What is cloud computing or cloud computing? Learn about the term below

Cloud Computing in Switzerland is the delivery of virtualized IT resources through the Internet. IT is computing as a service, delivered on demand, pay-per-use, through a platform of services in the cloud.

Definition of cloud computing

The cloud is not a place, but an IT resource management method that replaces local machines and private data centers with virtual infrastructure. In this model, users access the virtual computing, network and storage resources that are available online through a remote provider. These resources can be provisioned instantaneously, which is particularly useful for companies that need to scale their infrastructure vertically or reduce it quickly in response to fluctuating demand.

Benefits of cloud computing

While Cloud Computing in Switzerland may not be suitable for all applications, for many companies, moving some or all IT operations to the cloud can have great advantages over its internal management, namely:

• Low initial investment: with cloud computing, an important part of the IT budget becomes an operating expense instead of an initial capital outlay. Companies no longer need to set up expensive data centers before opening their doors or taking new initiatives.
• Cost efficiency: Whether your business is small or large, you can get the same benefits from the enormous economies of scale achieved by cloud service providers. CSPs can maximize the amount of fully used hardware they are running, saving energy and other costs, a savings they can ultimately pass on to their customers.
• Highly elastic capacity: cloud computing resources are not only highly scalable (ie, easy to expand) but also elastic, which means that capacity and costs can also be reduced during periods of low demand.
• Ease of use and maintenance: with cloud computing, resources and updates can be implemented in an automated and standardized way, increasing accessibility and eliminating inconsistencies and the need for manual updates. Nor is it necessary for your team to physically maintain the servers or data center facilities.
• Easier innovation: both in the IT team and in companies in general, cloud computing often paves a smoother path of innovation. Freed from the operational loads of "racking and stacking", IT departments have the necessary bandwidth to drive improvements in the business process, which can have far-reaching effects. Meanwhile, your business counterparts can quickly and inexpensively provide resources from experimental programs and then expand or reduce them without the burden of detailed infrastructure planning or long-term initial investment.
• Better business continuity: the virtualized nature of the cloud computing infrastructure allows the automated creation of backup copies of data and operating systems, and the initiation of failover procedures. This allows much better data availability and protection than most local systems can offer.

Types of cloud computing services

While Cloud Computing in Switzerland has many advantages, companies may have some concerns, which include:

• Infrastructure as a service (IaaS): being the most basic form of computing in the cloud, IaaS provides users with access to basic infrastructure concepts such as server space, data storage and networks, which can be provisioned through an API. This model is the closest thing to the replication of the functionality of a traditional data center in a hosted environment.
• Platform as a service (PaaS): this model offers a complete development environment, eliminating the need for developers to deal directly with the infrastructure layer when deploying or updating applications.
• Software as a service (SaaS): SaaS applications are designed for end users, and they keep behind the scene all infrastructure development and provisioning. SaaS applications offer a wide range of functionalities in the cloud: from business applications, such as word processing programs and spreadsheets, to CRM, photo editing sets and video hosting platforms.

Cloud implementation models

There are three basic models of Cloud Computing in Switzerland available to businesses:

• Public Cloud: The public cloud is a shared cloud infrastructure owned by a cloud provider that is responsible for its maintenance and management, such as Amazon Web Services or Microsoft Azure. The main benefits of the public cloud are its scalability on demand and its pay-per-use prices.
• Private cloud: This type of cloud runs behind a firewall on a company intranet and is hosted in a dedicated data center for that organization. The infrastructure of the private cloud can be configured and managed according to the specific needs of each company.
• Hybrid cloud: as the name suggests, the hybrid cloud model allows companies to take advantage of public and private cloud solutions. With the hybrid cloud, organizations can leverage the capabilities of each cloud model to leverage flexibility and scalability, while protecting sensitive data and operations.

Cloud security

Security is one of the main concerns of companies seeking to transfer some or all of their IT operations to the cloud. In some sectors, compliance regulations for data security require that some applications remain in private data centers, which requires hybrid or private cloud models. However, cloud computing has several security advantages, such as:

• State-of-the-art technology: the public cloud is free from the security risks inherent in most local data centers, which often combine older systems with newer technologies. Cloud providers can implement next generation encryption and other security measures throughout the system, and perform maintenance in an automated manner.
• Dedicated staff: the reputations and businesses of cloud providers depend on the security of customer data. They have staff specifically dedicated to monitoring and maintaining security, which may mean they can do a better job than the IT department of an individual company, which generally handles a wide range of tasks.
• High availability: redundancies are incorporated into cloud computing, so that even if some servers fail, their online applications continue to run without interruption. Supervision and uptime guarantees 24 hours a day, 7 days a week are a standard part of cloud computing provider contracts.
• Better data protection and disaster recovery: cloud-based backup solutions are often relatively inexpensive and easy to use. The cloud computing model also means that the main files are not trapped in individual machines, which will inevitably fail at some point.

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