Analysis on the Concepts of Cloud Computing

Dhivyaa M, Praveena E
Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering
Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Technology,
Affiliated to Anna University, Coimbatore
Sugunapuram, Coimbatore – 641 008
divisudhu@gmail.com
praveena22elangovan@gmail.com

Abstract— Cloud computing, another buzz word that has come
up in today’s world of computers. Though there are dozens of
definitions on cloud computing, there seems to be no consensus
on what a Cloud is. On the other hand, cloud computing is not a
completely new concept. Cloud computing is a natural evolution
of the widespread adoption of virtualization, service-oriented
architecture and utility computing. It has an intricate connection
to the relatively new but thirteen-year established Grid
Computing Paradigm. This paper strives to make understand the
concept of cloud computing, and the layers of cloud computing
(service models).
Keywords— Cloud Computing, cloud, virtualization,
I. INTRODUCTION
The “Cloud” is a familiar cliché as a metaphor for the
internet, but when combined with “Computing”, the meaning
gets bigger and fuzzier. Many people go very broad arguing
that anything consumed outside the firewall is in “the cloud”
but some analysts and vendors narrowly define cloud as an
updated version of utility computing: basically virtual servers
available over the internet.
There is little consensus on how to define the cloud and one
among those saturated definitions are:
A large-scale distributed computing paradigm that is
driven by economics of scale, in which a pool of
abstracted, virtualized, dynamically-scalable, managed
computing power, storage, platforms and services are
delivered to external customers over the Internet
There are a few key points in this definition. First, cloud
computing is a specialized distributed computing paradigm; it
differs from traditional ones in that 1) it is massively scalable
2) can be encapsulated as an abstract entity that delivers
different levels of services to customers outside the cloud, 3)
it is driven by economies of scale, 4) the services can be
dynamically configured (via virtualization) and delivered on
demand.
II. DEFINING CLOUD COMPUTING
The National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST) provide a more objective and specific definition:
Cloud computing is 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. This cloud model promotes
availability and is composed of five essential
characteristics, three service models, and four deployment
models.
A. Essential characteristics:
• On-demand self-service. A consumer can
unilaterally provision computing capabilities,
such as server time and network storage, as
needed automatically without requiring human
interaction with each service’s provider.
• Broad network access. Capabilities are available
over the network and accessed through standard
mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneous
thin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile
phones, laptops, and PDAs).
• Resource pooling. The provider’s computing
resources are pooled to serve multiple
consumers using a multi-tenant model, with
different physical and virtual resources
dynamically assigned and reassigned according
to consumer demand. There is a sense of
location independence in that the customer
generally has no control or knowledge over the
exact location of the provided resources but may
be able to specify location at a higher level of
abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter).
Examples of resources include storage,
processing, memory, network bandwidth, and
virtual machines.
• Rapid elasticity. Capabilities can be rapidly and
elastically provisioned, in some cases
automatically, to quickly scale out and rapidly
released to quickly scale in. To the consumer,
the capabilities available for provisioning often
appear to be unlimited and can be purchased in
any quantity at any time.
• Measured Service. Cloud systems automatically
control and optimize resource use by leveraging
 a metering capability at some level of abstraction compliance considerations). It may be managed
appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage, by the organizations or a third party and may
processing, bandwidth, and active user exist on premise or off premise.
accounts). Resource usage can be monitored, • Public cloud. The cloud infrastructure is made
controlled, and reported providing transparency available to the general public or a large industry
for both the provider and consumer of the group and is owned by an organization selling
utilized service. cloud services.
B. Service Models: • Hybrid cloud. The cloud infrastructure is a
composition of two or more clouds (private,
• Cloud Software as a Service (SaaS). The community, or public) that remain unique
capability provided to the consumer is to use the entities but are bound together by standardized
provider’s applications running on a cloud or proprietary technology that enables data and
infrastructure. The applications are accessible application portability (e.g., cloud bursting for
from various client devices through a thin client load-balancing between clouds).
interface such as a web browser (e.g., web-based
email). The consumer does not manage or
control the underlying cloud infrastructure III. CLOUD COMPUTING ARCHITECTURE
including network, servers, operating systems, The cloud computing system can be divided into two
storage, or even individual application sections: the front-end and the back-end. They connect to each
capabilities, with the possible exception of other through a network, usually the internet. The front end is
limited user-specific application configuration the side the user, or client sees. The back-end is the “cloud”
settings. section of the system.
• Cloud Platform as a Service (PaaS). The
capability provided to the consumer is to deploy
onto the cloud infrastructure consumer-created
or acquired applications created using
programming languages and tools supported by
the provider. The consumer does not manage or
control the underlying cloud infrastructure
including network, servers, operating systems, or
storage, but has control over the deployed
applications and possibly application hosting
environment configurations.
• Cloud Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). The
capability provided to the consumer is to
provision processing, storage, networks, and
other fundamental computing resources where
the consumer is able to deploy and run arbitrary
software, which can include operating systems
and applications. The consumer does not manage
or control the underlying cloud infrastructure but
has control over operating systems, storage, The front-end includes the client’s computer and the
deployed applications, and possibly limited application required to access the cloud computing system. On
control of select networking components (e.g., the back-end of the system are various computers, servers, and
host firewalls). data storage systems that create the “cloud” of computing
services. A central server administers the system, monitoring
C. Deployment Models: traffic and client demands to ensure everything runs smoothly.
It follows a set of protocols and uses a special kind of
• Private cloud. The cloud infrastructure is software called middleware. Middleware allows networked
operated solely for an organization. It may be computers to communicate with each other.
managed by the organization or a third party and
may exist on premise or off premise.
• Community cloud. The cloud infrastructure is
IV. SERVICE MODELS
shared by several organizations and supports a
specific community that has shared concerns Most of the time cloud computing is concerned with accessing
(e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and online software applications, data storage and processing
power. The fundamental, practical building blocks of cloud
computing are therefore what are known as Software as a
Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).
Layers of cloud computing
A. Software as a Service (SaaS):
Software as a service is where computer applications are
accessed over the Internet rather than being installed on a
local computing device or in a local data centre. So, for
example, people may use an online word processor
like Google Docs, an online database application like Zoho
Creator, an online photo editor like Pixlr, or an online
invoicing application such as Zoho Invoice. Many SaaS
applications are free to use, at least initially. You can find
links to a great many in the Cloud Computing Directory. And
you can find a video introduction to some great free SaaS
applications here.
SaaS can provide its users with many benefits. These include
the general cloud computing advantages of dynamic
scalability and any device independence, as well as the benefit
of being able to use an application without incurring fixed
costs. Many SaaS applications are also collaborative. This
allows multiple users to share documents and even to work on
them at the same time. For example, in the Google
Docs spreadsheet different users can work on different cells
simultaneously. The cells different users are working on are
locked-off and highlighted in different colours. A real-time
chat window can also be opened up alongside the spreadsheet
to further enhance collaboration. For more information on
collaborative working using Google Docs, you can watch the
now classic video Google Docs in Plain English.
Taking collaboration further still, the outputs of some SaaS
applications can be embedded in other web pages as web
service gadgets. For example, a Google Docs or Zoho
Sheet chart can be mashed into another website. There it will
automatically update when the data in the online spreadsheet
that is generating it is changed. SaaS applications are also
constantly updated, which can free users of the "upgrade hell"
of a major traditional software package revision.
The disadvantage of SaaS is that it is basically a take-it-or-
leave-it form of cloud computing. This means that businesses
and individuals who require direct access to cloud computing
hardware on which they can run their own applications cannot
use SaaS. Rather, they need to cloud compute at the platform
or infrastructure level using either platform as a service (PaaS)
or infrastructure as a service (IaaS).
B. Platform as a Service (PaaS):
A platform is a software environment used to develop and run
applications. For example, Microsoft Word is an application
that runs on the Microsoft Windows platform. When people
choose to cloud compute using platform as a service or 'PaaS',
they obtain access to an online platform provided by a cloud
computing vendor. They can then use this platform to develop
and deliver their own online (SaaS) applications.
Applications developed using PaaS may be used privately by
just one or a few users within a particular company. However,
they can also be offered free or for-a-fee to anybody on the
web. This means that if you have a great idea for a new online
application then you can use PaaS to turn it into a reality!
Several cloud suppliers now offer PaaS tools. Most notably
these include Google App Engine, Microsoft, and Force.com.
All such offerings effectively provide their customers with a
box of cloud computing Lego. New applications are then
constructed from the plastic bricks on offer. Relatively non-
technical people can therefore create new online applications
very quickly. Indeed,Force.com claims that their "simplified
programming model and cloud-based environment mean
[customers] can build and run applications five times faster, at
about half the cost of traditional software platforms".
Whilst PaaS is great in many situations, its users do need to be
mindful of the involved flexibility verses power trade-off.
What this means is that whilst PaaS makes it relatively easy to
create new online applications, users are nevertheless
constrained by the particular programming languages and
tools provided by their PaaS supplier. In other words, PaaS
vendors have total control over which Lego bricks they allow
their customers to build with. Whilst this ensures that
applications built using the tools on offer will always function
correctly, it is nevertheless restrictive. It is for this reason that
many companies and some individuals choose to cloud
compute at the infrastructure level.
C. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS):
Infrastructure as a service or "IaaS" is where a cloud supplier
provides online infrastructure on which their customers can
store data and develop and run whatever applications they
please. IaaS therefore allows companies to move their existing
programs and data into the cloud and to close down their own
local servers and data centres.
Whilst computing applications run on platforms, platforms in
turn run on computing infrastructure. So, for example, whilst
the Microsoft Word application runs on the Microsoft
Windows platform, in turn the Microsoft Windows platform
runs on the infrastructure of an IBM-compatible PC.
The fundamental building block of cloud computing
infrastructure is the server. Cloud computing servers are
basically computers on which online applications can be run
and data can be stored. When provided by an IaaS vendor,
cloud servers can also be real or virtual.
Real or "dedicated" servers are individual circuit boards –
known as blades – mounted within equipment racks in a data
centre. In contrast virtual servers – also known as "virtual
server instances" – are software-controlled slices of real,
physical servers. Virtual servers are created by a process
called virtualization that allows many users to share the
processing power of one physical server.
Dedicated physical servers and virtual server instances can
perform exactly the same functions. However, there are some
differences between them. For a start, virtual server instances
are cheaper to supply as each does not require its own piece of
physical hardware in a cloud data centre. On the other hand,
virtual server instances are sometimes seen as less secure by
those who do not want to share server hardware with other
customers. For this reason, four categories of IaaS are
available. These are most commonly known as "private
clouds", "dedicated hosting", "hybrid hosting" and "cloud
hosting".

V. CONCLUSION
Even to date there still seems to be no consensus on what a
cloud is. This article points to an effective definition for cloud
computing, and introduces the concept of cloud computing. It
also points the three most important layers in cloud computing
and describes each in a simple manner.

VI. REFERENCES
[1] “Cloud Computing” Wikipedia.org Available :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_computing
[2] Christopher Barnatt, “A Brief Guide to Cloud Computing
[3] ”How cloud computing works?” howstuffworks.com Available :
http://communication.howstuffworks.com/cloud-computing.htm
[4] “Research Report : 2011 cloud computing predictions for vendors and
solution providers” Available : http://cloudcomputing.blogspot.com/