At its most basic, cloud computing is a means of storing data needed to run various applications. Cloud computing is how many businesses today defer the cost of operating and maintaining owned, on-premises servers.
At its most basic, cloud computing is a means of storing data needed to run various applications. Cloud computing is how many businesses today defer the cost of operating and maintaining owned, on-premises servers.
Cloud computing as a term was first coined in 1996 by a group of executives at Compaq Computers as they “plotted the future of the internet,” according to MIT’s Technology Review. Today, the term is defined as, “the practice of storing regularly used computer data on multiple servers that can be accessed through the internet” according to Merriam-Webster.
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Cloud computing has made much of today's digital efficiency possible. You’ve likely already experienced cloud computing's impact on your day-to-day life, from streaming your favorite workout on your smart TV or playing your favorite game online, to your fraud detection subscription or your healthcare provider’s online check-in service.
Companies these days deal with a lot of data. From storing the data properly according to government regulations, to protecting it from various threats, data management is standard in today’s business operations. Many companies turn to cloud computing to meet these data management needs.
In this digital age, it’s likely that everyone uses the cloud. You can find cloud computing utilized across just about every industry, including:
Cloud computing is an operational strategy that many companies today choose for their IT infrastructure needs. It allows companies to outsource IT infrastructure to a third-party provider, rather than investing in the hardware and resources needed to maintain their own. Once set up, companies can plug in to their chosen provider’s infrastructure and access resources from virtually any device with an internet connection.
Cloud services are provided using a remote server versus an on-site server and are managed by a third-party provider. Cloud services are only accessible via the internet, and follow one of these three models:
Cloud deployment models are defined by where the infrastructure for deployments lives, how it’s accessed and who has control over it.
Here are three ways that cloud services may be deployed:
There are many advantages to using cloud computing including:
While there are many benefits to cloud computing, there are also challenges to consider. Specifically, the cost of migrating to the cloud could outweigh the potential return on investment.
For example, some applications that are critical to a business may not have been originally built for the cloud. The migration of these applications could end up requiring significant cost to rework the code and adapt the application to the cloud environment with full functionality, or risk compromising the application’s performance by retrofitting it to work with a cloud deployment model.
Additionally, remaining competitive in application performance becomes increasingly difficult as cloud computing becomes more pervasive.
With various businesses utilizing the same cloud computing providers and services, differentiating yourself from competitors becomes less about the speed of capabilities and more about what is produced. If your IT infrastructure is managed in-house/on-premises and your capabilities aren’t performing as quickly as your competitors, it’s going to be harder for you to compete online without migrating to the cloud.
Today, there are a lot of well-known companies in the cloud computing space, including:
There are a variety of job opportunities within the cloud computing space in areas such as customer support, development and engineering and architecture and administration.
Cloud computing job titles include:
Learn how an Online Undergraduate Certificate in Cloud Computing from DeVry University can prepare you to pursue this path.