Computing technology has undergone several changes since it was first introduced. It has replaced the mundane nature of manually managing records and made the operation process faster. It has helped users in distributing the workload and at the same time created a central repository of data. Yet users were cocooned in siloed format till cloud computing became the solution against the laborious, manual server expansion model.
Cloud is the first step towards liberating applications from their dedicated server model. It has introduced the idea of detangling the application from hardware and expanding hardware capacity to accommodate greater user demand. The users can now access applications from any corner of the world without worrying about where the software is stored.
Cloud computing since its inception has evolved to become more matured and currently, the three most popular forms of computing models available are – Infrastructure as a service (IaaS), Platform as a service (PaaS) and Software as a service (SaaS).
Description of three types of cloud:
- IaaS basically offers storage facility which allows users to host their data in a remote location.
- In SaaS model cloud based applications are hosted in the service provider’s location and available to the users over the internet.
- PaaS combines the features of both. In this model hardware, OS, storage and network capacity are offered to the user through internet connectivity.
Platform as a service:
Paas cloud based technology can be regarded as an extension of the SaaS model where both software and infrastructure are made available to users. Users can rent server space in provider’s virtualized environment to create, test, deploy and host applications. As a result, it offers several benefits to developers and developing teams spread across different geographical locations.
PaaS a choice for enterprises:
Obviously a question arises about entrepreneurial benefits of using PaaS cloud based technology for enterprises. It is increasingly becoming a preferred choice for organizations that like to develop a private cloud for themselves.
Obviously a question arises about entrepreneurial benefits of using PaaS cloud based technology for enterprises. It is increasingly becoming a preferred choice for organizations that like to develop a private cloud for themselves.
Often large enterprises are skeptical about hosting their project-sensitive data to multi-tenant public cloud environment. PaaS has enabled organizations inclined towards developing their own hosted service to create their closed private cloud set-up and add layers of security measures.
Unlike the earlier model of software development Paas has eliminated the limitations offered by middleware and infrastructural requirements and thus, enabling large enterprises to create applications that are fast with higher rate of accessibility.
In the growing environment of smartphones and mobile internet devices the developers need to develop applications that are lightweight and can be deployed faster. These have made the earlier method of deploying an application in a pre-configured environment cumbersome. PaaS has eliminated these hindrances.
Moreover, PaaS private cloud combines features like flexibility of IaaS system and high-level of services offered by software as a service to help enterprises create a regulated environment to host their services. In this situation the basic infrastructure, comprising application server, middleware, shared component and self-service interface will be offered by the IT department of the organization. Based on the platform provided, each department then will develop and deploy their department specific applications in the hosted environment from where it can be accessed by users.
Future of PaaS:
As cloud in undergoing evolution, PaaS too is changing to become more sophisticated and aligned towards the needs of users. Even today most PaaS cloud based services are offered by third-party hosting service, wherein applications are developed and deployed through a third-party virtualized interface. But the future seems to be more in favor of open source environment where the PaaS will be a mixture of all three – public, private and hybrid cloud set-ups.
As cloud in undergoing evolution, PaaS too is changing to become more sophisticated and aligned towards the needs of users. Even today most PaaS cloud based services are offered by third-party hosting service, wherein applications are developed and deployed through a third-party virtualized interface. But the future seems to be more in favor of open source environment where the PaaS will be a mixture of all three – public, private and hybrid cloud set-ups.
Author Bio: Charles Smith is a tech writer and a cloud consultant. He loves to share experience regarding recent trends of Cloud based technology and cloud based applications. From last 5 years, he is associated with Cloud development companies as a consultant.
