Cloud resources differ from traditional IT infrastructure in that they are hosted on the internet and managed by a service provider, rather than being physically located and managed on-premises. This means less hardware for businesses to maintain, leading to lower capital expenses and the flexibility to scale services up or down as needed.
When we develop applications in the cloud — including SaaS, PaaS, IaaS, and other services — we often need to connect different services to create a complete solution. These services can include compute, storage, networking, and auxiliary services like queuing or container orchestration.
Cloud computing services are composed of different resources. This is the same for all types of cloud computing: private cloud, public cloud, hybrid cloud, or multicloud. For example, Akamai Cloud Computing includes an object storage service called (you guessed it) Object Storage. This service allows you to create storage “buckets” for various “object” files, including documents, media, and hosting static websites.
There are four main types of cloud resources that we can build in Akamai Cloud Computing:
- Compute instances
- Databases
- Storage
- Networking tools
Let’s take a closer look at each resource type.
Compute instances
A compute instance is a virtual server that you can use to run your applications in the cloud. It’s like having your own computer in the cloud that you can access from anywhere. You can think of a compute instance as a powerful computer that is owned and maintained by a third-party cloud provider like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform (GCP), or Akamai.
When you deploy a compute instance, you can choose the CPU, RAM, and storage you need from your cloud service provider, allowing you to customize the performance of your compute instance to meet your needs. In addition, you select your instance’s location, which can impact speed and reliability, depending on how close or far away the data center is located to your end users.
So, what can people use compute instances for?
Let’s say we’re building a machine learning model that requires a lot of computational power to adequately test for a certain period. We can use a compute instance to train the model in the cloud, which takes advantage of the high-performance computing capabilities available in the cloud. Using a virtual machine allows us to schedule the training to turn off once it’s done, likely saving us money on unnecessary resources, as well as saving us the hassle of dealing with hardware.
Databases
A database is a collection of structured information that can be stored on a server. Let’s think of it like a library. In a library, there are many books organized in a structured way, with each book having a unique identifier. Similarly, a database stores structured information, such as customer names and addresses, or product descriptions and prices, and each piece of information is organized in a way that makes it easy to find and retrieve when needed.
Databases are used to store and manage data so that it is easy to access, search, and manipulate. In the cloud, databases can be hosted on servers that are owned and maintained by third-party cloud providers. You can choose to deploy and manage your database by installing a database engine on a virtual machine, or using a managed database service offered by a cloud provider.
Managed databases have built-in scalability features and, often, built-in disaster recovery features, like automatic backups and remote server replication, which help ensure your data is safe and secure.
Storage
This diagram illustrates a Mastodon server accessing both object and block storage in the cloud to support the client’s action.
There are three essential types of storage available in the cloud:
- Object storage
- Block storage
- Backups
Let’s take a quick look at each.
Object storage allows you to store unstructured data like images, videos, audio files, and documents.
This type of storage solution doesn’t require the use of a compute instance, but each object (i.e., your video file or PDF) is given a unique URL that can be used to access the data. Think of object storage like a virtual storage unit. You can store your items there and access them from anywhere. Object storage is highly scalable, so you can add or remove items as needed.
Block storage allows you to add additional storage capacity to a compute instance. This enables you to store more data without resizing your compute instance to a larger plan. Block storage is similar to a USB drive that you can plug into your computer so you can store files on that drive and access them from your computer, but you don’t need to store them on that resource’s local drive.
Backups allow you to protect your data against accidental deletions or misconfigurations. Many cloud providers offer automatic backups to guard against these types of issues. If you’ve ever forgotten to manually save your document using Microsoft Word, you already know the value of a backup. Backups are there in case of an outage or other unexpected disaster to help you retrieve your data.
Networking tools
Networking tools allow you to connect your cloud resources together and with the outside world. Networking services include firewalls, load balancers, Domain Name System (DNS) managers, and more.
A firewall is a networking tool that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic based on security rules that you configure. A cloud firewall sits between a compute instance and the internet, and can be configured to filter out unwanted network traffic before it even reaches your server.
A load balancer distributes incoming requests to multiple back-end compute instances so there’s no single point of failure. Load balancing enables high availability, scaling, and A/B testing on any application hosted by your cloud provider.
A DNS manager allows you to add your registered domain names and manage DNS records for each. DNS is the system that translates domain names into IP addresses, allowing users to access websites and other resources on the internet. When you’re looking to attach a domain to an application, you can purchase and register that domain via a domain registrar and then configure your nameservers so your domain connects to your cloud provider.
These are only three types of networking tools, but the list goes on. Different cloud providers may offer different types of tools, and the specific tools you need will depend on your specific use case and requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Cloud resources in a virtualized environment operate by using software to divide physical hardware into multiple virtual units. This allows for the efficient use of hardware, letting multiple users or applications run on a single physical machine but within separate environments. It’s like having several virtual computers on a single physical machine, each running its own tasks.
Cloud resources work by providing computing services (like servers, storage, databases, networking, and software) over the internet. Benefits include cost savings, as you pay only for what you use; scalability, meaning you can easily adjust resources based on your needs; and accessibility, allowing you to access your data from anywhere with an internet connection.
Cloud resources improve business efficiency by enabling more flexible and agile IT operations. Businesses can quickly deploy and scale applications as needed, without the time and cost associated with purchasing and maintaining physical hardware. This agility allows businesses to respond faster to market changes and customer needs, improving overall productivity and competitiveness.
Why customers choose Akamai
Akamai is the cybersecurity and cloud computing company that powers and protects business online. Our market-leading security solutions, superior threat intelligence, and global operations team provide defense in depth to safeguard enterprise data and applications everywhere. Akamai’s full-stack cloud computing solutions deliver performance and affordability on the world’s most distributed platform. Global enterprises trust Akamai to provide the industry-leading reliability, scale, and expertise they need to grow their business with confidence.