Cloud Computing Basics

I’m going to assume you’re already some sort of IT professional, or at least you’ve had an interest in the stuff for a while and you’re pretty tech savvy. Now you’ve decided it’s time to take a look at this whole Cloud Computing thing and you have decided to learn some cloud computing basics.

The definition is a pretty good start I suppose. Cloud computing is a service (similar to software as a service), provided by various cloud computing companies, which gives clients a means to share all of their data, software, etc. over the internet.

Cloud Computing Basics Overview

Now that you have a very basic grasp of what cloud computing means, we can go over some of the specifics. Before I do that, take a quick look at this video.

Moving right along… One of the main concepts to understand is something called abstraction. You may already know what that is if you have a programming background but I’ll give you a quick glimpse.

Abstraction is basically taking the implementation of high level concepts and hiding them from the end user. Using abstraction allows for the user to apply the concepts without understanding exactly how it works. Like I said above, this is done in programming, namely object oriented programming, in order to provide classes and methods for other programmers to use without understanding the details of implementation.

Going back to describing cloud computing basics, the abstraction characteristic allows for companies to provide data storage (among other services) to the end user without understanding where said data is stored or the configuration of the provider’s system and infrastructure.

In order to be completely transparent, “cloud computing” has been around for longer than the term. Many companies, and individuals for that matter, have stored their data and accessed applications from servers that they didn’t own themselves. It may seem like a fancy new technology that is taking the world by storm, but it is really a new concept that is being adopted by more and more people.

Don’t get me wrong, the technology and the concept are incredible. I just wanted to make sure that you understand that the term cloud computing is nothing but a marketing term to get people excited.

Once you begin to understand the basics of cloud computing (check out the cloud computing tutorial) you can find out some of the best ways to take advantage of this “new technology.”

Some of the benefits of cloud computing:

Data backup
Access from almost anywhere
Use of software without tying up your own resources
Easy sharing of information and resources
Many more

Basic Characteristics of Cloud Computing

Now that you have an understanding of cloud computing basics you should get a little more familiar with the characteristics of cloud computing

Here’s a quick list:

Control of information and resources: you can allow access for multiple users
Universal access: you can access data from anywhere using an internet connection
Easy to change gears: for business application, you won’t have to do large migrations or upgrades to keep up with your changing business
Cost reduction: most cloud computing uses provide lower cost because you won’t need the equipment or have the electricity bills
Platform independent: interfaces can be developed to access data in many ways allowing just about any platform to use it
Long-lasting: you don’t have to worry about backup after backup – it’s done for you
Security: this is definitely debatable, but there are some security ups and downs

There are probably more than seven topics that I could have covered here, but it is such a great number (and that covers just about everything).

Layers of Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is like an onion… or a parfait… Ok, that was a bad joke, but I just had to do it.

This section and the next will be pretty brief since this page is about the basics of cloud computing and not an in depth analysis. I’ve already gone on long enough anyway.

Here they are:

Client: this is just the “device” (read hardware and/or software) that is using the cloud computing technology
Application: this is the layer which allows you to use the data from the cloud without installing your own software
Platform: this one get’s a bit technical and confusing, but it’s basically when developers create applications to interact with the cloud (very similar to the application layer)
Infrastructure: the actual “structure” of the cloud including the servers, hardware, etc. that is provided by the cloud computing company
Server: naturally the layer below infrastructure would be what makes up the infrastructure; pretty self-explanatory I think

Deployment Methods

Public Cloud

Without getting all technical and wordy, the public cloud is what is provided to the majority of people who need cloud computing services. The customer is given some space to use that they can access through the internet at their convenience.

Community Cloud

The community cloud is almost the same as the public cloud except for the fact that the resources are shared between multiple “organizations” who all have similar interests. An example of this could be a group of businesses who all want security to be the main focus for their cloud computing services.

Hybrid Cloud

As the name implies, the hybrid cloud is just a combination of the various types of cloud offerings. Instead of creating a completely new type of cloud, this just combines the other types by connecting them together (at least that is how I understand it). This can be good for customers who want to move their stuff around across multiple types of clouds.

Private Cloud

The private cloud is just that… private. This deployment of the cloud is provided to one organization and can be hosted externally or internally. Simple as that.

Now You’ve Mastered the Basics

Hopefully this page has given you a quick overview of cloud computing basics. There is a lot more to earn and doing so will definitely pay out in the end.

More and more companies are adopting the cloud computing concepts which means more and more professionals will have to learn the ropes. Don’t get behind the curve. Make sure you understand this growing trend.