Cloud Computing

What is cloud computing and why you should take advantage of its potential?

Connecting to the cloud computing allows the user to use powerful external computing power at the lowest possible cost. How fast and efficient these computing resources are depends on the hardware parameters known to anyone who has had closer contact with computer hardware, i.e. the speed of the processor, the amount of RAM or the type of disk on which the operating system is installed. However, the better the parameters, the higher the cost of the cloud computing service, so the user should adjust the parameters of the virtual machine, because this is what the virtual “hardware” separated within the cloud server is usually called, to the application or service that will be run on such VM .

cloud computing is simple - VMgen

Try VMgen for free with $50 promo code

Name(Required)
consent

By submitting the above information, I consent to the use of my personal data in accordance with the Privacy Policy.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Key benefits of cloud computing

Cloud computing and the issue of processing costs

Outsourcing of computing power offered by the cloud allows for a very large, up to 20%, reduction of costs related to maintaining own servers. On the other hand, the physical presence of the server or servers in its premises means not only the need to purchase expensive hardware and software, but also their configuration, connection to the network and daily maintenance and provision of an appropriate level of security by qualified persons who must be employed or rented by the company. In the case of external cloud computing, all these costs are borne by the computing resource provider. Moreover, the fees are often even lower due to the common billing model where the user only pays for the computing resources that have actually been used. For example, in the case of VMgen, costs are billed per second of compute usage.

Cloud computing means much more efficient processes

The equipment used by cloud computing providers must be modern and meet high standards of efficiency and reliability. Servers must be built on the basis of the latest components to ensure the speed and smooth operation of your service. Cloud computing providers comprehensively deal with all issues related to the servers on which your virtual machines run, including performance and hardware. Regular replacement of components with newer ones, taking care of their health and life, software updates, ensuring always fast internet connection are just some of the actions taken by a cloud computing provider such as VMgen, to ensure a high level of cloud services quality. This means that you can make your application or service run faster and more reliably for a lot less money and without worrying about the technical side of the project. Remember also that in the end, your decision to use the speed of cloud computing will be appreciated by users of your solutions satisfied with the speed and smoothness of their operation!

Cloud computing means unlimited access to data – anywhere, anytime

This is one of the most recognizable features of the cloud computing. When we hear that data is stored in the cloud, we automatically assume that it means we can access this data from anywhere in the world and from any device that has access to the internet. It is enough that we have the possibility of using a computer or mobile device, for example a smartphone or tablet, and this device is connected to the Internet and we know the access credentials to our data or cloud services, and we will be able to access them at any time and from anywhere in the world. Just think how much this solution is more convenient than the traditional storage of the same data on the computer that we left at home before departure.

Scalability – a tailor-made cloud computing service

Cloud computing means power tailored to your needs

Another very important feature of cloud computing is something called its scalability, i.e. in other words, the flexible adjustment of the cloud to your needs. If you need a basic cloud solution, there’s no need to pay more for the power you won’t use.

What if you suddenly need more power?

However, your situation may change and you suddenly may need a faster server with more data space. Easily increase the computing resources needed to meet new challenges thanks to the scalable services offered by cloud providers, including VMgen.

cloud computing - engineer in a server room

Cloud computing is also about location, location and again location

The principle of location is key in many industries. In IT, and especially in cloud computing services, location also plays a very important role. Imagine that you have a server at your company’s headquarters in Poland, but suddenly your application, which has several language versions, is being used by users from other continents. Their access times to your service, which runs on a Polish server, will be much longer than the access times of users in Poland, so the quality of using your solution will be worse for them at best, and at worst it will contribute to the abandonment of your service by foreign users to competitors. that offers a smoother and more comfortable work with your software. But if you use cloud computing, localization is no longer a problem as you can very quickly set up your application on a server that is geographically close to your user group. In fact, the ability to select a location can be considered another aspect of cloud computing scalability. Cloud computing resource providers usually offer servers located in different places around the globe. It is no different in the case of our VMgen platform, whose server offer includes almost 30 locations optimally spread over five continents.

map of VMgen cloud computing data centers

Cloud computing and data security

Cloud computing is also encryption, authorization and resistance to attacks

Due to the fact that you entrust your data to specialized companies providing cloud computing power, you can be sure that all security is of the highest level and meets the standards of the local law of the country in which the server is located. Data stored in the cloud is encrypted, which protects it from being read and used by unauthorized persons, even if these people somehow manage to intercept the data. In fact, intercepting data in the cloud is extremely difficult, as authorization processes only grant access to data to people who own the data or who have been authorized by these owners. A number of security measures and special firewalls used by such cloud service providers as VMgen make a well-constructed cloud infrastructure resistant to various types of external attacks.

Cloud computing and data backup

Anyone who has lost important files at least once knows how useful data backup can be, especially when it is data related to the users of your application. Cloud computing providers often offer the option of creating regular data backups, but the possibility alone is not all you should be aware of. It is important that data backups are stored securely so that unauthorized persons cannot intercept our information and use it for, for example, ransom demands. Another important issue is the simplicity and speed with which it will be possible to restore data from backups to the production version of your solution. The simpler and faster the process is, the less downtime your application will be, and the less user frustration and your company’s monetary losses will be.

Cloud computing network connection perforated paper

Cloud computing and its three models

The way cloud computing power is delivered may vary. Due to these differences, there are often three different models of cloud computing, i.e. public cloud, private cloud and hybrid cloud. Note that most of the information we wrote about above concerns the most common cloud model today, i.e. the public cloud

Three types of cloud computing service:

  • public cloud
  • private cloud
  • hybrid cloud

Public cloud

As we mentioned earlier, the most important feature of public cloud computing resources is that they are provided over the public internet. Most of the most popular solutions are public cloud solutions, for example: AWS, Azure or VMgen. The entire infrastructure, including data centers and software, is provided by an external provider, and the user only uses the computing power and manages the cloud service by logging into a special panel via his favorite web browser. In VMgen, the User Portal is such a panel.

Private cloud 

Access to the private cloud is limited to a selected group of users, for example employees of the company for which the private cloud infrastructure was created. Unlike the public cloud, access to a private cloud takes place over the corporate intranet, not the public internet. Data centers and all the equipment of such a cloud may be located physically on the premises of the company or they may be located outside the company’s premises, in the buildings of an external cloud provider that has separated a private cloud for its client within its cloud services. Private cloud is, of course, a much more expensive solution than the public model, especially when it comes to infrastructure that is physically located on your company’s premises. In this case, all the costs of managing and maintaining the data centers, which we wrote about at the beginning of this article, come into play.

Hybrid cloud computing as a mixed computing model

As you can easily guess, hybrid cloud is a combination of two previously discussed models of cloud computing: public and private. Some enterprises choose private clouds because they prefer to personally look after the security of their data despite a number of specialized security measures and firewalls used by public cloud service providers. However, private processing solutions have one very significant drawback: they are poorly scalable. In a situation where your company suddenly needs additional cloud computing power, the physical expansion of your private infrastructure is not an undertaking that you can implement immediately. The opposite is true for professional third-party cloud resource providers, who always have additional free resources that you can use immediately. Scalability is the reason why some enterprises choose a hybrid cloud model that combines the feeling of greater control over data and higher security of the private model with the great scalability of the public cloud. In practice, however, public providers can pride themselves on greater security of their services than many companies that wanted to save a bit on the implementation of a private cloud and opted for a less impressive range of data security.