# 1 Cloud Hosting
Cloud webhosting is Internet-based computing, where more resources, information and software are provided to computers and other devices on demand.
Details are abstracted from the users, who no longer have need for expertise in the technology infrastructure "in the cloud" that supports them. Cloud hosting describes a new supplement, consumption, and delivery model for IT services based on the Internet and it typically involves over the-Internet-provision of dynamically scalable and often virtualized resources.
We choose the best plans available on the market so you can decide which one to take, based on your needs!
| Company | 1&1 IONOS Total Reviews: 98 Average Rating: 2 / 10 Good Reviews: 20 Bad Reviews: 78 Official Responses: 6 | Host Gator Total Reviews: 40 Average Rating: 4 / 10 Good Reviews: 19 Bad Reviews: 21 Official Responses: 0 | Blue Host Total Reviews: 56 Average Rating: 4 / 10 Good Reviews: 21 Bad Reviews: 35 Official Responses: 17 | A2hosting Total Reviews: 140 Average Rating: 9 / 10 Good Reviews: 127 Bad Reviews: 13 Official Responses: 11 | WebHosting.UK Total Reviews: 4 Average Rating: 5 / 10 Good Reviews: 3 Bad Reviews: 1 Official Responses: 0 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $ 15.00/mo. GO TO WEBSITE | $ 4.95/mo. VAT exc ($ 12.95 after first term) GO TO WEBSITE | $ 6.95/mo. ($ 9.99 after first term) GO TO WEBSITE | $ 5.00/mo. GO TO WEBSITE | £ 25.00/mo. VAT 20% exc GO TO WEBSITE |
| Plan name | Cloud Hosting M | Hatchling Cloud | Starter | Entry | My Cloud VM |
| Product type | Cloud Linux | Cloud Linux | Cloud Linux | Cloud Linux | Cloud Linux/Windows |
| Disk space | 50 GB SSD | unlimited | 100 GB | 20 GB SSD | 20 GB |
| Bandwidth | unmetered | unmetered | unmetered | 2 TB | 5 TB |
| Free domains | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Payments | Credit / Debit / Prepaid Cards, PayPal | Credit / Debit / Prepaid Cards, PayPal | Credit / Debit / Prepaid Cards, PayPal | Credit / Debit / Prepaid Cards, PayPal, Skrill (Moneybookers) | Credit / Debit / Prepaid Cards, PayPal, Wire Transfer |
| Control panel | [In-house] | CPanel | CPanel | CPanel, CentOS Web Panel | CPanel, Plesk, WHM |
| Features | Backup, CDN, Fully Managed | Wordpress, Fully Managed | VPN, Green Hosting | ||
| Support options | Email, Help Desk, Phone / Toll-Free, Live Chat, Available 24/7 | Email, Help Desk, Phone / Toll-Free, Live Chat, Available 24/7 | Email, Help Desk, Phone / Toll-Free, Live Chat, Available 24/7 | Email, Help Desk, Phone / Toll-Free, Live Chat, Available 24/7 | Email, Phone / Toll-Free, Forum, Live Chat, Available 24/7 |
| Server Location | |||||
| Special features | |||||
| Promo | Special new coupons (from Feb 2013), maximum discounts on webhosting purchases ! 25% OFF, coupon code: webhostingtop25 $9.94 OFF, coupon code: webhostingtop9 | Use coupon code WHTOP for 51% off Shared Hosting plans! | |||
| Updated | Mar 2019 | Feb 2019 | Jul 2018 | Feb 2019 | Sep 2018 |
| Read Reviews | Total Reviews: 98 Average Rating: 2 / 10 Good Reviews: 20 Bad Reviews: 78 Official Responses: 6 1&1 IONOS reviews | Total Reviews: 40 Average Rating: 4 / 10 Good Reviews: 19 Bad Reviews: 21 Official Responses: 0 Host Gator reviews | Total Reviews: 56 Average Rating: 4 / 10 Good Reviews: 21 Bad Reviews: 35 Official Responses: 17 Blue Host reviews | Total Reviews: 140 Average Rating: 9 / 10 Good Reviews: 127 Bad Reviews: 13 Official Responses: 11 A2hosting reviews | Total Reviews: 4 Average Rating: 5 / 10 Good Reviews: 3 Bad Reviews: 1 Official Responses: 0 WebHosting.UK reviews |
Quick comparison of the top 100 plans in this category ordered by brand rating
| Plan Name | Brand | Product Type | Platform | Diskspace | Transfer | Memory | Price | Hosted Websites / Free Domains / IP's | Date Plan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A0 | azure.microsoft.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 20 GB | unmetered | 768 MB | $ 14.88/mo. | 1 Dec, 2016 | |
| Basic | dropbox.com | Cloud | Linux | 2 GB | unmetered | $ 0.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 23 Mar, 2018 | |
| Free | wetransfer.com | Cloud | Linux | 2 GB | unmetered | € 0.00/mo. | / 0 / 0 | 23 Mar, 2018 | |
| Launch | godaddy.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 60 GB | unmetered | 2000 MB | $ 19.99/mo. ($ 29.99 after first term) | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 8 Apr, 2019 |
| Pro Elite | mega.nz | Cloud | Linux | 200 GB | 1000 GB | € 4.99/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 23 Mar, 2018 | |
| Free | zippyshare.com | Cloud | Linux | unlimited | unmetered | $ 0.00/mo. | / 0 / 0 | 24 Mar, 2018 | |
| Starter | box.com | Cloud | Linux | 100 GB | unmetered | € 4.50/mo. | / 0 / 0 | 23 Mar, 2018 | |
| Guest | uploaded.net | Cloud | Linux | 500 MB | unmetered | € 0.00/mo. | / 0 / 0 | 24 Mar, 2018 | |
| $5 /mo | digitalocean.com | Cloud | Linux | 25 GB SSD | 1000 GB | 1000 MB | $ 5.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 9 Oct, 2018 |
| Cloud Compute (VC2) 20GB | vultr.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 20 GB SSD | 500 GB | 512 MB | $ 2.50/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 8 Jan, 2019 |
| Economy | cafe24.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 100 GB | 1000 GB | 1000 MB | $ 29.78/mo. | unlimited | 1 Dec, 2017 |
| Cloud PRO | aruba.it | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 40 GB | unmetered | 2000 MB | € 24.48/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 13 Jul, 2019 |
| Startup | wpengine.com | Cloud | Linux | 10 GB | 50 GB | $ 35.00/mo. | 1 / 0 / 0 | 8 Dec, 2018 | |
| Ecommerce Standard | bigcommerce.com | Cloud | Linux | unlimited | unmetered | 0 MB | $ 29.95/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 7 Feb, 2019 |
| WordPress Plus | one.com | Cloud | Linux | 200 GB SSD | unmetered | 2000 MB | $ 3.49/mo. ($ 6.99 after first term) Setup fee $ 13.8 | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 19 Jul, 2018 |
| Free | sendspace.com | Cloud | Linux | unlimited | unmetered | € 0.00/mo. | / 0 / 0 | 24 Mar, 2018 | |
| Personal Cloud | whois.com | Cloud | Linux | unlimited | unmetered | 2000 MB | $ 6.88/mo. | 1 / 0 / 0 | 14 Jul, 2019 |
| General1-1 | rackspace.com | Cloud | Linux | 20 GB SSD | unmetered | 1000 MB | $ 27.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 1 Sep, 2018 |
| CLOUD VPS-3000 | inmotionhosting.com | Cloud | Linux | 260 GB SSD | 6000 GB | 8000 MB | $ 69.34/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 5 | 12 Feb, 2019 |
| Entry | siteground.com | Cloud | Linux | 40 GB SSD | 5000 GB | 4000 MB | € 64.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 14 Feb, 2019 |
| Free | heroku.com | Cloud | Linux | unlimited | unmetered | 512 MB | $ 0.00/mo. | 1 / 0 / 0 | 7 Dec, 2016 |
| Secure Online Backup | centurylink.com | Cloud | Linux | unlimited | unmetered | $ 4.99/mo. | 11 Aug, 2016 | ||
| Premium Plus | pcloud.com | Cloud | Linux | 2000 GB | 2000 GB | € 350.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 24 Jun, 2019 | |
| Startup | hostinger.com | Cloud | Linux | 40 GB SSD | unmetered | 3000 MB | $ 7.45/mo. | unlimited / 1 / 1 | 9 Apr, 2019 |
| Linode 2GB SSD | linode.com | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB SSD | 2000 GB | 2000 MB | $ 10.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 4 Jan, 2019 |
| Office 5-25 employees | egnyte.com | Cloud | Linux | 5000 GB | unmetered | $ 8.00/mo. | 16 Mar, 2017 | ||
| DreamPress Starter | dreamhost.com | Cloud | Linux | 30 GB SSD | unmetered | $ 16.95/mo. | 1 / 1 / 1 | 21 Feb, 2019 | |
| BUSINESS CLOUD BASIC | home.pl | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB | unmetered | PLN 1.99/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 25 Oct, 2016 | |
| DO64GB | cloudways.com | Cloud | Linux | 1250 GB SSD | 9000 GB | 64000 MB | $ 395.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 19 Nov, 2018 |
| Starter package | strato.de | Cloud | Linux/Windows | unlimited | unmetered | € 0.01/mo. Setup fee € 1 | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 9 Sep, 2018 | |
| Up to 30 VMs | liquidweb.com | Cloud | Linux | 10000 GB | unmetered | 960000 MB | $ 10,999.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 16 Feb, 2019 |
| Starter Package | alibabacloud.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 40 GB | 2000 GB | 1000 MB | $ 8.00/mo. | unlimited | 1 Dec, 2017 |
| ACTIVE MINI | nazwa.pl | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB | unmetered | PLN 1.98/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 2 Jan, 2017 | |
| Startup | hostinger.com.br | Cloud | Linux | 40 GB SSD | unmetered | 3000 MB | BRL 19.59/mo. | / 1 / 1 | 26 Mar, 2019 |
| Cloud Hosting I | locaweb.com.br | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 50 GB | unmetered | 2000 MB | BRL 179.90/mo. | unlimited / 1 / 0 | 16 Nov, 2016 |
| Personal Cloud | resellerclub.com | Cloud | Linux | unlimited | unmetered | 2000 MB | $ 7.99/mo. | 1 / 0 / 0 | 24 Jul, 2016 |
| Medium | gandi.net | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB | unmetered | 2000 MB | € 27.37/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 31 Jan, 2019 |
| Managed 1 | infomaniak.com | Cloud | Linux | 100 GB SSD | unmetered | 6000 MB | € 29.00/mo. | 20 / 0 / 0 | 25 Jun, 2019 |
| Business Cloud 1 | iinet.net.au | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 50 GB | unmetered | 1000 MB | AUD 29.00/mo. | 1 / 0 / 0 | 20 Aug, 2018 |
| Bronze | afrihost.com | Cloud | Linux | 100 GB | 4000 GB | 2000 MB | ZAR 310.00/mo. (ZAR 0.059/GB) | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 29 Jun, 2019 |
| CH Level 1 | whogohost.com | Cloud | Linux | 25 GB SSD | 1000 GB | 1000 MB | NGN 2.500/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 2 May, 2019 |
| Private Cloud Server M | hosteurope.de | Cloud | Linux | 4000 GB | unmetered | 64000 MB | € 199.99/mo. Setup fee € 99.99 | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 2 Sep, 2018 |
| CLOUD S | lws.fr | Cloud | Linux | 80 GB SSD | unmetered | 2000 MB | € 9.99/mo. | unlimited / 1 / 1 | 11 Jul, 2019 |
| Essential | online.net | Cloud | Linux | 500 GB SSD | unmetered | 1000 MB | € 9.99/mo. | unlimited / 1 / 0 | 22 Jun, 2019 |
| Virtual Data Center | telekom.ro | Cloud | Linux/Windows | unlimited | unmetered | on request | 6 Oct, 2016 | ||
| Altura-3 | mochahost.com | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB SSD | 4000 GB | 2000 MB | $ 19.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 4 | 17 Sep, 2018 |
| 1 CPU 1 GB RAM | hostwinds.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 30 GB | 1000 GB | 1000 MB | $ 4.99/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 3 Jan, 2019 |
| SpeedUp | fastcomet.com | Cloud | Linux | 35 GB SSD | unmetered | 6000 MB | $ 9.95/mo. | unlimited / 1 / 0 | 18 Jan, 2018 |
| 75G | enom.com | Cloud | Linux | 75 GB | unmetered | 0 MB | $ 0.00/mo. ($ 20 after 1 mo.) | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 19 Jan, 2019 |
| Startup | hostinger.co.id | Cloud | Linux | 40 GB SSD | unmetered | 3000 MB | IDR 81.395/mo. | unlimited / 1 / 1 | 26 Mar, 2019 |
| Primary | hawkhost.com | Cloud | Linux | 10 GB SSD | unmetered | 0 MB | $ 2.99/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 25 Jan, 2019 |
| Platinum | isimtescil.net | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 25 GB | unmetered | $ 9.99/mo. | 50 / 0 / 0 | 3 Jul, 2019 | |
| 332/X | fasthosts.co.uk | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 1000 GB | unmetered | 32000 MB | £ 70.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 17 Dec, 2018 |
| W60LX-US | smarterasp.net | Cloud | Linux | 1 GB SSD | 1 GB | 0 MB | $ 0.00/mo. | 1 / 0 / 0 | 7 Jan, 2019 |
| Nexcess Cloud XS | nexcess.net | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB SSD | 1000 GB | 24000 MB | $ 29.99/mo. | 10 | 11 Jan, 2019 |
| CX11 | hetzner.de | Cloud | Linux | 20 GB | 20000 GB | 2000 MB | € 2.49/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 27 Aug, 2018 |
| 512 MB | uolhost.uol.com.br | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB | unmetered | 512 MB | BRL 19.90/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 2 Jul, 2019 |
| g cloud basic | gabia.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 50 GB | unmetered | 1000 MB | $ 23.26/mo. | unlimited | 1 Dec, 2017 |
| Medium | acquia.com | Cloud | Linux | 200 GB | unmetered | $ 516.00/mo. | 29 Apr, 2017 | ||
| Scout | dewaweb.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 200 MB | unmetered | 128 MB | IDR 15.000/mo. | 1 / 1 / 0 | 29 Jun, 2018 |
| Mini | axxess.co.za | Cloud | Linux | 100 GB | 50 GB | 2000 MB | ZAR 309.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 25 Oct, 2018 |
| #1 | telia.ee | Cloud | Linux | 30 GB | 1000 GB | 2048 MB | € 23.55/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 30 Mar, 2017 |
| Free | idrive.com | Cloud | Linux | 5 GB | unmetered | $ 0.00/mo. | / 0 / 0 | 24 Mar, 2018 | |
| PC 1 | smartweb.com.ng | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 1000 GB | unmetered | 2000 MB | NGN 900.000/yr. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 7 May, 2017 |
| Windows Basic Cloud VPS | accuwebhosting.com | Cloud | Windows | 45 GB HDD 15000 RPM | 250 GB | 2000 MB | $ 33.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 22 Dec, 2017 |
| Basic | pantheon.io | Cloud | Linux | 20 GB SSD | unmetered | $ 50.00/mo. | 5 | 29 Nov, 2018 | |
| Cloud Server S | leaseweb.com | Cloud | Linux | 40 GB SSD | 4000 GB | 1000 MB | € 4.99/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 22 Jun, 2019 |
| Lite | domainesia.com | Cloud | Linux | 300 MB SSD | unmetered | 512 MB | IDR 8.000/mo. | 1 / 0 / 0 | 27 Jan, 2017 |
| Cloud | netsons.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 10 GB | unmetered | 1000 MB | $ 21.21/mo. | 1 Dec, 2016 | |
| VDC 2 | websupport.sk | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 200 GB SSD | unmetered | 18000 MB | € 224.28/mo. | unlimited / 2 | 9 Jul, 2019 |
| Cloud Server | donweb.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 10 GB | unmetered | 1000 MB | $ 14.00/mo. | 1 Dec, 2016 | |
| 1 VCPU | phoenixnap.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 16 GB | unmetered | 512 MB | $ 4.34/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 2 Jun, 2018 |
| Premium | arvixe.com | Cloud | 300 GB | unmetered | 8000 MB | $ 152.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 24 Feb, 2019 | |
| CLOUD WEB III | king.host | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 10 GB | unmetered | 1000 MB | $ 60.59/mo. | 1 Dec, 2016 | |
| Starter Cloud | tmdhosting.com | Cloud | Linux | unlimited SSD | unmetered | 2000 MB | $ 5.95/mo. ($ 12.95 after first term) | 1 / 0 / 0 | 10 Dec, 2018 |
| 1 Core, 1GB RAM, 25GB SSD | softlayer.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 25 GB SSD | unmetered | 1000 MB | $ 25.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 11 Aug, 2016 |
| X-Small | gmocloud.com | Cloud | Linux | 20 GB | unmetered | 2000 MB | $ 35.65/mo. | unlimited | 1 Dec, 2017 |
| C1 | scaleway.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 50 GB SSD | unmetered | 2000 MB | € 2.99/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 16 Mar, 2019 |
| Budget Cloud | doteasy.com | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB | 250 GB | 1000 MB | $ 48.00/mo. ($ 1/GB) | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 24 Aug, 2018 |
| Singapore SSD VPS | vpb.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 30 GB SSD | 1000 GB | 1000 MB | $ 8.50/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 11 Jun, 2019 |
| Cloud 2GB | webfaction.com | Cloud | Linux | 20 GB SSD | 1500 GB | 2000 MB | $ 20.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 28 Feb, 2018 |
| Gói khởi nghiệp | hostinger.vn | Cloud | Linux | 40 GB SSD | unmetered | 3000 MB | VND 138.525/mo. | unlimited / 1 / 1 | 26 Mar, 2019 |
| Customizable Configuration | cdmon.com | Cloud | Linux | 100 GB SSD | unmetered | 4000 MB | € 79.00/mo. | 20 / 0 / 0 | 14 Jul, 2019 |
| CLOUD-1 | knownhost.com | Cloud | Linux | 75 GB SSD | 2000 GB | 2000 MB | $ 80.00/mo. | unlimited / 2 | 15 Aug, 2018 |
| Professional | weblink.com.br | Cloud | Linux | 80 GB SSD | unmetered | 6000 MB | BRL 39.29/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 14 Jul, 2019 |
| Team | onehub.com | Cloud | Linux | 1000 GB | unmetered | $ 29.95/mo. | / 0 / 0 | 24 Mar, 2018 | |
| Start Cloud | hostnet.com.br | Cloud | Linux | unlimited | unmetered | BRL 12.90/mo. | unlimited / 1 / 0 | 2 Jul, 2019 | |
| Mini Cloud | net4.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 25 GB | 2 GB | 1000 MB | $ 36.55/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 21 Nov, 2016 |
| Business | blacknight.com | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 40 GB | 750 GB | 2048 MB | € 39.95/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 2 Jul, 2019 |
| XS | hostalia.com | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB SSD | unmetered | 1000 MB | € 9.90/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 14 Jul, 2019 |
| CloudWebs | arsys.es | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 20 GB | unmetered | € 45.00/mo. | 30 / 0 / 0 | 27 Jun, 2019 | |
| Emprendedor | hostinger.mx | Cloud | Linux | 40 GB SSD | unmetered | 3000 MB | MXN 129.00/mo. | unlimited / 1 / 1 | 26 Mar, 2019 |
| 2 GB | redehost.com.br | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 40 GB | unmetered | 2000 MB | BRL 140.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 2 Jul, 2019 |
| Basic Cloud | papaki.com | Cloud | Linux | 100 MB | 1 GB | € 0.00/mo. | 1 / 0 / 0 | 31 Aug, 2016 | |
| Cloud - Small | dimofinf.net | Cloud | Linux | 40 GB SSD | 4000 GB | 1000 MB | $ 30.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 30 Dec, 2016 |
| OpenStack | hivelocity.net | Cloud | Linux | unlimited | unmetered | $ 1,075.00/mo. | 8 Sep, 2017 | ||
| Cloud-Server S | alfahosting.de | Cloud | Linux | 50 GB SSD | unmetered | 2000 MB | € 5.99/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 1 | 12 Jun, 2019 |
| Extra Small | lcn.com | Cloud | Linux | 20 GB SSD | unmetered | 512 MB | € 6.54/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 13 Sep, 2018 |
| VM1 | domains.co.za | Cloud | Linux/Windows | 20 GB SSD | 500 GB | 1000 MB | ZAR 159.00/mo. | unlimited / 0 / 0 | 14 Jan, 2018 |
| Personal Cloud | globehost.com | Cloud | Cloud | unlimited | unmetered | 2000 MB | $ 13.00/mo. | 1 | 2 Sep, 2017 |
About Cloud Hosting
In general, cloud hosting customers do not own the physical infrastructure, instead avoiding capital expenditure by renting usage from a third-party provider. They consume resources as a service and pay only for resources that they use. Many cloud webhosting offerings employ the utility computing model, which is analogous to how traditional utility services (such as electricity) are consumed, whereas others bill on a subscription basis. Sharing "perishable and intangible" computing power among multiple tenants can improve utilization rates, as servers are not unnecessarily left idle (which can reduce costs significantly while increasing the speed of application development). A side-effect of this approach is that overall computer usage rises dramatically, as customers do not have to engineer for peak load limits. In addition, "increased high-speed bandwidth" makes it possible to receive the same response times from centralized infrastructure at other sites.
Architecture
Cloud computing sample architecture
Cloud architecture,the systems architecture of the software systems involved in the delivery of cloud computing, typically involves multiple cloud components communicating with each other over application programming interfaces, usually web services. This resembles the Unix philosophy of having multiple programs each doing one thing well and working together over universal interfaces. Complexity is controlled and the resulting systems are more manageable than their monolithic counterparts.
Economics
Cloud computing users can avoid capital expenditure (CapEx) on hardware, software, and services when they pay a provider only for what they use. Consumption is usually billed on a utility (resources consumed, like electricity) or subscription (time-based, like a newspaper) basis with little or no upfront cost. Other benefits of this time sharing-style approach are low barriers to entry, shared infrastructure and costs, low management overhead, and immediate access to a broad range of applications. In general, users can terminate the contract at any time (thereby avoiding return on investment risk and uncertainty), and the services are often covered by service level agreements (SLAs) with financial penalties.
Although companies might be able to save on upfront capital expenditures, they might not save much and might actually pay more for operating expenses. In situations where the capital expense would be relatively small, or where the organization has more flexibility in their capital budget than their operating budget, the cloud model might not make great fiscal sense. Other factors impacting the scale of any potential cost savings include the efficiency of a company's data center as compared to the cloud vendor's, the company's existing operating costs, the level of adoption of cloud computing, and the type of functionality being hosted in the cloud.
Among the items that some cloud hosts charge for are instances (often with extra charges for high-memory or high-CPU instances); data transfer in and out; storage (measured by the GB-month); I/O requests; PUT requests and GET requests; IP addresses; and load balancing. In some cases, users can bid on instances, with pricing dependent on demand for available instances.
Key features
* Cost is claimed to be greatly reduced and capital expenditure is converted to operational expenditure. This ostensibly lowers barriers to entry, as infrastructure is typically provided by a third-party and does not need to be purchased for one-time or infrequent intensive computing tasks. Pricing on a utility computing basis is fine-grained with usage-based options and fewer IT skills are required for implementation (in-house).
* Device and location independence enable users to access systems using a web browser regardless of their location or what device they are using (e.g., PC, mobile). As infrastructure is off-site (typically provided by a third-party) and accessed via the Internet, users can connect from anywhere.
* Multi-tenancy enables sharing of resources and costs across a large pool of users thus allowing for:
- Centralization of infrastructure in locations with lower costs (such as real estate, electricity, etc.)
- Peak-load capacity increases (users need not engineer for highest possible load-levels)
- Utilization and efficiency improvements for systems that are often only 10 - 20% utilized.
* Agility improves with users' ability to rapidly and inexpensively re-provision technological infrastructure resources.
* Metering cloud computing resources usage should be measurable and should be metered per client and application on daily, weekly, monthly, and annual basis. This will enable clients on choosing the vendor cloud on cost and reliability (QoS).
* Scalability via dynamic ("on-demand") provisioning of resources on a fine-grained, self-service basis near real-time, without users having to engineer for peak loads. Performance is monitored, and consistent and loosely coupled architectures are constructed using web services as the system interface. One of the most important new methods for overcoming performance bottlenecks for a large class of applications is data parallel programming on a distributed data grid.
* Reliability is improved if multiple redundant sites are used, which makes well designed cloud computing suitable for business continuity and disaster recovery. Nonetheless, many major cloud computing services have suffered outages, and IT and business managers can at times do little when they are affected.
* Maintenance cloud computing applications are easier to maintain, since they don't have to be installed on each user's computer. They are easier to support and to improve since the changes reach the clients instantly.
* Security could improve due to centralization of data, increased security-focused resources, etc., but concerns can persist about loss of control over certain sensitive data, and the lack of security for stored kernels. Security is often as good as or better than under traditional systems, in part because providers are able to devote resources to solving security issues that many customers cannot afford. Providers typically log accesses, but accessing the audit logs themselves can be difficult or impossible. Furthermore, the complexity of security is greatly increased when data is distributed over a wider area and / or number of devices.
Tags Cloud Hosting
Autonomic computing Grid computing Peer-to-peer CapEx SLAs load balancing VPN PaaS Intercloud
Cloud Hosting references
Latest tweets mentioning Cloud
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Latest blogs mentioning Cloud
Alexa1,297,287▼ - Jul 21, 2019 - Integrate Your Website With Cloudflare from cPanel - Cloudflare speeds up and protects millions of websites, APIs, SaaS services, and other properties connected to the Internet. It provides Content Delivery Network (CDN) Services, DDoS Protection, Internet security, and DNS Services. It protects your web site from threats and accelerates your ...
Alexa42,965▼ - Jul 21, 2019 - Fault report cloud node 10002 - Type Fault report Category Cloud Start July 21, 2019 7:02:00 AM CEST End July 21, 2019 7:06:00 AM CEST Description Due to a current error, the cloud node (10002) and the cloud servers on it are not accessible. Affected ... Alexa42,965▼ - Jul 21, 2019 - Fault report cloud node 10002 (1. Update) - Update July 21, 2019 7:06:00 AM CEST The error has been fixed. All systems are reachable again. Alexa42,965▼ - Jul 20, 2019 - Fault report cloud node 11662 (1. Update) - Update July 21, 2019 12:59:00 AM CEST The error has been fixed. All systems are reachable again.