Cloud Service Types

Name: Cloud Service Types
Author: Mark Dreyer

Learn about the three cloud computing platforms: IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS

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Course: On-Demand

In this lesson, we'll look at infrastructure as a service or IaaS, a cloud computing model that allows organizations to rent It infrastructure, including servers, storage and networking on a pay as you go basis. This means that instead of purchasing and maintaining their own physical hardware where organizations can access and use these resources through the Internet. Microsoft Azure is one example of an IaaS provider. Azure offers a range of infrastructure services, including virtual machines, storage and networking that can be easily provisioned and managed through the Azure Portal or via an application programming interface or API. Using Azure's IaaS offerings, organizations can scale their infrastructure up or down as needed and only pay for the resources they consume. This flexibility and cost effectiveness make IaaS a popular choice for companies looking to quickly deploy and manage their It infrastructure. For example, consider how much it would cost to deploy five new virtual machines in your private cloud or traditional infrastructure if you didn't have the hardware to support them. You'd have to pay to acquire and configure servers, storage, networking, power, redundancy and data center space just to get started. The cost of these components is usually high, and you'd have to factor in the cost of labor too. With IaaS, you simply need to pay for and configure the virtual machines. And if you no longer need these machines, you can just retire them and no longer pay. With a private cloud or traditional infrastructure. You'd have to decommission all of the hardware and likely sell it at a depreciated cost. Another benefit of IaaS is that you only pay when the resources are in use. If you need to run virtual machines during the workday, but not during off hours, you can save by having them automatically shut down at night. You don't have that option in a traditional infrastructure. But IaaS isn't limited to hosting virtual machines as infrastructure in the cloud. Some organizations will use other hosted infrastructure such as storage and networking. Other companies will start their cloud computing journey by using cloud hosted IaaS storage for offsite backups or as a replication site. This approach allows an organization to gain the scalability and redundancy of the cloud while only paying for what they choose to use. It's much more expensive and challenging to set up a secondary backup storage location. Using traditional Infrastructure in addition to IaaS, Azure offers other layers of services such as platform as a service and software as a service. PaaS provides a platform for developing and deploying applications, while SaaS offers pre built software applications that can be accessed over the Internet. Azure's Infrastructure as a service offering provides a convenient and cost effective way for organizations to access and manage their It in the cloud. It offers scalability through IaaS that can't be matched when running on traditional infrastructure.

Beginner Provider : Mark Dreyer 3 Lessons · 10m in Arabic, German, English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Chinese

Course Description

Infrastructure as a Service, or IaaS, is a cloud computing model that allows organizations to rent IT infrastructure, including servers, storage, and networking, on a pay-as-you-go basis. PaaS, or Platform as a Service provides a platform for developing and deploying applications, while SaaS, or Software as a Service, offers pre-built software applications that can be accessed over the internet. In these lessons we’ll look at real world examples of each model and discuss common users of each. You may be surprised to discover you’ve already been using many systems that rely on these models not only at work, but in your personal life, too. We’ll discuss the benefits of each model, and explain why an organization may choose one over another.

In this module you will learn about the different types of cloud services that are available. We’ll explore the three main cloud services – Infrastructure as a Service (Iaas), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Software as a Service (SaaS), and the benefits and uses of each.

What You'll Learn

Define an IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) model and explain its benefits and uses
Define a PaaS (Platform as a Service) model and explain its benefits and uses
Define a SaaS (Software as a Service) model and explain its benefits and uses
Describe the three main cloud service types and how they differ
Identify real-world examples and common users of each cloud service model
Explain why an organization may choose one cloud service model over another

Key Takeaways

IaaS is a cloud computing model that lets organizations rent IT infrastructure such as servers, storage, and networking on a pay-as-you-go basis.
PaaS provides a platform for developing and deploying applications.
SaaS offers pre-built software applications that can be accessed over the internet.
The three main cloud services are Infrastructure as a Service, Platform as a Service, and Software as a Service, each with its own benefits and uses.
Many systems people already use at work and in their personal lives rely on these cloud service models.

Frequently Asked Questions

What cloud service models does this course cover?

It explores the three main cloud services: Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS), including the benefits and uses of each.

What is the difference between IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS?

IaaS lets organizations rent IT infrastructure such as servers, storage, and networking on a pay-as-you-go basis; PaaS provides a platform for developing and deploying applications; and SaaS offers pre-built software applications accessed over the internet.

Will this course use real examples?

Yes. The lessons look at real-world examples of each model and discuss the common users of each, including systems you may already be using at work and in your personal life.

What skills will I gain from this course?

You will gain an understanding of cloud services and cloud infrastructure, including Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), Software as a Service (SaaS), and Azure Cloud Services.

How is this course structured?

It is a module made up of three lessons: Describe Infrastructure as a Service, Describe Platform as a Service, and Describe Software as a Service.