloud approach can be used to modernize organizations at all levels, from start-ups looking to launch their solutions as quickly as possible, to global companies that require on-demand cloud computing resources for specific projects and applications.
Hybrid Cloud
Hybrid cloud delivers a ‘best of both worlds’ cloud service. It combines bare metal and cloud computing solutions, which are intelligently converged and integrated to maximise the advantages of both. For example, a cloud user might rely on a fleet of dedicated servers to power sites and applications, while utilising cloud computing to automate and streamline the storage of data.
Multi-Cloud
With the multi-cloud approach, an organization deploys multiple clouds from multiple different vendors (e.g. OVHcloud, AWS, Google, Microsoft, IBM or Oracle) within one infrastructure. These clouds will use one approach - usually public cloud or private cloud – and normally consist of PaaS or IaaS services. Multi-cloud deployments offer a range of benefits for organizations, such as reduced risk of downtime, low costs, and flexibility around licensing and adopting new technologies. It also enables organizations to choose the cloud services that best suit the needs of their business and customers.
What is cloud security?
Cloud security is the practice of leveraging technologies and procedures to protect the data, IT services and applications hosted on a cloud computing network. With the cyber threat landscape evolving rapidly, all organizations utilising cloud services must ensure that they incorporate cloud security into their cloud strategy to protect both theirs and their customers’ data, as well as to ensure compliance with data regulations.
To ensure their cloud computing network, services and data are protected against external and internal threats, organizations can adopt a variety of cloud security solutions from their cloud provider. They can also implement measures and processes in-house. However, both the organization and the cloud provider have a shared responsibility for cloud security, as the provider will need to ensure that its datacentres and infrastructure are secure, whilst the organization is responsible for controlling who can access the data and applications it stores in the cloud.
Here are some common cloud security solutions:
IAM solutions and procedures give IT teams visibility over which users can access the cloud computing network, including access to data and applications, and which devices are connected to the cloud network. Using IAM tools, an organization can implement policies and protocols to control who accesses the cloud computing network. Such tools also ensure organizations can remain compliant with data protection laws, including GDPR. Most IAM solutions involve creating an identity for each user, utilising technologies such as Single Sign-On (SSO) and Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). These tools enable users to access cloud computing services safely, whilst IT teams and organizations can monitor access and restrict if necessary.
SIEM solutions gather and analyse security data from across the entire cloud computing infrastructure. This includes devices connected to the cloud network, servers, applications and more. SIEM tools collect data from all these places and analyse it to detect threats and unusual behaviour, enabling IT teams to investigate and respond to threats before they can wreak havoc on the cloud computing network. Most SIEM solutions use automated technologies, such as AI, to collate and analyse data from the cloud network, and offer a comprehensive view of the data and applications that have been accessed, so IT teams can build a clearer picture of how and when a malicious incident occurred.
This cloud security method involves using solutions to control access to the cloud computing network and devices connected to the network. With the rise in hybrid and remote working facilitated by cloud computing technologies, this method of cloud security is essential for many organizations, as employees work remotely on devices connected to the organization’s cloud network. An example of a network and device security solution is a Virtual Private Network (VPN), which creates a secure connection between the user’s device and the organization’s cloud network, using encryption to conceal data and IP addresses from potential attackers.
Cloud Solutions at OVHcloud
OVHcloud offers a range of cloud computing solutions covering all three approaches - hybrid cloud, public cloud and hosted private cloud. This enables you to build your virtual infrastructure in whatever way is right for your organization, budget, and long-term business goals. Please explore our cloud computing solutions below, and feel free to contact our sales team, who will be more than happy to discuss your requirements and offer advice on the right cloud services for you.