The cloud and cloud computing aim to provide scalable, flexible environments for providing resources with a specified level of service and reliability. Whilst cloud computing isn’t new, the pervasive nature of internet access (both mobile and fixed) as well as the dramatic fall in the cost of data transfer have made it much more relevant and useful to businesses today.
Many businesses, academic institutions and individuals are looking to transition to the cloud and reap the benefits that cloud computing has to offer. In fact there are many types of cloud computing, below is a summary showing the different main categories:
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Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) allows servers to be created in a virtualised computing environment without the same restrictions that using physical hardware imposes on you. CloudSigma is a pure IaaS provider and our job is to manage the transformation of physical servers into flexible virtual servers that are high performing and reliable. It means you can instantly create, start, stop and delete servers as and when you need them. We turn CPU, RAM, data storage and data transfer into utilities like your electricity and water. We give you exactly how much of each as you need them over time.
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Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) providers specialise in creating purpose built standardised environments where developers can upload code without having to take into consideration operating systems, resource usage etc. Salesforce’s Force.com and Google’s App Engine are excellent examples of PaaS. PaaS providers actually rely on the same management and virtualisation process that Iaas providers such as CloudSigma provide.
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Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) providers offer applications directly to end users and build on the environments provided by Iaas and PaaS layers. SaaS has many advantages for end users such as pay as you go models, constant software development with instant availability of new versions, lower maintenance costs for users and more. Good examples of SaaS are Google’s Gmail service and Salesforce.com.
As an IaaS provider we sit at the top of the new cloud computing environment layers and enable both PaaS and SaaS providers as well as those looking to switch from dedicated servers to a virtualised computing environment.
Cloud Computing 
