What Are the Different Types of Cloud Computing Business Solutions?

Cloud business solutions are applications, software, resources, and other capabilities that offer unparalleled flexibility, reliability, and availability. These capabilities help businesses reduce the cost involved in building and maintaining IT infrastructure and improve the ease of use and performance. With cloud computing solutions, businesses gain speed, agility, and cost-effectiveness in a unified solution that can be personalized based on unique user requirements and deliver prompt and effective services. A wide range of specialized cloud services is used by businesses in every industry vertical, such as marketing, finance, management, and operations.

In this article, we will focus on different types of cloud computing business, and methods to integrate them into modern business workflows.

What Are the Various Cloud Computing Solutions?

In traditional methods of consuming computing services and resources, customers are typically responsible for managing the entire setup, including the hardware and software. However, with cloud computing models, businesses can access specific resources on-demand based on requirements. Here are the different cloud service models.

• Infrastructure as a service (IaaS)

  In this cloud computing offering, the vendor provides access to resources such as storage, networking capability, and server. Businesses can deploy their platforms and applications on the infrastructure provided and maintained by the vendor. With IaaS, users have access to scalable infrastructure depending on their processing and storage requirements, without the hassles of purchasing hardware or managing administrative tasks. Also, there is no single point of failure as data is stored in the cloud.

• Platform as a service (PaaS)

  A PaaS cloud computing offering provides users an environment for developing, managing, and delivering applications. PaaS also includes prebuilt tools for developing, customizing, and testing applications, in addition to the computing resources available with IaaS services. With PaaS services, developers can focus on designing their solutions rather than worrying about their underlying infrastructure as the vendor is responsible for managing security, operating systems, server software, and backups. PaaS services are ideal for remote teams that need to work remotely.

• Software as a service (SaaS)

  Software as a service is a cloud offering that provides users access to cloud-based software. These applications do not have to be installed on devices and can be accessed over the internet or using an application programming interface (API). Such applications are made available to users on a subscription basis. End users do not have to worry about resources, which can be scaled based on service requirements. The applications can be accessed from anywhere using any internet-connected device. OneDrive for Business in the Office 365 productivity suite is an example of a SaaS application.

• Web-based serverless computing

  Serverless computing is a backend architecture in which applications can scale instantaneously, automatically, and on-demand, without the involvement of the user or the vendor. In the case of serverless computing, instances are spun up or shut down dynamically based on application function requests. Serverless web applications can scale down to zero activity and restart in a matter of seconds or milliseconds in response to an event.

What Are the Deployment Options for Cloud Business Solutions?

There are three deployment options for cloud business solutions.

• Hosted deployment

  Hosted deployment (public cloud) is the most common form of cloud business solution. In this mode of deployment, the solutions and the services are fully owned and managed by the service provider. High-level or low-level infrastructure is available on a subscription basis for building applications.

• On-premises deployment

  On-premises deployments are a form of private cloud service. With such deployments, cloud business solutions have access to dedicated resources, which are not used by other customers. Private cloud deployments are more secure than hosted deployments, as the resources are located within an organization’s data center or located off-site and managed by a third party.

• Hybrid deployment

  Hybrid deployments comprise a combination of on-premises and cloud infrastructure, along with the technology to connect the resources. Cloud business solutions deployed on the hybrid cloud are managed using a common set of tools that simplify the management of cloud workloads across public and private infrastructure. These deployments are ideal when sensitive data has to be kept on-premises and scalability has to be achieved with public cloud infrastructure.

Apps4Rent Can Help with Cloud Computing Solutions

As businesses consider various options to deploy their cloud workloads, the choice boils down to the balance between scalability, costs, and security. While public cloud resources offer more flexibility and cutting-edge technology at lower costs, private cloud (on-premises) deployments offer more security. Several enterprises have even adopted multi-cloud architecture for their complex deployments.

As a Microsoft Gold Partner for Cloud Platform, and a Tier 1 CSP, Apps4Rent can help businesses and enterprises adopt Azure for cloud business solutions. Contact our Azure solution architects, available 24/7 via phone, chat, and email for managed Azure services.