Cloud Computing: Overview & Utility

IOSR Journal of Computer Engineering (IOSR-JCE)
e-ISSN: 2278-0661,p-ISSN: 2278-8727, Volume 17, Issue 3, Ver. II (May – Jun. 2015), PP 40-43
www.iosrjournals.org
DOI: 10.9790/0661-17324043 www.iosrjournals.org 40 | Page
Cloud Computing: Overview & Utility
Ruchi P. Shirsat1
, Pallavi P. Deshpande2
1
(Electronics and Telecommunication, BabasahebGawde Institute of Technology/MSBTE, India)
2
(Electronics and Telecommunication, BabasahebGawde Institute of Technology/MSBTE, India)
Abstract: Cloud computing enables the process of storing documents, files photos online instead of using home
computer, or webmail or a social networking site. If in an organization, it is desired to use an online invoicing
service instead of updating the in-house one, which has been used since many years, then that online invoicing
service is a “cloud computing” service.
This paper briefs about Cloud computing that refers to the delivery of computing resources over the Internet.
Also instead of keeping data on one’s own hard drive or updating applications for one’s needs, it is suggested to
use a service over the Internet, at another location, to store the information or use its applications.
Keyword: cloud, online, internet, virtualization, data centre, business application
I. Introduction
Cloud computing is a new pattern of computing service, and it transforms the processor, storage device
and other physical resources on Internet to virtual resources which is expandable and can be shared. The
traditional computing mode puts the computing task on the local computer or the remote server, while the cloud
computing distributes the computing task on the massive distributed computers which constitute the enterprise's
data storage and processing centre (i.e. Data Centre). Cloud computing is a kind of pay-per-use service pattern,
which enables the enterprise to switch the needed resources for application and visit computing service and
memory system according to the demand. Computing and storage tasks are given to the cloud computing service
provider, which can reduce the computing and storage burden of the users computing device and enhance the
enterprise resources utility and computing efficiency.
The following definition of cloud computing has been developed by the U.S. National Institute of
Standards and Technology (NIST):
Cloud computing is a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of
configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be
rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction. This cloud
model promotes availability and is composed of five essential characteristics, three service models, and four
deployment models.
At present, this emerging service pattern of cloud computing develops rapidly, all kinds of
manufacturers are developing different cloud computing services, the security problem in cloud computing
gradually becomes a problem urgently waiting to research. While cloud computing reduces the enterprise and
user’s computing and storage burden, it also imports security problem into the cloud, how to guarantee the
security of important data and computing task in cloud computing by means of different kinds of security
mechanisms becomes important research content of cloud computing.
At the foundation it is broader concept of infrastructure storage and share services. This type of Data
centreenvironment allows enterprises to get applications up and running faster with easier manageability and
less maintenance and enables IT to more rapidly adjust IT resources such as servers, storage and networking to
meet fluctuating and unpredictable business demands. Most cloud computing infrastructure consists of services
delivered through shared data centres and appearing as single point of access for consumers computing needs.
Commercial offerings may be required to meet service-level agreements (SLA), but specific terms are less often
negotiatedby smaller companies.
Comparison: Cloud computing characteristics- [2]
Autonomic
Computing
Client – server
model
Grid computing Utility computing Mainframe
computer
Peer – to – peer
computer system
capable of self-
management
Client server
computer refers
broadly to any
distributed
application that
distinguish between
service providers
A form of
distributed and
parallel computing,
where by a super
and virtual
computers is
composed of a
The packaging of
computing
resources such as
computation and
storage as a metered
service similar to a
traditional public
Powerful computer
used mainly by
large organisations
for critical
applications
typically bulky data
processing such as
Distributed
architecture without
the need for central
coordination with
participants being at
the same time both
suppliers and

(servers) and service
requesters (clients)
cluster of
networked, loosely
coupled computers
acting in concert to
perform very large
tasks
utility such as
electricity.
census, industry and
consumer statistics,
policies and secret
intelligence
services, enterprise
resource planning
etc.
consumers of
resources.
Various Models Of Cloud Computing:-[2]
There are certain services and models working behind the scene making the cloud computing feasible and
accessible to end users. Following are the working models for cloud computing:
Service models:
Cloud computing offers both the software and hardware as a service over the internet. Some product
offer internet based services such as storage, middleware, collaborations and database capabilities directly to
users. These services are classified into three major categories.
Software as a service (SaaS) – It provides a complete turnkey application including complex program such as
those for CRM or enterprises resource management via internet. These software services are delivered through
web browsers to its user as a service on demand to use software as service through cloud computing, users just
request for the service of a particular software to its vendor and the vendor will provide the services of software
to its users. End user is not concerned about the software licensing and other issues related to the genuineness of
the software that he is using.
Advantages – Pay per use, instant scalability, security, reliability, No need of specific hardware to run software.
Examples – financial planning, CRM, Human Resources, word processing, email cloud.
Platform as a service (PaaS) – It offers a full or partial development environment that users can access and
utilize online, even in collaboration with others. It dramatically changed the scenario of development,
deployment and run process of business applications. As the core element of cloud computing, PaaS eliminates
the costs and complexity of evaluating, buying, configuring and managing all the hardware and software needed
for enterprise applications.
Popular services – Storage, Database and scalability
Advantages - pay per use, reliability, instant scalability, no need to buy special hardware and software to
develop and deploy enterprises applications, security.
Infrastructure as a service (Iaas) – It delivers full computer infrastructure via internet. It is main service
model of cloud computing. Infrastructure as a service is sometimes referred to as Hardware as a service (HaaS).
It is a provision model in which organization outsources the equipment used to support operations, including
storage, hardware, servers and networking components. The service provider owns the equipment and is
responsible for housing, running and maintaining it. The client typically pays on per-use basis. Access to
infrastructure stack includes full OS access, firewalls, routers, load balancing etc services.
Advantages – Pay per use, instant scalability, security, reliability, APIs etc.
Examples- AWS:EC2, FLexiscale etc.
Deployment models
Cloud services are typically made available via a private cloud, community cloud, public cloud or
hybrid cloud.
Services provided by a public cloud are offered over the Internet and are owned and operated by a cloud
provider. Some examples include services aimed at the general public, such as online photo storage services, e-
mail services, or social networking sites. However, services for enterprises can also be offered in a public cloud.
In a private cloud, the cloud infrastructure is operated solely for a specific organization, and is managed by the
organization or a third party.
In a community cloud, the service is shared by several organizations and made available only to those
groups. The infrastructure may be owned and operated by the organizations or by a cloud service
provider.Ahybrid cloud is a combination of different methods of resource pooling (for example, combining
public and community clouds).
Characteristics-[1]
Cloud computing exhibits the following key characteristics:

1) Empowerment of end users of computing resources by putting the provisioning of those resources in their
own control, as opposed to the control of centralised IT service. Agility improves with users ability to re-
provision technological infrastructure resources.
2) Application programming interface (API) accessibility to software that enables machines to interface
facilitates interaction between humans and computers. Cloud computing systems typically use REST –
based APIs.
3) Cost is claimed to be reduced and in a public cloud delivery model capital expenditure is converted to
operational expenditure. This is purported to lower barriers to entry, as infrastructure is typically provided
by a third party and does not need to be purchased for one-time or infrequent intensive computing tasks.
Pricing utility computing basis is fine-grained with usage – based options and fewer IT skills are required
for implementation (in-house).
4) Device and Location independence enables users to access systems using a web browser regardless of
their location or what device they are using. As infrastructure site (typically provided by a third party) and
accessed via the internet, users can connect from anywhere.
5) Mutli-tenancy enables sharing of resources and costs across a large pool of users thus allowing for
centralisation, peak –load capacity, utilisation and efficiency improvements.
6) Reliability is improved if multiple redundant sites are used, which makes well-designed cloud computing
suitable for business continuity and disaster recovery.
7) Scalability and Elasticity via dynamic provisioning of resources on a fine grained, self-service basis near
real time, without users having to engineer for peak loads.
8) Performance is monitored and consistent. Loosely coupled architecture are constructed using web service
as the system interface.
9) Security could improve due to centralisation of data, increased security focussed resources etc., but
concerns can persist of about loss of control over certain sensitive data and the lack of security for stored
kernels. The complexity of security is generally increased when data is distributed over a wider area or
greater number of devices and in multi-tenant systems that are being shared by unrelated users. Private
cloud installations are in part motivated by users desired to retain a control over the infrastructure and avoid
losing control of information security.
10) Maintenance of cloud computing applications is easier because they do need to be installed on each client
computer.
Advantages Of Cloud Computing -
Cloud computing has a lot of advantages over traditional computing. The benefits of deploying applications
using cloud computing include reducing run time and response time, minimising the risk of deploying physical
infrastructure, lowering the cost of entry and increasing pace of innovation. Some other advantages of cloud
computing are:
 Lower cost of ownership
 Reduce infrastructure management responsibility
 Avoids capital expenditure (CapEx) on hardware, software and services when they pay a provider only for
what they use.
 Allow for unexpected resource loads.
 Faster Application rollout
 Immediate access to a broad range of applications.
In general, users can terminate the contract at any time (thereby avoiding return on investment risk and
uncertainty) and the services are often covered by service level agreements(SLA) with financial penalties.
II. Limitations
 Possible downtime. Cloud computing makes your small business dependent on the reliability of your
Internet connection. When it's offline, you're offline. If your internet service suffers from frequent outages
or slow speeds cloud computing may not be suitable for your business. And even the most reliable cloud
computing service providers suffer server outages now and again.
 Security issues. How safe is your data? Cloud computing means Internet computing. So you should not be
using cloud computing applications that involve using or storing data that you are not comfortable having
on the Internet. Established cloud computing vendors have gone to great lengths to promote the idea that
they have the latest, most sophisticated data security systems possible as they want your business and
realize that data security is a big concern; however, their credibility in this regard has suffered greatly in the
wake of the recent NSA snooping scandals. Keep in mind also that your cloud data is accessible from
anywhere on the internet, meaning that if a data breach occurs via hacking, a disgruntled employee, or
careless username/password security, your business data can be compromised.

 Cost. At first glance, a cloud computing application may appear to be a lot cheaper than a particular
software solution installed and run in-house, but you need to be sure you are doing a total cost comparison.
While many cloud computer vendors present themselves as utility-based providers, claiming that you're
only charged for what you use. In most cases, a company must commit to a predetermined contract
independent of actual use. To be sure you're saving money; you have to look closely at the pricing plans
and details for each application. The cost savings of cloud computing primarily occur when a business first
starts using it. Cloud computing costs are constantly changing, so current pricing needs to be checked now
and then.
 Inflexibility. Be careful when you're choosing a cloud computing vendor that you're not locking your
business into using their proprietary applications or formats. You can't insert a document created in another
application into a Google Docs spreadsheet, for instance. Also make sure that you can add and subtract
cloud computing users as necessary as your business grows or contracts.
 Lack of support. All too many cloud-based apps make it difficult to get customer service promptly – or at
all. Sending an email and hoping for a response within 48 hours is not an acceptable way for most of us to
run a business.
Examples Of Cloud Computing- [3]
 Email communications - Cloud computing enables webmail clients to use cloud storage and give you the
opportunity to check your emails from any place in the world. All big technology corporations use cloud
computing to make their email messaging service more reliable. Yahoo mail, Gmail, rediffmailetc
 No need to upgrade local storage - Data saved on your home or business computer is accessible only
when you use the particular device. With cloud computing users are able to store all the files they need to
access later on over the internet.The most popular among these are the Microsoft SkyDrive and Amazon
S3.
 Collaboration made Easy -Cloud computing collaboration is similar to instant messaging, but offers users
to complete particular work activities that are likely to take few months, in just few hours. Although, the
Google Wave is the most popular cloud collaboration solution out there, other great choices are Mikogo
and Vyew.
 The Virtual office - Probably the most popular use of the cloud computing is to enable business owners to
“rent” software instead of buying it. Google Docs is the most popular suite for running virtual office, but
there are lots of other solutions available such as ThinkFree and Microsoft Office Live.
III. Conclusion:
Cloud computing infrastructure is next generation platform that can provide tremendous value to
companies of any size. The cloud is reliable in sense that it enables access to applications and documents
anywhere in the world via the Internet. Cloud computing is often considered efficient because it allows
organizations to free up resources to focus on innovation and product development. Cloud computing may
improve efforts to build privacy protection into technology from the start and the use of better security
mechanisms. Cloud computing will enable more flexible IT acquisition and improvements, which may permit
adjustments to procedures based on the sensitivity of the data. Widespread use of the cloud may also encourage
open standards for cloud computing that will establish baseline data security features common across different
services and providers. Cloud computing may also allow for better audit trails. In addition, information in the
cloud is not as easily lost (when compared to the paper documents or hard drives, for example).
References:
[1]. Cloud Computing: Principles and Paradigms edited by RajkumarBuyya, James Broberg, Andrzej M. Goscinski.
[2]. Handbook of Cloud Computing edited by BorkoFurht, Armando Escalante
[3]. http://www.business2community.com/cloud-computing/top-5-examples-cloud-computing-0973287
[4]. http://sbinfocanada.about.com/od/itmanagement/a/Cloud-Computing-Disadvantages.htm
[5]. http://www.aia.org/aiaucmp/groups/aia/documents/pdf/aiab086678.pdf

Cloud Computing: Overview & Utility

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Cloud Computing: Overview & Utility