What is cloud computing?

Cloud computing is the on-demand access to computing resources such as data storage, servers, networking, computing power, etc., over the internet. Companies use cloud services for various purposes, including data backup, software development and testing, disaster recovery, big data analytics, etc.

Cloud computing enables organizations to innovate faster and build scalable products. Hence, hiring expert cloud engineers becomes necessary for companies to transform their business.

When did it all start?

●         Beginning

Though cloud computing has been creating quite a buzz since the late 90s with the launch of Salesforce’s Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform, its conceptual roots are believed to be dating back to the 1960s.

●         Journey across the years

The subsequent successful developments in cloud computing were the launch of platforms like Amazon Web Services (2006), Google Cloud Platform (2008), and Microsoft Azure (2010).

With the advent of smartphones and other wearable devices, the need and growth for cloud computing have increased significantly.

Types of cloud computing services

You can get different levels of flexibility, control, and management with these cloud services based on your business needs. However, it is important to recruit the best software talent to implement these services and help you scale your business operations effectively.

●         Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

It is also known as Hardware as a Service (HaaS). This cloud computing model offers

on-demand computing resources such as storage, virtual machines, networking, essential computing, etc., on a pay-as-you-go basis.

E.g., Digital Ocean, Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services

●         Platform as a Service (PaaS)

This model provides developers with a runtime cloud environment to build, manage, test, run, and deploy web and mobile applications.

E.g., AWS Elastic Beanstalk, Heroku, Force.com, OpenShift

●         Software as a Service (SaaS)

This model allows users to access software services over the internet on a subscription basis.

E.g., Slack, ZenDesk, Dropbox, Salesforce

●         Anything/Everything as a Service (XaaS)

XaaS combines all three services and delivers a wide range of services, tools, and technologies to the end-users over the internet.

E.g., Google App Engine, Heroku

Types of deployment models

Cloud computing offers four types of deployment models depending on your requirements.

●     Public cloud

A deployment model where everyone can access infrastructure services and systems over the internet.

E.g., Elastic Cloud Compute (EC2) by Amazon, Google App Engine

●     Private cloud

A deployment model where computing services are exclusively accessed by a single entity (user/organization). The private cloud is more secure and flexible than the public cloud.

E.g., Oracle, IBM

●     Hybrid cloud

It combines public and private cloud environments, offering the best of both worlds. Hybrid clouds offer a cost-effective, secure, and scalable solution.

E.g., Azure Stack, AWS Outposts

●     Community cloud

It is a distributed cloud service accessible by a specific set of organizations or individuals. It allows sharing of resources and infrastructure within multiple organizations.

E.g., Microsoft Cloud for Government

Top 8 cloud computing trends in 2022

During the pandemic, there has been a significant rise in the adoption of cloud computing services. According to a report by Statista, “The worldwide public cloud computing market continues to grow and is expected to reach an estimated 495 billion U.S. dollars in 2022.”

Let’s explore some of the top cloud computing trends this year:

●     ML & AI – Automation

With machine learning and artificial intelligence already performing well in their respective genre, using them in cloud projects will have mutual benefits. It will be exciting to learn how we can train AI models using cloud-based data and build next-gen applications.

●     Serverless

This trend is considered sustainable as it is a pay-as-you-go model. It only involves a minimal cost and infrastructure for your entire software development, as servers could be rented or used for free.

It reduces most of the hiccups in developmental processes as storage, risks, and all the concerns are handled by the host servers themselves.

●     Cloud security

With the increase in the adoption of remote work and cloud technologies, security is still a major concern for businesses worldwide.

To address these concerns, some of the significant cloud security mechanisms include:

• Security access service edge (SASE)
  • Disaster recovery,
  • Host & endpoint security,
  • Data protection & encryption, and
  • Network & infrastructure security.

These solutions will help companies ensure a smooth and secure transition to cloud services.

●     Cloud Gaming – AR/VR

With the advent of virtual and augmented reality, the gaming industry has taken a rapid growth trajectory. Accompanied by the cloud, gaming fans can stream their favorite games with minimal software & hardware requirement.

Additionally, cloud services can mitigate issues like location barriers, less storage space, and device performance.

●     Edge computing

It refers to the deployment of data centers near the device rather than miles away. Here, the data transfer takes place from the cloud to the user’s device, reducing latency and bandwidth.

Hence, increasing device performance, preventing data loss, and saving money.

●     Blockchain

With Blockchain technology majorly used for financial tools and transactions, there are major storage and security concerns. This is mitigated by creating decentralized data storage centers through cloud computing.

Merging these two technologies will create new opportunities in business digitization as storage, security, etc., come as a single package.

●     Multi and hybrid cloud

As a part of new business strategies, modern IT firms aim to have their database, server, etc., on the cloud. This, along with the increase in smart devices, will create a 10-fold increase in demand for multi & hybrid cloud services.

Companies can no longer rely on single vendor service, and 2022 can be vouched to incorporate mixed models of hybrid and multi-clouds.

●     Open source cloud computing

It is a new trend that is slowly and steadily growing and catering to the needs of individuals and companies. This model allows users to access the source code of various open-source applications for customizing the infrastructure as per their requirements.

Future of cloud computing

• Cloud-specific software – The future of cloud computing will have software built and optimized as per the business needs.

• Enhanced performance & storage – There will be increased cloud performance & storage with scope for many cross-technological innovations like Blockchain, etc.

• Utmost security & sustainability – The future of the cloud is said to have security as the prime idea for improvement that ensures its sustainability.

• Cloud computing + 5G – The advent of newer and better network specifications like 5G and the cloud will aid virtual businesses.

• Collaborations with IoT – Apart from AI, VR, and other cross-technologies, IoT in cloud computing is said to bring about cost-cutting developments.

Cloud engineers: Things you need to know

●     Who are they?

These bright minds are trained and experienced engineers to handle cloud infrastructures that help your company get one step better.

●     How can they help you?

They ease your project development process on the cloud and will operate and deploy all cloud-based procedures securely, efficiently, and quickly.

●     What are their responsibilities?

Their responsibilities range from managing and maintaining cloud models to supporting planning, designing, and implementing an application on the cloud.

●     How do you hire them?

Hiring and training employees is a crucial part of any business’s operations. You can use job boards, social media platforms, developer communities, recruitment firms, etc., to hire dedicated cloud engineers.

Wrapping up!

Cloud computing helps organizations scale their operations, increase revenue, and meet their business objectives. As major industries, from space research to medicine, adopt cloud services, cloud computing has become the technology to be worked upon!

Given its central role in the future enterprise, International Data Corporation (IDC) forecasts that “whole cloud” spending will surpass $1.3 trillion by 2025 while sustaining a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.9%.

However, cloud technology also needs a dedicated workforce, i.e., experienced cloud engineers to take things forward. Having this in mind, hiring, training, and managing top-class cloud engineers become a mandatory process for companies to leverage this top-notch technology.

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Author Bio –

Asvedha.N has been into professional content writing for two years and claims her passion for writing started at a very young age. She also likes befriending friends of nature.