Cloud grows and turns 25

In less than a decade, the cloud has evolved rapidly and radically revolutionized the way business and people interact with technology.

Rewinding the tape, back in the early 1960s, when John McCarthy wrote that “one day computation might be organized as a public utility,” the idea of the cloud had begun to settle at least in computing contexts. The cloud with which it is depicted most likely derives from diagrams used to represent the Internet in textbooks, especially to identify telecommunications companies that made a radical shift from point-to-point protocols (PPTP) to virtual private network (VPN) services in the 1990s.

However, it is thanks to computer science professor Ramnath Chellappa that the term “cloud,” understood as a “computing paradigm in which the boundaries of computing will be determined by economic logic rather than by technical limitations alone,” was first brought to the fore with a modern meaning in 1997. It has been a quarter of a century, therefore, since it was given a definition that is still relevant today.

Table of Contents:
What is the Cloud?
The incidence of the cloud
Types of cloud implementation
What are the benefits of the cloud?
Shellrent’s Cloud Servers
What is the Cloud?
Cloud computing identifies a paradigm of service delivery using the Internet: data processing, storage and transmission take place in servers that are located in datacenters accessible from any device and location.

The cloud has gained popularity as companies have gained a better understanding of its benefits and usefulness. In 1999, saleforce.com introduced the idea of using the Internet to deliver software programs to end users. The program (or application), therefore, would be accessible and downloadable by anyone with access to the Internet. Later, with Amazon Web Service and Google Docs, the cloud began a process of consistent advancement in operational contexts. Before long, other players joined the ranks includingMicrosoft, which launched Windows Azure in 2009, and companies such as Oracle and HP.

The impact of the cloud
To get a better idea of the incidence of the cloud in the day-to-day operations of companies, just look at some data. According to recent research conducted by Eurostat, 79 percent of companies currently use cloud systems for email management, while 68 percent use it for storage and 58 percent for security software.

Also according to Eurostat, 60 percent of Italian SMEs have a relevant propensity toward cloud computing services, giving rise to a market of about 4.5 billion euros. At the European level, it is Sweden, with 75 percent use of cloud applications, that looks down on all others; Italy ranks fifth, ahead of Germany (40 percent) and France (30 percent), and exceeds the European average (42 percent).

These values stem from an increasing focus on data protection strategies, software adoption in finance, CRM and enterprise resource planning.

Types of cloud deployments
There are four most common cloud deployments: private, public, hybrid and multi.

Private. A private cloud is nothing more than a server, local network, or system with dedicated resources that are enjoyed by only one organization.

Public. Unlike private clouds, the resources of a single public cloud are leveraged by multiple companies and managed by a single provider, in a circumstance called “multi-tenant.”

Hybrid. The hybrid solution allows the features of a private cloud and a public cloud to be combined, acting as a single combined infrastructure.

Multi. Multiple cloud service providers are combined in this environment. Typically, this approach is taken by those who would like to gain greater flexibility and not depend on a single provider.

What are the benefits of the cloud?
Cloud computing, as already pointed out, has revolutionized companies’ approach to IT infrastructure. But what are the main reasons why organizations are turning to these services?

Performance. Clouds offer extreme speed and power such that they leverage a pool of resources that can speed up data processing and ensure low latency.

Scalability. The ability to add or decrease, as needed and required, resources is certainly one of the most obvious benefits of the cloud.

Reliability. The cloud makes backup strategies more reliable due to redundancy, meaning that even in the event of unforeseen events, the service ensures that data is restored quickly, guaranteeing the continuity of business operations.

Cost-cutting. Cloud computing cuts the expense of purchasing, configuring, running and maintaining hardware and software.

Accessibility. The cloud makes data accessible from any device and location.

Shellrent’s Cloud Servers.
By relying on Shellrent, you can take advantage of a Cloud Server with dedicated and scalable resources.

By choosing from one of the ready-to-use solutions, designed to offer a balance of CPU, RAM, Storage, and autonomous configuration of resources, depending on your needs, you will have a way to grow your business while ensuring maximum performance.