What is Cloud computing? – Public Cloud v Private Cloud
This blog is part of series on Windows Azure - Step by Step guide for Designing, Developing, Deploying and Administrating a Windows Azure Applications. So if you are new to Azure and interested in exploring Windows Azure you may like to check this blog.
What is Cloud Computing?
To start with let’s understand what exactly “Cloud computing” is?
Cloud computing is providing computing resources (Software, Platform and Infrastructure) as a service over the network. Cloud computing users can use the services provided by the Cloud Computing service provider without taking the trouble of planning, procuring, building, configuring and maintaining the infrastructure. Cloud is a metaphor used for Internet
To take a real world example, it’s more like if you need to travel from one city to another you don’t buy a train. You just buy a ticket and “pay as you use”. And train service provider will take care of maintaining trains and rail-treks and manpower. Similarly cloud computing is using computing resources managed by provider and “pay as per usage”. The service provider will take care of infrastructure management and user needs to pay only for services used.
Type of Cloud Computing
Further cloud computing largely divided in two types, Private clouds and Public Cloud. You may also hear terms like hybrid cloud or community cloud which is combination of Private and Public cloud.
In case of Private Clouds, cloud services are maintained for one client. It may be managed internally or externally by Internal IT or third-party. This gives organization little edge on security but same time because of small scale they won’t able to cost benefits of virtualization but same time
Public Cloud is extension of private cloud with additional cost-benefit due to service-provider orients low cost cloud storage to enterprise. Public Cloud like Microsoft Windows Azure passed the benefit of shared infrastructure and automation in term of low-cost.
Another popular term is Hybrid Cloud where a mix of both Private Cloud and Public cloud is used. In this case organizations host some of the applications on Public Cloud and these applications further internally use Applications hosted on Private Cloud to retrieve the data. This is also an optimize way of using cloud computing.
At the moment there is a big discussion out as Public Cloud vs Private Cloud with each having its on benefits and risk. However expert suggests implementing a more holistic approach. It’s suggested to first move application with low sensitive data with high infrastructure requirement. Once you build an expertise and confirm level you can gradually move more applications to Windows Azure.
Next we will discuss offering of Public Cloud in more details.
Please share your feedback and feel free to contact me at arakwal@microsoft.com.