The first thing that web hosting companies provided is the ability to host a software, typically a web application. With software applications being controlled/managed by browser UI, it helped not just web applications but also system software applications moved to hosted servers. Thus, emerged reign of Software-as-a-Service (Saas), also known as hosted software.
The hosted software solutions had their good share of time and market in the internet business. However, these software solutions are mostly less demanding in terms of resources such as CPU, I/O speeds, storage size or high availability. And also their usage and traffic is limited and hosted softwares are not mission critical.
But as the cloud technology emerged, we started seeing each hosting company come up with their own machine farm, with their own control panel and be able to launch any software or application and including OS customized of their choice. The hosting companies also started providing higher CPU capabilities, greater I/O speeds and high availability(HA). That also lead to the idea of moving complex software solutions that demand high machine power and be highly available for hosting; which we all called cloud.
Cloud seemed like a promising platform for many great things in last half a decade. Every giant company had their own perception of cloud adaptability to masses. Some took seriously, some stayed back, some started their race rather late. But the internet is adapted in commercial, technical, social, education, health care and ubiquitous to sum up, the cloud showed the new business way forward.
With continuous engineering by various big companies and start-ups to make cloud available in every way close to local server, it even made possible to take on premise data-center to the cloud (almost there).
But how easy or difficult it is for both cloud service providers and cloud customers to adapt cloud for their business? Cloud business was not a easy choice for both. There then emerged cloud business in form of services. After Saas, it was PaaS (Platform-as-a-Service). PaaS helped providers and customers make their ways in to business. The hardware and software companies made new business with service contracts than their usual bulky sales or licensing business. And customers were just happy to cruise through the world economic downturn as they kept their IT costs low with hardware and software coming from PaaS at fraction of the cost.
The cloud technology didn't just stop transforming. How are cloud service providers provisioning infrastructure required for their PaaS? How to meet growing customer requirements for PaaS needing more servers, more compute power, more storage, manage patches and upgrades with no compromise on downtime? It's then time for IaaS (Infrastructure-as-a-Service).
Now that you have seen how cloud emerged with various services, the PaaS gave the business model for the cloud service providers. PaaS offerings included Database-as-a-Service, Java-as-a-Service from Oracle, Office-as-a-Service from Microsoft, Media-as-a-Service from Akamai and list goes on.
Now here's my question, why not Backup-as-a-Service (BaaS)? It is so crucial for business continuity but less seen as a business opportunity. The data protection in the cloud kept limited to employing technologies like replication or data redundancy. Also, it should not be a simple web UI control panel with some backup software lurking in. It should rather be sitting with usual control panel along with other PaaS options. Remember, backup service still need servers, I/O on demand, storage (disk or tape type) and very importantly 'highly available'.
BaaS is the way to ensure customers given a choice for data protection to come up with their own SLA for backup strategy that suits their own business policies.
I leave this as a thought. Good night!
The hosted software solutions had their good share of time and market in the internet business. However, these software solutions are mostly less demanding in terms of resources such as CPU, I/O speeds, storage size or high availability. And also their usage and traffic is limited and hosted softwares are not mission critical.
But as the cloud technology emerged, we started seeing each hosting company come up with their own machine farm, with their own control panel and be able to launch any software or application and including OS customized of their choice. The hosting companies also started providing higher CPU capabilities, greater I/O speeds and high availability(HA). That also lead to the idea of moving complex software solutions that demand high machine power and be highly available for hosting; which we all called cloud.
Cloud seemed like a promising platform for many great things in last half a decade. Every giant company had their own perception of cloud adaptability to masses. Some took seriously, some stayed back, some started their race rather late. But the internet is adapted in commercial, technical, social, education, health care and ubiquitous to sum up, the cloud showed the new business way forward.
With continuous engineering by various big companies and start-ups to make cloud available in every way close to local server, it even made possible to take on premise data-center to the cloud (almost there).
But how easy or difficult it is for both cloud service providers and cloud customers to adapt cloud for their business? Cloud business was not a easy choice for both. There then emerged cloud business in form of services. After Saas, it was PaaS (Platform-as-a-Service). PaaS helped providers and customers make their ways in to business. The hardware and software companies made new business with service contracts than their usual bulky sales or licensing business. And customers were just happy to cruise through the world economic downturn as they kept their IT costs low with hardware and software coming from PaaS at fraction of the cost.
The cloud technology didn't just stop transforming. How are cloud service providers provisioning infrastructure required for their PaaS? How to meet growing customer requirements for PaaS needing more servers, more compute power, more storage, manage patches and upgrades with no compromise on downtime? It's then time for IaaS (Infrastructure-as-a-Service).
Now that you have seen how cloud emerged with various services, the PaaS gave the business model for the cloud service providers. PaaS offerings included Database-as-a-Service, Java-as-a-Service from Oracle, Office-as-a-Service from Microsoft, Media-as-a-Service from Akamai and list goes on.
Now here's my question, why not Backup-as-a-Service (BaaS)? It is so crucial for business continuity but less seen as a business opportunity. The data protection in the cloud kept limited to employing technologies like replication or data redundancy. Also, it should not be a simple web UI control panel with some backup software lurking in. It should rather be sitting with usual control panel along with other PaaS options. Remember, backup service still need servers, I/O on demand, storage (disk or tape type) and very importantly 'highly available'.
BaaS is the way to ensure customers given a choice for data protection to come up with their own SLA for backup strategy that suits their own business policies.
I leave this as a thought. Good night!
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