Cloud computing means using multiple server computers via a digital network, as though they were one computer.

[1] Often, the services available are considered part of cloud computing. Traditionally, without a cloud, a web server runs as a single computer or a group of privately owned computers. The computer(s) are powerful enough to serve a given amount of requests per minute and can do so with a certain amount of latency per request. If the computer's website or web application suddenly becomes more popular, and the amount of requests are far more than the web server can handle, the response time of the requested pages will be increased due to overloading. On the other hand, in times of low load much of the capacity will go unused. If the website, service, or web application is hosted in a cloud, however, additional processing and compute power is available from the cloud provider. The website would share those servers with perhaps thousands of other websites of varying size and memory. If the website suddenly becomes more popular, the cloud can automatically direct more individual computers to work to serve pages for the site, and more money is paid for the extra usage. If it becomes unpopular, however, the amount of money due will be less. Cloud computing is popular for its pay-as-you-go pricing model.

Cloud computing visual diagram Clouds are sometimes set up within large corporations, or other institutions, so that many users all share the same server power. As computer power gets cheaper, many different applications are provided and managed by the cloud server. In many cases, users might not download and install applications on their own device or computer; all processing and storage is maintained by the cloud server.

Introduction

In the past computing tasks such as word processing were not possible without the installation of application software on a user's computer. A user bought a license for each application from a software vendor and obtained the right to install the application on one computer system. With the development of local area networks (LAN) and more networking capabilities, the client-server model of computing was born, where server computers with enhanced capabilities and large storage devices could be used to host application services and data for a large workgroup. Typically, in client-server computing, a network-friendly client version of the application was required on client computers which utilized the

client system's memory and CPU for processing, even though resultant application data files (such as word processing documents) were stored centrally on the data servers. Multiple user licenses of an application were purchased for use by many users on a network. Cloud computing differs from the classic client-server model by providing applications from a server that are executed and managed by a client's web browser, with no installed client version of an application required. Centralization gives cloud service providers complete control over the versions of the browserbased applications provided to clients, which removes the need for version upgrades or license management on individual client computing devices. The phrase "software as a service" (SaaS) is sometimes used to describe application programs offered through cloud computing. A common shorthand for a provided cloud computing service (or even an aggregation of all existing cloud services) is "The Cloud". Any computer or web-friendly device connected to the Internet may access the same pool of computing power, applications, and files in a cloud-computing environment. Users may remotely store and access personal files such as music, pictures, videos, and bookmarks; play games; or do word processing on a remote server. Data is centrally stored, so the user does not need to carry a storage medium such as a DVD or USB flash drive. Desktop applications that connect to internet-host email providers may be considered cloud applications, including web-based Gmail, Hotmail, or Yahoo! email services. Private companies may also make use of their own customized cloud email servers for their employees. Consumers now routinely use data-intensive applications driven by cloud technology that may have been previously unavailable due to cost and deployment complexity.[citation needed] In many companies, employees and company departments are bringing a flood of consumer technology into the workplace, which raises legal compliance and security concerns for the corporation which may be relieved by cloud computing.[citation needed]

The eBook is entitled Cloud Computing Made Easy, so it starts with a simple working definition: Cloud computing refers to computing on the Internet, as opposed to computing on a desktop. Hmmm, so cloud computing just means Web-based software, right? Well, no. Truth be told, a lot of major software vendors are saying We do cloud computing too! simply because their software works over the Internet. Cloud computing is about MUCH more than that. Inasmuch as Web-enabled software is wonderful and very useful it has also been around for a long time. Its nothing new in itself. In reality, cloud computing encompasses other forms of computing beyond software, including the underlying hardware (infrastructure) and platforms. In many ways, cloud computing is strikingly similar to desktop computing in that it encompasses the same three basic elements: hardware (infrastructure),

operating systems (platforms), and software. The main difference is that, with cloud computing, all three elements are rented over the Internet, rather than being managed locally. Lets take a closer look at the definition above: computing on the Internet, as opposed to computing on a desktop. What does it mean to say computing on the Internet? We simply mean that you can log onto a website to do whatever you might normally do on a PC or local server. For example, you can rent and manage all your hardware over the Internet, configure computing environments and/or run software. Cloud computing lets us do all of our computing on the Internet as a viable alternative to buying, installing, upgrading, uploading, downloading, backing up and otherwise managing physical hardware, operating systems and software. It doesnt require a big upfront investment, because you rent only what you need, and as much as you need. With cloud computing, your PC is mainly used as a way to run a Web browser. The actual processing and computing is done by remote servers (or virtual servers) and software that may be scattered across the Internet, thus the word cloud. In cloud terminology, the term as a service loosely refers to the ability to use something over the Internet on as-needed basis. The terms software, operating systems and hardware are confusingly described as Cloud Software (or Software-as-a-Service), Cloud Platforms (or Platform-as-a-Service) and Cloud Infrastructure (Infrastructure-as-a-Service). To make matters even more confusing, the acronyms SaaS, PaaS and IaaS are often used. Since our eBook is entitled Cloud Computing Made Easy, weve adopted the lesser confusing terms: Cloud Software, Cloud Platforms and Cloud Infrastructure, though we will occasionally reference the other terms. We recommend these terms. In due time, we believe that the as a service suffix will be dropped by everyone in favor of infrastructure, platforms and software. Afterall, we dont say software on the desktop now. Rather, the desktop is implied as a suitable delivery mechanism for software.

LOUD COMPUTING INTRODUCTION : DEFINITION: Cloud computing is a better way to run your business. Instead of running your apps yourself, they run on a shared data center.The underlying concept of cloud computing dates back to 1960, when JohnMcCarthy opined that "computation may someday be organized as a public utility"; indeed it shares characteristics with service bureaus that date back to the 1960s.The actual term "cloud" borrows from

telephony in that telecommunicationscompanies, who until the 1990s primarily offered dedicated pointto-point data circuits,began offering VIRTUAL PRIVATE NETWORK (VPN) services with comparable qualityof service but at a much lower cost.The cloud symbol was used to denote the demarcation point between that whichwas the responsibility of the provider from that of the user. Cloud computing extends thisboundary to cover servers as well as the network infrastructure.Cost is claimed to be greatly reduced and capital expenditure is converted to operational expenditure. Device and location independence enable users to access systems using a webbrowser regardless of their location or what device they are using. FACTORS: 1.Reliability improves through the use of multiple redundant sites, whichmakes cloud computing suitable for business continuity and disaster recovery. Nonetheless, many major cloud computing services have suffered outages, and IT and business managers can at times do little when they areaffected.2.Security could improve due to centralization of data, increased security- focused resources, etc., but concerns can persist about loss of control over certain sensitive data, and the lack of security for stored kernels.3.Maintenance cloud computing applications are easier to maintain, sincethey don't have to be installed on each user's computer. They are easier to support and to improve since the changes reach the clients instantly.Cloud infrastructure services or "Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)" deliverscomputer infrastructure, typically a platform virtualization environment, as a service. Rather than purchasing servers, software, data center space or network equipment, clientsinstead buy those resources as a fully outsourced service. TYPES OF CLOUD COMPUTING:

1.A community cloud may be established where several organizations have similar requirements and seek to share infrastructure so as to realize someof the benefits of cloud computing.2.Private cloud and internal cloud are neologisms that some vendors haverecently used to describe offerings that emulate cloud computing on privatenetworks.Open standards are critical to the growth of cloud computing, and open source softwarehas provided the foundation for many cloud computing implementations [edit] Open standards.The relative security of cloud computing services is a contentious issue which may bedelaying its adoption. Although cloud computing is often assumed to be a form of "green computing", there is asof yet no published study to substantiate this assumption.When your apps run in the cloud, you dont buy anything. Its all rolled up into a predictable monthly subscription, so you only pay for what you actually use.Most IT departments are forced to spend a significant portion of their time on frustrating implementation, maintenance, and upgrade projects that too often dont add significant value to the companys bottom line. Increasingly, IT teams are turning to cloud computing technology to minimize the time spent on lower-value activities and allow IT to focus on strategic activities with greater impact on the business

CONCLUSION:

Finally, cloud apps dont eat up your valuable IT resources, so your CFO will love it. This lets you focus on deploying more apps, new projects, and innovation. Cloud computing is a simple idea, but it can have a huge impact on your business

Cloud computing [From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]

Cloud computing is a way of computing, via the Internet, that broadly shares computer resources instead of using software or storage on a local computer.

definition A technical definition is "a computing capability that provides an abstraction between the computing resource and its underlying technical architecture (e.g., servers, storage, networks), enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction."

Characteristics

In general, cloud computing customers do not own the physical infrastructure, instead avoiding capital expenditure by renting usage from a third-party provider. They consume resources as a service and pay only for resources that they use. Many cloud-computing offerings employ the utility computing model, which is analogous to how traditional utility services (such as electricity) are consumed, whereas others bill on a subscription basis. Sharing "perishable and intangible" computing power among multiple tenants can improve utilization rates, as servers are not unnecessarily left idle (which can reduce costs significantly while increasing the speed of application development). A side-effect of this approach is that overall computer usage rises dramatically, as customers do not have to engineer for peak load limits. In addition, "increased high-speed bandwidth" makes it possible to receive the same response times from centralized infrastructure at other sites.