Cloud computing is the on-demand availability of computer system resources, especially data storage (cloud storage) and computing power, without direct active management by the user. The term is generally used to describe data centers available to many users over the Internet.[1] Large clouds, predominant today, often have functions distributed over multiple locations from central servers. If the connection to the user is relatively close, it may be designated an edge server.
Clouds may be limited to a single organization (enterprise clouds[2][3]), or be available to many organizations (public cloud).
Cloud computing relies on sharing of resources to achieve coherence and economies of scale.
Advocates of public and hybrid clouds note that cloud computing allows companies to avoid or minimize up-front IT infrastructure costs. Proponents also claim that cloud computing allows enterprises to get their applications up and running faster, with improved manageability and less maintenance, and that it enables IT teams to more rapidly adjust resources to meet fluctuating and unpredictable demand,[3][4][5] providing the burst computing capability: high computing power at certain periods of peak demand.[6]
Cloud providers typically use a "pay-as-you-go" model, which can lead to unexpected operating expenses if administrators are not familiarized with cloud-pricing models.[7]
The availability of high-capacity networks, low-cost computers and storage devices as well as the widespread adoption of hardware virtualization, service-oriented architecture and autonomic and utility computing has led to growth in cloud computing.[8][9][10] By 2019, Linux was the most widely used operating system, including in Microsoft's offerings and is thus described as dominant.[11] The Cloud Service Provider (CSP) will screen, kee
- ^ The NIST Definition of Cloud Computing NIST
- ^ Wang (2012). "Enterprise cloud service architectures". Information Technology and Management. 13 (4): 445–454. doi:10.1007/s10799-012-0139-4. S2CID 8251298.
- ^ a b "What is Cloud Computing?". Amazon Web Services. 2013-03-19. Retrieved 2013-03-20.
- ^ Baburajan, Rajani (2011-08-24). "The Rising Cloud Storage Market Opportunity Strengthens Vendors". It.tmcnet.com. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ^ Oestreich, Ken (2010-11-15). "Converged Infrastructure". CTO Forum. Thectoforum.com. Archived from the original on 2012-01-13. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ^ Ted Simpson, Jason Novak, Hands on Virtual Computing, 2017, ISBN 1337515744, p. 451
- ^ "Where's The Rub: Cloud Computing's Hidden Costs". 2014-02-27. Retrieved 2014-07-14.
- ^ "Cloud Computing: Clash of the clouds". The Economist. 2009-10-15. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
- ^ "Gartner Says Cloud Computing Will Be As Influential As E-business". Gartner. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
- ^ Gruman, Galen (2008-04-07). "What cloud computing really means". InfoWorld. Retrieved 2009-06-02.
- ^ Vaughan-Nichols, Steven J. "Microsoft developer reveals Linux is now more used on Azure than Windows Server". ZDNet. Retrieved 2019-07-02.