Cloud Computing For Retail Operations
A Whitepaper
By
Sunil Razdan
Retail
Cloud
What is cloud computing?
Cloud computing in its simplest form can be defined as an ability that allows users to access computing resources (think storage , servers ) and/or applications – anything ranging from ERP applications, email, accounting software (Tax preparation) - from anywhere on the internet.
Key characteristics of cloud computing architecture are
-Virtualization of infrastructure and services
-Elasticity (increase or decrease of computing resources on demand)
-Availability and reliability.
-Flexibility and Agility
-Rapid deployment.
-Pay as you grow (aka pay for what you use)
What are various Cloud Service Models?
Cloud Service providers offer services from complete infrastructures services to specialized business processes.
Across all cloud service models the key common characteristic is that users of the cloud service will only be aware of the service and its use. They have no need to understand details or manage the underlying infrastructure, technology, software or implementation of that service.
The Cloud computing abstracts complexity and virtualizes all components involved in the service from the end user/organization.
Business Process as a Service - Business Process as a Service (BPaaS) is when an external party is assigned the responsibility of managing a business process, for instance letting a third party (ex:
Equifax) take care of credit check on customers for you. All we have to do is call the web service using API’s and gets the response back as “good or bad” .The services are available over network and the organization only pays as it uses them and not having to build their own system or services for doing credit checks.
Software as a Service - Software as a Service (SaaS) is the entire application software (ex:
Salesforce.com CRM) hosted by a provider in remote datacenter and made accessible to end users over a WAN. The service can be deployed quickly and users only pay as they go model.
Upfront capital and development expenditure is not incurred and user organizations do not manage and maintain the host application.
Platform as a Service - Platform as a Service (PaaS), provides a development environment where users can deploy, build and test their applications. It includes both hardware and software components needed to create a platform for development. Organization consuming this service model can do so without having to worry about the cost, complexity and time constraints to create such a platform for development and testing.
Infrastructure as a Service - Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is the most basic service model that provides hardware such as servers, storage. With IaaS, a consuming organization can run all applications without having to set-up and manage their own in-house data centers. This service model is actually the most matured offering today and a common example will be
Amazon’s Elastic Compute Cloud,( EC2) an IaaS—where organizations can rent servers, storage and run their own applications.
What are various Cloud Computing Deployment Models?
Just as there are various Cloud service models, we can find different types of cloud deployment offerings by providers in the market – Public clouds,
Private clouds and Hybrid (this one is very interesting). Depending on multiple factors such as security requirements, Network access, Reliability, IT Staff
Skills, Cost organization can choose a specific deployment model to suit its requirements.
Private Cloud. – This is a deployment where cloud infrastructure is operated for a single organization. The organization can choose to host it in-house in their own datacenter or lease it at a third party remote location. The key here is it is not a multi-tenant environment and is more of a dedicated model. This model is best suited to allay concerns of security, ownership & control. Public cloud –This deployment model is kind of opposite of private, where all
Related Documents: Cloud Computing and Cloud Service Models Essay
Cloud Computing Southern University at New Orleans College of Business and Public Administration Department of Management Information System CISP 685-01 Information Security Foundation Instructor: G.S. Alijani By Manisha Biyyam Spring 2015 Cloud Computing Definition: The expression cloud itself means something dim, fogy, dark, foul, or indistinctly characterized. As it were, it needs to do with virtualization and reflection of computing services and assets. Hence, cloud computing…
Cloud Computing Group Members Ruth Wanjiru Cliff Kinyua Maritim Leonard Alphonse Kinyua Tracy Gathoni Abstract. Cloud computing is Internet-based computing, whereby shared information, resources, and software, are provided to terminals and portable devices on-demand. It is a rapidly developing and excellent promising technology. Cloud computing is the product of the combination of grid computing, distributed computing, parallel computing, and ubiquitous computing. Cloud Computing model…
Cloud computing- an emerging trend in education in India 1. Introduction to cloud computing Cloud Computing is the use of common software, functionality or business applications from a remote server that is accessed via the Internet. Basically, the Internet is the "cloud" of applications and services that are available for access by subscribers utilizing a modem from their computer. With Cloud Computing, one simply logs into desired computer applications - such as sales force or office automation…
Choosing a Cloud Provider With Confidence Cloud Computing Defined By The NIST The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) defines cloud computing as “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”. Cloud Computing Features: • Infrastructure…
Cloud Computing We use our computers for just about everything. Whether you use a desktop, laptop, tablet, or phone, the way you store your information is important. Not only knowing how to store your information, but the availability to access it is also important. Storing information on your computer is relatively easy, but what happens when you start to run out of space? You could buy another hard drive and transfer your data, but that is not easy and takes time. You could burn…
Cloud Computing Although there are concerns regarding standards, privacy and security, the benefits of cloud computing are propelling its development and implementation, and it is poised to become a major architectural shift in the industry of information technology. To understand cloud computing, we must first define it. The term “cloud” came from the original topology diagrams of networks where the internet was illustrated as a cloud. The cloud represented that empty space in between hardware…
Introduction: The cloud computing is the next generation of the computing, its advantages, advancements and research are a plenty. In recent years, the term “cloud computing” has been critical in the world of IT. Cloud computing, or the use of internet-based technologies to conduct business, is recognized as an important area for IT innovation and investment (Armbrust et al., 2010; Goscinski and Brock, 2010; Tuncay, 2010). Cloud computing has spread out through the main areas related to information…