Cloud Computing ...
Cloud computing is a metaphor used by Technology or IT Services companies for the delivery of computingrequirements as a service to a homogeneous community of end-recipients. The term cloud theoretically signifies abstraction of technology, resources and its location that are very vital in building integrated computing infrastructure(including networks, systems & applications). All Cloud computing models rely heavily on sharing of resources to achieve coherance and economies of scale similar to a utility (like the electricity grid) over anetwork (typically the Internet).
Cloud computing entrusts services (typically centralized) with a user's data, software and computation on a published application programming interface (API) over a network. It has considerable overlap with software as a service (SaaS).
End users access cloud based applications through a web browser or a light weight desktop or mobile appwhile the business software and data are stored on servers at a remote location. Cloud application providers strive to give the same or better service and performance than if the software programs were installed locally on end-user computers.
The actual term "cloud" borrows from telephony in that telecommunications companies, who until the 1990s offered primarily dedicated point-to-point data circuits, began offering Virtual Private Network (VPN) services with comparable quality of service but at a much lower cost. By switching traffic to balance utilisation as they saw fit, they were able to utilise their overall network bandwidth more effectively. The cloud symbol was used to denote the demarcation point between that which was the responsibility of the provider and that which was the responsibility of the user. Cloud computing extends this boundary to cover servers as well as the network infrastructure.
Public cloud applications, storage, and other resources are made available to the general public by a service provider. These services are free or offered on a pay-per-use model. Generally, public cloud service providers like Microsoft and Google own and operate the infrastructure and offer access only via Internet (direct connectivity is not offered).
