cloud computing

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- Cloud computing is a general term for anything that involves delivering hoste d services over the Internet. These services are broadly divided into three cate gories: Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) and Sof tware-as-a-Service (SaaS). The name cloud computing was inspired by the cloud sy mbol that's often used to represent the Internet in flowcharts and diagrams. A cloud service has three distinct characteristics that differentiate it from tr aditional hosting. It is sold on demand, typically by the minute or the hour; it is elastic -- a user can have as much or as little of a service as they want at any given time; and the service is fully managed by the provider (the consumer needs nothing but a personal computer and Internet access). Significant innovati ons in virtualization and distributed computing, as well as improved access to h igh-speed Internet and a wea economy, have accelerated interest in cloud comput ing. What are you interested in learning more about? a. Building a private cloud b. Using the cloud for development and testing c. Security and the cloud d. Understanding cloud computing pricing A cloud can be private or public. A public cloud sells services to anyone on the Internet. (Currently, Amazon Web Services is the largest public cloud provider. ) A private cloud is a proprietary networ or a data center that supplies hosted services to a limited number of people. When a service provider uses public clo ud resources to create their private cloud, the result is called a virtual priva te cloud. Private or public, the goal of cloud computing is to provide easy, sca lable access to computing resources and IT services. Infrastructure-as-a-Service li e Amazon Web Services provides virtual server ins tances with unique IP addresses and bloc s of storage on demand. Customers use t he provider's application program interface (API) to start, stop, access and con figure their virtual servers and storage. In the enterprise, cloud computing all ows a company to pay for only as much capacity as is needed, and bring more onli ne as soon as required. Because this pay-for-what-you-use model resembles the wa y electricity, fuel and water are consumed, it's sometimes referred to as utilit y computing. Platform-as-a-service in the cloud is defined as a set of software and product d evelopment tools hosted on the provider's infrastructure. Developers create appl ications on the provider's platform over the Internet. PaaS providers may use AP Is, website portals or gateway software installed on the customer's computer. Fo rce.com, (an outgrowth of Salesforce.com) and GoogleApps are examples of PaaS. D

evelopers need to now that currently, there are not standards for interoperabil ity or data portability in the cloud. Some providers will not allow software cre ated by their customers to be moved off the provider's platform. In the software-as-a-service cloud model, the vendor supplies the hardware infra structure, the software product and interacts with the user through a front-end portal. SaaS is a very broad mar et. Services can be anything from Web-based ema il to inventory control and database processing. Because the service provider ho sts both the application and the data, the end user is free to use the service f rom anywhere. See also: hybrid cloud, cloud bac up Learn more about Data security in the cloud Security issues in cloud computing: Until cloud computing providers understand t he depth of certain cloud security problems, questions about safeguarding cloud data will linger. Typical networ security policies useless in the cloud, warns security pro: The usual networ security practices won't cut it in the cloud, according to a secur ity pro who says users are hanging on to traditional IT and missing the big pict ure. Securing data in the cloud: Ensure data security in the cloud by classifying and storing it under the proper protection requirements. HP's cloud security guru to enterprises: Tread carefully: Archie Reed, HP's chie f technologist for cloud security, said enterprises are justifiably wary of movi ng numerous operations to the cloud. Cloud computing's effect on application security: In part 3 of his interview, Cr aig Balding tal s about the security elements surrounding cloud computing. Quiz: Cloud computing essentials: How much do you now about cloud computing? Fi nd out in this quiz on cloud providers, public and private cloud and other cloud computing essentials. Cloud computing concerns slowing widespread adoption: Concerns about losing cont rol when moving data and services into the cloud continue to ma e organizations wary of cloud computing. The top Amazon Web Services stories of 2009: Amazon's run-in with blac list prov ider Spamhaus and the release of the company's Virtual Private Cloud topped the list of Amazon Web Services news stories in 2009. Security issues in cloud computing: Until cloud computing providers understand t he depth of certain cloud security problems, questions about safeguarding cloud data will linger. Intrusion detection in a cloud computing environment: Find out if your cloud com puting environment has the appropriate intrusion detection systems necessary to detect and respond to attac s. LAST UPDATED: 05 Apr 2010

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More resources from around the web: - White Paper - Cloud Computing: What It Is and What It Can Do For You - White Paper - 10 Security Concerns for Cloud Computing

- At Rough Type, Nic Carr explains why he thin s cloud computing is the future of personal computing. - Aaron Ricadela compiled a short primer on how cloud computing wor s for "Busi ness Wee ."

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FILE EXTENSION AND FILE FORMAT LIST File Extension and File Format List: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z # RELATED CONTENT Google Apps delivers cloud security white paper A white paper from the search giant explains how Google organizes security polic ies and distributes data in Google Apps. Gov 2.0 Expo opens with a focus on cloud computing The opening session of the Gov 2.0 Expo featured IT leaders and public servants discussing the future of government in the cloud. Symantec offers hosted security for small and medium businesses The security software ma er presents a hosted security service designed to repla ce in-house data protection for small and medium businesses. RELATED GLOSSARY TERMS Terms from Whatis.com - the technology online dictionary cloud cartography (SearchCloudComputing.com) Cloud cartography is a scheme for pinpointing the physical locations of Web serv ers hosted on a third-party cloud computing service.

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CloudAV (SearchCloudComputing.com) CloudAV is a program that combines multiple antivirus applications and scans use r files over a networ of servers. The program was developed at the...