CC Assignment - 1

Cloud Computing | Subject Code: CCS335 | Unit I: Cloud Architecture Models and Infrastructure

Prepared answers based on Unit-I reference textbook

(Cloud Architecture Models and Infrastructure)

Questions covered:
1. Define cloud computing. Explain its characteristics with suitable example.
2. Compare Traditional computing & cloud computing.
3. Explain the different deployment models of cloud computing.
4. Describe the service models of cloud computing.
5. Explain virtualization and its role in cloud computing.
Q1. Define cloud computing. Explain its characteristics with suitable example.

Definition
Cloud computing refers to a variety of services available over the Internet that deliver compute
functionality on the service provider's infrastructure. Its environment (infrastructure) may actually be
hosted on either a grid or utility computing environment, but that does not matter to the service user.
NIST definition: Cloud computing is a pay-per-use model for enabling available, convenient, on-demand
network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage,
applications, services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or
service-provider interaction.
In simple terms, it is a collection/group of integrated and networked hardware, software and Internet
infrastructure (called a platform) that delivers applications and services running on a distributed network
using virtualized resources, accessed through common Internet protocols and networking standards.

Cloud Symbol / Basic Idea

Client Computers

CLOUD
Data Centers

Fig 1.1: Cloud symbol denoting the cloud boundary between clients and data centers

Characteristics of Cloud Computing

On-demand Broad Network Resource Rapid Measured

Self-Service Access Pooling Elasticity Service

Fig 1.2: Five essential characteristics of cloud computing (NIST model)

• On-demand self-service: A consumer can unilaterally provision computing capabilities, such as

server time and network storage, as needed 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 (laptops, mobiles,
PDAs).
• Resource pooling (Location-independent resource pooling): The provider's computing
resources are pooled to serve multiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with physical and virtual
resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according to consumer demand.
• Rapid elasticity: Capabilities can be rapidly and elastically provisioned to quickly scale up, and
rapidly released to quickly scale down.
 • Measured service (Pay per use): Resource usage is monitored, controlled, reported and billed
using a metered, fee-for-service, or advertising-based model, providing transparency to both provider
and consumer.

Suitable Example
Google Drive / Gmail is a good example of cloud computing. A user simply logs in through a web browser
(broad network access) and immediately starts using storage/email (on-demand self-service). Millions of
users share Google's data centers without knowing the physical server used (resource pooling). Storage
space automatically expands as more files are uploaded (rapid elasticity), and Google charges only if the
user goes beyond a free quota (measured service / pay-per-use). Similarly, Amazon Web Services (AWS)
allows an organization to rent virtual servers and pay only for the compute hours actually consumed.
Q2. Compare Traditional computing & cloud computing.
Traditional (on-premises) computing relies on a physical data center owned, hosted and maintained
entirely by the organization itself, whereas cloud computing is a virtual resource, provisioned and
maintained by a third-party cloud service provider and delivered to the user over the Internet on a
pay-as-you-use basis.

Parameter Traditional / Data Center Computing Cloud Computing

Physical resource that helps businesses Virtual resource; hosted and managed by a
Nature of resource
store, organize and operate data. cloud provider.

High - hardware must be purchased and

Infrastructure cost Low - infrastructure cost is minimal / rented.
installed.

Quite high; dedicated in-house Low; maintained by the service provider

Maintenance
developers/admins required. (SLA based).

Requires huge investment and lead time to Requires very little investment; elastic,
Scaling
add hardware. on-demand scaling.

Affordability vs Less affordable but offers more raw More affordable but may offer comparatively
power control/power in comparison. limited customization power.

Restricted to organization's own Accessible from anywhere via the Internet

Access
premises/network. (broad network access).

Full ownership and control by the Shared responsibility; provider owns and
Ownership & control
organization. controls the underlying infrastructure.

Capital expenditure (CAPEX) - one time Operational expenditure (OPEX) -

Billing model
purchase. pay-per-use / subscription.

Built-in redundancy through distributed data

Disaster recovery Difficult and costly to set up redundant sites.
centers.

In short, traditional computing gives an organization complete ownership and control at a high capital cost,
while cloud computing trades some control for major savings in cost, effort, and time by outsourcing
infrastructure management to a specialized provider.
Q3. Explain the different deployment models of cloud computing.
Cloud deployment models refer to the location and management of the cloud's infrastructure. They are
defined by the ownership and control of the architectural design and the degree of available
customization. There are four deployment models: Public, Private, Community and Hybrid cloud.

Public Cloud Private Cloud Community Cloud

HYBRID CLOUD (combination of two or more)

Fig 1.3: Cloud deployment models (Public, Private, Community merging into Hybrid)

1. Public Cloud
The cloud infrastructure is made available to the general public or a large industry group and is owned by
an organization selling cloud services. It is a huge data centre that offers the same services to all its users
and is much used for the consumer segment. Examples: Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, AWS, Microsoft
Azure.
• Benefits: Low investment hurdle (pay for what you use); good test/development environment for
applications that scale to many servers.
• Risks: Security concerns due to multi-tenancy and data transfer over the Internet; organization loses
control over the data center function.

2. Private Cloud
The cloud infrastructure is operated solely for a single organization. It may be managed by the
organization itself or a third party and may exist on-premises or off-premises. Example: NIRIX's one
server with dedicated servers.
• Benefits: Fewer security concerns since existing data center security stays in place; the IT
organization retains control over the data center.
• Risks: High investment hurdle for implementation, along with purchase of new hardware and
software; new operational processes are required.

3. Community Cloud
The cloud infrastructure is shared by several organizations and supports a specific community that has
shared concerns (mission, security requirements, policy, or compliance considerations). It may be
managed by the organizations themselves or by a third party, and may exist on-premises or off-premises.

4. Hybrid Cloud
The cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or more clouds (private, community or public) that remain
unique entities but are bound together by standardized or proprietary technology enabling data and
application portability (e.g. cloud bursting for load-balancing between clouds).
 • Benefits: Operational flexibility - run mission-critical workloads on a private cloud while running
dev/test on a public cloud; scalability - run peak and bursty workloads on the public cloud.
• Risks: Hybrid clouds are still evolving; managing security consistently between the private and
public portions can be difficult.

Public vs Private Cloud - Quick Comparison

Public Cloud Private Cloud

Offered via web applications/services over the

Dedicated to a single organization.
Internet to the public.

Supports multiple customers (multi-tenant). Supports a dedicated customer only.

Full/shared utilization of infrastructure. Does not utilize shared infrastructure.

Comparatively lower security. High level of security.

Low cost. High cost.

Examples: Azure, AWS, Google App Engine. Example: NIRIX dedicated server.
Q4. Describe the service models of cloud computing.
Cloud service models describe the type of service that the service provider offers, and define what the
vendor manages versus what remains the client's responsibility. The three best-known service models are
IaaS, PaaS and SaaS, often shown together as the 'cloud computing stack'.

Cloud Clients: Web browser, mobile app, thin client

SaaS - CRM, Email, Virtual Desktop, Communication, Games

PaaS - Execution runtime, Database, Web server, Dev tools

IaaS - Virtual machines, Servers, Storage, Load balancers, Network

Fig 1.4: Cloud computing stack - IaaS, PaaS, SaaS

1. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

In this layer, servers, network devices and storage disks are made available to organizations as services
on a need-to basis, instead of the organization purchasing physical hardware. The provider rents server
space, network equipment, memory, CPU cycles and storage. The customer controls the operating
system, deployed applications, storage, and sometimes certain networking components, but does not
manage the underlying cloud infrastructure. Examples: Amazon EC2, Rackspace, GoGrid.

2. Platform as a Service (PaaS)

PaaS takes the development environment and offers it as a service. It provides a complete platform -
hardware, operating system, runtime environment, middleware, database, web server and development
tools - for developers to build, test, deploy and manage applications without worrying about the underlying
infrastructure. The customer controls the deployed applications (and possibly configuration settings) but
not the servers, storage or network. Examples: Google App Engine, Microsoft Azure, Heroku, SAP.

3. Software as a Service (SaaS)

SaaS provider hosts the complete, ready-to-use application on their own servers, and the user simply
subscribes to and accesses the software through the Internet (typically a web browser), without installing
or maintaining anything locally. The provider manages everything - infrastructure, platform and the
application itself. Examples: Gmail, Office 365, Dropbox, Salesforce, Zoom.

Comparison of IaaS, PaaS and SaaS

Parameter IaaS PaaS SaaS

Automated, scalable
A framework for quickly
virtual infrastructure Ready-to-use applications
What is offered developing and deploying
(servers, storage, available over the Internet.
applications.
network).

Example AWS EC2, Rackspace, Google App Engine, Gmail, Dropbox, Salesforce,
providers GoGrid Azure, Heroku Office 365

Managed by Nothing - only

OS, applications, data Applications and data only
customer configuration/usage
 Parameter IaaS PaaS SaaS

Managed by Servers, storage, network, Everything (infra + platform +

+ OS, runtime, middleware
provider virtualization app)

IT administrator / system
Typical user Software developer End user
admin

Billing Pay-for-what-you-use Pay-as-you-go Pay-as-you-go / subscription

In addition to these three, Identity as a Service (IDaaS) is a cloud-based authentication/IAM offering

(SSO, MFA, access security, directory, provisioning) operated by a third-party provider that secures
access to the growing number of SaaS applications used by an organization.
Q5. Explain virtualization and its role in cloud computing.

What is Virtualization?
Virtualization is the process of creating a virtual (rather than actual) version of a computing resource -
such as a server, operating system, storage device or network - so that a single piece of physical
hardware can be divided into multiple isolated virtual environments. This is achieved with the help of a
software layer called a Hypervisor (or Virtual Machine Monitor, VMM), which sits between the physical
hardware and the virtual machines (VMs), allocating hardware resources to each VM and keeping them
isolated from one another.

Traditional (No Virtualization) With Virtualization

VM 1 App VM 2 App
Application
Guest OS Guest OS

Operating System Hypervisor (VMM)

Physical Hardware Physical Hardware

Fig 1.5: Traditional architecture vs. virtualized architecture with a hypervisor

Types of Virtualization
• Full Virtualization: The hypervisor completely emulates the underlying hardware so that unmodified
guest operating systems can run as if on real hardware.
• Para-Virtualization: The guest OS is modified to be aware that it is running in a virtualized
environment, and communicates directly with the hypervisor for better performance.
• Hardware-assisted / OS-level Virtualization: Uses processor extensions (e.g., Intel VT-x, AMD-V)
or OS-level containers to run multiple isolated instances directly.
• Other forms: Storage virtualization, network virtualization, desktop virtualization and application
virtualization - which virtualize storage pools, network resources, end-user desktops and individual
applications respectively.

Role of Virtualization in Cloud Computing

• Resource pooling and multi-tenancy: Virtualization allows a cloud provider's physical servers to
be abstracted into a shared pool of resources, which is what enables multiple tenants/consumers to
use the same physical hardware securely and independently - the foundation of the NIST 'resource
pooling' characteristic.
• Elasticity and on-demand provisioning: Because VMs are just software constructs, they can be
created, cloned, resized, migrated or destroyed within minutes, giving cloud platforms the rapid
elasticity and self-service provisioning that define cloud computing.
• Better hardware utilization / cost reduction: A dozen virtual servers can run on a single physical
server, drastically reducing the hardware, power, cooling and space costs for the provider, and hence
the price charged to the consumer.
 • Isolation and security: Each VM runs its own OS and applications independently; a fault or attack
in one VM does not directly affect others sharing the same physical host.
• Foundation for IaaS: Virtual machines are the actual product sold in Infrastructure-as-a-Service
offerings (e.g., Amazon EC2 instances) - the customer rents a virtual server rather than physical
hardware.
• Live migration and disaster recovery: VMs can be migrated between physical hosts with little or
no downtime, enabling load balancing across data centers and fast recovery in case of hardware
failure - supporting the cloud's fault-tolerance requirement.
• Simplified management: Cloud management software can uniformly provision, monitor and scale a
large number of virtualized resources, which would be impractical to do with physical machines alone.
In short, virtualization is the underlying enabling technology of cloud computing: without the ability to
abstract physical hardware into flexible, isolated, rapidly provisioned virtual resources, the essential
characteristics of cloud computing (on-demand self-service, resource pooling, rapid elasticity and
measured service) would not be practically achievable.

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