The rise of cloud computing

Lets take a moment to rewind the history of cloud computing, where cloud computing is a narrative of technological progress and conceptual breakthroughs. Time-sharing in the 1960s pioneered the efficient use of computer resources, but the real transformation began with the digital revolution of the 1990s, with the maturity of virtual machines and the early appearance of cloud computing. The internet’s proliferation enabled the application service provider (ASP) model to thrive, offering software solutions remotely. This model matured into Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), providing software on-demand via the internet, and later in the cloud, erasing the need for local installations. The journey continued with the creation of Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS), both of which further distanced software developers from the complexities of physical servers.

Note

The ASP model refers to provisioning software solutions via the internet. In this model, software applications are hosted remotely by the provider and made available to customers over a network, typically the internet.

Figure 1.2 represents timeline charts of key milestones in cloud computing’s history: from the 1960s’ mainframe computing and the 1972 internet emergence to the 1990s’ virtual machines by VMware and web services. The 2000s introduced AWS’s S3/EC2 services, followed by Google Apps and Microsoft Azure, culminating in the 2010s with the Office 365 SaaS offering and Docker’s containerization in 2020:

Figure 1.2 – Cloud computing timeline

These cloud-based services provided scalable and elastic infrastructure and development platforms, catalyzing the shift toward more agile, responsive, and cost-effective software development paradigms. This trajectory set the stage for today’s cloud-native applications, which are designed from the ground up to harness the distributed, service-oriented nature of the modern cloud.

Cloud computing solutions come tied with new software development practices, paradigms, and cycles. Automated cycles for building, deploying, and testing distributed and modular software have catalyzed the appearance of cloud-based services orbiting each of the software development and deployment phases.

Cloud computing service categories

Upon exploring cloud service models, we find SaaS for software access, PaaS for development platforms, and IaaS for infrastructure. These models form the foundation of cloud computing, addressing diverse digital needs. Let’s explore them further:

• SaaS: This is a distribution model where applications are hosted by a third-party provider and accessed by customers via the internet. In this model, the service provider takes care of hosting software applications and their corresponding data and ensures optimal execution by providing operating systems and underlying dependencies. Examples include Salesforce, NetSuite, and Concur.
• PaaS: This is a model where a third-party provider hosts application development platforms and tools on its infrastructure that can be accessed by customers via the internet. Compared to SaaS models, PaaS providers take less responsibility for software applications but are more committed to serving the operating system and its middleware. Examples include AWS Elastic Beanstalk, Google App Engine, and Heroku.
• IaaS: This is a model where a third-party provider hosts servers, storage, and various virtualized computing resources by offering them to customers via the internet. IaaS takes care of less abstract requirements, including networking, data handling, computing power, and ensuring virtualization layers. Examples include AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Compute Engine.

Benefits of cloud computing

There are many benefits of cloud computing if it is used right. In general, cloud computing has revolutionized the way we store, access, and process data. It offers a plethora of benefits for individuals and businesses alike, making it a preferred choice for modern computing needs.

The evolution and specialization of cloud computing techniques eventually matured to offer several benefits over traditional on-premises infrastructure, including the following:

• Scalability: Cloud services can be easily scaled up or down based on the demand, allowing applications to accommodate fluctuating workloads without overprovisioning resources
• Cost-effectiveness: Organizations can pay for only the resources they use, eliminating the need for upfront investments in hardware and software
• Flexibility: Cloud providers offer a wide range of services that can be used to build and deploy applications, enabling developers to choose the best tools and platforms for their specific needs
• Security and Compliance: Cloud providers often invest heavily in maintaining state-of-the-art security measures and compliance certifications, allowing organizations to leverage these protections for their applications and data

In addition to these advantages, cloud computing has democratized access to cutting-edge technologies such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics. By providing these capabilities as managed services, cloud providers have made it easier for developers to integrate advanced features into their applications, further driving innovation and growth in the software industry.

Consider the case of a start-up who wants to launch a new e-commerce platform. By leveraging cloud computing, the start-up could quickly and cost-effectively build, deploy, and scale its application without significant upfront investments in infrastructure or long-term commitments to a specific technology stack. This ability to rapidly adapt and grow would become invaluable as the business scale and customer needs evolve, demonstrating the power of cloud computing in driving innovation and efficiency in application development.

With such similar cases, cloud computing was bringing undeniable benefits to many businesses, which gave it the momentum to be ever-growing and further specialized to precisely meet evolving business needs. As businesses continued to adopt cloud computing within their operations, new specialized forms of cloud deployment models began to emerge, such as hybrid and multi-cloud deployments. This will be explored in more detail in the next section.