Travis, Stephanie, Alex

 Cloud computing is a general term for anything that involves delivering hosted services over the Internet.  These services are broadly divided into three categories: Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) and Software-as- a-Service (SaaS).  The name cloud computing was inspired by the cloud symbol that's often used to represent the Internet in flow charts and diagrams.

 Users need not have knowledge of, expertise in, or control over the technology infrastructure in the "cloud" that supports them.  Cloud computing services often provide common business applications online that are accessed from a web browser, while the software and data are stored on the servers.

 Cloud computing is a way to increase capacity or add capabilities on the fly without investing in new infrastructure, training new personnel, or licensing new software.  Cloud computing encompasses any subscription- based or pay-per-use service that, in real time over the Internet, extends IT's existing capabilities.

 This type of cloud computing delivers a single application through the browser to thousands of customers using a multitenant architecture.  On the customer side, it means no upfront investment in servers or software licensing; on the provider side, with just one app to maintain, costs are low compared to conventional hosting.  Salesforce.com is by far the most well known among enterprise applications, but SaaS is also common for HR apps  There has been a sudden rise of SaaS "desktop" applications, such as Google Apps and Zoho Office.

 Infrastructure as a Service is a provision model in which an organization outsources the equipment used to support operations, including storage, hardware, servers and networking components.  The service provider owns the equipment and is responsible for housing, running and maintaining it. The client typically pays on a per-use basis.

 Platform as a Service (PaaS) is a paradigm for delivering operating systems and associated services over the Internet without downloads or installation.  PaaS is sometimes called "cloudware" because it moves resources from privately owned computers into the Internet "cloud.“  Platform as a Service (PaaS) is an outgrowth of Software as a Service (SaaS), a software distribution model in which applications are hosted by a vendor or service provider and made available to customers over the Internet.

 Agility  Cost  Device  Multi-tenancy  Reliability  Scalability  Security  Sustainability

 Agility Improves with users ability to rapidly and inexpensively re-provision technological infrastructure resources. The cost of overall computing is unchanged, and the providers will merely absorb up-front costs and spread costs over a longer period.

 Device  Device and location independence enable users to access systems regardless of their location or what device they are using (e.g., PC, mobile) by using a web browser.

 Cost  Cost is reduced by focusing on the operational expenditure as multiple applications are purchased for multiple tasks and shared by all users.  Fewer IT skills are required for implementation (in- house) because the costs shift to outsourced providers.  Any cost reduction benefit must be weighed against a corresponding loss of control, access and security risks.

 Multi-tenancy  Multi-tenancy enables sharing of resources and costs across a large pool of users allowing for:  Centralization of infrastructure in locations with lower costs (such as real estate, electricity, etc.)  Peak-load capacity increases (users need not engineer for highest possible load-levels)  Utilization and efficiency improvements for systems that are often only 10–20% utilized.

 Reliability  Reliability improves through the use of multiple redundant sites, which makes cloud computing suitable for business continuity and disaster recovery.  Many major cloud computing services have suffered outages, and IT and business managers can at times do little when they are affected.

 Scalability  Performance is monitored, and consistent and loosely-coupled architectures are constructed using web services as the system interface.

 Security  Security typically improves due to centralization of data and increased security-focused resources.  Concerns can persist about loss of control over certain sensitive data, and the lack of security for stored kernels.  Security is often as good as or better than under traditional systems because providers are able to devote resources to solving security issues that many customers cannot afford.

 Sustainability  Sustainability comes about through improved resource utilization, more efficient systems, and carbon neutrality.  Computers and associated infrastructure are major consumers of energy.

 Public Cloud  Hybrid Cloud  Private Cloud

 Public Cloud  Public cloud or external cloud describes cloud computing in the traditional mainstream sense, where resources are dynamically provisioned on a self-service basis over the Internet, via web applications/web services, from an off-site third- party provider who shares resources and bills on a fine-grained utility computing basis.

 Private Cloud  Private cloud and internal clouds are what some vendors have recently used to describe offerings that emulate cloud computing on private networks.  These products claim to "deliver some benefits of cloud computing without the pitfalls", capitalizing on data security, corporate governance, and reliability concerns.  They have been criticized on the basis that users "still have to buy, build, and manage them" and as such do not benefit from lower up-front capital costs and less hands-on management.

 Hybrid Cloud  A hybrid cloud environment consisting of multiple internal and/or external providers will be typical for most enterprises.

 Because of the way Cloud Computing is advancing, companies such as Microsoft are going to have to follow the trend of cloud computing and will have to re-evaluate their applications such as Microsoft Office.

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