Cloud computing: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|Form of shared internet-based computing}}

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[[File:Cloud computing.svg|thumb|Cloud computing metaphor: the group of networked elements providing services does not need to be addressed or managed individually by users; instead, the entire provider-managed suite of hardware and software can be thought of as an amorphous cloud.]]

"'''Cloud computing''' is "a paradigm for enabling network access to a scalable and elastic pool of shareable physical or virtual resources with self-service provisioning and administration on-demand," according to [[International Organization for Standardization|ISO]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |date=2023 |title=ISO/IEC 22123-1:2023(E) - Information technology - Cloud computing - Part 1: Vocabulary |work=International Organization for Standardization}}</ref>

==Essential Characteristicscharacteristics==

In 2011, the [[National Institute of Standards and Technology]] (NIST) identified five "essential characteristics" for cloud systems.<ref name="nist">{{cite tech report|title=The NIST Definition of Cloud Computing|number=Special publication 800-145|institution=National Institute of Standards and Technology: U.S. Department of Commerce|date=September 2011|author1=Mell, Peter|author2=Timothy Grance|doi=10.6028/NIST.SP.800-145}}</ref> Below are the exact definitions according to NIST: <ref name="nist" />

* '''On-demand self-service:''' "A consumer can unilaterally provision computing capabilities, such as server time and network storage, as needed automatically without requiring human interaction with each service provider."

* '''Broad network access:''' "Capabilities are available over the network and accessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneous thin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, tablets, [[laptop]]s, and workstations)."

* '''[[Pooling (resource management)|Resource pooling]]:''' " The provider's computing resources are pooled to serve multiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physical and virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according to consumer demand."

* '''Rapid elasticity:''' "Capabilities can be elastically provisioned and released, in some cases automatically, to scale rapidly outward and inward commensurate with demand. To the consumer, the capabilities available for provisioning often appear unlimited and can be appropriated in any quantity at any time."

* '''Measured service:''' "Cloud systems automatically control and optimize resource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level of abstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage, processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can be monitored, controlled, and reported, providing transparency for both the provider and consumer of the utilized service.

By 2023, the [[International Organization for Standardization]] (ISO) had expanded and refined the list. <ref name=":1" />

==History==

{{main|History of cloud computing}}

The history of cloud computing extends back to the 1960s, with the initial concepts of time-sharing becoming popularized via [[remote job entry]] (RJE). The "data center" model, where users submitted jobs to operators to run on mainframes, was predominantly used during this era. This was a time of exploration and experimentation with ways to make large-scale computing power available to more users through [[time-sharing]], optimizing the infrastructure, platform, and applications, and increasing efficiency for end users.{{ref RFC|105}}

The "cloud" metaphor for virtualized services dates to 1994, when it was used by [[General Magic]] for the universe of "places" that mobile agents in the [[Telescript (programming language)|Telescript]] environment could "go". The metaphor is credited to David Hoffman, a General Magic communications specialist, based on its long-standing use in networking and telecom.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Levy |first=Steven |date=April 1994 |url=http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/2.04/general.magic_pr.html |title=Bill and Andy's Excellent Adventure II |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151002033751/http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/2.04/general.magic_pr.html |archive-date=2015-10-02 |magazine=Wired}}</ref> The expression ''cloud computing'' became more widely known in 1996 when [[Compaq Computer Corporation]] drew up a [[business plan]] for future computing and the [[Internet]]. The company's ambition was to supercharge [[sales]] with "cloud computing-enabled applications". The business plan foresaw that online consumer file storage would likely be commercially successful. As a result, Compaq decided to sell [[Server (computing)|server]] hardware to [[internet service provider]]s.<ref>{{Cite book|title= To the Cloud: Big Data in a Turbulent World |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YwbvCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA15 | author1=Mosco, Vincent |publisher= Taylor & Francis |year=2015 |isbn= 9781317250388 | pages=15}}</ref>

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In the 2000s, the application of cloud computing began to take shape with the establishment of [[Amazon Web Services]] (AWS) in 2002, which allowed developers to build applications independently. In 2006 Amazon Simple Storage Service, known as [[Amazon S3]], and the [[Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud]] (EC2) were released. In 2008 [[NASA]]'s development of the first [[open-source software]] for deploying private and hybrid clouds.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2006/08/24/announcing-amazon-elastic-compute-cloud-amazon-ec2---beta/ |title=Announcing Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) – beta |date=24 August 2006 |access-date=31 May 2014 |archive-date=13 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140813195808/http://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2006/08/24/announcing-amazon-elastic-compute-cloud-amazon-ec2---beta/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Qian |first1=Ling |last2=Lou |first2=Zhigou |last3=Du |first3=Yujian |last4=Gou |first4=Leitao |title=Cloud Computing: An Overview |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/221276709 |access-date=19 April 2021}}</ref>

The following decade saw the launch of various cloud services. In 2010, [[Microsoft]] launched [[Microsoft Azure]], and [[Rackspace Technology|Rackspace Hosting]] and [[NASA]] initiated an open-source cloud-software project, [[OpenStack]]. [[IBM]] introduced the [[IBM Cloud|IBM SmartCloud]] framework in 2011, and [[Oracle Corporation|Oracle]] announced the [[Oracle Cloud]] in 2012. In December 2019, Amazon launched AWS Outposts, a service that extends AWS infrastructure, services, [[API|APIs]]s, and tools to customer data centers, co-___location spaces, or on-premises facilities.<ref name="Azure">{{cite web |url=http://blogs.technet.com/b/microsoft_blog/archive/2010/02/01/windows-azure-general-availability.aspx |title=Windows Azure General Availability |work=The Official Microsoft Blog |publisher=Microsoft |date=2010-02-01 |access-date=2015-05-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140511230956/http://blogs.technet.com/b/microsoft_blog/archive/2010/02/01/windows-azure-general-availability.aspx |archive-date=2014-05-11 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2019/12/announcing-general-availability-of-aws-outposts/|title=Announcing General Availability of AWS Outposts|website=Amazon Web Services, Inc.|access-date=2021-02-04|archive-date=2021-01-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121002254/https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2019/12/announcing-general-availability-of-aws-outposts/|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Value proposition ==

{{Page numbers needed|section|date=January 2024}}

Cloud computing can enable shorter time to market by providing pre-configured tools, scalable resources, and managed services, allowing users to focus on their core business value instead of maintaining infrastructure. Cloud platforms can enable organizations and individuals to reduce upfront capital expenditures on physical infrastructure by shifting to an operational expenditure model, where costs scale with usage. Cloud platforms also offer managed services and tools, such as artificial intelligence, data analytics, and machine learning, which might otherwise require significant in-house expertise and infrastructure investment. <ref name=":7">{{Cite book |title=Cloud Computing: Concepts, Technology & Architecture |isbn=978-0133387520 |last1=Erl |first1=Thomas |last2=Puttini |first2=Ricardo |last3=Mahmood |first3=Zaigham |date=2013 |publisher=Pearson Education }}</ref><ref name=":8">{{Cite book |title=Cloud Computing, revised and updated edition |isbn=978-0262546478 |last1=Ruparelia |first1=Nayan B. |date=August 2023 |publisher=MIT Press }}</ref><ref name=":9">{{Cite book |title=Cloud Computing |isbn=978-1284233971}}</ref>

While cloud computing can offer cost advantages through effective resource optimization, organizations often face challenges such as unused resources, inefficient configurations, and hidden costs without proper oversight and governance. Many cloud platforms provide cost management tools, such as AWS Cost Explorer and Azure Cost Management, and frameworks like FinOps have emerged to standardize financial operations in the cloud. Cloud computing also facilitates collaboration, remote work, and global service delivery by enabling secure access to data and applications from any ___location with an internet connection. <ref name=":7" /><ref name=":8" /><ref name=":9" />

Cloud providers offer various redundancy options for core services, such as managed storage and managed databases, though redundancy configurations often vary by service tier. Advanced redundancy strategies, such as cross-region replication or failover systems, typically require explicit configuration and may incur additional costs or licensing fees. <ref name=":7" /><ref name=":8" /><ref name=":9" />

Cloud environments operate under a [[shared responsibility model]], where providers are typically responsible for infrastructure security, physical hardware, and software updates, while customers are accountable for data encryption, identity and access management (IAM), and application-level security. These responsibilities vary depending on the cloud service model—Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), or Software as a Service (SaaS)—with customers typically having more control and responsibility in IaaS environments and progressively less in PaaS and SaaS models, often trading control for convenience and managed services. <ref name=":7" /><ref name=":8" /><ref name=":9" />

== Factors Influencinginfluencing Adoptionthe adoption and Suitabilitysuitability of Cloudcloud Computingcomputing ==

{{Page numbers needed|section|date=January 2024}}

The decision to adopt cloud computing or maintain on-premises infrastructure depends on factors such as scalability, cost structure, latency requirements, regulatory constraints, and infrastructure customization. <ref name=":3">{{Cite book |title=Cloud Computing For Dummies |isbn=978-0470484708 |last1=Hurwitz |first1=Judith S. |last2=Bloor |first2=Robin |last3=Kaufman |first3=Marcia |last4=Halper |first4=Fern |date=16 November 2009 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons }}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite book |title=Hybrid Cloud for Architects: Build robust hybrid cloud solutions using AWS and OpenStack |isbn=9781788623513}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite book |title=Security Architecture for Hybrid Cloud: A Practical Method for Designing Security Using Zero Trust Principles |isbn=9781098157777}}</ref><ref name=":6">{{Cite book |title=Architecting the Cloud: Design Decisions for Cloud Computing Service Models (SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS) |isbn=978-1118617618 |last1=Kavis |first1=Michael J. |date=28 January 2014 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons }}</ref>

Organizations with variable or unpredictable workloads, limited capital for upfront investments, or a focus on rapid scalability benefit from cloud adoption. Startups, SaaS companies, and e-commerce platforms often prefer the pay-as-you-go operational expenditure (OpEx) model of cloud infrastructure. Additionally, companies prioritizing global accessibility, remote workforce enablement, disaster recovery, and leveraging advanced services such as AI/ML and analytics are well-suited for the cloud. In recent years, some cloud providers have started offering specialized services for high-performance computing and low-latency applications, addressing some use cases previously exclusive to on-premises setups. <ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" /><ref name=":6" />

On the other hand, organizations with strict regulatory requirements, highly predictable workloads, or reliance on deeply integrated legacy systems may find cloud infrastructure less suitable. Businesses in industries like defense, government, or those handling highly sensitive data often favor on-premises setups for greater control and data sovereignty. Additionally, companies with ultra-low latency requirements, such as high-frequency trading (HFT) firms, rely on custom hardware (e.g., FPGAs) and physical proximity to exchanges, which most cloud providers cannot fully replicate despite recent advancements. Similarly, tech giants like Google, Meta, and Amazon build their own data centers due to economies of scale, predictable workloads, and the ability to customize hardware and network infrastructure for optimal efficiency. However, these companies also use cloud services selectively for certain workloads and applications where it aligns with their operational needs. <ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" /><ref name=":6" />

In practice, many organizations are increasingly adopting hybrid cloud architectures, combining on-premises infrastructure with cloud services. This approach allows businesses to balance scalability, cost-effectiveness, and control, offering the benefits of both deployment models while mitigating their respective limitations. <ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" /><ref name=":6" />

== Challenges and limitations ==

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=== Cloud migration challenges ===

According to the 2024 State of the Cloud Report by [[Flexera]], approximately 50% of respondents identified the following top challenges when migrating workloads to [[Public Cloud|public clouds]]: <ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |title=2024 State of the Cloud Report |url=https://info.flexera.com/CM-REPORT-State-of-the-Cloud-2024-Thanks |journal=Flexera's State of the Cloud Report}}</ref>

# "Understanding application dependencies"

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=== Implementation challenges ===

Applications hosted in the cloud are susceptible to the [[fallacies of distributed computing]], a series of misconceptions that can lead to significant issues in software development and deployment. <ref>{{Cite book |title=Fundamentals of Software Architecture: An Engineering Approach |date=2020 |publisher=O'Reilly Media |isbn=978-1492043454}}</ref>

=== Cloud cost overruns ===

In a report by [[Gartner]], a survey of 200 IT leaders revealed that 69% experienced budget overruns in their organizations' cloud expenditures during 2023. Conversely, 31% of IT leaders whose organizations stayed within budget attributed their success to accurate forecasting and budgeting, proactive monitoring of spending, and effective optimization. <ref>{{Cite web |title=2024 Cloud Spending: IT Balances Costs with GenAI Innovation |url=https://www.gartner.com/peer-community/oneminuteinsights/omi-keeping-cloud-costs-check-it-leader-perspectives-rfz |access-date=Nov 16, 2024 |website=Gartner Peer Community}}</ref>

The 2024 Flexera State of Cloud Report identifies the top cloud challenges as managing cloud spend, followed by security concerns and lack of expertise. Public cloud expenditures exceeded budgeted amounts by an average of 15%. The report also reveals that cost savings is the top cloud initiative for 60% of respondents. Furthermore, 65% measure cloud progress through cost savings, while 42% prioritize shorter time-to-market, indicating that cloud's promise of accelerated deployment is often overshadowed by cost concerns. <ref name=":2" />

=== Service Level Agreements ===

Typically, cloud providers' [[Service-level agreement|Service Level Agreements]] (SLAs) do not encompass all forms of service interruptions. Exclusions typically include planned maintenance, downtime resulting from external factors such as network issues, [[Humanhuman error|human errors]]s, like misconfigurations, [[Naturalnatural disaster|natural disasters]]s, [[force majeure]] events, or [[Data breach|security breaches]]. Typically, customers bear the responsibility of monitoring SLA compliance and must file claims for any unmet SLAs within a designated timeframe. Customers should be aware of how deviations from SLAs are calculated, as these parameters may vary by service. These requirements can place a considerable burden on customers. Additionally, SLA percentages and conditions can differ across various services within the same provider, with some services lacking any SLA altogether. In cases of service interruptions due to hardware failures in the cloud provider, the company typically does not offer monetary compensation. Instead, eligible users may receive credits as outlined in the corresponding SLA. <ref>{{Cite book |title=Cloud Security and Privacy An Enterprise Perspective on Risks and Compliance |date=4 September 2009 |publisher=O'Reilly Media |isbn=9781449379513}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Requirements Engineering for Service and Cloud Computing |date=10 April 2017 |publisher=Springer International Publishing |isbn=9783319513102}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Srinivasan |title=Cloud Computing Basics |date=14 May 2014 |publisher=Springer |isbn=9781461476993}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Murugesan |first=San |title=Encyclopedia of Cloud Computing |date=August 2016 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=9781118821978}}</ref>

=== Leaky abstractions ===

Cloud computing [[Abstraction (computer science)|abstractions]] aim to simplify resource management, but [[Leakyleaky abstraction|leaky abstractions]]s can expose underlying complexities. These variations in abstraction quality depend on the cloud vendor, service and [[Software architecture|architecture]]. Mitigating leaky abstractions requires users to understand the implementation details and limitations of the cloud services they utilize. <ref>{{Cite book |title=Cloud Native Infrastructure: Patterns for Scalable Infrastructure and Applications in a Dynamic Environment |date=25 October 2017 |publisher=O'Reilly Media |isbn=9781491984253}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Cloud Observability in Action |isbn=9781633439597 |last1=Hausenblas |first1=Michael |date=26 December 2023 |publisher=Simon and Schuster }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Microservices From Day One: Build robust and scalable software from the start |isbn=9781484219379 |last1=Jr |first1=Cloves Carneiro |last2=Schmelmer |first2=Tim |date=10 December 2016 |publisher=Apress }}</ref>

=== Service lock-in within the same vendor ===

Service lock-in within the same vendor occurs when a customer becomes dependent on specific services within a cloud vendor, making it challenging to switch to alternative services within the same vendor when their needs change. <ref>{{Cite book |title=Cloud Computing with the Windows Azure Platform |isbn=9781118058756 |last1=Jennings |first1=Roger |date=29 December 2010 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Cloud and Virtual Data Storage Networking |isbn=9781466508446}}</ref>

===Security and privacy===

[[File:Supply_and_demand-stacked5-law.png|thumb|325px|right|Cloud suppliers security and privacy agreements must be aligned to the demand(s) requirements and requlationsregulations.]]

{{Main|Cloud computing security}}

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==Service models==

{{See also|As a service|l1="as a service"}}

[[File:Comparison of on-premise, IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS.png|thumb|Comparison of on-premise, IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS|upright=2.4|center]]

[[File:Cloud computing service models (1).png|thumb|371x371px|Cloud computing service models arranged as layers in a stack]]

The [[National Institute of Standards and Technology]] recognized three cloud service models in 2011: [[Infrastructure as a service|Infrastructure as a Service]] (IaaS), [[Platform as a service|Platform as a Service]] (PaaS), and [[Software as a service|Software as a Service]] (SaaS). <ref name="nist" /> The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) later identified additional models in 2023, including [[Network as a service|"Network as a Service"]], "Communications as a Service", "Compute as a Service", and "[[Data as a service|Data Storage as a Service"]]. <ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |date=September 2023 |title=ISO/IEC 22123-2:2023(E) - Information technology — Cloud computing — Part 2: Concepts |journal=International Organization for Standardization}}</ref>

===Infrastructure as a service (IaaS)===

{{Main|Infrastructure as a service}}

Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) refers to online services that provide high-level [[API]]s used to [[abstraction (computer science)|abstract]] various low-level details of underlying network infrastructure like physical computing resources, ___location, data partitioning, scaling, security, backup, etc. A [[hypervisor]] runs the virtual machines as guests. Pools of hypervisors within the cloud operational system can support large numbers of [[Virtualvirtual machine|virtual machines]]s and the ability to scale services up and down according to customers' varying requirements. Linux [[Container (virtualization)|containers]] run in isolated partitions of a single [[Linux kernel]] running directly on the physical hardware. Linux [[cgroups]] and [[Namespace|namespacesnamespace]]s are the underlying Linux kernel technologies used to isolate, secure and manage the containers. The use of containers offers higher performance than virtualization because there is no hypervisor overhead. IaaS clouds often offer additional resources such as a virtual-machine [[disk image|disk-image]] library, raw [[block storage]], file or [[object storage]], firewalls, [[Load balancing (computing)|load balancers]], [[IP address]]es, [[VLAN|virtual local area networks]] (VLANs), and software bundles.<ref name="DHAC">{{cite book

|title = Developing and Hosting Applications on the Cloud

|date = July 2012

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{{Main|Serverless computing}}

Serverless computing allows customers to use various cloud capabilities without the need to provision, deploy, or manage hardware or software resources, apart from providing their application code or data. ISO/IEC 22123-2:2023 classifies serverless alongside Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS) under the broader category of cloud service categories. Notably, while ISO refers to these classifications as cloud service categories, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) refers to them as service models. <ref name="nist" /><ref name=":1" />

==Deployment models==

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[[File:Cloud computing types.svg|thumb|395px|right|Cloud computing types]]

"A cloud deployment model represents the way in which cloud computing can be organized based on the control and sharing of physical or virtual resources." <ref name=":1" /> Cloud deployment models define the fundamental patterns of interaction between cloud customers and cloud providers. They do not detail implementation specifics or the configuration of resources. <ref name=":1" />

===Private{{anchor|Private cloud|Private Cloud}}===

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===Public===

{{self-referencehatnote|For a comparison of cloud-computing software and providers, see [[Cloud-computing comparison]]}}

Cloud services are considered "public" when they are delivered over the public Internet, and they may be offered as a paid subscription, or free of charge.<ref>{{cite web|first=Margaret|last=Rouse|title=What is public cloud?|access-date=12 October 2014|url=http://searchcloudcomputing.techtarget.com/definition/public-cloud|publisher=Definition from Whatis.com|archive-date=16 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141016022343/http://searchcloudcomputing.techtarget.com/definition/public-cloud|url-status=live}}</ref> Architecturally, there are few differences between public- and private-cloud services, but security concerns increase substantially when services (applications, storage, and other resources) are shared by multiple customers. Most public-cloud providers offer direct-connection services that allow customers to securely link their legacy data centers to their cloud-resident applications.<ref name="idc">{{cite web |date=2008-09-23 |title=Defining 'Cloud Services' and "Cloud Computing" |url=http://blogs.idc.com/ie/?p=190 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100722074526/http://blogs.idc.com/ie/?p=190 |archive-date=2010-07-22 |access-date=2010-08-22 |publisher=IDC}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://cloud.oracle.com/en_US/fastconnect|title=FastConnect {{!}} Oracle Cloud Infrastructure|website=cloud.oracle.com|access-date=2017-11-15|archive-date=2017-11-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171115232022/https://cloud.oracle.com/en_US/fastconnect|url-status=live}}</ref>

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*concerns about [[contract]]s including reservations about data access and ownership, [[data portability]], and [[change control]]

*variations in standards applicable to cloud computing

The ''Communication'' set out a series of "digital agenda actions" which the Commission proposed to undertake in order to support the development of a fair and effective market for cloud computing services.<ref name=ec529 />{{rp|Pages 6-146–14}}

== Cloud Computing Vendors ==

==List of public clouds==

As of 2025, the three largest cloud computing providers by market share, commonly referred to as hyperscalers, are Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global cloud infrastructure market share 2024 {{!}} Statista |url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/967365/worldwide-cloud-infrastructure-services-market-share-vendor/ |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250118002217/https://www.statista.com/statistics/967365/worldwide-cloud-infrastructure-services-market-share-vendor/ |archive-date=2025-01-18 |access-date=2025-03-20 |website=Statista |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Gartner Says Worldwide IaaS Public Cloud Services Revenue Grew 16.2% i |url=https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2024-07-22-gartner-says-worldwide-iaas-public-cloud-services-revenue-grew-16-point-2-percent-in-2023 |access-date=2025-03-20 |website=Gartner |language=en}}</ref> These companies dominate the global cloud market due to their extensive infrastructure, broad service offerings, and scalability.

In recent years, organizations have increasingly adopted alternative cloud providers, which offer specialized services that distinguish them from hyperscalers. These providers may offer advantages such as lower costs, improved cost transparency and predictability, enhanced data sovereignty (particularly within regions such as the European Union to comply with regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)), stronger alignment with local regulatory requirements, or industry-specific services.<ref name=":10">{{Cite book |last=Linthicum |first=David |title=AN INSIDER'S GUIDE TO CLOUD COMPUTING |date=2022 |publisher=ADDISON WESLEY |isbn=978-0-13-793578-9 |___location=Erscheinungsort nicht ermittelbar}}</ref>

* [[Adobe Creative Cloud]]

* [[Amazon Web Services]]

Alternative cloud providers are often part of multi-cloud strategies, where organizations use multiple cloud services—both from hyperscalers and specialized providers—to optimize performance, compliance, and cost efficiency. However, they do not necessarily serve as direct replacements for hyperscalers, as their offerings are typically more specialized.<ref name=":10" />

* [[Google Cloud]]

* [[IBM Cloud]]

* [[Microsoft Azure]]

* [[OpenStack]]

* [[Oracle Cloud]]

* [[Panorama9]]

==Similar concepts==

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<!---♦♦♦ Please keep the list in alphabetical order ♦♦♦--->

{{div col|colwidth=20em}}

* [[As a service]]

* [[Block-level storage]]

* [[Browser-based computing]]

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* [[Cloud-computing comparison]]

* [[Cloud computing security]]

* [[Cloud engineering]]

* [[Cloud gaming]]

* [[Cloud management]]

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* [[Edge computing]]

* [[Edge device]]

* [[Exchange-traded fund]]

* [[File system]]

** [[Clustered file system]]

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* {{cite book|last1=Hu|first1=Tung-Hui|title=A Prehistory of the Cloud|date=2015|publisher=MIT Press|isbn=978-0-262-02951-3}}

* Mell, P. (2011, September). ''[http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-145/SP800-145.pdf The NIST Definition of Cloud Computing]''. Retrieved November 1, 2015, from National Institute of Standards and Technology website

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