CLOUD COMPUTING TERMINOLOGY AND CONCEPTS
Published: 2022-01-13 17:50:24

Hi, nice to have you back again. Did you read my introductory post on "Why it is called cloud computing?" If no, simply click https://dev.to/aliyuyusuf9/why-is-it-called-cloud-computing-13fo. Thanks as you do so.

Are you new to cloud computing, just like me? Do you know it is actually challenging trying to understand the cloud computing terminologies and concepts? Well, relax, I've come to your rescue, just follow me.

Just like every language, it is very important you understand the language in order for you communicate effectively. In this post, we will learn the basic language in cloud computing.

A quick reminder!!! Rome wasn't built in a day. It is possible you don't get to understand all the terminologies in one attempt. Please, don't stop, keep practicing. So let's hit it!!!

**Basic Concepts and Terminology**
Cloud Computing provides us means by which we can access the applications as utilities over the internet. It allows us to create, configure, and customize the business applications online. This tutorial will take you through a step-by-step approach while learning Cloud Computing concepts.

_**Cloud:**_ This refers to servers that are accessed over the Internet, and the software and databases that run on those servers. The cloud enables users to access the same files and applications from almost any device, because the computing and storage takes place on servers in a data center, instead of locally on the user device.

_**On-Premise:**_ On-premises is the software and technology that is located within the physical confines of an enterprise often in the company’s data center as opposed to running remotely on hosted servers or in the cloud.

**_Pay-as-you-go cloud computing_ (PAYG cloud computing)**: This is a payment method for cloud computing that charges based on usage. The practice is similar to that of utility bills, using only resources that are needed.

_**Serverless computing**_: This is a cloud computing execution model in which the cloud provider allocates machine resources on demand, taking care of the servers on behalf of their customers. Serverless technologies feature automatic scaling, built-in high availability, and a pay-for-use billing model to increase agility and optimize costs. 

**_Edge computing_** This is a distributed information technology (IT) architecture in which client data is processed at the periphery of the network, as close to the originating source as possible.

**_Access_**: User access to applications (including on-premises, IaaS, PaaS, SaaS etc) with consistent security, reliability and performance.

_**Application Programming Interface (API)**_: This is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other. Each time you use an app like Facebook, send an instant message, or check the weather on your phone, you're using an API.

**_High availability: _**This is the ability of a system to operate continuously without failing for a designated period of time.

_**Cloud elasticity**_ This is the ability to gain or reduce computing resources such as CPU/processing, RAM, input/output bandwidth, and storage capacities on demand without causing system performance disruptions. This is often an automatic process in cloud computing.

**_Cloud database_** This is a database service built and accessed through a cloud platform. It serves many of the same functions as a traditional database with the added flexibility of cloud computing. Users install software on a cloud infrastructure to implement the database.

**_Redundancy_**: This is a system design in which a component is duplicated so if it fails there will be a backup.

**_Fault Tolerance:_** This refers to the ability of a system (computer, network, cloud cluster, etc.) to continue operating without interruption when one or more of its components fail.

**_Virtual machine_**: A Virtual Machine (VM) is a compute resource that uses software instead of a physical computer to run programs and deploy apps. One or more virtual “guest” machines run on a physical “host” machine. 

**_Cloud networking_**: This  provides the connectivity to and between, applications and workloads distributed across all variations of clouds, cloud-based services, on-premises data centers and edge networks.

**_Big data_**: Big Data is a concept that deals with storing, processing and analyzing large amounts of data. 

**_Internet of things _(IoT)**: Internet of Things  is how we describe the digitally connected universe of everyday physical devices. These devices are embedded with internet connectivity, sensors and other hardware that allow communication and control via the web.

**_On Demand Self Service_**: Cloud Computing allows the users to use web services and resources on demand. One can logon to a website at any time and use them.

**_Distributed denial-of-service_ (DDoS)**: This is a malicious attempt to disrupt the normal traffic of a targeted server, service or network by overwhelming the target or its surrounding infrastructure with a flood of Internet traffic.

**_Domain Name System_ (DNS)**: The Domain Name System (DNS) turns domain names into IP addresses, which browsers use to load internet pages. Every device connected to the internet has its own IP address, which is used by other devices to locate the device. DNS servers make it possible for people to input normal words into their browsers, such as Fortinet.com, without having to keep track of the IP address for every website.

**_Broad Network Access_**: Since cloud computing is completely web based, it can be accessed from anywhere and at any time.

**_Resource Pooling_**: Cloud computing allows multiple tenants to share a pool of resources. One can share single physical instance of hardware, database and basic infrastructure.

**_Secure Access Service Edge_ (SASE)** This is a cloud architecture model that combines network and security functions into a single cloud service, saving external traffic loads from routing back through the data center. 

**_Cloud service provider_**:
A cloud service provider is a third-party company offering a cloud-based platform, infrastructure, application, or storage services. Much like a homeowner would pay for a utility such as electricity or gas, companies typically have to pay only for the amount of cloud services they use, as business demands require. The worldwide cloud market is dominated by four cloud service providers: Alibaba in China and Asia-Pacific, and  Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, and Google in other countries. 

**Wow! Thanks for taking your time to read through. Trust, you enjoyed every bit of information concerning cloud computing terminology and concepts. Please, feel free to drop your comments or suggestions.**