What is the cloud?

1. What is the cloud?

So what is the cloud and cloud technology, exactly? And how does it support digital transformation? The cloud is a metaphor for the network of data centers which store and compute information that’s available through the internet. Essentially, instead of describing a complex web of software, servers, computers, networks, and security systems, all of that has been combined into one word: “cloud.” To better understand the cloud, it might help to explore the different ways organizations can implement their information technology (or IT) infrastructure. The list includes on-premises, private cloud public cloud, hybrid cloud, and multicloud implementations. On-premises IT infrastructure, which is often abbreviated to “on-prem,” refers to hardware and software applications that are hosted on-site, located and operated within an organization's data center to serve their unique needs. This implementation is the traditional way of managing IT infrastructure. The benefit of on-premises is that it doesn’t require third-party access which gives owners physical control over the server hardware and software and doesn’t require them to pay for ongoing access. However, to have the computing power to run their required workloads, organizations must buy physical servers and other infrastructure through procurement processes that can take months. These systems require physical space, typically a specialized room with sufficient power and cooling. After configuring and deploying the systems, businesses then need expert personnel to manage them. This long process is difficult to scale when demand spikes or business expands. Organizations often acquire more computing resources than they actually need, which results in low utilization and high overhead. Cloud computing addresses these issues by offering computing resources as scalable, on-demand services. A private cloud is a type of cloud computing where the infrastructure is dedicated to a single organization instead of the general public. This type is also known as single-tenant or corporate cloud. Typically, an organization has to perform the same kind of ongoing maintenance and management for a private cloud as it would for traditional on-premises infrastructure. A private cloud is hosted within an organization’s own private servers, either at an organization’s own data center, at a third-party colocation facility, or by using a private cloud provider. Private cloud computing gives businesses many of the benefits of a public cloud—including self-service, scalability, and elasticity—with more customization available from dedicated on-premises infrastructure. Organizations might use private cloud if they have already made significant investments in their own infrastructure or if, for regulatory reasons, data must be kept on-premises or hosted in a certain way. The public cloud is where on-demand computing services and infrastructure are managed by a third-party provider, such as Google Cloud, and shared with multiple organizations or “tenants” through the public internet. This sharing is why public cloud is known as multi-tenant cloud infrastructure, but each tenant’s data and applications running in the cloud are hidden from other tenants. You can think of it like an apartment building that’s maintained by a property management company. The building has many units and tenants. Each unit might have a slightly different layout, but still has all the amenities a tenant needs to live there. And each unit is locked and private to the tenant who pays for that space. In these lessons, when we refer to “cloud,” unless otherwise stated, we’re talking about the public cloud. Because public cloud has on-demand availability of computing and infrastructure resources, organizations don't need to acquire, configure, or manage those resources themselves, and they only pay for what they use. There are typically three types of cloud computing service models available in public cloud: The first is infrastructure as a service (IaaS), which offers compute and storage services. The second is platform as a service (PaaS), which offers a develop-and-deploy environment to build cloud apps. And the third is software as a service (SaaS), which delivers apps as services, where users get access to software on a subscription basis. We’ll explore these three models in detail later. The final two ways that organizations can implement IT infrastructure is is hybrid cloud or multi-cloud. Although they’re not the same, these two terms are often used interchangeably, so let's take a moment to define them. In a hybrid cloud, applications run in a combination of different environments. The most common hybrid cloud example is combining a public and private cloud environment, like an on-premises data center and a public cloud computing environment, like Google Cloud. The term multicloud describes architectures that combine at least two public cloud providers. Organizations might operate a combination of on-premises and multiple public cloud environments, therefore implementing both hybrid and multicloud simultaneously. So, although hybrid cloud and multicloud are related, they aren’t interchangeable terms. Today, most organizations embrace a multicloud strategy. According to the “Flexera 2022 State of the Cloud Report,”, 89% of respondents reported having a multicloud strategy, and 80% of them take a hybrid approach by combining public and private cloud.

2. Let's practice!

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