This topic will introduce the concept of cloud computing, including the definition, characteristics, benefits, and different deployment models such as public, private, and hybrid clouds.
Overview of Cloud Computing
Quick reference guide – concise, organized, and easy to read
1. What Is Cloud Computing?
| Definition |
A model for delivering on‑demand computing resources (servers, storage, databases, networking, software, analytics, AI, etc.) over the Internet, paid for as you use them. |
| Key Idea |
Move hardware & software from local premises to remote, scalable data‑centers managed by a cloud provider. |
| Benefits |
• Cost efficiency • Scalability • Faster time‑to‑market • Global accessibility • Automatic updates & security patches |
2. Service Models (What You Consume)
| Model |
What It Provides |
Typical Use Cases |
Example Services |
| IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) |
Virtualized compute, storage, networking. You manage OS, middleware, apps. |
Running custom VMs, big‑data processing, disaster‑recovery sites. |
Amazon EC2, Google Compute Engine, Microsoft Azure VMs |
| PaaS (Platform as a Service) |
Runtime environment, development tools, database services. You focus on code. |
Rapid app development, API management, CI/CD pipelines. |
Google App Engine, Azure App Service, Heroku |
| SaaS (Software as a Service) |
Fully functional applications delivered via the web. |
Email, CRM, collaboration, ERP, analytics. |
Office 365, Salesforce, Google Workspace |
| FaaS (Function as a Service) – serverless |
Executes single functions in response to events; no server management. |
Event‑driven workloads, micro‑services, data pipelines. |
AWS Lambda, Azure Functions, Google Cloud Functions |
3. Deployment Models (Where It Lives)
| Model |
Description |
Control / Responsibility |
Typical Scenarios |
| Public Cloud |
Resources owned & operated by a third‑party provider; shared across many customers. |
Provider handles hardware, network, physical security. |
Start‑ups, variable workloads, global reach. |
| Private Cloud |
Dedicated infrastructure for a single organization (on‑premises or hosted). |
Organization retains most control; provider may manage hardware. |
Regulated industries, legacy migration, strict compliance. |
| Hybrid Cloud |
Combination of public & private clouds with orchestration between them. |
Shared responsibility; workload placement is dynamic. |
Burst‑to‑cloud during peaks, data sovereignty, phased migration. |
| Multi‑Cloud |
Use of services from two or more public cloud providers simultaneously. |
Organization coordinates across vendors. |
Avoid vendor lock‑in, leverage best‑of‑breed services, geographic redundancy. |
4. Core Building Blocks
| Component |
Function |
Popular Offerings |
| Compute |
Run applications, process data. |
Virtual machines, containers, serverless functions. |
| Storage |
Persist files, objects, block data. |
Object storage (S3, Blob), file storage (EFS, Filestore), block disks. |
| Databases |
Structured & unstructured data services. |
Relational (RDS, Cloud SQL), NoSQL (DynamoDB, Cosmos DB), Data warehouses (Redshift, BigQuery). |
| Networking |
Connect resources securely & efficiently. |
Virtual private clouds (VPC), load balancers, CDN, VPN, Direct Connect. |
| Security & Identity |
Protect assets & control access. |
IAM, encryption key management, security |