Cloud computing

Cloud Computing

Cloud computing (pronunciation: /klaʊd kəmˈpjuːtɪŋ/) is a model for enabling ubiquitous, convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction.

Etymology

The term "cloud computing" is believed to have been derived from the practice of using drawings of stylized clouds to denote networks in diagrams of computing and communications systems. The word "cloud" is used as a metaphor for the Internet, based on the standardized use of a cloud-like shape to denote a network on telephony schematics and later to depict the Internet in computer network diagrams.

Related Terms

• Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): A form of cloud computing that provides virtualized computing resources over the internet.
• Platform as a Service (PaaS): A category of cloud computing services that provides a platform allowing customers to develop, run, and manage applications without the complexity of building and maintaining the infrastructure typically associated with developing and launching an app.
• Software as a Service (SaaS): A software licensing and delivery model in which software is licensed on a subscription basis and is centrally hosted. It is sometimes referred to as "on-demand software".
• Public Cloud: A type of computing in which a service provider makes resources, such as applications and storage, available to the general public over the Internet.
• Private Cloud: Refers to a model of cloud computing where IT services are provisioned over private IT infrastructure for the dedicated use of a single organization.
• Hybrid Cloud: A computing environment that combines a public cloud and a private cloud by allowing data and applications to be shared between them.

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