Cloud Computing

Cloud Computing

What is cloud computing?

Let’s start with the name. Where did ‘cloud’ come from?

When the internet was in its infancy the word ‘cloud’ was used as a metaphor to describe how the complex telephone networks connected. Now, many people and organizations refer to it as ‘THE cloud’ but it’s not a single entity, and it doesn’t exist in just the one place. So, what exactly is it?
Cloud is a model of computing where servers, networks, storage, development tools, and even applications (apps) are enabled through the internet. Instead of organizations having to make major investments to buy equipment, train staff, and provide ongoing maintenance, some or all of these needs are handled by a cloud service provider.

01
01
Internet Access

With a public cloud environment, users "plug into" the data and applications via an internet connection giving anytime, anywhere access.

02
02
On-Demand Self-Service

Services can be requested and provisioned quickly, without the need for manual setup and configuration.

03
03
Rapid Elasticity

Cloud platforms are elastic. An organization can scale its resource usage levels up or down quickly and easily as needs change.

04
04
Measured Service

Cloud is often pay-as-you-go, where you only pay for what you use. Think about how a utility company meters how much water, electricity, or gas is used and charges based on consumption. The cloud is the same.

05
05
Shared Resource Pooling

Cloud often uses the multi-tenancy model. This means a single application is shared among several users. So, rather than creating a copy of the application for each user, several users, or "tenants" can configure the application to their specific needs.

Cloud Computing

Why is cloud computing important?

With worldwide “whole cloud” spending predicted to reach $565B by 2021, it’s never been more vital that businesses understand and fully embrace the possibilities this tech can unlock.
Before cloud computing, companies had to store all their data and software on their own hard drives and servers. 

The bigger the company, the more storage they needed. This way of treating data is not scalable at speed. For example, if word started spreading about your business and you suddenly had a lot of online orders, your servers would probably crash. Good business meant hard work for the IT department.
It’s not just businesses that benefit from cloud computing. The cloud has transformed our lives as individuals as well. Many of us use cloud services every day. When we update our status on social media, binge a new streaming series, or check our bank accounts we’re most likely using applications that are hosted by cloud services. These apps are accessed through an internet connection rather than installed on our hard drives or devices.

Today, cloud technology means that companies can scale and adapt at speed and scale, accelerate innovation, drive business agility, streamline operations, and reduce costs. Not only can this help propel companies through the current crisis, it can lead to increased, sustainable growth. According to our Future Systems research, companies that are more strategic in their approach to technology are doing better financially. They’re achieving more than twice the average revenue growth of companies slow to implement and use their tech. In fact, 95 percent of leaders have adopted sophisticated cloud services.

What are the types of cloud computing?

We’ve established that most of us are already using cloud technology in some form or another. But where does all this data actually live and who runs it?
Cloud computing can be deployed in different ways depending on what services a business needs. The first thing to consider is the deployment model—public cloud, private cloud, hybrid cloud, and multi-cloud. The next element is the service category—Saas (Software as a Service), Paas (Platform as a Service) and Iaas (Infrastructure as a service). When a company is considering its cloud migration strategy, it must consider both factors. Here’s a primer on how they work and what they mean for your business.

Deployment models

  • Public Cloud
  • Private Cloud
  • Hybrid Cloud
  • Multi-cloud

This cloud model is great for organizations concerned about sharing resources on a public cloud. It is implemented on servers owned and maintained by the organization and accessed over the internet or through a private internal network.

A private cloud environment gives you complete control over data and security in order to meet specific regulatory and other compliance requirements.

This cloud model is great for organizations concerned about sharing resources on a public cloud. It is implemented on servers owned and maintained by the organization and accessed over the internet or through a private internal network.
A private cloud environment gives you complete control over data and security in order to meet specific regulatory and other compliance requirements (e.g., HIPAA for healthcare, GDPR, GxP for Pharma, etc.).

Many organizations actually use a combination of several cloud environments. This is referred to as a hybrid cloud approach. Hybrid cloud often includes a combination of public cloud and private cloud, frequently in combination with some on-premise infrastructure. To create a true hybrid cloud architecture, you must set up communication or orchestration between the various deployments.
Hybrid cloud eliminates reliance on any single cloud provider and allows for additional levels of flexibility in terms of capabilities, security compliance, etc.
In the past, choosing a hyperscaler meant picking public over private. This is no longer the case. To support regulatory, performance, and data gravity requirements, the hyperscalers are now offering private cloud carveouts in public environments. VMware on AWS (VMC), Azure VMware Services (AVS), and Google’s SAP, Oracle and Bare Metal solutions are good examples. Similarly, the hyperscalers have been working on private cloud extensions. This blurring of public and private under a hybrid cloud umbrella is likely to accelerate in the future. Over time, we will no longer see a delineation between "public" and "private" but instead, between "dedicated" and "shared."

A multi-cloud approach is a particular case of hybrid cloud in which an organization uses services from multiple public cloud providers.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

Service categories

SaaS is the most commonly used cloud application service and is becoming a dominant way for organizations to access software applications.
With SaaS, an organization accesses a specific software application hosted on a remote server and managed by a third-party provider. On a subscription basis, the application is accessed through a web browser, reducing the need for on-device software downloads or updates. Popular SaaS products include Salesforce, Workday, or Microsoft Office 365.

How is cloud applied?

Businesses should use SaaS if they’re looking to quickly and easily enable cloud system access with minimal database management, development and/or service provider interaction. SaaS is suitable for applications that require web and mobile access, short-term projects requiring quick collaboration, and startups that need to quickly launch ecommerce websites without server issues or software development.

Deployment models

  • Platform as a Service (PaaS)
  • Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

PaaS is a popular choice for businesses who want to create unique applications without making major financial investments.
With PaaS, an organization accesses a pre-defined environment for software development that can be used to build, test, and run applications. This means that developers don't need to start from scratch when creating apps. PaaS allows the developer to focus on the creative side of software development, as opposed to tedious tasks such as writing extensive code or managing software updates or security patches. Examples of PaaS products include Google App Engine, web servers, and SQL servers.

IaaS is the simplest option for businesses. With IaaS, an organization migrates its hardware—renting servers and data storage in the cloud rather than purchasing and maintaining its own infrastructure.
IaaS provides an organization with the same technologies and capabilities as a traditional data center, including full control over server instances. System administrators within the business are responsible for managing aspects such as databases, applications, runtime, security, etc., while the cloud provider manages the servers, hard drives, networking, storage, etc.
Your cloud migration strategy needs to consider the deployment model and service category.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

Is the cloud secure?

Security plays an important role in cloud technology and providers take it extremely seriously. Their business depends on it. Plus, there are many regulatory bodies and compliance requirements from industries of all kinds driving the need for the cloud to be both as accessible as possible, while also being as secure as possible.
The fact is that the data stored in the cloud is probably safer than data on your hard drive. But this doesn’t mean companies and people shouldn’t be vigilant. Providers have robust methods of securing the cloud and they keep a laser focus on encryption and cloud security. Users of the cloud, however, need to be responsible for application security and securing the environment they create.
There are a few key things companies can do to minimize cloud security risks. Jonathan Roz, Managing Director, Hyperfybre Cloud & Security, recommends taking these steps to become secure from the start:

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  • Define new security policies and procedures. The procedures you have already most likely don’t address cloud infrastructure.
  • Configure to the appropriate framework. Make sure the cloud environment is automated and configured in a way that’s compliant with the security framework relevant to industry and country regulations.
  • Identify the relevant controls needed to monitor policies and procedures to make sure they are compliant on an ongoing basis.
  • Create a cloud-specific security reference architecture. This is critical because securing cloud environments is substantially different from securing on-premises environments—including tools, processes, and even skill requirements.
  • Move to a DevSecOps model where infrastructure gets treated like application code and gets scanned before being deployed to check for misconfigurations or non-compliance.

Future of cloud

At the beginning of 2020, as the COVID-19 crisis unfolded, businesses began to accelerate their digital transformations to cloud to help navigate the human and business impact. It is clear that working from home and business continuity have been made possible by cloud computing.
The importance of cloud technology is even more apparent when we look at the performance gap that already exists between enterprise technology leaders and laggards. Almost overnight, the gap has widened. Leaders who invested in cloud technology as part of their digital transformation journeys have been able to adjust their supply chains and ways of buying at speed. They carry less fixed IT costs, making it possible to cut expenses far quicker than laggards who have been slow to migrate to the cloud. These laggards are now aggressively partnering to re-focus, control costs and catch up.

  •  Define new security policies and procedures. The procedures you have already most likely don’t address cloud infrastructure.
  •  Configure to the appropriate framework. Make sure the cloud environment is automated and configured in a way that’s compliant with the security framework relevant to industry and country regulations.
  •  Identify the relevant controls needed to monitor policies and procedures to make sure they are compliant on an ongoing basis.
  •  Create a cloud-specific security reference architecture. This is critical because securing cloud environments is substantially different from securing on-premises environments—including tools, processes, and even skill requirements.
  •  Move to a DevSecOps model where infrastructure gets treated like application code and gets scanned before being deployed to check for misconfigurations or non-compliance.

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