There are many short names used in Cloud Service Models, and sometimes it may be confusing.
When you get started with Cloud Computing, there are many things to learn. In this article, I will talk about some of the popular cloud service models that are widely used and are a must-know for aspiring cloud architects.
Three cloud service models PaaS, SaaS, and IaaS are the most important among all, so I will start with them.
PaaS
PaaS stands for Platform as a Service.
Here, your cloud provider gives you the complete platform to use. When I say the complete platform to use, it means the provider takes care of all the underlying parts of the infrastructure. For example, your servers are taken care of, and your virtual machines are taken care of, you are given some predefined tools which you can use to build your applications.
Some of the benefits of using PaaS are the following.
Faster development and delivery
Create/Deploy applications on the fly
Easily Upgradable
Provides backup, recovery and data security
Easily accessible from multiple locations (by multiple teams)
Sounds exciting and the good news is you can create your mini PaaS for your needs.
SaaS
SaaS stands for Software as a Service.
It means a cloud provider is giving you complete software like servers, databases, and application codes in the form of service.
For example, Gmail, where you exchange emails without worrying about what is happening in the background. All you have to do is type your email, and it gets delivered to the location or to the person you want to deliver it. You are not concerned about how the platform works, what are the security concerns, what if the server goes down, or where is the mail getting stored, it’s none of your concern.
The service providers are providing you a complete software or an application in the form of service, that is why this architecture is called Software as a Service.
Ex – Freshdesk as a helpdesk and self-service solution.
IaaS
IaaS stands for Infrastructure as a service.
The definition of infrastructure as a service means only the infrastructure is given to you, everything else is something that you put in the way you want it, and then you use it. IaaS provides computing architecture and infrastructure apart from that data storage, virtualization servers, and networking.
Let me explain it with an analogy.
For example, suppose you rent a house, now the owner gives you a house and says use it the way you want to and pay me the rent. So, you are paying the owner for the house, and when you get inside the house, you realize that it only has a bed and a table. Apart from that, you need to put in the kitchen utensils, and you need to set up the house the way you want to use it, and then you can go ahead and use that house. Basically, you are setting up your infrastructure.
API as a Service is used to manage its own custom APIs and allow applications to connect to 3rd party APIs like Google map, voice search API, etc.
It is also used in generating documentation of APIs, which describes all the functionalities and working on the API. It can be shared with the team using that API or 3rd party APIs.
Using API services, an application can talk to the features stored in the backend.
Ex – Maps, Aviation, SERP
AaaS
AaaS stands for Analytics as a Service.
It provides analytics software over the cloud on the subscription-based model. It has become a crucial option for businesses to bypass upfront new capital costs and adopt new business process requirements easily.
You can use AaaS for Predictive analytics, Data Analytics, and Business Analytics, to find insights and trends on the data. In this age of Big Data, AaaS is a savior. It can clean, analyze, and store insights from Big data in a scalable and cost-effective manner.
BaaS stands for Backend as a Service. It takes care of all the backend services of an application, and the developers can focus only on writing and maintaining the frontend side of the application. It provides backend services like database management, user authentication, cloud storage, hosting on the cloud, push notifications, etc.
If I take the example of amazon.com, it is one of the most popular e-commerce websites worldwide. What you see as a user is a friendly website or an app, but a lot of things are happening at the backend. BaaS can help Amazon with storage, user management, payment gateway, recommendation system, push notifications to its user for the latest offers, and many more backend functionalities.
Ex – Managed Database by DigitalOcean
Data as a Service
Data as a Service (sometimes also called DaaS) is a service model that provides pre-aggregated and pre-calculated data, which can provide better insights, and you can make better business decisions. It uses the cloud to provide data storage, data integration data processing, and data analysis services using networks.
DBaaS is managed by public and private cloud providers. It provides database functionalities as a service to internal/external customers. Application developers do not rely on database administrators for database management when using Database as a Service.
Benefits of using DBaaS.
Reduces operational cost
Easier to deploy and manage
Supports all sizes of business
Pay for what you use
Automates database operations
Clustering setup in minutes
High-availability across regions
Ex – Scalegrid for MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redis, MongoDB
DaaS
DaaS stands for Desktop as a Service.
Virtual desktops are hosted over the cloud on any device from anywhere. It offers a subscription-based model and is multi-tenant. It improves data security and enhances remote productivity as it provides services in all geographies.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) has a lot of similarities to DaaS. The difference between the two is that the infrastructure on DaaS is hosted over the cloud, whereas the infrastructure of VDI is mostly located on-premise.
Ex – V2 Cloud
FaaS
FaaS stands for Function as a Service.
It helps to remove the complexities of servers and provides a serverless architecture. You can focus on the business logic, and everything in the background is taken care of by service providers—all you have to worry about code development.
AWS Lambda is an example of FaaS, which has been developed by Amazon. Azure and GCP also support FaaS through Azure functions and Google Cloud functions.
Cloud-based security is where an application or infrastructure is secured by a cloud-based security provider (CSBP). A simple example of Security as a Service is antivirus software provided by an organization like Avast, Norton, McAfee, etc.
Other security services like anti-malware, firewall, penetration testing, intrusion detection, authentication, spam filtering, and Identity and Access Management (IAM) are a part of SECaaS.
Ex – SUCURI for Web Application Firewall
XaaS
Anything as a Service (XaaS) refers to a cloud service model where different types of services, including products, applications, technologies, games, tools, and more, are delivered to users on their devices via the cloud, instead of on-premises. It’s an umbrella term covering anything that vendors supply to users on the cloud and enables remote access.
XaaS has transformed modern businesses, and now wide-ranging IT services and resources are delivered using this. The examples of XaaS can be SaaS, PaaS, IaaS, CaaS, DaaS, DBaaS, CaaS, and more. The XaaS model is applied across multiple industries, from IT, banking, and finance, to healthcare, manufacturing, and education.
Some of the benefits of XaaS are:
Businesses can use XaaS to buy exactly what they need from vendors and pay for the resources they use, unlike traditional systems. It helps them cut expenses significantly and increase the return on investment (ROI).
IT companies can streamline their operations effectively using XaaS and free up their resources and capabilities for innovation.
XaaS can help them become more agile and easily implement digital transformation.
XaaS enables modern businesses to adapt easily to rapidly changing market demands with relevant applications and solutions and enjoy the flexibility of scaling up or down based on their requirements.
Conclusion
So, these were the important cloud service models that you will come across frequently while working with cloud solutions. Go ahead and try out any one of the cloud service models mentioned above using any one cloud service provider (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud) to get a feel of it.
If new to cloud computing, then check out these courses to learn.
Cloud models come in Four kinds: SaaS (Software as a Service), IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service), PaaS (Platform as a Service), and FaaS (Function as a Service). Every one of the cloud models has its very own arrangement of advantages that could serve the requirements of different organizations.
IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS stand for infrastructure-as-a-service, platform-as-a-service, and software-as-a-service. IaaS provides a pay-as-you-go approach for storage, networking, and virtualization. In addition, PaaS includes even more services like hardware and software development tools available via web.
Cloud computing is offered in three different service models which each satisfy a unique set of business requirements. These three models are known as Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).
As depicted in Figure 3, the five layers proposed in the paper are Cloud Application Layer, Cloud Software Environment Layer, Cloud Software Infrastructure Layer, Software Kernel, and Hardware and Firmware, with three constituent parts for the Cloud Infrastructure Layer such as Computational Resources, Storage, and ...
Infrastructure cloud: Abstracts applications from servers and servers from storage. Content cloud: Abstracts data from applications. Information cloud: Abstracts access from clients to data.
Yes, Netflix is a SaaS company that sells software to observe permitted videos on demand. It follows a subscription-based model whereby the user selects a subscription plan and pays a stable sum of money to Netflix monthly or annually.
IAAS gives access to the resources like virtual machines and virtual storage. PAAS gives access to run time environment to deployment and development tools for application. SAAS gives access to the end user. It is a service model that provides virtualized computing resources over the internet.
Gmail is one famous example of an SaaS mail provider. PaaS: Platform as a Service The most complex of the three, cloud platform services or “Platform as a Service” (PaaS) deliver computational resources through a platform.
IaaS, PaaS and SaaS are the three most popular types of cloud service offerings. (They are sometimes referred to as cloud service models or cloud computing service models.)
Common SaaS services include Dropbox, Salesforce, Cisco WebEx. PaaS services include Google App Engine, Apache Stratos and OpenShift. Some well-known IaaS services are Amazon Web Services (AWS), Cisco Metapod and Microsoft Azure.
Function as a service (FaaS) is a cloud computing model that enables cloud customers to develop applications and deploy functionalities and only be charged when the functionality executes. FaaS is often used to deploy microservices and may also be referred to as serverless computing.
Messaging applications like WhatsApp, Facebook messenger etc are SaaS? And how? No. “SaaS” has, like “Cloud”, become a term that no longer really reflects its current meaning.
Zoom is a cloud-based SaaS application that allows private individuals as well as businesses to virtually interact with each other. Communication can occur via text, audio, video, or a combination of the three. Users can hold one-on-one meetings or conduct video conferences with up to 500 participants.
Facebook is an example of PaaS. Developers can create specific applications for the Facebook platform using proprietary APIs and make that application available to any Facebook user.
Netflix uses AWS for almost everything cloud computing. That includes online storage, recommendation engine, video transcoding, databases, and analytics.
First, let's cover off the question in this title: yes, Netflix is indeed a SaaS company that sells software to watch licensed videos on demand. It follows a subscription-based model whereby the customer chooses a subscription plan and pays a fixed sum of money to Netflix monthly or annually. SaaS isn't a new concept.
What is SaaS? Software as a service (or SaaS) is a way of delivering applications over the Internet—as a service. Instead of installing and maintaining software, you simply access it via the Internet, freeing yourself from complex software and hardware management.
AWS (Amazon Web Services) is a comprehensive, evolving cloud computing platform provided by Amazon that includes a mixture of infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS), platform-as-a-service (PaaS) and packaged-software-as-a-service (SaaS) offerings.
Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is a business and software delivery model that enables organizations to offer their solution in a low-friction, service-centric approach.
Amazon Connect's cloud-based contact center brings all the benefits of a SaaS platform to companies large and small, with features that make the old Big Black Box systems look like museum pieces: Get started quickly.
Clouds form when the invisible water vapor in the air condenses into visible water droplets or ice crystals. For this to happen, the parcel of air must be saturated, i.e. unable to hold all the water it contains in vapor form, so it starts to condense into a liquid or solid form.
Netflix, Spotify, Dropbox and Slack are common SaaS products, in which the product is then delivered to users over the internet on a subscription basis, giving users the flexibility to not have to worry about upfront installation purchases or ongoing maintenance costs.
Nevertheless, as they continue to increase profits generated by their software platforms, Apple's standing as a SaaS company will undoubtedly become stronger and stronger over time; their services now generate as much as 29% of the company's gross profit.
Instagram is one of the most popular social media networks with the most engaged user base, so it's a perfect place for SaaS companies to promote their businesses, reach potential customers, spread the word about software, and increase downloads or sales.
Why is IaaS better than PaaS? Unlike PaaS, IaaS offers its customers direct access to its cloud servers and storage. It provides more flexibility, scalability, and networking layers. You don't have to buy and install the underlying infrastructure because you can outsource it instead.
Who is the father of cloud computing technology? The answer to this trivia night question is American computer scientist J.C.R.Licklider. In the late 1960s, he envisioned a world where everyone would be connected with the ability to access specific programs and data regardless of where the access point was located.
The SaaS industry has been steadily growing over the past 10 years. The market size in 2020 doubled that of 2014 to 157 billion U.S. dollars. Leaders in the industry include Salesforce, Microsoft and IBM who have the largest market share in the global SaaS market.
Software as a service (SaaS) allows users to connect to and use cloud-based apps over the Internet. Common examples are email, calendaring, and office tools (such as Microsoft Office 365).
Cloud is structured into three primary models, mainly–Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Software as a Service (SaaS).
What are the three common cloud service models? There is confusion about the three main categories of cloud service models: Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS).
Organizations of every type, size, and industry are using the cloud for a wide variety of use cases, such as data backup, disaster recovery, email, virtual desktops, software development and testing, big data analytics, and customer-facing web applications.
This accordion was made by Anthony Faas in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1856. It is rectangular-shaped with a single bellows, 9 bass keys, and 19 treble keys.
Platform as a service. Platform as a service (PaaS) is a complete development and deployment environment in the cloud, with resources that enable you to deliver everything from simple cloud-based apps to sophisticated, cloud-enabled enterprise applications.
Operations. FaaS technologies spin entire applications up and down for individual requests. While PaaS has the ability to automatically scale up and down as needed, there are generally always resources running. This feature of FaaS can affect latency, pricing, and the ability to handle complex requests. Scalability.
Function-as-a-Service, or FaaS, is a kind of cloud computing service that allows developers to build, compute, run, and manage application packages as functions without having to maintain their own infrastructure.
PaaS, or platform as a service, is on-demand access to a complete, ready-to-use, cloud-hosted platform for developing, running, maintaining and managing applications. SaaS, or software as a service, is on-demand access to ready-to-use, cloud-hosted application software.
Function as a service (FaaS) is a cloud computing model that enables cloud customers to develop applications and deploy functionalities and only be charged when the functionality executes. FaaS is often used to deploy microservices and may also be referred to as serverless computing.
The most important contrast between IaaS and PaaS is that IaaS gives administrators more full control over operating systems, whereas PaaS gives consumers more flexibility and ease of use.
Function as a Service is even simpler than PaaS. As the name suggests, it's based on the functions which can be triggered by a given event, so it's an event-based architecture. The level of simplicity is so high that it's called a serverless architecture.
FaaS lets developers write and update a piece of code on the fly, which can then be executed in response to an event, such as a user clicking on an element in a web application. This makes it easy to scale code and is a cost-efficient way to implement microservices.
This accordion was made by Anthony Faas in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1856. It is rectangular-shaped with a single bellows, 9 bass keys, and 19 treble keys.
Yes, Netflix is a SaaS company that sells software to observe permitted videos on demand. It follows a subscription-based model whereby the user selects a subscription plan and pays a stable sum of money to Netflix monthly or annually.
Gmail is one famous example of an SaaS mail provider. PaaS: Platform as a Service The most complex of the three, cloud platform services or “Platform as a Service” (PaaS) deliver computational resources through a platform.
Facebook is an example of PaaS. Developers can create specific applications for the Facebook platform using proprietary APIs and make that application available to any Facebook user.
SaaS (software as a service) Lifecycle Management refers to the methods used to manage and maintain a SaaS offering, from the prototype stage to the retirement stage, where the SaaS offering is no longer in service.
AWS (Amazon Web Services) is a comprehensive, evolving cloud computing platform provided by Amazon that includes a mixture of infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS), platform-as-a-service (PaaS) and packaged-software-as-a-service (SaaS) offerings.
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