[FUNCTIONALITY AND SAFETY OF A MODERN TECHNOLOGY] [CLOUD COMPUTING FOR INDIVIDUAL CONSUMERS]

Cloud Computing [The function of a cloud in reference to computing or technology is to store data on a remote server on the Internet, rather than keeping it on a remote server, your personal computer, phone, or tablet. There are many different functions of this convenient service, along with numerous safety concerns.]

“ ” “At its most basic level, a cloud storage system needs just one data server connected to the Internet. A client (e.g., a computer user subscribing to a cloud storage service) sends copies of files over the Internet to the data server, which then records the information. When the client wishes to retrieve the information, he or she accesses the data server through a Web-based interface. The server then either sends the files back to the client or allows the client to access and manipulate the files on the server itself.” (Strickland 2008) A simple and basic overview of how a cloud storage system works.

Origin It is unclear as to when the term “cloud” came about, or where it came from. The idea of the storage of data on a remote server on the Internet has been around since the Internet came about. But the actual implementation of a cloud server did not appear until about 2008 with NASA’s OpenNebula. Already in 2012, Cloud computing was a $100 billion a year industry and is estimated to be a nearly $270 billion by (McIntyre 2015)

Cloud Services Pure There are no physical components that you have to interact with. Google Drive would be considered a pure cloud service, having all of its storage online so it can work with all of the cloud apps, like Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Hybrid The iCloud is primarily used for online storage, backup, and synchronization of your mail, contacts, calendar, and more. People who use this service do not rely on it entirely for their storage needs, because their Apple devices have physical, local storage as well, which they use for storage.

Costs Cloud computing generally does not have an upfront cost. It is completely based on usage. The user is billed based on the amount of resources they use. This helps the user to track their usage and ultimately help to reduce cost. Cloud computing must provide means to capture, monitor, and control usage information for accurate billing.

Security Aside from the normal username and secret password, cloud services use encryption. This means they use a complex algorithm to encode information. To decode the encrypted files, a user needs the encryption key. While it's possible to crack encrypted information, most hackers don't have access to the amount of computer processing power they would need to decrypt information. There is also the practice of authorization. This means that the client lists the people who are authorized to access information stored on the cloud system.

Reliability An unstable cloud storagesystem is, with no better term, a liability. No one wants to save data to a failure-prone system, and they definitely do not want to put their trust into a company that cannot provide a stable system, or service, that they are most likely paying for. Most, if not all cloud storage systems try to address this concern through redundancy techniques, but there is always the possibility that an entire system could crash and leave clients with no way to access their data.

Cloud Archiving “Cloud archive is a storage procurement model in which data that no longer needs to be accessed on a regular basis is maintained and backed up remotely by a cloud storage service provider.” Based on the high cost and maintenance of data retention on-site, it seems that businesses would turn to Cloud archiving to solve their problems

Cloud Computing It seems that cloud computing is the future for data transfer and retention. New techniques for storage, retrieval, security, and reliability are being explored every day. Cloud computing has been rapidly expanding and has majorly impacted aspects of technology in less than a decade.