Cloud hosting provides services, applications, or websites through an external cloud platform, allowing companies to host content without owning a physical server or data center.
This is a technique that takes advantage of cloud computing fundamental flexibility. Organizations can provision and use computing resources as needed to deliver digital services without a significant upfront investment.
Cloud hosting uses cloud serversand physical computing racks that are virtualized for use by those who are not in physical contact with them. Virtualization divides physical computing space into digitally accessible computer space.
For example, if a business needs to provide a website or online application to its customers, cloud hosting is a great way to do it. This eliminates the need for infrastructure and enables optimized digital delivery.
Choosing to use cloud hosting services provides a number of benefits, including increased deployment efficiency, greater flexibility in service size and scalability, and the ability to scale more efficiently.
Cloud Hosting vs Web Hosting vs VPS
Choosing cloud hosting is not an easy decision. The nuances of the process will depend largely on what specific system or application needs to be delivered, and then how better that system or application can be delivered.
For example, a typically hosted application might be a business website. Most organizations will have an online presence in this form, and every firm that does so will need to have a digital architecture on which that website will run.
An alternative way to do this is through web hosting, the predecessor and equivalent of cloud hosting. As with cloud hosting, web hosting involves using a third-party provider to manage the server that hosts the business website.
The web hosting provider allocates things like storage space and network bandwidth to the user. This means that business clients can access the website through a web browser that visits the domain.
However, cloud hosting is superior to web hosting due to its varied server presence. Cloud hosting will keep your website running on multiple servers, providing resilience or backup if errors occur.
Organizations can also choose to host a virtual private server (VPS), which means renting what is essentially a dedicated amount of server space within the physical server space that your firm will be responsible for using.
Using VPS is more expensive than other forms of hosting because it requires dedicating a certain portion of the computing resource. It may also require a higher level of technical expertise if the firm chooses the unmanaged VPS option, since staff will be responsible for managing the resource.
Advantages and disadvantages of cloud hosting
Cloud hosting has many benefits, most of which correlate with the benefits of cloud computing in general. Due to the way cloud computing works, flexibility and scalability are major benefits.
Unlike web hosting or VPS, cloud hosting does not rely on a single server, but instead uses a network of servers to host a specific service or website. If a user requires more computing resources, the cloud service provider can provide access through a network of servers rather than contacting a specific server.
Because cloud hosting is so flexible to use, most cloud providers operate on pay-as-you-go models that can be scaled just as easily. Businesses can increase their computing usage according to their charges, and have the option to reduce it again if needed.
At the same time, the industry has rallied against rising cloud costs, with many IT executives citing “unexpected” cloud costs as the reason they were unable to accurately forecast costs. Software company 37 signal said it saved $2 million a year by moving away from the cloud.
Security can be a benefit of cloud hosting because cloud providers provide security tools such as firewalls and identity and access management (IAM) tools. However, users should be aware that under a shared responsibility model, cloud service providers cannot completely shield customers from a security perspective.
Finally, there is sustainability. This is due to the multi-server nature of cloud hosting compared to other forms of hosting. Because cloud hosting is distributed over a network of servers, customers are much better protected from any server failure or large-scale network outages.
How to get started with cloud hosting
Businesses looking to host in the cloud must first evaluate their hosting needs. Firms should look into the relative advantages and disadvantages of cloud hosting and, if they meet the firm’s requirements, they need to look at what different cloud service providers offer.
It is likely that an organization will choose hosting through one of the three major cloud providers: Google, Microsoft and AWS. For example, the latest one, AWS, offers a number of hosting options under its cloud computing wing.
On ABCUsers can host traditional websites as well as applications that can be deployed within businesses or sold to customers as software as a service (SaaS), and the company also offers file hosting services.
Other major cloud providers offer similar hosting options. On Google Cloud Platform (GCP) users can deploy to the tech giant’s network and also access WordPress, Firebase and Google Domains.
Users can also host applications on Microsoft’s cloud platform. Microsoft Azure. Azure offers a number of hosting types such as lightweight hosting, balanced hosting, managed hosting, and source code hosting.
While VPS hosting may offer a greater level of control for those who prioritize management, most businesses will find that cloud hosting is the optimal solution for hosting digital services.