Every time you hear the word ‘cloud computing’, which you probably do, and will do it more and more often, you can evoke some vague idea in your mind. Let’s replace that concept with more concrete knowledge of how cloud computing works.
The term ‘cloud’ in this context has been around for quite some time and comes from the cloud drawn in diagrams to represent the Internet. Cloud computing refers to the use of software or hardware applications that are delivered over a network instead of staying with the user.
Let’s use email as a simple example. Most of us do not have the software and storage to run our email program. Instead, we use a web-based email service (for example, Gmail or Hotmail) that stores information remotely in the cloud.
Cloud computing follows the same concept. In this example, the user entrusts various types of data, calculations and software to some remote source. These services are generally paid by subscription or by use.
In cloud computing, the user or client around the front end is connected to the cloud, or at the end of the tailgate, through a network, usually the Internet. At the front end, the user has a computer with an application that allows access to the network that connects to the series of computers, data storage systems and servers that make up the cloud.
The customer can use the software and computer services and store data without resorting to the purchase and hosting of the software, hardware and storage that he would need without the cloud.
Companies are leveraging cloud computing to save on the price of hardware and software and avoid various operations and repairs. All this is taken care of in the back.
The system is managed through a central server that follows specific protocols to monitor customer needs and ensures that everything works correctly. All information is backed up, and copied to a separate storage device in case the cloud computing system is damaged.
Another purpose of cloud computing is in games. Through a cloud, a user with minimal RAM can play games that could never operate on their hardware by accessing a cloud where there is a much larger amount of memory available to practice the sport.
Although it has its drawbacks, cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular as people see how cloud computing works and understand that they can open up a world of possibilities essentially ‘outsourcing’ most of the costs that come from establishing an infrastructure with hardware, also personal software licenses.
The idea has existed for quite some time in several ways, however, the new wave of cloud computing and its various applications make it worthwhile for each company and individual to investigate how it can be used to improve its computing capacity.
