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Cloud Computing

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What is Cloud Computing?

Cloud computing is using computers that belong to someone else, accessed over the internet.


Instead of buying and maintaining your own computers, you rent them when you need them.

Simple Analogy

Cloud computing is like using water from a tap instead of digging your own well or like using a taxi instead of buying a car - you only pay for what you use:


  • You don’t need to buy expensive equipment upfront
  • You only pay for what you use
  • Someone else handles all the maintenance and repairs
  • You can easily use more or less as needed
  • It’s always available when you need it
  • You don’t need to be an expert in water systems to use it

Types of Cloud Services

  • IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service): Renting basic computing resources like servers and storage (like AWS EC2, Google Compute Engine)
  • PaaS (Platform as a Service): Renting a platform to develop and run applications (like Heroku, Google App Engine)
  • SaaS (Software as a Service): Using software over the internet without installing it (like Gmail, Microsoft 365)
  • FaaS (Function as a Service): Running small pieces of code without managing servers (like AWS Lambda)

Key Benefits

  • Cost Savings: Pay only for what you use, no big upfront costs
  • Scalability: Easily grow or shrink resources as needed
  • Reliability: Multiple backups and redundancy make services more reliable
  • Performance: Access to powerful computing resources without buying them
  • Security: Cloud providers often have better security than most companies can afford
  • Accessibility: Access your data and applications from anywhere with internet

Example

Netflix uses cloud computing (specifically Amazon Web Services) to stream videos to millions of people.


Instead of building enough data centers to handle their busiest day (like New Year’s Eve), they can just use more of Amazon’s computers when more people are watching, and less when fewer people are watching.