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Explain Cloud Computing Architecture and cloud components?

The provisioning of services in a timely on-demand manner and allow scaling up and down of resources is called as cloud computing.

Cloud architecture is defined from the perspectives of cloud consumers, cloud providers and cloud brokers.

Cloud computing implies access to remote computing services offered by third parties via a TCP/IP connection to the public internet.

It is a style of computing in which resources are provided “as a service” over the internet to users who needs not have

knowledge of, expertise in, or control over the technology infrastructure that supports them.

A cloud service has 3 different characteristics

● Sold on demand

● Elastic behavior

• Fully managed by the provider.

For example, “Google Apps” provides common business application online that are accessed from a web browser, while the software & data are stored on the internet servers.

Basically, cloud computing is the use of hardware and software to deliver a service over a network.

Cloud Computing Architecture:

Cloud: a massive network of servers on individual PC’s interconnected in a GRID. These computers run in parallel and combine all their resources to generate supercomputing like power.

Cloud Consumer: Is a person or organization that processes and utilizes cloud services, Such as Amazon EC2 Individual users connect to the cloud from their own personal computers over the internet. the cloud appears to them as a single application device or document i.e. hardware components are invisible the architecture seems simple, although it does require some intelligent management to connect all task computers together and assign task processing to multiple users.

Cloud Provider: Is the person who maintains computing h/w and s/w and supplies cloud services to other. E.g. Amazon

Cloud Broker: Is a person that manages usages, performance and delivery of cloud services and negotiates relationship between cloud providers and cloud consumers.

Working:

The user uses the fronted interface to select a task or service.

The user’s request is then passed to the system management which finds correct resources and calls appropriate provisioning services.

These services launch the appropriate web application and either crate or open the requested documents.

The system monitoring functions then track the usage of the cloud so that resources are distributed to proper users.

Components of Cloud Computing: Client: A cloud client consists of computer hardware and/or software that relies on cloudcomputing for application delivery, or that is specifically designed for delivery ofcloud services and that, in either case, is essentially useless without it.

CloudNetwork: Cloud networking (and Cloud based networking)is a term describing the access of networking resources from a centralized third-party provider using Wide Area Networking (WAN) or Internet-based access technologies. In cloud networking, thenetwork can beshared as well as the computingresources.

Cloud API: A Cloud Application Programming Interface (Cloud API) is a type of API that enables the development of applications and services used for the provisioning ofcloud hardware, software, and platforms.

Advantages:

The use of the cloud provides a number of opportunities:

a. It enables services to be used without any understanding of their infrastructure.

b. Data and services are stored remotely but accessible from “anywhere”.

Lower computer costs:

a. You do not need a high-powered and high-priced computer to run cloud computing's web-based applications.

b. Since applications run in the cloud, not on the desktop PC, your desktop PC does not need the

Reduced software costs:

a. Instead of purchasing expensive software applications, you can get most of what you need for free

Instant software updates:

a. Another advantage to cloud computing is that you are no longer faced with choosing between obsolete software and high upgrade costs.

Unlimited storage capacity:

a. Cloud computing offers virtually limitless storage.

Increased data reliability:

a. Unlike desktop computing, in which if a hard disk crashes and destroy all your valuable data, a computer crashing in the cloud should not affect the storage of your data.

Disadvantages:

In parallel there has been backlash against cloud computing:

• Use of cloud computing means dependence on others and that could possibly limit flexibility and innovation:

a. The others are likely become the bigger Internet companies like Google and IBM, who may monopolise the market.

b. Some argue that this use of supercomputers is a return to the time of mainframe computing that the PC was a reaction against.

• Security could prove to be a big issue:

a. It is still unclear how safe out-sourced data is and when using these services ownership of data is not always clear.

• There are also issues relating to policy and access:

a. If your data is stored abroad whose policy do you adhere to?

b. What happens if the remote server goes down?

c. How will you then access files?

d. There have been cases of users being locked out of accounts and losing access to data.

• Requires a constant Internet connection:

a. Cloud computing is impossible if you cannot connect to the Internet.

b. Since you use the Internet to connect to both your applications and documents, if you do not have an Internet connection you cannot access anything, even your own documents.

• Stored data can be lost:

a. Theoretically, data stored in the cloud is safe, replicated across multiple machines.

b. But on the off chance that your data goes missing, you have no physical or local backup.