We've already heard you say: SaaS, PaaS, IaaS, it's been a few years since these concepts arrived on our screens, so why write an article on the subject? Because, as overused as they may seem in 2023, these terms remain vague for some of us. So, without judgement, we'd like to take a look at the key concepts behind cloud computing.
What is "Infrastructure As A Service" (IaaS)?
cloud computing can be divided into three models: IaaS refers to the basic elements of IT that can be rented: physical or virtual servers, storage and networking. IaaS is for companies that want to create applications "from scratch" and control almost all the elements themselves. This requires companies to have the technical skills to orchestrate these services.
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A study carried out by Oracle revealed that two-thirds of IaaS users said that using online infrastructure made it easier for them to innovate, deploy new applications and services, and reduce maintenance costs. Despite this enthusiasm, IaaS also has its limits. And half of the companies surveyed also believe that IaaS is not sufficiently secure for most critical data.
What is "Platform As A Service" (PaaS)?
PaaS is the next layer: storage, networking and virtual servers. It could also include the tools and software that developers need to create applications (middleware, databases, operating systems and development tools). It provides access to a multitude of services and resources, from cloud to enterprise applications. For a fee, you can acquire the resources you need from a service provider cloud, via the Internet.
What is "Software As A Service" (SaaS)?
SaaS is the most widespread form of application delivery in the cloud computing world. The underlying hardware and operating system are irrelevant to the end-user, who accesses the service via a web browser or application. According to IDC, SaaS is, and will remain, the dominant IT model in the medium term accounting for two-thirds of all spending on cloud in 2017, but declining only slightly to just under 60% by 2021. IDC says spending would be dominated by application purchases, which account for more than half of all spending on cloud public through 2019. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) applications will account for over 60% of all cloud applications spent through 2021. The variety of applications delivered via SaaS is enormous, from CRM such as Salesforce to Microsoft 365. Discover our article "Hosting applications on Cloud : why and how?" on the same subject.
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Want to know more? Read our article "Edge computing and cybersecurity: beware the risks".
Want to go one step further and put SaaS, PaaS and IaaS to work for your organization?
