In the previous segment, you learnt about the benefits of cloud computing.
In this segment let’s see the broad level architecture of a cloud- based application. A cloud- based application has an architecture that contains two basic components: the front- end and the back- end . both of these components are connected to each other through the internet.
Cloud- based Architecture
Cloud architecture is a combination of different technologies that are brought together to create the cloud, which provides shared scalable resources across a network.
cloud architecture has the following two components:
- Front End : This is the client or end- user. It consists of all the applications and interfaces that are used by clients to access cloud resources.
- Back End: It is the cloud itself, as it consists of infrastructure such as databases computing resources, deployment models, etc. that are required to build the cloud both the front end back end are connected to each other through a network, usually the internet.
Let’s summarise the cloud deployment models you just learnt in the above video.
Cloud Deployment Models
The following are the three major types of cloud deployment models available.
1. Private Cloud: In a private cloud, cloud resources are solely operated for a single organisation. The cloud is either managed by the organisation itself or by a third party and is hosted internally or externally.
- These are some of the private cloud providers:
- IBM
- Oracle
- Vmware
- Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of a private cloud:
Advantages:
- It provides high security and also restricts access only to authorised users. hence , this kind of infrastructure is generally preferred in financial institutions like banks , insurance firms , etc.
- It provides high control over the resources.
Disadvantages:
- It is not cost- effective when compared with a public cloud.
- It has limited scalability and can be scaled only up to the internal hosted resources
2. Public Cloud: In a public cloud, cloud resources are owned and operated by a third party. The services are provided to the users through the Internet. The cloud service provider is solely responsible for maintaining the resources.
- Following are some of the major public cloud service providers:
- Google Cloud Platform
- Microsoft Azure
- Amazon Web Services
Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of a public cloud.
Advantages:
- It is highly scalable. It offers flexibility to either scale up or scale down the usage of resources as per the demand or based on a user’s request.
- It is also cost-effective. Users of a public cloud have to pay for only what they use.
Disadvantages:
- A public cloud might have security issues.
- It is not 100% customisable as per an organisation’s requirements.
3. Hybrid Cloud: Hybrid cloud is a combination of public and private clouds, and allows organisations to share data between them.
- It can be a combination of:
- At least one private cloud and at least one public cloud,
- Two or more private clouds, or
- Two or more public clouds. The clouds chosen for the development of hybrid clouds should be able to connect multiple computers through a single network. These clouds should also be able to move workloads between one environment to the other. The ordered or consistent connections between separate clouds make it a hybrid cloud. Usually, the performance of a hybrid cloud is dependent on the development and management of its connections. The linking of public and private clouds is done using complex networks of LANs, APIs, VPNs, etc. Several cloud providers give their customers preconfigured connections. For Example:
- Dedicated Interconnect by Google Cloud
- Direct Connect by AWS, and
- ExpressRoute by Microsoft Azure. Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of a hybrid cloud:
Advantages
- A private cloud is secure, and hence, a hybrid cloud is secure as well.
- Scalability: you already know that the public cloud is scalable. therefor, the hybrid cloud which is the combination of public and private cloud is also scalable.
- User can access both the private and the public cloud as per their requirements; thus, a hybrid cloud offers flxibility.
- Public cloud is cost- effective, hence hybrid cloud is also cost- effective if the user want to use the public cloud properties.
Disadvantages
- Complex networking problems: due to the complexity of having the public and the private cloud, there would be an issue in configuring the network.
- Organisation’s security compliance: Both the public and the private cloud should comply with the organisation’s security norms, and it is not easy to set up the clouds to meet this requirement. Let’s continue our discussion on the cloud deployment models and learn about community cloud and multi-cloud strategy.
Community Cloud
When different cloud services are integrated into a single cloud to meet the specific needs of an industry, community or business sector, the cloud is known as the community cloud.
The infrastructure of the community cloud is shared between organisations that have common concerns or interests. Industries such as healthcare, media, etc. opt for community clouds.
Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of a community cloud:
Advantages:
- The cost of maintenance can be shared among the organisations in the community.
- It is more secure than a public cloud and less expensive than a private cloud.
Disadvantages:
- It is difficult to distribute the responsibilities among the organisations in a community.
- It is difficult to segregate the data among the organisations in a community.
Multi-Cloud Strategy
A multi-cloud strategy is when an organisation uses multiple public and private clouds by different providers. This is adopted in order to avoid lock-in with a single vendor and to make use of the best services provided by these cloud providers. Note that this is different from Hybrid Cloud as here, the purpose of this strategy is to not lock-in with a single service provider whereas you can implement Hybrid Cloud using the services of the same service provider.
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