What is cloud computing?
Cloud computing is a revolution in our computing power is delivered to business. It’s being made possible by very large scale data centres connected to high-speed, low-cost broadband networks. Today’s users require 24/7 secure access to more business apps. On more devices wherever they are. Demands on IT are skyrocketing. It’s no wonder traditional on-site computer facilities are struggling to keep up.
With cloud computing, you only pay for what you use. Gone are the traditional IT bottlenecks, which means no more waiting. Gone a computer room full of servers and data storage. Firewalls and routers along with the team to support it. Gone is the need to constantly invest in upgrade and rebuilds. Instead, by plugging your blue cable into the wall, you access exactly what your business needs – including all the support and expertise paid for as a service.
History reveals a similar shift happened in the way business use power at the turn of the century. In the late 1890s, every factory or business had it’s a basement a smoke belching fuel consuming power generator – stroked by grey boilers suited men who serviced it and kept it running as best they could. When things worked, they work nicely. But when they didn’t, which was quite often, the machine ground to a halt. The lights went out and nothing got done.
Chicago 1900. The Edison power company developed the turbine power station, which could generate and distribute large-scale power to business. This provided cheaper, more reliable, and cleaner power than any factory or business based generator – without many of the headaches. By 1920, most businesses have made the switch. Business now access power simply by plugging into the wall. In-house power generation no longer made sense.
Today we take virtually unlimited power for granted. We can’t imagine it any other way. As we speak, a similar revolution is happening in IT – called cloud computing. Business no longer has to buy, build, and manage costly computer facilities on-site. Just as business learn that power provided by a specialised power company improved reliability and quality, cloud computing has proven to be more secure, more reliable, more scalable, and ultimately more affordable than traditional on-site IT. This is why most new online and business apps are now deployed in the cloud.
Just like electricity 100 years ago. A business can now access all the cloud computing infrastructure it requires as a service for all its users – wherever they are on whatever device they use. This is called Infrastructure as a Service, IAAS for short. Your applications remain the same but running on more reliable cloud infrastructure. This is where most businesses will start to use cloud. Apps will be migrated as existing in-house infrastructure reaches the end of its life.
IAAS is the power station at the core of all cloud models. PAAS or Platform as a Service builds on the power IAAS as a platform to make it easier to collaborate and develop software. SaaS or Software as a Service is the icing on the cake. Fully service software running on fully service infrastructure. Gone are upfront investments for new business application packages. So cloud can be all three (3) models with IaaS at the core.
As demands on your in-house IT go through the roof, contact us and take it to the cloud.
